East Midtown Association

Crains article sparks interest
After reading about ComNET in Crain's magazine, the Director of the East Midtown Association approached FCNY to propose doing a survey of this new BID, which covers a large and varied area ranging from Park Avenue residential blocks to Bloomingdale's Department Store. The group was eager to use ComNET to create a baseline record of conditions that would assist them in planning for beautification and neighborhood improvement and in measuring the impact of their work.

10 teams and 170 blocks
On a Saturday, morning, 30 volunteers organized by the BID met in a conference room donated by a hotel that is a member of the BID. After a two-hour training by FCNY staff, 10 teams of volunteers, surveyed 170 blocks, with technical assistance provided throughout the survey by FCNY staff. In the words of one Association staff member, "... many people found the experience interesting and enlightening-particularly in a civic sense. A quote we heard more than once was: "I'll never look at the city-or my own neighborhood-in the same way again."