OuterB on Queens Real Estate

Last week there was an interesting article in the Times about a reunion of “Irish Town”, a summer getaway consisting of Irish bars and bungalows at the Rockaways. The reunion was held at the Knights of Columbus hall on Beach 90th Street.

Known as the “Irish Riviera”, Irish Town existed about 50 years ago on the boardwalk between Beach 116th Street to Rockaways Playland. It was a real gathering place of the large Irish immigrant community, and then some. Dancing, socializing, and swimming seemed to be the point of it all, as well as being a place to ind a mate. It was razed in the mid-20th century for high-rise apartments.

These days in Far Rockaway, there are a lot of empty lots and new homes, boarded up, a result of the current situation of a tanking real estate market in Southern/Southeastern Queens, predatory lending and too many subprime loans leading to foreclosures. City Councilman James Sanders Jr. puts it this way:

“Folks just went crazy and got into the feeding frenzy. They thought money was going to come to everybody left, right and center. Irrational exuberance is what I call this.”

Let’s hope the Rockaways don’t turn into a ghost town.

• Irish Toast a Summer Paradise Lost in the Rockaways [NY Times]

• Risky Loans Help Build Ghost Town of New Homes

  [NY Times]

In an internet forum recently, I came across mention of Breezy Point, a neighborhood in Queens. The poster said “Breezy Point is a peculiar community and its not so easy to describe it should I fancy running for president someday.” A curious way of describing the place, my interest was piqued, so I looked it up on the internets. I learned that it’s a private town, basically - one big co-op (and I thought co-ops were just big apartment buildings!). The Breezy Point Cooperative oversees the 3,500 homes on this spit of land that is the Rockaway Penninsula in Queens.

As a visitor, it’s not easy to enter the town. However, you can go to the tip of the peninsula, also called Breezy Point, as it is part of the Gateway National Recreation Area. You must have a permit during most of the year, and you must avoid parking on non-park roads. Apparently that island tip has a huge number of bird species dropping by, and is a significant breeding area along the Atlantic.

I then checked to see if any houses were sale in the co-op, and there is one for sale currently. There’s a very nice looking beach house (they’re all beach houses, though) for $680K. 2 bedrooms/2 bath, new hardwood floors and countertops, and a Jacuzzi. Plus, you’re near the beach, in a fairly secluded part of NYC (which, by the way, has the highest Irish population - about 60%). You’d need a car, because the train/subway does not go out that far.

You never know, it could be just what you’re looking for.

Related:
Century 21 Listing
20 Hudson Walk, Queens, NY 11697 [Trulia]
Breezy Point [Brooklyn Bird Club]
Breezy Point [Wikipedia]

As I write this, thunderstorms and bad weather are coming out way. Hoping for clearer weather this weekend - I’ve got baseball to watch!

Man breaks up with Flushing because of a communication issue. [NY Daily News]

Diversity in Jackson Heights - the changing storefronts are telling (be sure to read the interesting discussion in the comments). [Nueva York]

Queens Libraries are top in the nation in circulation (did you also know you can link you Queensborough Public Library card to the NYPL?). [City Room]

A writer predicts that in 20 or 30 years, that generation will officially be known as the Generation of Queens. [School Kids SG]

Zillowblog’s new infographic tells us that Far Rockaway’s market is up year after year, whereas LIC’s and Flushing’s is down a bit. [Zillowblog via nyc24.us]

Forest Hills Rezone Proposal Gets CB 6’s Unanimous Nod [Queens Chronicle]

Eastern Queens is uneasy about new development [Queens Chronicle]

NY1 finishes its week-long series on Queens with the focus on LIC and Queens West. [NY1]

Photo credit: Meg Cotner 

The Admin of Who Walk in Brooklyn reminisces on a picture of Rockaway Beach, 1983.  The picture of the beach is pretty awesome (be sure to click on it!)

• Rockaway Beach 1983 [Who Walk in Brooklyn]

And since I’ve been gone, more links for you!

Here are some nice maps of new developments in Long Island City, Astoria, Whitestone, Fresh Meadows, and College Point. [StreetEasy]

Photo evidence that Bjork and/or Matthew Barney are in town. Whenever I think of those two, I am reminded of this McSweeney’s gem. [Curbed]

Sleaze Alert: Dennis Gallagher, a Queens Republican, has been charged with rape. Um, eeuw. [City Room]

There are over 22,000 public bridges in NY State. 2,000 of them are “structurally deficient”, which was the designation of the 35W bridge in Minneapolis that collapsed this week. Three bridges in the city are rated as “poor” by the city, including the bridge at Willow Lake at 76th Road in Flushing Meadows-Corona Park in Queens. [NY Times]

Mayor Bloomberg signed into law a new anti-graffiti law. [City Room]

Hats off to Chef Darren Lawless of the wonderful Il Bambino, to be the only Astoria restaurant to be included in NY Mag’s 2007 Cheap Eats issue. I can vouch for the deliciousness served here.  Other Queens eats include Burmese Cafe and Frisby in Jackson Heights and Little Pepper in Flushing. [NY Mag]

The trees might be gone at St. Saviour’s, but activists won’t give up on the site. [Times Ledger]

Douglaston House stays in its historic district. [Queens Chronicle]

Forest Hills preservationists are looking for buyers to save two of the century-old townhouses on the East side of 72nd. [NY Daily News]

Queens loves surfers!  Brings me back to my California roots. [nyc.24.us]

ConEd loves Queens… leasing 120,00 square feet of space in Jamaica! [Globe St.]

