Atlantic Avenue BID executive director Josef Szende accepts a NYC SBS BID Challenge award
Better late than never: We are so proud! Atlantic Avenue Business Improvement District executive director Josef Szende decided late last summer that he wanted to go for the Department of Small Business Services BID Challenge Grant, where up to $75,000 would be awarded to an innovative, replicable BID project in New York City. Though the timeline was tight, we convened Planning Corps for some strategy and brainstorming sessions, weighed the ideas, and came up with FUNderpass, a way of improving the elevated segment of the BQE that remains a stubborn barrier to the flow of pedestrians from Brooklyn Bridge Park to Atlantic Avenue.
The competition materials centered on this visionary image of what the underpass could be. Eric Galipo made it, and integrated all the wonderful ideas from the planners. We also created presentation slides, developed the project timeline, and other supporting materials for the submission. As a result, Atlantic Avenue BID won the full possible amount, $75,000! The final project team is still being developed, so details to come about the project’s execution. We can’t wait to see it in completion and walk down to the park from Atlantic Avenue.
FUNderpass rendering by Eric Galipo
Here’s some press on the project:
Atlantic Cities
Inhabit
Brooklyn Heights Blog
Curbed
Brooklyn Paper
ArchPaper
DNAInfo
NY Daily News
