By Matt Chaban 4/12/12 6:27pm

Starchitects

8 Photos

Occupy Frank Gehry

Occupy Frank Gehry: 8 Spruce Street Open Space Opening Within Weeks

If Zucotti Park is getting boring, and the folks at Occupy Wall Street are looking for something a little more flashy, they might want to check out New York by Frank Gehry. The super-rich rental tower (tallest in the Western Hemisphere!) rising at 8 Spruce Street has been open for more than a year yet it was not quite done.

The public plaza out front has been under construction until very recently, waiting in part for construction scaffolding to come down so that planting might commence. Now, the privately owned public space—a POPS just like Zucotti—is set to open in a matter of weeks, according to the folks at Forest City Ratner. Read More

By Matt Chaban 4/12/12 12:27pm

POPS-ing OFF

How much? (Getty)

Just How Much Is That Privately Owned Public Space Worth? Millions and Millions of Dollars, Probably

Since Occupy Wall Street set up camp in Zucotti Park last fall, privately owned public spaces, or POPS, have gone from planners’ secret sidewalks to every New Yorkers favorite hangout.

The New York World  had the brilliant idea of quantifying just how valuable a few of the city’s POPS are, and it turns out to be tens, and in some cases, hundreds of millions of dollars. Which gives lie to the argument that every time a landlord tries to keep people out, New Yorkers are seriously getting ripped off. Below is a sampling of the POPS and their sticker prices, about which you can find more details on The World‘s site. Read More

By Matt Chaban 10/18/11 5:42pm

POPS-ing OFF

Sony is watching. (The Nation)

Keep Off the Plaza! Brookfield and Rudins Get Proactive About Occupy Wall Street

In addition to Zuccotti Park, the Occupy Wall Street demonstrators have taken over the Brooklyn Bridge, Park Avenue, Washington Square Park, Times Square, the local McDonald’s, and tonight they march on Lincoln Center. Fearing new encampments in the plazas outside of their Midtown towers, the already-occupied Brookfield Properties, as well as the august Rudin Management and the corporate godheads at Sony, have begun putting out new signs forbidding a litany of activities, according to The Times. Read More

By Matt Chaban 10/13/11 2:56pm

Greensward

See you at the AXA Gallery! (AXA)

Occupy Midtown: A Parade Through Privately Owned Public Spaces This Saturday

The Friends of Privately Owned Public Spaces had no idea the good fortune of their timing. The group was formed a few years ago, to bring awareness to the hundreds of POPS littered across the city, a sort of watchdog fighting for their open access. Almost no one knew of the spaces, that is until the Wall Street occupiers showed up at Zucotti Park. Now, almost everyone does. Read More

By Matt Chaban 10/13/11 12:22pm

Greensward

A love letter from Brookfield to the Occupiers. (Getty)

Is the Zuccotti Park Cleanup Really a Trap for Occupy Wall Street?

The protestors occupying Wall Street/Zuccotti Park are worried about the new plans to clean up the park tomorrow, calling it an eviction notice. The mayor showed up last night, politely informed the occupation of the move, and asked them to make way for Brookfield’s cleaning crews.

The protestors have responded by calling for bucket brigades, but according to a source with intimate knowledge of the site, they may not have to. It appears Brookfield, and not the occupiers, would be breaking the law if they tried to return and were denied access. Read More

By Matt Chaban 10/05/11 12:01am

Greensward

Welcome? (Matt Chaban)

Don’t Tread on Me: Could Occupy Wall Street Save New York’s Neglected Privately Owned Public Spaces?


The city will gain what amounts to a permanent, open park in the heart of one of the most densely built-up areas in the world. It is principally because of this public benefit that the commission has viewed this application with favor.

—City Planning application No. 20222, adopted March 20, 1968

Except for the highly intrusive police fencing lining a handful of streets and the occasional thrum of a drum circle, life goes on in Lower Manhattan. Tourists clog the streets in front of Century 21, craning to get a look at World Trade Center construction and the new 9/11 memorial beyond. Analysts and traders puff on cigarettes on the granite plazas outside their towering offices. Strollers abound.

The protests known as #occupywallstreet might better be called #occupyzucottipark. The plaza two blocks from the street of the protestors’ ire is well-known by now, a square to rival Rockefeller Center or the Apple Cube of Fifth Avenue in its current popularity. Read More