Manhattan · New York County
180 Water Street
POPS - Outdoor Plaza
- Location
- 180 Water Street, Financial District
- Size
- 0.25 acres
- Hours
- Open during business hours
- Type
- POPS - Outdoor Plaza
180 Water Street is a Privately Owned Public Space along the Water Street corridor in the Financial District, continuing the chain of outdoor plazas that line this major north-south avenue through Lower Manhattan.
Water Street's name records its former position as the eastern shoreline of Manhattan, before landfill pushed the waterfront further east to create Front, South, and the current FDR Drive roadway. The street's maritime history is buried beneath layers of urban development.
The plaza at 180 Water Street serves the office and residential populations of the eastern Financial District, providing outdoor seating and open space in a part of Manhattan where such amenities are limited by the density of development.
The Water Street corridor improvement initiative has sought to activate these plazas with better furniture, plantings, lighting, and occasional programming, recognizing that the corridor's POPS are essential public amenities for the growing Lower Manhattan community.
This plaza contributes to one of the most significant linear collections of POPS in the city, a corridor of public space that stretches the length of Lower Manhattan's eastern flank.