Founded in 1996 by local, visionary property owners, businesses and not-for-profit institutions, the Lincoln Square Business Improvement District (BID) is a 501(c)3 not-for-profit that improves the quality of life in Lincoln Square, a world-famous cosmopolitan area on Manhattan’s Upper West Side, and the cultural and entertainment heart of the City. The BID’s mission is to make Lincoln Square cleaner, safer, and more beautiful, and to undertake various improvement projects. We focus our efforts on supplemental sanitation and security services; the beautification of public spaces, malls, and parks; and the promotion and marketing of the area’s diverse business and cultural offerings. The Lincoln Square BID acts as a catalyst, working with business, community, and city partners, to promote positive change in Lincoln Square. Our programs and initiatives are designed to showcase the rich and varied resources of this vibrant Upper West Side neighborhood.
Public Safety
The Lincoln Square BID’s Public Safety Officers monitor assigned zones, acting as additional eyes and ears for the NYPD and tracking and referring various conditions throughout the neighborhood to the appropriate channels. The officers, who also act as neighborhood ambassadors, will gladly answer questions and give directions.
Area Maintenance
The Lincoln Square BID’s dedicated Clean Team, with assistance from the Goddard Riverside Community Center’s Green Keepers, works diligently to keep Lincoln Square’s public spaces pristine. The Clean Team performs a myriad of duties including, but not limited to: sweeping area sidewalks, cleaning street furniture, emptying trash receptacles and removing graffiti. In the winter, members of the Clean Team also keep the neighborhood safe by shoveling snow and salting the neighborhood’s sidewalks.
Streetscape and Beautification
The Lincoln Square BID’s Streetscape and Beautification Program is one of our organization’s most visible and successful efforts for neighborhood improvement. When the Lincoln Square BID was established in 1996, we immediately identified the enhancement of the district’s public spaces, especially its ten Broadway Malls, as a key objective. With plenty of elbow grease and well over $2.5 million raised from our supporters over the last 20+ years, Lincoln Square’s gardens and public spaces have been transformed into green oases.
Marketing and Promotion
Lincoln Square BID works to promote local businesses using social media, e-mail marketing, public signage, and more to highlight the district’s diverse offerings. The BID places Lincoln Square at center stage with its free summer concert series, engaging holiday programming, well-stocked information carts, a bi-weekly newsletter, and a robust online neighborhood guide and events calendar.
