CVS Joins Forces with the New School

Here’s what’s on display in the park:

Miranda July is a fiction writer (No One Belongs Here More Than You), a filmmaker (Me and You and Everyone We Know), a performance artist (Things We Don’t Understand and Are Definitely Not Going to Talk About), and an occasional sculptress. It’s that latter designation that’s the focus of a new public art installation, the comparatively terse “Eleven Heavy Things,” organized by Deitch Projects, which opened late last week in New York’s Union Square Park. (The installation will remain in the park through October 3rd.) The sculptures, many of which revolve around a line of text written in July’s own hand, prod the viewer into audience interaction. “What I look like when I’m lying,” reads one, a white tablet through which the viewer can stick his head. A trio of pedestals — labeled ‘The Guilty One,’ ‘The Guiltier One,’ and ‘The Guiltiest One’ — asks participants to gauge (and flaunt) their general culpability. Three of the sculptures are wordless “headdresses,” decorative sculptures that July compares to the dialogue-free stretches of a movie: “The shapes are those parts of this piece.”

Next week (December 12 to December 16), DOT approved street connections to underground utilities on Fifth Avenue have been completed. Superstructure work will continue at 1st and 2nd floor levels. Sidewalk sheds will continue being erected around the perimeter of the site. The roof protection at USC Condo courtyard will be started this week as well.

The following week (December 19 to December 23), we will continue superstructure concrete and slabs on 1st and 2nd floor levels.

This weekend the site will be open on Saturday, December 3rd for superstructure related activities between the work hours of 7AM and 5PM as permitted by the City. To control noise levels within the site, work activities will be limited to the placement of formwork, plumbing and electrical work, rebar for concrete placement and use of the crane and equipment to support all activities. Safety horns are used, and required by law, to coordinate lifting with the crane and to alert the workers of the danger overhead. We have directed the operators to limit the use of horns to one short sounding and to use the crane later in the day so as to avoid any excess noise.

Next week (October 10 to October 14), contractors will continue to excavate earth and load out material. Concrete foundation walls at the South East corner of the site and slab on grade work will continue. Underground electrical and plumbing work will continue. DOT approved street connections to underground utilities on Fifth Avenue will progress. Formwork and rebar for superstructure will continue at cellar levels.

The following week (October 17 to October 21 ), we will continue superstructure concrete and slabs, street utility connections and underground electrical and plumbing.

The latest from the New School:

Next week (January 17-21), Urban Foundations will continue to drill solder piles on 14th Street. The pile driving rig is scheduled to arrive on site, and will begin driving piles on 5th Ave, moving South. Loading out of debris and earth from the site will continue. Hand chopping of the existing foundation wall in the South East corner of 65 Fifth will also be taking place. Installation of the fence along the USC Courtyards will take place, followed by the removal of the existing protection.

The following week (January 23 – 28), Urban is anticipated to continue driving piles along 5th Avenue, then continuing to 13th Street moving East. Excavation of earth and installation of timber lagging between piles on 14th street is planned to begin. Loading out of debris and earth from the site will continue. Demolition of existing foundation wall in SE corner of 65 Fifth by hand chopping will continue.

The 4th Quarter Union Square Partnership Business Report, available here, has some interesting updates:

Union Square finished the year strong, with storefront occupancy in the BID1 reaching 91% in Q4 2025 (compared to 85% in Q4 2024). This growth reflects continued   confidence in the district and demand from both national operators and emerging local players. Around Union Square Park, five long-vacant corner storefronts are slated to welcome new business openings in 2026, including global apparel anchor UNIQLO as well as Flight Club and Voodoo Doughnut, both new to NYC.

60 businesses opened in Union Square in 2025 (11 more than in 2024). Q4’s 16 openings ranged from top retailers like Pacsun, Ulta Beauty, and Aritzia (which expanded into a new space three times its previous size), to more intimate establishments like Maison Welles and Stars. Nespresso debuted its 13,000+ SF flagship that merges traditional retail with multi-sensory coffee tastings, interactive masterclasses, and a speakeasy. While Nespresso leads in scale, smaller coffee-forward openings include unique experiences this quarter, including Ioannis Coffee Chef’s “farm-to-cup” workshops and luckin coffee’s tech-driven model. With rising occupancy and a robust tenant pipeline, Union Square enters 2026 primed for an exciting year.