Long Island City

After years and years of hype, it looks like Long Island City is finally living up to its label as being the next big thing.

A Williamsburg-in-miniature is sprouting along Vernon Boulevard -- just one stop from Grand Central on the 7 train -- with a smattering of hip bars, restaurants and cafes. The most publicized new hangout might be the Water Taxi Beach, which brings Manhattan residents by ferry to drink beer, gaze at the skyline and lounge in trucked-in Jersey Shore sand.

Nearby, condo towers are rising -- including The Foundry (2-40 51st Ave.) and The Powerhouse (50-09 Second St.), a conversion of a former power plant by Andres Escobar -- and some are commanding very non-Queens prices of $1,000 a square foot (and up). The region is undergoing an "extreme makeover" of sorts, and thousands of new units are expected in the coming years.

New development has spread from the hip Hunter’s Point district to the sketchier vicinity of Queensboro Plaza. Though there are no amenities to speak of -- no pharmacy, no grocery, but, hey, there’s the Scandals strip club! -- new developments in the area include Queens Plaza (41-26 27th St.), a 66-unit building where prices start at about $465,000 for a one-bedroom.