Trygve Lie Plaza
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Trygve Lie Plaza | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Type | Urban park |
| Location | Murray Hill, Manhattan, New York, US |
| Coordinates | 40°44′55″N 73°58′13″W / 40.74861°N 73.97028°W |
| Area | 0.10 acres (0.04 ha) |
| Authorized | 1948 |
| Operated by | New York City Department of Parks and Recreation |
Trygve Lie Plaza is a 0.10-acre (0.04 ha) public park in the Murray Hill neighborhood of Manhattan, New York City. Located on the west side of First Avenue between East 41st Street and East 42nd Street, the park was created in 1948 as part of the widening of First Avenue for the development of the United Nations. It was named after Trygve Lie in 1998.[1]
The site of the park was previously occupied by a strip of four story tenements that abutted the east side of the base of Tudor Tower in Tudor City. The new parkland, including the property for Ralph Bunche Park on the opposite side of East 42nd Street, was acquired by the city as part of the widening of First Avenue to accommodate the United Nations headquarters. These street improvements also included the construction of the vehicular tunnel that runs under First Avenue from East 42nd to 48th streets.[2][3][4] To accommodate the construction of the south portal for the tunnel, a 28-foot-wide (8.5 m) strip of land was also removed from the western edge of the park on the opposite side of First Avenue (now called Robert Moses Playground).[5] Condemnation of the land between East 41st and 42nd streets was authorized by the New York City Board of Estimate in August 1948.[6] The land lot for the park has an area of 4,147 square feet (0.10 acres; 0.04 ha), with a frontage of 197.5 feet (60.2 m) and a depth of 21 feet (6.4 m).[7]
The park is not accessible from East 41st Street due to the presence of a 30-foot-high (9.1 m) retaining wall adjacent to Tudor City and the tunnel portal on First Avenue.[8] The south end of the park connects to a pedestrian arcade that runs from East 40th to 41st streets in a sidewalk easement below Windsor Tower in Tudor City; the pedestrian walkway under the building was also built as part of the street improvements to accommodate the United Nations headquarters.[4][9][10] The retaining wall along the western edge of the park includes a bronze tablet listing the individuals and firms associated with construction of the First Avenue Underpass from 1950 to 1952.[11][12]
In 1998, the park was named after Trygve Lie, who had served as the first Secretary-General of the United Nations and was a supporter of locating the United Nations headquarters in New York City.[1][8]
