Long Island City Business Improvement District

Transcription

1 Long Island City Business Improvement District ANNUAL REPORT

2 Section I District Background and Review of Fiscal Year 2011/2012 Activities The Long Island City Business Improvement District The Long Island City Business Improvement District (LIC BID) was launched in July of It encompasses all properties along Queens Plaza North and Queens Plaza South from 21 st Street to Jackson Avenue, and along Jackson Avenue from Queens Plaza South to 45 th Avenue / Thomson Avenue. There are 83 tax lots within the BID s boundaries owned by fewer than 65 distinct property owners. The BID s boundaries encompass a large portion of the 37 block area of Long Island City that was rezoned as New York City s Fourth Central Business District in July of The Long Island City BID provides supplemental sanitation and security services to keep the District clean and safe, and undertakes various marketing initiatives to promote Long Island City and foster commercial development in the area. The BID also works closely with its parent organization, the Long Island City Business Development Corporation (LICBDC) now officially the Long Island City Partnership, to host events and assist businesses throughout the area. A Neighborhood Needs Assessment Long Island City is seeing significant commercial and residential growth. Its mixed use zoning, proximity to Midtown Manhattan, superb access via subway, rail, bus, and highways, growing residential population, and relative value have allowed the District to continue growing over the past year. As the neighborhood hosts a critical mass of businesses, residents, and visitors, Long Island City is becoming a true 24/7 environment and a vibrant place to live, work, and play. Capital Improvements Over the past year, the city s major beautification and capital projects in the BID were officially completed. We marked the completion of the Queens Plaza improvements in January of 2012 and celebrated the opening of our new park, Dutch Kills Green in April of 2012 with a ribbon cutting led by Mayor Bloomberg and other elected officials. The $50 million investment has invigorated the pedestrian environment in and around the Plaza. The revitalization has transformed the District and has provided the BID with much needed modern green space. Queens Plaza has become a major thoroughfare for the city s evolving bikeway system, and the artist design benches located throughout the Plaza and park are well used by area employees and visitors. Dutch Kills Green provides a pleasant (and eco friendly) outdoor space for area office workers, residents and visitors to enjoy. Queens Plaza has become increasingly attractive to new businesses and everyday guests. Capital Construction on the Jackson Avenue medians was completed in May of 2012, following the installation of MTA ventilation systems at two of the medians. The comprehensive streetscape enhancements including planted medians, sidewalk trees and World s Fair style benches continue to transform the corridor and the greater Court Square area. New Development There is exciting commercial and residential development underway in the BID and in areas adjacent to the District. Several new rental and condominium mixed use towers are rising, many of which will house retail space that will be essential to accommodating the future growth and

3 vitality of the neighborhood. As more people live and work in the BID, retailers will continue to see the value in locating in the District. On Jackson Avenue, a new residential building is in construction at the former Dykes Lumber site and on nearby Purves Street, two residential buildings are under construction while another is in planning. Heatherwood Communities has topped off their 27 story rental building, located at 27 th Street and 42 nd Road, which is scheduled to open in early Also being constructed near Court Square is a 709 unit rental building being developed by Rockrose Development Corporation, expected to hit the market in the spring of This building also includes 14,453 square feet of ground floor retail. Crescent Club, on Crescent Street just north of Queens Plaza, began leasing in March of This spring, construction will begin on a 430 unit rental residential building on Queens Plaza North between 23 rd and 24 th Streets with approximately 9,000 square feet of ground floor retail space. These developments are in addition to the many smaller condo and rental projects being erected throughout Long Island City at large. Likewise, hotel development continues to grow throughout the neighborhood. The Z Hotel opened last summer, the Wyndham Garden opened on Vernon Blvd. this spring, the Q4 Hotel opened on Queens Plaza North this summer and the Nesva Hotel opened on 29 th Street this fall. In total, there are now 20 hotels operating in Long Island City with a new Fairfield by Marriot expected to open by the end of the year. Also being planned is a 400 unit Aloft Hotel on Jackson Avenue and a 130 unit hotel on 28 th Street near Queens Plaza South. The Toyoko Inn and Suites is still planned for Court Square, and will be the tallest hotel building outside of Manhattan. Transit connections in Long Island City in and around the BID have improved over the past year. Last summer, the long awaited subway connection at Court Square opened, creating a seamless transfer between the 7, E, M, and G subway lines. With the opening of this facility, the station became a handicapped accessible transit hub, universally known as the Court Square Station. Further improvements to Long Island City transit continue as additional bus shelters are brought into the district and neighborhood train stations are renovated as they become more utilized. A new bus shelter was installed on Queens Plaza South in September, and another is planned for Jackson Avenue in early New Tenants Major corporations and smaller firms continue to express interest in Long Island City and are moving to the neighborhood. These tenants frequently give the area s economic incentives, affordable rents, convenience to the rest of the city, and ability to occupy first class, newly renovated space as reasons for moving to Long Island City. Although some of these companies are not moving into the District itself, the BID and LIC Partnership are welcoming them to the neighborhood and offering our services. We welcomed JetBlue to their new headquarters on Queens Plaza North in April, bringing about 1,200 additional employees to the District. JetBlue feels that Long Island City s convenience, vibrancy, and value are the perfect trifecta for a productive and desirable workplace. Several new restaurants opened in the District on Queens Plaza including Shot World Atlas Café (January 2012), Checkers (February 2012), Empire Express (August 2012) and Stop n Go Chicken (August 2012) and just outside of the District on 27 th Street Resobox (December 2011) and Triple Seito Trading, Inc. (May 2012). More restaurants are on the way including an Indian restaurant

