Van Alen and NYC SBS Unveil Storefront Activations
June 3, 2025
Van Alen Institute and NYC Department of Small Business Services Announce Two Community-Led Exhibitions Activating Vacant Storefronts
Design Sprints: Building Creative Capacity program pairs community organizations with design professionals to create storefront installations highlighting Lower East Side and East Williamsburg histories
View and download hi-res photos here.
(New York City—June 3, 2025)—Van Alen Institute and the NYC Department of Small Business Services (SBS) are pleased to unveil two community-led storefront activations: Placeholders, on view at 165 & 169 Loisaida Ave, Manhattan; and The People Make The Place!, on view at 237 & 246 Graham Ave, Brooklyn.
These exhibitions are the outcomes of Design Sprints: Building Creative Capacity — a fast-paced community-led design program pairing local organizations with design professionals to activate vacant storefronts. Launched by Van Alen in 2024, Design Sprints has mobilized 60+ community leaders to date, equipping them with design training, technical assistance, and cross-disciplinary collaboration. This current cohort addresses storefront vacancy in creative ways and reinforces the vital role of culture in maintaining thriving commercial corridors, and was made possible by a $100,000 grant awarded through SBS’s Avenue NYC program.
The Spring 2025 cohort includes: Cooper Square Committee with Scott Kelly and Delphine Le Goff; and Grand Street BID with L&L Studio, ReFrame Architecture, and Sylvia Riveros. Together, the teams activated previously empty storefronts with exhibitions that celebrate the unique histories of the Lower East Side and East Williamsburg and make community stories more visible.
“Storefronts are an essential part of NYC’s urban landscape, and now they’re also a place of creative community storytelling. It’s thrilling to see these spaces come alive with local histories, and we’re grateful to partner with SBS on Design Sprints as part of our shared commitment to dynamic, welcoming streetscapes,” said Andrew Brown, Director of Programs, Van Alen Institute.
“New York City’s reputation as a global leader in art and culture is one of the reasons why it attracts the best talent the world has to offer, and serves as a key driver to our economic success,” said SBS Commissioner Dynishal Gross. “Design Sprints recognizes that neighborhood-based arts are key to the strength and vibrancy of our city’s commercial corridors, driving investment and tourism, and attracting the best and brightest from far and wide. I am proud that we are supporting this initiative through our Avenue NYC program, and am eager to see Van Alen Institute’s two community-led storefront activations.”
Participants | Projects
COOPER SQUARE COMMITTEE
Placeholders: Revealing the Hidden-in-Plain-Sight World of Storefronts in Affordable Housing Coops
Location: 165 & 169 Ave C — Loisaida Ave, Manhattan
Dates: On view through June 30, 2025
Public Events:
Info Session: Available Storefronts & Support for Potential Tenants | Wednesday, June 11, 6:30–7:15 pm on Zoom
Placeholders Closing Reception | Friday, June 27, 6–8 pm, 367 E 10th St (co-hosted with Piragua Art Space & Relative Arts)
Due to decades of grassroots organizing, the Lower East Side is home to many Housing Development Fund Corporation cooperatives (HDFCs), a unique type of affordable housing collectively owned and operated by residents. HDFCs often rent their storefronts to small businesses, artists, and nonprofits that serve local needs, nurture creativity, and express culture. Collectively, HDFCs offer a stable model for residents and small businesses facing the threat of displacement.
Offering a glimpse into this vibrant community, Placeholders showcases items from local businesses located in HDFCs in a site-specific installation created by local artist Delphine Le Goff. Items include a camera from Fourth Street Photo Gallery, the city’s oldest Black-owned photography studio; a hand-painted mortar and pestle from Puerto Rican restaurant Casa Adela; and handmade Mexican folk art from La Sirena. The exhibition will be supplemented by a map of local businesses.
“This project is the first step in a longer journey towards bringing together HDFC coops and commercial tenants. I’m excited to apply the insights from this experience to Cooper Square Committee’s enduring work to preserve space for housing and culture on the Lower East Side,” said Abigail Ellman, Director of Planning and Development, Cooper Square.
Team Members:
- Abigail Ellman, Director of Planning and Development, Cooper Square Committee
- Scott Kelly, Graphic Designer
- Delphine Le Goff, Artist
Participating Businesses: 3rd & B’zaar, A&C Kitchen, Archie’s Press, Bungee Space, Casa Adela, Clove Hair Salon, El Rinconcito, Ergot Records, Fontanez Martial Arts Success Center, Fourth Street Photo Gallery, Green Map System, Jane’s Exchange, La Sirena Mexican Folkart, Lower East Side People’s Federal Credit Union, Michele’s Cleaners & Laundry, Museum of Reclaimed Urban Space, Piccola Strada, Piragua Art Space, Relative Arts.
