Queens: The Future of Urban Design

Architizer published an interesting piece that examines why the future of urban design lies in our very own borough. The article argues that many urban design and development challenges the city faces are currently in play in Queens. Architizer, in fact, makes a pretty bold statement: “Numerous infrastructure projects and their impact in the oft-ignored polyglot outer borough suggest that the most ethnically diverse urban center in the world presents the most exciting opportunities and challenges for the future of global cities.” The article discusses the long struggle to develop Willets Point against the wish of longtime business owners, emblematic of “the strain between local interests and the pro-development stance of Bloombergian government.” Other major developments include the opposition to demolish 5Pointz for shiny condo towers and the future development of Hallets Point for the now-sleepy Astoria waterfront.

The article also talks about the potential behind the QueensWay and the grassroots movement behind it, pointing to Hunters Point South Park as an example of a sustainable public space that stood up admirably under Hurricane Sandy. Other mentions are given to the Noguchi Museum, the new Far Rockaway Library, Flushing Meadows-Corona Park, and the birth of this very website. The ultimate question: will the parks, cheap rents, diversity, and potential for development send Queens the way of Brooklyn and Manhattan? Or, as Architizer says, “Will the open spaces and tradition of entrepreneurialism prevail, offering one of the world’s greatest mixes of grassroots infrastructure and well-designed public and private architectural pursuits?”

Why the Future of Urban Design Lies in NYC’s Easternmost Borough [Architizer] via Curbed
Rendering via NYCEDC