Exploring the City's Secrets through Open House New York! -With Kristin LaBuz

10:11Kelly:That is hilarious. I've never heard that. I feel that, though. I feel like whenever I'm up there, it's really like it's a soft lighting. it's a romantic lighting it really makes you feel like uh you can look out to the plants or the art or even like the city skyline and like fall in love with it so like i that really hit home for me i completely agree so can i share and then after after um the move to work for the

10:38Kristin LaBuz:design trust and then i got a great job opportunity at the dumbo improvement district and so this is Dumbo, a neighborhood we know and love. But this was, you know, 15 years ago. And it was when I moved there, there was still the stories of, you know, at a certain time, late 90s, early 2000s, cabs wouldn't take you to Dumbo, right? They dropped bodies in the river. And it was this incredible opportunity to think about economic development, neighborhood revitalization, again, installing bike lanes, but also to do some great cultural activities. And one of the greatest things I've ever done in my career was in 2014 World Cup.

11:16Kristin LaBuz:The Dumbo Improvement District partnered with Nike and with Rooftop Films, and we showed World Cup games in the archway under the Manhattan Bridge on this giant 30-foot inflatable screen. And I'll never forget, there was one afternoon where the U.S. was playing, and we had a thousand people under the Manhattan Bridge Archway violated every fire code. Sorry. Sorry to SAPO. And my boss that morning had sent me to to Party City and she's like, get some decorations to make it festive. So it's really hard to make the Manhattan Bridge festive. It's a it's a massive cavernous space. So what I did was I took that two hundred dollars and I bought a bunch of mini USA flags and beach balls and just threw them in the crowd and to hear thousands of people chanting for the U.S.

12:04Kristin LaBuz:at this free event in public space, it was an experience like no other.

12:10Kelly:Wow, that sounds amazing. I love Dumbo now too. It really is beautiful. Have they completely renovated or changed it to what it is today?

12:20Kristin LaBuz:So after the Dumbo Improvement District, I got a job working for the New York City Health Department, this incredible city agency with 6 ,000 employees whose job in life is to make our city healthier. And I was specifically working in active design. So the notion there as an urban planner, not a public health expert, was how do we create a built environment that promotes exercise and healthy living choices? And so we had this pilot project in the South Bronx, you know, which is one of the poorest, if not the poorest congressional districts. Also high incidence of chronic disease like diabetes, heart disease, obesity.

12:56Kristin LaBuz:And we did this pilot project where we took these step streets because the Bronx is very hilly. So they have these step streets that cut between two elevations. It is. We worked with local artists to paint murals on these step streets. So to make the walking environment, you know, more vibrant and friendlier and to encourage physical activity.

13:15Kelly:Can I ask you about what year this was?

13:16Kristin LaBuz:Sure. This this was 2016, 2017.

13:21Kelly:I'm serious about that because I love all the artwork and the murals in the Bronx. But go ahead.

13:25Kristin LaBuz:And, you know, these are neighborhoods that, you know, for a variety of design and planning and policy decisions had been disinvested. and so we're going to prep the site for these step street murals and i remember a gentleman who was hanging around he approached us and he said who are you what are you guys doing in our neighborhood and we said we're with the health department we're with the city of new york and he looked at us and he said i didn't know the city cared about us in this neighborhood and it was one of these moments um where you really think what is the relationship between between a city and its citizens and how can we make it better?

14:02Kristin LaBuz:And I'll share another quick story. There was a local artist from the Bronx named Laura Alvarez who painted a beautiful mural. And these, we heard, you know, walking groups would meet at the step street. People would use them for training. And so it got a lot of use. There was some wear and tear. Laura came back one day with her paint can to do some touch-ups and community members saw her with her paint can and said, what are you doing? What are you doing? Don't touch our mural. They thought that she was going to deface it. And she said, no, no, no. I'm the artist. I want to, I want to repair it and restore it.

14:32Kristin LaBuz:But the sense of ownership and pride that the community felt in this public art and their neighborhood was, was completely eyeopening and very inspiring.

14:42Kelly:Very nice. And then this, you know, this experience led you to open house, New York. Is that correct?

14:51Kristin LaBuz:Yeah. So the, the through line through my career is open house, New York.

14:55Kelly:Exactly. Yeah.

