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Grand Concourse, New York City
The Grand Concourse, also called the Grand Boulevard, is a major boulevard in the Bronx, New York. It was originally designed by Louis Aloys Risse to be reminiscent of the Champs-Elysées in Paris, France. The Grand Concourse, however, is far wider than the street it was modeled after and since its original construction in 1889, has fallen into disrepair in several areas. A promised $18 million restoration is planned by the
New York City Department of Transportation
.
Despite the fact that most days of the week it is a daunting multi-lane street, every Sunday from July-November during the early 1990's, the Grand Concourse was closed to traffic. These vehicle-free events attracted community members to play, socialize, eat outdoors, and develop relationships with neighbors. Despite this success, former Mayor Rudolph Giuliani ended the closures in 1996. In 2006, however, Bronx Borough President Adolfo Carrion, Transportation Alternatives, and a group of other community groups successfully brought it back.
The Grand Concourse events helped usher in
Summer Streets
, a much larger New York City street closure event that has since spread to other U.S. cities. One example is
Sunday Streets San Francisco
.
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ALSO ON THE LIVABLE STREETS NETWORK
REFERENCES
Each source is referred to by the same number every time it is cited. Please keep citation style consistent.
[1]
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PICTURE REFERENCES
Pictures are cited in the order they appear above. Please keep citation style consistent.
[1] New York City block party. Photo by Can we come after 1pm via Wikis Take Manhattan 2008.
[2]
