The Leading Real Estate Developer in New York

Posted by Julia Klaiber on March 26, 2010

The L.A. Times featured this terrific review of NYC Transportation Commissioner Janette Sadik-Khan’s keynote remarks at last week’s L.A. StreetSummit at Occidental College.

Janette, who is responsible for 6,000 miles of streets and highways, nearly 800 bridges, 1.3 million street signs, 300,000 streetlights and 12,000 signalized intersections, told the captivated audience that she considers herself to be “the leading real estate developer in New York.”

Indeed, under her leadership (and with unwavering support from Mayor Bloomberg) the New York City landscape has changed dramatically. At times armed only with a paintbrush and some traffic cones, Janette has rapidly reclaimed public space for pedestrians, most notably by permanently banning car traffic from Times Square. 

Hawthorne doesn’t shy away from the hard question, noting the obvious contrast of Janette’s message with the landscape of her host city. Of Los Angeles, he asks, “Is there anything to be done to lessen the power that the automobile holds over the shape of the city?”

And perhaps that is how Janette’s message resonates most – not as a wholesale rejection of cars but a push toward inclusive design that promotes accessibility for all Big Apple commuters, not just the drivers.

We are eager to hear more from Janette when she addresses our national meeting in New York on April 20.