The city's Department of Transportation recently announced plans to expand its successful Manhattan pilot program to all five boroughs.
A 14-table, 50-seat pilot café, which was installed in place of five parking spaces Lower Manhattan last summer, proved so popular with pedestrians that the city will create 12 additional sites in 2011. DOT found the program also benefited nearby shops, which saw a 14% increase in business when the café was operating, according to Branden Klayko.
The pop-up cafés are part of a broader effort by the city to inspire New Yorkers to rethink the potential of streets, Klayko writes:
"The concept is simple: street space is limited and valuable. To that end, New York has been evaluating whether the highest and best use for street space along narrow sidewalks is storing cars. Like a glorified Park(ing) Day spot made (semi-)permanent and held on high, these pop-up cafés invite pedestrians to imagine their city in new ways."
FULL STORY: New York Expands Pop-Up Cafe Program in 2011
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