Sunnyside Yards, via EDC.
Aug. 29, 2019 By Shane O’Brien
Officials continue to work on drafting a master plan for the massive Sunnyside Yard and the city is hosting yet another public meeting where residents can get to weigh in.
The meeting will take place at Aviation High School at 45-30 36th St. in Long Island City on Monday, Sept. 16 and is the third in a series of public meetings organized by the New York City Economic Development Corporation (EDC) and Amtrak, which owns the majority of the site.
The city has been working on a master plan for the 180-acre site since May 2018 and expects to complete it by the end of the year.
The master plan will lay the groundwork for future development, which is likely to involve building a deck over the railway yard and constructing thousands of housing units, commercial space and community facilities. The plan will address the area’s transportation, school and green space needs.
The September meeting will focus mostly on open space and infrastructure. The announcement/invitation for the meeting reads:
“For the past several months, we’ve gathered your insights and input at a variety of events, and we’ve done extensive research to help form a vision for the Sunnyside Yard Master Plan. Come be a part of the conversation that will continue to shape the future of this area.
“Based on input from public meetings, workshops, and hundreds of interviews, there will be some early concepts to help address open space and infrastructure needs and better connect existing neighborhoods. This is part of an iterative process with opportunities for ongoing feedback.”
The master plan is being developed by a team of architects, engineers and urban experts–among others–who have been working with a local steering committee.
The committee, called the Sunnyside Yard Steering Committee, is made up of about 40 local leaders and stakeholders who are helping to shape the plan.
The EDC said that the Sunnyside Yard site presents an opportunity for the city to provide housing and industry for New York’s growing population.
The EDC anticipates that New York City’s population will grow by 500,000 within 20 years, with Queens’ population set to rise by 80,000 during that period. It says that the growth will place additional strain on the city’s infrastructure and housing supply–and that Sunnyside Yard will help the city address these challenges.
However, the population of New York City has been on the decline in recent years, according to census numbers that were released in April.
The population of New York City shrank by nearly 40,000 people between 2017 and 2018, while the population of Queens County fell by 18,000 in the same period. New York City has not experienced population growth since 2013, according to those figures.
The EDC’s meetings have generated a lot of interest since the master planning process began. Hundreds of people attended the previous meetings that took place in March 2019 and October 2018.
For more details on the meeting or to RSVP visit www.sunnysideyard.nyc
Attendees at the first public meeting for the Sunnyside Yard Master Planning Process in October 2018. (Photo: Nathaly Pesantez)
Featured Events
17 Comments
While it would be nice for the yard to be used for housing and parks, it’s very unlikely it’ll be developed in my lifetime. It just doesn’t make sense economically to develop the yard, decking is NOT cheap.
I hope I’m wrong, because it would be nice to have a neighborhood linking Astoria and Sunnyside.
Must every single possible piece of land be a target of development? Hasn’t the unsuccessful unpopulated Hudson Yards shown that?
God, leave it be!
But the better news is it’ll take decades to even get the first shovel in the ground, given the number of big mouths shown to exist from the Amazon debacle. Now that’s funny
People seriously need to relax. It’ll take decades to fill in the entire Sunnyside Yard footprint that this master plan calls for and that’s WITHOUT any economic recessions in the coming decades.
All the NIMBYs here are perpetually afraid of change; any change! This town has always evolved. Look no further than the MTA archives of when the 7 train was built. There were cows grazing on Queens Blvd.
I feel it’ll triple that 500,000 number. I’ll be like China here and I believe in less than 10 years. I’m selling my house and moving this neighborhood has already been ruined as has the so called infrastructure. Hey all things change, great memories, its past me by and I’m only 49. I’m retiring at 52 . later for this place. The politician are like rabid dogs looking eat. Like vultures over a carcass in a warm Autumn night. Its what brings these changes. Let’s be nice and call them ambitious. One good thing out of all of this is I only paid $235,700 for my now $1.1 million dollar home.
Nah man. NYC and other socialist democratic cities are on the decline. History says that politicians who increase taxes and stifle free thought crash and burn like Rome. More Libertarian cities who lower taxes and increase free thought are on the rise. It’s by no coincidence that this is the path of a city in decline.
I’d love to know where you got that bogus info from.
They should build a state of the art
ICE detention center.
Torres!!! Hahah ur def gon be there bud!
Wasn’t Mexico going to make a one-time payment for it?
Wasn’t Trump Shutdown supposed to get money for it?
Wasn’t begging Democrats supposed to work?
Why is Trump so soft on border security?
This has the potential to vastly increase the supply of parking in the neighborhood.
Yay, cars!
All roads in this project must include a standard design of a protected light rail line, one car lane and a protected 2 way bike lane.
Drop off zones integrated in front of the building properties. Loading zones & garbage pick ups behind the buildings.
The second floor of the buildings should be set for car & bike parking, since you can’t do it underground. Which means on street parking will no longer be necessary.
In an ideal world (hopefully this project can be the one) you’d have no need for a car in this stretch of the city if alternative (not car) transportation is designed and implemented properly. Other than that it’ll still be the same old BS.
This is so true, if the plan is not ambitious just spare it from us. Until 100 years ago cities were not built around cars and softer means of transportation must take over. Also Queens badly needs some accessible greenery, not just a derelict park stuck between a third world highway and a third world airport. It is all about quality and balancing social heterogeneity, while making sure crime is heavily tamed, and pollution is fought, we need water cleaning, modern sewage, solar panels and windmills. Good school and sustainable ambition. And draw the right people here, not shady engineers and bigoted investors. Follow my gaze.
I am thinking communists mayors as their type of socialism is only for the masses. Them and their friends get rich while they look to bigger and better NEVER attainable goals
Please don’t make it a land grab for annexing it to uber-affluent L.I.C. We have a glut of fancy pants “luxury” housing for people who don’t need it, who can live anywhere they want- and then they whine about the rest of us having alleged feelings of “entitlement.”
NYC will not grow to 500,000 people with these types of socialist mayors who care more about illegals while slaughtering the middle class and taxing the rich. The rich will move else where. NYC is on the decline (much like most cities) which is tough for some to realize.
Sorry buddy but your cry has been echoed for decades. NYC always comes back that’s just history.