Grand plans inch forward for 62-acre Queens that's been the subject of a lengthy legal battle between the city and some of the local businesses that would be displaced.
The city moved another step forward Monday with its hotly contested plans to redevelop Willets Point, Queens. The city's Economic Development Corp. issued a request for proposal seeking a developer to build out the first portion of the 62-acre site, a parcel of land located next to Citi Field.
The request for proposal comes just days after the city was given the green light to begin the public review process for two proposed highway off-ramps for the Van Wyck Expressway, which are crucial to redevelopment of Willets Point.
According to the city, plans for phase one includes up to 680,000 square feet of retail space, up to 400 units of housing (35% of them affordable), a hotel, two acres of open space and parking.
Opponents of the city's plan, led by Willets Point property owners, argue that the RFP issuance is too hasty since the highway off-ramps have not been approved by the state or the federal government. But the city claims that the ramps are not essential to the first phase of redevelopment, which involves developing 12.7 acres of land and transforming the parcel “into a mixed-use, sustainable community and regional destination."
“Selecting a developer will put us one step closer to realizing the goal that the community created, leaders across Queens have envisioned for decades, and a project that the City Council overwhelmingly approved: making Willets Point New York City's next great neighborhood,” EDC President Seth Pinsky said in a statement.
“We think this is premature,” said Michael Gerrard, senior counsel of Arnold & Porter, who represents 10 businesses that have been fighting for years to halt the Willets Point redevelopment. Some of Mr. Gerrard's clients are actually located in the first phase, he noted. “The project is still in legal limbo due to continuing uncertainty over whether the city will receive approval for the Van Wyck ramps that are essential to the project, which was approved as a whole, not something that could be broken into chunks or phases.”
The RFP comes two years after the city issued a request for qualifications for phase one, which is used by local governments to determine if private developers would be interested in developing a site. The city received 29 responses. Submissions to the latest request for proposal are due Aug. 12 and respondents are required to include a concept plan for the entire redevelopment of 62 acres.
According to the city, plans for phase one includes up to 680,000 square feet of retail space, up to 400 units of housing (35% of them affordable), a hotel, two acres of open space and parking. The city also said the first phase will create 1,800 permanent jobs and 4,600 construction-related jobs. The city owns and controls roughly 90% of the land in phase one.
May 10, 2011
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