Queens Plaza Gets $2.5M Fed Funding For Major Makeover

Gazette photo The lawmakers hailed the funding and the project to transform the 250-foot-wide plaza at the foot of the Queensborough Bridge.

by john toscano

Congressmembers Joseph Crowley and Carolyn Maloney have announced the securing of a $2.5 million federal allocation to redesign Queens Plaza in Long Island City and transform it into what they termed "a completely new gateway to Queens county."

The lawmakers hailed the funding and the project to transform the 250-foot-wide plaza at the foot of the Queensborough Bridge into an expanse move accommodating to traffic and friendlier to the environment.

The new improvement plan, called the Queens Plaza Roadway Rebuilding Project, comes on the heels of a much broader plan to develop Long Island City as a major regional business district.

In recent years, portions of the historically key area have been rezoned to attract new commercial development as part of the city’s major economic development plan. One of the major new arrivals has been the Metropolitan Life Insurance Company, a which has constructed a new building to accommodate over 1,000 employees.

The major goals of the city’s plan are to create new jobs and increase the flow of revenue into the city’s coffers.

Maloney (D–Queens/ Manhattan) hailed the latest measure to rebuild the area, saying, "Revitalizing Queens Plaza will improve Long Island City neighborhoods, reduce traffic and pollution and grow the local economy, so I am thrilled to announce the allocation of these funds with Congressman Crowley.

"Federal investments in Queens neighborhoods, commercial centers and transit systems are vital to the borough’s future and those investments are a top priority in Washington. We will continue to work with Queens residents and business leaders to develop the best possible plans for the borough’s quality of life and economic growth."

Crowley (D–Queens/ Bronx) declared he was extremely pleased with the funding and said the project will benefit the residents of Long Island City immensely.

The Elmhurst lawmaker explained: "The goal of the project, redesigning Queens Plaza, will ease traffic congestion and improve air quality conditions along the plaza." Each day thousands of vehicles pass through the plaza en route to the bridge on their way into Manhattan. The flow reverses during the evening homeward bound rush hour.

Referring to the mass transit hub aspect of the plaza, Crowley said, "The rebuilding of the plaza will encourage residents to use the convenient mass transit trains and buses and other alternate forms of transportation, such as bicycling and walking by improving the pedestrian environment and creating bike lanes.

"This project will also support New York City’s efforts to develop Long Island City as a regional business district, supporting Midtown Manhattan as Downtown Brooklyn supports Lower Manhattan, by making the area more attractive for new development. I look forward to hearing about and seeing the direct impact these funds will make on the community of Long Island City and Queens County as a whole."

Crowley said the roadway rebuilding project would implement the first phase of a Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality (CMAQ) funded project, the Queens Plaza Bike and Pedestrian Improvement Project, the goal of which is the redesign of Queens Plaza. The New York City Department of City Planning will manage the project.

The project includes several phases, including a roadway redesign plan to include more pedestrian space, new bike lanes, reorganized traffic lanes between Crescent Street and Queens Plaza East and a program of innovative streetscape improvements, including landscaping, public art, lighting, crosswalks, street furniture, directional signs and artistic banners, Crowley said.

Other agencies and groups collaborating with City Planning include the city Economic Development Corporation (EDC), Department of Transportation (DOT), and the Parks and Recreation (DPR). Also the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA), the Queens Borough President’s Queens Plaza Task Force and the local community.

In another project in Long Island City, Governor George Pataki awarded $225,000 from the state Environmental Protection Fund local waterfront revitalization program to the City Planning Commission to create an attractive pedestrian route along Borden Avenue from the Long Island Rail Road station to the new Queens West Ferry Terminal. Ferry service is provided from the terminal to Pier 11 in Lower Manhattan.