South Jamaica, Queens : NYC Tourist Guide

South Jamaica

South Jamaica, known colloquially as Southside, is a neighborhood in the New York City borough of Queens, located south of downtown Jamaica, the Long Island Rail Road tracks and Liberty Avenue. The western border is the Van Wyck Expressway, and it continues in the east towards the neighboring community of St. Albans and to Merrick Boulevard. South Jamaica is largely African American, with increasing numbers of Latin American and West Indies immigrants moving into the community in recent decades. Also, a small population of Indians, Pakistanis, Bangladeshis and Russians live in this area. The area is largely a working-class community consisting primarily of one and two-family houses and a number of smaller apartment buildings, along with some public housing projects. The national real estate boom has provided for a haven of newly constructed multi-family homes. Currently, most of the homes that are for sale in the area were recently built. York College, part of the City University of New York system, is now located in the community. The new AirTrain JFK route starts as the Jamaica station and continues towards JFK International Airport on its route elevated high over the Van Wyck Expressway.