Skip to Content
Streetsblog New York City home
Log In
Corona

WE FIRST! After Mayoral Announcement, Neighborhoods Demand Open Streets

5:49 PM EDT on April 28, 2020

Photo: Angela Stach

Residents are starting to take to the streets ... for streets they can take to!

Jackson Heights and Corona residents blocked off portion of 34th Avenue from cars for a half-hour today — the most public example of neighborhoods starting to demand to be at the front of the line when Mayor de Blasio starts creating the 100 miles of open streets he promised on Monday.

As residents in orange vests manned an "Emergency Vehicles Only" barrier at 90th Street, residents of other neighborhoods were working the Zoom chats and Twitter to ask City Hall to keep their crammed in, coronavirus exasperated residents in mind for more open space.

Streetfilms posted a video of the Queens rally:

But at the same time, other neighborhoods were hoping to not be left out. This tweet came from the Third Avenue Business Improvement District in The Bronx:

Flatbush in Brooklyn:

And Gowanus in Brooklyn:

Manhattan Borough President Gale Brewer has already asked the mayor to open Broadway between Times Square and 14th Street — and possibly to Grand Street in Soho — and Hells Kitchen activists have called for 11 miles of roadways opened up in their neighborhood and Chelsea to the south.

Meanwhile, Park Slope activist Doug Gordon put up a barricade on a dead-end street two weeks ago and it has remained a play street since.

Stay in touch

Sign up for our free newsletter

More from Streetsblog New York City

Friday’s Headlines: A Congestion Alert Day

Like everyone else, we covered congestion pricing. Plus other news.

December 1, 2023

Adams Says He’ll Ban Parking Near 1,000 Intersections Every Year To Make Corners Safer

The city will daylight 1,000 intersections a year. A Brooklyn corner where a boy was killed in a crash is still waiting for the safety upgrades.

December 1, 2023

Komanoff: IMHO, TMRB is A-OK

Here’s what’s to like about the Traffic Mobility Review Board's central business district toll recommendations. It's a lot!

December 1, 2023

DOT’s New Emissions Rule is a Big Deal, Even if It Doesn’t Punish States for Polluting

No states will face penalties for building needless toxic road projects — but they also won't be able to hide those impacts from the public.

December 1, 2023

Cops Search for Hit-and-Run Driver Who Killed 3-Year-Old in Queens

The merciless motorist killed 3-year-old Quintas Chen in downtown Flushing, Queens on Wednesday night.

November 30, 2023
See all posts