Three blocks of Montague Street in Brooklyn Heights will be open for relaxing strolls and outdoor lounging every Sunday in July.
The Montague Street BID will launch its Summer Space program, in which area residents and tourists can stroll along a stretch of the popular Brooklyn Heights thoroughfare-turned- pedestrian piazza between Clinton Street and Montague Terrace, every Sunday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Chelsea Mauldin, executive director of the Montague Street BID, stressed that Summer Space is not a street fair featuring outside vendors, but will create a pleasant and relaxing open space in the middle of the street, punctuated by elegant café tables and chairs.
“We hope that Summer Space will delight both our local residents and visitors,” Mauldin said, “allowing them to take in the sunshine, sip an iced coffee, read the paper, and shop our local boutiques — many of which will offer expanded Summer Space selections — then visit the Promenade for terrific views of Olafur Eliasson’s waterfall installations.”
The Summer Space initiative is designed to cater to the majority of Montague Street’s Sunday shoppers, of whom 91 percent walk, bike, or visit the commercial corridor via public transportation, according to a recent survey by the Montague Street BID and Transportation Alternatives.
The three participating blocks will be closed to private vehicles. Vehicular use of Clinton, Henry, Hicks, and Montague Terrace will not be affected, and vehicle flow on Pierrepont Place will be reversed on these Sundays.
Timothy D. King, president of the Montague Street BID Board of Directors, said, “Summer Space will leverage the city’s support for innovative public spaces and increase summer sales for BID merchants along Montague Street, which is the Main Street of Brooklyn Heights. We’re so pleased to have had such remarkable partnership from the New York City Department of Transportation in bringing this program to fruition.”
The City’s Department of Transportation recently announced two other initiatives to reclaim the streets of New York City for pedestrians and improve the quality of life for all New Yorkers — Summer Streets, which will temporarily open a 6.9 mile car-free route from the Brooklyn Bridge to 72nd Street, and the New York City Plaza program, which will transform underused street space into public plazas.
For more, call 718-522-3649 or go to www.montaguebid.com.
