Vacant Site next to St. Sebastian’s Catholic School (Photo: St. Sebastian’s)
June 18, 2021 By Christian Murray
A large development company has purchased the vacant lot next to St. Sebastian’s School in Woodside for $5.5 million.
United Construction and Development, which has a portfolio of mixed-use buildings throughout Queens, bought the vacant lot from St. Sebastian’s Roman Catholic Church on March 25.
The company confirmed that it purchased the 39-53 57th St. site under the name Woodside 57 Street Realty.
United Construction, located on Northern Boulevard in Corona, is a major player in several large developments in Queens.
It is part of a consortium of developers behind the 68-story Skyline Tower in Long Island City, the tallest building in Queens. It also is the developer of the Justice Avenue Tower in Elmhurst, near the Queens Place Mall.
The 68-story Skyline Tower in Long Island City (Photo: Queens Post)
The Woodside site, once a playground for school children at St. Sebastian’s, is large with a frontage on 57th and 58th streets. The property is 1/2 an acre in size.
On June 8, United Construction filed plans with the Dept. of Buildings calling for the site to be subdivided into 8 tax lots. The company has yet to file building plans.
St. Sebastian’s, a parish saddled in debt, put the property on the market last year. It was listed by the brokerage company Cushman & Wakefield as a development site for $6.25 million.
“The site offers a developer the opportunity to capitalize on the low supply of luxury rental and condominium housing in the neighborhood,” the listing read.
The property was put on the market largely due to financial reasons.
“St. Sebastian’s parish property includes an empty lot and given its limited use, it has been listed for sale,” said a spokesperson for the Roman Catholic Diocese of Brooklyn, which oversees parishes in Queens and Brooklyn. “This is simply a financially prudent decision,” they said in October.
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11 Comments
Maybe the Developer will consider building a stairway to Heaven and charge a steep admission fee for a one way ticket
Just so sad. More and more green space is disappearing. The height will also diminish the blue sky. Ugh
Hope the parish will be able to reopen the rec center now Any chance?
Used to play baseball there as a kid
ST SEBASTIANS sold out the neighborhood. so much for the semblance of ‘community’
There goes the neighborhood.
The area was never a playground for St. Sebastian School. It was a garden used by the nuns in the convent and the priests in the rectory. There were two statues and a use to have a very large gazebo. Students were only allowed in there for May Crowning, Communion / Confirmation pictures, etc.
Yes. It use to have a tall wooden fence so you could not see into the garden from the sidewalk.
I attended SSS from 1996-2005. We had gym classes in that lot (soccer, baseball, kickball, PAL leagues), and if the weather were uncooperative, we’d do gym class at the parish center (also closed for good).
so divine that a new condo will be built on it. faith is one expensive commodity!
Luxury housing is in short supply??!