The Greater Downtown Jamaica Queens Land Use Plan, Research Paper Example

Introduction

Jamaica Queens Downtown is a picturesque district of the New York City that provides a huge number of industrial, commercial and cultural opportunities with many educational establishments, museums and libraries that add to the cultural profile of the NYC. The district is situated near John F Kennedy Airport, which provides high volumes of visitors and strong transportation ties established between Jamaica and other districts of New York.

Jamaica Downtown has a very rich history that proves its strategic importance for the USA on the whole and its overall significance in the unique socio-demographic structure it has, being populated with representatives of many nationalities, cultures, races and skin colors. In general Jamaica is an internationally popular point of destination with its authentic African American culture, with its neighborhood that has not been altered since the middle of the 20^th century that attracts many visitors.

However, it has been recently found out that the Jamaica Queens Downtown does not correspond to its contemporary vision of the municipal authorities and does not use its potential to the fullest extent. The abnormal density of population in the district with the dramatic overpopulation in the Downtown region and with the least concentration of residents in some other parts of Queens brought about the idea of rezoning the district.

This is done with the purpose of affording better living conditions for the district’s residents, for the creation of more opportunities for the profitable geographical location and business opportunities in Jamaica Queens and with the purpose of renewal of the district without the damage to the historical image and surroundings to which the residents grew so accustomed. The new rezoning plan was adopted in 2007 and is now actively implemented into life by the construction and planning companies that actively work on the creation of a renewed and rezoned Jamaica Queensland Downtown.

Previous Zoning of Jamaica Queens

Jamaica Queens is a significant region of New York situated in the very heart thereof and being one of the three regional economic centers of strategic importance and influence in the city. It is located in the strategic proximity with the John F Kennedy International Airport, so it has always been performing a number of functions in the city that distinguished it from other districts in being both an active urban region and a great transportation hub (Jamaica Plan 2). It is called “a vibrant downtown characterized by the energy, diversity, and entrepreneurship of its residents, workers, businesses, and leaders” (Downtown Jamaica – Heritage Blueline 1). Thus, it is possible to understand the cultural wealth and diversity of the district that historically formed it and made it what it is at the present moment.

The zone has a rich and lively history – for centuries of its existence it performed highly important functions for residents who inhabited America even before the first European settlers and colonizers. The first information about Jamaica relates to Jamaica Avenue that was a route connecting the Ohio River and the Great Lakes – the inhabitants of those regions traded skins and wampum (Downtown Jamaica – Heritage Blueline 2). But in 1655 the land was bought by early settlers for two guns, a coat and some powder. Later on the district was called Rustdorp by the Dutch governor, but later on the English renamed it for ‘jamaco’ which meant ‘beaver’ in Carnasie (Downtown Jamaica – Heritage Blueline 2). This is the history of Jamaica’s name.

In the 18^th century Jamaica Avenue was called King’s Highway and became the place for farmer trading. 1805 was marked by the arrival of Rufus King who was a prominent activist in Constitutional affairs and abolition of slavery. The manor created upon his order in the Federalist style still exists as a monument for Rufus’ life and activities in Jamaica (Downtown Jamaica – Heritage Blueline 2).

In 1834 Jamaica was connected with the rest of the USA by the Brooklyn and Jamaica Railroad, and fifty years later Jamaica was the first to be electrified. Subsequent decades marked the rapid growth and development of the Jamaican district. It became a part of the NYC in 1898 with about 6,500 residents (Downtown Jamaica – Heritage Blueline 2).

At the beginning of the 20^th century elevated transit lines were established providing a much closer and stronger connection between Manhattan and Jamaica. Further on the Long Island Rail Road Station was accomplished, making Jamaica a powerful commercial center with department stores, the movie palace and a supermarket by the 1940s. IND Subway connected Jamaica with Brooklyn and Manhattan, finally creating the close and active ties between three neighboring districts (Downtown Jamaica – Heritage Blueline 2).

At the present moment of time Jamaica is an active and developed district that provides a huge number of judicial and legal facilities, the heavily-used AirTrain rail link with JFK Airport, federal buildings and civic assets such as libraries, parks and museums that will be described later. The population of Jamaica Queens is also diverse and vivid. The core population constitutes the African-American community, nowadays it is supplemented with residents from the Caribbean, Central America and South Asia (Downtown Jamaica – Heritage Blueline 2).

