The Best of 2024 in the Village
It’s been a memorable year for the Village. Join us in looking back at some of its highlights.
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The Best of 2024 in the Village
It’s been a memorable year for the Village. Join us in looking back at some of its highlights.
The Village got a James Beard nod.
Photo credit Loring Place.
In January, the head chef of 8th Street’s very own Loring Place, Dan Kluger, was one of two NYC chefs to be selected as a semifinalist for the prestigious James Beard Outstanding Chef Award.
As a semifinalist for the James Beard Outstanding Chef Award, Kluger’s nomination reflects not only his individual achievements but also the thriving culinary landscape of 8th Street and the broader New York City dining scene.
We toured our Councilmember’s newest district boundaries in our neighborhood.
Photo credit Village Alliance.
Councilmember Rivera joined us alongside dozens of reps from City agencies and institutions. The walkthrough was scheduled to address quality of life concerns in Washington Square Park and the West 4th subway station, which in turn affect local businesses.
The group gathered to walk around the district and hear from residents, institutions and agencies about the issues faced by Village constituents across various issue sectors.
The Feast on Saint Marks!
Photo credit Village Alliance.
We closed off the block of St. Mark’s Place between 2nd and 3rd Avenues for an evening of celebrating community and local business. With a full brass band, yard games, chalk art, and games of double Dutch in full swing, we brought the energy and good times to St. Marks Place for our first event of the spring and summer.
In partnership with restaurants, bakeries, and other businesses along the block, we handed out one thousand dollars in “St. Mark’s Money” to attendees, distributed as five-dollar coupons to spend at participating businesses, letting people try out a new business at a discount while driving traffic to stores along the block.
We celebrated pride in the Village.
Photo credit Village Alliance.
The Village is the heart of New York’s storied LGBTQIA history, a point of pride we’ve dove into in previous years. This year, we celebrated the 55th anniversary of the Stonewall Uprising and the 54th anniversary of New York City’s Pride March, which ran right along 8th Street this year.
Public Theater Brought Mobile Unit’s The Comedy of Errors to Astor Place.
Photo credit Peter Cooper.
Part of GO PUBLIC! A Festival of Free Shakespeare in the Park, this bilingual musical adaptation of William Shakespeare’s The Comedy of Errors was open to the Village on a first-come, first-served seating basis at Astor Place
From the cast’s vibrant, eye-catching costumes, to the sword fights and song and dance that fill the stage, eyes were locked on Mobile Unit’s performance for the full run of the show—no easy feat when you’re competing against the animated backdrop of New York City.
The Public returned to Astor Place for their Block Party.
Photo by 8SP_Lou Aguilar.
Over 4,000 people joined the Public Theater’s Block Party, enjoying iconic performances from alumni like Amber Iman, Nikki M. James, Rebecca Naomi Jones, and Jelani Alladin. The event featured a dance lesson to “Empire State of Mind,” a captivating performance by the Shinbone Alley Stilt Band, and a newly opened Costume Exhibit.
A new art installation is unveiled at Astor Place.
Photo credit Village Alliance.
This August, the Village Alliance and Greenwich House showcased a new chapter in the rich history of bridging art and community in the Village. On the 26th at 11 a.m., Astor Place’s South Plaza unveiled unique public art installations, a collaboration that not only beautifies the urban landscape but also highlights the rich contributions of the Village’s senior artists.
Washington Square Park hosted the 2024 Dog Costume Contest & Parade and the 34th Annual Children’s Halloween Parade.
Photo credit Village Alliance.
Washington Square Park’s beloved Dog Halloween was back this year, and the parade and costume contest were bigger and better than ever! Hundreds of creative pups and their humans came out for an afternoon of spooky fun
And on Halloween Day, one of the city’s largest, free, family-friendly Halloween Day events was held at Washington Square Park—the 34th Annual Children’s Halloween Parade at Washington Square Park. Hosted by Manhattan Community Board 2 and NYU, families enjoyed live performances, games, treats, and more!
Public Safety Ambassador Calvin Beatty Honored.
Photo credit Village Alliance.
At the Village Alliance’s Annual Meeting at Joe’s Pub in October, we proudly honored the supervisor of our Public Safety Ambassador program Calvin Beatty with the Norman Buchbinder Award for his incredible work in the last year.
The Buchbinder Award is presented to individuals who have made an outsized impact in the Greenwich Village community.
