An independently run news blog covering any and all developments in Lefrak City and its surrounding areas, according to established news organizations and you, the reader. Feel free to submit any news you know of around Lefrak City and Central Queens. Most of the content on this site will come from us (and you), the residents of the area! Furthermore, this blog is not affiliated with the Lefrak Management newsletter of the same name in any way, and does not condemn nor condone its publication.
This was mentioned in an answer to a reader, but this writer thought this item deserved its own post.
About two Sundays ago, there had been a shooting - apparently - in the driveway between Sections 3 and 5 on Horace Harding Expwy. The shooting had taken place in the early morning.
This writer uses the word "apparently" because nothing else is known about it. Nothing has appeared in the police blotters in the Chronicle or Tribune or other community papers, and this writer has only heard of this through hearsay.
It would be a shame if Lefrak management had more information about it and is withholding it, as mentioned in this article. Therefore, we appeal to you, the readers, if you have any more information regarding this. As usual, you may submit anonymously if you wish.
(The Long Horn Steakhouse, from a few weeks ago with the final touches being put on the building
The transformation of the 59th Avenue Garage is complete: A restaurant on the lot - Long Horn Steakhouse - just opened this week. A second one - Olive Gardens - will open during the week of September 27th, and the Joe's Crab Shack, while still under construction, will probably open just in time for the Christmas shopping season.
The reception seems to be have been positive - the parking lot in front of the Steakhouse was full last night, and there were plenty of patrons inside. However, there will probably be many coming over this weekend, when most people will have more time to explore this new location.
Good Morning, I'm a tenant in Bali, and i've noticed the new construction over on 99th street. I was wondering if you have more details, similar to the layout you posted in regards to the new olive garden / longhorn steakhouse project. I'm specifically interested in what appears to be a new asian supermarket. Thanks.
At this point, I’m not sure exactly sure what is going on there. I do know why you would think there would be a Supermarket going up there - some time ago, a picture was posted of the finished building. From memory, it said it was a “GW market”, with English and Chinese lettering on it. I have had someone write the Queens Chamber of Commerce regarding that, but he hasn't received an answer up until now.
With the pace of construction now, it will soon become clear what will occupy that space; we’ll just have to wait until then.
Usually, when this question is asked, it’s framed in terms of the street the buildings happen to face: 57th Avenue or Horace Harding Expwy. Therefore, I’ll answer your question in the same way.
To be truthful, this question would be much easier to answer before all the reconstruction began; back then, the answer would have been that the buildings along Horace Harding Expy are safer, more often than not.
However, the reconstruction (and other factors outside of Lefrak) has changed the dynamics a lot, and at this point, it’s hard to tell which side is safer, or if much difference exists at the moment.
First of all, because of the renovations, quite a few access points into the complex have been cut off. In fact, at this point the only ways to get into the interior of the complex without going through the front is by these ways - the roadway between Sections 3 and 5 on Horace Harding Expwy, and the roadway between Sections 2 and 4 on 57th Avenue. Because of this, the traffic has changed: it’s become harder for non-residents to enter the complex on their own. In the case of the 57th Avenue buildings, where a number of visitors might have had “business” to conduct on the street, this lowers the chances that they might do mischief inside.
Of course, there would be residents who might be up to no good too. However, chances are that if they were longtime tenants, they might have been cleared out by the effective purges done here; if there are new, they might be scared off somewhat by the tighter leash Management has on the buildings.
In the middle of all this, crime in Central Queens in general has picked up. I’ve lost count of the amount of crimes that have happened in Rego Park, Forest Hills, Corona and Elmhurst since the beginning of this year. One that sticks out in my mind is the attempted kidnapping at National Street and Corona Avenue a few weeks ago; at least to this writer, that’s something that’s uncommon in these parts. Plus, just two weeks ago, there was a shooting that took place near Section 3. This may or may not affect the Horace Harding buildings in the future.
In the end, and considering all these factors, this writer says this: the safer buildings at this point would probably be the ones on Horace Harding Expy, if only because it has historically been so up until this point. However, that may change depending on what we see in the near future.
This question came up into this writer's mind while writing about the aforementioned murder case of Andrew Ramirez. However, it really became present reading through the story of Timothy Greene and his unsolved 2012 murder, in a piece published on Narrative.ly and written by Neil Gluckman. It tells the efforts of his mother to help Timothy and his brothers to rise above the seedy element of the neighborhood, the success that Timothy's family had in doing so with other families in the complex, and the blow dealt to such efforts with his murder. It is a compelling read, and this reporter recommends that anyone reading this article should take a look at it.