Nowadays Jamaica Downtown is a large district measured by Hillside Avenue in the north, the 146^th street in the west, Merrick Boulevard in the east, and Liberty Avenue, further on, the AirTrain railroad and JFK Airport in the south. There are three subway stations in the district, located in Archer Avenue, Hillside Avenue and near the AirTrain (Downtown Jamaica – Heritage Blueline 1).

The significant historical landmarks that have high significance for the cultural, social and community life in the Jamaica Queens Downtown are King Park, York College, the King Manor Museum, the Grace Episcopal Church, and the Valencia Theater etc.

King Manor was the residence of Rufus King, now it is the museum dedicated to him. Modest decorations and solid proportions, the specific design of windows and the portico with columns create the unforgettable Federalist style of the building that was created in the 19^th century (Downtown Jamaica – Heritage Blueline 1). The Grace Episcopal Church was built in 1862 and represents the Gothic Revival architecture. It contains WPA murals that were produced in the period of the Great Depression. It is small but really grand, attracting many visitors and admirers every day (Downtown Jamaica – Heritage Blueline 1). The Valencia Theater was built in 1929 according to John Eberson’s project. It is one of the several atmospheric “Wonder Theaters” located in different parts of the country. The decorations and style are made in the Spanish manner, and now the theater is the Tabernacle of Prayer (Downtown Jamaica – Heritage Blueline 1).

At the current period of time Jamaica gives home for more than 700,000 residents. There is a considerable part of light industrial and commercial sectors, but still the majority of land in Jamaica Queens is occupied by commercial and residential areas that are over-populated. This fact especially pertains to the Downtown Region that shows real extremes in the respect of population volume. Both business and residence of Jamaica inhabitants find their places in the Downtown, which cannot help affecting the welfare statistics in a negative way (The Jamaica Plan 3).

After a thorough investigation of the region current planning it was found out that Jamaica today “limits growth and vitality in appropriate transit –accessible locations, especially near the AirTrain” (The Jamaica Plan 3). More than that, density between thoroughfares and streets at which people reside was not clear and turned out to be unacceptably mixed and intermingled (The Jamaica Plan 3). But what appeared even more seeking change was that the irresponsible planning and land use allowed irregular development and expansion of the neighboring districts occupied by local residents, which led to extreme overpopulation. The current zoning structure that made the researchers recognize the necessity of change.

As a result of such investigation and research it was decided to conduct rezoning and re-planning in the area taking into consideration its business and commercial potential – the proximity to the large and heavily used airport requires more activity and application of facilities in the neighboring region. And this is actually possible in case the land is used optimally with the proper regard of the residential and business opportunities of Jamaica Queens Downtown with the optimal usage of all possibilities offered by the favorable geographical position.

The Rezoning Plan. Political and Economic Impact of Current Zoning

Jamaica is a strategically important district of the New York City that has to perform a range of functions, so in 2007 it was recognized that it fails to fulfill them due to the unreasonable zoning and density of population in the district. The main reasons for rezoning as a necessary step for the sustainable development of the district and assistance to it in corresponding to its direct functions and geographical destination were to strengthen its airport communication and infrastructure with John F Kennedy Airport, making Downtown Jamaica a real ‘airport village’ (Downtown Jamaica – Heritage Blueline 2).

The set of goals stipulated for the current rezoning plan that is now in the process of implementation is to, first of all, preserve as much of the authentic Jamaica Queens culture and geographical planning, to respect the range of residential, business and community activities that have been conducted in the Queens for decades, protect the authentic low-scale neighborhood planning of the areas located near the downtown, and to provide the affordable housing that will be acquired by previous residents of Jamaica Queens – these buildings have been thoroughly planned in the Jamaica Downtown rezoning plan, and they will have to be acquired by the residents still willing to live in the region after its rezoning is complete (The Jamaica Plan). However, it is also important to admit that the main aim of the rezoning plan is to urge lowering density of population that has reached an enormous measure recently, preventing people from having decent and humane living conditions. Thus, the aims of rezoning are to provide housing for everyone residing in Jamaica Downtown and at the same time do it in such a way so that the region seized to be overpopulated. Besides, the problem is planned to be solved only by building a satisfactory number of apartments for people to be able to live in good, new buildings, but the relocation of population is also structured in such a way so that the region did not lose its authentic construction structures and was not heavily filled with buildings that would destroy the historical planning of Jamaica so appreciated by its native residents.

