Developers Dub Corona Blocks 'NoCo,' Confusing Neighbors View Full Caption

QUEENS — Move over SoHo and NoMad, "NoCo" is the new kid on the block.

The seller of newly built luxury condos on Northern Boulevard is calling the section of Corona "NoCo" to infuse it with some "cool" — but the moniker has confused residents who say they've never heard of the nickname.

The area has become home to a handful of buildings in the past year with pricey apartments and high-end amenities on Northern Boulevard west of 106th Street.

Adrian Lupu, who is selling units at Sage House Condos on 112th and Northern Boulevard, said he came up with the name "NoCo" once construction began last year.

"I started about a year and a half ago to call it that. We sort of picked up on the SoHo trend," he said. "We're trying to bring the cool to the neighborhood."

His building has 33 one- and two-bedroom apartments plus a massive roofdeck, a kids' playroom and a gym — with units ranging from $377,000 to $690,000.

The "NoCo" name has also spread to The 106 Condos, on 106th Street and Northern Boulevard, which features 8 one- and two-bedroom apartments with "high-end finishes" like marble floors and granite counter tops, according to its website. Apartments start at $435,000 and feature outdoor space.

That building's website said the area is "known affectionately by residents as 'NoCo'," citing The NoCo Apartments across Northern Boulevard and the Sage House condos.

There is also the future convention center on Northern Boulevard and 112th Place, which one developer said will be called the NoCo Convention Center.

But the name was news to those who live and work in the area.

"No one has ever called anything NoCo over here," said George Dixon, a district leader and longtime resident.

"No one — and you can quote me on that."

At Northern Lube and Tires Shop, near 107th Street, Mohammed Umar, 25, said he'd never heard of it and was dumbfounded when DNAinfo New York asked about it.

"We put Corona," he said. "NoCo — first time I heard it."

Melissa Gomez, who works at the Animal Clinic of Northern Boulevard, said the name had a "negative connotation."

"No," she said. "No one's ever called it that."

Calls to The 106 Condos developers were not immediately returned.

Lupu said the name is helping market the neighborhood, but added that his building backs up the hype with luxury amenities and a 25-year tax abatement.

"It's part of the branding and everybody wants to be cool," he said. "Whether you live in North Corona or South Jamaica, cool is cool. But you kind of have to have the product to back it up."

Northern Boulevard has a recent influx of buildings as developers look to cash in around Corona and Flushing ahead of a $3 billion plan to revitalize the former Iron Triangle in nearby Willets Point.

The developers of the planned Corona Convention Center purchased land at 112th Place and Northern Boulevard in January for $17 million, according to city records, and demolition has already begun on the former DiBlasi Motors.

The plan is to build a 25-story hotel and apartment complex on top of a more-than 105,000-square-foot convention center, the Daily News reported in January.

The owner of the convention center could not immediately be reached for comment.