The only negative thing about it is this - Timothy Greene's murder is still unsolved, and there are other stories, murder or otherwise, that are left untold in the city press. Indeed, why is Lefrak City crime so unreported, especially if at least 20% of Corona's population lives in the complex or lives along its perimeter?
Thus, management has been trying to improve the complex's reputation. To do so, the complex is undergoing a renovation, bringing in new shops, and improving security, among other things. They have also been pushing up prices and pushing long-time residents out, and all will be hit with higher rents once the renovations are finished.
However, to improve their reputation, it seems they have also chosen to suppress information, including that of crime. This is very unfair since that information affects anyone who has anything to do with Lefrak City. This is true for all tenants, old or new, as well as any visitors to the complex. To not have some accurate idea of what happens in a complex this size can be detrimental to its future.
In the past, the picture was not so bad. At the beginning of the past decade, a fellow resident published a small monthly newsletter that gave some idea about intra-complex affairs. For unknown reasons, the paper ceased publication, and any dispensing of information of Lefrak has been largely in management hands since then (this includes the recent publishing of a new newsletter which will be covered in the near future). This website has been trying to fill that void with varying results.
Then again, perhaps we are being alarmists here. This writer has given an opinion; what's yours? Why is Lefrak City crime so unreported? Is there no crime being reported because there is nothing significant enough to report? Is there another reason in your mind relating to this question?
Murder at Lefrak City - 21 year old stabbed to death near Section 2 (Originally published in June 2014; See updates below)
(Andrew Ramirez (upper left) was murdered in Lefrak City this past Tuesday. The buildings pictured are incorrect; the crime happened at a group of buildings further down 57th Ave. Photo credits: DNAInfo)
Sorrow abounds at Lefrak City after a young resident lost his life following a brutal attack last Tuesday night.
According to news reports, security cameras, and personal sources, 21 year old Andrew Ramirez (apparently also known as "Chino") was being chased through the complex by three unknown males around 10PM that night.The three caught up with him in the vicinity of the Canada building (97-20 57th Ave), stabbed him several times in the torso, and fled as Ramirez lay bleeding. Emergency services were called, and Ramirez was taken to North Shore LIJ Hospital on 102nd St, where he was pronounced dead later that night.
The reason for the chase and subsequent stabbing is unknown, and as far as this writer knows, no one has been arrested yet for this crime. It is also not known who the the three are, or the nature of the relationship between them and Ramirez. It is also unknown when his funeral will be.
The only evidence so far is a video from a security camera which shows the three chasing Ramirez and running away again after the stabbing. This writer has been unable to see the video, but perhaps viewers may be better able to see it here.
There is now a memorial for Ramirez at 57th Ave and 97th St, across from the Popeye's restaurant. There lay pictures of the victim, candles lit and unlit, and at least two sheets of cardboard full of condolences for Ramirez.
It seems Ramirez had a certain amount of popularity in the neighborhood, as shown by the amount of traffic at his memorial and the sheer amount of condolences left there. "Everybody knew him" was a common thought.
His father, Leo Ramirez, said to DNA info that his son was a "very smart" and athletic person who fell in with the wrong crowd. This may be a reason for the incident, since the murder is thought to be gang related.
In the opinion of this writer however, a person of his age should not be dead, and it is especially disturbing that a crime of such brazenness took place at a time when people were still walking thru the neighborhood; others could have been potentially hurt by the three assailants. One thing is known - this story will not go away any time soon.
Lefrak City News will do its best to follow the latest developments.
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Update (6/21/2014, 9:52 PM): The memorial for Ramirez referred in this article was out until Thursday night or Friday, but has since been removed for unknown reasons.
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Update (9/19/2014): Several months have passed, and it would seem that the case has stalled for a time. Though there has been a police tower at 57th Avenue for months, there is no visible progress so far to find the murderers.
As you can see, there has been another pause in writing. This is because at the time of the last two items published, our blog was not present in search engines. We felt it didn't make sense to keep on publishing if no one could see the articles, so there was a pause in writing until the issue could be figured out.
Since then, the problem has been solved, and in the meantime things got busy in other areas of life, so now we will proceed once again with some sort of publishing schedule. This week, to compensate for the situation explained above, we will be republishing the last two articles (with revisions and expansions) as well as questions from reader, including one from a reader who apparently saw the last article.
