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USP News
Harvest Tickets Going
Fast! |
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This year's event will sell out! Harvest in the
Square is set
for Thursday, September 20th from 7:30 PM to
9:00 PM, and highlights some of the hottest
culinary masters from the Union Square district
including Starchef.com's 2007
Rising Stars, Gramercy Tavern's Michael Anthony and 15
East's Masato
Shimizu. Participating chefs
prepare signature dishes with fresh farm produce
from our friends at the Greenmarket Farmers Market. So
bring your appetite for a night of unforgettable food,
music and more under the fall foliage on Union Square
Park's North Plaza! For General Admission tickets,
visit Telecharge.com.
For Friends of Union Square Park VIP tickets for
early admission at 6:00 PM, contact the Event
Hotline at (212) 460-1208. |
| Back to School
Blowout |
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Calling all NYC
college students! Don’t miss the 2007 Time Out New York
Student Guide Back to School Blowout
presented by Virgin
Megastore, New York
University and the Union
Square Partnership. The event will take place on
Sunday, September 16th from 12:00 PM to 4:00 PM on
Union Square Park's South Plaza so join us for an
afternoon of food, music, and fun. Learn about
volunteer opportunities with USP's Education Program at
Washington Irving High School, and stuff your backpack
with giveaways, while enjoying music
and food from neighborhood restaurants Big Daddy’s, Duke’s, Piola, Gizzi’s Coffee, and Whole Foods
Market.
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Danny Meyer Featured Speaker
at Small Business Summit |
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Union Square
Hospitality Group CEO and USP Co-Chair
Danny Meyer will deliver the closing keynote at The
New York Times Small Business Summit on Wednesday,
October 10th at the Sheraton New York. Danny
will speak about the importance of hospitality in
business, a subject he highlighted in his 2006 book,
Setting the Table: The Transforming Power of
Hospitality in Business. Registration is open to
all. |
| Bon Anniversaire,
Lafayette! |
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On
September 6th, visit Union Square Park to wish
a Happy 250th Birthday to Marie Joseph Paul Yves
Roch Gilbert du Motier, better known as the Marquis de
Lafayette. Born in France, Lafayette
was inspired by the principles underlying the American
Revolution and traveled to America, serving as both a
military general and a diplomat. The Lafayette statue in
Union Square Park by Frederic Auguste Bartholdi
(sculptor of the Statue of Liberty) is a gift from
France and was erected on his birthday in 1876. The
statue is located on the east side of the park between
15th and 16th Streets. |
| IDA 53rd Annual Conference and
World Congress |
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The International Downtown
Association, the
national organization for business improvement
districts across the United States, is hosting its
annual conference in New York City this September. BID
leaders from around the world will convene to learn
best practices and celebrate the success of New
York's BIDs including the Union Square Partnership. The
conference includes workshops, panels, small-group
roundtable discussions, and keynote speeches by urban
leaders including Newark Mayor Cory A. Booker, NYC
Deputy Mayor for Economic Development and Rebuilding
Daniel L. Doctoroff, and Department of Cultural Affairs
Commissioner Kate D. Levin. |
| Get Involved ~ Become a
Sponsor |
USP offers a variety of sponsorship packages to local
businesses and property owners including event specific
opportunities like Harvest in the
Square, the Annual Education
Program Luncheon, and Summer in the
Square, our summer performance series in
Union Square Park. For daily visibility on the
street, take part in the USP Banner Program, which
places branded lamppost banners throughout the
district to promote the area and USP's
numerous programs. For more information about how your
organization can Get Involved, contact USP Deputy
Director Carin Cardone at
(212) 460-1200. |
| Union Square
Partnership |
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The Union
Square Partnership is a community-based, nonprofit
organization working to foster the best possible
metropolitan neighborhood for its residents, businesses,
property owners and employers. We are comprised of a
local development corporation and New York City's first
business improvement district, two organizations that
have served as catalysts behind the area's
transformation. For more information, visit our website
at www.unionsquarenyc.org. |
| Links to Community
Websites |
| The City of New
York
Department of Parks
and Recreation
Department of Small Business
Services
Community Board
2
Community Board 3
Community Board 5
Community Board 6
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Neighborhood News
