Transforming Lincoln Center

This area of the website is your resource for the latest information as well as background materials on construction activities including the transformation of West 65th Street, Lincoln Center Promenade, and the Visitors Space. Up-to-the-minute pre-recorded information is also available by phone at (212) LINCOLN. Or, to speak to Customer Service staff, call 212.875.5456, Monday through Friday from 9:00am–5:00pm.

Construction News Fall 2009

Latest Construction Updates

• The David H. Koch Theater has re-opened and the temporary box office trailer on Josie Robertson Plaza has been removed. The regular box office in the theater lobby is open, selling tickets to the 2009–2010 New York City Opera season and New York City Ballet performances of George Balanchine’s The Nutcracker™
• The 65th St. pedestrian entrance to the concourse level is now closed. Pedestrian access to the concourse will be available from 64th St. and Amsterdam, as well as from the lobby stairs of the Metropolitan Opera, Avery Fisher Hall, and Lincoln Center Theater and on West 62nd St. between Columbus and Amsterdam Aves.
• The modernized Revson Fountain is officially open with new water show displays.
• Lincoln Center's new visitor center and ticketing facility (on Broadway between 62nd & 63rd Sts.) will be named David Rubenstein Atrium at Lincoln Center in honor of the philanthropist and financier’s
  $10 million gift to the Bravo Campaign. He is Vice Chairman of Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts.
• Two new escalators at the base of the Rose Building are now open to the public.
• The concourse entrance to the Metropolitan Opera has re-opened.
• Restrooms have re-opened on the concourse level by the entrance to the Metropolitan Opera.
• The M104, M5 and M5 limited bus stops have been restored in front of Alice Tully Hall.
• The M66 bus stop on West 65th St. has moved one block west across Amsterdam Avenue at the LaGuardia High School corner.
• The M11 bus stop on Columbus Ave has moved one block south to West 62nd St.
• The Columbus Avenue sidewalk in front of Josie Robertson Plaza is under construction for expansion, but remains open to pedestrian traffic.
• Construction is also underway to expand the southern sidewalk on W. 65th St. Pedestrians may still access Lincoln Center Theater and the North Plaza from the street.
• The stairs leading to the plaza from the corner of Amsterdam and 65th St. are temporarily closed.

Alice Tully Hall and The Juilliard School Construction

Ongoing Activity:

• The Juilliard Bookstore is temporarily located in a trailer on West 66th St. between Broadway and Amsterdam..

Parking Garage and Concourse

Ongoing Activity:

• The Lincoln Center Theater stage door/administrative offices entrance has moved to just past the glass walls of the Theater lobby on the concourse level.
• The stairway under the David H. Koch Theater portico is closed.
• Pedestrian access between the concourse level and the lower garage level remains via the escalator and stair adjacent to the Met Opera entrance on the concourse.

Promenade and Josie Robertson Plaza Construction

Ongoing Activity:

• The entrance to the downtown subway station on Columbus Avenue between 64th and 65th Streets remains closed. Downtown subway access is still available at 66th St. and Broadway. Entry to the underground concourse from the subway remains closed.
• Work has begun for a new urban grove at 62nd St., scheduled to open in Fall 2009.
• The inner drop-off road parallel to JRP is closed for construction of a concourse level roadway below the sidewalk. The new roadway is scheduled to open in late winter, 2010.

DAVID RUBENSTEIN ATRIUM AT LINCOLN CENTER

New Activity:

• Construction continues at the former Harmony Atrium for the new visitor center at Lincoln Center.

Other Lincoln Center Construction

New Activity:

• The new Barclays Capital Grove is open on the Hearst/North Plaza, providing shaded outdoor seating and free WiFi.

Ongoing Activity:

• Pedestrian access to the north concourse is available from West 65th St. to Lincoln Center Theater, the Metropolitan Opera, the center concourse passage to the south vehicular loop, and the Avery Fisher Hall concourse lobby entrance. Pedestrian traffic through the drive aisles is not permitted.
• For ADA access to JRP, enter at West 62nd St. between Columbus and Amsterdam; or from the new sidewalk entrance at 64th St. and Amsterdam. For concourse level access, enter at West 62nd St. or from West 65th St. between Columbus and Amsterdam.
• Accessibility information is available online at LincolnCenter.org/accessibility or by calling 212.875.5375 for the department of Programs and Services for People with Disabilities (PSPD).

Transformation Details

The West 65th Street Project is the first initiative to revitalize Lincoln Center and make it a more welcoming destination for the five million people who visit the 16 acres each year. Designed by acclaimed architects Diller Scofidio + Renfro in collaboration with FXFOWLE Architects, construction began in the spring of 2006. This inaugural project will unite West 65th St. between Broadway and Amsterdam Avenue with the surrounding cityscape, and open up the campus to encourage the interaction of artists, students and the public.

Major Elements:

1. Bring lobbies/pedestrians to street level
2. Expand and revitalize Alice Tully Hall
3. Expand School of American Ballet rehearsal studios
4. Build new destination restaurant with public roof lawn/"campus green"
5. Enhance pedestrian and traffic safety, e.g. eliminate one car lane, widen sidewalks, replace Paul Milstein Plaza with a new footbridge
6. Open street to light and air, including transparent street-level facades
7. Improve information and wayfinding
8. Enhance street presence for resident organizations on West 65th Street: The Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, The Film Society of Lincoln Center, Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts, Inc., School of American Ballet, The Juilliard School, Lincoln Center Theater, New York Public Library for the Performing Arts.
9. Expand and renovate The Juilliard School
10. Construct a new Film Center for the Film Society of Lincoln Center
11. Redesign entrance for the Samuel B. and David Rose Building
12. Improve patron circulation and experience in the concourse and garage systems
13. Upgrade the central mechanical plant that serves most of the campus

The Lincoln Center Promenade, Lincoln Center’s second redevelopment project, will upgrade Josie Robertson Plaza and its iconic Revson Fountain. The primary entryway to the campus along Columbus Avenue will also be rebuilt, and named the Beverly Sills Promenade in honor of her extraordinary contributions to the arts and to Lincoln Center. It is scheduled to open in September 2009.

The transformation of the David Rubenstein Atrium at Lincoln Center, a privately-owned public space between Broadway and Columbus Avenue and West 62nd and West 63rd Streets, is a related project to convert the space into a public community and cultural space offering free performances, information, a café, and discount ticket services to available Lincoln Center events. The facility, designed by Tod Williams Billie Tsien Architects, is scheduled to open in November, 2009.

Transformation Timeframe

Preliminary work on the West 65th Street Project began in March 2006 and is scheduled to be completed in time for the celebration of Lincoln Center’s 50th Anniversary in 2009-10.

What Changes Will Affect a Visit to Lincoln Center

All of Lincoln Center’s extraordinary programs will take place as scheduled, and all halls are open. During this period, services and facilities will be modified as needed to allow pedestrian and patron access, with particular thought given to safety and convenience. There will be temporary adjustments to garage access and bus pick-ups related to construction activities. Construction changes are being planned with patron and visitor safety and convenience as primary considerations.