14:56Kristin LaBuz:Amazing. So the through line through my career has been to bring people together in the city for shared experience and shared space, whether it is a thousand rowdy soccer fans under the Manhattan Bridge or, you know, walking groups climbing up these Step Street murals in the South Bronx. And so Open House New York is a nonprofit organization now in its 24th year that does public programming that invites New Yorkers to explore and experience the city, to connect to each other, to connect to place, and to really understand how this complex, kaleidoscopic metropolis works. And Open House New York is best known for our signature event.

15:35Kristin LaBuz:This is Open House New York weekend. It is a five-borough festival that is happening October 17th through 19th.

15:43Kelly:Beautiful. I have attended many open house New York events. There's a house on the, or there's a, there's a beautiful home on the Upper West Side. And I forget the name. It's a classic old hundred-year-old home that I go to. And I can't remember the name of it. And it's one of my favorite things to go to. We'll put it in the information. Yeah, it'll be in the link in the description. Yeah.

16:05Kristin LaBuz:And I'll say, I will try to look it up for you, Kelly. Over the last, you know, this will be our 23rd festival. We have opened up thousands and thousands of sites across the city. Right. So there are many, many places.

16:17Kelly:I was going to say, which one is it, Kristen, out of the thousands of?

16:21Kristin LaBuz:I'll get back to you on that.

16:23Kelly:And that's what's so amazing. You do have thousands of locations for people in every borough to go see. So it's truly incredible.

16:32Kristin LaBuz:And I just want to share a little bit about the origin story of Open House. Yes, please. We were inspired. There's a we're currently part of a network of some 60 to 70 cities around the globe who produce these citywide festivals. But it all started with an organization called Open House London in the mid 90s. And they were the first one to do, you know, this expansive citywide open house. And at that time, you know, late 90s, early 2000s, there was an architect named Scott Lauer who was in London. he saw open house London and he said, I have to bring this back to New York. This is incredible. He came back to New York burning with this idea in August 2001.

17:12Right.

17:13Kristin LaBuz:9, 9, 11 happened. The city was not ready to open up. Um, you know, security barricades went off, bollards went up, you know, it changed the dynamic of the city, but Scott held tight to this idea. He rallied a grassroots group of architects and they pushed for this vision and they made the first festival happen in 2003. They had some, you know, 300 volunteers, they opened up 80 buildings. But the notion was that openness, access, sharing the city is an act of resilience, an act of resistance. And we have been growing strong and growing every year ever since.

17:52Kelly:It's amazing. Can I give some examples per se of, you know, because it's, you know, it's iconic landmarks, right? Like the Woolworth Building or Grand Central Terminals, hidden spaces, maybe.

18:02Kristin LaBuz:Absolutely.

18:03Kelly:Private residences, architectural marbles, things like that. What I found interesting, too, is I read that I haven't seen yet that there's infrastructure sites like water treatment plants. Is that correct? And subway control centers. How fascinating is that?

18:19Kristin LaBuz:Well, let me tell you, being in this role for eight years, New Yorkers love two things, Right. Everybody loves a penthouse. Everybody loves a glitzy rooftop view. Everybody loves, you know, the iconic classic architecture. New Yorkers are also deeply fascinated by the guts of the city. So true. By the infrastructure, right? By the sanitation garages and the water pipes and the wastewater treatment plants and the DOT sign shop. And these are some of the spaces that I am most proud to open up for Open House New York because I truly think our public sector workers, and particularly the workers who design and maintain our infrastructure, are the unsung heroes of the city.

18:56Kristin LaBuz:the folks who are paving our potholes, ensuring that we have clean and good tasting drinking water, maintaining our parks. And Open House New York is an opportunity to shine a light on folks who do infrastructure, operations, maintenance, and they keep our city running.

19:15Kelly:I completely agree. I think it's important to thank, I'll walk up to some people who are working in the parks. I'll say, thank you for keeping our park clean for us. As a New Yorker, I say, thank you. And it's just nice to see them feel appreciated because they work hard and they do a lot of the jobs that are very difficult. I'm grateful for them. And I also love the subway. And I know the subway isn't known for being loved and something that's appreciated, but I truly appreciate the subway. It gets me around every day. It's the only way I travel. And I'm fascinated need to learn about it through Open House New York too, even more.

19:53Kelly:I think that's incredible.

19:54Kristin LaBuz:And I think sometimes when you look at systems like the subway or trash pickup, it seems like these big faceless bureaucracies. But at the end of the day, there are humans working really hard who care about the city and who are invested and who are doing the best they can.

