Garages converted into living spaces.
Fresh Meadows, a neighborhood in Queens, has had a population increase in recent years – an increase that won’t show up in the 2010 Census. Households with school-age children feel the change through the increased enrollment in the neighborhood elementary school, middle school, and high school. Residents of the area see an increase in the number of people who spend their days in the neighborhood park. Yet, there has been no residential developments in the area to bring in these new residents.
The evidence can only be found in the classifieds section of the World Journal, a Chinese language publication. The pages are filled with advertisements of housing units for rent in the Fresh Meadows area. These units are actually garages that have been illegally converted into living quarters, usually complete with a bathroom and a stove.
Over the past ten years, more and more Chinese families moved from nearby Flushing into the once mostly Jewish neighborhood. The families looking for homes usually have small children, who could attend the community’s schools. Fresh Meadows’ schools belong to School District 26, one of the best school districts in New York City. Many of the newspaper’s ads use this point to attract new residents. The landlords can often bring in an extra 800 dollars a month through collecting the rent.
The area’s zoning laws do not allow for two families per house. Unhappy neighbors can (and often do) submit a complaint to the Department of Buildings. Recently, a house down the block was found under violation of zoning laws, and the owners were forced to remove the compartmentalization of the house. The number of housing violations in the neighborhood can be found on the NYC Department of Buildings’ website.
( This article might appear in the Daily News, Newsday, the Metro section of the NYTimes, Queens Courier)