Union Square Renovation
Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg was joined October 25, 2004 by Parks & Recreation
Commissioner Adrian Benepe, Council Member Margarita Lopez, Union Square
Partnership Chairman Eugene R. McGrath and Executive Director Karen H. Shaw
to announce the $14 million capital campaign for the completion of Union
Square Park. The funding for this project consists of $8 million in City
funds, and an additional $6 million in private funds, including a $5 million
donation from a private citizen. The campaign will complete the
reconstruction of historic Union Square Park, and includes the unification
and expansion of two existing playgrounds, a year-round restaurant and a
decoratively paved plaza for the Greenmarket farmer's market and public
events. Community Board 5 approved the initial design plans for the project
on October 14, and renovation of the playground and Pavilion is expected to
begin next fall.
"The revitalization of Union Square Park and the entire Union Square area
has been accomplished through a model public/private partnership between the
City and the Union Square community," said Mayor Bloomberg. "With the help
of the Union Square Partnership over the last 20 years, the park and
neighborhood have been transformed from an area once synonymous with blight
and inaccessibility to a hub of restaurants, commercial, academic and
residential life. This project will complete the restoration of one of the
City's most important and historic public spaces."
"The plan for the renovation, beautification and improvement of Union Square
Park's north end is the culmination of the City's two-decade effort to
revive this 165-year-old park," said Commissioner Benepe. "Union Square
Park's improved amenities will now reflect its standing as a city commons,
where parents bring their children to play and their dogs to walk, where New
Yorkers congregate from across the City to buy fresh produce, grab a bite to
eat, gather to express opinions, and meet friends."
The "Northern Gateway" of the park will preserve and improve the existing
space for the popular Greenmarket, special events while minimizing the
impact on farmers and neighbors during construction. The plan also
incorporates community concerns regarding improved paving, insulation of the
north end from traffic and the creation of a visual corridor from Broadway.
The renovation project includes the unification and expansion of two
existing playgrounds, the restoration of the historic Pavilion building to
accommodate a year-round restaurant, the construction of two new structures
to include public restrooms, expanded and improved maintenance and storage
facilities for Parks & Recreation, and a decoratively paved public plaza
which will enhance the Greenmarket and add plantings to better define the
park's perimeter.
Total City funding for this project will be $8 million, which includes $1.9
million from Council Member Margarita Lopez. The Union Square Partnership
has already raised $5 million in private funds and expects to raise the
remaining $1 million needed to ensure completion of the project.
"We are off and running," said Karen H. Shaw, Executive Director of the
Union Square Partnership. "This is a very significant project not only for
the community, but the City, as a whole. The Partnership is delighted to
have played a lead role in spearheading this important public/private
partnership that will substantially improve our neighborhood's crown jewel.
With the help of the entire community, the Union Square Partnership is
committed to ensuring the successful completion of our historic park and
create a beautiful and useful public space."
The planning and design process involved Parks & Recreation and the
community and was spearheaded and funded by the Union Square Partnership.
The conceptual plan was designed by an award-winning landscape architect
team Michael Van Valkenburgh Associates, Inc. The team, lead by the planning
firm Hamilton, Rabinovitz & Alschuler, Inc with significant input and
guidance from Parks & Recreation, consulted with numerous community leaders
and neighborhood stakeholders, including Community Board 5, the Greenmarket
and playground users, to define the needs and requirements of the northern
end of the park.
The Union Square Partnership serves as a catalyst for the economic
revitalization of the
14th Street-Union Square community. The Partnership is made up of two
entities, the Business Improvement District and the Local Development
Corporation, working in tandem to improve and maintain the quality of life
for the 14th Street - Union Square neighborhood. The Partnership is made up
of local business leaders, residents, not-for-profit groups, universities,
hospitals and businesspeople seeking to improve the neighborhood.
The 3.6-acre Union Square Park opened to the public in 1839. The park is a
gathering place for New Yorkers from all walks of life, and a center for
commerce, political events, and recreation. In 1871 M.A. Kellogg and
Gardener E.A. Pollard collaborated on a new plan for Union Square, and a
year later it was redesigned by landscape architects Frederick Law Olmsted
and Calvert Vaux. Since 1976 the Union Square Greenmarket has served as a
local landmark, offering fresh food and plants on the north side of the
park, where a flower market flourished over a century ago.
This project will be the third and final phase of the
reconstruction/completion of Union Square Park. The southern portion of the
park was reconstructed in two stages. In 1986, a City project rebuilt the
entire area south of the pavilion with a large stepped plaza. The park's
southeastern triangle and southwest border were reconstructed and expanded
in 2002. In 1997, the United States Department of the Interior designated
Union Square Park a National Historic Landmark.
Contacts: Edward Skyler / Robert Lawson (Mayor's Office) (212) 788-2958
Warner Johnston (Parks) (212) 360-1311
Posted by:
Joshua Brustein
Too Many Street Fairs on University Place
If you agree with the following petition, please e-mail me:
We the undersigned: The Residents, Merchants and Neighbors of and around University Place have signed this petition
in protest to the current and ever growing number of street fairs along University Place from Washington Square Park to
Fourteenth Street.
University Place (between 5th avenue and Broadway) has for many years been the home for the washington Square art
fair which is held for four weekends between memorial and labor day.
Over the past few years, at first two additional weekends were allocated for street fairs over the summer, then slowly
more and more have been squeezed into the summer months and then into the spring and fall months as well.
These are the type or street fairs usually found on much wider avenues or streets which can better accommodate large
crowds and smokey food vendors and loud electric generators. This type of street fair is ill suited for a narrow Ave. like University place. The crowds and vendors booths make it very difficult to cross the streets. The smoke from the food vendors wafts up into the apartments along the street making life unpleasant for the tenants and causing health risks to others.
The merchants too are affected in perhaps a more profound way, the direct loss of income caused by these street fairs.
The stores along University Place do not benefit from these street fairs. There is direct monetary loss to each and every
store on the street. Each store is losing money every time there is a street fair and the amounts are substantial and
cumulative.
These fairs have created some very unfair circumstances for both residents and merchants alike and need to be moved
to another venue.
Posted by:
Bob Miller
Downside to Street Fairs
As somebody who works at a store on University Place, I know that I am not the only person who is sick of all the street fairs there. There are now at least 10 weekends a year where there is one fair or another. To outsiders, they may seem festive. To the neighborhood, they cause noise, crowds, smoke and smells. Some of my elderly customers are actually afraid to leave their apartments when one is going on. Businesses on the street actually lose money, because the visitors are there to buy cheap socks and cheap food. Having a vibrant street life is one thing; forcing so many fairs on one street is another.
Posted by:
Bob Miller
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Union Square Renovation
(Oct 25, 2004)
Too Many Street Fairs on University Place
(Aug 05, 2003)
Downside to Street Fairs
(Aug 03, 2003)
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