Bullet-riddled Kew Gardens hotel is scene of two recent shootings

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Bullet holes riddle the entrance of the Umbrella Hotel in Kew Gardens. Photo courtesy of Daniel Rosenthal

Bullet holes riddle the entrance of the Umbrella Hotel in Kew Gardens. Photo courtesy of Daniel Rosenthal

By David Brand

There’s a criminal courthouse right across the street, but that hasn’t deterred guests from stirring up major trouble in and around a Kew Gardens hotel.

In recent weeks, there have been at least two shootings reported at the Umbrella Hotel at 124-18 Queens Boulevard — one July 3 and another Sunday, according to police reports. Victims survived both shootings, but the latest attack riddled the revolving front door with bullet holes.

The hotel is located along a stretch of Queens Boulevard that is typically quiet in the evenings, when Queens Borough Hall, the nearby court building and a row of law offices remain closed. But things have changed since COVID-19 surged in New York City.

Fewer people have been renting rooms in the Umbrella Hotel, which tends to cater to airport travelers and people visiting Queens on courthouse business. Since April, people have begun taking advantage of the hotel’s lower rates to reserve blocks of rooms, where they hold parties that have gotten out of hand, said local Assemblymember Daniel Rosenthal.

Residents in adjacent apartment buildings have complained of fireworks and police have responded to reports of drug use in the building. The two shootings made the situation particularly unacceptable to local leaders. 

NYPD officers from the 102nd Precinct, officials from the Department of Buildings, members of Community Board 9 and local elected officials met Thursday at Queens Borough Hall to discuss the problems at the hotel. But several other city agencies ditched the meeting, angering Rosenthal.

“The situation is extremely dangerous. There have already been two shootings and the fact that we had a meeting and that most city agencies decided not to show is reckless and unacceptable,” Rosenthal said. Officials from the FDNY, Department of Health, Mayor’s Special Engagement Unit and Hotel Management did not attend, he said.

Neither did Umbrella Hotel management.

The person who answered the phone at the hotel Thursday declined to answer questions and recommended reaching out by email. She also said she would relay a message to the hotel manager who she said was off-site for the day.

Hotel officials have not yet responded to requests for comment.  This story will be updated with their response.