To the Board of Standards and Appeals;

 We the undersigned residents of New York City ask that you oppose the rezoning variance for the Paragon Paint Factory site at 45-40 Vernon Boulevard (Project 233-15-BZ).

 1. This development would be comprised of three buildings, one of which would rise 28 stories. This is totally out of character for this stretch of Vernon Boulevard: it would dwarf the surrounding buildings, and would block light and air.

 2. The addition of 344 residential units to this part of Long Island City will severely overburden the local infrastructure: the 7 train at Vernon-Jackson is already at capacity. Additionally, traffic in the area is already snarled, and parking is very difficult to find in a borough whose residents rely heavily on automobiles as much as public transportation. The 24 parking spots included in the plans is insufficient for 344 units.

 3. There were only 100 "affordable" units included in the original plans, and the developer has stated that without the 421-a program, which is currently lapsed, there would be zero affordable units included. But even if 421-a were resurrected, the calculation of "affordable" is almost always unrelated to actual local affordability: most local residents have a far lower annual income than is assumed by developers.

4. This lot is zoned for manufacturing. Each lot of manufacturing space is precious in a city where the industrial sector, which provides high-paying jobs for New Yorkers, is actually experiencing a resurgence. Manufacturers and working artists cannot afford high rents, and residential property values are always far higher than industrial. Flipping a lot from lower-rent manufacturing to residential only hastens the process of hyper-gentrification, where local rents spiral higher and higher. Although the Paragon site has been vacant for years, and required toxic waste cleanup, we feel that the site must remain zoned for manufacturing. There is no reason that this site can't be used for its original purpose: small manufacturers and artists, who are already being pushed out of the neighborhood due to unaffordable commercial rents.

 5. Our Community Board accurately reflected the viewpoint of the majority of residents and overwhelmingly rejected this proposal. The city needs to first provide planning guidelines for this area of hunter's point so that this project and others can be evaluated in a way that makes sense for the community. Even though this project's completion would not be a legal precedent, its approval would encourage other developers to build similarly in the immediate area. The developer’s clean-up efforts and planning for public space do not give western Queens residents enough of a stake in the project, which seems to be in essence a luxury building for wealthy newcomers.