HBO Bryant Park Chess Challenge

To celebrate the new film Bobby Fischer Against the World, HBO Documentary teamed up with the Marshall Chess Club to host a Chess Challenge in the park last week. Visitors to the park were invited to test their mettle against some of the nation's best grandmasters, along with some of the youngest chess master players.

I bet you've never played a game of chess this fast. Watch these pros, of all ages, in action at the park.




We're hoping the Chess Challenge will become an annual event. That means you've got an entire year to brush up on your skills at the Chess Area in the park. Come alone or with a partner. Games can be arranged any weekday by an expert from the Marshall Chess Club.


Bryant Park Chess & Backgammon
Monday – Friday
11:00am – 7:00pm
Weather permitting

More Than Just Pigeons

Each migratory season, NYC Audubon hosts birding tours in the park. Despite the park's relative size, our spring tours proved once again that Bryant Park holds its own among New York City's birding spots. This year boasted record-breaking tour attendance, in addition to American Woodcock and Marsh Wren sightings. Thursday night, 26 people joined the walk through construction projects, yoga class setup, and other after-work activity. There will be one final tour this season, so be sure to attend this Thursday. 

Birding Tours of Bryant Park
Thursdays, 5:00pm – 6:00pm
April 11 – June 2
Meet at the corner of 42nd Street & 6th Avenue

While you wait for fall migration, you can Meet the Birds each Tuesday at Le Carrousel. Birds of a tropical persuasion visit the park from Arcadia Bird Sanctuary each week. You can hold the birds, take pictures, or chat with Arcadia Director Terri Jones.

Meet the Birds
Tuesdays, 11:30am – 2:00pm
May 3 – September 27
Le Carrousel

Southwest Porch Memorial Day Cookouts

Staying in the city this weekend? Kick back with a cookout at The Southwest Porch. 

'wichcraft recently introduced Sunday Cookouts celebrating the classic taste of summer. In honor of the holiday weekend, you'll have chances on both Sunday and Monday to try the new offerings. Stop by anytime between 12pm and 7pm for food off the grill. Take your pick of choices shown below, prop your feet up on a stool, and soak in the summer weather, which has finally decided to join us in New York City.

 

Southwest Porch will host cookouts, live music performances and game nights each week this summer.

Film Festival Contest Winners

Congratulations to our winners Ceuphone, Claudia, and Alpha Chick! Please email to claim your prize  bpweb(at)urbanmgt(dot)com. Each winner will receive a pair of reserved seats at the movie of your choice in the park, and a bag of HBO goodies. Since there are three different prize packages from HBO, preference will be given in the order winners were chosen. Ceuphone, you've got first dibs!

 
Thank you to all who entered the Film Festival Kickoff Contest. More than 227 people participated in the contest, and many of you took the time to follow us on Twitter and Facebook for extra entries. Of course we love to hear your enthusiasm for our Film Festival lineup choices, but it's even better to read your stories and personal connections to the park. 


Winners were selected using random.org.

Lawn Update: The Wait is Over!

The lawn finally opened today after almost three months of preparation. The weather conditions could not have been better for our Opening Day. No wolf sightings this year, but people were able to spread out, relax, and even juggle on the fresh green grass.




We owe a big thank you to all park visitors who have tolerated the construction, accommodated pathway closures, and patiently awaited the lawn opening. Moving forward, the new irrigation system should improve the lawn's drainage and allow for more lawn open days throughout the summer. Hopefully, it was worth the wait.


Check out these posts for past updates on the entire lawn installation process:

• 3/1/2011  Farewell Citi Pond
• 3/4/2011  Pond Load Out Progress
• 3/9/2011  Pond Load Out Complete 
• 3/16/2011  Lawn Improvements in Progress 
• 3/22/2011  Bryant Park's Spring Flowers
• 4/1/2011  Rainy Day Lawn Update  
• 4/12/2011  When Will the Lawn Be Open?
• 4/18/2011  Southwest Porch Getting a Facelift
• 4/22/2011  Layers of the Lawn 
• 4/29/2011  Incoming from New Jersey
• 5/5/2011    Lawn Update: Finishing Touches 

From the Archives: New York Public Library Turns 100!

