Architects and city planners have long celebrated Sunnyside’s Art Deco buildings and the historic Sunnyside Gardens district, but everyone can appreciate the many sights and stories of the neighborhood’s culture and creativity. This tour traces some highlights, from Thalia Spanish Theater (the first and only bilingual Hispanic theater in Queens), the Bliss Theater (a rare surviving example of an Egyptian Revival movie palace), and iconic Sunnyside Arch, to murals and memorials commemorating pioneers of folk, jazz, and punk rock. Stops along the way include treasures of progressive urban housing design, as well as galleries and storefronts that are showcasing artists in this close-knit community just a 20-minute subway ride from Grand Central Station.
Sunnyside Shines BID was one of HDC’s 2025 Six to Celebrate priorities – New York’s only targeted citywide list of preservation priorities that provides strategies and resources to neighborhood groups at a critical moment to reach their preservation goals.
