Plaxall Company has proposed a rezoning of the area around Anable Basin to spur future development. If approved, Plaxall will seek out developers to realize this plan, with a 695’ apartment tower on one of the subparcels.
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I used to live close by to this. We will see if that tower will reach full height though with the FAA…
Although I guess it is only about 50 feet taller than the Citi building.
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“I think people will come out and say that’s too much,” said Diane Hendry, a spokeswoman for the LIC Coalition, a nonprofit that formed last year to fight overdevelopment in the neighborhood. Ms. Hendry, 58, a 29-year resident of the area and an artist, calls the family members from Plaxall Realty, the company behind the plan, “fabulous.”
“But that doesn’t mean they should have the biggest, grandest development,” she added.
If you disagree, you need to come out and say “that’s not too much” at community meetings on this rezoning.
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Whether or not it’s watered down depends on public input. I’m pessimistic…these sorts of plans usually are watered down in New York. The councilman that controls this district, Jimmy Van Bramer, killed a 100% affordable building with 210 affordable units that was much smaller than this (only 9 stories). Van Bramer listens to NIMBYs.
The best way to ensure that it won’t get watered down too much is to vocally support this proposal, especially if you live in LIC/Astoria.
Find your council district using this widget:
If you live in District 26, then you must call your council representative, Jimmy Van Bramer, and tell him you are a resident of his district (provide your address) and support this project because it provides the city with a school and over a thousand units of affordable housing and that you urge him to support it too. If this project gets watered down, that means that fewer units of affordable housing will be built.
His phone number is 718-383-9566 and his email is JVanBramer@council.nyc.gov.
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Those renderings are pretty flattering to the East River, I don’t think it will have the charm of the Riverwalk even with good intentions…I’m curious if the basin is prone to garbage from the river channeling in there? That said, this would be a big deal but will take quite some time - I know a lot of those lots are occupied w/ active businesses so they’d all have to leave - The large building on the right on the last picture is a 6 or 7 floor Dpt of Education building that is an eyesore, it’s just massive and does not meet the street in a friendly way - It has HUGE floors and is fully occupied with DOE employees at the moment but it would be cool if the city could somehow sell that. I’d like to see it knocked down one day…
HQ2 will include Plaxall’s and TF Cornerstone’s properties.
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TF Cornerstone contemplates massive office tower on former Amazon HQ2 campus along the Anable Basin
Developer TF Cornerstone is planning to build a massive office tower along the Anable Basin in Long Island City where Amazon planned to build its HQ2 campus before bolting the borough on St. Valentine’s Day just over a year ago.
In an interview with The Real Deal at the Real Estate Board of New York’s annual gala, TF Cornerstone’s chairman and co-founder Tom Elghanayan discussed the e-commerce giant scuttling the project over a lack of collaborative relationships with state and local officials.
“We never expected Amazon and as abruptly as they came, they left abruptly, too,” Elghanayan said. “It was sort of surgical. It wasn’t a long drawn out thing. It was like the patient was sick, and then he was dead.”
Elghanayan was also able to find a silver lining after his company’s partnership with Amazon collapsed.
“In a funny way, it improved Long Island City because no one was thinking about Long Island City as an office headquarters distinction before and now people are going ‘well, Amazon could go there,’” Elghanayan said. “In fact, we plan to build a building a million square feet. It’s quite a large building.”
Asked for further clarification, a spokesperson for TF Cornerstone said that there are no final plans for the sites, but they are exploring job-generating uses after hearing from the community and the city that economic empowerment, the creation of good jobs, and workforce training opportunities are some of the top priorities.
“We are also exploring other community-serving uses, public open space, education, and more based on residents feedback,” the spokesperson said. “The public engagement process for the full 28 acres of waterfront will continue in the coming months and we look forward to presenting plans to the community after the completion of the community visioning process.”
TF Cornerstone, Plaxall, Simon Baron Development and L&L MAG launched the YourLIC public engagement process for the future of the waterfront in November. There are two more public workshops coming up next month.
The Comprehensive Neighborhood Planning Mobility and Infrastructure workshop will take place Monday, March 9 from 6 to 8 p.m. at Info Tech High School, located at 21-16 44th Road. That will be followed by a Density and Uses workshop on March 23 at a time and location to be determined.
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Will it be short and squat tho? Is all of LIC in the flight path of LGA? I know the Skyline tower got its height chopped. I wonder if we can ever build a supertall in Queens.