4 on Queens Plaza South and a Chickpea on the ground floor of Gotham Center on 28 th Street, which is expected to be open in November. These establishments are examples of the new, more sophisticated retail ventures calling Queens Plaza home. The CUNY School of Law moved into their 75,000 square foot facility in Citibank s Two Court Square tower in August. The school brings hundreds of students and employees from across the region into Long Island City. The influx of students and staff has had a tremendous impact on pedestrian traffic in the Court Square area and will help bring additional retail amenities. In addition to the arrival of CUNY Law, Court Square has seen new restaurant tenants. New restaurants include Aanchal, which serves Indian and The Inkan, serving Peruvian cuisine. Food Trucks were also available in Rockrose Development Corporation s food truck lot during lunch time hours on Thursdays and Fridays throughout the summer. Also new to the District is a Queens Immigration facility on Jackson Avenue. The facility occupies more than 48,000 square feet and brings about 100 employees from an immigration office in Garden City, Long Island. It is an ideal location for the facility, with access to public transportation and within the ethnically diverse borough of Queens. Businesses are experiencing the benefits of the influx of new employees and visitors staying in area hotels and are optimistic about Long Island City s continued growth. In July, the BID conducted a pedestrian count on Queens Plaza South which showed that foot traffic during morning and lunch time hours had nearly doubled since July of The Long Island City residential market has retained much of its original strength. The Industry on 44 th Drive sold out and rental properties continue to maintain a high occupancy rate. Market reports indicate that both condominium sales and rental leasing in Long Island City are stable. Customers continue to perceive value in Long Island City, especially in light of the public and private investments being made throughout the District. Apartments are priced competitively, and Long Island City s unique amenities continue to impress newcomers. District Needs Because of the continued influx of both daytime and resident populations to the District and Long Island City as a whole, restaurants and retailers continue to move to the neighborhood. However, while we are seeing more amenities, some vacancies remain. The Department of Health building features 9,000 square feet of ancillary Class A retail space and the clock tower building on Queens Plaza North is still waiting for a ground floor tenant. In response, over the past year the BID has continued to implement strategy developed in the previous year working with the Department of Small Business Services and JGSC Group to attract new retail tenants, as well as deploy new strategies and marketing initiatives to help attract these companies (further described in the Accomplishments section below). In summary, during , the Long Island City BID has seen some exciting growth and we expect the momentum to continue. The BID welcomed major tenants, retailers, and residents to the area, and looks forward to increased populations in the vicinity in the coming year. With increased residential and employee populations, as well as new restaurants and green spaces, additional entities have opened in the District and will undoubtedly continue to do so. There is a positive buzz about Long Island City, which has been heavily documented in the press over the

