Locals Protest Newly OK'd Building With Parking Spots Near Train

ASTORIA, QUEENS — The City Council approved a proposal for a new development in Astoria, but some locals are concerned that the building's 30-car garage wastes necessary housing space in favor of parking, despite the building's close proximity to public transportation.

The proposed 11-story, mixed use building located at 32-02 Newtown Street has been making its way through the city's multi-step review process since the beginning of this year, and the City Council's stamp of approval on Thursday is likely the last step before construction can begin.

When the neighborhood's community board voted 19 to 11 to approve the development in January, some critics raised concerns about its size and affordability — concerns that are surfacing again after the City Council's latest decision, in addition to issues with the parking garage.

"A car garage is not the best use of land right next to a subway station and we desperately need housing," wrote one neighbor in a community forum.

"Shame about them being forced to include parking a block from a subway station and two buses," echoed another.

A third called the addition of 30 parking spaces "insane."

And the parking spaces weren't the only concerns that locals raised about the building. Many noted its size and affordability as possible issues in an area of Astoria that has relatively few 10-plus story buildings and is rapidly gentrifying.

"I think it's telling that in the renderings they don't show any of the buildings around it, cause it will only show out of place it looks," wrote one neighbor, who pointed out that there are very few buildings nearby that are higher than 6-stories.

Another raised concerns about the building's affordable units.

Although the 102 unit building is slated to have 26 affordable units, the price for those units is in accordance with the City's Mandatory Inclusionary Housing program, which often sets salary minimums for applicants that are not considered widely accessible.

"The more of these that go up without stabilized units, the more the "affordable" price goes up, which in turn ups the price of deregulated apartments elsewhere, along with commercial rents," wrote the neighbor, pointing out that the addition of luxury units into the neighborhood ultimately pushes up the neighborhood's median income, in turn increasing the so-called affordable price.

Another neighbor on the thread pointed out that half of the affordable units have been specifically reserved for Community Board 1 members, a possible deal-sweetener reported by the Astoria Post that this neighbor regards as "corrupt."

The Astoria site reported that advocates for the building at 32-02 Newtown Street say that it makes sense to have a dense development near a busy area, in lieu of the existing commercial buildings — a tire repair shop, a warehouse, and offices — which don't bring the same amount of traffic to the neighborhood.

However, this is not the first Astoria development that has come under criticism for parking spaces, size, and affordability as of late.

Last month, some local leaders pushed back against a proposed $2 billion mixed-use cultural hub in Astoria, dubbed Innovation QNS, citing the developments close to 1,600 parking spaces and impact on existing neighbors as concerns.

While the time for public comment has closed on Innovation QNS, which will later be reviewed by the same community board, the building at 32-02 Newtown Street will continue to next development steps in a matter of weeks.