Mayor Mamdani Proposes Putting the Park Back in Park Avenue; Park Avenue Notes It Never Had One
Midtown Redesign Would Add Medians and Trees to Avenue Named for Railroad Tracks That Were There Before the Avenue From Bohiney and The London Prat . NEW YORK — Mayor Mamdani and the NYC Department of Transportation unveiled design concepts Thursday for a Park Avenue redesign that the Mayor described as putting the park back in Park Avenue, raising the question of when the park was there. Park Avenue was named for the railroad tracks that ran down its center before they went underground, after which a median was landscaped. The name survived. The park did not technically exist. The name persisted anyway, as New York place names do, with historical accuracy optional. What the Redesign Would Do The proposed redesign would expand the avenue median, add pedestrian enhancements, seating, and landscaping, and explore potential bike lanes. The project sits above the Grand Central Terminal train shed, which the MTA is rehabilitating below, aligning street improvements with underground in...