The Flatiron Partnership is coordinating a district-wide tree planting initiative through the New York City Department of Parks & Recreation's Street Tree program, which plants trees free-of-charge, on sidewalks in front of homes, apartment buildings and businesses throughout the City.

Any property owner may request a street tree by submitting this form. The BID will be following up with district property owners in the coming weeks to encourage particpation in this program.

For more information, contact the BID office at 212.741.2323 or by email at info@flatironbid.org.

Courtesy of New York magazine, menus for dozens of local restaurants can now be viewed online directly from the Partnership's dining directory, a comprehensive listing of dining establishments in the district.

In addition to menus, free reservations to many of the neighborhood's finest restaurants can now be made online from the dining directory page, through a partnership with OpenTable.com.

As the song says, it was a very good year.

That was the consensus as the BID conducted its first annual meeting on June 14 before some 140 members and guests who heard highlights of the BID's first year as well as projections for the upcoming 12 months.

The meeting, held at Cipriani 23rd Street in 200 Fifth Avenue, was enlivened by guest speakers Scott Stringer, Borough President of Manhattan, and Robert Walsh, Commissioner of New York City's Department of Small Business Services.

In addition to the re-election of the BID's founding board members, three new board members were elected: Rick Beltz of Meringoff Properties; Mark Maynard-Parisi from Union Square Hospitality Group; and Jim Lloyd of Baruch College.

Special awards were given to all board members who have served since the BID's inception, and Outstanding Service Awards were presented to two members of the BID's Clean Team.

Kick off your Independence Day celebrations with a BBQ picnic and Bluegrass concert in Madison Square Park.

The newly-opened Hill Country will bring the best in Texas BBQ to the park on July 4 from noon to 8:00PM. Enjoy your BBQ at one of the café tables that will be set up around the Park's Northern Reflecting Pool, or bring a blanket and picnic on the Oval Lawn.

The menu includes Barbeque (pork spare ribs, Kreuz sausage, barbeque beef sandwich), Sides (confetti cole slaw, Texas black-eyed caviar, cool-as-a-cucumber salad), Desserts (Ancho Chile Cherry Brownies, Bourbon Pecan Pie) and Beverages (including Big Red soda from Texas). Prices range from $4-$7 for eats.

A live music performance by the renowned Bluegrass band Crooked Still will begin at 6:00PM as part of the Madison Square Park Conservancy's Mad. Sq. Music series.

Grab your laptop and head out to Madison Square Park, which now has free WiFi wireless internet, courtesy of Ask.com and the Madison Square Park Conservancy.

There's no need to stay cooped up in the office all summer now that you have access to a free high-speed wireless internet connection from anywhere in the 6-acre Park.

Reservations are still available at some of the local restaurants participating in the Summer 2007 NYC Restaurant Week, to be held July 16-20 and July 23-27.

Restaurant Week gives diners the opportunity to experience some of the finest restaurants in the City at a fraction of the usual price, with three-course lunches and dinners for $24.07 and $35.00 respectively.

Participating local restaurants include Arezzo Ristorante, Bolo Restaurant & Bar, Tabla and the Bread Bar, Dos Caminos, Eleven Madison Park, Tamarind and Giorgio's of Gramercy.

To celebrate National Ice Cream Month, the Institute of Culinary Education at 50 West 23rd Street is holding a special class called the Ultimate Ice Cream Party on Saturday, July 14, from 6:00PM to 11:00PM. There is a $100 fee.

Learn all about the world of ice cream and its kith and kin: gelato, sherbet and sorbet. Instructors Bruce Weinstein and Mark Scarbrough, creators of the Ultimate cookbook series and contributing editors to Eating Well, will share their secrets from their best-selling frozen dessert books.

You'll hear about the strange, complicated history of this international favorite, as you learn the tricks to making perfect homemade ice cream every time. On your menu: Lemon Ice Cream; Philadelphia-Style Pistachio Ice Cream; Blackberry Sorbet; Blueberry Sherbet; and Bacio (Chocolate Hazelnut) Gelato.

AnnSam@Chelsea, a new gift shop that recently opened at 12 West 23rd Street, offers an enormous variety of merchandise, from party supplies and greeting cards to picture frames and toys.

Aziz, who came to this country from Pakistan as a teenager, has been in the retail business for 33 years. He owns seven other stores in New York, six in Manhattan and one in the Park Slope section of Brooklyn. The name of his newest store was derived from the names of his daughters: Anum, 10, and Samrah, 7.

Aziz says he likes the 23rd Street location because of the strong pedestrian traffic, partially due to the Home Depot just down the block. He's hoping it will get even better once two things happen: the imminent opening of a Starbucks on one side of him and the disappearance of the scaffolding on the other side.

Tickets are now on sale for the Madison Square Park Conservancy's Celebrate Flatiron Chefs! on Tuesday, July 17, in Madison Square Park. The event begins at 6:30PM, with a VIP preview at 5:30PM.

This annual event features tastings from restaurants throughout the neighborhood, including Dos Caminos, A Voce, Eleven Madison Park, Country, Rickshaw Dumpling Bar, Hill Country, Punch, Tabla, Ureña, Borough, Sapa and more.