In this post, BPC's archivist, Anne Kumer, shares some history. It also appears on NYC Circa, a history blog about New York City and its public spaces.

To commemorate the 100th birthday of the New York Public Library, and its central branch, the Stephen A. Schwarzman building, lets take a look back at the library through the years.

Before the Beaux-Arts building designed by architecture firm Carrère and Hastings was built, the two-block section of Fifth Avenue between 40th and 42nd Streets was home to the Croton Reservoir. The reservoir was torn down in 1899 to make way for the library. To read more about the demolition of the reservoir, and subsequent building of the library, click here.

Construction began in 1902, and was no small feat. When completed, the library was the largest marble structure in the country up to that time. This photo, from the NYPL's digital photo collection on the central building, shows exterior marble underway in 1905.

Photo: NYPL digital collection

The library opened to the public on May 23, 1911 with an elaborate ceremony presided over by 27th President of the United States William Howard Taft. Those flags are massive.

Photo: LOC digital collection

In 1919 the building served as a backdrop for a WWI victory parade along Fifth Avenue. Every stationary part of the building and street appears covered in shields, spears, and eagles. Shields and crossed spears often signify the defense of freedom, and eagles have long been associated with power and the U.S. I'm guessing that's their significance as decorations. If anyone knows otherwise, please email me.

Postcard:Pisark's cards

In the mid-1930s the NYPL established an outdoor reading room and called it the Bryant Park Library at Central Building. Much like our current reading room, patrons could enjoy books, magazines and newspapers outside in the park. The 1930s reading room was located on the Upper Terrace, just behind the main library building, and staff librarians were on hand to assist patrons.

Photo: BP photo collection

The library gets a scrub in 1945, seen here from 42nd Street looking east toward 40th Street. The World's Tower building on 40th Street looks huge in comparison to surrounding structures; the Empire State building is off to the right, just behind the Engineer's Club building (recently designated a landmark by the Landmarks Preservation Commission).

Photo: MCNY digital collection

Librarians and archivists: making research easier for 100 years and counting.

Photo: NYPL digital collection

The Bryant Park lawn (no chairs!) and rear facade of the library, May 1984.

Photo: BP photo collection

In 1988 the NYPL put two floors of additional library stacks beneath Bryant Park's lawn, seen here in a rendering by Hanna Olin, the design firm responsible for BP's redesign.

Photo: BP photo collection

Around this time last year, Improv Everywhere paid a visit to the the reading room, and re-enacted (sort of) the opening scene from Ghostbusters.

The NYPL has been hosting a number of events in celebration of the centennial, most over this past weekend. The library also has a special exhibit called "Celebrating 100 Years" on view until December 31, 2011. Here's a NY Times review.

Bryant Park Blog Q&A with Matthew Gallaway

Matthew Gallaway, author of The Metropolis Case, will lead tomorrow's Word for Word Book Club, along with Seth Colter Walls. The first discussion of the season will focus on David Foster Wallace's The Pale King. Before he moderates in the Reading Room on Tuesday, we get some behind-the-scenes info on Mr. Gallaway. He loves to garden!

Where do you do your best writing? In airports.

Did you have an “a-ha!” moment that made you want to be a writer? When I read Against The Grain, by JK Huysmans.

Which author do you wish had been your 7th grade English teacher? Oscar Wilde.

What is your secret talent?  I’m very good at growing ferns.

What is your favorite book?  In Search of Lost Time, by Marcel Proust.

Who reads your first draft?  My partner Stephen.

Do you read your books after they’ve been published? No.

What book are you currently reading? All Aunt Hagar’s Children, by Edward P. Jones

What word or punctuation mark are you most guilty of overusing?  The em-dash.

If you weren’t a writer, what would you be?  A gardener.


There are six more Book Clubs scheduled for the summer, so be sure to stop by the Reading Room early for a free copy of the book club selections, courtesy of Oxford University Press. For more information on Matthew and his new book, head over to the Oxford Comment Podcast.

