In the summer of 2021, Bridge Street Development Corporation (BSDC) and the Tompkins Avenue Merchants Association (TAMA) launched an Open Streets Program in Bed-Stuy to provide an outdoor gathering space for the community while encouraging residents to shop locally.
The weekly Sunday block party — which runs June through October, along a six-block stretch of Tompkins Avenue dubbed "Black Girl Magic Street" after the sizable number of Black woman-owned stores — arguably has become one of the liveliest and most popular open street gatherings in all of Brooklyn.
“We want to make sure that the program is beneficial to the businesses — that they actually see increased revenue and increased foot traffic and repeat business," said Oma Holloway, chief operating officer at BSDC. "Those are the types of subjective metrics we are looking at to see."
According to a 2021 survey executed by BSDC, the program was succeeding. Not every merchant who participates in Tompkins Avenue Open Streets responded to BSDC's survey, but of the 14 brick-and-mortar business owners who did, four businesses reported no noticeable increase in revenue, one reported a 1%-10% increase, six reported 10%-25% increase, one reported 25%-50% increase and two businesses reported a more than 50% increase in revenue.
BSDC did not issue a survey after the 2022 season, but it is in the process of issuing a 2023 survey. The results of the 2023 survey so far are here.
This year, several outdoor vendors BK Reader interviewed said they are seeing positive returns.
“I used to be selling in the West Village but I am actually doing better here,” said Esther Thiane, a vintage seller from France. “I thought it would have been the opposite. So many people are coming here from the neighborhood but also from other parts of the city.”
However, along with its growing popularity, the calls for the event's end have also grown. Local homeowners have complained of noise, litter and loitering. There was one major police-involved incident in 2022 when a rowdy bar crawl crashed the block party, which forced TAMA and BSDC to pause, call a community meeting and reassess the event's operations.
So where is the Tompkins Avenue street fair today?
BK Reader surveyed the ones for whom the program was originally intended: the small-business owners and vendors on "Black Girl Magic Street."
"No Comment"
BK Reader visited some of the merchants along Tompkins Avenue — some were members of TAMA, others were not — to ask a short list of questions regarding the impact of the street fair on their businesses.
Interestingly, BK Reader found that very few merchants were willing to comment on their experience one way or the other openly. Many of those who did speak requested anonymity.
"Ever since that incident [last year], it has significantly changed," said one Tompkins Avenue Open Streets merchant who asked to remain anonymous. "There was an incident with Kwanzaa Crawl and TAMA at the same time, and it hasn't been the same. It used to be a beautiful thing. The vibe was amazing; the DJs were amazing. It was truly Black Girl Magic."
The anonymous source was a vendor at the launch of Tompkins Open Streets in 2021 and continues to vend today. She said the block party has gotten quieter with less foot traffic, which has meant a drop in business for her.
Latisha Daring, who owns Greedi Vegan, a vegan food diner, said she actually loses money during the Sunday block party. She said the restricted access to parking that begins an hour before the event on Sundays deters her customers from showing up to her brunch service.
Daring estimated losses between $1,000 and $2,000 during those crucial hours when the festival is active. She said foot traffic from the festival doesn’t start flowing into Greedi Vegan until around 2:00pm, killing the first three hours of her brunch service.
“Those same people who would pull up, park and indulge are no longer able to do so, making it cumbersome to find a place to park after 11:00am," Daring said.
During dining hours, Daring said Greedi Vegan faced an overwhelming demand for its restrooms from festival-goers. The restrooms are located about 20 paces from the front door down a narrow path, causing significant disruptions. And, she noted, that some festival vendors positioned themselves in front of Tompkins Avenue shops, selling items that competed directly with Greedi Vegan's offerings.
“We boast about this being ‘Black Girl Magic Row,’ but there is no infrastructure to support that,” Daring said. She said two businesses are considering moving or have already shut their doors due to complications from the festival, like Harriet’s Alter Ego, which closed in the spring.
