The best seat in the city is in Union Square

There’s no reason weary walkers shouldn’t have a stylish spot to rest, which is why the Arts Council has commissioned a series of benches and other public fixtures by local artists in Union Square. Decorative trash barrels, performance areas, benches and kiosks will soon be dotting the area.

“This is part of the effort to improve Union Square and specifically make it more arts-friendly,” said Mimi Graney of Union Square Main Streets.

One of the artists tapped for the project was Kimo Griggs, who has had an architecture firm and fabrication shop in Union Square since the 1980s.

“Most people think they’re great and stop and want to talk,” he said of his mahogany and copper fixtures. “It’s very positive and people have been complimentary. People have been using them.”

“The same day that we put them up, we noticed that the inline skaters and skateboarders were destroying them,” said Griggs. “We had to retrofit them with ornamental pieces that keep the front edges from being slid on.”