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December 7, 2007
New York Times Employees Say Renzo Forgot the Bike Parking
Streetsblog.org
Here's one we missed yesterday, about the missing bike parking at Forest City Ratner's new Times Tower:
There was just one problem. While the Times and developer Forest City Ratner were promoting their new Renzo Piano-designed skyscraper as a "technologically advanced and environmentally sensitive" exemplar of green construction, a lack of bike parking and policies hostile towards cyclists were discouraging employees from commuting to work by the city's most environmentally-friendly mode of urban transport.
"I couldn't believe they built such a supposedly 'green' building without a bike room," Bengen said. "This isn't exactly the best neighborhood to leave a bike outside all day."
Does the experience of cycling New York Times employees call into question the promise of some 400 bike parking spaces at Atlantic Yards?
Despite repeated assurances from company executives that the new building would have an indoor bike storage space, as employees began moving into the new offices last spring, the bike parking never materialized.
...So, why didn't the Times include a bike parking facility in its original design? Ruttenberg Surfos, Renzo Piano and developer Forest City Ratner all declined to comment [emphasis, ours].
NoLandGrab: No surprise there.
Posted by lumi at December 7, 2007 8:11 AM