Word for Word Book Club
Tuesdays , 12:30pm – 1:45pm
May 24, June 14, June 28, July 12, July 26, August 9, August 23
Reading Room

Last Chance to Enter Film Festival Kick Off Contest

Want to win reserved seats at the movie of your choice this summer in the park? And one of three sets of DVDs and swag from HBO's hit shows Entourage, Curb Your Enthusiasm, and True Blood? (Feast your eyes on the prize packages below...reserved seats not pictured).

Enter our Film Festival kick off contest by 11:59pm on Monday, May 23 for your chance to win. Here's a refresher on the rules:

To enter, leave a comment on our kick off contest post and tell us which film you’re most excited to see at the park this summer. For extra entries do one or both of the following and tell us about it in your comment:

- Like us on Facebook at Facebook.com/BryantParkNYC
- Follow us on Twitter @BryantParkNYC (tweet @ us with #BPFilmFest and we'll follow you back!)

You'll get an extra entry per item...we believe in the honor code.

Please note that entries left on Facebook or Twitter will not be counted. You must leave your comment on the Film Festival contest post on the Bryant Park Blog.

Good luck!

Bryant Park Blog Q & A with Charlaine Harris

Word for Word Author begins next week with an appearance by Charlaine Harris, #1 New York Times bestselling author of the popular Sookie Stackhouse books. You may also recognize Harris' writing as the inspiration for HBO's hit TV series True Blood.

Before welcoming Harris to the Bryant Park Reading Room next Wednesday, we wanted to give you a sneak peek at the inspiration for her newest Sookie book, Dead Reckoning, her writing process, current reads, secret talent, and more...
 
What was your inspiration for this book?
It’s the eleventh book in the series, so inspiration wasn’t hard to come by.

Where do you do your best writing?
I have an office a few yards from my house, and it’s my sanctum.

Did you have an “a-ha!” moment that made you want to be a writer?
I always felt that “Writer” was my secret identity, from the moment I learned to read.

Which author do you wish had been your 7th grade English teacher?
Shirley Jackson.

What is your secret talent?
I can cook.

What is your favorite book?
Too many to pick just one.

Who reads your first draft?
My friends Toni L.P. Kelner and Dana Cameron.

Do you read your books after they’ve been published?
Yes, if I need to refresh my memory before I start the next one.

Do you prefer writing on a computer or longhand?
I prefer writing on a computer because it’s easier to correct mistakes and to move blocks of text around.

What book are you currently reading? (Old school or e-Reader?)
I just finished Mira Grant’s FEED on an e-reader while I was on tour.  Now that I’m home, I’ll be reading Laurell K. Hamilton’s HIT LIST.

What word or punctuation mark are you most guilty of overusing?
I  . . . have a long love affair with ellipses.

If you weren’t a writer, what would you be?
A librarian.


Word for Word Author
Wednesdays, 12:30pm – 1:45pm
May 25 – August 24
Reading Room

The Bryant Park Power Project

If you visit the park and follow the blog, you're likely aware of the many projects our Capital Department has already completed this year to improve aspects of the park like the lawn and the Southwest Porch. Well, another ambitious project is now underway in the park.

What:  The creation of an underground electrical facility to provide power for all the park's activities and events. Yes, even – and especially – the big ones like The Pond and Holiday Shops at Bryant Park, that have always required noisy and unsightly portable generators stationed next to the park for the duration of their season. Work on the project will take place this summer in the park so we can go generator-free for the 2011-2012 season of the Pond and Shops.

Once the facility is constructed, the project site will be restored to its original condition and you won't even know you're lunching on top of the park's new and sophisticated electrical hub.

Where:  Mid-block on the 40th Street side of the park. The Bryant Park Capital crew has started installing a construction fence that changes public access on the south side of the park. Work on the project will take place inside the fenced off area, with materials and equipment loaded in periodically from 40th Street. As the project develops, access to the sidewalk and parking lane on the north side of 40th Street will change. We'll keep you updated.

