Rock venue Irving Plaza is set to go quiet this summer for an eight-month renovation. The 150-year-old venue hosts its last scheduled show for the year on June 30—headlined by tropical band Guaco—before shutting down for work that is scheduled to last until next spring.
Live Nation, the concert hall’s operator, announced the planned renovations this week along with the Polish Army Veterans Association, which has owned the building since 1948.
The 3,300-square-foot hall was converted from a Polish-American community center into a concert venue in 1978. Since then, Irving Plaza’s marquee has listed big-name artists including Bob Dylan, the Foo Fighters, Radiohead and the Talking Heads. Paul McCartney played a surprise show there to a capacity crowd of about 1,000 on Valentine’s Day in 2015.
But, as some Yelp reviews document, concertgoers have complained about the venue’s narrow interior and a layout that makes it difficult to buy a drink or use the restroom without missing segments of the show.
Live Nation is promising that the venue will reopen with a revamped lobby, new bars, a downstairs VIP lounge and a remodeled mezzanine with a new configuration for box seats. A Live Nation spokesman said four new bathrooms are on the way as well.
Sad to see Patsy’s Pizzeria leave University Place. For more than 15 years it was the most reliable pizza in the neighborhood. What will take its place?
The retail retreat continues. MAC Cosmetics is gone from its 14th St. perch near Broadway.
Go here to see a photo of the first Earth Day in Union Square, April 22, 1970. In the photo you can even see a bit of our building.
This rather fascinating report on pedestrian foot traffic in the area reveals that sidewalk crowds are up 53% in the past five years. If you’ve ever walked past Whole Foods at 6 PM, this will come as no surprise. In fact, Whole Foods is probably mainly responsible for the surge.
From the Union Square Partnership:
Union Square Partnership invites you to share your opinion about our work in our 2023 Annual Community Opinion Survey. Your feedback helps us better understand our community’s priorities and perceptions of the Union Square-14th Street neighborhood and plan for future projects. The survey will be open until 5:00 PM on Thursday, August 24th, 2023. It takes about 10 minutes.
Survey participants will be entered for a chance to win one of six (6) $50 gift certificates from one of the following neighborhood businesses:
The Survey is Here: https://www.unionsquarenyc.org/2023-community-survey.
Thank you for your participation! Your feedback is invaluable.
Sincerely,
Union Square Partnership Team
