“In 1989, at the request of then-Mayor Ed Koch, formation of the 34th Street Partnership began, and in 1992 the Partnership was officially established as one of New York’s first Business Improvement Districts. 34SP was instrumental in 34th Street’s dramatic renaissance in the 1990s, and has consistently been credited as innovators in the realm of public space management. As our efforts have grown, we continue to receive distinction for our work in the form of awards and mentions in some of New York’s most prominent media outlets.” [34thstreet.org]
In 1992, the 34th Street Partnership went to work quickly, installing lampposts and street signage of its own design in a 30-block radius with 34th Street at the center. I’ve rarely mentioned them because it seems they were designed to appear as generic as possible and bore no resemblance to NYC lamps and sign traditions of the past. In fact I haven’t forgiven the 34th Street Partnership for doing away with many of 5th Avenue’s double Deskey lamp designs first installed in 1965; today, a dwindling fewer than a dozen of those remain.
I’ll concede one point, though: the larger versions of the Partnership’s street signs, shown here, are NYC’s only 3-D street signs and have bulbs inside that light up at night; standard issue signs around town have reflective lettering. Notably, the signs on Korea Row are NYC’s only such signs featuring Korean lettering. The font is Frutiger, matching the font on PATH train signage.
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4/8/22