NYC BIDSpec

Targeted, speculative, and people-centered analyses of Business Improvement Districts (BIDs) in New York City, providing insights into their impact on local communities and economies.

Loading map visualization...

Interactive map of NYC Business Improvement Districts

View Projects

About BIDSpec

This project is part of INFO 5420: Smart Cities, a course offered by the Urban Tech program at Cornell Tech.

Course Information

INFO 5420: Smart Cities — Taught by Ariel Noyman with TA Matt Franchi

Affiliation

Urban Tech Hub at Cornell Tech, Jacobs Technion-Cornell Institute

Cornell Tech campus on Roosevelt Island, NYC

Our Analysis Framework

Each BID analysis is structured around four key components that provide a comprehensive understanding of district performance

Insight

Understanding the current state of the city, neighborhood, site, and space in the context of the selected BID. Performing data collection, generation, and augmentation, using real-time spatial data, public or private APIs, as well as less-conventional datasets. Developing an urban analytics strategy, and communicating it via urban observatories, data visualization and representation methods.

Transformation

Explore alternative urban interventions and feasibility analysis of scenarios. Explore Urban Human-Computer Interaction (UHCI) systems for decision support. Propose methods and tools for an iterative and collaborative design process. Evaluate applicability, usability, accessibility, and impact on future design and decision-making process.

Prediction

Assess urban forecasting methods for proposed interventions in the built environment, such as impact on demographics, human behavior, urban mobility, and other KPIs and metrics. Utilize optimization methods, simulations, agents modeling, generative AI and other means to explore, non-trivial, subtle and experiential impact of proposed interventions

Consensus

Design, develop, and build public facing processes for collaborative decision-making. Facilitate a range of stakeholders, communities, experts and non-experts in these processes. Evaluate societal, cultural, and political outcomes and tradeoffs, short-and-long term impacts

Current Work

Explore our in-depth analyses of selected Business Improvement Districts

On Map

April 30, 2025 Brooklyn

Downtown Brooklyn Partnership

Analysis of the Downtown Brooklyn Partnership, a major commercial and cultural district in Brooklyn.

Fulton Mall Improvement Association Read analysis →

On Map

April 30, 2025 Brooklyn

DUMBO Improvement District

Analysis of the DUMBO Improvement District in Brooklyn, an area known for its tech innovation and arts scene.

DUMBO Read analysis →

On Map

April 30, 2025 Brooklyn

5th Avenue BID - Brooklyn

Analysis of the 5th Avenue Business Improvement District in Park Slope, Brooklyn.

Park Slope 5th Avenue Read analysis →

On Map

April 30, 2025 Queens

Long Island City Partnership

Analysis of the Long Island City Partnership, an area undergoing rapid transformation in Queens.

Long Island City Partnership Read analysis →

On Map

April 30, 2025 Manhattan

West Village BID

Analysis of the West Village Business Improvement District in Manhattan.

West Village Read analysis →

View all projects

Latest Updates

May 2025

Spring 2025 Cohort Completes BID Analyses

The Spring 2025 cohort has completed their analysis of five different NYC BIDs: the Downtown Brooklyn Partnership, DUMBO Improvement District, 5th Avenue in Brooklyn, Long Island City, and the West Village.

Ready to explore the projects?

Dive into our comprehensive analyses of Business Improvement Districts across New York City.

View All Projects