Plazas
Streetsblog Basics
Times Square Coalition: Keep the Plazas, Regulate Naked People
The Times Square Alliance and a coalition of electeds has a plan to address complaints about Times Square without destroying the hugely successful pedestrian plazas.
September 17, 2015
Meet the People Breathing Life Into NYC’s Overlooked Public Spaces
There are two dueling visions of public space in New York City. On one side, tabloid columnists and the police commissioner believe that any problems encountered in Midtown's public spaces -- whether homeless men or hustling desnudas -- should be fixed by replacing space for people with good old-fashioned car traffic. On the other side are residents and advocates working hard to improve public space in communities across the city, using shoestring budgets and their own street smarts.
September 11, 2015
How City Hall Can Improve NYC’s Public Spaces Instead of Tearing Them Out
While recent comments from Mayor de Blasio and Police Commissioner Bill Bratton about potentially yanking out the Times Square plazas have caused an uproar, a much deeper and more substantial debate over plazas has been simmering for months.
September 4, 2015
Resolved: Manhattan Community Board 10 Rejects Bradhurst Plaza
It was loud. It was messy. And in the end, Manhattan Community Board 10 decided against turning a short section of Macombs Place in Harlem into a car-free public space. Supporters of the proposal spent years trying to get CB 10's backing but came up a few votes short last night.
September 3, 2015
This Is What Harlem Plaza Supporters Will Be Up Against at CB 10 Tonight
Neighbors have fought for years to get Manhattan Community Board 10 to support creating a small plaza by Frederick Douglass Boulevard and 150th Street. Tonight that proposal is up for a vote at a general board meeting of CB 10 for the first time.
September 2, 2015
32nd Street Finally Has Enough Space for Walking. Will It Last?
New pedestrian zones near Penn Station have given people more breathing room on some of the most crowded streets in the city. Will they stay or will they go after a trial period wraps up in October?
September 1, 2015
Turn Times Square Back Into Traffic Hell? Tell Bratton and de Blasio: No Way
Since Mayor Bill de Blasio won't rule out the threat of removing the Times Square plazas, first raised by Police Commissioner Bill Bratton, it's time to take action. Two petitions are circulating to urge the mayor not to give Times Square back to cars.
August 28, 2015
Bratton Won’t Stop Talking About Removing Times Square Plazas
It wasn't just an offhand remark. Police Commissioner Bill Bratton has reiterated his desire to eliminate the public plazas at Times Square and go back to the days when people were spilling off the sidewalk into the path of traffic. This time, he's insisting that taking away space for people won't just cure Times Square of topless women and costumed characters -- it'll actually improve traffic safety.
August 27, 2015
It’s de Blasio and Bratton vs. the World on Times Square Plazas
Let's start with some basic facts: Most people like Times Square better now that it has more room for people. Gone are the days when the sidewalks were so meager that you had no choice but to walk in traffic. After Broadway went car-free through Times Square in 2009, pedestrian injuries plummeted 40 percent. Retail rents soared. And yet, going against just about everyone else who has something to say about it, Mayor Bill de Blasio is entertaining the idea of eliminating the plazas.
August 20, 2015