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I’m thinking more bulk than height. 700 foot range.
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A super tall would be great.
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Developers Hatch Plans For Mega-Towers On Former Amazon HQ2 Site
LONG ISLAND CITY, QUEENS — Last summer, four developers who own land on Long Island City’s Anable Basin launched a public engagement initiative called Your LIC to “collectively develop an inclusive, equitable plan” for the area once promised to Amazon, as the project’s website puts it.
As the public weighs in on the future of those 28 acres at a series of public workshops and online, the developers are privately hatching plans for a series of mega-towers lining the Long Island City waterfront, according to internal documents obtained by Patch.
The developers — TF Cornerstone, Simon Baron Development, L&L MAG and Plaxall — have sketched plans for buildings as tall as 76 stories, according to a source with direct knowledge of the discussions, who asked to remain anonymous for fear of retaliation.
A grayscale rendering obtained by Patch shows multiple skyscrapers on the waterfront site, the tallest of which would range from 70 to 76 stories, the source said.
TF Cornerstone, which won the rights to develop two city-owned sites on Anable Basin back in 2017, is planning a million-square-foot office building, co-founder Tom Elghanayan told The Real Deal at a conference last month.
Another planning document, which was obtained through a public records request and shared with Patch, shows that the developers are considering a proposal to de-map two streets in the area, which, historically, has been done to make room for increased development. (Much of the site is zoned for manufacturing, city records show.)
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Damn, 76 stories right on the LIC waterfront. This has the potential to truly turn this part of the East River into a skyscraper canyon.
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Wow! This is a game changer for queens.
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Next to 9 Dekalb Rising, Biggest good news in 2020. 
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Developers Unveil Big Plans for LIC Waterfront, Up to 12 Million Square Feet Planned 
A group of developers looking to build on a 28-acre section of land surrounding Anable Basin provided an overview of their plans at a Community Board 2 Land Use Meeting Wednesday night.
The developers announced that they are looking to build 10-to-12 million square feet of space on the 28-acre area with buildings that range in height from 400 to 700 square feet, the equivalent of 30 to 60 story structures.
The plan would focus heavily on commercial space, and the project would be developed over a 10 to 15 year period. The developers aim to get the property rezoned next year.
The plan includes 7 acres of open space, space for three schools and ½ million square feet for arts and cultural space and similar uses. The plan would also include a pedestrian/bicyclist bridge over Anable Basin that would connect 5th Street on both sides of the water.
The developers said that about 50 percent of the 10-12 million square feet would be for commercial use. The proposal would also include mixed-income housing, although the number of units was not disclosed at the meeting.
The plan–presented by a development team consisting of TF Cornerstone, Plaxall, Simon Baron Development and MAG Partners—incorporates the sites where Amazon HQ2 was slated to be built as well as some adjacent parcels.
The developers—with the exception of TF Cornerstone—each own a portion of the 28 acre area. TF Cornerstone is looking to develop two city-owned lots on 44th Drive, which are part of the 28-acre area.
“We believe this is appropriate for this location,” said Eleanora Bershadskaya, a Senior Associate at TF Cornerstone.
TF Cornerstone, she said, is developing parcel C at Hunters Point South, with one of its two towers reaching 550 feet.
Furthermore, the properties in the Court Square section of Long Island City are of a similar size. For instance, One Court Square—also known as the Citigroup Building–is 50 stories tall and about 670 feet tall. The Skyline Tower, which is going up at 23-15 44th Dr., will be 778 feet high and 68 stories.
The developers were asked about the scale and density of the plans given the pandemic. They said that they are planning for the long term and that there will be demand.
“We think density makes New York City great and we remain committed to that,” said Ashley Cotton, with MAG Partners. “We think immigrants, young people, professionals and college grads will continue to come here.”
The group went into detail about the open space, noting that it would provide a connection to Hunters Point South and sets the stage for a corridor that could eventually go to Queensbridge.
The plans call for a junior soccer field, a tot lot and a track at the northern section. Then farther south, provisions are made for a plaza, esplanade, kayak launch and more.
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10 - 15 years is a long time, will be worth the wait
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Oh wow! That’s gonna be quite the development.
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I wonder if zoning allows for high rises in the area between the Basin and Downtown LIC
Would be cool to see those two areas connected by skyscrapers
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Ha I used to live in that area in the box. So I know a few of these low rises are old brownstones that are protected by the historical society. But I think it’s only like 2 blocks.
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