Billion Dollar Flooding

15/11/2023 Long Island City, New York City, United States

New York City's waterfronts are inundated not only by rising sea levels and stormwaters but also by the tide of real estate capital, embodied in a six-story structure at 44-36 Vernon Boulevard by the East River in Long Island City, Queens.

Opened in 1948 as part of the New Deal for the Works Progress Administration, the 44-36 Vernon soon transitioned into an administrative center for the Department of Education, and stood in relative tranquility for decades. Long Island City, the neighborhood surrounding the building, gained a reputation as an industrial hub in the early 20th century. In the wake of New York's industrial decline, manufacturing plants saw increasing vacancies in the 1960s and 1970s, subsequently being discovered and repurposed by artists and musicians.

The landscape began to shift in the 1980s as Long Island City’s numerous large warehouses and scenic views of Manhattan began to attract both trend-savvy Manhattanites and real estate speculators, paving the way for corporate office towers and luxury condominiums dotting the landscape today.

In 2018, a proposal surfaced by Amazon, backed by billion-dollar incentives from both the city and the state, to establish its headquarters in the building—despite the vulnerable location on floodplains. The local community vehemently opposed the plan, advocating for 44-36 Vernon to be repurposed as a community facility. In the following year, Amazon abruptly withdrew from the deal because of adamant opposition amongst locals.

Presently, the streets of Long Island City face regular flooding during rainstorms, and state projections anticipate nearly two meters of sea-level rise along the coast by the end of the century. In 2021, the local community collaborated on a feasibility study with Bagchee Architects, resulting in a proposal named the Queensboro People's Space, which aimed to provide democratically-managed, affordable spaces for arts, manufacturing, food justice, and healthcare.

Critical decisions loom for the coveted waterfront property situated on city-owned land, highly sought after by developers eager to tap into New York City’s billion-dollar coastal property market. The site is already surrounded by lots leased to major developers.