By
STEPHEN McGUIRE
There is a dream at work in downtown Jamaica and this week, the Greater
Jamaica Development Corporation released an outline fueled by the theory that if they
build it, shoppers will come.
Carlisle Towery, president of the Greater Jamaica
Development Corporation (GJDC) said, "Our challenge is now to realize the potential
(for this area)... We want to make Jamaica a destination."
The "dream" was detailed in a report that was released this week
during a press conference held in the Harvest Room of the Jamaica Market on May 7.
Titled "Vision for Jamaica Center: A Planning Framework For
Development & Transportation," the report is the result of a two-year project
conducted by a team of consultants.
The Vision for Jamaica Center includes several ideas for
construction that planners are hopeful will make the area a business and shopping
attraction to out-of-towners and Southeast Queens residents alike.
Projects like the construction of this multi-story
shopping mall and cineplex at 159th Street and Jamaica Avenue are a stepping stone to the
realization of dreams of the Jamaica of the future.
PRESS Photo by Ira Cohen
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Proposals contain plans for the
construction of elaborate retail spaces and improved transportation spaces — even a
quality multi-story hotel.
The funding for the $589,000 study was made possible through the federal
government and the Port Authority.
The multi-faceted report also focuses on proposals and guidelines for
traffic and parking improvements and development to be put in place in Jamaica over the
next 20 years.
"We want to create the setting to get private investors to invest
here," said Towery.
Highlights of the traffic plans call for the widening of Archer Avenue to
allow more cars to freely flow to the area’s high profile shops and businesses.
According to Marty Taub, a principal at Eng-Wong, Taub & Associates, a
traffic and transportation consulting firm, a goal of the project is to provide a gateway
that will lead shoppers and business clientele from the Van Wyck Expressway to downtown
Jamaica.
Taub said that pedestrian improvements and the addition of major new
parking facilities will allow for that gateway to open up.
Other key components of the plan include:
• Zoning changes to encourage commercial development
• Construction of a hotel above the AirTrain terminal
• Creation of retail space within the vicinity of the transit hub and
under the viaduct on the east side of Sutphin Boulevard
• More public parking
• Encouragement of retail development along Sutphin Boulevard.
For the past 150 years, Jamaica has been a focal point of
transportation and commerce in the city’s largest borough.
Following the Second World War when roads opened up to neighboring Nassau
County, the amount of shoppers who came to the area to spend their hard-earned dollars
lessened in the area.
The effort to revive Jamaica to make it the urban mecca it once was began
over 30 years ago and with past public investments in the area that include York College,
the courts and regional office buildings for the Food and Drug Administration and the
Social Security Administration, in addition commitments being made by major retailers, a
Cineplex and the building of the AirTrain, the future for downtown Jamaica is looking even
brighter.
An artist’s rendering of what the Sutphin
Boulevard of the future could look like.
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"The concept suggests how Jamaica
can best capitalize on the AirTrain’s $1.5 billion public transportation investment
so that economic opportunities are captured for the local economy," Towery said.
Chris Ward, a spokesperson for the Port
Authority said, "It’s not about bricks and mortar, but about people and economic
development."
According to Ward, "AirTrain will be a
new transportation link, creating a new dowtown around the terminal."
As managers of the project, GJDC has worked
with a team of consultants on planning, architecture, traffic and transportation and
economic development.
"It won’t happen naturally. We are
thanking government for their "responsiveness to create the setting to get private
investors to invest here," Towery said.
Heading
The Fight For Federal Funds |
Congressman Gregory Meeks said,
"My heart is beating fast as a result of this plan. We are taking something that has
been a dream (and we are) taking that dream and making it a reality."
According to the congressman, the plan is
laying the foundation to growth in Jamaica.
"Now we can take this final step. (The
plan) helps us locally in Jamaica because it creates jobs to benefit the constituency . .
. This makes us competitive with other boroughs," Meeks said.
Meeks pledged to work with his Washington
colleagues in an effort to make sure on a federal level that more money is available for
infrastructure.
"It’s tremendous. You’ll see
other growth and development," said Meeks.
Working
Together To Make The Vision A Reality |
Yvonne Reddick, district manger
of Community Board 12 said, "We all are trying to make downtown Jamaica a place where
people will want to come. When everyone looks at it to digest it, they can come to a
decision."
Making the Vision For Jamaica Center a reality
will take some teamwork, according to Reddick.
"We’re all here to work together.
It’s about revenue. There’s a lot of things that need to be done," Reddick
said explaining that although the AirTrain plays a big role, the environment around the
AirTrain is important too.
"We shall see," she said.
Councilman Sheldon Leffler praised the GJDC
for its presentation of the plan.
"The GJDC plan shows exactly how agencies
can utilize strategic planning in an effective manner," Leffler said.
"It is my hope that this plan will be
initiated and that the involved agencies will work with the GJDC to ensure its
success," he said.
