And just like that, fall has arrived. I always feel a sense of loss at the end of the summer season. A loss of sundresses, beach days, late sunsets, ice cream cones. But of all the losses, the one I feel most acutely is the loss of shared space with my fellow New Yorkers. In the summer, the opportunities to gather and take advantage of public spaces feel infinite: free concerts, street fairs, food festivals, picnics, block parties, and open streets, to name a few.
But here’s a thought: what if we could enjoy public space all year round?
Public space shouldn’t just be seasonal. After all, it’s in the name. It’s for all of us, the “public,” and we don’t stop being the public when summer ends. And "space" has endless potential, taking on so many shapes and sizes in every season: a bench outside your favorite bodega, a plaza with ping pong tables, a pocket park with pollinator plants, a street lit up for a winter market.
In NYC, we have the "public" part covered. Eight million people is plenty of public to go around. But New Yorkers could all use a bit more "space." We're always negotiating for it: "cozy" apartments, cramped sidewalks, finding odd places to sit like tree guards, and a city that's only about 14% green space.
I think about this especially on the Upper West Side. We are so lucky to live in a neighborhood sandwiched by two incredible, world-renowned public spaces, Central Park and Riverside Park, which are visited by tens of millions of people every year (and nearly 300 species of birds!).
But what about all the space in-between?
You feel the contrast the moment you spill out of the park and back onto the street.
Our urban landscape is uncomfortable at best and, at worst, abrasive to the desire to slow down and connect with each other and the city around us.
-
Our sidewalks are too narrow for daily life, whether you’re trying to squeeze by with strollers, dogs, or Trader Joe's bags (sometimes all three!).
- There are hardly any places to sit, rest, and watch the world move around us.
-
The green space we do have is squeezed into small, localized patches.
- And our streets have been handed over to moving and parked cars. (There are about 12,000 free parking spots on the UWS. Lined up end to end, they'd stretch more than three times the length of Manhattan!)
We've gotten so used to this that we forget our streets are public space too. Nearly three out of four UWS households don't own a car, but all of us share the street.
This is your reminder that it doesn’t have to be this way.
When we’re so deeply entrenched in a status quo that has long outstayed its welcome, sometimes we just need to be given the opportunity to dream beyond it.
As adults, we’re so rarely asked to play pretend or indulge in “magic wand thinking.” As your StreetopiaUWS Community Organizer, that’s what I see as a big part of my role, offering opportunities for our community to dream bigger, beyond the confines of the “it’s always been this way” that we are stuck in…while giving you the tools and guidance to bring it to reality.
I know many of you have incredible ideas about where we can create more public space.
That’s why I had the best time engaging with so many of you at the West Side County Fair to hear all about the types (and uses) of public space you want more of on the UWS.
Out of the 84 responses (some responses had multiple answers), the desire for more Open Streets/ Fewer Cars took the grand prize (13 responses), with Gardens being a close second (10). Beyond that, we all want more places to play, more places to sit, more places to gather, more places to spread out, and more places to slow down.
Take a look!
