It’s hard to believe that August is already upon us, and fall is right around the corner. We at MAS have had a busy summer preparing for a provocative, informative fall season, as we introduce our first annual Next for New York programs.

Next for New York will explore the next wave in urban planning, preservation and climate change, and civic activism, as well as specific projects that will help shape the future of New York City.

This year, Next for New York includes three major events: Preservation & Climate Change Conference, the MAS Summit for New York City and the Jane Jacobs Forum. These programs will engage New Yorkers in stimulating discussions about urban livability and the future of our city and cities around the world.

“There’s no question that cities are pivotal as nations everywhere are dealing with growing populations, climate change and threats to sustainability,” said MAS President Vin Cipolla. “Through this very exciting annual series, MAS will examine a host of issues that New York is facing as a global city that also is a city of distinct neighborhoods.” Continue Reading>>

Seating is limited for the MAS Summit for New York City which will feature lively debates, discussions and new ideas about the livability of our city, from sidewalks to skyline. The conference, a first for MAS, will be held on Thursday, October 21 and Friday, October 22 at the Penn Plaza Pavilion.

You can register now on the recently-launched Summit website, massummit.org, where you can get up-to-the-minute program updates. As of today, 88 of 400 tickets have been sold for the conference, with a roster that includes Rockefeller Foundation President Judith Rodin, Designer Yeohlee Teng, New York Times Reporter Sam Roberts, Central Park Conservancy Founder Elizabeth Barlow Rogers, and High Line Founder Robert Hammond, plus dozens of other thought leaders talking on a variety of important subjects. Continue Reading>>

On Wednesday, April 7, MAS’ April panel and tour series New York’s Changing Streetscapes continues with architect and author of Twenty Minutes in Manhattan Michael Sorkin engaging an expert panel in a lively discussion of the good, the bad, and the ugly of our city’s famous streetscapes.

The panel, Are New York’s Streets Out of (Design) Control promises to be a fantastic opportunity to hear from people on all sides of the debate about the future of our city’s streets. Questions to be considered will include: Why are New York’s streets filled with the visual chaos of loud signs, tacky newsracks, graffiti–covered phones that don’t work and as many styles of street furniture as there are Business Improvement Districts?; Do other American cities do a better job?; Are we now heading in the right direction?; Do the NYC Street Design Manual, sleek bus shelters and award winning urbanSHED design signal a better future?; How do we learn from past mistakes and avoid turf battles?; And, what needs to happen next? Continue Reading>>

MAS has much to celebrate and share with our members, friends and colleagues this holiday season. After more than 25 years in the Villard Houses, we are moving our headquarters to the Steinway Hall Building at 111 West 57th Street as of mid-January 2010.

So, join us on Thursday, December 10, from 6:00 p.m. for wine, beer, cocktails and hors d’oeuvres, music, and good cheer throughout the evening. President Vin Cipolla and Chairman David Childs will toast MAS and its future, and bid farewell Villard Houses and hello Steinway. Architectural historian and MAS tour leader Francis Morrone will give a brief talk about the history of the Villard Houses and of the Steinway Hall Building.

Then, from 8:00 -10:00 p.m., DJ’s will play, dancing will begin and party-goers can enjoy special discounts of 20% off all books in stock at the MAS bookstore, Urban Center Books, where staff will be on hand to offer personalized recommendations for holiday gift books and a complimentary copy of The Villard Houses: Life Story of a Landmark is available with each purchase. Intermittent tours of the building will also be given by Tamara Coombs, MAS director of tours and programs.

MAS Holiday Party
Thursday, December 10, 6:00 – 10:00 p.m.
At The Villard Houses, 457 Madison Avenue at E. 51st Street, MAP.
Tickets: Members $25 in advance, $35 at door; Non-members $40 in advance, $50 at door. Purchase tickets online or call 212-935-2075.

Ahead of the upcoming 2nd Annual Jane Jacobs Forum — which encourages New Yorkers to re-imagine their city with urban farms, MAS’ Tamara Coombs and forum panelist and greenhouse director at Gotham Greens Jennifer Nelkin, discussed the prospects of developing commercial-scale agriculture in New York City and how to grow fresh produce at the South Pole.

Join us at the Jane Jacobs Forum on November 3 to delve into the economic development and urban design implications of the fundamental question: Can New York, a city with a growing population and shrinking acreage, eventually grow enough food within its boundaries to become self-sufficient?

Moderator Neal Peirce of the Washington Post, will be joined by Ms. Nelkin and other expert panelists including, microbiology Professor Dickson Despommier of Columbia University, landscape designer Dan Albert of Weber Thompson architects in Seattle, Colin Cathcart of Kiss + Cathcart architects in Brooklyn, environmental studies Professor Nevin Cohen of The New School, and Ian Marvy executive director of Added Value in Red Hook, Brooklyn.

