It's Official - The Queens EDC and BlankSlate are partners on QueensNYC

We wanted to post our good news – the Queens Economic Development Corporation (QEDC) and BlankSlate (the folks behind QueensNYC) have formed a partnership on QueensNYC. Here is the press release.

(Long Island City, N.Y.) – The Queens Economic Development Corporation and BlankSlate — a partially Long Island City-based company that helps web publishers thrive, including Brownstoner, Brokelyn, DumboNYC, Bushwick Daily and Prince of Petworth — have formed a partnership on QueensNYC.com, a daily site about the happenings in New York City’s biggest and most diverse borough.

The site delves into the life, culture and changing landscape of Queens, focusing on the places, food and adventures in this unique borough, where more than 170 languages and dialects are spoken. While the site is primarily about Queens, it also makes relevant connections to the rest of NYC and other surrounding areas.

QEDC’s mission is to create and retain jobs through programming that grows neighborhoods, assists small businesses and promotes tourism and business development. As such, QEDC spearheads the Queens Tourism Council, which has its finger on the pulse of cultural, recreational, culinary and civic activities throughout the 80-neighborhood borough, which is home to more than 2.2 million residents and 45,000 businesses. 

QueensNYC.com includes a community-powered events calendar, comprehensive real estate listings and a blog with broad coverage of lifestyle news, events, food and real estate. The site is edited by Meg Cotner, one of the founders of the blog We Heart Astoria, and author of the upcoming book, The Food Lovers’ Guide to Queens, to be published in December by Globe Pequot.

QueensNYC.com is the first site to use BlankSlate’s groundbreaking inContext WordPress theme. inContext offers site visitors a consistent experience across desktop, tablet and mobile with no downloads needed. inContext offers publishers easy blending of editorial, feed and community-powered content, while creating a mix of revenue opportunities. The site also marks the launch of inContext Real Estate, BlankSlate’s next generation listings service for publishers, MLS’s and brokerages.

“We’re positioning QueensNYC.com to become the go-to site for people who live there and those drawn to the energy and opportunity in the borough. There is tremendous growth happening in Queens right now. It’s an exciting time, and we want to help raise awareness of what Queens is all about,” said Kael Goodman, co-founder and CEO of BlankSlate. “Our partnership with QEDC is part of that. We recognized the work they are doing to bring and maintain business and awareness to the borough and we will be working together to amplify their effort.”

“Our partnership with BlankSlate is an exciting venture for us,” stated QEDC Executive Director Seth Bornstein. “They have tremendous experience creating compelling local media properties, and we know this partnership will move our work on behalf of the Queens Tourism Council forward. It leapfrogs our digital efforts. I’ve said it before, but it bears repeating: ‘It’s in Queens!’”

QueensNYC is BlankSlate’s first owned and operated site. It joins the BlankSlate network of award-winning local websites, including brownstoner.com, brokelyn.com, dumbonyc.com, bushwickdaily.com and the Washington DC area’s princeofpetworth.com and arlnow.com.

About BlankSlate:
BlankSlate is a media and technology company based in DUMBO Brooklyn and Long Island City, Queens that works with publishers to provide technology, strategic consulting, business management and ad sales.