New Developments Sprout In Queens
BY LIZ GOFF

Site of former gas station situated on 31st St. near broadway.

Neighborhoods throughout Long Island City are undergoing major facelifts, with new luxury rental units taking the place of former commercial properties and long-vacant lots.

Dozens of luxury residential units will soon sprout on the site of a gas station/car wash on 31st Street near Broadway in Long Island City. Developer Branko Mustac told the Gazette the development would feature 65 one- and two-bedroom luxury rental units, along with 1,600 square feet of basement parking. Medical offices will fill 1,600 square feet of space on the ground floor of the development, Mustac said. Crews are currently laying the foundation for the development, which is scheduled for completion by Fall 2008.

Demolition is underway along a dismal strip of former auto repair properties on 31st Street near 37th Avenue in the Dutch Kills area of Long Island City. A spokesperson for developer Alma Realty said the site would soon boast new commercial units that will complement massive renovations Alma is completing on an adjacent factory building.

Development is also in the planning stages for an undisclosed number of rental units that will fill two properties on 31st Street near 38th Avenue, the property owner said. A twofamily house and a vacant lot currently occupy the two sites.

A recent series of zoning changes has paved the way for new residential development in the Dutch Kills community, where unrelenting zoning restrictions once threatened to force homeowners out of the area.

"It was a long, uphill battle to secure the right of Dutch Kills residents to remain in their own homes," Dutch Kills Civic Association president Gerald Walsh said. "Proudly, the community was up to the challenge."