20:09Kelly:100 % agree. Kudos to our New York City hardcore workers in general.

20:17Kristin LaBuz:Can I give a special, I want to give a special shout out. Over the past year, we've been doing a series of programming related to water systems and infrastructure. So we've been working closely with the New York City Department of Environmental Protection. I don't know if you guys know this, but we have the champagne of drinking water. I do know that. And it is a credit to, you know, this mix of 19 reservoirs upstate that feed our drinking supply. But Open House New York Weekend will kick off this year, 12.01 midnight, Friday morning, with the operations staff at DEP outside City Hall doing what they call stethoscopes for the street.

20:54Kristin LaBuz:Really? Which is where they basically have this audio equipment that can detect leaks in the water mains below.

21:02Kelly:That's fascinating.

21:02Kristin LaBuz:Again, work that happens is essential, is vital, is often unseen.

21:07Kelly:I completely agree. Unknown, too. So you just thought of something fascinating as well about New York City. You know, you said we have the champagne of water, correct? That's how you ordered it. I love that. I'm going to put that in my back pocket. That's a good one. But that's the reason, too, I tell everybody, you know, on the Christmas tours that, you know, I do or just my general walking tours around the city every day. I tell guests from all over the world, I always say, why do we have the best? I'm sorry. Why do we have the best pizza and bagels in New York City?

21:32Kristin LaBuz:Absolutely.

21:33Kelly:It's because of?

21:34Kristin LaBuz:Champagne of drinking water.

21:35Kelly:The champagne of drinking water. And from what I'm aware, it's from upstate New York from the Croton Reservoir. Is that correct?

21:42Kristin LaBuz:There's actually a system of 19 different reservoirs that feed. Look at you. And there's a job, somebody at DEP who is basically a mixologist who is blending the water from the different reservoirs at all times.

21:55Kelly:You just taught me something fascinating. That's so cool. This is what we do.

21:59Kristin LaBuz:This is what we do at Open House New York. Yeah, I absolutely love this.

22:02Kelly:So, Kristen, your pay job, which you love, is that Open House New York. But your real job is being a mom, correct?

22:11Kristin LaBuz:I am. A family person. I am a mom of a two and a half year old redheaded toddler named Olivia, who is a native New Yorker. And I'll tell you, being a parent in New York changes your relationship with the city in a real way. And let me caveat being that it is expensive and inconvenient to raise. Right. Just to state the obvious.

22:33Kelly:Hence the reason just me.

22:36Kristin LaBuz:go ahead but you know the level of exposure that kids who are lucky enough to grow up in new york city have completely agree is incredible you know my daughter as a toddler has had dim sum in chinatown has had uzbek food and ditmus park has had columbia food in in queens but it also as a parent makes me appreciate some of the things that i took for granted right when you take a toddler on a subway, it is not this, you know, dull commute. It is this act of wonder, right? She's learning to count by counting the two train, the three train, the four train, the five train.

23:09Kelly:I love it.

23:10Kristin LaBuz:And just, you know, the joy she experiences walking down the street. I have a really good story and I will, you know, Livia will be telling the story for the rest of her life. Last summer, we were on Classen Avenue in Prospect Heights and Livia, as many children do, was going through a real wheels on the bus phase. So just thrilled. It was like she was seeing Mickey Mouse every time she saw a city bus. So, but the B-48 is going north on Classen Avenue. We see it coming down the street. I stand with her just so she can watch it go by. And she's waving and bopping her head. The bus driver sees us.

23:46Kristin LaBuz:He pulls over. He opens the driver's side window and out sticks this massive meaty forearm and a fist with a leather driving glove. and he fist bumps my 18 month year old.

23:58Kelly:That's the cutest. Right? Classic New York.

24:01Kristin LaBuz:Like, I don't know that she's ever going to be able to top that.

24:03Kelly:You know, that's what I love about New York. You know, we get a bad rap for people saying people are rude. We're not. I mean, I see the most amazing interactions between New Yorkers daily, you know, and what's really, really cute is I see all the time on a train, little kids and their parents, they're like, just like with you, You know, what you just spoke of, I could envision in my mind because I see on the train constantly like little kids just going over the A, the B, the C train. Their parents are teaching them. I'm thinking that is fascinating, you know, and the kids love it. They're looking out the window.

24:37Kelly:And which leads me to this question I always ask parents of children in New York City. At what age do they take the subway by themselves? And that you feel comfortable that your child can go to school on the subway? To me, that's just a world I can't comprehend.

24:55Kristin LaBuz:I love that you're asking this question. Livia can't even tie her own shoelaces. To be honest, we haven't thought about that. But I do think there's something about growing up in New York that breeds a certain kind of independence. Yeah, exactly. Right. You learn how to navigate the world at a much younger age. You're not coddled because you can't be.

25:13Kelly:Right. Well, my good friend Jen, I mean, when her kids were teenagers, they were going to school on the subway every day. to me it's just you know I didn't live that life so it's just I find that fascinating and it's very unique about New York. Absolutely.

25:29Kristin LaBuz:The other thing I'll say about having a child is it's made me appreciate libraries and an absolute shout out to the New York you know to to New York Public Library, Brooklyn Public Library, Queens Public Library. You know I had always had a library card I had taken out ebooks for you know ever since I moved here but I didn't start visiting libraries truly until I had a child. And these spaces are so democratic, welcoming to all kinds of folks.

25:52Kelly:Correct.

25:53Kristin LaBuz:The breadth of programming and information and, of course, books that you can get at a library is something I think we should never take for granted.

26:01Kelly:100 % agree.

26:02Kristin LaBuz:And, you know, our libraries should not have to beg for change to be open on Sundays.

26:06Kelly:I completely agree. And I love that, back to your daughter, that how she's exposed to all this different food earlier from all parts of the world, you know, and she's also exposed to different people in general, being on the subway or New York City from all over the world, which is such a beautiful thing and brings us all together, you know, being on the subway, seeing all the diversity and different types of people. That's what makes us New Yorkers. That's what's beautiful about this city.

26:31Kristin LaBuz:Well, I'll share, Kelly, and we talked about this a little bit earlier, but I had an urban planning professor when I was at Penn and, you know, he was taking the Amtrak down from New York. And he would talk about what makes New York so great. And his quote, and this is verbatim, is density, diversity, and old shit. Right? The density is we just have so many millions and millions of people packed into a small space. The diversity across background, race, religion, sociocultural factors. I mean, it's just astounding what you have access to in New York. And then in old shit, he's talking about buildings, old buildings like this that have layers of history.

27:10Kristin LaBuz:And to quote our friend, Jane Jacobs, she says, new ideas need old buildings. And so for places like podcast studios or artist studios to flourish, we have to make sure we're preserving the fabric of the city.

27:25Kelly:Look at this newer podcast studio in this old, old building in Canal Street. And it's a beautiful podcast studio, isn't it? I love it. So Kristen, there are 340 sites correct for Open House New York? Where should people go? What should they do?

27:40Kristin LaBuz:It is such a good question. It is a buffet of opportunity to explore and experience a city. And let me just say those 340 sites account for 1 ,600 hours of public programming. 1 ,200 hours of that is absolutely free and open to the public on a drop-in basis. So really with Open House New Weekend, we have jam-packed 67 days of programming into a three-day weekend. So to learn more about the lineup because we have something for every background, every interest. Visit ohny.org. You can see the entire lineup. So, you know, just some highlights of the lineup. Of course, we'll see iconic architecture.

28:16Kristin LaBuz:Kelly, as you noted, the Woolworth Building lobby is phenomenal. We'll take folks inside Lever House designed by SOM. And as a special treat this year, we're taking people, not one, not two, but three private gardens atop roofs in Rockefeller Center.

28:32Kelly:Oh, I'm interested. You know what? I think I've seen them actually. Those gardens up top.

28:36Kristin LaBuz:Yep.

28:36Kelly:Gorgeous.

28:37Kristin LaBuz:And the views.

28:39Kelly:Highly recommend if anybody can go see that. Truly beautiful.

28:42Kristin LaBuz:Totally. And then we have a lot of ways for folks to be active. We are offering paddling in four of the five boroughs, either kayaking or canoeing. You can go stargazing in Inwood. You can bike at Floyd Bennett Field. You can do some stone carving in the garment district at a special studio. So all kinds of ways to, uh, to, to, to truly participate in the city. Um, infrastructure, we have so many of our city's agencies, parks, DOT, DEP, DDC. I know this is an alphabet soup. Um, one of, one of, uh, an agency or an authority we love is the port authority of New York and New Jersey. And so they're doing a really special tour for us this year, which is looking at the world trade center campus.

