Whitestone Lanes has been beloved by the community since it opened over 60 years ago.
Photo by Iryna Shkurhan
As Whitestone Bowling Lanes in Flushing undergoes a long bureaucratic process to convert the longtime bowling alley into new housing, devastated locals and out-of-towners are reminiscing on the memories they made there amid its upcoming closure.
The bowling alley with 48 lanes and a pro shop opened its doors over 60 years ago. And up until the pandemic, it was the one of the only alleys open 24 hours a day, seven days a week. It remains the oldest of a handful of bowling alleys left in Queens.
The 80,510-square-foot lot was listed online for $60 million back in 2015. But in the past few months, Community Board 7 and the Queens borough president approved the rezoning proposal which would allow construction to begin on a new housing development to take its place. According to the zoning application, a 9-story residential building would create 415 units, 113 of which would be allocated for middle income housing.
“The bowling alley has reached the end of its useful lifespan,” read the initial application for the redevelopment, which would also add public open space in the form of a community garden and ping pong tables.
And after three generations of family ownership, the owner appears to be bidding farewell despite locals expressing widespread disapproval. QNS made several attempts to reach out to the owner, Marco Macaluso, for comment, but was not able to make contact.
Herzin Cinaus was just 14 years old when his father, a decades-long employee at Whitestone Lanes, brought him to work one day. That initial visit was in 2010, and he’s been working there ever since.
Now he and his father are both mechanics who make sure things are running properly in the back, and ensure the lanes are clean for smooth bowling. When he started working there part-time as a high-schooler, he was living in Brooklyn. Now a Long Island resident, he is still…
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