Steinway $5M Revitalization Signals Intent To Remain In Astoria
by john toscano

The world-renowned Steinway & Sons piano factory in Astoria, a fixture in the area for over a century, seems destined to remain here for at least another 100 years, judging from its $5 million expansion and renovation project now nearing completion.

The famous piano-making firm made just one move in its long history, from Manhattan, where it was founded by Henry Steinweg, a German immigrant, in 1853 to what is now 1 Steinway Place near 19th Street.

Once established here around 1870, Steinweg made one major adjustment, changing his name to "Steinway" and giving that name to the equally famous Steinway Street, ranked among the major commercial retail strips in the world.

The firm’s present leaders undertook the renovation and expansion of the 27-building complex spread over 11 acres to meet the increasing piano restoration phase of its business, as well as to increase parts storage capacity.

Most of the buildings are structurally sound, but were in need of extensive modernization—modern plumbing, electrical wiring, new boilers and roofs. In addition, Steinway’s new owners since 1995, Steinway Musical Instruments, Inc. of Waltham, Massachusetts were intrested in making the building plant more efficient.

Along the way, according to Dennis Tortora, vice president and controller, all 6,000 incandescent bulbs were replaced with energy-efficient fluorescent bulbs and 1,522 old-fashioned single pane casement windows were replaced with double-pane thermal windows.

In addition, new saw dust systems not only clean the air in the factories but also run the sawdust through a wood-burning boiler to produce steam for conditioning the wood used to make the pianos and to heat and cool the buildings.

As one means of creating more space for storage, a building which had not been used for about a dozen years, except occasionally for storage, was reopened and outfitted with a new roof and upgraded electrical wiring and plumbing. About a dozen windows were also installed in the previously windowless structure to let some natural light in.

The bright, renovated and refurbished building now houses Steinway’s growing parts department and piano restoration business. What used to be just a sideline to the main piano-making business now accounts for 300 restorations a year, as compared to about 50 several years ago.

A piano restoration takes less time, three to six months, than the nine months to a year needed to build a brand-new piano and costs from $5,000 to $25,000. In contrast, new Steinways range in price from about $14,000 to $22,000 for uprights, and $32,000 to $85,000 for grand pianos. Some units, with special elaborate woodwork or decorations, known as "art-case" pianos, can cost as much as $250,000.

Meanwhile, the business, or art, of building the new products that have distinguished the name of Steinway imprinted on a piano goes on.

In all, a workforce of about 650 piano makers, members of Local 102, United Furniture Workers of America, turn out each year about 2,700 grand pianos, 600 uprights, and about 300 renovations. The company’s other plant, in Hamburg, Germany, produces another 1,400 pianos, including 200 to 300 uprights.

Looking to the future, Steinway’s new owners used part of the $5 million makeover package to train new workers. Tortora said no school exists for piano makers, so they have to be trained on-site.

Part of the restoration funding came from government agencies. The New York City Industrial Development Agency provided a $7 million real estate tax reduction over 25 years and the New York Power Authority gave a 20 percent electricity cost reduction through its "Power for Jobs" program.

So, Steinway, a good neighbor to the Astoria–Long Island City community for over a century, as well as a world class piano-maker, is positioned to remain here for some time to come.