Major Design Plan Unveiled For Meatpacking District And West Village

WEST VILLAGE, NY — After eight months of work with architecture and urban design firms, the Meatpacking District Business Improvement District unveiled its new plan for major changes in the neighborhood.

The plan dubbed the "Western Gateway Area Needs Report and Public Realm Vision," looks to improve vehicular and public space conditions, to strengthen mobility across the neighborhood, and bring a more balanced public realm to the far west side of the Meatpacking District and West Village.

“We’re proud of the Meatpacking District’s continued evolution and we are committed to a future where visitors can safely navigate all corners of the neighborhood with ease,” said Jeffrey LeFrancois, Executive Director of the Meatpacking BID and the chair of Manhattan Community Board 4. “Improvements to the Western Gateway area will create consistency, improve mobility, and provide more enjoyable public spaces while prioritizing commerce.”

The study area runs from around the west side of 17th Street down through Horatio Street.

A record number of visitors are traveling further west in the Meatpacking District, which local organizations are connecting to new waterfront attractions such as Little Island, according to the Meatpacking BID.

However, to reach the piers and other waterfront destinations in the area, visitors must travel through a path "which today is a confusing, uninviting corridor of wide streets, conflicting vehicle movements, and poor urban design," according to the Business Improvement District.

Here are the six principles of the new plan.

• Safe and Inviting: Create streets that are safe for all users and public spaces that foster gathering.
• People-centered and Balanced: Create parity between commerce, neighborhood logistics needs, and public realm activity.
• Connected and Seamless: Enhance mobility through improved pedestrian, bicycle, and transit access to and from the district.
• Rational and Organized: Reduce conflicts for all users while bringing order to the curb
• Chic and Timeless: Build on the district’s high quality design legacy through enhanced public space.
• Coordinate and Innovative: Manage resource flows into and out of the district using modern best practices for freight and commerce.

The plan was created in communication with local retailers, community boards, neighborhood associations, property owners and managers, art and cultural institutions, and government agencies.

The timeline for the plan calls for implementing pilot programs for the different projects by the fall of next year.

You can find out more about the plan on the Meatpacking Business Improvement District's website.