The city’s wildly successful ‘trick-or-treat during Open Streets’ initiative, or ‘Trick-or-Streets,’ is making a comeback this year, turning this cute holiday program into a festive tradition.
Mayor Eric Adams and Department of Transportation (DOT) Commissioner Ydanis Rodriguez announced their intention to expand the initiative to create safe, car-free pedestrian zones for kids and parents citywide.
“‘Trick-or-Streets’ was a hit last year, and we’re excited to bring it back so New York City youth can safely enjoy Halloween,” said Adams in a statement. “Our administration has been relentless in our efforts to be creative in maximizing and utilizing the city’s public space, allowing communities to come together in ways they never could before. We encourage anyone interested in hosting a ‘Trick-or-Streets’ event to apply to join the program, and we look forward to working with you to deliver the safest and most fun Halloween the city has ever seen.”
Last year, the major location for Trick-or-Streets was the recently redesigned 34th Avenue plaza in Jackson Heights, in addition to nearly 100 Open Streets areas. The hours to close streets to cars were expanded into Halloween night. For its second installment, throughout October the city will have Open Streets in 15 major locations in all five boroughs to celebrate Halloween.
“After a remarkably successful inaugural ‘Trick-or-Streets’ last Halloween, we are proud to bring this event back this year with even more holiday spirit. Open Streets has led to many great programs, ranging from the transitioning of temporary open spaces to permanent plazas, bike boulevards, and now to the annual Halloween tradition of ‘Trick-or-Streets,’” said Rodriguez in a statement. “This event gives New Yorkers the opportunity to safely enjoy the holiday along a wide variety of safer, shared community spaces, and I wish all of New York’s ghouls and goblins a wonderful and safe night of tricks and treats!”
Programming will include special performances, festive activities, and expanded public space for trick or treating. Community-based organizations can apply for a Street Activity Permit Office (SAPO) permit to join the “Trick or Streets” program online by October 18, said the city.
John Lynch, co-president of Frederick Douglass Boulevard Alliance (FDBA), is set to participate in this year’s Trick-or-Streets activities in Harlem. “For three summers, FDBA has sponsored one of the city’s largest Open Streets programs on Frederick Douglass Boulevard, which is known as ‘The Gateway to Harlem’ and ‘Harlem’s Restaurant Row.’ The corridor is home to many minority-owned and small businesses that drive the neighborhood’s economy and employ numerous community residents,” said Lynch in a statement. “Halloween provides an opportunity to bring together people of all ages from all over New York — costumed or not!”
The city is also throwing a Día De Los Muertos celebration in early November in Times Square Plaza.
For more info about ‘Trick-or-Streets’ locations and various dates check out: www.nyc.gov/html/dot/html/pedestrians/trickorstreets.shtmlAriama C. Long is a Report for America corps member and writes about politics for the Amsterdam News. Your donation to match our RFA grant helps keep her writing stories like this one; please consider making a tax-deductible gift of any amount today by visiting https://bit.ly/amnews1.