Le Carrousel will still be open for regular business during the construction period. Our Design Department is planning to turn the boring, brown fence into a Bryant Park work of art...we look forward to seeing what they come up with!

Project view from the Southwest Porch: May 18, 2011

Project view from 40th Street, looking north: May 18, 2011

Project view from 40th Street, looking east: May 18, 2011

A Summer of Music in the Park

Despite the rainy weather, we managed to kick off two of our lunchtime music programs today. The forecast looks iffy for the rest of the week, but luckily there's a whole summer ahead to enjoy free music in the park.

Our lunchtime Piano in Bryant Park series turns eight this year and opens with a week-long appearance by ragtime expert and stride pianist, Terry Waldo. Other favorites returning this season are pianists Junior Mance, Frank Owens, Todd Robbins, Victor Lin, and Ayako Shirasaki.

Piano in Bryant Park
Weekdays, 12:30pm – 2:30pm
May 16 – October 14
Upper Terrace


Enjoy the sounds of Paris just across the park, as we introduce a second season of accordionists playing in the French-style. Catch Rachelle Garniez this week and keep your ears open for performances by the talented Benjamin Ickies, John Gee, Emilio Magnotta, and more throughout the summer.

Bryant Park Accordion
Weekdays, 12:30pm – 2:30pm
May 16 – September 30
West side of the park


That's the May music line-up, but you can also look forward to Bryant Park After Work on Wednesday evenings beginning June 1. The series features talented New York area jazz musicians and singer-songwriters performing at 6pm on the park's Fountain Terrace...perfectly timed to start the end of your day! Check out the full line-up of musicians on bryantpark.org.

Bryant Park After Work
Wednesdays, 6:00pm – 7:00pm
June 1 – August 31
Fountain Terrace

* For the latest information on weather-related program cancellations, check out "Today in the Park" on the bryantpark.org homepage, or follow us on Twitter @BryantParkNYC

Breakfast Briefings at the Southwest Porch

Remember those new events we mentioned in the pipeline for the Porch? Well, we're very excited to present a new summer series in partnership with Fast Company and Southwest Airlines....

Breakfast Briefings at the Southwest Porch

The monthly series will bring you exclusive access to senior executives of local businesses, including Bryant Park neighbors HBO and Elie Tahari. Enjoy breakfast and coffee from 'wichcraft and learn first-hand about challenges and opportunities in a wide range of industries from fashion to professional sports, new media, and more.

In the first event of the series on Tuesday, May 24, Senior Vice President for HBO's Digital Platforms, Alison Moore, will share her background and experience overseeing the strategy, development, and operations of HBO's digital products including HBO/MAX On Demand, HBO/MAX GO, and HBO.com, as well as the company's HD, 3D, and ITV initiatives.

Joining Moore will be moderator and FastCompany.com Contributing Writer, David Zax. In addition to covering the media business and technology for FastCompany.com, Zax has contributed to publications like The Wall Street Journal, Wired, and Slate. Check out some of his pieces here, including a recent article on HBO GO.

The Breakfast Briefings are free, but registration is required. Click here to register for Tuesday's event and check out the full series schedule at bryantpark.org.

No Smoking in NYC Parks as of May 23, 2011

Earlier this year, Mayor Bloomberg signed a law to prohibit smoking in all of NYC's public parks, including Bryant Park.

The new law, which will help limit exposure to second hand smoke, improve air quality, and reduce litter, goes into effect on Monday, May 23, 2011.

To observe the new law, please extinguish cigarettes and cigars in receptacles outside the park before entering.

For more information about smoke free parks and beaches, visit nycgovparks.org. You can also read a letter from NYC Parks Commissioner Adrian Benepe on the new law here. If you'd like to quit smoking, call 311, 866-NYQUITS, or visit nysmokefree.com for help.

2011 Summer Film Festival & Kick Off Contest! (Updated)

UPDATE:  This post was originally published on Thursday, May 12, and disappeared due to an issue with Blogger that affected content we posted at the end of last week. Because of the glitch, we are extending the Film Festival contest deadline to Monday, May 23. 

