Thursday, June 29, 2006
Bask to the old drawing board for Union Square park redesign
LOOKING AHEAD by Wally Dobelis
You may have wondered why there have been no further activities in the redevelopment of the North side of Union Square since the May 15th hearing before the Art Commission of New York, the city’s watchdog of esthetics of its architectural properties. Well, they had some objections that sent the Union Square designers back to the drawing board. The project, chiefly sponsored by the Union Square Partnership, will have to undergo yet another transformation.
To start, the proposed border of trees along the north side of the plaza (site of the Greenmarket) needs review. There was once such a line of trees, planted in individual pits in the 1980s, and the trees died. Art Commission requests that a continuous trench be used to plant the trees (distances and pruning height unspecified). The other line of trees, north of the Pavilion, was denied approval. It would impede the use of the pavilion in its historical role as a podium for speakers during public celebrations and protests, the events that the plaza has been famous for, ever since the first 1882 Labor Day parade. The new paving design of the North plaza also came in for criticism, questioning the appropriateness of the confetti-like pattern of stones, intended to be a reminder of the footprints of the multitudes that once assembled there.
The southern exposure of the Pavilion presented two debatable situations. To start with, the current format of the projected balcony design was rejected by the AC. Another important criticism came in conjunction with the expanded children’s playground, which includes the present pit, more genteelly referred to as the “sunken dell,” location of the Luna Café. Under the redevelopment plan it is to become part of the enlarged playground. The dilemma hinges on the fact that having two grade level areas linked by a sunken one is not suitable, and the current proposal of equalizing the surfaces by sinking the side areas is costly and presents other problems, as would filling in or bridging the pit. The AC challenges present problems that can undermine the basic concepts of the entire project.
The sunken dell came with the original design of the Pavilion, constructed in 1930s. The ground floor of the structure probably was tructured to provide bathroom facilities, built to be accessible from both sides, the street and the elevated park. The original pit had picnic tables and benches, a nice facility expanding what was originally referred to as a “bandstand and comfort station” structure. Filling it in would be a major expense, and would destroy the ground level access to the building, which was constructed for that purpose, with windows and doors. Lowering the existing playgrounds to meet the dell’s level is an expensive alternative, and bridging, with a hanging center playground, is impractical.
The struggle over the redesign of Union Square North, is complicated by the fact that the park has been designated a NYC landmark, has taken its toll also in the Union Square Community Coalition, an association of local activists formed in 1980 to fight the deterioration and takeover by drug dealers and their clients, with sit-ins and political action. In collaboration with the 14th Street/Union Square Local Development Council, formed in 1979, and its younger cousin, the Business Improvement District, the neighborhood efforts eventually succeeded in salvaging the old public treasure, designed in 1811 and opened for public use as a park in 1839. It was restored in the 1980-90s, and with the arrival of the Greenmarket, Zeckendorf Towers and the enthusiasm of the restaurant community, Union Square resumed its mid-19th century role as New York’s gastronomical and theatrical center; meanwhile the USCC has suffered of internal conflicts. The preservationists on the USCC board object to the current redesign, sponsored by the LDC/BID (now renamed as The Union Square Partnership), the NYC Department of Parks and the NYC Department of Transportation, and the co-chairs of the organization, Susan Kramer and Gail Fox, have resigned. The board has appointed a vice chairman, Ernest Raab, to fill the vacancy until the next election. Marjorie Berk, another original member, is expected to rejoin the group.
As of the moment, the AC does not have another hearing of U union Square redesign on its published agenda, meaning that the architects and sponsors are working on another recast of the plan. It will be nearly a miracle if a satisfactory redesign is achieved.
Meanwhile, the Department of Parks is being depleted of city funds, a sin against the citizens of our city, and is busily scrounging for income. The food kiosk in the Madison Square Park is a success, much to the pains of tits neighbors, who are suffering the noise and thrash pollution. The proposed kiosk in the East Stuyvesant Square Park, part of a Historic District, has been out for bids, against the neighborhood’s wishes, and the prospective operators have found it inadequate as an income-producing property, unless beer and wine licenses are granted. The neighborhood, until a decade ago plagued by a methadone/drug crowd using it as its summer resort, has successfully resisted the kiosk, and this new information will certainly strengthen its case.
