Long Island City’s waterway, Newtown Creek. – Photo by Mitch Waxman

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• Cops hunting for serial bank robber who hit LIC [Times Ledger]

• VIDEO: Long Island Silicon City? [NY1]

• Liz Taylor’s birthday cake on display at LIC’s Entrepreneur Space [Times Ledger]

• SLA denial of liquor license to LIC strip club is controversial [Village Voice]

• The beginning of the end to commuter parking in LIC [Queens Chronicle]

• Aquaponics hits Long Island City [Epoch Times]

• Bloomie discusses NYC construction stats in LIC [Queens Campaigner]

• Explore your friendly Newtown Creek [Newtown Pentacle]

• Bloomie heralds the gift of film production in NYC & LIC [Newsday]

• Oracle Club blooming in Long Island City [NYDN]

• The high school sitch in Queens is pretty bad apparently [NYDN]

• The latest on boring through Long Island City [Newtown Pentacle]

• Single LIC’ers should consider dating Astorians [Metro]

LIC lends itself well to sunset skyline shots. – Photo by George Duran

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• Alobar dishes up comfort food in LIC [WSJ]

• LIC foodblogger shares festive Chinese New Year recipe [NYDN]

• Man hospitalized after jumping off the Queensboro/Koch Bridge[TimesLedger]

• Long Island City the new Ellis Island? [DNA Info]

• More on the Immigration Center in LIC [Queens Chronicle]

• Proposed LIC strip club denied liquor license by SLA [Village Voice]

• LIC’s 5pointz set to be demolished in 2013? [Inhabitat]

The Laughing Devil cracks up LIC.

Mwuhaha. Or maybe heehee hawhaw? Whatever your cackle, chortle, or guffaw sounds like, bring it to the Laughing Devil Comedy Club, because you’re going to need it.

Proprietors Steve Hoftstetter and Jacob Morvay are hyperlocal LIC residents – both could throw a baseball or a pitchfork from their apartments to the Club, and can often be seen walking their respective pooches on a bright Vernon Blvd morning. (Or maybe scurrying around the Vernon dog run after the late show.)

These stellar examples of LIC residents, a professional comedian and CPA – both married, sorry ladies – have delivered to LIC a true comedy club, with live stand-up comedic performance 7 nights a week.

The Devil’s Lair »

Hunters Point South, Long Island City. – Photo by Mitch Waxman

Of course liQcity readers, we would never dare leave everyone’s favorite mysterious LIC waterfront housing project Hunters Point South out of the Long Island City headlines.

The Queens Chronicle has delivered an excellent account of last weeks public hearing on the latest about HPS »

All Aboard. NOT. – Queensboro Plaza, Long Island City

Long Island City, starting tomorrow Saturday, January 21st, 2012, the MTA will be shutting down service on the No. 7 train for the next 11 (eleven) consecutive weekends, through April 2nd.

Gulp. »

The view from Greenpoint. Hunters Point, Long Island City.

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• Long Island City sounds CUT to film production [Crains]

• Exlporing LIC’s Blissville. Where? Exactly. [Newtown Pentacle]

• New Jersey trying to steal Fresh Direct from LIC [NYT]

• The latest on LIC’s M. Wells [NYDN]

• Queens boos Bloomberg on horrible school situation [Queens Chronicle]

• Just opened in LIC: The Oracle Club [NYT]

• JetBlue to bring their brand to Queens Plaza. Literally. [Queens Chronicle]

• One woman’s impact on art in Long Island City [NYT]

• New immigration office in LIC [Queens Tribune]

• Oops! [Queens Chronicle]

• PS1 MoMA getting spacey [Queens Chronicle]

Hello liQcity readers. We interrupt our own return of liQcity editorial with a mention of SOPA & PIPA, the internet piracy acts which are in danger of being passed by the US Congress beginning with Senate hearings on January 24th, 2012. Under these acts, the US government will have the right to censor the web content that US citizens have access to, and can ‘punish’ any site that links to ‘banned’ sites.

SOPA threatens blogs, forums, and social media sites, and allows the government to attack and disable any sites they deem as threatening in any way. It also forces sites where user commentary is enabled to censor their users, for fear of severe fines and JAIL TIME. Under SOPA, the US can seize funds of ‘violating sites’, legally disrupt revenue generation, and throw website owners in the slammer. liQcity would become just as legally vulnerable as any other blog, forum or social media site »

Long Island City sunset abstract. – Photo by William Garrett

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• Checking out the newly opened Alobar in LIC [Queens Courier]

• No fare hike on the East River Ferry [Metro]

• City Harvest, welcome to Long Island City [Times Ledger]

• Petey’s Burger gearing up to open in LIC [Village Voice]

• Love for LIC Market [Times Ledger]

• Artists imagining the future of LIC [Epoch Times]