Please note, if you left a comment on this blog post last Thursday, you do not need to re-enter the contest. We have a record of your entries. If you didn't have a chance to enter before the Blogger outage, please review the rules and enter the contest below. Good luck!


Without further ado, the line-up for the 2011 HBO Bryant Park Summer Film Festival, presented by Bank of America...

June 20  ONE FLEW OVER THE CUCKOO'S NEST
Jack Nicholson leads a character-filled revolt against the evil Nurse Ratched (Louise Fletcher) at a mental facility. Directed with a sly smile by Milos Forman and based on the Ken Kesey novel, it is only the second film to win the top five Oscars. (1975, Saul Zaentz Co.)

June 27  THE 39 STEPS
Hitchcock’s early British masterpiece thriller stars Robert Donat as the resourceful man wrongfully suspected of a murder. While on the run, he gets involved with spies, a beautiful woman, and a music hall performer named Mr. Memory. Special thanks to the British Academy of Film and Television Arts [BAFTA New York]. (1935, MGM)

July 4  EASY RIDER
The iconic road trip film features Peter Fonda and Dennis Hopper as bikers traveling from LA to New Orleans in search of America, a great rock soundtrack, an unforgettable cast of characters, and Laszlo Kovacs’ perfect cinematography on location. (1969, Sony/Columbia)

July 11  GENTLEMEN PREFER BLONDES
Bombshell Marilyn Monroe is gold digging (Diamonds Are a Girl’s Best Friend) and gorgeous Jane Russell is looking for love (Anyone Here For Love?) on a ship to Paris in Howard Hawks’ sparkling, witty, and colorful musical comedy. (1953, Fox)

July 18  IN THE HEAT OF THE NIGHT
Sidney Poitier and Rod Steiger are magnificent as a Philadelphia detective and a bigoted sheriff who work together to solve a complex murder in Mississippi. Earning the Oscar for Best Picture, the film was directed by Norman Jewison and features music by Quincy Jones and Ray Charles. (1967, MGM)

July 25  THE LADY EVE
Barbara Stanwyck is in peak form as a con artist who sets her sights on a clueless brewery heir, played hilariously by Henry Fonda. With sophisticated dialogue, masterful direction by Preston Sturges, and an outstanding supporting cast, this is one of the greatest comedies on film. (1941, Universal)  

August 1  COOL HAND LUKE
Paul Newman plays Luke, who is serving time on a chain gang and refuses to buckle under authority. George Kennedy provides Oscar-winning support, and Strother Martin is the sadistic guard who utters the immortal line “What we’ve got here…is a failure to communicate.” (1967, Warner) 

August 8  AIRPLANE!
From the team who created The Naked Gun, this fast moving crazy comedy features Leslie (“Don’t call me Shirley”) Nielsen, Robert Stack, and Robert Hays who play it straight while the audience can’t stop laughing. Cameos by Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Ethel Merman, and Barbara Billingsley. (1980, Paramount) 

August 15  HIGH SIERRA
Humphrey Bogart became a star in this momentous gangster movie, which started the world’s obsession with film noir.  Bogie is a doomed ex-con killer on the lam with a heart of gold and Ida Lupino is his moll. Deftly directed by Raoul Walsh and masterly co-written by John Huston. (1941, Warner)

August 22  DIRTY HARRY
Clint Eastwood is San Francisco Police Inspector Harry Callahan, who has little regard for rules but always gets results. On the hunt for a maniacal serial sniper, he uses his trademark intimidation and .44 Magnum handgun. Feeling lucky? (1971, Warner) 



Film Festival Kick Off Contest

Now that you’ve checked out the line-up, enter to win one of three Film Festival prize packages featuring

• Pair of reserved seats at the movie of your choice in the park, and

• Tote bag of HBO-themed swag including one of the following DVD sets:

• Curb Your Enthusiasm: Seasons 1 – 7

• Entourage: Seasons 1 – 6

• True Blood: Seasons 1 & 2

To enter, leave a comment here and tell us which film you’re most excited to see at the park this summer. For extra entries do one or both of the following and tell us about it in your comment below:

- Like us on Facebook at Facebook.com/BryantParkNYC
- Follow us on Twitter @BryantParkNYC (tweet @ us with #BPFilmFest and we'll follow you back!)

