Historic Queens Bowling Alley Trades for $45M to Multifamily JV
By Emily Davis June 29, 2026 1:07 pm
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The operators of the Whitestone Lanes bowling alley in Flushing, Queens, have gotten the ball rolling on a major multifamily redevelopment.
Midtown-based development firm Urban Realty Partners joined Mar Mar Realty, the private development arm of the bowling alley’s multigenerational owners, to acquire the site for $45 million, Commercial Observer has learned.
The joint venture will transform the 48-lane bowling alley at 30-05 Whitestone Expressway into dense, multifamily housing. The 81,150-square-foot lot was rezoned several years ago to accommodate more than 406,000 square feet of residential development, much to the ire of the bowling alley’s devoted local patrons.
A conceptual plan approved in 2024 detailed a nine-story development with 415 apartments, but the joint venture’s current plans are unclear.
The redevelopment is expected to include affordable housing, benefiting from the city’s mandatory inclusionary housing program, the federal Opportunity Zone program and eligibility for the state’s 485-x tax incentive program. The site will also feature public open space along the southern corridor of Farrington Street and 31st Road.
Located adjacent to the Whitestone Expressway, the future multifamily building will reside in close proximity to Downtown Flushing, Citi Field and the massive redevelopment at Willets Point.
Whitestone Lanes, opened in the 1960s by the Macaluso family, is a longtime local landmark. Once dubbed the “holy grail of bowling” by the New York Times, the business was well known for its pre-COVID 24/7 operating hours and no-frills style. Owner Marco Macaluso first listed the building for sale for $60 million in 2015 and initiated the rezoning process for the site.
JLL’s Mike Mazzara, Ethan Stanton and Brendan Maddigan negotiated the recent transaction directly with the joint venture.
“Our objective was to identify a buyer with the vision, capitalization and execution capabilities necessary to realize the full potential of the site,” Mazzara said in a statement. “Urban Realty Partners emerged as the ideal partner, and we are pleased to have helped the Macaluso family successfully complete this transaction.”
The $45 million joint venture capitalization was made possible with $37.06 million in financing, arranged by JLL’s Aaron Niedermayer. A JLL spokesperson declined to comment on the identity of the lender.
“Opportunities of this scale are exceptionally rare in New York City, particularly within a high-growth submarket like Flushing,” Niedermayer said in a statement. “The combination of strong market fundamentals, significant residential density potential, Opportunity Zone benefits and the ability to deliver a large-scale multifamily project created a compelling investment opportunity that generated substantial lender interest.”
A post on Reddit’s r/Flushing page from earlier this month shared a photo of an informal closure announcement on Whitestone Lanes’ door, reading, “Thank you to all our customers for all the years!”
Principals at Mar Mar Realty and Urban Realty Partners did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Emily Davis can be reached at edavis@commercialobserver.com.
