Columbus Avenue Streetscape Coming Soon

After five years of accumulating funds through the annual Whole Foods Market New Taste of the Upper West Side, the Columbus Avenue Business Improvement District (BID) is preparing to build its first sustainable streetscape. The street additions will be installed between West 76th and West 77th Streets, and will include new tree beds, benches, tree guards, in-ground solar lighting, and recycling containers.

This "block-long beautification project" is expected to be completed within the month of March 2013.

"The streetscape project has actually been in the works for the past eight years, so we are thrilled to finally be starting the last and most exciting step of all: building the project," said Barbara Adler, executive director of the Columbus Avenue BID. The reason it took so long, Adler explained, is because while raising funds for this project they continued to distribute funds to other community organizations including Wellness in the Schools, Citymeals-on-Wheels and the Greenhouse Classroom Hydro Farm at The O'Shea School complex.

New Tastes of the Upper West Side plans to run three additional events whose proceeds will all be put towards the streetscape beautification project. The cocktail fundraiser Soirée in the Park will occur on May 29th, the food tasting event Comfort Classics will occur on May 31st, and a food VIP special Best of the West will occur on June 1st. To learn more about these events and ticket purchases go the newtasteuws.com.