LIC zoning change pleasing to the industry.

Frank Zuckerbrot couldn't be happier about the city's plans to rezone 37 blocks in Long Island City.

"It's going to enable Long Island City to truly grow as a viable alternative for institutional users," Zuckerbrot said.

Sholom & Zuckerbrot Realty has been headquartered in Long Island City for 40 years and has witnessed the changes in the neighborhood. Just a few subway stops from midtown Manhattan, the area has seen phenomenal growth during the past decade. Retail development, especially along Northern Boulevard, has thrived.

Zuckerbrot said the zone changes are just what Long Island City needs to attract more businesses seeking to flee high-priced areas of Manhattan. The Planning Commission is expected to vote on the changes May 23.

"With the zone changes and a little help from the state, we could really compete with Jersey City," Zuckerbrot said. "From a city planning perspective, this makes enormous sense."

The rezoning will allow companies to build "as-of-right," or without having to seek zoning changes first. This speeds up the building process and makes it easier for developers to find tenants for potential projects. It also ensures that redevelopment occurs with an eye toward the entire neighborhood, rather than redevelopment that happens piece-by-piece, officials said.

"The goal of the zoning is to foster reinvestment and redevelopment that takes advantage of Long Island City's excellent mass transit access and its supply of large, underdeveloped properties," according to a Planning Department.

The proposed rezoning area is at the eastern end of the bridge, and encompasses a triangular-shaped set of blocks bounded by Sunnyside Yards on the east, 23rd Street on the west, and 41st Avenue on the north. The Citibank building, built in 1989, is located in the area, which also has two subway stops at Court Square and Queens Plaza. City officials are projecting that the change would result in five million SF of new office development over the next 10 years.

The proposed changes would create a new Special Long Island City Mixed-Use District, including the following general regulations:

* New commercial, residential and community facility uses will be allowed as-of-right, in addition to light manufacturing uses, to reflect the area's mixed-use character and to facilitate 24-hour activities.

* High-density development (floor area ratio of 12) would be allowed on blocks at Queens Plaza and Court Square and moderate-density development (floor area ratio of 5 and 8) would be allowed on blocks on surrounding blocks

* Floor area bonuses (an additional 3 FAR) will be granted for new developments on two blocks adjacent to the Dutch Kills and Hunters Point neighborhoods that include publicly accessible open space

* A lively pedestrian-oriented environment would be fostered by requiring new developments to have ground-floor glazing treatments and requiring side walks to be widened along principal corridors at Queens Plaza and Northern Boulevard

It is unclear how long redevelopment efforts would take or what types of firms may be attracted to Long Island City. One change that will not occur due to the zoning changes is the elimination of industrial uses, in part because the changes would impact only a fraction of the neighborhood, officials said.

"The land has become too valuable for just industrial uses," Zuckerbrot said. "You need mixed uses."

With the new retail development that has already happened and the new office development that is projected to occur with the zone changes, residential development is also likely to thrive. In the future, Long Island City could resemble neighborhoods like Roosevelt Island and Battery Park City, he said.

"The city is finally doing the right thing for the borough of Queens," he said.