A car dealership located across the Grand Central Parkway from Citi Field will soon give way to a 106,000-square-foot convention center an a 25-story hotel and residential tower. In December, Flushing-based Fleet Financial Group paid $17 million for the site, which, given its proximity to the $3 billion Willets Point megaproject, is an obvious candidate for redevelopment. The Daily News reports that Fleet's plans call for a $200 million complex with 292 hotel rooms and 236 residences, plus 97,000 square feet of retail, a restaurant, and parking. A rendering from Fleet shows a sloping triangular building topped by lots of greenery (and a swimming pool?), and the developer plans to break ground in June. The executive director of the Queens EDC applauded the plans, but at least one local spoke out against it, noting that "There's a lot of things this community needs and is crying out for," but "a convention center is not one of them."
· Convention center and 25-story hotel headed for area near Citi Field [NYDN]
Filed under:
Loading comments...