Apricots are available this weekend at the Sunnyside Farmer’s Market. [City Room]

Favorite comment of the week:   “[The Sunnyside] arch is about as historic as Paris Hilton.” -Beef Burgers

Among the 5 boroughs, Queens lead in foreclosures (234 total) during the second quarter. [NY Business] 

West coast bashing comes alive in fears of an expensive dormitory for Queens College. [metro.us]

Queens Residents Mark First Anniversary Of Blackout. [NY 1]

New Yorkers for Parks rates Queens’ Rockaway Beach as “challenged”, along with most beaches in NYC. [amNY]

Gentrification on Vernon Blvd continues to increase. [Queens Chronicle]

Row Houses in Forest Hills will not be landmarked. [Times Ledger]

Talkin’ trash, for your benefit. [CityRoom]

Indian mangoes come to Jackson Heights. [NY Times]

Hope everyone had a great Independence Day! Here are the open house picks for this weekend:

Bayside
Co-op: 1 bedroom/1 bath penthouse
$350,000
18-05 215th Street, #PH-K
Sunday July 8, 12-4pm
NY Times Listing [City Lights Real Estate]

Briarwood/South Jamaica
Co-op: 1 bedroom/1 bath
$129,000
144-70 Village Road-lower level
Friday July 6, 5-6pm
NY Times Listing [Foxtons]

New Hyde Park
House: 4 bedrooms
$775,000
910 5th Avenue
Sunday July 8, 1-4pm
NY Times Listing [laffey.com]

Rockaway Park/Far Rockaway
House: 7 bedroom/3 bath 3 family colonial
$620,000
110-02 Rockaway Beach Boulevard
Saturday July 7, 4-5pm
NY Times Listing [Foxtons]

Sunnyside
House: 3 bedroom/2 bath
$619,000
50-12 39th Place
Saturday July 7, 11am-12pm
NY Times Listing [Foxtons]

I’m always happy to see more money for libraries. I have many fond memories of spending afternoons at my local branch. The Arverne branch of the Queens Borough Public Library (312 Beach 54th Street) will receive $1.5 million to put toward renovations. This is thanks to city funding, provided by a local City Councilman James Sanders Jr. (D-Far Rockaway). He was able to allocate it from his discretionary capital funds. It will help improve the look and feel of the branch, but will also go toward infrastructure - new roof, heating and an air-conditioning ventilation system, flooring and furniture. Wow. Oh, and they’ll also be able to improve their circulation!

Related:
Pol has 1.5M booked for library fixup [NY Daily News]

Enjoy the wonderful weather this weekend - I’ll be watching fireworks tonight at Astoria Park!

The Mets’ new ballfield - Citi Field - is taking shape. It still won’t be open until 2009. [NY Daily News]

The Queens Tribune coins a pointless and lame designation for Queens - third borough syndrome. Ugh. [NY Times]

NE Queens realtor Christine Forg had an interesting open house experience this week. Looks like some buyers are really asserting themselves these days. [NY Houses 4 sale]

More bad news for Gateway National Park: there’s untreated sewage, toxic sediment and trash lurking about. [NY Daily News]

This week the Rent Guidelines Board voted to raise rents a bit - like who didn’t see that coming? [NY Post]

Curbed recaps what a lot of Queens bloggers have already been saying about Willets Point. [Curbed]

Keyspan is installing a high pressure natural gas pipeline over the Grand Central Parkway, which some view as a terrorist target. [NY Daily News]

Should broadband access join water, gas and electricity and be a basic utility available to all New Yorkers? Personally, I love the idea! [Gotham Gazette]

From the Department of Health and Mental Hygeine: Rockaways, your annual mosquito spraying will commence on Wednesday night, weather permitting:

NEW YORK CITY – June 25 2006 – To reduce mosquito activity in the Rockaways, the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DOHMH) will spray pesticide from trucks in parts in the Rockaways in Queens from Wednesday June 27, 2007 at 8:15 P.M. to 6:00 A.M. the following morning, weather permitting. In case of bad weather, spraying will be delayed until Thursday, June 28 or the next possible night. No West Nile virus has been detected there, or anywhere in New York City this season, and no human cases of West Nile virus have been identified to date.

More:
HEALTH DEPARTMENT TO CONDUCT MOSQUITO SPRAYING IN THE ROCKAWAYS