We the residents of the Upper Westside support the reactivation of the Broadway Malls Community Center located on the median at West 96th Street as a neighborhood art gallery and artist’s space. The space would display artwork  and host regular talks by poets, painters, musicians, and authors from the neighborhood and beyond.

The space was rented by the West Side Arts Coalition from the Parks Department. It was closed because of the COVID pandemic in 2020 and never reopened after that.

We request The Parks Department to support our petition and proposal and to take action.

Currently, the structure is vacant, and the surrounding area is unkempt and unsanitary, attracting a proliferation of rats and  pigeons. By reactivating this space, we not only preserve a beautiful historic structure, but we also transform it into something that brings safety, cleanliness, and beauty to the heart of the Upper West Side.

Target Audience/Beneficiaries: Residents of the UWS, particularly in the vicinity of West 96th Street, and commuters who take the subway to and from West 96th Street, families and children in the community, and local and visiting artists.

Benefits: This space would create joy and well-being for New Yorkers by uplifting artists through a nonprofit platform where they can showcase and sell their work. It would build community through shared creative experiences and encourage spontaneous artistic encounters with passersby. By fostering a more people-friendly and neighborly public space, it would also help maintain and beautify an area currently overrun by pigeons and rats.

The reactivated  gallery would keep the surrounding block clean and cared for while promoting cooperation among neighbors and strengthening community ties. The unique architecture of the structure would be honored as a site for imagination, creativity, and connection. Finally, it would provide children with an opportunity to develop confidence and pride by exhibiting their artwork in a public setting.

This space has the potential to become a vital cultural hub for the Upper West Side, offering a welcoming and engaging environment for all.

We support  this project which  is more than a gallery. It is an act of care for a neglected corner of our neighborhood. It transforms a forgotten structure into a place of wonder, creativity, and connection.  The architecture itself invites imagination, and our programming will be grounded in connection, accessibility, softness, and community celebration.

We are residents of The Columbia Condominium apartments at 275 West  96th Street, right next to the buidling for the Community art space on the Broadway Mall;  The West Side Arts Coalition which rented the space till 2019 from the Parks Department ; and residents of the Upper Westside neighborhoods.