Having made considerable strides to make streets more accessible to pedestrians and bikers in recent years, New York City is continuing to build on that momentum.
Ya-Ting Liu, the city’s first public realm officer, is shepherding $375 million in funding earmarked for projects intended to make the city more environmentally friendly and boost quality of life. The projects will produce more pedestrian plazas on congested streets, wider sidewalks, more bike lanes, and expanded public space.
Community advocates are hopeful that the new position, a kind of “czar of public space,” will speed up progress on these initiatives.
One example: Work wrapped up in June on the first phase of the Mayor’s Broadway Vision Plan. This project added two new plazas and a two-way bike lane along Broadway from West 25th Street to West 32nd Street. The next phase of the plan calls for extended curbs and widened crosswalks to make it easier for vehicles to do pickups and drop-offs without blocking traffic. This project will stretch about 2.8 miles.
Across the East River in Queens, a stretch of Jamaica Avenue now includes granite blocks, tables, chairs, and planters. This space is meant to encourage people to sit, eat, read, and meet friends. This stretch of roadway will also get wider sidewalks, extended curbs, and elevated crosswalks.
Liu’s mission includes bringing equity to projects so that neighborhoods and boroughs all across the city benefit. Liu says the pandemic has sharpened the focus on the importance of having vibrant, inclusive public spaces, according to a report by Bloomberg.
Related Stories
Building Team | Sep 6, 2016
Letting your resource take center stage: A guide to thoughtful site selection for interpretive centers
Thoughtful site selection is never about one factor, but rather a confluence of several components that ultimately present trade-offs for the owner.
Urban Planning | Jul 19, 2016
New game challenges players to create a utopian city block
By treating the neighborhood as a living entity, players of Block’hood take part in the creation, death, and rebirth of their own city blocks
Augmented Reality | Jul 15, 2016
Pokémon Go is helping people discover their cities
While catching them all may be the main goal, the wildly popular mobile game is also leading people to trek to unexplored corners of their cities
Urban Planning | Jul 13, 2016
'Shore to Core' competitions envision future waterfront cities
Design and research teams will use West Palm Beach, Fla., as their model.
Urban Planning | Jul 7, 2016
Y Combinator project would build new city using new technology, urban policies
Zoning, property rights, building codes all could be re-imagined.
Urban Planning | Jun 15, 2016
Swedish ‘Timber Town’ proposal from C.F. Møller provides a unique blend of nature and city
The development acts as a transition area between a traditional urban landscape and parklands.
Movers+Shapers | Jun 10, 2016
URBAN EVANGELIST: Bruce Katz sees America humming again, city by city
Katz, best known as Co-director of the Brookings Institution's Metropolitan Policy program, believes that cities are dynamic networks of like-minded public and private interests that have the potential to generate economic growth.
Urban Planning | Jun 9, 2016
Triptyque Architecture designs air-cleansing hanging highway garden in São Paulo
The garden would filter as much as 20% of CO2 emissions while also providing a place for cultural events and community activities.
Urban Planning | May 31, 2016
Vancouver park board approves final design for urban park
The green space is intended to be a recreation area for a busy part of downtown.
Urban Planning | May 31, 2016
The entire Swedish city of Kiruna is being relocated to prevent it from collapsing into underground iron mines
Kiruna, the northernmost city in Sweden, and its 20,000 residents will be moved two miles to the east by 2040.