Washington Square Agreement Met By Cheers and Groans

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The Washington Square Park Council has hired PPS to conduct a community workshop on October 15. The Council is not interested in “reinventing the park or changing its character.” The Council is opposed to a recent agreement on the redesign between the communit’s city councilmember and the parks department.

PPS conducted user surveys for the Council, to help better understand how people use the park at different times of day and night.

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  • PRESERVE WASHINGTON SQUARE PARK

    WASHINGTON SQUARE PARK SURVEY
    I spend a lot of time in the park, and I know someone who is there virtually every day from 3 till midnight. She has never seen anyone getting surveyed in the time frame she’s there.

    I hope you are taking surveys later in the day than previously. I have heard from others that the surveyors were there only early in the morning. This would skew the survey to those who are just passing through, which is what the Parks Commission would like to prove, so they can turn it into gardens and prevent people from congregating as they can now.

    I would expect that the hundreds of people at night who listen to the live performances, as well as the performers, should be surveyed. This is when the park truly comes to life.

    Over the last few weeks, there was a Shakespeare performance daily at one of the sites that will be destroyed by the renovation, known as the Teen Plaza. Again, no one was taking surveys although there were over a hundred people watching. Of course, this would show that people are using another part of the park that they want to get rid of, so I would expect no surveys to be taken.

    We will be watching for the survey patterns.

    http://preservewashingtonsquarepark.com

  • Katie Salay

    Nighttime surveys
    To answer the above question, yes, PPS conducted surveys and documented activities in Washington Square Park at all times of day, and also on both weekdays and weekends. The Park is indeed an extremely lively, active and social place at night, and that is reflected in our findings. For any further questions about PPS?s surveys in Washington Square, feel free to contact us, or the Washington Square Park Councilto find out more about their vision. (If you?re looking for us in the Park, we?ve completed the surveys, so you won?t see us!)