Park(ing) Day

Streetfilms: Park(ing) Day NYC 2008

As Park(ing) Day participants set up and enjoyed 50 mini-parks on New York City streets, the Streetfilms crew -- Clarence Eckerson, Jr., Chris Read and Robin Urban Smith -- fanned out across the boroughs to catch the action on video.

By Brad Aaron

10:39 AM EDT on September 22, 2008

As Streetsblog staff and Flickr pool contributors were filing photos on Friday, the Streetfilms crew — Clarence Eckerson, Jr., Mark Read and Robin Urban Smith — fanned out across the boroughs to catch the Park(ing) Day action on video. Says Clarence:

This year my travels took me to four of the five boros: biked 43 miles,
filmed 22 spots, spent 11 hours outdoors and had one bike crash – while
I was walking my bike through Times Square. Go figure!

While there was much fun to be had, Park(ing) Day again demonstrated the value of streets as public spaces. And some spots, as shown in the video, were designed with specific community goals in mind. The “Green for Breathing Park” in the South Bronx was dedicated to the campaign to demolish the Sheridan Expressway, and the “Safer Skillman Corner” in Woodside, Queens demonstrated how the removal of a parking space could make a dangerous street safer.

Brad Aaron

Brad Aaron began writing for Streetsblog in 2007, after years as a reporter, editor, and publisher in the alternative weekly business. Brad adopted New York's dysfunctional traffic justice system as his primary beat for Streetsblog. He lives in Manhattan.

Park(ing) Day | Streetfilms

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