HELLO! BONJOUR!

Kevin Capuno, the BID’s Operations Manager, and our resident Canadian prepared for the Summer Olympic Games by reflecting on the little corners of Parisian influences in the District.

I am sitting on Gansevoort Plaza on one of the BID’s Parc Centre chairs, evidently inspired by Parisian standard designs. The most distinct feature of the Parc Centre chairs, I would argue, is that they are moveable. Whether wanting to pull up a chair in the sunniest spot on the plaza for a solo sunbathe, or grabbing lunch with my coworkers, the moveable chair can help foster versatile public spaces. One of my favourite spaces in Paris is the Jardin du Luxembourg, and it’s a bit funny to think I visit for the chairs, not the heavily manicured gardens themselves.

I stroll down Gansevoort Street and point my gaze upwards. Our little corner of Manhattan has a lower density of buildings, similar to the spacious and grand boulevards of Paris’ arrondissements. I’d like to think that this openness allows one to wander and admire the streetscape without feeling cramped or confined. Our BID prioritizes the pedestrian experience.

I have some time to dust off my old high school French textbook. While I cheer on from the cobblestoned streets of Paris, I’m sure there will be plenty to do in the cobblestoned streets of Meatpacking.

This article is written in Canadian English. Translation is available upon request.