29:25Kristin LaBuz:Kelly, did you know that there's a network of, of roads been below ground level under the World Trade Center.

29:31Kelly:One World Trade?

29:33Kristin LaBuz:The entire campus. There's a network of roads that serve as deliveries, operations.

29:38Kelly:Underneath the waterfalls, even? I did not know that, and I definitely want to do it.

29:41Kristin LaBuz:And so the Port Authority is going to take you to see this network of roads. There's also a water chilling plant, which I'm told engineers and infrastructure geeks will nerd out over. And then at the end of this tour, the Port Authority will take you up to the 64th floor of One World Trade Center onto a private observation deck that is never, ever open to the public.

30:03Kelly:Wow, this is for Open House New York.

30:05Kristin LaBuz:It's for Open House New York weekend.

30:06Kelly:I didn't even know that was there, hence the word you just said, private.

30:09Kristin LaBuz:I see your jaws dropping and I love it. We love to have that effect on people. And then lastly, you know, New Yorkers love views. This is a truly cinematic city. So Silverstein Properties is opening up three World Trade Center, the 79th floor, which is Artist Studios.

30:26Kelly:Oh, okay. I'm so excited right now. I know that I've never been there and I've always wanted to go up there.

30:32Kristin LaBuz:And the 80th floor, which has a lot of the architectural models that informed the development, the redevelopment of Lower Manhattan. Brooklyn Grange, which is a rooftop farm in the Brooklyn Navy Yard. Yeah. Stunning views. And then the High Bridge Water Tower up in Washington Heights. The Parks Department is opening that. I'm not going to tell you how many stairs. A lot of, you know, you're climbing several stories up, but it is a truly incredible infrastructure space.

30:55Kelly:I walk by that all the time.

30:56Kristin LaBuz:that's my neighborhood well i feel like you've got to start planning your itinerary for the

31:01Kelly:weekend i love the high bridge um the high bridge itself incredible it was restored what about 10 years ago or whatever i loved it i love it but um i've oh i that one's so that high bridge water tower or whatever wow that's how cool would that be because that thing's really kind of thin too right gosh i have to um have to um be brave to go up that one and i want to do it and so and i see

31:25Kristin LaBuz:this effect happening on you right now, but you know, we're opening up 340 sites and we like to say we're giving you 340 reasons to fall in love with New York.

31:33Kelly:Yeah. You gave me 340 more. Definitely. I'm super excited. Gosh, I didn't see it. You're teaching me so much and I'm going to have a busy, I'm going to have to mark off my calendar to go see, to go do a lot of these things. Maybe I'll see you. I hope too.

31:49Kristin LaBuz:Yeah.

31:49Kelly:Well, let's do some planning. Yeah. I'm serious.

31:52Kristin LaBuz:But I think there's all kinds of ways to approach Open House New York Weekend. It is this mega list of things that you can do. We have folks who are planners who make these color-coded spreadsheets mapping out their days and their transportation routes. And folks are taking city bike and they're taking the subway. And a shout out to New York City Ferry, one of our sponsors. Love it. And one of the greatest ways to explore the city is by boat. And then we have folks who are chill, who say, I'm going to wake up Saturday morning and see what free drop-in sites are available. and have an adventure and just go from there.

32:24Kristin LaBuz:So no matter, you know, your interest or your planning style, Open House New York Weekend has something for you.

32:30Kelly:Can you tell me the dates again? Just so I want people to hear repeatedly the date.

32:34Kristin LaBuz:Open House New York Weekend is October 17th, 18th, and 19th.

32:38Kelly:Three days.

32:39Kristin LaBuz:Three days. The festival starts, like I said, at midnight, Friday, 12.01 with DEP doing this leak detection. And it ends Sunday evening at 10 p.m. and Inwood with some stargazing.

32:51Kelly:That's fascinating. So Kristen, what's the most surprising building or space that said yes to being a part of Open House New York weekend? Or that surprised you and you're excited that they agreed?

33:05Kristin LaBuz:Oh, that's such a good question. And there's so many.

33:08Kelly:Yeah, you can do multiple.

