Get a Seat on your Street!

[Southpaw]

Chelseabench

A while back the Chelsea Improvement Company designed benches for their area in south west Chelsea......




The Chelsea Improvement Company bench is inspired by the constant movement and urban rhythms of New York City. It also relates to the new New York City stainless steel-and-glass bus shelters.

The three seats on each bench have generous proportions to accommodate a wide range of people, and make sure people aren't too close together when sitting, a common complaint about public seating.

The product was approved in early 2010 by the New York City Department of Transportation and the New York Public Design Commission and is now being considered as a possible standard bench for the entire city.
http://www.chelseaimprovement.com/ne...ape_bench.html


The benches were approved as a standard and now

the Chelseabench has becomes the Citybench

CityBench


The CityBench program is an initiative to increase the amount of public seating on New York City’s streets. DOT is installing attractive and durable benches around the city, particularly at bus stops, retail corridors, and in areas with high concentrations of senior citizens. These benches will make streets more comfortable for transit riders and pedestrians, especially for those who are older and disabled. Anyone can request a bench. DOT encourages all New Yorkers to recommend locations for benches.
In order to support walking and transit, priority bench locations include:

• Bus stops without shelters
• Sidewalks near transit facilities (e.g. subway stations)
• Senior centers
• Hospitals and community health centers
• Commercial zones and shopping districts
• Municipal facilities (e.g., public libraries)

If you know of a good location that meets the requirements below, click on this link: http://www.nyc.gov/html/dot/html/sid...itybench.shtml

1000 benches are available, at least 500 of these are already applied for so if your interested in one for a location near where you'd like to sit in Chelsea, the sooner you fill out the form better.

[momjo]

how wonderful- I would imagine a lot of the tourists will use these benches while the local people may not be able to enjoy sitting down for a bit before moving on

[magpie]

I hope the people who use these benches will be nicer than the creep who sat on the bench at the bus stop this morning on 23rd and 8th, legs outstretched so that only two people could sit instead of three, which that bench could have accommodated if he sat like a normal person. He wouldn't even move when I asked him to. He was a senior citizen (as am I) so the young girl who was sitting there got up to give me a seat. There really was enough room for all of us if he had only moved in a bit, but the stupid selfish jerk wouldn't. So much for manners!

[Southpaw]

I was talking to a merchant about the bench request form and they said what they really needed was a bike rack for their customers. As it turns out the city is offering to install bike racks also, here's the link...
http://www.nyc.gov/html/dot/html/bic...bikerack.shtml

On the issue of tourists and "creeps" sitting on benches, first off here's several quote from a survey by the NY Academy of Medicine in their report Towards an Age Friendly NY

“...The lack of benches along public walkways was also mentioned frequently. One focus group participant said, “There used to be a place where we could just rest and sit together.” Another reported, “We need more benches people can grab onto as they walk down the street. You can see people gripping the storefronts for stability.” Nearly two-thirds of respondents to the constituent feedback form indicated that benches for resting are “very important” to the well-being of older New Yorkers.. “(page 40 http://tinyurl.com/6pvy25o )

Also in the Academy's Creating an Age Friendly NY document it said “Older adults described Access-a-Ride as unreliable, often leaving older adults outside waiting for vans for long periods of time without somewhere to sit or the ability to call for assistance. “ (Page 67 http://tinyurl.com/6ntth4z )

...so though there may be a problem of people sitting on benches that you'd rather not have sitting there, there's also the problem of if there are no benches we do a disservice to our elderly neighbors and others in our community who need a place to sit.

[Southpaw]

Chelsea Snags its first Citybench






On Monday, October 1, 2012 a crew of New York City Department of Transportation ironworkers descended upon Chelsea to install Chelsea's first Citybench in front of the Fulton Senior Center at 119 9th Avenue.

In the week since the installation of the Citybench it's apparent it has been a great success, with a constant stream of people sitting at the bench, either to wait for a bus or simply as a place to relax,sit down and schmooze with a friend.

If you'd like to snag a Citybench for a location near where you live go to nyc.gov/citybench.