“These businesses are being allowed to close with no fighting chance, no support from the Merchants Association,” she said.
Another merchant, who was not a member of TAMA and who also asked to remain anonymous, quipped about "the politics" of the street festival. She expressed frustration around what she alleged was a Merchants Association that ignored the needs of any businesses that did not go along with the Open Streets program.
This same merchant said she believes TAMA has a much greater interest in the grant money it receives for the festival than caring for the actual needs of the merchants.
“We don’t make money off of this event — It’s a nonprofit endeavor," said Oma Holloway, chief operating officer at BSDC.
Costs, sponsors and earnings
The Open Streets program on Tompkins Avenue is sponsored by the office of City Council Member Chi Ossé, who represents District 36, which includes Bed-Stuy and Crown Heights.
According to the program's balance sheet, which was shared with BK Reader, the organization has spent more than $51,000 on this year’s Tompkins Avenue Open Streets programming as of Sept. 11. By the end of the 16-week season, Holloway said that number would likely jump to $75,000. But, since then, two weekends in a row have been rained out.
BSDC estimates that it has received $93,000 to run the program in 2023. The program is supported by the Department of Transportation and the Department of Small Business Services, which kick in $18,000 and $50,000, respectively, not including in-kind donations.
The program also has private sponsors, including National Grid, Chase Bank and the EEAP Coalition. Altogether, the sponsors contribute an estimated $25,000, not including in-kind donations.
“Street management,” comprises $32,000, not including in-kind donations, “cleanliness and beautification” comprises $20,000, not including in-kind donations; streetscape improvements comprises $10,000 and marketing the event comprises $13,000, according to the organization.
What will happen next year?
Jared Hassan Foles, a homeowner near Tompkins Avenue, wants the current program to end. Foles said Ossé told homeowners at a meeting this August that he would not provide his support for next year’s Open Streets program.
“He said other things as well, which haven't come to pass," Foles said. "But he definitely made that statement."
A spokesperson from Ossé’s office said it’s a new application every year but declined to comment on matters relating to the event.
“People of color and women were able to actually really regain the revenue that they lost during Covid,” Holloway said of the local businesses on the corridor. “We also were able to create a positive outdoor space for the community to take advantage of.”
While there's no denying that the Open Streets festival brings energy, excitement and new business to Tompkins Avenue during the summer months, it also highlights the challenges and complexities of preserving the neighborhood's unique identity amidst the evolving dynamics between long-term residents and newcomers, as well as homeowners — both old and new.
Communication is key
Tompkins Avenue Open Streets was popular for many reasons — the culture, the community, the music, the vibes. It was started to serve as a safe space to let the community just be. But how safe is a program that prioritizes the needs of one part of the community over another and where not every voice feels free to speak up?
"It was magical. It truly was amazing... positive vibes. Never any incidents," said Janice about how the program started and where it is today. "I just think the community needs to come together to find a middle ground and bring that magic back."
Daring agrees. For many of the business owners, she said, the issue isn't that they don't like the festival.
"I just think there's a way it can be done where you're making an effort to listen to and respect everyone's needs." It's called "a compromise," Daring added.
Holloway said BSDC and TAMA are exploring all options.
“Every year, we have an open dialogue with the community and work toward making a decision about what happens in [the next year],” she said.
The last Open Streets for 2023 is this Sunday, October 8.
As the program comes to a close, BK Reader asked BSDC when and where that community meeting will take place, as the hope is that the problems that have been building up over the past three years do not carry over unresolved into the next.
According to Conor Hassett, BSDC's commercial revitalization program manager, the nonprofit has no information yet on a date nor location for that critical community conversation — critical, because it's going to take more than magic to build goodwill and commerce in this ever-evolving and historic Bed-Stuy community.
To do that, it will take the entire village.
Additional reporting by Jourdan Hicks and C. Zawadi Morris.
This is the second in a two-part series on the Tompkins Avenue Open Streets Program. To read part one, go here.