5 past year. Many of these articles are archived on the BID s website, ( As the overall economy continues to become stronger, we expect 2012 and 2013 to attract further investment as corporations move operations to our area, entrepreneurs and developers realize the potential for growth in Long Island City, and many of the new residential units built in the past year begin to lease and sell. B Review of Accomplishments for Fiscal Year 2011/2012 One year ago, the Long Island City BID identified four goals for the coming year, namely: 1. Continue to welcome new companies, employees and students to Long Island City 2. Conduct LIC Marketing Campaign 3. Attract new services and retail to Long Island City 4. Explore creation of a BID on Vernon Boulevard 1. Continue to Welcome New Companies, Employees, and Students to Long Island City Over the past year, the BID has welcomed the employees of incoming companies to Long Island City. BID staff prepared presentations for company employees on area restaurants, amenities and cultural destinations, as well as guided walking tours for District employees throughout the spring and summer months. Marketing materials with neighborhood information were also provided to the newcomers. When the 1,200 employees of JetBlue arrived in their new headquarters on Queens Plaza North in April, BID staff assembled information on restaurants and retailers for the new employees. For JetBlue s open house weekend BID staff provided neighborhood walking, made available an LIC Partnership newsletter sign up sheet, and was on hand to answer questions about the neighborhood. BID staff guided weekly walking tours for JetBlue, Citibank and Department of Health employees and continues to maintain relationships with the Human Resources departments at these companies. Advertising and media firm Publicis will move to Queens Plaza North in February, bringing about 450 new employees to the District. BID and Long Island City Partnership staff look forward to welcoming them by offering similar services. 2. Conduct LIC Marketing Campaign In May 2011, the BID and the LICBDC launched its marketing arm, Long Island City Partnership. Over the past year, the BID worked with the LICBDC as the Long Island City Partnership to create more cohesiveness as local entities now realize and appreciate how the organization works together as a team to provide superior assistance to local stakeholders. The identity of the BID has allowed for outreach to a greater audience and better service to the neighborhood. Following this re branding, the BID utilized $50,000 in matching funds from NYCEDC to market the neighborhood and promote its amenities. This funding paid for a variety of initiatives. First, the printing of promotional collateral including a Time Out New York insert with a map showing locations and descriptions of Long Island City hot spots. We had several thousand extra copies printed of the insert. Secondly, Long Island City Partnership teamed up with the Taproot Foundation to create two brochures. One describes Long Island City s emergence as a New York City stronghold and lists services provided by the BID and contact information for BID staff. The

6 second is a 10 page booklet entitled LIC from A to Z, which is a marketing piece listing everything great about the neighborhood (one per letter), from its many film studios to its first class museums, and also contains LIC Partnership services and contact information. Finally, the BID utilized the remaining funds to pay for a portion of production and installation costs of the LIC Welcomes You banners. In total, over 250 updated street banners were installed throughout the neighborhood, which reflect the Partnership s new identity. The banners were primarily funded through private sponsorship by local companies. Over the past year, we developed a neighborhood discount program called Partnership Perks. The program incorporates the use of discount cards to access deals at restaurants, retailers and service providers in the BID and throughout the neighborhood. The idea of the program is to help better connect area employees and residents with local businesses and services. The program assists neighborhood businesses as a form of free advertising, as they can promote any deal or discount that they would like on the website. The program and collateral were developed in early 2012, with the program launch on July 1 st. Since July, the program has grown with nearly 50 participating businesses offering Perks and with approximately 8,000 Perks cards distributed to area employees and residents. 3. Attract new services and retail to Long Island City Several new businesses entered the District this year including four new restaurants and other commercial tenants. With the improvements now complete on Queens Plaza and new residential developments underway, we expect the retail mix to expand and evolve as newcomers enter the neighborhood. With the expected incoming population, the BID has been reaching out to prospective retailers and assisting brokers market the neighborhood to prospective tenants. This year, we began listing a selection of available commercial properties in and adjacent to the BID, and we will continue to maintain these listings. It is a great resource for the real estate community and those companies seeking to re locate to Long Island City. We have continued to build our relationships with brokers in the neighborhood and elsewhere in order to assist bringing new companies and tenants here whenever possible. Many projections based on current census numbers show that the District s population will stay flat or even decrease by Based on the development underway, and the future projects being planned, we know that these numbers are not representative of the trends. Since retail companies many times use this data to determine whether or not to open a store in Long Island City, we have been working to tell the real story of growth and trends so that these companies can be informed on what s to come possibly persuaded to consider locating in the neighborhood. As part of this effort we created an LIC Quick Facts sheet with growth trends documented and the number of new units coming on line shown. We also maintain a GIS based Development map showing all development in the past 7 years as well as projects of the units that are in planning. Additionally, we conducted a pedestrian count in the District to show trending over the past few years. The pedestrian count turned out to be a great success. As our data shows, foot traffic has doubled during morning and lunch time hours from two years ago.