33:09Kristin LaBuz:I would have to give a shout out to our friends at the MTA. They're opening up some rail yards and some really special spaces. We always say at Open House New York, if you have to sign a waiver, you know it's going to be a good tour. So you always have to sign a waiver and go through security clearance for any of our MTA tours. Another big get this year was Con Ed. They're opening up their East River Generating Plant, which is on 14th Street. So you're going to see the space that powers, you know, homes and businesses and life for many New Yorkers.

33:42Kelly:That's interesting. That's very interesting. Kristen, have you seen any tangible impact, policy or community-based because of past open house New York event or projects?

33:53Kristin LaBuz:I love this question. And it gets to what is the impact of this work? Why do we do this? Why do we open up 340 buildings? And I think our mission and our programming is rooted in giving New Yorkers access, right? And the value of giving people access is so that you can understand how the city works. Once you understand, you start to care. Once you care, you become an invested citizen. And sometimes that investment could look like voting or it could look like volunteering or it could look like participating in your local block association. But, you know, less tangible policy outcomes, more of just a general sense of active participation and engagement among everyday New Yorkers.

34:35Kelly:Wow, you're so good at this. I love you. You love what you do. I can I can feel how you love what you do. It's wonderful. So, you know, so you do what we do all five boroughs with Open House New York. do you feel it's more of a challenge in certain boroughs to find certain communities to open up for open house in New York or is everybody gracious and you know open to showing and showcasing whatever I think you know do you go to them I'm so sorry do you go to say hey can we do you pick the buildings or do people come to you in certain boroughs and say hey what about

35:07Kristin LaBuz:this building it's a blend and I like to say we we are constantly location scouting our team has a wish list, you know, a seven page wish list of buildings we would love to open, including Yankee Stadium.

35:19Kelly:Oh, yeah. Right.

35:20Kristin LaBuz:There's there's so many great buildings in New York, but we also have an open call. We really want to be democratic in the process. And so if you have an idea for a building or more importantly, if you have keys to a building and you want to share that building with the public, reach out to us.

35:34Kelly:Nice. Have people just said no, they're not interested?

35:37Kristin LaBuz:You know, the reality is this is New York. And I think sometimes for safety or security reasons. Buildings haven't always been able to participate. But I think once we form a solid partnership and people, you know, embrace our mission, we've had a lot more yeses than we've had noes.

35:54Kelly:Interesting. Over the years that you've done this, do you have any, you know, favorite moments? What's that like a tour guide or a speaker that resonated with you that you remember that you really enjoyed on an open house New York experience?

36:09Kristin LaBuz:I love this question. I'm going to tell you a story. I was an open house New Yorker since before I was paid to be an open house New Yorker, right? It's my job now. And I started with the organization in 2019. But back in 2015, on a Sunday morning in October, my husband, who's a preservationist, said to me, hey, get in the car. We're going to JFK airport. Did he book a secret vacation for me that I didn't know about? No. And we're in the car and I'm like, Patrick, what are we doing? He said, we're going to go look at the abandoned TWA terminal.

36:41Kelly:Oh, wow.

36:42Kristin LaBuz:So this was in 2015. This was the last year, the space, before it underwent the renovation and became the incredible TWA hotel that it is now. But Open House New York opened that space to the public that Sunday. And over the course of six hours, had more than 10 ,000 people walk in the door. And I think the, have you guys been to the TWA hotel? Not yet, but I want to. I mean, it is a building where you feel the power of architecture the second you walk in the door. And people came in with memories of, you know, flying out of there when it was Idlewild Airport back in the 60s. We had people in, you know, stewardess cosplay outfits.

37:19Kristin LaBuz:But just the buzz of sharing space with fellow New Yorkers was so infectious that for the next few years, every few months, I would check the Open House New York website to see if they were hiring.

37:31Kelly:That's pretty amazing.

37:32Kristin LaBuz:And eventually, you know, the job opportunity opened up.

37:35Kelly:is there any spaces in NYC that changed how you see the city personally?

37:40Kristin LaBuz:I love this question. What I'll say is it's not for me a building as an urban planner. I'm interested in what Jan Gale calls, you know, the space between the buildings, our public space, the connective tissues. So one thing I've been really interested in seeing is the development and evolution of public spaces like plazas and new parks. and you know something that's very much on my radar is Gotham Park which is this grassroots effort to reimagine the space that is on the Manhattan side underneath the Brooklyn Bridge yes and I think there there are visionaries working behind it they've had some great success I've been there it's beautiful and I think it's just the power of vision and committed citizens and persistence and that's how you make great that's the story of the High Line that will be the story of Gotham Park and that's how you make great things happen in this city

38:32Kelly:This is a good tie-in question then. It might be the same space you just mentioned, but is there any NYC spaces that make you emotional?