However, to understand the whole scope of events planned to be undertaken in the Jamaica Queensland Downtown it is necessary to consider the rezoning plan part by part, in a detailed way. Generally, the rezoning strategy planned by the Department of City Planning (DCP) was intended to create a special district that would be the Jamaica Downtown separately from the rest of Jamaica Queensland – this should be done by rezoning 368 blocks in community boards 12 and 8 (The Jamaica Plan).

The first aim to be achieved through the Jamaica Downtown plan is to lower the population density within the region. With this purpose the rezoning plan presupposes restructuring 130 blocks that should preserve the 1-2 family character. This means that these blocks with be less densely populated, and specific houses are planned to be built there that will not change the profile of the region but will suit the new needs of the district’s residents. Secondly, 50 blocks will be constructed in the low-rise mixed building character – that is, they will be designed in such a way that further building and overpopulating of the region would become impossible (The Jamaica Plan 5).

The areas for 1-2 family construction are planned to be made to the west from King Park and in the region of Jamaica Avenue’s north-western part. They occupy vast regions that will not be overpopulated and in which the small private houses planned to host 1-2 families will not spoil the overall image of the territory and will suit the innovative goals stipulated for the district (The Jamaica Plan 5). The blocks planned for mixed building are much smaller but there are more regions in which they will be located: in the region of the AirTrain, 94^th Street and 150^th street; the region to the north-east from the AirTrain at the end of 146^th street and Sutphin Boulevard; the relatively large part to the north-west from King Park, and the western part including Archer Avenue (The Jamaica Plan 5).

The second point for serious consideration by the municipal authorities who planned the rezoning project is to plan decent housing opportunities in the rezoned Jamaica Queens Downtown. The matter is that the problem will not be solved only by building a set of new houses for Downtown residents – since the district used to be overpopulated there is still a question where the residents will go to live as soon as their houses are destroyed for the sake of rezoning and space optimization. So, the purpose of the rezoning plan is to “increase housing densities, especially along wide streets with good transit access”, “to ensure scale of housing complements existing building patterns” and to ensure the new housing of better quality than there used to be in Jamaica Queens (The Jamaica Plan 7). The purpose of this part of the rezoning plan is for every person to acquire a decent living space in the place where he or she used to live, but to create much better living conditions for every resident and to make the social climate in the district much healthier this way.

Construction of houses of new type and structure is planned for the most part in the northern part of Jamaica Queens and will stretch from the north-eastern part to the north-west on both sides of Hillside Avenue, even taking some parts of 88^th Avenue. As for the southern parts of Jamaica Queens Downtown, the density of new construction will be much lower here, but still the main emphasis will be made on the regions of Merrick Boulevard, Guy R Brewer Boulevard and surely on both sides of the AirTrain railroad, 94^th Avenue and Arch Avenue (The Jamaica Plan 7).

And surely there emerges a question on what basis the dwelling will be acquired by the former residents of Jamaica Downtown – there will certainly appear much fuss about who to give space in the newly built houses, how much these square meters will cost and what to do with those who have no money to buy new apartments in the newly built area. This problem is being solved with the help of the Inclusionary Housing Program (The Jamaica Plan 9). It is planned to promote “permanently affordable housing” – families with the income lower than $56,720 per year for the family of four members are eligible for this program and will get their dwellings provided by the state. In addition, the program presupposes the action of certain state, local or federal subsidy programs that will allow residents to acquire their housing at lower prices or will help reduce tax payoffs for the period of time when the housing is acquired (The Jamaica Plan 9).

Opportunities for larger numbers of people to acquire their dwelling in multi-storied buildings is presupposed to be given in the region of AirTrain railroad, continuing the line of the rezoning plan about the opening of another way to the JFK Airport that would increase the usage of Jamaica Queensland potential. The rezoning plan presupposes construction of housing capacities with the maximum housing potential in that part, with lower buildings planned for the region of 88^th and 89^th Avenues (The Jamaica Plan 14).

Among other points of consideration for the rezoning plan is the enhancement of business and industry in the context of the renewed Jamaica Queensland – there are certain guidelines presupposed for the growth of importance of the York College, and a set of measures to be taken to “prohibit open uses” and to “expand opportunities for industrial growth” – the regions designed for these purposes are planned in the close location to JFK Airport and in the eastern part of Jamaica Queens, on both parts of the eastern fragment of Jamaica Avenue (The Jamaica Plan 16).

