Four new tenants are taking space in the historic district of Governors Island: Billion Oyster Project, Shandaken Projects, the Institute for Public Architecture and Beam Center. These new tenants will occupy three buildings in the Nolan Park area on a year-round basis which is moving things towards making the island a year-round public destination. They are joining a community of already year-round tenants including the Lower Manhattan Cultural Council and Urban Assembly New York Harbor School.
Nolan Park is already home to a seasonal cultural program, with nearly two dozen organizations utilizing the historic former military homes as programming space and workspaces for cultural practitioners and artists. Over time, the Governors Island Trust envisions expanding the seasonal model and shifting Nolan Park towards a year-round, multi-tenant campus. All four new tenants will include open hours and programming accessible to Island visitors during its growing public season. Currently the island is open from May to October which will be expanded in the near future.
Highlights for families:
- The Billion Oyster Project (BOP), whose mission is to restore New York Harbor’s oyster population and biodiversity, leverages a robust volunteer program and works with organizations across the City to accomplish their goal. BOP will utilize one of two suites in 20 Nolan Park as a mix of offices, meeting rooms, a public exhibition space, a classroom, public programming, and workshop space. The site will be BOP’s primary location and headquarters and will serve as an expansion of their work on Governors Island over the past 10 years.
- Beam Center is a non-profit organization that empowers youth through ambitious, collaborative project-making in school partnerships, overnight summer experiences, and employment programs. Beam Center will build a Makerspace and Workshop in Building 107 where students, teachers, and visitors to Governors Island will engage in daily hands-on projects in traditional and advanced tools, technologies, and craft.
The island will reopen to the public in spring 2021, stay tuned!
