A neighborhood development group is surveying businesses in Long Island City to take a closer look at the area's economic landscape. NY1's Clodagh McGowan filed the following report.

At Unique Settings of New York, an old world craft, meets high-tech.

"The jewelry business in New York was thriving at certain points. And there's a lot of great, great jewelers that are artisans and employing those guys have helped us scale our business," said Matthew Ego, the director of operations for Unique Settings of New York.

The jewelry company moved from the diamond district in Manhattan to Long Island City about eight years ago, in search of more room.

It now has almost 300 employees and averages about $55 million dollars a year in sales.

Ego says it’s important to keep manufacturing in LIC because it helps boost the local economy.

"I think it's vital, when I drive into Long Island City now and I see all these high rises going up and I see the amount of people moving into the town, that we maintain the manufacturing or industrial sector, without that, companies like us would have nowhere to go," said Ego.

That's exactly the type of information the Long Island City Partnership is hoping to uncover with its first ever business survey.

The group is hoping to reach more than 6,000 local businesses, big and small, to gather information that will go towards a bigger plan gauging the area's future growth and development.

"We thought it was really important to take a step back and look at who's here, what they're doing here, what they like here, what they need to stay here," said

Liz Lusskin, the Long Island City Partnership president.

Councilmember Jimmy Van Bramer canvased businesses in the Falchi building, on 47th Avenue and 31st Street, to help spread the word.

"You don't know what you need until you ask. And some of these businesses may not have been asked before. And so, we want to make sure they all know about the survey," said Van Bramer.

The survey responses are already coming in and more space seems to be the number one priority so far for business owners.

"The right kind of space: well-located, the right price, with the right amenities," said Lusskin.

Businesses and organizations have until January 15th to take the survey.

For more information, head to www.licpartnership.org