The Future of New York City
From its citizens and businesses to its vast public spaces, New York City has suffered colossal consequences from the onset of Covid-19.
As the global epicenter of the pandemic, New Yorkers have faced very real internal debates on whether or not the the city, with its high rents and small living spaces is “worth it.” Without its 24-hour bustle and myriad activities, New Yorkers are forced to question their relationship with this highly romanticized metropolis and what it holds for them. For those that were already equivocating on their place within New York City, the pandemic has given them that brusque shove to make the next move, whether that’s to their parents house or some AirBNB in Colorado. For others, leaving is fiscally not an option, further unmasking the vast wealth disparity that exists within the five boroughs (and duh, the country). But for others, New York is simply the place. The only place. And it’s that unwavering faith in New York City that will help carve out a new version that will be even better than before.
For this week’s Unfiltered series, we asked Senior Designer at Project for Public Spaces, Alina Bibisheva, Architecture and Design Critic featured in New York Magazine, The New Yorker, and The Atlantic Alexandra Lange, and Digital Content Coordinator at the National Association of Women Artists, Sarah Isenberg about their feelings on what the future of New York City could hold, for themselves and the city at large.
Alina Bibisheva
Senior Designer at Project for Public Spaces
NYC will always be revered as a place for self-discovery and adventure, but it's also currently experiencing an incredibly low point. We’re curious how you're feeling about being in the city right now and what your hopes are for what a post-pandemic NYC could be.
I think the city took a deep breath, held it, and is now exhaling for an extra long time. There are many things we have lost along the way; people, jobs, and homes. It’s been a hard time for the city, and it’s forced us to discover a new outlook on how we live together, share space, and take care of each other.
In some ways, the new ways that people move through the city and spend time seem to have led to a new mindset. Everlasting FOMO is something that I think isn’t so common anymore—that’s one thing I am especially happy to see left behind. The city without it has become a magical place where you can finally enjoy yourself, your loved ones and the city’s hidden corners. I have seen more neighborhoods than ever, spent more time with myself and friends, and even picked up a forgotten habit of calling and even showing up at my friends’ places without notice.
One initiative I was very excited to see to emerge is the city’s introduction of temporary outdoor dining seating, overtaking sidewalks and roadway parking. We should all enjoy how beautiful, DYI, and unique that is are this summer. It’s good to see these spontaneous versions of outdoor life before a more standardized. and polished. According to the Russian proverb, there is nothing more permanent than a temporary solution, and as expected, the success of this outdoor dining solution is being looked into by the Mayor to become a permanent warm weather approach to dining in New York City.
My hope is that the people of the city emerge from the pandemic with a greater appreciation for such things they had taken for granted before: their communities, public spaces, the small business and people behind them, the built environment, the outdoors in general. If post-pandemic NYC adds this layer of connected living, it’ll not only regain its past appeal, but exceed it. And the only way to achieve it is to DIY New York together into what we all will love more than ever.
Have you grown disillusioned with city life in any way or are you a ride-or-die New Yorker? If the pandemic does continue on into the next two years, would you consider moving somewhere else?
Four years into our relationship, I am still in a honeymoon phase with the city. New York City was so brilliantly designed as a street/block system. I consider the streets to be the most interesting places in New York, both as paths between places, and as destinations in and of themselves. The streets have been a great support for me, as sources of entertainment, and places for walks, meditation, connections, and community. It’s the largest continuous stage for events that we have, and I don’t think even a pandemic can take that away from us. This is what New York has always been to me, the streets and the life you see happening.
Alexandra Lange
Architecture and Design Critic for Architect, Harvard Design Magazine, The Atlantic, New York Magazine, the New Yorker, and the New York Times—to name a few.
Have you grown disillusioned with city life in any way or are you a ride-or-die New Yorker? If the pandemic does continue on into the next two years, would you consider moving somewhere else?
I've lived in New York for 26 years, and while I would still not call myself a New Yorker I am definitely ride-or-die. Since the beginning of quarantine, my Brooklyn neighborhood has felt like a safety net to me: we have a park to walk in, a supermarket to walk to, and seen people around us living, working and using the city as safely as they can. While I have the personal connections and resources to go somewhere else short term, all of us felt more comfortable continuing to live and work in our own space, rather than seeking some new normal elsewhere. I think the stories of a mass exodus to the suburbs and the country are overblown. Honestly, most people in New York City do not have that choice to leave, and that gives those who have stayed every motivation to dig in, build back and innovate for current conditions. I hope that citizens, philanthropy and the government will support renters, small businesses, and new entrepreneurs rather than focusing on the big corporate entities that should have planned their own safety nets. Many landlords were letting storefronts go vacant before the pandemic in hopes of landing a chain store. As we've seen the lack of resilience many of those big businesses are, perhaps they will get a clue. Doing more within walking and biking distance is going to continue to be important and neighborhood-level changes could and should reflect that.
Sarah Isenberg
Digital Content Coordinator at the National Association of Women Artists
NYC will always be revered as a place for self-discovery and adventure, but it's also currently experiencing an incredibly low point. We’re curious how you're feeling about being in the city right now and what your hopes are for what a post-pandemic NYC could be.
New York City will always be magic. No matter how manic-pixie- rom-com it sounds, I’ve always known that I was going to live in New York at some point in my life, so it really felt like I was fulfilling a lifelong dream when I moved to the city in January. Having the coronavirus hit three months into that dream never deterred me. I came home to LA to quarantine with family knowing full well I’d be back, which really speaks to how much I believe in New York. Not even a pandemic could keep me away! I’m actually heading back to the city later this month, and as corny as it sounds, if you believe in New York, New York believes in you back. You get these little signs that reassure you that you’re on the right path and that everything is meant to be. I first felt that with my apartment, as it’s on the same street that my grandma grew up on in the 40s! Knowing that I’ll be living a few blocks away from her childhood home really gives me a sense of belonging that I don’t think I’ve felt anywhere else. It feels meant to be, full circle, all part of something bigger than just myself. I feel a deeper sense of connection with the city because of this. As someone who has moved 10+ times in the past 4 years, it makes me feel rooted and like I’m here for good.
Of course, New York now looks very different from the New York I left in the beginning of March. So much of what makes New York special has been put on hold— theater, concerts, museums, crowds etc. I definitely think I’ll feel the absence of that part of New York and it will take some getting used to. But even with those things gone, New Yorkers have found ways to keep going, and that really shows the perseverance and drive that we have to make the best of what we’ve got.