38:41Kristin LaBuz:I love this question. And I'm gonna, I asked this, we had this conversation at an Open House New York board meeting recently and I asked my board members, where did you fall in love with New York? And so I'm gonna steal an answer from my board member, Liz Newmark. And she says, I fall in love with New York anytime I travel out of the city, whether it is nationally or internationally. and I come back to a New York City airport and I am greeted by the diversity and the energy that is New York City.

39:08Kelly:I love it. I completely understand. That's beautiful. No, I was gonna say, thank you for being on. This has been a really fun and like interesting episode. I learned about Open House New York a few months ago because a friend told me about a scavenger hunt that they were running for like, it was about water preservation and uh i unfortunately couldn't do it because i heard about last minute i had plans but i wanted to know if you could talk a little bit about scavenger hunts i hear you do them like one a year and like how do they get set up what's the process behind absolutely so scavenger hunts is

39:44Kristin LaBuz:is a really fun way that we do public programming it gamifies the experience of exploring the city we call it urban trivia meets new york city marathon um so this uh in may we did a five borough scavenger hunt related to water infrastructure sites.

40:00Kelly:I love it. We had more

40:01Kristin LaBuz:than 300 people participate and the participation ranged from casual participation. We had a couple of families or, you know, a dad with his six year old daughter to hardcore teams who visited all five boroughs and, and racked up, you know, the most amount of points imaginable. But I think, again, it just goes back to the ethos of open house New York, which is providing new opportunities for New Yorkers to understand how the city works and engage in designing its future.

40:31Kelly:Great question, Jay. Very good question.

40:33Kristin LaBuz:We do one scavenger hunt every year. Yeah, hopefully next year.

40:38Kelly:I want to do it too. They're so fun. They're so fun. I imagine, do you come up, I guess you don't come up with this stuff, but have your team come up with questions and places that get involved?

40:49Kristin LaBuz:Yeah, I mean, it is an Olympic feat. We have a puzzle master, somebody who loves doing this. I also, may I give a shout out to the Open House New York team? Of course. You think about the scale of this festival, 340 sites, 1 ,600 hours of programming. We are a team of six. So I would love to give a shout out to my colleagues, Elise, Allison, Beth, Riley, and Alba, who make magic happen every day.

41:15Kelly:Thank you to all of them. Truly appreciate them too. That's amazing. That's so sweet that you did that. One last question. your favorite nyc micro celebrity sure so i'm gonna i love this question uh i'm gonna give you

41:29Kristin LaBuz:a name you're not gonna recognize it but the name is charlie pellet you're not i know exactly who that is of course you do kelly so charlie pellet you may not know the name you'll know his voice he's the guy on the subway who says stand clear of the closing doors please um he has been an open house new york champion and fan for years and years and years and we started inviting him to come to our parties and our galas. And every year he gives a special toast. But first he introduces himself. And I think it's hard to impress New Yorkers who have seen it all, done it all. Completely agree. But when they see Charlie Pellett in person saying, stand clear of the closing doors, please, jaws drop.

42:09Kristin LaBuz:And that's always a special moment. But Charlie's toast for Open House New York, given our work and our festival, he says, stand clear of the opening doors, please. He raises a champagne glass and we have a toast.

42:22Kelly:I'm sure people love it. You know, I have a story too to add on to that. I used to be a photographer with the Central Park Conservancy and they were doing the Central Park Film Festival and Charlie Pellett was there to speak one day. And so I was standing with a couple of people there and the head of the Central Park Conservancy said, you know, you may know this gentleman. And then he grabbed the microphone. He said, you know, it's all New Yorkers. Just like you said, like no one cares. But Charlie Pellett said, please stand clear of the closing doors, please. You know his phrase. Please stand clear of the closing doors.

42:55Kelly:And the whole crowd lost it. Everybody was screaming and yelling. He is a true New York celebrity. I mean, it was one of the coolest things I've experienced in New York.

43:04Kristin LaBuz:And also, he's a massive infrastructure nerd.

43:08Kelly:Yeah, he is. Yeah. So that was, I totally know what you mean. It's a cool guy. Really cool guy. He's a huge part of New York City as well.

