Development destroying Far Rockaway bungalows
April 21, 2009 01:40PM
Photographer Lynn Guarino recently toured the Far Rockaway's remaining
bungalows to capture how they have become dilapidated and worn down
over time due to shifting demographics (see slide show at right).
Guarino said that in the 1940s, "Far Rockaway was pegged as 'the new Hamptons,' and the bungalows
were popular vacation destinations for New Yorkers," but when the city
built low-income housing in the area, its tourism industry declined. A
local preservation group called the Beachside Bungalow Preservation
Association has made preserving the bungalows its mission.
"I wanted to show in the photos the impact the city has of making
or breaking neighborhoods depending on the zoning laws and types of
housing they build," Guarino said.
Last year, the preservation group reportedly won a battle in court when
a state judge ruled that a row of three-family apartment buildings on
Beach 26th Street were improperly built, according to the Daily News. The new buildings blocked an easement that
runs parallel to the street and gives waterfront access to many
bungalows.
Far Rockaway is part of the Rockaway section in Queens, and the
recession has slowed the Rockaway real estate boom. New condos that
started rising before the area's rezoning was proposed are now sitting empty. The rezoning was adopted in 2008, and established a low-scale zoning framework to protect the bungalows, according to the Department of City Planning.
A stretch of Beach 116th Street in Rockaway Park has the highest proportion of abandoned retail storefronts of any shopping district in Queens, according to a report by Rep. Anthony Weiner's office.
In Rockaway, the number of residential sales fell every quarter in 2008, hitting 103 sales during the first quarter of 2009. The median residential sales price was $400,000 during the first quarter of the year, up slightly from $390,000 in the prior quarter, according to appraisal firm Miller Samuel. TRD
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Comments
Anonymous
A little bit of Detroit right here in NYC.
Comment #1 Posted By: Anonymous 04/21/09
Anonymous
Interesting. Thanks for posting this.
Comment #2 Posted By: Anonymous 04/21/09
Anonymous
the a train killed rockaway
Comment #3 Posted By: Anonymous 04/21/09
Anonymous
The title of the article is seriously misleading. The Rockaways from Far Rockaway straight to 116th Street were destroyed by the projects, not by "developers". It's not to say that developers would not have ruined the area, but you can't blame them in this situation. The stretch of land has so much potential...
Comment #4 Posted By: Anonymous 04/21/09
Anonymous
I love these pictures. Very cool and very sad. I had no idea the Rockaways was an abandoned beach town. I am going to check it out.
Comment #5 Posted By: Anonymous 04/21/09
Life Long Rockaway Resident
We can argue about what changed the Rockaway’s the project, high rise development, or the ease of travel to distant beaches, but here are some facts. Most of the bungalows in the Rockaways were declared slums and were torn down as part of the urban renewal program in 1960. The remaining bungalows are an eyesore that have not been maintained or preserved since the 1950’s. For 50 years they have not been rented by summer vacationers or artists, but by extremely poor people who rent month to month. These “homes’ were seasonal and transitional, and not well built. The best of them are in serious need of reconstruction.
Comment #6 Posted By: Life Long Rockaway Resident 04/21/09
Life Long Rockaway Resident
The 3 family homes referenced were never sold but are rented because hardly anyone would desire to purchase a home on a dilapidated street. These new homes are in terrible disrepair just like the neighboring bungalows. These blocks do not have adequate street lights, or sidewalks and are very unsafe for the residents. The zoning change was slipped into another zoning change to appease the imaginary Beachside Bungalow Preservation Association (2 guys on a mission). Looking at the pictures the bungalows that they worked so hard to preserve are uninhabited, unsellable and unappealing.
Comment #7 Posted By: Life Long Rockaway Resident 04/21/09
Anonymous
The headline says "development" commenter #4, not "developers."
Comment #8 Posted By: Anonymous 04/21/09
Anonymous
Life Long Rockaway Resident, I agree with you in 100%. These bungalows present no value to the neighborhood at their present condition, and there is a little (if anything) to be save or preserve there; rather, good planning and thoughtful re-development is necessary. In my opinion, city should lead the way here, followed by private capital. This process will take some time, for very little was done during the many past yers. Arverne by the Sea might be a good start, but much more is needed. Farry should help with the transportation, too...
Comment #9 Posted By: Anonymous 04/22/09
Anonymous
Far Rockaway is sooooo ripe for good development. It has a beach comparable to Long Beach. Hopefully in the next boom it's real estate value will finally be created
Comment #10 Posted By: Anonymous 04/22/09
Bert Sampson
if there is anyone that wants to me a difference in the Rockaways either contact me at bert.sampson@rockawaytoday.com or cotactus@rockawaytoday.com or go to www.rockawaytoday.com . this is a site i created to help put rockaway back on the NYC map. for too long Rockaway has been getting a bad rap and its time we do something about it as the people who live there and the businesses that make money there, yes i said make money cause this is what we have to do to make things better. hope to talk to you soon
Comment #11 Posted By: Bert Sampson 04/24/09
Paragon Investments LLC
Far Rockaway would be the perfect place for a developer to come in and buy up all of the distressed properties and put up three story Green two family properties with a contemporary design. Vales are down, construction is affordable, and people are changing the way the live their lives. The government should invest in such a project as well as solid public transportation rather than restraining investors from doing something useful with the area. Grants should be given to architects to implement new Green technologies. Incentives should be offered to developers. Community preservation is understandable and New York does a good job preserving its monumental real estate but there really isn't anything appealing about these Bungalos.
Comment #12 Posted By: Paragon Investments LLC 04/26/09
Dana
Far Rockaway is in dying need of Redevelopment and Preservation. I heard stories about Far Rockaway being like the Hamptons. Wish I could see that again. Businesses need to come together and build back Far Rockaway. On Mott Ave where I was told 'This was town' I was speechless. If this was town then ...... Far Rockaway has potential and we as residents need to come together and rebuild our community or else the developers would come in rebuild and sell to the highest bidder. We will loose Far Rockaway if we don't come together. Parents get your kids of the streets. Encourage them to start Businesses. Teach them to earn. The Future of this nation is our children. They would be responsible to carry on when we pass on.
Comment #13 Posted By: Dana 05/03/09
Anonymous
hate to ruin the narrative folks but it was the patron saint of all secular jewish social engineers bob moses, sorry kids mike bloomberg is second not first in that regard, who left the rock pockmarked with pj's.
Comment #14 Posted By: Anonymous 07/10/09
Lester
108 B. 29th Street every summer from 1954-1962. Lenny's..takee-cup....Larry & Sally's Pizza, Jerry's Knishes, Embassy Hotel, Palace, Breakers,....Food Fair...My brother Jay...Fay & Jack Horowitz, Sam & Rose Keller....
Comment #15 Posted By: Lester 08/24/09
Anonymous
The sad part is that for even the well to do families that live in Far rockaway ,east of b.9 st & in bayswater have to go to central ave ,about a 5 to 10 minute drive depending what part of far rockaway you live just to buy milk .The good thing is that central ave is an exclusive area compared to the horrific area around mott.
Comment #16 Posted By: Anonymous 09/15/09