Fifth Avenue StreetSeat

Operational project

Small-scale interventions can transform streetscapes into safe, walkable spaces for pedestrians. The seasonal StreetSeat is an effective way to calm traffic, increase visibility, and maximize the utility of sidewalk area.

DOT installed the 5th Avenue StreetSeat in response to a request by a local business, SkyIce: 5th Avenue and St. Marks Avenue, Brooklyn

Purpose

  • Create a seasonal outdoor seating opportunity
  • Improve the public realm
  • Enhance pedestrian safety
  • Create an attractive setting for eating, reading, meeting friends, or taking a rest

Location

  • The StreetSeat is located on the active commercial corridor of 5th Avenue at St. Mark’s Place, near Barclays Center and Flatbush Avenue in Park Slope, Brooklyn

Context

  • With proximity to mass transit connections and major destinations such as Barclays Center, 5th Avenue in Park Slope buzzes with pedestrian activity 
  • The active corridor includes many retail and restaurant options, but lacks adequate public space to host vibrant street life

Project Origination

  • DOT’s Public Space Unit worked with the 5th Avenue Park Slope BID and a local business, who applied to install this StreetSeat

Planning and Design

  • After the community partner submitted a plan, DOT visited the site to assess the potential for design intervention
  • Partners and DOT collaborated to present to the Brooklyn Community Board 6, and gathered support from the adjacent businesses and the community at large

Implementation

  • DOT installed ‘No Standing Anytime’ signs, wheel stop bars, flexible delineators, and a parking stripe
  • The partner hired a fabricator to build the StreetSeat structure out of cedar wood and a contractor to install it
  • To ensure physical accessibility, the StreetSeat rests on a platform to make it level with the curb and sidewalk
  • The partner maintains the structure and surrounding plantings as part of the legal project maintenance agreement
  • DOT conducts periodic inspections, and the partner conducts surveys to garner valuable public input

Results

  • The StreetSeat project repurposed one parking space into an asset for hundreds of pedestrians daily
  • With new seating, the 5th Avenue corridor benefits from more active street life, additional greenery, and open views
  • Sales increased after the Street Seat was installed

 

A Street Seat

5th Avenue and St. Marks Avenue, Brooklyn

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