Expansion brings the burgeoning charter school’s total footprint to 140k SF, creating a true multi-school campus as CQA expands its offerings to include purpose-built gyms, cafeterias, and multi-purpose spaces.
OPEN Impact Real Estate (OPEN), a woman-owned commercial real estate services company specializing in nonprofit and corporate impact organizations, is pleased to announce that Central Queens Academy Charter Schools (CQA), one of the highest performing schools in all of New York State, has added 55,000 square feet of additional space to its budding campus in Elmhurst, Queens.
The expansion comprises two new leases totaling 55,000 square feet. Stephen Powers, Lindsay Ornstein, Jake Cinti and Kendall Elliott of OPEN represented the tenant, CQA, in both transactions. Steve Zhu of Compass represented United, owners of both buildings.
The expansion is executed through two leases: a 32-year agreement for 48,000 square feet at 85-65 Queens Blvd., a new development by United set to open before the 2024 school year, and a second 32-year lease for 7,000 square feet at 88-08 Justice Ave., where CQA’s initial campus is located. The Queens Blvd. space will host a comprehensive educational suite for CQA’s newly awarded elementary school program, while the additional space at Justice Ave. will be transformed into a multipurpose gymnasium, ready by September 2024.
“CQA’s was one of only two charter schools awarded a new charter for the 2024 school year, a testament to their impressive performance serving this community,” said Stephen Powers of OPEN. “By contemplating future expansion in the 2021 transaction, we were able to align interests to incentivize the developer build additional community facility space in support of CQA’s second charter, enabling a 2024 purpose built facility which would have otherwise not been possible.”
About Open Impact Real Estate:
OPEN Impact Real Estate (OPEN) is a woman-owned business that delivers a comprehensive range of commercial real estate brokerage and advisory services, with a focus on supporting social-minded, mission-driven organizations. OPEN has the largest nonprofit practice in New York city and serves clients across the United States. OPEN is a certified M/WBE with deep expertise in furthering mission through physical space. OPEN is an affiliate of Transwestern Real Estate Services. For more information, please visit www.openregroup.com.
