Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
News
Long Island City, Elmhurst 'high-rise' rezonings in Queens win City Council approvals
By
Arun Venugopal
Published Nov 12, 2025
Modified Nov 12, 2025
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Never miss a story
Email address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .
Courtesy of Apex Development Group
By
Arun Venugopal
Published Nov 12, 2025
Modified Nov 12, 2025
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
We rely on your support to make local news available to all
Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
The City Council approved a major rezoning in Long Island City on Wednesday that its backers say will transform the Queens neighborhood.
The rezoning, dubbed the OneLIC plan, is expected to pave the way for nearly 15,000 new homes, including more than 4,000 affordable units. It comes close on the heels of another major Queens rezoning, this one targeting a large swath of Jamaica, Queens.
Together the approvals are expected to create 27,000 new homes across Queens.
“Long Island City continues to grow faster than any other community in the country, but for years that growth has pushed out longtime residents and exacerbated our worsening inequality and housing crises,” Borough President Donovan Richards Jr. said after the council action. “The transformational OneLIC plan is how we begin to correct the errors of our past and ensure an equitable future for all Long Island City families, regardless of socioeconomic status.”
Rendering of a planned 13-story residential apartment building planned for Queens Boulevard.
Courtesy of Apex Development Group
The council on Wednesday also approved a much smaller Queens rezoning, in Elmhurst, which will allow for the construction of a 13-story residential high rise.
The Elmhurst rezoning followed deal-making that would also bring a new swimming pool, a community center and other amenities to the neighborhood.
Councilmember Shekar Krishnan, who represents the Elmhurst area, told Gothamist he agreed to back the high-rise rezoning, for 78-01 Queens Blvd., over the objections of neighborhood residents who worry the new housing will spur gentrification and displacement.
Krishnan said he had worked behind the scenes to secure developer concessions. The 314-unit high-rise — in an area where most structures total no more than two or three stories --- will include 79 affordable units, a 15,000-square-foot community center and a 30-by-75 foot, ADA-compliant swimming pool.
“Doing nothing in a housing crisis is not an option,” Krishnan said in an interview. “And I think what this project shows is how we can do development differently to serve the public good.”
Wednesday’s votes follow the City Council’s recent rezoning of a 230-block of Jamaica, Queens. Its proponents say the change will add 12,000 new homes. With each of the land-use changes, local residents expressed concerns about gentrification and displacement, but local officials have argued that the borough is desperately in need of new housing, pointing to a 0.88% vacancy rate.
The Elmhurst project has faced intense opposition from area residents, who argued the high-rise will be out of character with the neighborhood, which is otherwise marked by low-rise homes.
Residents also expressed worry that the new development would price out existing residents, including many Asian Americans who long ago settled in the neighborhood. Some residents pointed to past projects that had failed to fully materialize, leaving behind urban blight.
Krishnan said his office had quietly worked to sweeten the deal by securing community benefits and deepening the affordability provisions for future tenants.
The project also includes 5,000 square feet of publicly accessible open space along Queens Boulevard, according to Krishnan’s office.
The nonprofit organization Commonpoint Queens will offer free and low-cost swimming lessons as well as lifeguard training for neighborhood youth, according to the councilmember. Currently, there is no public pool in either Elmhurst or nearby Jackson Heights, Krishnan said.
“This new development — located just across the street from our workforce services hub — represents far more than new homes," Danielle Ellman, the CEO of Commonpoint, said in a statement. "Expanding our footprint through this project will finally give Corona and Elmhurst residents a place to live, learn, play, and gather in ways that have never before been possible.”
Krishnan said that his office had worked with the developer, Apex Development Group, to lower the affordability provision in the residential building to 55% of the area median income, down from 60%. And, unlike the original rezoning proposal, which sought to upzone several adjacent lots, the revised rezoning would only include the lot at 78-01 Queens Blvd.
Andrew Esposito, the founder and principal of Apex Development Group, said the various parties “were able to strike what I think is a very good middle ground.”
“Additional community spaces and things that don’t generate revenue make it more expensive to us,” Esposito said, “but it is something we thought was in the best interests of the community.”
Krishnan said he is also in talks with the developer and Commonpoint to build a second residential tower that would feature 100% affordable housing.
This article was updated with additional information.
Tagged
Race And Justice Unit
elmhurst
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.
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE news
Dump truck driver hits and kills cyclist on 34th Street in Midtown, NYPD says
It's the latest in a string of hit-and-run deaths in the city in recent months.
By
Liam Quigley
Published Sep 28, 2026 at 4:15 p.m. ET
New ingredient mandated for Latin American kitchen, restaurant plates in NJ
The Garden State now requires that corn masa dough and flour made and sold in the state be fortified with folic acid.
By
Arya Sundaram
News
New ingredient mandated for Latin American kitchen, restaurant plates in NJ
The Garden State now requires that corn masa dough and flour made and sold in the state be fortified with folic acid.
By
Arya Sundaram
A Brooklyn jail cell filled with smoke. The emergency button failed, a lawyer said.
By
Samantha Max
Crews launch tunnel machines to dig first new Hudson River rail tunnels since 1910
By
Michael Sol Warren
NYC nor’easter dries up after weather service reports minor flooding
By
Ramsey Khalifeh
Never miss a story
Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign upEmail address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .