THE Grand Central Laundromat can be found on Parsons Boulevard, a major north-south road in the middle of Queens, and seemingly has nothing to do with Grand Central Terminal (I won’t shoot you if you cal it Grand Central Station; nitpicking like that drives me up the creek). We’re about 7 or 8 miles from GCT at this point…so, what gives?
The Grand Central Parkway of course, which runs from the Triboro Bridge generally east, south and then east again to the undefended Nassau County line, where it becomes the Northern State Parkway (which has been recently renamed plain Northern Parkway). It was among Robert Moses’ first major roads he built as NYC traffic czar. On the 1922 Hagstrom shown here, it was a line on a map, but in the early 1930s it was nearly built out to its current length. At first a bucolic country road, a literal parkway with plenty of green scenery and “Woodie” lampposts, it’s now a pedal-to-the-metal auto route. One of its original features still holds true: since its overpasses are low, it cannot accommodate trucks and buses except for the stretch between the BQE and the Triboro.
I find it somewhat amusing and perplexing that two major structures are called “Grand Central” in NYC that have absolutely nothing to do with the other! It’s pure coincidence, as GCT is in midtown Manhattan, and GCP cuts through the heart of Queens.
Next door to the Grand Central Laundromat we have the Par Central Motor Inn. No golf courses are nearby; it’s on PARsons Boulevard.
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2/9/22