Whether you’ve lived in New York City your whole life, are new in town or just visiting, there is something new for everyone to discover on an Untapped Cities Tour. Check out the Untapped activities running this week:

Monday, August 20th

Tour the New Hunters Point South Park with NYC Parks Deputy Director of Public Art

Daniel Avila/NYC Parks

Tour the newly opened Phase 2 of Hunters Point South Park in Long Island City and along the way view and learn about multiple outdoor art installations within the park with NYC Parks Deputy Director of Public Art Jennifer Lantzas. Phase 2 of Hunters Point South Park stretches from 54th Avenue to Newtown Creek, adding 5.5 acres to the public space which opened in 2013. This addition doubles the size of the park, bringing it to 11 acres of green, waterfront space in a formerly industrial area. On this tour, guests will also hear from NYC Parks Monument Coordinator Colombina Valera, representatives from SculptureCenter, and representatives from  SWA/Balsley and  Weiss/Manfredi, the firms that designed the park.

If you are of become and Untapped Cities Insider, you can join this tour for free!
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Wednesday, August 22nd

After-Hours Curator Walkthrough of “Elegance in the Sky: The Architecture of Rosario Candela” at the Museum of the City of New York

Revisit the work of Rosario Candela at an after-hours, curator-led walkthrough of Elegance in the Sky: The Architecture of Rosario Candela at the Museum of the City of New York. With some 75 buildings to his credit, Rosario Candela played a major role in shaping the architectural legacy of 20th-century New York—the distinctive “prewar” streetscapes of Park and Fifth Avenues and Sutton Place in particular. Elegance in the Sky: The Architecture of Rosario Candela revisits the setback terraces and neo-Georgian and Art Deco ornament of Candela-designed high-rise apartments. His buildings established new standards of chic urban living for some of New York’s wealthiest citizens and still rank among the most prized in the city, almost a century after they were built.

If you are of become and Untapped Cities Insider, you can join this tour for free!
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Saturday, August 25th

Tour the Industrial Raw Spaces and Renovations at Kearny Point, a Former Navy Yard

Go inside the raw industrial spaces, latest renovations and future plans at Kearny Point, a former United States shipyard. During World War I and II, Kearny Point was once one of the world’s most prolific shipyards when it operated as the Federal Shipbuilding and Dry Dock Company, where as many as 30,000 people came to work each day. Today, Hugo Neu is transforming the 130-acre industrial complex into a new mixed-use, sustainable waterfront destination – one that embraces the site’s history and provides opportunities for the businesses of the new economy.

TOUR HIGHLIGHTS: 

• Building 78, the 200,000-square-foot adaptive reuse of a former Navy facility, originally constructed in the 1920’s. Building 78 is now home to over 100 small businesses (70%+ are minority-or-women-owned) in addition to a coworking space, cafe, and new “blue roof” lounge and event space
• The annex, a former craneway attached to Building 78, currently employed for events, photo/tv shoots, and other creative uses
• Building 100, a dramatic 270,000-square-foot former craneway – currently in its raw state – set to be redeveloped into large office lofts
• A walk-through of the shoreline of the convergent Hackensack and Passaic Rivers including the South Basin area, which will be transformed into a revitalized pedestrian promenade and marina. This will also include a glimpse of the fast-recovering plant life native to the area

If you are of become and Untapped Cities Insider, you can join this tour for free!

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Underground Tour of the NYC Subway

Take a ride through the living history of the world’s largest rapid transit system (in area) by weaving in and out of the past and present transit hubs of lower Manhattan. This unique tour is designed to give a comprehensive history of the NYC Subway system, from its groundbreaking in 1901 up through the creation of the three different proprietary lines which were unified into the system we know today.

TOUR HIGHLIGHTS:

• Explore City Hall Park as the birthplace of the NYC subway system, including elements of the famed,decommissioned City Hall Station you can see right in the park
• Learn about the comically short route of the mythical “Subway before the Subway,” Alfred Ely Beach’s Pneumatic Transit System
• See the architectural ghosts of the now nearly forgotten, and partially abandoned, Chambers Street station then nicknamed the “Grand Central of Downtown”
• Use the 6 train as your own time machine as you ride through abandoned subway stations
• Discover the remnants of Union Station as you learn about a hidden art installation thousands of riders walk by everyday

Underground Tour of the NYC Subway

Sunday, August 26th

Secrets of Central Park Walking Tour

Learn about the genesis, design, and evolution of Central Park, while uncovering its many outrageous happenings, scandals and the history behind some of its best-loved and hidden sites.

TOUR HIGHLIGHTS:

• Hear about the massive civic project that transformed a wasteland into an urban pleasure ground
• Learn about the curious origins of the Central Park Zoo and the corruption scandal that caused a riot
• Uncover the hidden meaning in Bethesda Terrace’s sculptures and the forbidden love that inspired the park’s most famous statue
• See the secret bolt left behind from the creation of Manhattan’s street grid
• Discover the secret navigational device that keeps pedestrians from getting lost on the park’s winding paths

Secrets of Central Park Walking Tour

Tour of the Remnants of Penn Station

Image via Wikimedia Commons, Library of Congress

There are two things most commuters don’t realize about Penn: First, there used to be a gorgeous Beaux Arts station that was demolished in the mid-60’s. Second: Parts of that old station can still be found today. They’ve just been buried under the arena that landed on top of them.

On our tour of the Remnants of Penn Station, we’ll take you back inside this central transportation hub to discuss the past, present and future plans for the structure. Although Amtrak only acknowledges one remnant remaining, tour participants will learn about station history and discover remnants of the McKim, Mead & White building located in plain sight.

TOUR HIGHLIGHTS: 

• Get a comprehensive history of the past, present and future of Penn Station
• See over a dozen indoor and outdoor old-station remnants hidden in plain sight
• Learn insider navigation tips for one of the most cramped and complicated transit hubs in North America
• See never-before-seen old station photos from the collections of three photographers who photo documented Penn’s life and demolition
• Each guest will also receive a framable, reproduction ticket of the first commuter ride into Pennsylvania Station from 1910

Tour of the Remnants of Penn Station

Tour of The Remnants of Dutch New Amsterdam

Photo by Untapped Cities

TOUR HIGHLIGHTS:

• Walk the city’s original coast line
• See the remains of Manhattan’s first City Hall
• Discover the original Dutch fort, wind mill and battery
• Trace the streets of Manhattan in 1667 with Manhattan’s first map in hand
• Physically touch history as we spend time finding out why Bowling Green has its name and why it’s been so important in our city’s history

Tour of The Remnants of Dutch New Amsterdam

See our full lists of tours and Insider events!