Parks Department No Friend of Friends of Dag Hammarskjold Plaza

It's old-fashioned meetup versus high-middlebrow-concept at UN Plaza! The Friends of Dag Hammarskjold Plaza is suing the Parks Department over the agency's selection of New York Milkshake to replace the Patio Cafe. The Friends of DHP say the Parks Department violated procurement procedures by allowing the NY Milkshake to open up this summer. Even though economics sounds like part of the reasoning, as NYM offered $18,000 more in licensing fees than the Patio Cafe, the FDHP point to the closed St. Mark's Place NY Milkshake location and wonder if it can generate enough revenue. NY Milkshake says they are planning on opening other locations. Owner Scott Marcus said to the NY Times, "All I want to do is sell milkshakes and grilled cheese. What this has turned into blows me away."

The dustup between the Parks Department and Friends of DHP highlights something that was mentioned last week - whether or not the Parks Department can maintain parks without the help of outside groups.

Photograph from the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation