Jane’s Walk NYC 2020 (from Home!)

Jane’s Walk NYC (from Home) Day 1

To kick-off Jane’s Walk NYC (from Home), we partnered with Subway Therapy and Art Plus People on Instagram! While NYC is on “PAUSE” there is so much that we miss, so all week Subway Therapy asked Jane’s Walk participants to share their favorite places in NYC.

More than 441 people sent in their favorite spots through Instagram stories on @subwaytherapy and MAS’s email and social platforms. Scroll through above to see the collage in progress (200+ more coming soon!)

About Subway Therapy

Subway Therapy is an immersive and interactive work aiming to help people smile, laugh, and feel less stress. It’s about peaceful expression and being part of a vibrant and diverse community. For some it’s an opportunity to connect, and have a conversation. For others it’s a way to listen and empathize. It can be many things, for many different people. Subway Therapy began with only a table and two chairs and evolved after the election in 2016 when sticky notes were introduced to the project that reflected the thoughts of over 50,000 individuals from all over the world.

In 2017, Subway Therapy received the Brendan Gill Prize presented annually by MAS to a piece of work that best captures the spirit and energy of New York City.

Jane’s Walk NYC (from Home) Day 2

Jane Jacobs believed in the importance of place and the power of individuals to influence their city. In this special Jane’s Walk edition of #TakeActionTuesday, we asked you to nominate an essential place to City Lore’s Census of Places that Matter, an encyclopedia and guide book of places across the five boroughs that New Yorkers love!

At this moment, the need to understand and protect our beloved gathering and public spaces takes on added importance and meaning. Our Jane’s Walk community nominated more than forty “essential” New York City sites—the places we miss, the ones that are threatened or inaccessible, and those we currently rely upon during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Check out the nominations on the Census of Places that Matter >

There is still time to add your nomination! Visit placematters.net/nominate

Jane’s Walk NYC (from Home) Day 3

While we all do our part to stay home, we gave some thought to what frames each of our views of NYC. For Day 3 of Jane’s Walk NYC (from Home), we invited participants to share a photo of the view from their window with us on social media using #JanesWalkNYC or by emailing it to MAS.

From parks and churches to baseball stadiums and even a Blue Angel air show, click through above to see a selection of the NYC views people shared on Day 3.

Jane’s Walk NYC (from Home) Day 4

For Day 4 of Jane’s Walk NYC (from Home), we celebrated the end of National Poetry Month and our love for this city by asking Jane’s Walk participants to share a poem on social media. Some sent odes, others sonnets or even haikus.

The gallery above includes a few of our favorite poems submitted on Day 4.

Jane’s Walk NYC (from Home) Day 5

We kicked off Jane’s Walk weekend with a movie night with Jane! Joining together with fellow Jane’s Walk cities Montreal, Calgary, Toronto, and Seattle, we screened Citizen Jane: Battle for the City, available on Hulu.

Everyone was invited to take part in a live discussion of the film on Twitter and Instagram using the hashtags #MASMovieNight and #JanesWalkNYC. Jane’s legacy has inspired deeper conversations about our city and encouraged human connection (even if we are all under quarantine).

Jane’s Walk NYC (from Home) Day 6

This Jane’s Walk NYC (from Home) weekend, our friends at Urban Archive are hosted a collection of virtual Jane’s Walk stories that explore historic photos of NYC, curated by MAS staff and many of our organizational partners. Visit janeswalknyc.mas.org to check them out!

Wondering where to start? Here are a few ideas:

• Storefront: A Century of Small Businesses by MAS
• PRIDE: Sites that shaped LGBTQ+ history before and after Stonewall by Museum of the City of New York
• Rebuilding the Bronx: 1986-1995 by NYC Department of Housing Preservation & Development
• Modernism in Queens by Queens Modern
• A Stroll Through Upper Manhattan by the New York Transit Museum

Jane’s Walk NYC (from Home) Day 7

On the final day of Jane’s Walk, MAS staff took to social media to explore our advocacy campaigns using Google Street View!