This column thanks Jack Taylor.
You may have wondered why there have been no further activities in the redevelopment of the North side of Union Square since the May 15th hearing before the Art Commission of New York, the city’s watchdog of esthetics of its architectural properties. Well, they had some objections that sent the Union Square designers back to the drawing board. The project, chiefly sponsored by the Union Square Partnership, will have to undergo yet another transformation.
To start, the proposed border of trees along the north side of the plaza (site of the Greenmarket) needs review. There was once such a line of trees, planted in individual pits in the 1980s, and the trees died. Art Commission requests that a continuous trench be used to plant the trees (distances and pruning height unspecified). The other line of trees, north of the Pavilion, was denied approval. It would impede the use of the pavilion in its historical role as a podium for speakers during public celebrations and protests, the events that the plaza has been famous for, ever since the first 1882 Labor Day parade. The new paving design of the North plaza also came in for criticism, questioning the appropriateness of the confetti-like pattern of stones, intended to be a reminder of the footprints of the multitudes that once assembled there.
The southern exposure of the Pavilion presented two debatable situations. To start with, the current format of the projected balcony design was rejected by the AC. Another important criticism came in conjunction with the expanded children’s playground, which includes the present pit, more genteelly referred to as the “sunken dell,” location of the Luna Café. Under the redevelopment plan it is to become part of the enlarged playground. The dilemma hinges on the fact that having two grade level areas linked by a sunken one is not suitable, and the current proposal of equalizing the surfaces by sinking the side areas is costly and presents other problems, as would filling in or bridging the pit. The AC challenges present problems that can undermine the basic concepts of the entire project.
The sunken dell came with the original design of the Pavilion, constructed in 1930s. The ground floor of the structure probably was tructured to provide bathroom facilities, built to be accessible from both sides, the street and the elevated park. The original pit had picnic tables and benches, a nice facility expanding what was originally referred to as a “bandstand and comfort station” structure. Filling it in would be a major expense, and would destroy the ground level access to the building, which was constructed for that purpose, with windows and doors. Lowering the existing playgrounds to meet the dell’s level is an expensive alternative, and bridging, with a hanging center playground, is impractical.
The struggle over the redesign of Union Square North, is complicated by the fact that the park has been designated a NYC landmark, has taken its toll also in the Union Square Community Coalition, an association of local activists formed in 1980 to fight the deterioration and takeover by drug dealers and their clients, with sit-ins and political action. In collaboration with the 14th Street/Union Square Local Development Council, formed in 1979, and its younger cousin, the Business Improvement District, the neighborhood efforts eventually succeeded in salvaging the old public treasure, designed in 1811 and opened for public use as a park in 1839. It was restored in the 1980-90s, and with the arrival of the Greenmarket, Zeckendorf Towers and the enthusiasm of the restaurant community, Union Square resumed its mid-19th century role as New York’s gastronomical and theatrical center; meanwhile the USCC has suffered of internal conflicts. The preservationists on the USCC board object to the current redesign, sponsored by the LDC/BID (now renamed as The Union Square Partnership), the NYC Department of Parks and the NYC Department of Transportation, and the co-chairs of the organization, Susan Kramer and Gail Fox, have resigned. The board has appointed a vice chairman, Ernest Raab, to fill the vacancy until the next election. Marjorie Berk, another original member, is expected to rejoin the group.
As of the moment, the AC does not have another hearing of U union Square redesign on its published agenda, meaning that the architects and sponsors are working on another recast of the plan. It will be nearly a miracle if a satisfactory redesign is achieved.
Meanwhile, the Department of Parks is being depleted of city funds, a sin against the citizens of our city, and is busily scrounging for income. The food kiosk in the Madison Square Park is a success, much to the pains of tits neighbors, who are suffering the noise and thrash pollution. The proposed kiosk in the East Stuyvesant Square Park, part of a Historic District, has been out for bids, against the neighborhood’s wishes, and the prospective operators have found it inadequate as an income-producing property, unless beer and wine licenses are granted. The neighborhood, until a decade ago plagued by a methadone/drug crowd using it as its summer resort, has successfully resisted the kiosk, and this new information will certainly strengthen its case.
This column thanks Jack Taylor.
# posted by Wally Dobelis @ 6:12 PM 
