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Mayor Mike Bloomberg and City Council Speaker Christine Quinn joined Vornado Realty Trust CEO Steven Roth and several Queens elected officials last week in breaking ground on the new Rego Park Center.

The mixed-use project at Junction Boulevard and 62nd Drive, one of the largest being developed in New York, will incorporate Century 21, Kohl’s and Home Depot in its 600,000 square feet of destination and street front retail. The project is also slated to include up to 400 units of new housing, a 1,400 car parking garage, a covered pedestrian galleria, a community facility and a landscaped public area to serve as an entryway to the existing Lost Battalion Hall park.

“It’s a wonderful example of what can be accomplished when government, the real estate industry and local communities partner together in designing projects that grow New York City’s economy while also enriching local neighborhoods and serving the needs of residents in the community,” Bloomberg said.

State Senator Toby Ann Stavisky (D-Flushing), City Council Member Helen Sears (D-Jackson Heights) and members of Community Board 6 also attended the groundbreaking of Rego Park Center, which is on property owned by Alexander’s. The former Queens Boulevard Alexander’s, which is now a mall including Sears, Circuit City and Bed, Bath & Beyond, used the site as a parking lot for decades.

The project was initially listed as a potential development site for Wal-Mart, in what would have been the mega retailer’s first foray into Queens, but a company spokeswoman said the community outrage when the story was leaked shut down the plan.

“This project is a longtime coming and it has my full support because of its economic benefits for the community, the borough of Queens and the City as a whole,” said Sears.

The project will provide 2,500 construction jobs, as well as approximately 1,400 permanent jobs. It will provide for a number of neighborhood improvements, including: creation of a 2,500 square foot Community Room for local event and meeting space; enhancements to traffic flow mainly through the widening of streets leading to and from the Rego Park Center; and improvements to the 63rd Drive-Rego Park subway station, such as new entry turnstiles and circulation patterns.

“Working with our architects and in consultation with City planners and Community Board 6,” Roth said, “we have designed a project that both blends with and enhances the character and flavor of the Rego Park community.”