May 10, 2018 By Tara Law
New renderings have been released of a planned development on the corner of 21st Street and 30th Road that will consist of a five-story community center for the Variety Boys and Girls Club of Queens and a 14-story mixed-use building.
The two buildings are expected to be completed on the Boys and Girls Club’s 21-12 30th Rd. existing property in 2020, according to the designer, Marner Architecture.
The renderings show new facilities planned for the club, including a multi-use gym and a theater.
The center will also include a five-lane swimming pool, community meeting spaces, a tech hub, classrooms, a planetarium and other spaces, according to Marner.
The plans also call for the construction of a 14-story mixed-use building that will include 108 apartments. A portion of the housing will be designated as affordable, and some units will be set aside to house some of the club’s full-time staff.
Matthew Troy, executive director of the Boys and Girls Club of Queens, said last year that the housing will help ensure the financial viability of the club going forward. The club intends to designate at least 30 percent of the housing as affordable, Troy said at the time.
The project will require rezoning.
The club intends to present the project to the public at Community Board 1’s June meeting as part of its rezoning application, a spokesperson for the club said in a e-mail yesterday. The club may well amend the plans based on feedback.
The Club was founded in 1955 and currently has about 1,200 members on its roster. The club decided to expand because it has outgrown its current building and intends to offer new programming.
4 Comments
Who sold the baseball field where we used to play little stick? They put a whole building there. Not enough money to operate a boys club?? And what politicians are getting paid off to change these zoning laws? And all people can think about is riding their bicycles with headphones on and trying to ignore cars and pedestrians. What the hell has this world come to?
They keep rezoning the neighborhood to accommodate developers . Astoria and LIC are getting overcrowded with thousands and thousands of more people and cars and the same mediocre transportation infrastructure. The old charm is slowly disappearing
Was a member…in 1955 when it opened its doors. It was then the Boys Club of Queens. A guy named Hank coached the swim “team” — and two brothers named Figiola were the closest local version to Olympic stars in the pools.
We also swam naked — required! Imagine that.
Ancient Astoria was a magical place.
So the existing building will be demolished and a new one built in its place? So, the center will cease operations for a period of time?