This question came up into this writer's mind while writing about the aforementioned murder case of Andrew Ramirez. However, it really became present reading through the story of Timothy Greene and his unsolved 2012 murder, in a piece published on Narrative.ly and written by Neil Gluckman. It tells the efforts of his mother to help Timothy and his brothers to rise above the seedy element of the neighborhood, the success that Timothy's family had in doing so with other families in the complex, and the blow dealt to such efforts with his murder. It is a compelling read, and this reporter recommends that anyone reading this article should take a look at it.
The only negative thing this writer can say regarding it is this - Timothy Greene's murder is still unsolved, and there are other stories, murder or otherwise, that are left untold in the city press. Indeed, why is Lefrak City crime so unreported, especially if at least 20% of Corona's population lives in or lives along the perimeter of the complex?
Thus, management has been trying to improve the complex's reputation. To do so, the complex is undergoing a renovation, bringing in new shops, and improving security, among other things.They have also been pushing up prices and pushing long-time residents out, and we will all be hit with higher rents once the renovations are finished.
However, to improve their reputation, it seems they have also chosen to suppress information, including that of crime. This is very unfair given that such information affects anyone who has anything to do with Lefrak City. This is true for all tenants, old or new, as well as any visitors to the complex. To not have some accurate idea of what happens in a complex this size can be detrimental to the future of the complex.
In the past, the picture was so bad. At the beginning of the past decade, a fellow resident published a small monthly newsletter that gave some idea about intra-complex affairs. For unknown reasons, the paper ceased publication, and any dispensing of information of Lefrak has been largely in management hands since then. This website has been trying to fill that void with varying results.
Then again, perhaps we are being alarmists here. This writer has given an opinion; what's yours? Why is Lefrak City crime so unreported? Is there no crime being reported because there is nothing significant enough to report? Is there another reason in your mind relating to this question?
Right now, this website will try a new way to post, in an effort to keep the blog fresh and current while keeping the workload manageable.
Starting from this point on, posts will generally be put up every week to every two weeks. The time between posts will become shortened based on how much this website has to cover.
The next article will be the first opinion piece here, and your opinion will be asked for as well. It will be posted on Friday at 1 PM.
Perhaps in response to the murder of last week, the 110th Precinct has increased its presence in the neighborhood, especially starting Tuesday.
For example, a police tower has just been installed on 57th Avenue once more, elevated above the ground and looking for something unknown. There has also been a helicopter - probably one from the police - which has been circling the area throughout most of the day.
This is coupled with a letter dated June 24, 2014 and addressed to all Lefrak residents, stating that the precinct will be starting vertical sweeps of the complex, looking through stairways, pool areas, hallways, and other public areas. Furthermore, it also said that an incident report would be prepared to document any occurrence of residents caught loitering in these areas as a result of the sweep.
Does this really have anything to do with the Ramirez affair? Does this mean it will reach a resolution? Nobody can say, but the timing certainly makes it very noteworthy.
Murder at Lefrak City - 21 year old stabbed to death near Section 2 (See update below)
(Andrew Ramirez (upper left) was murdered in Lefrak City this past Tuesday. The buildings pictured are incorrect; the crime happened at a group of buildings further down 57th Ave. Photo credits: DNAInfo)
Sorrow abounds at Lefrak City after a young resident lost his life following a brutal attack last Tuesday night.
According to news reports, security cameras, and personal sources, 21 year old Andrew Ramirez (apparently also known as "Chino") was being chased through the complex by three unknown males around 10PM that night.The three caught up with him in the vicinity of the Canada building (97-20 57th Ave), stabbed him several times in the torso, and fled as Ramirez lay bleeding. Emergency services were called, and Ramirez was taken to North Shore LIJ Hospital on 102nd St, where he was pronounced dead later that night.
The reason for the chase and subsequent stabbing is unknown, and as far as this writer knows, no one has been arrested yet for this crime. It is also not known who the the three are, or the nature of the relationship between them and Ramirez. It is also unknown when his funeral will be.
The only evidence so far is a video from a security camera which shows the three chasing Ramirez and running away again after the stabbing. This writer has been unable to see the video, but perhaps viewers may be better able to see it here.
There is now a memorial for Ramirez at 57th Ave and 97th St, across from the Popeye's restaurant. There lay pictures of the victim, candles lit and unlit, and at least two sheets of cardboard full of condolences for Ramirez.
It seems Ramirez had a certain amount of popularity in the neighborhood, as shown by the amount of traffic at his memorial and the sheer amount of condolences left there. "Everybody knew him" was a common thought.
