“The QueensWay is a unique opportunity to connect neighborhoods and people, and give families and residents the green space we deserve.”
Trust for Public Land and Friends of the QueensWay
Conceptual renderings of the QueensWay Metropolitan Hub.
There has been discussion recently about New York City’s plan to invest in the QueensWay. Mayor Eric Adams is spending $35 million on the first phase, and it will turn a strip of railway line abandoned 60 years ago into a thriving park near my business. As a local business owner who lives in the neighborhood, with my children attending local schools, this is good news.
When you must choose between abandoning or investing, I say, seize the opportunity. It’s what I’ve learned from our own business, Aigner Chocolates. My husband was driving by the chocolate shop on Metropolitan Avenue in 2015 and tried to buy me chocolates. The business was closed and there was a “For Sale” sign in the window. He met with the owners that day and four weeks later, we bought a chocolate shop. It has roots in the neighborhood going back to 1930, when the QueensWay was still a working railway line.
In 2015 the owners, Peter and Pia Aigner, were letting go of the business. They had thought of liquidating everything and renting out the space. We are the third family to own and operate Aigner Chocolates in its 90-plus year history. I’m a social worker and therapist by training and I didn’t know if I had what it took to make the business work. My husband is a trained pastry chef and it’s always been his dream to own a chocolate shop, and we thought it was a good opportunity.
I wanted a business that nourished the local community and where I could use my therapist training. There’s a saying in Yiddish, “bashert,” which means “meant to be.” So, we went for it. The Aigners told us, “You’re going to fall in love with this business.” They talked about how special it is to be part of holiday traditions of local families. As life throws challenges at people, and as the world evolves, Aigner’s believes in Queens and all the incredible people who are part of its neighborhoods. We still see the Aigner family often and I tell them they were right.
When people think about Forest Hills they often think of Austin Street. But revitalizing the QueensWay will bring more foot traffic to Metropolitan Avenue. People walking along the stretch will come and explore our resilient community. That’s the same reason other residents of Central Queens—including Rego Park, Woodhaven, and Richmond Hill—have supported the QueensWay through hundreds of community meetings.
