Streetfilms: The Definitive Movie on How DOT Created the Best Public Space of 2022

In his State of the City address on Thursday, Mayor Adams talked about creating the next generation of great public spaces. Fortunately, his own Department of Transportation has a perfect example it can point to.

Both Streetsblog and Streetfilms have covered the transformation of 34th Avenue in Queens from a normal car sewer to a successful open street during the pandemic and then finally to its current incarnation as Paseo Park, a 1.3-mile mostly car-free stretch that has lived up to its hype as the “gold standard” open street.

But now, Streetfilms takes you much deeper inside the transformation, thanks to extensive access to DOT Deputy Commissioner Eric Beaton and Director of Public Space Emily Weidenhof.

The analysis shows what works … and why:

It’s an in-depth look that Streetfilms auteur Clarence Eckerson Jr. usually reserves for the award-winning films he does about important transformations overseas. Fortunately, he was able to finally cover as revolutionary a project much closer to home.