Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
News
Some In Long Island City Desperately Trying To Change Name To "LIC"
By
John Del Signore
Published Feb 20, 2013
Modified Feb 20, 2013
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 .
John Del Signore / Gothamist
By
John Del Signore
Published Feb 20, 2013
Modified Feb 20, 2013
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
Long Island City: So many syllables! Wouldn't it be easier to just call it The City? Or Longtown? How about LiTy? North Greenpoint? The possibilities are endless, but some local residents already have their minds made up: Long Island City should henceforth be known by the catchy acronym LIC. And the Queens Local Development Corp. Tourism Council is doing their best to make the LIC stick.
"It’s bad for hotels, it’s bad for real estate, and it’s bad for morale,” Rob MacKay, head of the Tourism Council, tells the Post. "It puts us out on Long Island, and that’s inaccurate — we are urban and hip.” Seriously you guys, LIC is the new BLCK! (Especially Hunter's Point, where Thom York hangs out.) Yet travel agents keep assuming LIC is on Long Island. "They are constantly telling me that when they do booking and see Long Island City, they say, ‘Oh, that’s too far’ from Manhattan — they think it’s either in suburban hell or the Hamptons," MacKay bemoans.
We're still not sure how it's pronounced (LICK or LICE?) but LIC may well be the way of the future—remember what TriBeCa was before it was TriBeCa? (Washington Market, UGH.) Of course, only time will tell; there's no official way to change the name, and neighborhood boundaries are not officially designated by the city either. And to be sure, not everyone is feeling the LIC. In an email, one longtime Queens resident tells us this is all just an insidious side-effect of gentrification:
The working class residents are being shoved aside in favor of people who can afford the new apartments. And why does a neighborhood need a 'cool factor'? What will the yuppies do when they find the #7 usually doesn't go there on weekend after weekend? I forgot, they take limos and cabs. You move to Queens, you're a Queensite, own it.
Tagged
lic
long island city
Neighborhoods
queens
John Del Signore
Originally from the Albany area, John Del Signore has called NYC home since 1995. In addition to his thousands of meticulously-crafted bespoke blog posts for Gothamist, his writing has also been published in The Awl, Deadspin, The Nervous Breakdown, and performed at The Brick Theater in Brooklyn.
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE news
DSA to Mamdani: Fire NYPD commissioner if ICE doesn't leave NYC
The DSA's NYC chapter accused the NYPD of collaborating with ICE and demanded Mayor Mamdani hold Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch responsible.
By
Elizabeth Kim
,
Brigid Bergin
and
Ben Feuerherd
Published Oct 9, 2026 at 6:31 p.m. ET
Two people killed in Bronx vehicle crash
When officers arrived on the scene in Allerton Friday afternoon, they found three pedestrians who were unconscious with trauma to the head and body, according to the NYPD. Two individuals later died.
By
Kaya Laterman
News
Two people killed in Bronx vehicle crash
When officers arrived on the scene in Allerton Friday afternoon, they found three pedestrians who were unconscious with trauma to the head and body, according to the NYPD. Two individuals later died.
By
Kaya Laterman
NY will opt in Trump’s school choice program, Hochul says
By
Jon Campbell
Residents, lawmakers warned for months of potential for deadly ICE activity in Marble Hill
By
David Brand
Manhattan DA argues judge shouldn't dismiss state charges against Luigi Mangione
By
Samantha Max
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 .