His father, Leo Ramirez, said to DNA info that his son was a "very smart" and athletic person who fell in with the wrong crowd. This may be a reason for the incident, since the murder is thought to be gang related.
In the opinion of this writer however, a person of his age should not be dead, and it is especially disturbing that a crime of such brazenness took place at a time when people were still walking thru the neighborhood; others could have been potentially hurt by the three assailants. One thing is known - this story will not go away any time soon.
Lefrak City News will do its best to follow the latest developments.
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Update (6/21/2014, 9:52 PM): The memorial for Ramirez referred in this article was out until Thursday night or Friday, but has since been removed for unknown reasons.
Given the busyness of New York life, I have been unable to accomplish the goal of keeping this website up solo. However. recent events (one of which will be published tommorrow at 7 pm) have caused me to realize that for the good of the community, this blog will need to keep running on a regular basis. I have pursued a few changes regarding how the blog is run, and hopefully the reading audience will see a difference.
It is my understanding (…I don’t know if it is true or not) that “new” tenants coming into the Lefrak complex are only being offered 1 year leases. If this is true doesn’t this allow Lefrak to slowly, but surely, raise (the) rents on tenants faster?
This is the first time I've heard of this, but given how rents have constantly increased over the past decade, I hardly see why Lefrak wouldn't take advantage of this to raise the rents.
It would be a perfect way to do so. A lease, after all, locks in a certain amount of rent that cannot amended during the time it is valid, except in special considerations (e.g. negligence of the landlord to provide heatl). A lease with shorter time would allow more chances for raises in rent.
If this is true, this would be a very alarming development for all who live in the complex, and it is an issue that warrants attention. If you get any more information on this please let me know.
Has the actual “turnover” (per year) rate of apartments at Lefrak City ever been determined or calculated by anyone?
I have never seen such a figure on public record, and after a short search I can’t find any measure for turnover. What I do know however is Lefrak keeps records when it really makes a difference for their sake, so Lefrak management would probably have those figures, or data needed for those figures, in their offices; it’s just that as far as I can see, that information has never been released publicly.
It’s a good guess, however unscientific it may be, that the turnover during the past 24 months has been relatively high. This is based on how many new neighbors I have met in just the past 16 months; others that I know say that new people are moving in constantly.
Now that you mention the topic, the turnover rate would make for an interesting story for the site. If you learn of anything more concerning this, please let me know.
How much are the coming MCI increases going to raise our rents in 2014 and future ?
I will write the answer in a way that others will be able to learn from your question:
For major capital improvements (MCI, click here for definition), Lefrak management has a history of doing those increases through the years. The most recent ones were the new elevators added just now and the water tanks a few years ago. Given that precedent, it would be highly unusual if Lefrak wouldn’t do the same here.
After doing research for the past few days, the short answer is that I can’t tell you exact figures; I’m in no position to do so, and the mechanics of these increases are a bit difficult to explain, let alone understand. Furthermore, it’s hard to predict for any tenant, since at this point we don’t know the total costs of the renovations. What I can do is explain the mechanics as best I can, and tell a rumor about how much the rent increases might be.
I will start by giving you these pieces of information from the New York City Rent Guidelines Board regarding this subject:
Is there a limit to MCI increases?
There is no limit on the number of MCIs your landlord can file, so long as the improvements qualify as Major Capital Improvements (MCI’s). However, for rent stabilized apartments in New York City the increases may not be added at a rate of more than 6% of the rent per year. Thus, an improvement that warrants an 18% rent increase must be phased in over three years. As a tenant you have the right to object to the landlord’s application if you do not think it is legitimate.
As a rent stabilized tenant, do I have to pay increases for major capital improvements (MCI’s) in perpetuity?Yes. This can be somewhat confusing. The DHCR calculates the rent increase based on a 7 year (or 84 month) amortization schedule of the certified allowable costs for the MCI. In other words, the owner can add about 1/84th of the cost of the project to his/her monthly rent roll for the building. This building wide increase is then allocated among the units in the building on a per room basis. Notwithstanding this notion of a seven year amortization, so long at (sic) the increase was lawful, it becomes part of the base rent and remains a permanent part of the legal rent. In other words, the 1/84th factor is simply used to calculate the adjustment, not to limit its application.
