Long Island City's transformation, however, is told in the stories of its many neighborhoods, some touched by development, other bypassed. Once an independent city, Long Island City officially comprises a swath of western Queens including over 250,000 inhabitants and the neighborhoods of Hunters Point, Sunnyside, Astoria, and lesser-known ones like Ravenswood and Steinway. For more on the neighborhoods, continue to the following page:
Long Island City Boundaries and Definition
Long Island City runs from the Queens East River waterfront all the way east to 51st/Hobart Street, and from the Brooklyn border at Newtown Creek all the way north again to the East River.Many New Yorkers know the area by two names: Long Island City or Astoria. Often you'll hear "Long Island City" when only Hunters Point and the Queens West development is meant.
Lately, Astoria has become the best known area, and consequently real estate agents have grown its boundaries at least in their advertisements. If you are interested in moving to LIC, it's best to learn the neighborhood names and their characters.
Long Island City Real Estate
Long Island City real estate means local neighborhoods. Real estate prices and residential availability vary widely across and within the different neighborhoods. Astoria and Hunters Point have seen rapid appreciation. Others like Sunnyside remain a great value with excellent transportation options. Still other neighborhoods including Ravenswood and Dutch Kills are still off the real estate radar. See the next page for details on the neighborhoods of Long Island City.Like any area in flux, housing is a mixed bag and can range widely in price within a few blocks. One of the best ways to get a sense of housing values is to check a free service like Property Shark for recent sales.
Transportation
Long Island City is all about getting places and has been for more than a century. Thousands and thousands of commuters pass through it every day, and many residents prize their 15-minute commutes to Manhattan.Queens Plaza is a major subway hub with the G, N, R, V, and W. The 7 and F trains are blocks away.
The LIRR stops in Hunters Point only a couple times a day, but below the surface, a tunnel delivers thousands of commuters a day to Manhattan.
The beautiful Hell Gate Bridge connects Queens to Randall's Island for freight trains running to the Sunnyside Rail Yards.
The Queensboro or 59th Street Bridge is a free connect for cars and trucks going to Manhattan, but there's no highway running to its ramps, just Queens Boulevard. The Long Island Expressway goes underground at the Midtown Tunnel in Hunters Point.
