Outdoor 'Reading Rooms Will Return To Bryant and Herald Square Parks

The iconic al fresco Reading Rooms and other free activities for the public have returned to Bryant Park, Herald Square Park, and Greeley Square Park in Midtown.

Introduced in Bryant Park in 2003, the Reading Room was modeled after an "Open Air Library" which began in August 1935 in response to Depression-era job losses in New York. The Herald Square Park Reading Room was introduced in 2014. Both include reading material for adults and Bryant Park also has books for children.

The Reading Rooms in both parks supply visitors with an array of books, periodicals, and newspapers, free of charge. In the coming weeks and months, popular programming such as authors' presentations will also be returning. Hours in Bryant Park are 11am-7pm daily, and 11am-5pm Monday to Friday in Herald Square.

In addition to the Reading Rooms, the trio of privately managed Midtown spaces-Bryant Park, Herald Square Park, and Greeley Square Park-have reintroduced well-loved programs and free activities for the public.

For Bryant Park, that means the return of free Tai Chi classes, Birding Tours, Piano, Ribbon Dancing, board games, ping-pong, and the Art Cart. At Greeley, Midtown Dance launched May 4 with free dance classes, and "Midtown Recess" returns May 17 with free ping-pong tables and a selection of games, all located at Broadway Boulevard adjacent to Greeley Square Park.

Bryant Park Games, Chess, and the Art Cart are stationed at the Fifth Avenue Terrace near the front of the New York Public Library. Ping Pong and Reading Room are situated on the 42nd Street side of the park.

While the parks remained fully opened during the pandemic, a number of beloved activities were suspended in order to comply with Covid-19 protocols.

"With Midtown returning to normal as the pandemic ebbs, we are seeing increased traffic in our parks," said Dan Biederman, whose business improvement districts manage the three parks under an agreement with the City of New York. "Providing programs and amenities for visitors has been a keystone in the successful operation of these green spaces for more than 25 years."

Bryant Park Corporation (BPC) is a not-for-profit, private management company founded in 1980 to renovate and operate Bryant Park in New York City. It was established by Daniel A. Biederman and Andrew Heiskell, with support from the Rockefeller Brothers Fund. BPC was formed to restore historic Bryant Park, which had suffered a severe decline in conditions in the 1970s. It is the largest effort in the nation to apply private management backed by private funding to a public park, and it has been a success with public, press, and nearby institutions. BPC shares its management team with the 34th Street Partnership.

Founded in 1992, the 34th Street Partnership (34SP) is a not-for-profit, private management company organized as a business improvement district (BID) stretching from Park Ave. to 10th Ave. along 34th St. and abutting streets to the north and south. It is funded by assessments on property within its boundaries, fees from Herald and Greeley Squares' concessions, and revenue generated by events in the squares. One of the most ambitious BIDs in the United States, 34SP receives no tax dollars, nor does it solicit funds from philanthropic donors. The Partnership provides an array of services including private security and sanitation, and streetscapes and design enhancements, all aimed at improving the quality of life for landlords, tenants, workers, shoppers, and tourists in one of the nation's busiest urban corridors.