• SLA postpones votes for controversial LIC strip club liquor license [NYDN]

• Rumors about M. Wells Diner and what they’re up to in LIC [Eater]

Long Island City Silvercup-street-scape. – Photo by Mitch Waxman

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• Cornell wins bid for Roosevelt Island Tech campus [Times Ledger]

• LIC to undergo rapid change in new year [Queens Chronicle]

• Reflecting on transportation in LIC & Western Queens [Newtown Pentacle]

• NYC’s East River ferry deemed a success by City [Times Ledger]

• Temporary tenants breathe life into stalled LIC construction sites [NYT]

• Noguchi lets artists imagine the future of Long Island City [Gallerist]

View of Hunters Point South from East River Ferry, LIC. – Via NYCEDC

There’s been a lot of grumbling lately on liQcity about the Hunters Point South affordable income housing project currently being developed at the LIC waterfront, south of Queens West & Gantry Park.

Well grumblers, here’s your chance to grumble where it counts: CB2 is holding a public hearing to address community concerns about the HPS project, on Thursday, January 12th, 6:30pm at PS1 MoMA, 22-25 Jackson Ave. Mark your calendars!

In the meantime, so everyone is on the same page, here’s a recap from the NYCEDC, on what the project intends to accomplish, and an update on where things are with the construction »

It’s that time of year, when we give thanks and eat a lot of food and make resolutions that we have no intention of keeping and… oh wait, lets just stick to giving thanks. Here’s a shout out to the amazing current sponsors of liQcity – without them, there would be nothing for you to read about our lovely Long Island City. So please, check them out, pay them a visit, and best of all, tell them you read about their biz on liQcity.

Current Sponsors of liQcity »

Where is everyone? Queens Plaza, Long Island City. – Photo by Mitch Waxman

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• CB2 still trying to meet with the Mayor about film crews in LIC [Times Ledger]

• Deputy Mayor talks about improvements in NYC including Western Queens [Times Ledger]

• LIC’s Dutch Kills Bar listed in Top 50 Bars in the US [Food & Wine]

• Photos of Queens Plaza and ruminations [Newtown Pentacle]

• LIC listed as one of the top ten NYC nabes to invest in 2012 [Business Insider]

• Long Island City getting more residential development [NYDN]

• LIC in the 2011 Curbed Cup for best NYC nabe [Curbed]

M. Wells and Manducatis Rustica are presenting a Courtyard Winter Carnival on Saturday, Dec 17th, at the PS1 MoMA courtyard in Long Island City. It’s an outdoor celebration of food and winter fun. The deets »

Tweedle dee and Tweedle dum in LIC, 5pointz detail. – Photo by Miss Heather

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• Cops ramp up manhunt for LIC rapists [Queens Gazette]

• FBI offering reward for catching the Bank Bandit who hit LIC [Queens Gazette]

• An oil spill in Long Island City & Queens [Newtown Pentacle]

• Photos du jour: LIC’s 5pointz slide show [NY Shitty]

• VIDEO: Don’t Bomb These Walls. Documentary on LIC’s 5pointz [Vimeo]

• The Ferrari of coffee machines at Sweetleaf in LIC [Coffee or Beer]

• Profile on Natasha Pogrebinsky, Head Chef at Bear LIC [MetroMix]

Photo of a rendering of the new Murray Park, Long Island City – Photo

Long Island City’s Community Board 2 is meeting with the mayor’s office about the extensive filming that’s happening in the district, especially around Vernon Blvd, and the negative impact it’s having on the local community. If you recall, liQcity also tackled this issue, and hopefully there will be some progress in the matter, though it’s not clear what that looks like.

…members of the community have been complaining about the plethora of crews that set up in the neighborhood, saying they take up residential parking spaces with large trucks… many film permits have been requested for the community, especially on Vernon Boulevard… when film crews work, they usually remain isolated from the community and do not shop at local businesses.

CB2 is not done after speaking to the Mayor. No. They’re also writing a letter to the Parks department, recommending they move forward on Phase 4 of the continuing renovations of Murray Park, which if you haven’t ventured deeper into the island, is on 45th Ave between 11th & 21st St in Long Island City »

The proposed Olympic Village site – now Hunters Point South, Long Island City

Crains NY has released an interesting article about the impact of losing the 2012 bid for the summer Olympics on NYC, and how it’s especially benefited the western Queens & Brooklyn waterfront neighborhoods, including our hamlet Long Island City »

Good morning Long Island City.