More information on Cooper Square Committee: coopersquare.org
GRAND STREET BID
The People Make The Place!
Le Persone Fanno Il Luogo! ¡Las Personas Hacen El Lugar!
Storefronts: 237 & 246 Graham Ave
Dates: On view through June 30, 2025
Public Event: Grand Street Neighborhood Bash | Monday, June 9, 5-7 pm
Featuring art and archival materials from neighborhood partners, The People Make the Place! spotlights East Williamsburg residents, honors the neighborhood’s leaders, and reflects its culture of co-creating public spaces. On the nearly block-long storefront at 237 Graham Ave, a photo-collage mural by L&L Studio celebrates the past, present, and future of East Williamsburg. Inspired by 1960–70s speculative design, the mural weaves together community-sourced images highlighting key places and people. It is framed by questions in Spanish, Italian, and English — languages historically spoken in the neighborhood — that prompt reflection on how viewers shape their community.
The mural is complemented by two window activations at Grand Street BID’s headquarters, located across the street at 246 Graham Ave. Re: Place, a series of geometric sculptures by ReFrame Architecture, references the forms of storefronts. Reflective surfaces place the image of viewers within the sculptures, emphasizing the vital role of community in sustaining place. Sylvia Riveros’ photo series Toñita provides an intimate look at the Caribbean Social Club — a long-time gathering space for Puerto Rican and Latin American communities — and its remarkable founder, Maria Antonia “Toñita” Cay.
“The Grand Street BID is excited to explore storefront activation as a community resource. Despite being private spaces, storefronts can serve critical public functions, from creating a sense of security and engaging the public, to promoting and civic life. We welcome this opportunity to highlight our local artists, leaders and histories with this project, while activating these impactful community spaces,” said Francesca Bruce, Executive Director, Grand Street BID.
Team Members:
- Francesca Bruce, Executive Director, Grand Street BID
- Yaz Mansi, Community Engagement Manager, Grand Street BID
- Leigh Mignogna, Principal & Founder, L&L Studio
- Liz Seibert Turow, Principal & Founder, L&L Studio
- Paula Volchok, Senior Designer, L&L Studio
- Drianne Laliberte, Senior Designer, L&L Studio
- Yalda Keramati, Founder, ReFrame Architecture
- Sylvia Riveros, Community Activist & Artist
Participating Artists: Vanesa Álvarez Díaz; Los Muralistas de el Puente; Danielle Mastrion; and SON-CORO, SINNED + Ria Burns-Wilde
Participating Organizations: El Puente, Evergreen Exchange, St. Nick’s Alliance, Powers Street Garden
More information on Grand Street BID: grandstreetbk.org
PROGRAM ADVISORS
Throughout the sprint, a team of designers has provided strategic vision and guidance for both teams: Hilary Sample, Co-Founder, MOS Architects, has advised on the cohort’s long-term plans to address storefront vacancy, with graphic design support from Stacey Geller, Founder & Creative Director, American Design Language. Farzana Gandhi, Founder, Farzana Gandhi Design Studio is helping the teams prepare public programs and community engagement activities.
More information can be found on vanalen.org.
Van Alen’s programs are made possible by the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of the Office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature. Design Sprints: Building Creative Capacity is supported by the NYC Department of Small Business Services.
About Van Alen Institute
Van Alen Institute is a driving force behind community-led urban design, which believes that local knowledge and care enrich the design process. Since 1894, Van Alen has invested in people with a passion for improving cities through the power of architecture and design. Our public space projects build unconventional coalitions of designers, local stakeholders, and city leaders, and we support their visions through project scoping, hands-on guidance, and seed funding. From our home in New York City, our work confronts longstanding power imbalances in citymaking, showcases the vanguard of community-led design, and supports the next generation of designers in creating more just cities.
See all work at vanalen.org.
About the NYC Department of Small Business Services (SBS)
SBS helps unlock economic potential and create economic security for all New Yorkers by connecting New Yorkers to good jobs, creating stronger businesses, and building vibrant neighborhoods across the five boroughs. For more information on all SBS services, go to nyc.gov/sbs, call 888-SBS-4NYC, and follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and LinkedIn.
About Avenue NYC
SBS’s Avenue NYC Organizational Development Grants are specifically intended to fund nonprofit organizations to provide services and technical assistance to enhance the project and fiscal management, program execution, legal compliance, leadership, and strategic capabilities of community-based development organizations (CBDOs) implementing commercial revitalization activities benefitting low- to moderate-income communities across the five boroughs. Avenue NYC is funded through the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) Program. More information on Avenue NYC can be found at nyc.gov/avenuenyc.
Media Contacts
Alisha Kim Levin, press@vanalen.org
Elisa Smilovitz, elisa@elisasmilovitz.com
Joseph Jourdan, JJourdan@sbs.nyc.gov