Muss launches $600M complex in Queens.

Plans for a $600 million retail and residential center to be built on a 14-acre brownfield site in Flushing, Queens, were unveiled by CE Flushing LLC, an affiliate of Muss Development Company.

Designed to build upon the vitality of downtown Flushing, one of New York City's most vibrant and diverse neighborhoods, the project includes a 725,000 s/f retail center and approximately 1,000 residences. The 3.2-million s/f mixed-use complex also includes parking for 2,650 cars.

Perkins Eastman, of New York City, is designing the project.

The project is expected to generate 5,000 construction jobs and more than 2,000 permanent jobs, as well as approximately $28.5 million in annual tax revenues to the city and state.

New York City Councilman John Liu said "The Muss Development project represents one of the largest investments in recent years in Queens County. When completed, it will become an important asset to the surrounding community, turning underutilized land into a multi-use center that will create valuable housing and nearly 7,000 construction and permanent jobs for area residents." Joshua L. Muss, president and CEO of CE Flushing LEC said, "The project will provide the residents of Queens and its environs with an outstanding shopping experience in an easily accessible location. It will also provide high-quality residential housing in close proximity to outstanding public transportation and access to regional thoroughfares. The development of this long-underutilized land will provide a major economic stimulus to the region."

The property is located at the corner of College Point Boulevard and Roosevelt Avenue, adjacent to the Flushing River and Van Wyck Expressway. The site was the former location of a large Con Edison facility that included fueling operations and transformer maintenance. The New York City Planning Commission led the effort to rezone a substantial portion of the Flushing waterfront for mixed-use commercial and residential uses in late 1990's. The project conforms to the current zoning.

The project combines a three-level retail base with residential units located above in six buildings among rooftop open spaces. The residential buildings will feature a mixture of studios, one-, two-, and three-bedroom apartments.

Retail tenants already have committed to more than half of the total net space available. The retail shopping areas are slated to open in the fall of 2007, with the first phase of residential apartments scheduled to open in the spring of 2008.

The developer is also creating a new 55-foot-wide waterfront esplanade along the Flushing River together with an upland connection to 40th Road, providing residents with a place to enjoy the outdoors.