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Read the press release here.

City Proposes Outdoor Seating to Spruce Up Water Street

By Julie Shapiro | January 24, 2011 10:44am
Under the rezoning, buildings like 77 Water St. would be allowed to put tables and chairs on their covered sidewalk.
Under the rezoning, buildings like 77 Water St. would be allowed to put tables and chairs on their covered sidewalk.
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City Planning

By Julie Shapiro

DNAinfo Reporter/Producer

FINANCIAL DISTRICT — No one hangs out on Water Street, even in warm weather.

With towering commercial buildings that extend out over covered sidewalks, the street is more conducive to businessmen rushing to a meeting than tourists and local residents relaxing for lunch.

But that could be about to change. The city is proposing a zoning amendment on Monday that would allow tables and chairs year-round on the covered sidewalks, called arcades, that line Water Street.

"This proposal will help the street reach its potential as a vibrant and dynamic place where office workers, residents and tourists will be able to have their lunches, or simply rest and linger, under the shelter of public arcades," City Planning Commissioner Amanda Burden said in a statement.

"It may seem like a small change, but it will greatly enhance the public use of this underutilized street and become an asset to the lower Manhattan community."

The idea for outdoor seating on Water Street came from the Downtown Alliance business improvement district, which proposed a major overhaul of the corridor last summer. The Alliance may help landlords buy and maintain the new street furniture, a spokesman said.

The zoning change would affect the rectangle bounded by Fulton Street, Pearl Street, Whitehall Street and South Street, which includes 17 arcades, City Planning officials said. Developers received a floor-area bonus for creating the public arcades, but until now they never had a clear use, beyond sheltering passersby from rain.

Community Board 1 and Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer now have 60 days to review the proposal, and then it will go to the City Planning Commission and the City Council for a final vote.