Having just read this myself, it seems that given the scale of the project, the resulting increases could be phased in little by little, and we might not feel the full impact for some time, and this is said presuming the 1/84th cost spread per room in the buildings exceeds the 6% increase allowed in a individual’s rent per year. This seems to include any parts of the MCI that involve improvements to individual apartments, which is an additional cost the renters of those apartments will be expected to bear.
The rumor that I heard says the the increase per room that will be applied will be $20, which can be hefty. That depends on what Lefrak defines as a room (for all we know it could be a bathroom or kitchen) and other factors.
The good thing is that up until this point, we tenants have not received any actual figures about the highly likely increase (at least as far as I am aware), and according to how the NYCRBG site reads, it will probably be announced the same way we found out about the improvements to the complex. At that point, we could protest it by submitting objections to the State Division of Housing and Community Renewal. For the powers that be to take note, there will need to be a substantial amount of objections, but that’s for the future.
To sum it up: We can’t predict the increases yet (expect it to be noticeable), and we have no choice but cross that bridge when we get to it.
(Aerial view of new restaurant complex on the 59th Avenue restaurant complex, taken from NY Daily News)
- Lefrak City News Editor
Most residents of Lefrak City and its surrounding blocks are familiar with the 59th Avenue Garage, a public parking lot across from Queens Center Mall which would fill up in the morning rush, empty during the evening rush, and serve as a handy shortcut for residents trying to get to the Queens Blvd. subway in an awful hurry. A few weeks ago, without much prior notice, the garage was emptied completely, boarded up, and torn up with wood pilings now being driven into the ground.
In case you were wondering why this was going on, we now have our answer: what we are seeing is the result of 10 years of planning and a very ugly court battle, which by next spring will be the location of three very popular restaurant franchises (Joe's Crab Shack, Olive Garden, and Longhorn Steakhouse).
The origins of this project are controversial to begin with: the lot was bought from the city in 2001 by Mattone Group for $2.2 million, with the intention that it would become a movie theater, and Mattone signed agreements stating such, with the city being able to buy it back for $1 if the agreements went unfulfilled. However, Mattone could find no tenants, the city didn't take advantage of the $1 buyback option, and Mattone operated it as a parking lot in the meantime (which is what most locals have known the lot as). In 2010, the city's EDC (Economic Development Council) issued an eviction notice for Mattone failing to follow through on the conditions, and in turn Mattone sued. The legal battle only ended this past Febuary in a settlement that amended the agreement to accommodate the restaurants.
However, all this went on unbeknownst to the local residents, and most of us only got wind of it after the construction began.
(View of vacant lot before construction began)
The construction has already caused inconvenience for local residents, since construction has cut off the heavily used shortcut between the subway and buildings near Junction Blvd and beyond. However, there are greater concerns about this project, one of which is the following.
As the residents of Central Queens know, our area has become a very busy shopping destination. With three major malls in close proximity - Queens Center, Queens Place, and Rego Center - as well as many other smaller shops and restaurants on Broadway, Queens Blvd., 57th Avenue, and a host of other arteries. Because of the popularity of these shops and their convenient location, the area also has an acute traffic problem, which becomes especially pronounced on weekends and the Christmas shopping season. While these changes have generally been accepted (even enthusiastically) by the community, it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that most residents here would think that the area wouldn't be able to take much more development without changing the infrastructure to accommodate ensuing traffic.
It stands then that the present project, while it would further enrich a very vibrant community and contribute to the local economy, could cause the traffic issue to reach the realm of the intolerable. As you can see in the top picture, the location is being designed with parking spots, meaning that the developers expect more traffic to come to the already congested streets of Central Queens. This says nothing about whether local landowners will use the development as an excuse to jack up rents and price out lower income tenants. This in fact has happened in Lefrak City since the opening of the Rego Center extension.
For this and other reasons, the Newtown Civic Association is getting involved, beginning an investigation into the contracts between the city and Mattone. The investigation is ongoing, with details covered in the first article below.
As you can see this is a rapidly developing situation. Stay with this blog and contribute any information and views that you may have as it continues to be covered on Lefrak City News.
Information and top picture taken from these articles:
The blog, after being dormant for so long, is active this week. Along with answering your questions and comments, and taking your submissions, this blog will be publishing an original article on Wednesday at 5:00 pm, as well as a short post later this week.
Thanks once again to those who responded so enthusiastically to the blog's content, and giving it so much information and asking it so many questions. Most of it has contributed greatly to the content this week, and makes it the vibrant news site it was intended to be.
Thus, as the person running it now, I invite you all to come back and give us your questions and comments; it can only make the blog better.
