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Elmhurst 'high-rise' development stirs worry over gentrification in Queens
By
Arun Venugopal
Published Oct 29, 2025
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By
Arun Venugopal
Published Oct 29, 2025
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A city proposal to spur development in Elmhurst has prompted intense opposition from residents, who say the measure could fuel gentrification and displacement in a low-lying corner of Queens.
The community pushback concerns the proposed rezoning of an area that includes 78-01 Queens Blvd. It would allow a private developer to build a 13-story, 314-unit residential tower, including 79 affordable units, in an area where homes and businesses rarely exceed more than a couple of stories.
Members of Queens Community Board 4 overwhelmingly opposed the rezoning, voting 30-2 against it in June, notwithstanding a local housing shortage, especially of affordable units.
The disagreement highlights the continuing debate over growth in Queens, where even the construction of a single residential building can serve as a flashpoint amid ongoing tensions of displacement versus a chronic lack of housing.
Those tensions have also played out in other parts of the borough, including in Jamaica, where the City Council is poised to vote Wednesday afternoon on a sweeping, 230-block rezoning that would create 12,000 new homes, including 4,000 affordable units. The plan is the city’s largest in at least two decades, according to city officials. And while the Elmhurst proposal is more modest in comparison, it has stirred emotions, too. It is also before the City Council. The site at 78-01 Queens Blvd. is currently occupied by a TD Bank and sits opposite a seven-story Pan American hotel, separated by the many lanes of Queens Boulevard.
Brianna Cea, a member of the community board, said the majority of buildings in the immediate area are one- and two-family homes or light manufacturing, “so it's really, really out of character,” and argued that the rezoning would negatively affect the neighborhood.
“Just one high-rise development and upzoning can pave the way for more luxury housing, high-end stores that will ultimately price out our Asian American small businesses and the elderly residents that rely on those areas,” said Cea, who took part in a demonstration last week opposing the rezoning and calling on Councilmember Shekar Krishnan to vote against it.
Andrew Esposito, the founder and principal of Apex Development Group, the private developer, said he was well aware of the community’s concerns but said his firm was in talks with government officials and community board members.
“There are conversations and improvements in the works,” Esposito said.
In a statement, Krishnan said the city “is in desperate need of more housing,” adding that any new housing built in the area “needs to be affordable and prioritize the needs of our community.” He did not state a position on the land-use change.
“Elmhurst is very dense — future developments need to include community infrastructure, prioritize green space, and ensure supportive and educational spaces,” Krishnan said. “As the process for 78-01 Queens Blvd continues, I'll continue to listen to Elmhurst residents and their voices as I evaluate this proposed project.”
The Elmhurst/Corona area has a 2.1% apartment vacancy rate, according to Community Board 4, compared to 0.88% in Queens as a whole. Some 31% of renters in Elmhurst/Corona spend more than 50% of their income on rent, according to a 2023 report by NYU’s Furman Center.
Some area residents said they are more open to development at the site – with caveats.
Lester Lin, a lifelong resident of Elmhurst who owns Elm Roastery and other businesses, said for years the neighborhood was neglected and prone to drug dealing.
“You had smoke shops, people selling live chickens on the street,” Lin said. “This is the kind of neighborhood that I grew up in, where at nighttime you can easily get into trouble just because there's not enough street lights.”
Lin said he was in favor of new development, but said in some instances “bad developers” had left behind failed projects and urban blight.
“ But when there's really cool ones like luxury buildings and they have affordable housing, I'm not complaining about that,” he said. “Now you're bettering the neighborhood because now the streets are cleaner. I have better streetlights. I have garbage bins.”
Tagged
Race And Justice Unit
economy
housing
queens
Arun Venugopal
Arun Venugopal is a senior reporter for the WNYC and Gothamist Race & Justice Unit who focuses on issues of race and bias in our region. His reporting also tackles the topics of immigration, faith, and inequality. Arun serves as the regular fill-in host of the station's "U.S. of Anxiety" program. Arun was the creator and host of Micropolis, a series about race and identity. He is a contributor to NPR's Morning Edition and All Things Considered. He has appeared on PBS Newshour, On the Media and Studio 360, and has been published in The Guardian, The Wall Street Journal and Salon. He also frequently serves as an emcee and moderator of panel discussions on race, religion, and identity issues and has been a guest host of NPR's "Fresh Air." He lives with his family in Queens.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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