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Last week the Forum for Urban Design announced details of a competition it’s holding to solicit plans aimed at making Red Hook an extremely bicycle friendly neighborhood. The competition involves submitting design proposals to FUD that consider the possibility of building a bike garage in or near the Smith-9th Station; envisioning a bicycle network for Red Hook; and identifying possible funding sources for the project. Judges for the competition, which has a grand prize of $4,000, will include officials from NYC Transit and the DOT. One of the main points of the competition, whether or not it actually results in a design that’s put into play, is to “introduce the concept of a bike garage to an audience in New York City,” according to Lisa Chamberlain, executive director of FUD. “It’s a good place to try it on small scale. Another good place to have it would be in Downtown Brooklyn,” near Borough Hall, though Chamberlain notes that “it would be much more complicated there than in Red Hook.” Bike garages have been built in cities like Amsterdam, Berkeley and Seattle, and they deter theft and shield bicycles from the elements.
Could Red Hook Become a Biker Haven? [Brownstoner]
The Bicycle Master Plan Design Competition [FUD]