{"id":150985,"date":"2026-03-03T14:16:43","date_gmt":"2026-03-03T14:16:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/150985\/"},"modified":"2026-03-03T14:16:43","modified_gmt":"2026-03-03T14:16:43","slug":"southeast-queens-bids-farewell-to-the-jamaica-colosseum-mall-which-closed-after-more-than-four-decades-an-anchor-for-local-economy-qns","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/150985\/","title":{"rendered":"Southeast Queens bids farewell to the Jamaica Colosseum Mall, which closed after more than four decades an anchor for local economy \u2013 QNS"},"content":{"rendered":"

\t\t\t\t\"Queens\t\t\t<\/p>\n

Queens Public Library Hip Hop Coordinator Ralph McFaniels is surrounded by many of the entrepreneurs who made the Jamaica Colosseum Mall a local icon. <\/p>\n

Photo courtesy of Comrie\u2019s office<\/p>\n

While most of the borough was gearing up for a blizzard that paralyzed the city on Sunday, Feb. 22, hundreds of southeast Queens residents spent the day before the storm at the Jamaica Colosseum Mall<\/a>, which closed down at the end of January.<\/p>\n

State Sen. Leroy Comrie, Assemblymember Alicia Hyndman and Council Member Dr. Nantasha Williams hosted a private closing ceremony at the Colosseum at 89-02 165th St. and honored its cultural significance and legacy in the community since the marketplace opened in 1984 at the former home of Macy\u2019s, and became an anchor for the local economy. Comrie welcomed elected officials from across Queens, community and faith leaders and business owners to reflect on the Colosseum\u2019s impact and recognize those who helped shape its history over more than four decades.<\/p>\n

\"StateState Sen. Leroy Comrie, Assemblymember Alicia Hyndman and Council Member Dr. Nantasha Williams hosted a private closing ceremony at the Colosseum at 89-02 165th St. and honored its cultural significance and legacy in the community since the marketplace opened in 1984.Photo courtesy of Comrie\u2019s office<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Jamaica Colosseum wasn\u2019t just a marketplace, it was part of the heartbeat of Southeast Queens,\u201d Comrie said. \u201cFor decades, small business owners built opportunity within its walls and families built lasting memories. We gathered to honor that legacy and the community that made it what it was.\u201d<\/p>\n

Like Comrie, Queens Borough President Donovan Richards went to Jamaica High School a few blocks away on Hillside Avenue.\n<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is our home,\u201d Richards said. \u201cA lot of memories on this block, some of them good, some of them bad, in all honesty. Let me say that this is the place that made me, you know? We think about all the talent, all the entrepreneurs who came out of here.\u201d<\/p>\n

The private gathering was followed by a block party outside that drew more than 300 who also grew up at the Colosseum Mall and joined clergy, community board members and representatives from community-based organizations including LIFE Camp, King of Kings Foundation, 100 Suits and others.<\/p>\n

\"TheThe private gathering was followed by a block party outside that drew more than 300 who also grew up at the Colosseum Mall and joined clergy, community board members and representatives from community-based organizations including LIFE Camp, King of Kings Foundation, 100 Suits and others.Photo courtesy of Comrie\u2019s office<\/p>\n

Richards told the crowd that organizers were getting signatures on petitions to rename the block after the Colosseum Mall. He also vowed that the community would have a say on what comes next at the site which is in the area rezoned by the City Council last year, under the Jamaica Neighborhood Plan.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re going to send a very strong message to the developers to make sure that this is not going to become Downtown Brooklyn,\u201d Richards said. \u201cThat the people that paved the way can remain in this community and be centered through any development that\u2019s happening here.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"Photo courtesy of Comrie\u2019s office<\/p>\n

After the farewell bash, Queens Public Library Hip Hop Coordinator Ralph McDaniel told QNS about the cultural significance the Colosseum had on generations in Southeast Queens.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe closing of the Jamaica Coliseum marked the end of an era for many who grew up in New York City,\u201d McDaniels said. \u201cJamaica Avenue was a vibrant hub for shopping, socializing and aspiring entrepreneurs. Hip-hop artists such as LL Cool J, Run-DMC, 50 Cent, Nilli Minaj, and Nas could often be seen walking inside the Jamaica Colosseum. For me, it was an opportunity to experiment with new ideas and start a successful career in entertainment.\u201d<\/p>\n

McDaniel went on to be the co-creator and host of the long-running \u201cVideo Music Box\u201d series that made its debut in 1983.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Queens Public Library Hip Hop Coordinator Ralph McFaniels is surrounded by many of the entrepreneurs who made the…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":150986,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[37],"tags":[50393,63140,63141,63142,9,24,63,122,124,123,50397],"class_list":["post-150985","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-queens","tag-assemblymember-alicia-hyndman","tag-colosseum-mall","tag-council-member-dr-nantasha-williams","tag-jamaica-colosseum-mall","tag-new-york","tag-new-york-city","tag-nyc","tag-queens","tag-queens-headlines","tag-queens-news","tag-state-sen-leroy-comrie"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/150985","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=150985"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/150985\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/150986"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=150985"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=150985"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=150985"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}