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A “Cooper Trapezoid Coalition:” We propose a coalition to guide ongoing community engagement, seek funding, work with city agencies and oversee maintenance and programming…

 

In consultation with design professionals and local stakeholders, we have proposed a redesign of the space, community-driven programming, and the implementation of an adjacent Open Street. Our proposal is informed by engagement with community institutions and organizations, and interviews with individuals from the surrounding community, proposing designs and programming based on people’s needs and desires for the space. Beyond the timespan of our program, our hope is that our work might contribute to future action. This Implementation Plan seeks to provide a possible blueprint for the local community to make Cooper Triangle a more inclusive, equitable and active space, well-maintained and well-funded, and filled with community driven programming.


A “Cooper Trapezoid Coalition”

Our coalition could be drawn from the following community organizations:

Cooper Square Committee, Cooper Square Land Trust, Community Board 3, 6th Street, Community Center, Cooper Union, Grace Church School, Village Alliance, St. George, Church and School, Ukrainian Museum, JASA Senior Center, Bowery Alliance and would seek collaboration with these city agencies: NYC DOT, DPR, DDC, MTA, DCP

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Maintenance

Currently, the space is cleaned and maintained by the New York City Parks Department and/or the New York City DOT. These agencies must respond to the community’s need for a safe public space by cleaning up hazardous waste such as used needles and broken glass. In the future, we seek to collaborate with Grace Church School and Cooper Union in order to have their students participate in cleanups once the area has been deemed safe, as well as any other community organizations who may be interested.

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Funding

We would seek funding for programming and maintenance of the space from the Village Alliance (the BID surrounding Cooper Trapezoid), the New York Citizen’s Committee, and the Design Trust for Public Space.

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Programming Support

At this time, there is no programming present at Cooper Trapezoid. We propose partnership with institutions such as The Public Theater, St. Marks Yoga, Arte Justice, the Hemispheric Institute, JASA Community Center, Four Arts Block, and 6th Street Community Center. We believe collaboration with these organizations would allow the creation of programming focused on the creation of art, exercise, local performances, and local unity. We want to make the space inviting to all community members; a place where people of all ages can relax and play.

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Public Outreach

In order to inform the public of changes and gather feedback, we have designed a survey to collect opinions of community members under the ‘People’ tab of the website. Further public outreach with organizations like the JASA Community Center, Cooper Union, Grace Church School, St. George Ukrainian Catholic Church, and the Bowery Alliance of Neighbors is necessary to maintain community ties.

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Legislative Outreach

Our legislative outreach would be done through Community Board 3, the NYC City Council, 2nd District, the NYC Parks Department, or the NYC DOT. These organizations would be the ones to approve or deny our proposals, along with providing suggestions for changes and support.

 

Implementation

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