You'll get an extra entry per item. We believe in the honor code!

The contest will close at 11:59pm on Monday, May 23 and three winners will be announced shortly after.

See you at the movies!

Unpack, Stamp, Distribute. Repeat 790 Times.

Bryant Park furniture delivery: May 9, 2011

Every spring we replenish our trusty fleet of bistro chairs and tables with brand new pieces from Fermob, an outdoor furniture company based in France. It's typically all hands on deck for the Bryant Park sanitation and hospitality teams when the shipping container arrives and mountains of boxes need to be staged and unpacked in the park.

This year, we were happy to have the help of 16 volunteers from Bank of America, our neighbor at the northwest corner of the park and presenting sponsor of the HBO Bryant Park Summer Film Festival. Although their usual daily duties involve industrial investment banking, the volunteers reported to the park on Monday morning and helped our team unpack and distribute the new furniture in record time.

Surrounded by a mountain of chair boxes: May 9, 2011

A little known Bryant Park furniture fact: after being unpacked, each chair is hand-stamped by our staff with the letters "BPC". 

Signature chair receives the BPC stamp

After getting stamped, the chairs are distributed across the six acres of the park. We definitely appreciated the volunteers help with the legwork...we hope they appreciated the workout!

Cheerfully moving chairs

Monday's delivery included 790 chairs and 200 tables to supplement the thousands already in the park, plus 12 kids chairs and 3 tables for the Children's Reading Room and carousel area. With the dedicated help, all our signature chairs were unpacked within three hours and the entire job was complete before the end of the day.

Thanks Bank of America!

Monday Miscellany

Two exciting tidbits of Bryant Park news to start your week off right:

• We're celebrating the official re-opening of the Southwest Porch today with 'wichcraft and Southwest Airlines. This season the Porch has a new look, new menu, and will feature weekly events like cookouts and game nights. Stop by all day or make a date for happy hour to celebrate the season kick off and sample delicious sips 'n snacks by 'wichcraft. 

• The 2011 line up for the HBO Bryant Park Summer Film Festival will be announced right here on the blog this Thursday, May 12, along with the chance to win a prize package that includes reserved seats at the film of your choice. If you can't handle the anticipation, check out our Twitter and Facebook over the next few days for hints on which classic films made the line up this year.

From the Archives: Public Art Transforms a Struggling Park

In this post, BPC's archivist, Anne Kumer, shares some history on public art pieces in the park. This is the first of several posts devoted to the subject. It also appears on NYC Circa, a history blog about New York City and its public spaces.

Over the past year, Bryant Park has been the location of a few notable public art exhibits: Paul Ramirez Jonas' Key to the City, Kate Gilmore's Walk the Walk, and most recently, "Battle of the Brush." It's a long-standing tradition in the park that many present-day park visitors may not be aware of. In 1980, the Bryant Park Restoration Corporation, Public Art Fund, and the NYC Department of Parks and Recreation collaborated to create an Artist-in-Residence program. The Artist-in-Residence program was one of several things park management did to infuse Bryant Park, then suffering from criminal activity and lack of use, with positive activity. The resulting spectacle increased pedestrian traffic and human presence in the park, and discouraged negative activity, such as drug use, and vandalism.

Artists assembled their pieces on-site, where visitors were able to watch, ask questions, and in some cases, lend a hand with the installations. Exploring the theme of metamorphosis, visual conceptual artist Mel Chin, constructed his piece "MYRRHA P.I.A. (Post Industrial Age)" in the park, during the summer and fall of 1984.

Chin used  nineteenth century fabrication techniques to create a three-dimensional figurative sculpture of a female set on a wood pedestal, and placed in the center of the lawn.

The statue's two outer "skin" layers made of perforated steel, encased a skeleton made of polystyrene.

