State Sen. Jessica Ramos, Costa Constantinides, and Variety Boys and Girls Club board members pose with a $2.5 million check for the organization’s new swimming pool. Also pictured is Ramos’s mother. Photo: Shane O’Brien
April 16, 2025 By Shane O’Brien
State Senator Jessica Ramos presented a $2.5 million check to Costa Constantinides, CEO of the Variety Boys and Girls Club of Queens (VBGCQ), to support the construction of a new aquatic center as part of the organization’s ambitious $293 million redevelopment project in Astoria.
The funding will go toward a regulation-size swimming pool that will replace the club’s longtime pool facility, last renovated in the early 2000s. The upgraded aquatic center will also include a wading pool for “Mommy and Me” and “Daddy and Me” classes, a wet locker room, and a parent viewing gallery.
Ramos, Constantinides and VBGCQ board members pose with renderings for the organization’s new swimming pool. Photo: Shane O’Brien
The aquatic center is just one component of a transformative plan that will completely redevelop VBGCQ’s existing headquarters at 21-12 30th Rd. into a 125,000-square-foot, state-of-the-art facility. The new clubhouse will feature a gymnasium, a theater, a teaching kitchen, a regulation pool, and what will be the first planetarium in Queens.
Variety Boys and Girls Club, currently celebrating its 70th year in the neighborhood, is expected to break ground on the project this December. According to Constantinides, the organization has now secured the vast majority of the $293 million needed for the redevelopment, clearing the way for construction to begin. The project is expected to take approximately 30 months, with completion targeted for early 2028.
Once complete, the new clubhouse will allow the organization to serve up to 16,000 children annually—making it the largest Boys and Girls Club in the United States, Constantinides said.
The project also includes a 236-unit, carbon-neutral affordable housing development, with 69 units reserved for youth aging out of foster care, as well as a dedicated children’s mental health center. Additional features include a 1,500-seat arena and a 400-seat school, further integrating community services with educational and recreational programming.
“We’re not just building a clubhouse—we’re building the future of Astoria,” Constantinides said.
Ramos and Constantinides at Variety’s existing swimming pool. Photo: Shane O’Brien
Constantinides said the existing VBGCQ swimming pool has played a vital role in the local community, proving to be the only location for local children to learn how to swim. He said Astoria Park’s pool is a vital community asset but noted that the pool is only open two months of the year, while VBGCQ’s pool is open year-round.
“If not for this pool, many kids in this neighborhood would not have access to a pool,” Constantinides said. “Our aquatic center is going to be an integral part of our new vision for this community to help us serve 16,000 young people every single year right on this spot.”
Ramos, who frequented VBGCQ while growing up in Astoria, also touted the importance of the club’s swimming pool, describing swimming as a vital life skill that can help save lives.
“Knowing how to swim is a life skill that everyone should have, that should be accessible to everyone, no matter what zip code they come from, what walk of life they come from,” Ramos said at VBGCQ Wednesday. “I can’t tell you how excited I am about the new boys and girls club that is set to be in reality over the next few years.”
Constantinides said VBGCQ activities will be temporarily relocated to a nearby senior center and four partner schools while the new clubhouse is under construction, stating that the only service the organization will not be able to provide during construction is its current swimming services.
Photo: Shane O’Brien
However, he said the new center will allow VBGCQ to quadruple its membership from 4,000 young people per year to 16,000.
He also said the development will provide 236 units of deeply affordable housing, including 69 units for children aging out of foster care. VBGCQ will also partner with the Institute of Community Living (ICL) to provide “wraparound” services for children leaving the foster system and living in their first apartment including emotional and financial support.
“Young people aged out of foster care are often the most vulnerable for homelessness,” Constantinides said. “After they turn 18… their foster parents aren’t able to keep them on in many cases and they end up on the street because there is no next step. There’s no plan. Every child deserves a safe space. Every child deserves the opportunity to chase their dreams.”
Constantinides added that the planned mental health center will ensure that young people have access to the mental health services they need. He also emphasized that VBGCQ helps support young people’s mental health by facilitating their participation in sports and other activities.
He said the state-of-the-art clubhouse will help VBGCQ put every child that uses its services “on a path” to college or a career.
Ramos, meanwhile, said the organization has always been the “safe place to be” in Astoria and said the new clubhouse provides a more “forward-thinking” approach.
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