"Unlocking Public-Private Partnerships to Help Support and Strengthen NYC's Parks"
A Center for an Urban Future Policy Symposium

Replay of the event
Event materials

Speakers included:

• Julia Kerson, NYC Deputy Mayor for Operations
• Meera Joshi, Former Deputy Mayor for Operations; President, The Green-Wood Cemetery
• Ya-Ting Liu, Former Chief Public Realm Officer; Chief of Staff & Director of Strategy, NYU Tandon School of Engineering
• Heather Lubov, Executive Director, City Parks Foundation
• Tim Tompkins, Research Fellow, Center for an Urban Future; Fellow, NYU Marron Institute
• Alan van Capelle, Executive Director, Friends of the High Line

No other city has been as innovative as New York in leveraging public-private partnerships to support and strengthen vital city services, spaces, and infrastructure—from civic corporations that helped New York avert bankruptcy in the 1970s to the creation of Business Improvement Districts and parks conservancies. With the city now facing a precarious fiscal situation that is likely to worsen in the year ahead, it may be time to develop a new generation of public-private partnerships, especially when it comes to supporting parks and open spaces, which are experiencing record usage alongside growing maintenance and operations needs.

This forum explored the opportunity to create new and expand existing public-private partnerships to support parks and open spaces more effectively and equitably. Panelists discussed the most promising models for partnerships, from New York and elsewhere. The conversation also advanced ideas for making it easier for individuals, businesses, and neighborhood institutions to contribute to parks—while ensuring that new resources reach the parks with the greatest unmet needs. It explored reforms to licensing agreements, insurance requirements, and revenue-retention rules that could empower underresourced parks groups; opportunities to pilot lower-barrier concessions and park-level sponsorships; new ways to partner with anchor institutions to support stewardship, recreation, and programming; and other innovative models for strengthening parks through partnerships.

This event was made possible thanks to generous support from the NYC Green Fund. General operating support for the Center for an Urban Future is provided by The Clark Foundation and The Altman Foundation. CUF also receives ongoing support from several other philanthropic funders.