By Carol Tannenhauser
If you hear drumming along Amsterdam Avenue on Sunday afternoon, March 13th, it will be coming from the Amsterdam Open Streets program, which is resuming between 106th and 110th Streets. From 10 am until 7 pm, that stretch of the avenue will be closed to cars.
Sunshine is predicted, which means JoJo Soul will be performing starting at 2 pm, leading a drumming circle, which you can enjoy and join in.
Open Streets is a NYC program, overseen by the Department of Transportation. “It may turn out to be one of the most important legacies of the coronavirus pandemic,” The New York Times observed. “It is transforming public spaces that have long been the domain of cars.”
It’s 20 degrees with snow.
It’s 35 and sunny, but….
I hope none of the drum circle people get frost bite and require an ambulance up Amsterdam to the nearby hospital, as it won’t be able to get through due to Open Streets. Heaven forbid they have their drum circle a few blocks in either direction in one of two large parks nearby.
Agreed. The point of drumming circle at this particular time and place is lost on me.
I live at 110th and Amsterdam. Open Streets makes some sense during the warmer months, and was wonderful during the pandemic, but it is a HUGE inconvenience (if, for instance, you’re counting on the M11 bus to get your groceries home) and sound nuisance to those of us who live on Amsterdam, and makes zero sense in cold weather. Not to mention cutting off access to to Mt. Sinai. It’s getting pretty tiresome. Sigh.
Absolutely—
The fact that it cuts off a direct uptown route to Mt. Sinai hospital is ridiculous.
Enough already…
End this ridiculous program already. It’s a waste of time.
To clarify, there is no blocked access to Mt. Sinai Morningside Hospital by the Open Street program. Emergency lanes are a mandated part of the program’s design and we’ve had zero problems with NYPD, FDNY, or EMS vehicles getting through, either north- or southbound on the portion of the Open Street I help manage on Amsterdam, between 110th and 111th Streets. Our ongoing online and direct surveys of neighbors demonstrate clear and overwhelming support for the program. We welcome input on the program at http://www.w111thstreet.org.
Dan,
Respectfully I think there is a big problem here because the M11 bus is rerouted.
Mass transit must be the priority. Actually I think it is unacceptable to do this to bus riders.
The City could have closed a side street for “recreation”, for example, 111th or 108th.
Dan, this article discusses 106-110th , no mention of 110-111 which seems to be well monitored. I’ve never seen anyone actively monitoring access on 106 to 110. At least they’re not adding 96-106th to the program this time. I don’t think there’s a single restuarant that actually used the outdoors space in that 10 block run.
Truly pointless program as most restaurants already have outdoor dining.
Cars and scooters constantly use the street anyway as here is no oversight. Especially when it extends all the way to 96st.
It’s a nice idea but poorly executed and not overseen by any city agency.
West Side Rag,
Thank you for your local reporting!
Could WSR followup with DOT and ask why the City is allowing avenue closure as it means diversion of buses?
Many depend on the bus, particularly elderly, disabled. Workers, residents etc.
Also if 110-111 is closed then the M11 bus must travel on Broadway beyond the Columbia campus – can’t turn back on Amsterdam until 120th.
Many thanks.