Ground Up: New Design High School

At New Design High School, Hester Street worked with students to study how land-use planning decisions have affected the way their neighborhood is shaped and how it is changing. Students worked directly with community organizers and urban planners to use real neighborhood developments as case studies, such as the Seward Park Urban Renewal Area (SPURA), one of the largest areas of undeveloped land in Manhattan, or the Allen and Pike Street corridor, an underutilized space that has been transformed into a linear park connecting the different Lower East Side neighborhoods. Through their studies, students are empowered to become the next generation of leaders for their community.