In November 2023, the Gramercy Park Block Association shared an interview with Arlene Harrison conducted by David Doty, then president of the National Arts Club. Governor Emeritus Arthur Barnes helped facilitate the conversation.
Asked what inspired her, Harrison described the relationship between the central garden and its surrounding historic residential buildings. For her, the responsibility of stewardship came from that combination: a landscape and a neighborhood whose character depended on one another.
Asked about her legacy, Harrison singled out Gramercy Park North. She spoke about resisting uses she felt would undermine its residential character and continuing that preservation work.
The concern has a longer history in the earlier Gramercy Park North campaign.
Harrison also expressed enthusiasm for MCR’s plans to restore the Gramercy Park Hotel under Tyler Morse. In 2023, its reopening was still a future prospect.
Later letters document the practical conversations that accompanied the redevelopment: sidewalk conditions, traffic and operating arrangements. Read the Hotel’s continuing story to follow the relationship from an early welcome to detailed neighborhood advocacy.
Sources
Adapted from the interview reproduced in the Block Association’s November 28, 2023 newsletter, including David Doty’s introduction.