ICYMI, here they are:

Fight for Light: Origins Story

Fight for Light: Exploring the Role of Sunlight in Urban Environments

 

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Swipe through to explore the issue of sunlight availability through the lens of Fight for Light, our joint campaign with New Yorkers for Parks. Together, we’re seeking stronger protections for the sunlight and open space that are essential to an equitable city and the health and happiness of New Yorkers. #JanesWalkNYC #JanesWalkGlobal #FightforLight

A post shared by The Municipal Art Society (@mas_nyc) on May 3, 2020 at 9:02am PDT

200 Amsterdam: A Visual History of a Gerrymandered Zoning Lot

 

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Want to learn more about 200 Amsterdam? Take a virtual Jane’s Walk to explore the superblock and the gerrymandered zoning lot. We fought to uphold the Zoning Resolution and have the zoning lot declared illegal, and in February, the Court agreed. (Image Sources: ZoLa, the Museum of the City of New York via Urban Archive, Google Street View, The New York Times) #JanesWalkNYC #JanesWalkGlobal #200Amsterdam

A post shared by The Municipal Art Society (@mas_nyc) on May 3, 2020 at 12:01pm PDT

A Tale of Two Rezonings: Long Island City

 

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MAS’s 2018 report “The Tale of Two Rezonings, Taking a Harder Look at CEQR” explored how the commercial office development expected under the rezonings of Long Island City (2001) and Downtown Brooklyn (2004) didn’t quite go as planned. Instead the new central business districts the city envisioned, both neighborhoods became two of the fastest growing high-end, high-rise residential areas in the country. Residential development in the LIC rezoning area exceeded estimations by over 3.4 million square feet. (Part 1) #JanesWalkNYC #JanesWalkGlobal #longislandcity #rezoning #queens

A post shared by The Municipal Art Society (@mas_nyc) on May 3, 2020 at 10:00am PDT

A Tale of Two Rezonings: Downtown Brooklyn

 

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Part 2: In Downtown Brooklyn, residential predictions were off by 2.3 million square feet. The unplanned development had major consequences on area infrastructure, schools, open space, and socioeconomic conditions that remain today. Our Downtown Brooklyn-Long Island City Jane’s Walk takes you to several locations in the rezoned neighborhoods to highlight the contrast between what was planned and what was built. #JanesWalkNYC #JanesWalkGlobal #brooklyn #downtownbrooklyn #rezoning

A post shared by The Municipal Art Society (@mas_nyc) on May 3, 2020 at 11:00am PDT

What is Jane’s Walk?

This annual event held the first weekend in May is traditionally celebrated as a global festival of free, volunteer-led walking tours inspired by urban activist Jane Jacobs. During Jane’s Walk weekend, the simple act of exploring the city is enhanced with personal observations, local history, and civic engagement. Jane’s Walk encourages people to share stories about their neighborhoods, discover unseen aspects of their communities, and connect with visitors and neighbors alike.

MAS is proud to be the local organizer of Jane’s Walk NYC, the biggest Jane’s Walk festival anywhere in the world. What started with a handful of walks in 2011 has since grown into a three-day celebration featuring hundreds of walks across the five boroughs.

Who was JANE JACOBS?

Jane Jacobs was a famous urban activist and writer who lived from 1916-2006. She is best known for galvanizing New Yorkers to stop Robert Moses’ plans for an expressway through the West Village. She believed in the power of individuals to influence their city. Today, her principles are represented in participatory planning approaches that have been embraced in communities around the world. Click here for an illustrated guide of Jane Jacobs’ major ideas.

Want to Learn More?

Walk themes and formats run the gamut, from history of activism in the South Bronx to an exploration of local cuisine in Flushing, Queens. Each walk provides a unique snapshot of New York City and the opportunity to celebrate its vibrant past, present, and future.

You can view the full roster of 2019 and 2018 NYC Jane’s Walks at the links below, demonstrating the diversity of topics and locations.
Jane’s Walk NYC 2019
Jane’s Walk NYC 2018

Resources

• Jane’s Walk Reading List
• Jane’s Walk FAQ
• Jane’s Walk Examples
• Jane’s Walk Training Guide

Questions?

The Jane’s Walk NYC team is here to help. Contact us at janeswalknyc@mas.org.