Quantcast

Olympics could alter Meadows’ lakes

By Alexander Dworkowitz

The head of New York’s Olympic bid presented a picture of how the 2012 Olympics might look in Queens and Flushing Meadows Corona Park at the Community Board 7 meeting Tuesday.

“It’s very easy to imagine the Olympic Games as a catalyst for reconstruction and the celebration of that reconstruction” following the World Trade Center attacks, said Daniel Doctoroff, head of NYC2012, a non-profit corporation chartered by the city to submit a proposal for the 2012 Summer Olympics.

New York is still a long way off from playing host to the games. The United States Olympic Committee will announce the finalist American cities Friday, Oct. 26. The USOC will nominate its candidate city in November 2002, but the International Olympic Committee will not choose the host city until summer 2005.

Nonetheless, the USOC unofficially announced New York was the leading candidate Tuesday and the events of Sept. 11 may prove to boost New York’s candidacy, Newsday reported.

“It’s more important now than it ever was,” said Doctoroff.

Queens is central to the current plans. NYC 2012 has proposed housing the Olympic athletes at Queens West, the Long Island City residential and commercial development project to be built by the Rockrose Corp. Further up the East River, NYC 2012 plans to redesign the swimming pool in Astoria Park so it can be used as an Olympic facility.

One of the largest Olympic facilities would be constructed in Flushing Meadows, covered in part by Community Board 7, which includes Flushing, Whitestone, College Point and Bay Terrace.

“One of the two centers of Olympic activity will be right here in Flushing Meadows Corona Park,” said Doctoroff.

The current proposal calls for a massive overhaul of Meadow and Willow lakes. In order to allow for a 2000-meter regatta, the two lakes would be combined into one and the surrounding land would be raised 20 feet.

“It will be beautifully landscaped,” said Doctoroff.

Jewel Avenue, which currently runs between the two lakes, would be replaced by a bridge. Doctoroff promised that Jewel Avenue would not be closed until the bridge was completed, insuring that traffic would never be rerouted.

In addition, the Fountain of the Planets would be transformed into a 400-meter kayaking and canoeing facility, and the U.S.T.A. National Tennis Center would be utilized.

Some members of the board expressed concern about the redesign of the lakes.

“We can hardly take care of our parks today,” said Millie Auletta, questioning whether or not Flushing Meadows could handle more facilities.

Others were worried that the design was not environmentally sound. In response, Paul Mankiewicz, an ecologist hired by NYC2012, assured the audience that the redesign would actually improve the water quality of the lakes.

Mankiewicz said the plan included filtration systems to clean runoff water from the Van Wyck Expressway.

“There’s enough space for filtration systems to treat runoff,” he said.

After the Olympic discussion concluded, Community Board 7 moved on to discuss variances requested on two projects in College Point. The board approved the application for the expansion of the Waterview Nursing Care Center at 119-15 27th Ave.

The board later turned down the application for the commercial use of 131-08 20th Ave. for a Sears Auto Center. Co-Chairman Charles Apelian read a letter from a city Department of Transportation employee which suggested that the traffic plan for the business was not entirely safe.

The meeting ended with a discussion of Fort Totten in Bayside. Currently a U.S. military base on high military alert after the Twin Towers attacks, Fort Totten is slated to be taken over by the city as parkland to be used by community groups within the next few months.

“We’re confident that by the end of the year they’ll start deeding the property over to New York City,” said Adrian Joyce, co-chairman of Board 7.

Reach Reporter Alexander Dworkowitz by e-mail at Timesledger@aol.com or call 229-0300, Ext. 141.