7 4. Explore creation of a BID on Vernon Blvd. Over the past year, we ve developed and strengthened our relationships with business owners and property owners on Vernon Blvd. We have had an active presence in the community and opened lines of communication in order to determine what the needs are of businesses and stakeholders in the greater neighborhood, particularly on Vernon Blvd. In order to engage the many restaurants and retailers both in our current BID and on Vernon, we have held quarterly meetings in order to facilitate introductions and discuss needs and opportunities for assistance, while introducing the concept of a BID to those who are not familiar. We also engaged retailers on Vernon through the Partnership Perks program, and look forward to continuing to work with these business owners to grow and evolve the program suited to their needs and input. Initial research has led us to pursue BID expansion on Jackson Avenue extending on Vernon Blvd. rather than to create a new, separate BID. *Additional Activities Along with the activities described above related to our goals for the year, we undertook many other initiatives to help enliven the BID and promote Long Island City. LIC Arts Open The LIC Arts Open is a 9 day long neighborhood wide arts and open studios festival that occurs every May. For the nine days of the festival, many local businesses and residential buildings open their doors and provide wall space for exhibitions. For the festival this year, BID staff worked with District property owners and festival coordinators to fill vacant retails spaces with art exhibitions and events. Most notably, the 9,000 square foot ground floor retail space in the Gotham Center building was transformed into a multi media exhibit with neon lights, sculpture, projection art, photography and much more. A well attended reception was held in the space that included Japanese sword demonstrations and live music. We also worked with property owners to fill vacant retail spaces on Jackson Avenue and the ground floor of the Clocktower building. Positive attention was brought to each one of these spaces as the festival was promoted and published widely. Programming such as this not only helped enliven and activate the BID, but helps attract attention and potentially investment to the District and is a great way to further develop our relationships with property owners as well as the LIC arts community. New York Daily News Section In June, we worked with the New York Daily News on a section called Long Island City is Hot This Summer. We provided the editorial content for the 24 page section, coordinating some contributions from local businesses and community members. In addition to distribution at newsstands, in home delivery, and accessible for 30 days online, the New York Daily News provided us with 1,000 extra copies of the section. We distributed this to hotels and restaurants in the BID and across the neighborhood in order to promote the many exciting happenings in LIC, and to help generate a buzz to attract newcomers to visit.

8 Hotel Outreach BID and Long Island City Partnership staff worked together to strengthen relationships with Long Island City hotels, and provide services to help management and front desk staff be more informed on the many restaurants and attractions in the neighborhood. Quarterly meetings served as ideal venues for hotel managers to meet each other, and orientation presentations for front desk staff served as a great value to hotel operators who want to provide exceptional service for their guests. Section II Fiscal Year Goals A Looking Ahead: Fiscal Year 2012/2013 Goals 1. Continue to welcome new companies, employees and students to Long Island City 2. Continue LIC Marketing and Branding Campaign 3. Attract New Services and Retail to Long Island City 4. Continue to Develop Neighborhood Programming 5. Explore BID Expansion on Jackson Avenue and Vernon Blvd. 1) Continue to welcome new companies, employers and students to Long Island City As the daily population in Long Island City grows, it will remain the BID s duty to welcome these individuals and let them know what the area has to offer. The BID will continue leading walking and bus tours as well as give orientations to incoming employees and area hotel staff. Regular weekly walking tours will be offered with expected continued participation from Department of Health, JetBlue, Citibank and CUNY Law. When Publicis arrives in February of 2013, we look forward to welcoming them with neighborhood information packages, Perks cards and walking tours. Close contact with Human Resources departments of these companies and others who may relocate will be essential, and the BID will continue to maintain and seek out these relationships. 2) Continue to Conduct LIC Marketing Campaign The BID will continue marketing Long Island City as a desirable place to do business. In the coming year, we plan to continue distributing our Long Island City marketing collateral and strengthen our expanded outreach. We plan to produce new marketing materials including a comprehensive neighborhood map. This map will be a great resource to distribute to employees and visitors to the District and greater neighborhood, and will be a great service as we distribute to local businesses and area destinations. LIC Partnership also plans to launch a new banner program in the summer. The 136 new banners installed this past year have been a huge success in creating a better sense of community and sense of place in the neighborhood. They have also been helpful in highlighting the rebranding of the BID and promotion of LIC Partnership as the key community go to organization. In order to keep the program fresh and exciting, we plan to launch a new design every year and continue the important neighborhood program. Since the launch of the Partnership Perks program in July, we have expanded it exponentially. We plan to continue to work with local businesses, arts institutions and service providers to

