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Parks & Public Spaces
Application from Madison Square Park Conservancy for Annual Roster of Programming in 2024
At the regularly scheduled monthly Community Board Five meeting on Thursday, January 11, 2024, the following resolution passed with a vote of 34 in favor; 0 opposed; 1 abstaining:
WHEREAS, Madison Square Park Conservancy ("Applicant") has submitted applications for their annual roster of programming for 2024; and
WHEREAS, The following roster of programming and events are currently scheduled for 2024:
- Programs for Art Talks from February through June, Grow NYC Stop n’ Swap in April, Howl-O-Ween in October, Holiday Tree Lighting in December, Music on the Green, Ecology Walk, and Garden Walk to be conducted in a manner and place consistent with past years’ events,
- Spring Fling in the Park, a celebration of spring blooms along with live music and arts and crafts, to be held on April 26,
- Pup Parents’ Day for canine lovers, to be held on June 7,
- Summer Fam Jam, a family-friendly concert series featuring popular kids’ music, to be held on Tuesdays, July 9, 16 and 23,
- Horticulture Programs including a public horticultural symposium on soil management in February, botanical plant tours in March, Garden Walks, Wildlife Outings, a botanical book club program and several other programs throughout the year,
- Public Volunteer Days,
- “Open Green” lawn access seven days a week from mid-March through September, weather permitting,
- Seasonal Garden Display across the park,
- Sustainability Programs to be held throughout the year including a seed swap program, food scrap drop offs, wildlife outings, nature challenges, an outdoor Waste Expo (fair) focusing on recycling and waste reduction, Firefly Watch Party, Plastic and Solar Power Pop Ups and the Waste Warriors program for recycling and composting; and
WHEREAS, Applicant will also host three fundraisers in 2024:
- Party in the Park Fundraiser, to be held on April 2 on the Oval Lawn, and
- Big Apple Barbeque, to be held on Monday, May 20 from 5:30pm to 8:30pm. This is the second year of this event, which was be dissimilar in a nature to the historical Big Apple Barbeque previously held in Madison Square Park, will include only a section of Madison Square Park and only roughly 30 local restaurants and will only include 1-2 small grills with most food cooked off-site and feature only a small band; and
- Taste of Asia Fundraiser, to be held on Tuesday, October 8 from 5:30pm to 8:30pm; and
WHEREAS, Applicant will advise Community Board Five of any changes or additions to the roster of programming, if any; and
WHEREAS, Community Board Five believes that the nature of the programming is greatly to the public's benefit, and will continue to improve public access to Madison Square Park on event days from prior years; and
WHEREAS, Applicant has committed to return to Community Board Five to separately discuss any additional marketing or commercial events in 2024, subject to Community Board Five's standard review process and public hearings; and
WHEREAS, There is long-standing precedent for these events in Madison Square Park, and Community Board Five has found a significant amount of support for these events from residents and stakeholders in the community; and
WHEREAS, Applicant has agreed that if there are any material changes to any event from previous years (i.e., signage, set-up, scale, location, and/or ancillary activities), they will return and present these changes to Community Board Five; and
WHEREAS, When presenting future event applications, Applicant will clearly state whether or not these events are occurring concurrently with previously approved special events; therefore, be it
RESOLVED, Community Board Five recommends approval of the applications from Madison Square Park Conservancy for their annual roster of programming for 2024.