Farm
Aid Hosts HOMEGROWN Fair |
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On September 8th from 10:00 AM to 4:00 PM, Farm Aid
hosts its annual HOMEGROWN Fair, a
celebration on Union Square Park's South Plaza to
stimulate the City's local food network. The fair
features a range of family-friendly events including
musical performances by local artists Nation
Beat, The Ebony
Hillbillies, and the Jimmy Nations
Combo; a Food Miles game; locally raised and
roasted corn on the cob; and smoothies churned out by a
pedal-powered blender. Grassroots organizations showcase
their work with hands-on, experiential activities for
kids and adults alike. The event kicks off a weekend of
activities leading up to the Farm Aid concert
on Randall's Island. |
| "Wheatpacking" District Highlights All Things
Green |
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A recent New York
Times Style Section cover story highlights Union
Square for "becoming a one-stop destination for
those who consider themselves health-conscious and
eco-friendly." If you are looking for a place
to apply green thinking while enjoying some of
the greatest amenities New York City has to offer -
including the Greenmarket
and area restaurants that offer an abundance of
Greenmarket menu items - Union Square is the green place
to live, work and visit. |
| Come Together for Global Day of
Music for Peace |
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On
Tuesday, September 11th, the September Concert
Foundation will produce a free concert
in Union Square Park from 12:00 PM to 4:00 PM.
Founded in April 2002, the Foundation organizes concerts
across the globe on each anniversary of September 11th,
with the goal of bringing
people together to reaffirm the hope for
world peace, and to celebrate life and
universal humanity.
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Greenmarket Visionary Honored with
Jane Jacobs Medal |
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USP congratulates
neighborhood visionary Barry Benepe on receiving
the 2007 Rockefeller Foundation's Jane Jacobs
Medal for Lifetime
Leadership. Throughout his life, Benepe has
been a central figure in the beautification
and renaissance of New York City and Union
Square. In 1975, he established the City's Greenmarket
program, demonstrating how markets can be community
gathering places on empty lots and underutilized parks.
The program now sponsors Farmers Markets in more than 30
neighborhoods across all five boroughs, including the
City's first in Union Square .
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Working Together to Improve Quality
of Life |
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On August 2nd, Manhattan District Attorney Robert
Morgenthau was joined by the East Side Alliance,
which includes local methadone treatment centers,
representatives of the local police precincts, and the
Union Square and Flatiron/23rd St. Partnerships,
for the signing of an agreement to help
prevent methadone clients from loitering or using drugs
in Union Square and neighboring areas. As The
Villager reported on August 8th, the
four methadone programs in the area have agreed to
enforce the requirement that their clients leave
the district area (between E. 3rd and E. 28th
Streets on the eastside of Sixth Avenue) directly
after receiving services. Furthermore, anyone found
guilty of buying or selling drugs, including methadone,
will be asked to leave participating programs in
the area. |
| Waiting for the Bus Made Easier
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In August, the
Union Square neighborhood received one of New York
City’s first-ever electronic bus displays, giving MTA
bus passengers real-time information about bus
departure times. The TransitMaster system, designed by
Siemens VDO, coordinates on-board equipment with
OnStreet electronic displays at major bus stops,
helping NYC Transit track bus travel and allowing
riders to make decisions about the best possible
route. The MTA’s initial order of 185 buses and
fifteen electronic displays can be expanded in phases to
cover more than 3,550 buses and 310 displays, and could
eventually include the system’s 4,500 total
buses. |
| "Garden in
Transit" Transforms City Taxis
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Garden in
Transit is an ambitious public art project
that will be displayed on the City’s yellow taxis this
fall to help celebrate the 100th anniversary of the
traditional metered taxicab. More than 23,000
children and adults from schools, hospitals, and
community programs across the City have
painted vibrant flowers onto adhesive weatherproof
panels that will be applied to thousands of taxis
at various locations throughout the City.
Be a part of this once-in-a-lifetime event and volunteer
at Union Square Park's North Plaza
on September 13th, 18th, 23rd, 25th, and
27th from 7:00 AM - 7:00 PM.
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