The New Rochelle Walk of Fame, 25 distinctive interpretive stations, commemorating nationally notable individuals* with distinct ties to New Rochelle and their contributions to America has been installed Downtown. This is part of the New Rochelle BID’s ongoing efforts to preserve and promote our history and Downtown where New Rochelle’s past, present and future come together.
The Walk of Fame signs, strategically located in the gardens lining the Library Green pathway were created and funded by former resident and historian Roderick Kennedy Jr., working in partnership with the BID, the New Rochelle Department of Parks and Recreation and City Historian Barbara Davis.
Each inductee is memorialized with a 20” x 14” full color historical interpretive signboard telling his or her story in words and graphics. The Walk of Fame is a micro history of America as reflected in the lives of New Rochelle’s famous sons and daughters, representing the arts, business, politics, education, the media, entertainment and sports. The New Rochelleans who comprise the first inductees range from Thomas Paine, who inspired the American Revolution, to Frederic Remington, artist of American West, to Lou Gehrig, Yankee great.
In inaugurating the project, New Rochelle Mayor Noam Bramson noted “The Walk of Fame will enliven one of New Rochelle’s great public spaces, while also celebrating some of the remarkable individuals who have shaped our City’s history,”
One young resident who helped with the “unveiling” of the signs at the Walk of Fame dedication remarked, “These are such amazing people. I hope that someday my name will be on New Rochelle’s Walk of Fame.”
Other New Rochelle BID efforts to preserve and promote our history and Downtown include:
The BID Guide to Historic Downtown New Rochelle, a brochure and map, presents a walking tour that identifies and describes the significance of two dozen downtown locations.
Working with City Historian Barbara Davis, the BID also maintains Downtown History providing more detailed descriptions of historic events and buildings downtown on its website www.NewRochelleDowtown.com.
Coming this Spring, the BID will introduce a Downtown New Rochelle Walking Tour by Cell Phone. Notable New Rochelle celebrities will offer guided commentary on fourteen sites in downtown. They will do so though cell phone technology. At each site visitors can simply dial a number and hear about the historic significance of each site and they learn more via an app linking to our downtown web site.
Perhaps most visible of the BID’s efforts to promote our downtown’s historic and architectural heritage is its BID Downtown Facade Improvement Program which assists property owners, especially those with historic buildings to repair and rehabilitate their building’s façade and storefronts. To date the BID is completing work on buildings representing more than 75 storefronts and this program has won a distinguished award for Excellence in Historic Preservation from the New York State Preservation League. See Curtain Shop before and After Photos.