9 offer special incentives to Perks cardholders. We will continue to distribute the cards to District employees and to others who live and work in the neighborhood. We also intend to work with some of the major developers and brokerage firms in the area to coordinate effective distribution to neighborhood residents. Though we have distributed almost 8,000 at no charge, we do plan to charge a fee for mass production and distribution through these entities so that our costs are covered and we generate a small amount of revenue. The program is both valuable to participating businesses and to cardholders, and we are excited by the potential to grow the program and adjust distribution and fees accordingly. We also plan to further expand our public relations efforts. Over the past year, we have developed strong relationships with local publications and it has been a great value to promote the businesses and neighborhood news that puts Long Island City in the spotlight as an exciting and thriving community. We plan to distribute press releases in the coming year in order to simplify our message for publications, and also to build relationships with larger media outlets such as The New York Times, New York Magazine, Time Out New York, New York Daily News, The Village Voice and other regional online blogs. 3) Attract New Services and Retail to Long Island City Since Long Island City is developing a critical 24/7 mass of residents, workers, students, and visitors for the first time, many regional and national retailers remain unaware of the neighborhood and do not understand its potential. Through targeted outreach to retailers and by providing specific demographic information showing the recent transformation of Long Island City into a thriving community, the BID will continue its outreach to increase the amount of daily services and retail amenities in the District. Developed in the past year, we will continue to update our commercial property listings and work closely with brokers and developers to help market particular available spaces along with the neighborhood as a whole. We will help tell the story of Long Island City s transformation with maps and data to back it up. We will aim to be the first stop for brokers and companies looking to move to or open in Long Island City, and expand our reach by further developing our network of real estate contacts. 4) Continue to Develop Neighborhood Programming Working with the LIC Partnership, the BID will continue to develop new programming and events. With more daytime office workers in the District and an expected influx of new residents in the spring, we will design programs to engage these groups. Our new park, Dutch Kills Green, will be a great venue to begin testing the receptivity to additional District programming. Some initial ideas we have in mind are lunchtime yoga and exercise classes. JetBlue and Department of Health specifically have expressed receptivity to this sort of programming. 5) Initiate BID Expansion on Jackson Avenue and Vernon Blvd. Vernon Boulevard continues to grow exponentially. Between Borden Avenue and 44 th Drive, there is a dense corridor of retail which is expanding as new high rise rental and condo buildings are constructed in Hunters Point. While there are several groups including the LIC Partnership that do work along Vernon, there is no formal or cohesive organization dedicated to keeping the

10 corridor clean and attractive for residents and employees. We believe that with a BID, the area will get the support it needs to become even more desirable. Our database of property owners and property information is nearly complete. We will soon begin scheduling meetings with property owners and stakeholders on Jackson Avenue and Vernon Blvd. to gage interest in BID expansion and take further steps as appropriate. Section III Contracts (See Attachment) 1) Atlantic Maintenance Sanitation 2) FJC Security Security 3) M.C. Landscape Group Landscaping and Maintenance of the medians on Jackson Avenue 4) NYC Department of Parks and Recreation Landscaping and Maintenance of the Queens Plaza Greenway and Dutch Kills Green park. Section IV Organizational Information The Long Island City BID is staffed by a full time Operations Manager and a part time Executive Director. The LIC BID contracts with the Long Island City Business Development Corporation (LICBDC) to provide support services including the use of a receptionist and other office support staff. The LIC BID s organizational structure was designed to provide the organization with both an affordable full time District Services Manager dedicated to the daily needs of the District, and a highly experienced Executive Director to guide the organization. In addition, the BID is overseen by a Board of Directors. The BID welcomed a new District Services Manager last year. Dana Frankel joined the LIC Partnership in mid November to serve in this capacity, and we are happy to have her on our team.