Baruch Pedestrian Plaza In Midtown Opens After Decade Of Work

MIDTOWN MANHATTAN, NY — A full decade after it was first proposed, a pedestrian plaza has opened to the public on East 25th Street in Midtown, providing a new open space for CUNY's Baruch College.

Known as the Clivner=Field Plaza, it spans the block between Lexington and Third avenues. The space was first proposed by administrators in 2011 as a way to give the college some sorely needed outdoor space, winning the support of Baruch's student government.

The site was chosen in part because it would cause minimal disruption to traffic. East 25th Street already dead-ends at Madison Square Park, and a traffic study showed that few cars used it, DNAinfo reported at the time.

A preliminary version of the plaza opened in December 2012, followed by years of work to install pavers, benches, planters including 15 new trees, lights, trash cans and granite seat walls.

"The newly reconstructed plaza has transformed the neighborhood by providing a permanent pedestrian space, a beautiful setting to the Kips Bay community," the city's Department of Design and Construction wrote in a newsletter this month.

News that construction had finally wrapped up this week was hailed by neighborhood groups, including Community Board 6 and the Flatiron 23rd Street Partnership.

The @BaruchCollege 25th Street pedestrian plaza is finally open! Come by and enjoy this new and permanent open space. pic.twitter.com/YsQtEQmxNo
— NYC Council Member Carlina Rivera (@CMCarlinaRivera) July 5, 2021