According to Washington Square Park watchdog blog, uh, Washington Square Park, the Parks Department has begun installing a four-foot-high fence in the northwest quadrant of the park—currently undergoing a mysterious "redesign" study before the first phase of the park's renovation wraps up in 2009. Washington Square Park (the blog) notes the "decorative spears on top" and adds:
This, as you see, changes the welcoming intimate nature of this Park as demonstrated in the photo on the left which depicts Washington Square Park’s current 3 foot high fence which has worked beautifully for many years.
The existing height is one which everyone likes - except for designer George Vellonakis and Mayor Michael Bloomberg and NYC Parks Commissioner Adrian Benepe because it doesn’t work with their vision of pacifying this magnificent public space into a pass-through garden.
And that's not the only design critique! The final zinger: "Have you seen the lamps they’ve begun installing? Tragic."
· A Tale of Two Fences and No One Minding the Store at Washington Sq Park [WSP]
· Washington Square Park coverage [Curbed]For more stories from Curbed, go to curbed.com.
