The two-story building at 43-12 50th St.–where Phyzique Gym and New City Billiards were located prior to the outbreak of COVID-19–is likely to be demolished and replaced by an 8-story, 61-unit apartment complex (Photo: Queens Post)
Jan. 3, 2022 By Christian Murray
Permits have been filed for an eight-story, 61 unit building to go up on 50th Street in Woodside where Phyzique Gym and New City Billiards & Café were located.
The proposed development is expected to go up at 43-12 50th St., between 43rd and Roosevelt Avenues, near the 52nd Street-Lincoln Avenue subway station.
According to filings, the new building will be 80-feet-tall, containing 40,318 square feet of residential space. The plans also call for 31 enclosed parking spaces. The developer is listed as Matthew Lawrence of Sarana Development.
Left to Right: Owners of the now-shuttered Phyzique–Nick Komporozos and Rich Bundy (Photo: Queens Post)
Permits were filed in October to demolish the existing two-story structure. The building had housed Phyzique Gym for nearly 30 years, which closed in 2020, an early business casualty of COVID-19.
Phyzique was owned and operated by Rich Bundy and Nick Komporozos, both born-and-raised Woodsiders. Bundy opened the gym in 1991 and Komporozos joined him as a business partner in 2010.
The billiards hall, a family-run operation, was located on the second floor. It closed Dec. 1.
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31 Comments
Wow, they should start with cleaning and fixing the sidewalk. It’s filthy, filled with cigarettes buds and garbage. Gross.
What an absolutely awful idea – parking is already terrible and they aren’t even including a parking space for each unit. Another ugly building to block out the sun for us on 43rd. And of course, it won’t be affordable housing – not that it matters because affordable housing is not affordable. Can’t wait for an even more crowded neighborhood with a crap subway station that hasn’t been updated in forever right by it. Great idea.
Why would it need parking? It’s literally next door to the subway.
Cars are a privilege, not a right. Take the train like everyone else. No sympathy here.
So ignorant. Here is a radical idea, people live in NYC work in places outside of NYC. I’ll keep my RIGHT to have two cars. One for leisure and one for work. I have the OPTION of never using unreliable public transportation. I have the RIGHT to have streets to park my car on.
I can’t afford a single car, let alone “one for leisure.” My taxes still pay for your free parking though. Imagine being so entitled!
Hey Cait, most people in this neighborhood don’t own cars. Mandating parking makes housing more expensive and only results in more drivers congesting local roads.
Sunnyside might not be full as others are saying, but the infrastructure is lacking, just look at the dilapidated state of the 52nd subway station. Besides that, the issue with new buildings nobody cares is aesthetics, although relative, there is zero urban and architecture sensitivity on most of the new hideous building we see around, just ugly and cheap looking construction.
52nd St station is scheduled to be completely rebuilt.
Physique was a good gym. But how do we track down the owners for refunds. They are bandits
Read the contract you signed.
Would be ok if truly affordable housing were being built but probably that is too much to hope for
Truly affordable would be public housing. Do you want that here?
Not unless we are allowed open carry to defend ourselves against the flux of gangs and drug lords that comes with public housing.
cool. The Q32 and the 7 train will never be reliable again. Good luck even getting on a train or bus at the 46th, 40th, and 33rd street stations because of the addition of thousands of new residents in a neighborhood that is AT CAPACITY.
I don’t get it. There are already plenty of undeveloped EMPTY lots out by JFK and Ozone Park…all serviced by the under utilized A train. Why can’t all new housing developments go there? The infrastructure in Sunnyside can’t take more people. It would automatically be affordable given the market price of those areas…you can get a 2 Bedroom for 1500 over there.
This was an amazing MOM and POP gym. So sad to see this facility close and the owners not being able to survive the pandemic. Not gonna lie thou the owners probably made out with some money because I know I had more then 8 months or so left on my membership and didn’t receive any compensation. But hey whatever sometimes you just take the L. Just joined NYSC because of it convivence but man does that gym really suck lol. Whatever hopefully someone would reopen a new Mom and Pop gym like Pulse before they got horribly run by the new owners. We also need a decent BAGEL spot in SUNNYSIDE!!!
agreed. we need a good mom and pop gym and bagel spot…real bagel, not that fake stuff. need a murray’s bagels.
Chakra is a good bagel spot
There sandwiches are good and breakfast platters as well. However, there are not a good bagel spot, they don’t make their bagels on site. Dave’s Bagels on queens blvd and 44 st was the last true bagel spot in Sunnyside. Get out of here with Chakra being a “bagel” spot. I bet you didn’t even know that Sunnyside use to have a C-TOWN on 43rd Ave and 45th st or what “Grandpa’s Deli” use to be??
I just want to add to what many have already said – Phyzique was one of the best run Gyms I’ve ever belonged to. Nick and Rich really made the most of their floor space and their enthusiasm was infectious. God I miss that place.
I got banned from this gym for dosing myself with vitamin D. Mask up everyone!
Exercise improves brain power. You should try it. And get another name.
Reading improves brain power. Your should try it and stop taking my name.
Will there be affordable housing? Why not 13 stories like 63& Roosevelt. That would be ridiculous wouldn’t it
Affordable housing for who? Affordable housing is a joke
That was a great neighborhood gym with really friendly owners. It’s a shame it had to close. It seems most other gyms in the area focus on martial arts, boxing, or cross fit. Blink in Woodside is a regular gym, but totally overrun. It came down to the YMCA and NY Sports Club for me, and I went with NYSC. It’s way less expensive than the YMCA. The facility itself is okay — could be bigger, especially the weights area.
Bring back the gym !
Much needed housing but RIP Phyzique.
Sunnyside is full. Plenty of space for more housing out by JFK. Plenty of empty lots too.
Sunnyside is not full. Young people shouldn’t be forced to live out by JFK because old NIMBYs don’t want more housing here.
Because hundreds of surveys and polls indicate that young professionals are moving to remote work?
People that are so quick to use “NIMBY” usually can’t see further than 1 step ahead. I get it. It’s more about the soapbox than anything so let me put it as plainly as I can…we do not have the infrastructure in the sense of public transportation, parking, schools, hospitals, public safety to keep adding new families by the hundreds…unless there are plans to increase those things, sunnyside is full.
You literally are saying all the same nonsense that NIMBYs usually say. Sunnyside is not full. It needs lots of new housing units so that young people can live here too. Just because you bought a condo 30 years ago doesn’t give you the right to dictate the state of the community for all eternity.