We want to know what you think!

I’ve lived in the area for 8 and a half years now. I visit Prospect Park at least once a week, and I go to the Greenmarket in the Plaza every weekend. However, it took me 8 years to gather up enough guts to brave the traffic and visit the center of the Plaza. It’s beautiful once you’re there — the Fountain especially — but you can’t get there! Also, I’d love to be able to go up to the top of the Arch and see Prospect Park from that perspective. This should be accessible year round.

It is an interesting endeavor to be able to share a great idea

As an avid biker I generally avoid the plaza as a whole. When the traffic stops momentarily, pedestrians and bikers pause and consider if they should dash across before the next wave of traffic begins. Sometimes another biker will be beside me and we will share the same technique of waiting for this moment and biking full speed diagonally across all lanes to the park entrance, but this approach is less effective with the new curb system. The center is extremely underutilized except for wedding photographs and special events. Most people view the arch from afar and never experience Abe Lincoln on rare horseback at the ever awkward three fourths scale!

Seems like a good opportunity to put in practise any knowledge of urban design also considering car traffic and respective orientation.

Synchronizing the traffic lights so that one can cross Flatbush Avenue in front of the Public Library without getting run over. Now, one has to perch on the traffic island in the middle, waiting for the light to change. This is especially dangerous and risky on Saturdays when the island fills with pedestrians with dogs, bikes, strollers, grocery carts, etc., going to and from the Farmer’s Market.

Reduce the number of traffic lanes along Eastern Parkway by turning over 2 lanes for parking, one along each curb. This would help slow down traffic, besides adding much-needed parking.

Replace cobblestone pavers along the sidewalks of the parks around Grand Army Plaza with a smoother, more inviting surface to walk on.

I loved that there was a puppet library in the Grand Army Plaza arch until recently! I hope that the arch will again be used to house the New York Puppet Library, once it’s been renovated. I think the puppets provide such a unique resource for the neighborhood, a destination for curious visitors to Prospect Park, and something that makes the Grand Army area just a little bit different and exciting compared to other cultural destinations in the city. With the right resources, it could also be a great space for creative workshops, performances, educational opportunities related to puppetry, etc.

I once went into the arch for a puppet performance and had the chance to go up and down the spiral staircases lined with puppets, and it was such an amazing experience. I think many others would also enjoy it… particularly the many families with young kids in the area. It’s such a novel and surprising use of the space, the kind of eclectic juxtaposition that New York thrives upon.

Thanks for considering it!

I went to the center of Grand Army Plaza for the first (and only) time last September. I was impressed by the fountain. Crossing the roundabout traffic is a challenge. You should install audible pedestiran signals and tactile crosswalks for visually impaired people, as I am sure none would be able to cross independent of a sighted guide. The sidewalks around Grand Army Plaza do bubble and roll nauseatingly, as Alison Rona pointed out, and it would be nice if the walking surface was leveled, as I’m sure it currently poses a problem for people with mobility challenges or strollers.