Developer Looks to Bring Almost 300 Units to Flushing

Flushing is poised to receive an influx of nearly 300 units — many affordable — should Gary Chen secure a zoning change.

On Monday, Chen filed an application with the New York City Department of City Planning for a mixed-use project at 32-02 Linden Place in the Queens neighborhood, the Commercial Observer reported. The zoning change would be bound by 32nd Avenue, Linden Place and Farrington Street.

Chen wants to build a 10-story, 296-unit complex at the site, which would also include 33,000 square feet of commercial space and nearly 200 parking spaces. Roughly 25 percent of the units would be designated for affordable housing.

In addition to the Linden Place address, the development site also encompasses another property on Linden Place and two industrial buildings on Farrington Street. Chen finished buying up the assemblage in 2024 for a grand total of $26.5 million.

The filing was first reported by PincusCo. Chen, who owns nearly a dozen of other properties in the borough, could not immediately be reached by the Observer for comment.

The proposal “would be consistent with the city’s goals of strengthening neighborhoods, expanding housing, including affordable housing and employment in transit-accessible areas, while respecting the character of the surrounding residential communities,” Chen wrote in his filing.

This week alone, there have been multiple project filings regarding Queens developments. On Grosvenor Lane in Kew Gardens, the Grun Group is looking to add 108 units across two buildings. Additionally, Derek Fraser submitted plans for a 26-unit building on 31st Street in Ditmars Steinway.

Elsewhere in Flushing, Maverick Real Estate Partners’ attempt to auction the former RKO Keith’s Theater site was recently blocked as Xin Development’s parent company co-founder put the development site into Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection one day before the scheduled foreclosure auction.

The judgment lien against Xin was $41.2 million, which contrasts with the $90.6 million value stated in the bankruptcy filing.

— Holden Walter-Warner