Rezoning in Long Island City Promises to Be 'Great Uplift'

NEW YORK CITY-The City Planning Commission’s proposed special Long Island City mixed-use district, which will allow large mixed-use buildings in this Queens neighborhood, will help the area flourish, according to longtime area broker Sandy Zuckerbrot. The area included in the Special District is roughly 37 blocks, extending from 41st Avenue in the north to Sunnyside Yards to the east and 23rd Street to the west. The proposed zoning changes would allow new commercial, residential, community and light manufacturing uses, as well as high density development in certain areas.

Sandy Zuckerbrot, president of Sholom & Zuckerbrot Realty LLC, feels that the rezoning will finally bring Long Island City the attention and recognition it deserves. After the Citigroup Building was erected in the early 1980s, many thought more businesses would follow suit. “But that’s not what happened,” Zuckerbrot says. “When we look back, now we see that Downtown Brooklyn got the accelerated office development we were hoping for in Queens. Now, it’s Long Island City’s turn.”