Let’s close Duane Street to through traffic for summer
The idea is not a new one. When Boston redeveloped Faneuil Hall in the ’70s, planners closed the streets around it to encourage business. The city also made seven blocks of Newbury Street car-free the past few summers for the same goal. Stone Street in the Financial District was closed to pedestrians in the ’90s, and one result was restaurants brought the historic street to life.
Now Corey Johnson, the City Council speaker who represents Chelsea and the Village, has proposed shutting some city streets to benefit restaurants in an op-ed in Crain’s recently. And the Friends of Duane Park submitted an application to the city’s new Open Streets program, with the hope that the area around the park could be closed to through traffic for two or three days a week.
The resulting open plaza — like a New England town green — could be a real boon to the neighborhood’s restaurants and a respite for residents, especially during these times. It would allow people to gather more easily while abiding by the current restrictions, and would breathe some life into the too quiet streets.
The city has recently added several downtown blocks to the Open Streets program, largely to add more space for recreation: seven blocks of Pearl from Cedar to State; Doyers from Pell to Bowery; Front from Beekman to Peck Slip. And this is great, but the opening of the bars for takeout here have shown already, in just a few days, how much we need areas for passive recreation, especially if the city truly wants us to be able to support local business. That program closes streets from 8a to 8p; ours could be noon to 9p, to allow for deliveries for local businesses, or those same hours but only a few days a week — Wednesday to Saturday, for example.
One of the best things about this neighborhood — if not *the* best — is how easy it is to bump into neighbors, chat on the street, catch up. I have built lifelong friendships from the accumulation of dozens of five-minute conversations. Our local businesses are important to us because they add to that formula too — by greeting customers they have known for years and giving us a way to interact in those brief and casual moments. It all adds up to a life.
So at the risk of using the G word — gather — we should start claiming some of our streets to get outside and to see our friends and neighbors, even if just for a wave from six feet away. We could all use a little cheer.
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May 26, 2020 at 06:37AM
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Let's close Duane Street to through traffic for summer - Tribeca Citizen
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