Number 3 Bedford Street in New York’s West Village is where Sonia Sotomayor lived for decades prior to her appointment as Supreme Court Associate Justice in 2009.
Sotomayor has described the West Village as a vibrant neighborhood where through the years she enjoyed shopping for groceries at its specialty stores and was a regular at the local bakery. She, of course, would have thrived on friendships in its creative and close-knit community as well.
But that West Village is now seriously under siege and has been since the de Blasio administration first inflicted a temporary Open Restaurants policy on the historic district with booze sheds currently saturating some blocks like a disease on dying coral reefs.
I find it particularly crushing, having lived productively in the West Village for most of my life.
Several lawsuits have been introduced to stop the Open Restaurants/Open Streets madness—most recently a lawsuit arguing that Open Streets is not compatible with the Americans with Disabilities Act. —And I agree.
However, New York City’s mayor and council have been at best tone deaf to the reality on the ground and continue to push the Open Restaurants/Open Streets agenda despite protests for years now by NYC residents, protests covered by major NYC print, television and social media.
The mayor and city council appear to care foremost about what the hospitality industry, Disney, Google, and developers want. However, residents know that their rights come first— human rights guaranteed per New York City Human Rights Law, New York State Human Rights Law, as well as the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
New York City residents want the Open Restaurants /Open Streets nightmare to stop.
NYC councilmembers seem to be waiting until after June 27 primary elections before voting on whether to make Open Restaurants permanent (Intro Bill 31-B) so as not to be voted out of office.
For sure, the story cannot end with a decision unfavorable to residents. Despotism cannot prevail.
According to the National Constitution Center: “Nothing in the Constitution’s guarantees of free speech make political commentary out of bounds for judges, or for Supreme Court Justices. If their First Amendment rights are actually restricted at all, it is only when they say something that shows they would be (or would be seen to be) biased about how they would decide a present or future lawsuit.”
So what are your thoughts, Sonia Sotomayor, about the ongoing devastation of your beloved West Village?
Following is just a fraction of the Outdoor Dining blight to the West Village due to inept and/or compromised city leadership.
OSCILLATIONS 
How to bring an end to open restaurants on the street? First, the awnings are new constructions and should not be permitted. Tables on the street are charming, in my opinion, although admittedly, I would most likely not be able to afford the food prices at these establishments. Which leads me to various thoughts as to how to cure the situation. Although I abhor the Fed, perhaps if it raised interest rates a tad more, the resulting recession would put a damper on the obvious financial bubble that is fueling this movement of outdoor restauranting. If the Canadians would have a few more forest fires, this also might help. Then, how about banning alcoholic beverages at outdoor tables! Or a “rat” tax. Rather than aiming at a total ban on outdoor restaurants, perhaps targeting the worst aspects of the practice would help the situation. I noticed this practice in the upstate city of Saratoga Springs, one of the best preserved locations in the country. I find it charming, but also somewhat elitist, but the money is out there, and that’s what is fueling the spillover from restaurants onto the street.
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Peter, thank you for your suggestions. Recent Canadian wildfire smoke did indeed thin outdoor restaurant crowds. Mounties have determined fires due to arson.
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