Summing up the planned changes in the Jamaica Queens Region, it is necessary to mention the creation of the Urban Renewal Area in which only 3 blocks are planned for rezoning and which will provide the “mechanism for public acquisition of properties, only if needed, to ensure planned redevelopment of key sites” (The Jamaica Plan 17). This area is situated near the JFK Airport and will acquire incomparable strategic importance once the rezoning process is complete, since the last but not the least innovation planned in the course of rezoning is the creation of a new Gateway Urban Renewal Area that will constitute the one million square foot commercial area near the airport (The Jamaica Plan 18-19). Such redesign of the district map inevitably causes certain property changes within the context of rezoning and redevelopment, so as a result of new areas being designed for new purposes it was decided to move the public parking garage that was used by the Police Department of Jamaica Queens from the Urban Renewal Area to the district north form the Jamaica Center, to the eastern part of 88^th Avenue (The Jamaica Plan 20).

Takings, Nesciences and Eminent Domain Through Condemnation of Rezoning

Taking into consideration such large-scale rezoning and reconstruction there is surely no doubt that some aspects of newly designed districts will cause debates and opposition of the residents due to some norms, customs and habits they used to have or simply due to the incompliance with the landscape which they would notice better than any municipal planning board because these are their native places. Thus, one controversy emerged in the region of Briarwood that is located not far from the Parsons Boulevard and Queens Boulevard – the debate concerns construction of St.John’s University Dorm:

“There has been vocal community opposition to the construction of the dorm, that will be located in predominately residential area. The six-story dorm takes advantage of a zoning loophole for community facilities to rise about 20 feet above the maximum allowable height” (PlanNYC).

One more challenge faced by the whole rezoning campaign is the reluctance of the JetBlue Corp. to move to the district of Queens as soon as the redevelopment campaign is over and the new JetBlue Terminal is created in the Urban Revival Area – “City officials plan to submit a proposal to the company to keep it in Queens” (PlanNYC). Surely, the question turns out to be in the source of financing, and the rezoning plan in Queens was initially designed to enhance the airport connections through development of new channels and communication facilities. Thus, the issue, though still unsolved, should be finished successfully in favor of Queens.

And finally, the issue concerning law guidelines accompanying the rezoning process in Queens pertains to questioning the propriety of such drastic changes and the necessity of such large-scale destruction on the whole:

“Whether it is the planned condemnation of several square blocks on the West Side … the proposed redevelopment of the Atlantic and Flatbush Avenue downtown Brooklyn site… it appears that there continues to be unrelenting destruction of… economically viable buildings and neighborhoods for a more economically intense land use” (Maltzs 2).

It is clear that the rezoning plan is likely to bring life of absolutely different quality to Queens, but the price of such renewal is still unknown and remains to be found out as soon as the plan is accomplished. Ideally, the district will acquire a new face, with much more optimal living facilities and more business growth and industrial potential. But the plan may be implemented in a bit different way in reality, and housing issues still are not completely solved.

Conclusion

Jamaica Queens Downtown is going through a period of substantial rezoning and redevelopment in the course of JFK Airport usage enhancement and provision of much more decent living conditions for those who live in overpopulated Downtown areas. Surely, there will be no chance to house all previous residents in the houses that are being built in different regions planned for rezoning at the present moment, but the focus of the plan is multi-faceted, comprehensive and valid in many spheres of human activities in Queens. The most important aspect of the project is that it is aimed at preserving the authenticity, unique culture and style of life of the internationally famous region.

All measures are designed in such a way so that to enhance the living standards in the region and to promote business activity, enabling its easier development and prosperity. JFK Airport is one more strategic goal of the project to be used more widely – the JetBlue Terminal designed for construction in the Urban Renewal Area will become a great step forward in the business activity and prosperity of the Queens and its residents.

Works Cited

Downtown Jamaica – Heritage Blueline, 2009. 13 November 13, 2009. <http://www.nycedc.com/ProjectsOpportunities/CurrentProjects/Queens/DowntownJamaica/Documents/JamaicaHeritageBlueline.pdf>

Maltzs, John. “Creative destruction: New York City’s key to growth”. Real Estate Weekly, Jan 14, 2004. 13 November 2009. <http://findarticles.com/ p/articles/mi_m3601/is_22_50/ai_112987031/>

PlanNYC. 13 November 13, 2009. <http://www.plannyc.org/taxonomy/term/724/all>

The Jamaica Plan. Department of City Planning, New York, 2009. 13 November 2009. < http://nyc.gov/html/dcp/pdf/jamaica/jamaica_presentation.pdf>