Borough Hall gets a face-lift
/
Queens Borough President Donovan Richards and city officials cut the ribbon on a newly renovated plaza at Queens Borough Hall on Wednesday. Eagle photo by Ryan Schwach
By Ryan Schwach
The Peoples’ House of Queens got a much-needed makeover with the completion of a newly renovated plaza outside of its Queens Boulevard entrance.
After two years of construction, city officials and Queens Borough President Donovan Richards cut the ribbon on the $6.25 million face-lift for Borough Hall, which included the renovated plaza and increased accessibility in line with the Americans with Disabilities Act.
“We call it the People's House because it was built to serve the people of Queens County, and that means all 2.4 million people who currently call the World's Borough home,” said Richards. “That means that we don't discriminate against anyone based on their ability or disability, and this is why it was critically important that this plaza underwent the restoration we are cutting the ribbon on.”
The full scale of work included the installation of new exterior stone paving and steps, new exterior walkways, a new retaining wall, as well as illuminated handrails, a new ramp and handicap doors.
“This plaza looks much better than it ever did before,” said Richards. “When we say we want our government offices to be accessible, it has to be accessible to everyone. I know it took a little bit of time, but we're finally here, and finally we can once again, guarantee that people with disabilities have equal access to government programs and services here at Borough Hall.”
Christina Curry, the commissioner of the Mayor's Office for People with Disabilities, commended the work and the ribbon cutting, which coincided with Disability Pride Month.
“This is a perfect time to acknowledge what has been done and accomplished,” she said. “As someone with lived experience, and I used to live in Kew Gardens, this is phenomenal. We don't have to struggle up the stairs. When you make it accessible for the disabled community, you make it accessible for older adults, you make it accessible for parents with strollers, you make it accessible for everyone.”
The project was designed and built by the Department of Design and Construction, who said it was completed on time and on budget and included additional infrastructure improvements.
“We're standing on new pavers, but there's also a new sub base, new structural work that was done in order to support the plaza area,” said DDC Commissioner Tom Foley, who is exiting the agency in August.
Foley added to the Eagle that the building wasn’t necessarily out of compliance with ADA regulations, but needed the upgrades.
“This is the People's House, and they should have accessibility to it,” he said.
As the Borough Hall building on Queens Boulevard nears its 85th birthday, Richards said the work is indicative of the continued work going on inside the building.
“Today is not simply about the brick and mortar here at Borough Hall,” he said. “These steps really bring people together, and have brought communities together that are representative of who we are as a borough and what those values are that we uphold, and those values mean sticking up for human rights, women's rights, civil rights, disability rights, immigrant rights.”
The history of the Peoples’ House
Queens Borough Hall on Queens Boulevard in Kew Gardens was first erected in 1940, intended to consolidate the BP’s office and several other agencies and offices under a single roof. It replaced the previous Borough Hall in Long Island City.
It was built in just about nine-months for the price tag of $1.6 million, an equivalent of around $35.5 million in 2025 dollars.
According to the city, it was designed by William Gehron and Andrew J. Thomas in a “stripped classical style.” Gehron was also partially responsible for the design of Queens Criminal Court next door.
The New York Times covered the opening, and published an article on Dec. 4, 1940 with the headline “New Queens Borough Hall will open today; 3,000 will be guests at a buffet luncheon.”
Mayor Fiorello La Guardia attended the opening of the new government building, which at the time included a Board of Elections office as well as a traffic court.
The BP at the time was George U. Harvey, the seventh person to hold the office and the first Republican.
He was elected following the resignation of his predecessor, who was involved in a Tammany Hall-related corruption scandal. GU Harvey Park in Whitestone is named for him.
In more recent years, Borough Hall was known for the marriages that take place there nearly everyday, and the photo shoots newlyweds hold outside the building on the grounds. It was also known for its display of an old Redbird subway car, which was removed and sold in 2015 due to a lack of use.
The renovated plaza at Borough Hall includes improved ADA accessibility. Eagle photo by Ryan Schwach
Borough Hall also recently got a new address – One Claire Shulman Way, named for the borough president who held the office from 1986 until 2002.
In 2016, the city opened a cultural center within Borough Hall and named it after Helen Marshall, the former borough president who served for three terms.
