Run-Down Astoria Waterfront Warehouse To Become Condo Tower

ASTORIA, QUEENS — A dilapidated warehouse on the Astoria waterfront has been sold to a developer who plans to replace it with a condominium tower, according to a real estate broker.

The two-story brick warehouse at 30-55 Vernon Blvd. was sold for $25 million last week to Sunlight Development, according to broker Andreas Efthymiou of RIPCO Real Estate.

The building spans a full blockfront between 30th Drive and 30th Road, across the street from the big Astoria West development and steps from Socrates Sculpture Park.

Now, Sunlight plans to demolish the warehouse and redevelop the site with a condo complex that could span as many as 91,000 square feet and may include a commercial component, Efthymiou said. (The sale was first reported by Commercial Observer.)

Improvements to the block could not come soon enough, it seems: the aging warehouse began collapsing onto the street in January, sending bricks falling to the sidewalk and prompting a vacate order from the Department of Buildings, according to city records.

The previous owners, identified by Commercial Observer as Pioneer Property Group and Vernon-Sutton Inc., had bought the warehouse for $8.2 million in 2013, city records show.

Once complete, the new building will be the latest addition to the rapidly-developing Astoria waterfront: a once-industrial area now lined with apartment buildings.

Based in Brooklyn, Sunlight Development's other projects include condo and rental buildings in Woodside, Rego Park and Flushing.