What to Know
- Midtown will get another makeover as a new pedestrian plaza by Grand Central Terminal was approved as part of the East Midtown rezoning plan
- The new pedestrian-friendly zone will be located at Pershing Square East between 41st and 42nd streets
- The pedestrian plaza is part of the Greater East Midtown Rezoning plan greenlighted in 2017
Midtown will get a makeover as a new pedestrian plaza by Grand Central Terminal was approved as part of the East Midtown rezoning initiative.
The 13-member East Midtown Public Realm Improvement Fund Governing Group approved a new pedestrian-friendly zone at Pershing Square East between 41st and 42nd streets. The plan is part of the Greater East Midtown Rezoning initiative greenlighted in 2017.
“The real-time improvement of transit and public space in East Midtown is underway,” Alicia Glen, deputy mayor for housing and economic development, said in a statement. “When riders and commuters at Grand Central get off the trains each morning, they’ll walk into wide open plazas with room to breathe.”
The Governing Group also funded security infrastructure to the planned shared street on East 43rd Street between Lexington and Third avenues.
“East Midtown near Grand Central Station is the heart of Manhattan’s business and commerce, and the rezoning of this neighborhood last year made this vote possible,” New York’s Department of Transportation Commissioner Polly Trottenberg said in a statement.
He also added that the "new and vibrant" spaces will continue to maintain the city's status as an economic powerhouse and "benefit all who work and visit East Midtown."
Local
Both projects will be managed by the New York City Department of Transportation (DOT), helping to ensure the area remains a global capital of commerce. The city committed upfront funds at the time the zoning was adopted last year.
