TEAM: SABINA SETHI UNNI, MIA WINTHER TAMAKI
We created a priority metric to identify which of DOT’s existing open streets are among the most in need of funding/resourcing (similar to “priority A” designations). The Department of Transportation (DOT)’s Open Streets program is a form of tactical urbanism where previously car-dedicated streets are repurposed into pedestrian only spaces. However, it is widely criticized for reproducing spatial inequities, rather than resolving them. We argue that one way to address these inequities is resourcing existing open streets, with funding, programmatic support, full-time staffers like community organizers, infrastructure, and more. Our research created a metric (also known as a multi-criteria decision analysis) to determine which open streets the DOT should prioritize resourcing, through analyzing land use, street safety, and public infrastructure. Our analysis suggests prioritizing three streets: (1) Murray Hill’s Barton Avenue (due to proximity to vision zero traffic intersections + potential to expand into the LIRR plaza nearby), (2) East Harlem’s East 119th Street (due to proximity to PS 112 and a GreenThumb community garden), and (3) Mott Haven’s Alexander Avenue (due to proximity to four NYCHA complexes). Finally, as a proponent of critical feminist methodology and participatory GIS, our project also outlines how to reproduce this same research to incorporate other priorities.