By Julie Shapiro
DNAinfo Reporter/Producer
TRIBECA — A touch of green arrived in TriBeCa this week as a new pedestrian plaza opened on Hudson Street.
The painted pavement, seating areas and blooming planters look very similar to other plazas the city has opened — but this one came almost entirely from local residents and businesses.
"The Department of Transportation gave us the tables, the chairs and the empty planters, and we did the rest," said Victoria Weil, a TriBeCa resident who spearheaded the planning. “This is a community space, being supported by the community."
Weil started planning the plaza when she heard that the city would have to close the block of Hudson Street just north of Chambers Street for three years as part of a water main project.
Rather than allow the block to become a concrete wasteland, Weil was determined to make it a welcoming place to rest and play. Together with the other members of the Friends of Bogardus Garden, which is adjacent to the space, Weil began raising the estimated $9,000 the plaza would need to open.
Local businesses helped out by donating everything from paint to elbow grease, and residents came together to paint the pavement and fill the planters with soil and greenery. A local cafe owner locks the tables up each night.
The Hudson plaza had its soft opening last weekend and saw a steady stream of people hanging out at the tables this week, eating lunch with coworkers or reading a book.
"This is really nice," said Omar Johnson, 23, a student at the Borough of Manhattan Community College, who was sitting at a table Thursday afternoon.
Johnson said he usually heads straight home to the Bronx after his classes, but once he saw the plaza, he decided to sit outdoors for a bite to eat before getting on the subway.
For now, the space is sheltered from the traffic on Chambers Street and shaded by tall trees in Bogardus Garden. But the construction on Chambers will soon reach Hudson Street and start encroaching, at least a bit, on the peace and quiet.
Weil said the only complaints she has heard about the plaza so far have come from people who are upset the street was closed, which was the city’s decision. The city plans to reopen the block once the Chambers project finishes in 2013, but Weil hopes that by that time, the community will advocate to make the plaza permanent.
The Friends of Bogardus Garden is holding a grand opening celebration this Sun., Sept. 19 from 10:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Free children’s activities at Hudson and Chambers Streets include yoga, face-painting and arts and crafts.
