On April 9, 2019, the Center for New York City Law welcomed New Yorkers for Parks back to New York Law School for another installment of their Open Space Dialogues. The event was kicked off by Executive Director of New Yorkers for Parks Lynn B. Kelly, with welcoming remarks by New York Law School Dean and President Anthony Crowell. The topic of yesterday’s Open Space Dialogues was “Money Doesn’t Grow on Trees.”
Parks provide multiple benefits in dense urban environments, from recreation to mental health to sustainability and resilience. But staying on top of daily wear and tear and addressing the structural deficiencies of aging infrastructure need to be funded. How should we pay to create and maintain our public realm? Park practitioners and advocates from New York City and beyond explored what options exist for ensuring parks in all five boroughs have a sustainable financial future.
Speakers addressed questions like:
- What are innovative funding strategies applicable to NYC Parks?
- What lessons can we learn from cities with unusual parks funding streams?
- How do you build an equitable approach into park funding in all neighborhoods?
The panel was comprised of Eloise Hirsh, Administrator of Freshkills Park and President of the Freshkills Park Alliance; Mychal Johnson, a co-founding member of South Bronx Unite; Christopher Rizzo, a partner at Carter Ledyard & Milburn LLP; Kathryn Ott Lovell, Commissioner at Philadephia’s Department of Parks & Recreation; and Julie Tighe, the President of New York League of Conservation Voters. The program was moderated by Editorial & Policy Director of the Center for an Urban Future, Eli Dvorkin.
To watch the complete video of the event, click here or see below.
VIDEO: