Each December, as the Village lights up for the holidays, one corner of the neighborhood becomes especially magical. The Sullivan-Thompson Historic District Holiday Shop & Stroll, now in its third year, returns on Saturday, December 6, 2025, at 1:00 PM, offering a vibrant celebration of local history, small businesses, and the enduring spirit of the […]
On West 9th Street, small acts of care have led to remarkable change. Thanks to the efforts of longtime Village resident and volunteer Nina Kaufelt, the humble tree bed, those rectangles of soil surrounding our street trees, has become a symbol of how beauty, attention, and collective effort can transform a neighborhood block. Tree beds, […]
There’s something magical about a good map. It’s not just a tool for finding your way — it’s a window into another world, a story waiting to be uncovered. At Village Preservation, we’ve long believed that maps are one of the most powerful ways to connect people with the neighborhoods we work to protect. Our […]
Long before the soft hum of a window unit or the whisper-cool breezes of central air, residents of Greenwich Village and the East Village faced the full force of the city’s steamy summers head-on. For wealthy New Yorkers the most obvious way of dealing with the heat was to escape it. They headed to Newport, […]
During the long days of summer, there is nothing better than lounging in one of our neighborhood’s parks. Many notable visual artists have been captivated by the natural beauty of our parks, as well as the interesting convergences of human activity. Today, we will take a closer look at some depictions of our most famous […]
Tony Dapolito Recreation Center stands in the heart of Greenwich Village and has served these many years as much more than just a city rec center. It’s a place where generations of New Yorkers learned to swim, shoot hoops, and connect with their neighbors. It’s also a cultural touchstone — immortalized in films like Raging […]
Every first Sunday in May, something quietly magical unfolds in the winding streets of Greenwich Village. As cherry blossoms bloom and stoops warm in the afternoon sun, a few special doors open—not just to private homes, but to entirely different eras. Our Spring House Tour Benefit isn’t just a peek into exquisite interiors—it’s a kind […]
As a young girl born and raised on the rugged coast of Rockland, Maine, few could have guessed Edna St. Vincent Millay (February 22, 1892 – October 19, 1950) was destined to become one of the greatest American poets of her time. The eldest of three daughters raised by a single mother struggling to make […]
Martha Graham’s (1894-1991) remarkable career as a dancer and choreographer spanned more than 70 years. During her lifetime, she saw contemporary dance evolve from a new art form to a well-established one, in large part due to her many contributions. She was a pioneer, but also a visionary, creating her own movement language while demonstrating […]
An architect of fantastic lands and sprightly stories, Maurice Sendak was a renowned children’s book author and illustrator whose work has stirred the souls of millions. Sendak lived and worked in a duplex apartment at 29 West Ninth Street from 1962 until 1972 with his life partner, psychoanalyst Eugene Glynn. It was there he wrote […]
The striking 12-story Beaux Arts style office building at 70 Fifth Avenue was constructed in 1912 for publisher George Plimpton. It housed an extraordinary array of civil rights and social justice organizations, philanthropic groups, publishers, and non-governmental organizations over the years. This includes the headquarters of the nation’s oldest and largest civil rights organization, the […]
At Village Preserevation our tours, lectures, book talks, exhibitions, and other public programs explore and celebrate preservation, history and culture. Beyond sharing vital information from the past and present about Greenwich Village, the East Village, and NoHo, our programs bring together community members from various walks of life to connect and learn from one another. Whether it is participants sharing their favorite memories of concerts at Filmore East on our East Village Rock Tour or gathering at a local school to learn about historical figures who helped shape our community, like Sarah Curry who founded the Little Missionary Day School, our programs provide the vital service of connecting you with your community and its history.
Village Preservation is pleased to announce the 2nd year of VILLAGE VOICES, an outdoor public art exhibition produced by Village Preservation that celebrates and illuminates the artistic, social, political, and cultural movements of our neighborhoods, and the people who gave voice to them. Using the streets of Greenwich Village, the East Village, and NoHo as our stage, […]
Village Preservation began offering an East Village Rock Tour in July, and it has been met with great enthusiasm and large groups gathering to learn more about the history of Rock ‘n Roll in the East Village.
“For, while the tale of how we suffer, and how we are delighted, and how we may triumph is never new, it always must be heard. There isn’t any other tale to tell, it’s the only light we’ve got in all this darkness.” -James Baldwin, “Sonny’s Blues” James Baldwin (August 2, 1924 – December […]
Lewis Miller is a floral designer by day. But by night, he’s known as “the Banksy of Floral Design.” Perhaps you have happened upon one of these striking floral creations that materialize (as if by magic) in our neighborhoods, and thought you had reached nirvana, or heaven, or somewhere other than New York City. But […]
New York City’s trees shade us in the summer, beautify our neighborhoods, help reduce noise, clean our air, counteract heat islands, absorb rainwater, and support important urban wildlife, among an almost infinite number of their bountiful attributes. Did you know that the trees of our urban forests are publicly owned? They are every bit as […]
When spring arrives, our wonderful neighborhoods are alive with activity. Many more people are out and about, enjoying the unique beauty of our slice of the big city, where you can see the blue sky and the greenery of gardens, trees and flowers. The multitude of green spaces in our neighborhoods beckon at these times. And […]
Did you know that National Farm to City Week begins the Thursday before Thanksgiving? This special week celebrates and recognizes the beneficial partnerships between rural and urban communities that make our food supply safe and plentiful. The Thanksgiving season is a time when many Americans gather with their families and reflect upon many blessings. One […]
Have you ever seen these little boxes when you’re out on a stroll around the neighborhood? Noticed that they were full of fabulous books, magazines, and information? These birdhouse-shaped depositories are part of Little Free Libraries, a grassroots initiative to promote the free exchange of books between neighbors. The Little Free Library is a 501(c)3 […]
Christopher Park has been a community gathering place and green oasis in the urban landscape of Greenwich Village for 180 years. In recent decades it has also become a hub and focal point for the LGBTQ community. When the park was neglected, the volunteer organization Christopher Park Alliance (CPA) stepped into the breach. Since its […]
MacDougal Sullivan Gardens, the incredibly charming enclave of twenty-two houses on a block bounded by MacDougal and Sullivan Streets, Bleecker and Houston Streets, has a long and storied history. As most people know, the houses were originally built in the 19th century as single-family houses — in 1844 and 1850 to be exact, by a […]
Over the years, Off the Grid has featured many posts about Tompkins Square Park, including The Young Lords Start in Tompkins Square Park, The Tompkins Square Park Riots of 1988, and Get your Fruit, Veggies, and Milk in Tompkins Square Park. We even had a quiz to test your knowledge of the park and the […]
Fall is the time to notice the sublime changing colors of the leaves on the trees. Or smell the fallen nuts of a gingko tree that some harvest in parks to eat. Did you know that there is a great online map of every street tree in NYC? Which one do you walk by and admire? […]
Christopher Park has come a long way; beginning its life as a condemned parcel of land on April 5, 1837, the park was born, transformed, and eventually born again as a National Monument. The park is public space, historic space, and adored by Village residents and visitors alike. In many ways, Christopher Park reflects everything […]
One of the facts of life that has always bummed me out is that I can’t visit history, to experience the past first-hand. Thankfully, though, GVSHP has just released Part 2 of our Historic Image Archive collection “Carole Teller’s Changing New York”. While the entire Carole Teller collection offers a wide-ranging view of New York […]
On January 16, 2004, Jodie Lane was walking her dogs in the East Village, where they began to act erratically around the corner of 11th Street and 1st Avenue (about a block away from GVSHP’s offices). When Jodie went down to investigate, she received a fatal dose of electricity coming from a metal ConEd junction […]
Nearly all of the East Village falls in line with the Manhattan street grid, dating back to the Commissioners’ Plan of 1811. However, one defiant street, only one block long, stands at odds with the grid, Stuyvesant Street. Running true East – West, it was named for Petrus Stuyvesant (1727-1805), the great-grandson of Petrus Stuyvesant […]
New York City Trolley or Streetcar service ended in New York City on April 6th, 1957 on Welfare (now Roosevelt) Island. But it began one hundred twenty five years earlier on November 14, 1832, with not only New York City but the world’s first streetcar line which ran on the Bowery and Fourth Avenue, between […]
On this day in 1837, the City condemned a parcel of land between Christopher, Grove, and West 4th Streets, which eventually became Christopher Park.
If you are one of the over 100,000 people a day that make your way through Astor Place or Cooper Square, you cannot help but notice the amazing amount of progress that is evident by the workers on the long awaited reconstruction. The cement is still drying in some parts, but more of the major components of […]
On this date in 2011, the New York State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO), presented a “Resource Evaluation” that agreed with the Landmarks Preservation Commission’s earlier finding that the complex known as Washington Square Village was eligible for inclusion in the National Park Service’s National Register of Historic Places. In this evaluation, SHPO noted that Washington […]
Ever since the Stonewall designation back in June, the push for designating LGBT sites around New York City and Greenwich Village has been met with more energy and enthusiasm. One site in particular, Christopher Park, has gained the attention of the National Park Service (NPS), thanks to the advocacy of the National Parks Conservation Alliance, […]
Chess tables have been a staple of New York City public parks for decades. While the first ones appeared in parks during the 1940s, the popularity of “street chess” as it is known, came about beginning in the 1960s when a man named Bobby Hayward set up a chess set on top of a garbage […]
That’s the name of Tim McDarrah’s new walking tours. The tours are based on the photographs his late father, Village Voice photojournalist Fred W. McDarrah, took of people and places in the Village starting in the mid-1950s. I joined Tim and a group of 8 others recently for an amazing 90-minute journey through the neighborhood […]
Last week the design team behind the AIDS Memorial in St. Vincent’s Park presented some design changes at a public meeting held at the Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC). Off the Grid has been covering this story as it’s gone through the public review process. We thought we would update you on this memorial designed to […]
The weekend blizzard, dubbed Nemo by some media outlets, dropped 11.4 inches of snow as recorded in Central Park, a lot less than the historic blizzard of 1888, which dumped 22 inches of snow on New York City, with drifts of up to 40 inches in some areas. That historic storm was the impetus behind […]
The holiday season is well underway and our neighborhoods have wonderful events going on to help ring in the Christmas spirit. Today we thought we’d highlight a couple of upcoming events for you. Washington Square Park This past Wednesday, the Washington Square Association held the 88th annual tree lighting ceremony in Washington Square Park. The […]
Monday, October 8, is Columbus Day, a day of recognition of the arrival of Christopher Columbus in the New World 520 years ago as well as a day to celebrate the contributions and heritage of Italian Americans. Though the parade on Monday will be on 5th Avenue, when we think of Columbus Day we are […]
As Curbed and EVGrieve recently pointed out, the renderings for a new building to be constructed on the long-empty lot between 13th and 14th Streets near 3rd Avenue were released the other day. The 83-unit residential building will include “private rooftop cabana terraces,” a residents’ library, fitness center, lounges, and a rooftop terrace with an […]
This week, the Fourth of July holiday has us here at Off the Grid thinking about the connections the Village has to the Revolutionary War. While the Village remained a pastoral suburb of the city proper during the war, there are some reminders of the fight for independence in the neighborhood.
A little over two months ago, Off the Grid covered a meeting regarding the proposed AIDS Memorial in the triangle park next to the former St. Vincent’s Hospital. The proposal, spearheaded by AIDS Memorial Park, was presented to Community Board 2’s Parks Committee and the public, at which time public feedback was taken into consideration […]