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• VIDEO: New exhibit shows Long Island City artists [NY1]

• LIC’s new tenant City Harvest making a difference already! [NYDN]

• Filming locations in NYC & LIC today [OnLocation]

• FBI searching for gunman in attempted LIC bank heist [NY Post]

• Bank robber fires gun in attempted robbery of an LIC bank [NYDN]

• Artists present their visions for LIC at Noguchi & Socrates [NYT]

• Cornell & Stanford competing to build tech campus on Roosevelt Island [Times Ledger]

• Steam explosion at LIC power plant [Queens Gazette]

• LIC & Newtown Creek by night [Newtown Pentacle]

Heads up, liQcity readers. There was a violent attack on a woman early Wednesday morning (3:45am to be precise) on Vernon Blvd and 10th Street near the Costco/ConEd area. Three men accosted a 20 year old woman, dragged her to a parking lot, and raped her. The police have released this sketch of one of the attackers »

The iconic Gantry pier, Long Island City. – Photo by Mitch Waxman

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• Profile of Long Island City’s Ten10 Studios [Queens Courier]

• VIDEO: LIC residents jolted awake in the night, again [NY1]

• TFC’s largest East Coast building secures financing [Crains]

• Newtown Creek Alliance Meeting [Newtown Pentacle

• An update on the Long Island City Community Boathouse [LIC Boathouse]

• Musings about Hunters Point Long Island City [Newtown Pentacle]

• New LIC Biz makes home improvement contracts safer? [Times Ledger]

• Filming locations in NYC & LIC today [On Location]

Vintage NYC street sign, Hunters Point South, Long Island City

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• Hip-hop artist Prodigy recounts his life in Queensbridge [Queens Gazette]

• NYC director creates a gay cultural community on the 7 train in Queens [NYDN]

• Profile on Bear restaurant newly opened in LIC/Astoria [Times Ledger]

• LIC/Astoria Farmers Market to stay open [Queens Gazette]

• Filming today in NYC & LIC [Onlocation]

• VIDEO: NYC & LIC strip clubs charged with sex trafficking [Metro]

As we close out November and head into the final month of 2011 (yikes!), here’s a peek at what’s going on with Long Island City’s favorite Community Board 2. In case you are new to liQcity and/or Long Island City, CB2 meets the first Thursday of every month in Sunnyside, and makes decisions about the Hunters Point area of LIC, as well as Sunnyside, Woodside & Maspeth. Public meetings are an opportunity to speak to CB2, as anyone can sign up for 3 minutes of speaking time in front of the board.

CB2 also holds public hearings on specific matters, and usually when they impact Hunters Point, they are held in town. Recent public hearings include garnering public opinion on the recent DOT proposal for 48th Ave (which was shot down with machine guns by local residents), and interrogating the latest proprietors seeking liquor licenses for Vernon/Jackson area.

Topics on the agenda for this Thursday’s CB2 meeting that impact Hunters Point/LIC area are »

The nether regions of Queens Plaza, LIC. – Photo by William Garrett

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• Screening at LIC’s Secret Theatre [Broadway World]

• Finding funds for infrastructure improvement in NYC & LIC [Epoch Times]

• The rise and fall of food trucks in NYC & LIC [Crains NY]

• From Down Under the Pulaski in Long Island City [NY Shitty]

• Filming locations in LIC & NYC [Onlocation]

Queens Plaza’s clock tower, Long Island City. – Photo by Mitch Waxman

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• LGA Community College hosts photo exhibit of LIC’ers at work [Queens Chronicle]

• Materials for the Arts in LIC hosts creative reuse panel [Broadway World]

• NEWSFLASH: There’s life in LIC!!! [Queens Gazette]

• Pedestrian Burdens: Sidewalk atrocities including LIC [Streetsblog]

• Focusing on Queens Plaza’s Bank of Manhattan clock tower [Newtown Pentacle]

• Checking out LIC’s Blue Streak Wine & Spirits [Edible Queens]

• LIC at the forefront of foodie entrepreneur explosion [WSJ]

• $9.4M housing project slated for Long Island City [Queens Chronicle]

NY Assemblywoman Cathy Nolan addresses the attendees of the LICP’s Annual Trade Show Luncheon

The Long Island City Partnership, formerly known as the Long Island City Business Development Corporation, held their annual Trade Show and Luncheon at Flushing Meadow’s Terrace on the Park. The event included 130 exhibitors of LIC and Western Queens’ based entities, and thousands of attendees »

The times, they are a changing Court Square, LIC. – Photo by Jesse Winter

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• LIC brokers employ voodoo & vodka to attract Chinese buyers [Observer]

• Long Island City at center of hotel growth [Queens Tribune]

• LIC is cookin’ up a lotta new foodie entrepreneurs [NYDN]

• Hunters Point South complex to become ’100% affordable housing’ [Real Deal]

• Rockrose bringing more rental units to Long Island City [NYT]

• Noguchi museum hosting visions for LIC’s waterfront future [Queens Chronicle]

• Long Island City gets Chocomize-d [NYDN]

• What’s going on at LIC’s Homefront Gallery [Queens Chronicle]