Neighborhood News Check

Public Offers Opinion on Bogardus Garden and Plaza Redesign

About a dozen residents and busies owners recently gathered to offer their opinions on the redesign on Tribeca's Bogardus Garden and Plaza. The public citizens spoke to a collection of city design officials and landscape architects. Last year, Friends of Bogardus Garden received a $2 million grant from the Department of Transportation. "This is truly a public-private partnership," Victoria Weil, president of Friends of Bogardus Garden. Tribeca Trib

N.Y.U. Student Creating Scale Model on Minecraft

Minecraft, a 3D video game that allows users to build their own towns and cities out of cubes, has been an addictive fixture in the gaming community since its release in 2009. Now, an NYU PhD candidate is dedicating his time to creating a scale 1:1 model of Manhattan in the video game. The student, Christopher Mitchell, has relied on a variety of resources to achieve his goal. "Completion is reliant on getting models for every building on every street, and to my knowledge, only Google has that much information," Mitchell said. Boingboing.net

Hudson River Park Entices New Member With Perks

Friends of Hudson River Park is now offering a deals and discount booklet consisting of free mini-golf, gratis golf clubs and various discounts to restaurants and bars in the area with a donation of $50 or more. "We're looking to build a community partnership all around - experiences are the best way to get people activated," said Gregory Boroff, Friends of Hudson River Park's head since last August. "We understand that not everyone can afford to make a donation, but they can sign on for volunteer events." DNAinfo.com

China Institute Moving Downtown

Despite occupying its current location for 70 years, the China Institute has put their Upper East Side mansion on the market for $32 million. The move will take the China Institute to a commercial condominium in the Financial District, which is cheaper and offers four times the space for galleries, multi-media displays and classrooms for learning Mandarin. The move has reportedly been two years in the making. The original mansion was purchased in 1944. Wall Street Journal