Housing Mania In The Rockaways
The house mania is still running strong in our region. After eight years of complaining about the quality, the location and the need for more housing in our region, there are still buildings and houses in just about any place, any how, any where and in any manner; garages below street level in a region prone to floods, or with no garages or parking space at all in a region where parking, parking, parking is most essential. According to The Wave, the Rockaway’s population has increased almost 25% over the past few years, without one school, store, park or a facility for our seniors added to the community.
As a matter of fact, there has been a tearing down of a few of those we have had to make room for – more housing. That started with the Levin Hotel, the closing of the Sunset Diner, and there is voice that the Beach Club, the pride of Rockaway, will face the same feat. What will be next?
Once in a while I like to stop at the site of a construction project; it is a habit, a passion for real estate going back over 50 years. It fascinates me how buildings are built these days. No more blocks, bricks, sand and cement and trowel (except for foundation); no more plastering (except for a few cases) but an electric screw gun, metal studs, ply wood, plaster board, styrofoam and a lot of insulation. While I was watching one worker fasten a sheet of styrofoam directly over the metal studs to a 4″ metal stud he used a regular electric screwdriver; nothing wrong with that, except that he was using only screws without the plastic “washer” and beside, he was missing the studs two out of five tries. At one point while he was fastening one side, the other would pop-out with the result that he had to run to the first side and put more nails to it. Don’ t they know how to use a liner? Don’ t they know that styrofoam requires a 2″ plastic washer for a better gripe to the studs? If my vision holds up and I think it does, I saw two 4″ metal studs, with two 3/4″ plaster board at each side, separating two buildings, enough to record a conversation taking place in the other house. As for the view, the front of the building faces the 12th floor apartment houses and the back faces the subway elevator.
As if the above were not bad enough, they are now building houses in back yards, yes, in places where for years – a century, we have used it for a little garden, a place where, after work, one could find a little relaxation or have a party for the children or friends. It looks like that the upper-echelon in power have decided that we need more housing than a little relaxation, or a party for our children or friends so they have okay-ed building back yards.
Across the location where this is taking place, they are tearing down a hotel to make room for more housings. Being the same owner and the same builder, would it be safe to assume that they will build in their back yard also? Or, go even farther and build more housing on the roof, despite the need, not only for a little green, but also for car spaces? Is there such a demand for housing in our region that they are building, now, even in back yards? I can’t believe it at all. Go round and we will see many “for rent” and “for sale” signs even on buildings that were sold less than a year ago. I wonder the reason, the flood in their basement, for the little rain we had or the roof blew off with the little wind of a week ago? No, there is not a scarcity of housing in our region. Look at The Wave, 6, 7, 8 pages of houses for sale and a couple a pages of apartments for rent. A few weeks ago, one broker, throughout her real estate column, said, “give me a call, I have a ton of listings” a ton of listings? How many listings in a ton? How many in ten tons? And she isn’t No.1 broker either… Can you imagine how many tons of listings a No.1 broker in our region has for sale? Of course, throughout her regular advertisement, she invites owners to list their property with her because she has many eager, ready, willing and able buyers waiting (on line?)
As said previously, we are creating a “Coney Island” and I don’t mean a Coney Island of 50 year ago, when it was the “Play Ground of The World” Stop This Housemania now, or pay the consequences later. I don’t say that we should stop anyone from coming to our region, oh, no, we should welcome all of them, but at the same time we should try to keep the region a “Piece of Paradise” as described by All Mark of channel 2 during the airline crash of Nov. 22 2001.
Don’t build any more houses that are not in demand; don’t build any more house if there are “ton of listings” for sale and not selling. Overbuilding the region would only cause its decadence.
Angelo J. Guarino
Reprinted with Permission
Angelo Guarino is retired and lives with his wife of 50 years in Belle Harbor, NY.
Angelo passed away September 23, 2009. May he rest in peace.
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