As part of a $650 million project to expand Manhattan’s Museum of Modern Art (MOMA), some of the world’s most valuable works of art will soon be found in Queens... cramped up in a storage warehouse.

While Queens cultural institutions are suffering from budget cuts, the city is giving the Museum of Modern Art $65 million for a warehouse in western Queens which will be closed to the public.

While MOMA has raised the bulk of the funding required for the project through private donations, Mayor Rudolph Giuliani announced last week that the city would contribute $65 million to the museum’s plans.

This came as quite a shock to the directors of cultural institutions here in Queens, who had only recently learned that as a result of a $22.2 million proposed cut in the city’s Cultural Affairs budget, many of their programs may have to be scrapped. The fact that MOMA is going to construct 75,000 square feet of storage space in Queens does not comes as much of a consolation.

"We get MOMA in a coma," Councilman Walter McCaffrey told the Tribune.

MOMA has chosen to commence their massive 75th anniversary rehabilitation project with the warehouse, which if all goes well should be stocked and functional by the year 2000. MOMA will then devote the next four years and the rest of the money to expanding MOMA’s 87,000 square feet of gallery space, its renowned sculpture garden, and invaluable educational facilities.

Borough President Claire Shulman said that while she recognized the importance of this expansion to the art community, she was distressed by the city’s decision to make such an exclusive donation.

"It is discouraging that the city has pledged to fund approximately 10 percent of the museum’s expansion plan," said Shulman, "while calling for dramatic cuts in Queens’ cultural programs and institutions."

Queens was selected as the site for the warehouse because of its proximity and easy accessibility to Manhattan, said MOMA spokesperson Liz Addison.

But to several Queens elected officials, the borough is was getting the short end of the city’s financial stick.

"Quite frankly, it’s ludicrous," said McCaffrey. "MOMA is an institution that does not require this type of funding. And just as this is happening, our [Queens] institutions–which are relatively new–are being cut. It is absolutely outrageous."

Paintings like Marc Chagall’s "Paris Through The Window" may soon be stored–out of view–in a Queens warehouse like this one in Long Island City.

Shulman also found the distribution unfair. "While the Museum of Modern Art has a healthy and wealthy board of trustees, I am concerned that the city is cutting back on the glue that holds our network of cultural institutions together," said Shulman. "Many of our lesser known institutions are currently struggling to increase programs and services for an extraordinarily diverse population, while concurrently fearing budget reductions that would cripple services. At the same time, it is difficult for these smaller institutions to attract private money."

The Jamaica Arts Center provides an example of the type of Queens institution that would be hurt by the proposed cuts. Housed in a five-story building, the center features art and dance studios, three art galleries and a 75-seat theater. The Center’s Executive Director, Veronique LeMelle, expressed hope that the mayor would think of organizations like hers when slashing the budget.

"I hope they remember that places like this are actually incubators for the artists that will eventually be displayed in MOMA," LeMelle said.

However, Department of Cultural Affairs Commissioner Schuyler Chapin said that there was no reason for Queens to feel slighted.

"The MOMA grant has absolutely nothing to do with the regular budget," Chapin said. "The $65 million that the city is offering is 10 percent of the total MOMA expansion budget. It comes out of capital funds, and has nothing whatsoever to do with the regular budget. We still have the usual minuet between the executive and legislative budgets."

George Delis, District Manger for Community Board 1, confirmed Chapin’s rationale.

"Capital funding is federal money put aside for municipal construction projects such as these," Delis explained. "This budget is entirely separate from the regular expense budget."

When the Borough President first heard of the city’s plans to give $65 million to MOMA, she called for a full restoration of funding for cultural institutions and programs that were to be cut, as well as for the elimination of the Cultural Challenge Initiative.

"We must work together to make certain that our body of cultural institutions and activities lands on its feet," Shulman said.

In the meantime, however, the only thing landing in Queens is a storage warehouse. The museum has located a number of spaces suitable for the storage site, but as of yet has not made a decision.

LeMelle expressed interest in seeing if the completed warehouse, which will house surplus items from the MOMA’s vast collection of over 100,000 works, will create jobs for local residents.

"A warehouse such as this will require art handlers, preservationists, and movers-all specialized jobs," she said. "This warehouse may even benefit our people by creating jobs in our borough."