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Jamaica BIDs Hope to Lure Big Brands like Starbucks With New Workshop

By Ewa Kern-Jedrychowska | March 23, 2015 2:40pm
 Local business groups are asking residents to voice their opinion about their shopping needs during “My Jamaica Resident Forum,” a workshop which will take place on March 31.
Local business groups are asking residents to voice their opinion about their shopping needs during “My Jamaica Resident Forum,” a workshop which will take place on March 31.
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DNAinfo/Ewa Kern-Jedrychowska

QUEENS — Jamaica business groups are hoping to lure big brand stores like Starbucks and Macy's by gathering information from residents about what kind of shops they want to see in the neighorhood.

“My Jamaica Resident Forum,” a workshop scheduled for March 31, will let locals discuss their shopping needs in an area that's currently littered with fast food restaurants and discount stores, the organizers said.

“As new development takes place in downtown Jamaica and commercial vacancies need to be filled, we want to know what retail and restaurants you want to see,” the organizers wrote on the event page.

“Don't miss this opportunity to be a part of the change in your community.”

The neighborhood has transformed in the past several years, with more apartment buildings and hotels coming to the area, according to local BIDs.

The changes are encouraging retailers to move to Jamaica, including Raymour & Flanigan, which opened a location in the neighborhood about a year ago, the organizers said.

"There is a lot of interest that's coming in from some major brands and from smaller businesses," said Rhonda Binda, head of the Jamaica Center BID, which co-organizes the workshops with the Sutphin Boulevard BID and the 165th Street Mall Improvement Association.

So far, residents are welcoming chain stores into the area. Those who want to participate in the workshop are asked to answer questions about their shopping and dining needs during an online registration. Nearly 50 people were registered as of Monday morning, Price said.

In their responses, they indicated wanting to see ChipotleStarbucksBed, Bath and Beyond and Macy's opening in downtown Jamaica.

Currently, many of the businesses in the area cater to people working in the courts and government offices in downtown Jamaica, but the goal is to identify and attract companies that would serve local residents, said Simone Price, executive director of the Sutphin Boulevard BID.

The BIDs will use the survey results to approach new retailers during an annual "Jamaica Revealedevent for brokers, property owners and business owners, which will take place on April 23.

A survey conducted about two years ago revealed that the neighborhood was losing about $2.5 billion a year as local residents were opting to shop in other parts of the city and in Long Island because they couldn't find what they needed in their own neighborhood.

“We really want to get [residents'] ideas on what type of retail they want to see," Price said.

"I want people in the community to feel like [they are] part of the develpment that's happening," Binda said.

Those interested in participating in “My Jamaica Resident Forum” are asked to register prior to the meeting which will take place on Tuesday, March 31, from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. at JFK Corporate Square Marketing Center at 93-43 Sutphin Boulevard in Jamaica.