La Casina, Streamlined Jamaica Art Moderne

A marvelous Art Moderne streamlined building front can be viewed at 90-33 160th Street, just north of Jamaica Avenue. It is a 1934 addition to a building constructed between 1905 and 1910. In the mid-1930s, Jamaica was an entertainment hub as the country was emerging from Prohibition, and La Casina, a nightclub, opened here. Its two stepped pyramids flank a marquee-like overhang.

It is a rare landmarked building in Queens as only about 75 buildings in the borough claim the designation from the Landmarks Preservation Commission. After the nightclub closed, the building became a swimsuit and beachwear factory for several decades, then lay empty for several years. It is presently home to the Jamaica Business Resource Center, which provides technical and financial assistance to area startup businesses as well as entrepreneurial training for fledgling businesspeople. The building went on the market for $75,000 in 2013.

Happily, or unhappily depending on your point of view as a building owner, the NYC Landmarks status makes it very difficult for any prospective owner to alter the facade again.