Steven Hiller
Steinway Street used to be a shopping destination but isn't anymore. Injecting new retail, especially in the part of Steinway that currently has almost zero retail might make all of Steinway a shopping destination again. Since the south part of Steinway has easier access to subways, more people will be coming by mass transit and after they arrive and shop they'll be looking for places to eat throughout the neighborhood.
Seems like a big win to me.

The reason this part of Queens is "underdeveloped" is more because of real estate speculation rather than the lack of space. There are already many empty buildings and storefronts in the area, and owners would rather have an empty space sell at an inflated price so that developers could build homes that very few people can afford.