Institutional Commercial Planning Residential
Willets Point
Queens, NY 2005
Willets Point is bordered by Flushing Bay, Flushing Creek and MTA rail yards. Within this area there is a #7 subway station, Mets Stadium, a parking lot and a cluster of auto parts shops on unpaved streets. This void is at the center of the densest population in Queens and next to the fourth largest central business district in New York City, Flushing.
The Queens Chamber of Commerce asked the Steven L. Newman Real Estate Institute, with which CLA collaborates, to devise a master plan for development. The Newman/CLA team proposed extending Flushing Meadow Park north and over the rail yards to form the base for a regional shopping complex with a small exposition center and hotel. Several levels of commercial space could be built over the retail spine. Parking would be built on decks below the retail. This spine would run across Willets Point from Flushing to the Corona end where a new Mets stadium would be built. Evelyn Kalka assisted on this study.