A nearly century-old funeral home on a busy Forest Hills corner may be nearing its own final sendoff. Developers have filed plans to replace the two-story building at 69-67 108th Street with an 11-story mixed-use project that would bring about 59 apartments and new ground-floor retail just north of Queens Boulevard.
Project Plan And Numbers
As first reported by Crain's New York Business, the filing calls for 59 residential units in an 11-story mixed-use building at 69-67 108th Street. The project would replace the existing two-story structure and add ground-level retail at the corner of 108th Street and 70th Avenue, a well-trafficked spot just off Queens Boulevard.
Design, Size And Affordability
City Planning Commission materials outlined in New York YIMBY describe a building rising roughly 115 feet and totaling about 55,700 square feet. About 3,902 square feet would be set aside for street-level commercial space, and roughly 15 of the planned apartments are proposed as income-restricted under the city's Mandatory Inclusionary Housing program.
Renderings shared with planners show terraces at the ninth- and tenth-story setbacks and a mixed-material facade intended to break up the massing. An architect of record has not yet been publicly listed, so the design could still evolve as the project moves through review.
Site History And Ownership
According to property records cited by PropertyShark, the lot and existing two-story building at 69-67 108th Street changed hands in August 2024 for about $5.2 million. The current structure was built in 1925 and has long operated as a funeral home.
The parcel itself measures somewhere between roughly 9,380 and 10,000 square feet, depending on the registry consulted, which tracks with the somewhat irregular footprint suggested in the development filings.
Permitting And Next Steps
The proposal is not a simple as-of-right build. A summary in the Rubin Report notes that the application seeks a zoning map amendment to rezone the site from R1-2A to R7D/C2-4, along with a zoning text amendment to map Mandatory Inclusionary Housing on the parcel.
Planners with the City Planning Commission reviewed the proposal last week, New York YIMBY reported. Because the project depends on discretionary approvals, it will need to go through the full public land use process, including community board review and a final vote by the City Council before any building permits can be issued.
What It Means For Forest Hills
If it clears that gauntlet, the development would further concentrate new housing near Forest Hills' express-train corridor and add fresh retail space on a block that has already drawn increasing interest from builders. Neighbors are expected to get their first formal chance to weigh in during upcoming community hearings, and the developer will need to pick up multiple approvals before any demolition or construction equipment shows up on 108th Street.
