Jane's Walk

Each year, in the spirit of the great urban activist Jane Jacobs, MAS hosts 100+ free guided walks that celebrate New York City's diverse neighborhoods. Part of an international movement, Jane's Walk NYC gets thousands of New Yorkers out to our streets, to engage with the 8.5 million stories in our city.

President of the Times Square Alliance Tim Tompkins invited us to imagine the future of the Crossroads of the World. Times Square is at a critical point, as a radical idea that was celebrated and replicated worldwide - creating a new category of public space that values pedestrians more than automobiles - is about to be tested with the preliminary opening of curbless plazas designed by the European firm Snøhetta. As Jane Jacobs wrote, a public space in and of itself is not enough, but what happens in it and on it defines whether it is an asset or liability. How do we make sure Times Square represents the best of New York through design, creativity, culture and technology - rather than the rabid hustler haven it is rapidly becoming? Fortune cookie surprise for all participants featuring predictions about Times Square's future!

Presented in partnership with Municipal Art Society (MAS)