43:15Kristin LaBuz:So Kelly, may I ask you a question in the spirit of Open House New York Weekend? Of course. If you could unlock or visit any building in New York City, what would you like to see?

43:27Kelly:Gosh, there's so many. I've always wanted to see. I love the renovation of the Waldorf Astoria on Park Avenue. But from what I understand, underneath it, there's a subway station or something that I don't... Have you heard of it? There's something... Do you want to tell me?

43:44Kristin LaBuz:I actually, I've heard of it, but I don't have any. I can't offer any details. Yeah.

43:48Kelly:I was like, wow, you probably know about it. I don't, I'd love to see what's underneath Waldorf Astoria. You know, I know from what I understand, you know, I think Eisenhower actually took the subway or something under there, if I'm not mistaken. So I'd love to see what's under there. So maybe we could do a video or something about that one day.

44:06Kristin LaBuz:Open house New York weekend, 2026. Yeah. Let's see if we can make it happen.

44:10Kelly:Yeah. So it's, I mean, the Waldorf Astoria. Have you seen the renovation? I assume you probably have.

44:15Kristin LaBuz:I have not yet, but our good friends at SOM did it.

44:18Kelly:It's really, oh, it's gorgeous. But I want to see underground New York City. When I think of what I want to see like buildings, I want to see underground. I want to see the guts of New York City that you mentioned earlier. Perfect segue, perfect ending to meet the beginning of the podcast. Awesome. Well, thanks, Kristen. This has been really fun and really amazing. Before we leave and before we let you go, Kristen, We here at the New Yorkers podcast want to know what it means to you, Kristen LaBuzz, to be a New Yorker.

44:48Kristin LaBuz:Great question. And what defines New Yorkers for me is a real spirit of generosity. We're New Yorkers. We walk fast. We talk fast. We have places to go and things to do. But at the end of the day, on a person-to-person level, we are so extraordinarily generous. And I think it happens in a couple of different levels, right? there's a generosity of knowledge and this is such a stereotype but if you've ever seen somebody ask for directions on a subway and the New Yorkers jump up and fight over who can give them the best route you know that's generosity of knowledge I think there's generosity of time and this is personal for Open House New York we are a team of six we have 1400 volunteers this weekend who are helping us unlock the city who are sharing their time to make the city better And then I think there's a generosity of talent.

45:39Kristin LaBuz:We've got to be, you know, pound for pound, the most talented city on the planet. And the way New Yorkers share their talent, whether it is performing in the subway or hosting an architectural tour for Open House New York weekend is extraordinary. And I think this generosity is to me what defines our city.

46:01Kelly:That was so beautiful. I loved it. I can feel what you were saying. Really, really nice. Thank you for joining us today for this week's episode of the New Yorkers podcast. Why don't you let everyone know where they can find you on your social media, Kristen?

46:16Kristin LaBuz:Sure, learn more about Open House New York by visiting our website, ohny.org or find us on social at Open House New York.

46:26Kelly:Once again, I'm your host, Kelly Kopp, also known as New York City Kopp, all across my social media.

46:32Kristin LaBuz:Kelly, let me plug you. Please like and subscribe the New Yorkers podcast. And you can follow the New Yorkers on social media at the New Yorkers podcast.

46:42Kelly:You can leave a rating or a comment to let us know how you're enjoying the show. We read through all your comments and DMs, so please, we would love to hear from you. Thank you, Betty Jess Cop. That's my mom. Love you, mom and dad. Laura DeSmith and Thierry Tavernier. for your kind words on Facebook. And I want to give a special shout out to Thierry because I do my live videos and everything in my podcast and he is always talking about the podcast. So thank you, Thierry. It means a lot, my friend. And to you, everyone as well. If you want to be featured at the end of an episode, leave a rating on Apple Podcasts or a comment on Spotify.

47:22Kristin LaBuz:I would also love to hear from some open house New Yorkers in the comments, right? What sites have you been to? What have you experienced? or what would you like us to open up in the future? And let me also say thank you to Courtney, Yang, and Sandra for your comments on the last episode.

47:38Kelly:Have a lovely day, everyone, and we will see you next time. Goodbye. Thank you, New York 100, for sponsoring this episode. To learn more about them, visit ny100.org. This is the last stop on this train. Everyone, please leave the train. Thank you for riding with MTA New York City Transit.