The piece was 30 feet tall, 6 feet deep, and 16 feet wide. "MYRRHA P.I.A." was completed, and unveiled on January 17,1985. It stood in the park until May 30 of that same year. 

In addition to Industrial Age fabrication techniques, Chin drew from  a nineteenth century engraving by French illustrator Gustav Doré. Chin's Myrrha is heavily based on Doré's engraving of Dante's portrayal of Myrrha in Divine Comedy. In Greek mythology, Myrrha disguised herself as someone else, tricked her father into an incestuous affair, as punishment was transformed into a tree, and, still as a tree, bore a son, Adonis. Doré's engraving shows Virgil leading Dante on a tour of the underworld, through the Eighth circle of hell, where Myrrha and other "falsifiers of others' persons" reside. For more on Dante, visit Danteworlds, an "integrated multimedia journey" through Dante's Divine Comedy.

Mel Chin continues to work and exhibit internationally.To see more of his work, click here, here, and here.

To learn more about Public Art projects in and around the city, visit the Public Art Fund, MAS NYC, and Creative Time. For more information of current public art exhibitions in New York City parks, click here.

Lawn Update: Finishing Touches

If you've ever wondered how a lawn can be "installed" take a look at this video, hot off the digital camera.



Because we used the eastern section of the lawn area to stage soil and equipment for the whole project, it took a little longer to prepare for sod installation. The majority of the sod was installed over the weekend, but before the end of today our green carpet will be complete.

Keep your fingers crossed for the perfect combination of rain and sun to help the sod root fast and strong over the next few weeks. Opening day will be here before we know it!


Check out these posts for past updates on the lawn installation and other capital projects happening in the park:

• 3/1/2011  Farewell Citi Pond
• 3/4/2011  Pond Load Out Progress
• 3/9/2011  Pond Load Out Complete 
• 3/16/2011  Lawn Improvements in Progress 
• 3/22/2011  Bryant Park's Spring Flowers
• 4/1/2011  Rainy Day Lawn Update  
• 4/12/2011  When Will the Lawn Be Open?
• 4/18/2011  Southwest Porch Getting a Facelift
• 4/22/2011  Layers of the Lawn 
• 4/29/2011  Incoming from New Jersey

Thursday Evening Yoga & A Real Downward Dog

Bryant Park yogis take note, Thursday evening yoga classes will take place on the Upper Terrace until the lawn is ready for use. 

69 people came to enjoy the season's first yoga class yesterday morning, including one little guy who did some of the best downward dogs I've ever seen!

Bryant Park Yoga
Tuesdays, 10:00am – 11:00am, Upper Terrace
Thursdays, 6:00pm – 7:00pm, Upper Terrace (until further notice)
May 3 – September 29

Southwest Porch is Open!

Space in the park has been tight on sunny days like this, so I'm happy to report the Southwest Porch has re-opened for public lounging. The 'wichcraft kiosk is still undergoing internal renovations, but for now you can enjoy the new furniture while we continue to make improvements to the Porch. For a refresher on the upgrades, check out this post. 

Update 5/4/2011: Stay tuned for information about the official Porch re-opening celebration.

American Woodcock Spotted in Bryant Park

Photo by Mary Margaret Miller

We had a rare sighting on our weekly Birding Tour of Bryant Park last Thursday evening: an American Woodcock sleeping under some shrubbery on the south side of the park.

Out of 15 people in the group it was the youngest member, a little girl taking the tour with her father, who spotted the bird. Gabriel Willow, Senior Naturalist at the New York City Audubon Society and leader of our tours, immediately identified the bird by its extraordinarily long bill, which it uses to probe the dirt for earthworms. 

Click here to listen to the American Woodcock's call, and join us on our next Birding Tour to learn how to identify it amongst the sounds of midtown Manhattan.

Photo by Mary Margaret Miller

Birding Tours of Bryant Park
Mondays, 8:00am – 9:00am
Thursdays, 5:00pm – 6:00pm
April 11 – June 2
Meet at the corner of 42nd Street & 6th Avenue