The old building on the corner of Beach 90th Street and Beach Channel Drive seems to finally be on the brink of getting a new lease on life. Formerly known as the Rockaway Courthouse, the property was transferred by the New York City Economic and Development Corporation (EDC) in 2013 to the Harmony Group, which initially announced plans to transform the building into a state-of-the-art medical center.
Abandoned for decades, the stately, three-story building commanded years of reconstruction and clean-up. During that time, the Harmony Group struggled to find medical leaseholders and eventually redirected interest. Recently, the developer obtained approval for the property to be used for commercial and office space instead, The City reports.
Chief Executive Officer of Harmony Group, Uri Kaufman, explained that, despite some original design challenges, the property offered particularly good bones to work with.
“This thing was straight and true — it took no water during Sandy, which is kind of miraculous,” Kaufman said, referencing the superstorm that severely affected the city in 2012. “We’ve since had to bring it up to full flood requirements, so it’s basically a submarine. It’s really very, very flood resistant.”
Harmony Sees Room for More Coworking Space in Queens
As employers, employees and independent professionals navigate the new work landscape, Kaufman said that he had renewed faith in the potential of renting the commercial space for offices and coworking.
“There’s tremendous demand for that in Rockaway,” he said. “There’s no quality office building anywhere in about a seven-mile radius. People now want to work closer to home.”
Rockaway Coworks — dubbed an “alternative workspace” — already has an online presence promising that future members will benefit from luxurious creature comforts. The Queens coworking space advertises hot desks, coworking seats, corporate offices and meeting rooms. Amenities include free parking; free fast internet and office supplies; room to relax; a dining café, as well as a team of experts dedicated to your productivity needs.
Though it’s not clear when the new Queens coworking space intends to open its doors, the Rockaway Coworks website invites interested parties to reach out and make the most of a free trial day that is currently on offer.