Proceeds from Celebrate Flatiron Chefs! support green space and free programs in historic Madison Square Park.

Located at 30 West 26th Street, PENCIL (Public Education Needs Civic Involvement In Learning) works to improve student performance in public schools by leveraging the expertise and resources of the private sector. This non-profit organization does so by creating long-term partnerships between business leaders and principals at public schools throughout the five boroughs.

On October 18, PENCIL will hold its flagship Principal For A Day event, which mobilizes leaders from the private sector to visit the City's public schools. Participants in this event are expected to translate their one-day experiences into long-term relationships that enhance the learning environment and support student achievement.

For more information on Principal For A Day and other PENCIL programs, visit PENCIL.org.

Retirees who want to keep using their professional expertise and organizations seeking skilled workers on a part-time basis can find one another through the auspices of a non-profit organization called ReServe.

In the words of executive director Claire Haaga Altman, "ReServe represents a new option for retirees who want to keep using their professional skills and at the same time contribute to the public good."

Launched in the fall of 2005, ReServe has placed more than 230 retirees with more than 60 non-profit and New York City agencies, including the Flatiron/23rd Street Partnership. ReServists range from paralegals to copywriters to medical researchers. All ReServists are paid a $10-an-hour stipend regardless of who they work for or what they do.

As the organization puts it: "When money changes hands, both sides - the older adults and the non-profit partners - feel a deeper commitment to the work."

As part of its effort to lessen the City's waste by encouraging New Yorkers to reuse items that might otherwise be discarded as trash, the Department of Sanitation has set up NYC Stuff Exchange, a new website offering a quick and simple way to search for places to donate, sell, buy, rent, or repair different types of gently used goods.

NYC Stuff Exchange allows users to search for local vendors by transaction type (donate, buy or sell) and item type (clothing, furniture, books, etc.). The site also provides information on the benefits of renting or repairing goods, and links to directories where users can search for vendors offering these types of services.

Baruch College's Continuing and Professional Studies division is offering free GMAT and GRE diagnostic testing. By taking a diagnostic test, you will know which parts of the GMAT or GRE you need to study in order to increase your score.

Testing will be held from 6:00PM to 9:00PM on July 11 and July 31 at the Baruch College Vertical Campus, 55 Lexington Avenue.

Pre-registration is required by calling 646.312.5000.

The Metropolitan Life Clock Tower, which at 700 feet was once was the tallest building in the world, has been gazing down upon Madison Square Park since 1909.

The 41-story structure on Madison Avenue between 23rd and 24th Streets was designed by Napoleon LeBrun, an architect who was inspired by the Campanile di San Marco in Venice. (Interestingly, the Clock Tower is older than its counterpart in Venice. The original Campanile collapsed in 1902 and was replaced by a replica in 1912 - three years after the Clock Tower sounded its first chimes.)

The clock itself is one of the largest four-dial timepieces in the world, with each of the four clock faces on the tower measuring 26.5 feet in diameter and the minute hands each weighing half a ton.

Originally occupied by the Metropolitan Life Insurance Company, the Tower now has a new owner, only the third since its construction. Africa Israel Investments Ltd., which acquired the property earlier this year, plans to convert the former office tower into luxury apartments. The renovation is expected to take approximately two years to complete.

The Flatiron/23rd Street Partnership is now sponsoring free walking tours of the historic Flatiron district every Sunday.

Join our experienced guides on a 90-minute journey through this vibrant neighborhood, viewing some of the City's most notable landmarks, including the New York Life Insurance building, the MetLife Tower, the Appellate Courthouse and the famous Flatiron Building.

Time:
Every Sunday at 11:00AM.

Meeting Place:
The southwest corner of Madison Square Park, at 23rd Street and Broadway, in front of the statue of William Seward.

Recent News Coverage

• BID Holds First Annual Meeting
• BID Launches Neighborhood Safety Program
• Annual Meeting Scheduled
• BID Giving Free Walking Tours Through Flatiron District
• BID to Hold Concert to Benefit Homeless
• Local Businesses Head to BID Forums
• BID Unveils new Litter Receptacles
• Clean Team Takes On Snow Removal
• BID Welcomes Citibank to Neighborhood
• BID Makes a Clean Sweep
• Officer who Cleaned up Kenmore Named BID's Operations Director
• Long Live the BID
• Jennifer Brown Appointed Executive Director of Flatiron BID
• Manhattan's First New BID in Over Four Years Launched
• New Improvement District Around Madison Square Park
• BID Aims to Clean Up Community
• Flatiron BID uses Hi-Tech to Track Problem Areas
• Flatiron BID Plans Neighborhood Makeover
• New BID Is Milestone in Flatiron District Revitalization

Press Releases

• BID Conducts First Annual Meeting
• Flatiron BID Launches Public Safety Program
• Discover Flatiron: Free Walking Tours
• Hero Officer Returns to His Beat
• BID Launches Sanitation Program
• Jennifer Brown Appointed Executive Director
• Flatiron Partnership BID Launched

Newsletters

• June 2007
• May 2007
• April 2007
• March 2007
• February 2007
• January 2007
• December 2006