Meet NYC's First 'Public Realm' Officer

NEW YORK CITY — The "public realm" may sound straight from Game of Thrones, but it'll be a real-life concern for a freshly minted New York City official.

Ya-Ting Liu will be the city's first chief public realm officer, City Hall officials announced Thursday.

Liu has a two-fold portfolio: oversee a $375 million plan to create and expand public spaces across the five boroughs, and shepherd the city's permanent outdoor dining program.

"In New York City, the public realm is everyone’s living room. It’s where we eat, play, and gather," she said in a statement. "Having beautiful public spaces accessible to all people is one of our greatest assets — it is what makes New York City so special."

Mayor Eric Adams had teased the new position within his "State of the City" address. He made it official Thursday by appointing Liu and signing an executive order.

The city's public spaces won't "fall through the cracks of bureaucracy" under Liu's and her successors' watch, Adams said.

“New Yorkers need to know there is one person at City Hall whose number one goal is to improve their quality of life by creating incredible, new public spaces and ensuring the ones we have are clean, equitable, and safe," he said in a statement.

Liu is a prominent advocate who had previously worked for Transportation Alternatives.

Officials said the $375 million plan Liu will lead includes a project called Broadway Vision that will bring more pedestrian and cyclist spaces across 40 blocks on the famed stretch of street.

She'll also oversee a full reconstruction of Jamaica Avenue from Sutphin Boulevard to Merrick Boulevard, permanent upgrades to Open Streets in the Bronx and on Staten Island, expand pedestrian spaces on Fifth Avenue from Bryant Park to Central Park and reclamation of spaces under the Brooklyn Bridge in Manhattan, officials said.