The Jane Jacobs Forum is sponsored by the Rockefeller Foundation. Related to the forum is the exhibition Re-Imagining Cities: Urban Design After the Age of Oil — currently on display at MAS through Friday, December 4. Visit MAS.org/exhibitions for more details.

Lynden Miller was a painter with a passion for plants when Betsy Rogers, as administrator of Central Park and head of the Central Park Conservatory, handed her an assignment: restore the Conservatory Garden at 105th St. and Fifth Ave. That was 1982, when that end of the park was often considered dangerous. In addition to restoring the garden, Lynden was also charged with raising the money to do it and finding a way to bring people back to it. The Conservatory Garden was the beginning of her career as a public garden designer. Gardens all over town followed, including those at Bryant, Wagner, and Madison Square parks.

Now Lynden Miller has written a book, Parks, Plants and People, which tells others how public gardens can be created, including a resource directory on everything from the art of garden design to park advocacy and funding sources, plus a plant list of those she has found to be hardy, reliable and relatively low-maintenance. She dedicates the book to William H. Whyte, from whom she learned the elements of a successful public space. In addition to practical advice, Lynden Miller provides telling anecdotes. When a taxi driver dropping her at the Conservatory Garden in the early 1980s expressed concern for her safety, she invited him to accompany her into the partially restored garden, where the crab apples were in bloom. One down.

This Wednesday night at 6:30 p.m., join us at the Municipal Art Society for an engaging and inspirational talk with Ms. Miller, buy an autographed book at a 25% discount, and talk with fellow urban garden lovers over a glass of something refreshing. $15, $10 MAS members. Reservations recommended. Purchase tickets online or call 212-935-3960. MAP.

Last night, deep in the heart of Alphabet City, some of the best minds in New York City joined MAS and hosts, Greg Young and Tom Meyers, (hosts of the very popular Bowery Boys podcast) for our second NYC Trivia Night event.

The teams were truly put to the test last night; the questions were not for the faint of heart. Like, “The Coney Island ice rink is named after a former Brooklyn politician and former suitmaker, whose original shop was next to Ebbet’s Field. Name him.” or “Name one of the two men who were mayor of New York City during the 1920s.” (Click here to see last night’s questions and answers.)

The team names were as colorful as ever, and included “MTA Bailout”, “Bagel and Lox, Hold the Capers” and “Lords of Midwood.” Ultimately, the “Art Deco Society” (pictured) prevailed and took home the grand prize: the eight DVD set of New York: A Documentary Film by Ric Burns. Congratulations to all who joined us!

Please join us for the final ImagineConey program this Tuesday, February 17, at 6.30 p.m. at MAS to see presentations of submissions to the ImagineConey initiative by members of the public and design professionals. Presenters will include Frederick Schwartz, Philip Tusa, Henry Jones and others. MAS staff will also present the results of the design workshop (charrette) held last November in which an international team of designers, economists and creative producers participated. The event is free, but reservations are strongly recommended. Click here to RSVP or call 212-935-2075.

Imagining Coney: Bold Ideas, Technicolor Dreams, and Fanciful Concepts
Tuesday, February 17, 6:30 – 8:00 p.m., at the Municipal Art Society
A review of over 350 ideas submitted from around the world by the general public and professional designers.

What is the role of the amusement business in a recession-era urban economy? Does Coney Island have the potential to become a true economic engine for New York?

Please join us at MAS for a panel discussion of these issues tonight at 6:30 p.m. Panelists will include: former Disney executive and Managing Director at real estate advisory firm RCLCo David Malmuth; former Six Flags executive and Senior Vice-President of PARC Management Dan Aylward; President of the New York City Economic Development Corporation (NYCEDC) Seth Pinsky; and owner of Astroland Amusement Park Carol Albert.

Wednesday, February 11, 6:30 – 8:00 p.m.
A Serious Business: The Future of Amusements in an Urban Economy
A panel of experts discuss the future of urban amusement parks in New York’s recession-era economy. $15, $12 MAS members.To purchase tickets, click here or call 212-935-2075.

Visit the MAS exhibit ImagineConey: Bold Ideas for the Future of Coney Island, now on display through Wednesday, March 11. Gallery hours>>.

Pressure is mounting to halt the national tide of foreclosures. New York’s housing advocates are working at the frontlines to keep people in their homes and to ensure that solutions currently being generated at the city and state level respond to New York’s unique housing and neighborhood needs.

A MAS Planning Center panel discussion moderated by Eva Hanhardt of the Pratt Graduate Center for Planning and the Environment late last year, tapped the insights of Audrey Waysee, Center for New York City Neighborhoods; Josh Zinner, Neighborhood Economic Development Advocacy Project; Mark Winston-Griffith, Drum Major Institute; Patricia Kerr, Neighborhood Housing Services, Jamaica;and Ingrid Gould Ellen, Furman Center for Real Estate and Urban Policy, to confront the question: how do we stabilize neighborhoods experiencing high rates of foreclosure? Continue Reading>>