‘Water: Designing an Equitable Water Future for NYC’ invites New Yorkers to submit new project ideas, aiming to incubate solutions to the pressures exerted on New York by too much or too little water and connecting New Yorkers with the cultural vibrancy and memory inherent in our waterways.

The Design Trust for Public Space has opened its 12th Request for Proposals (RFP) cycle, a citywide call for project ideas that address key public space challenges. The 2025 RFP theme “Water: Designing an Equitable Water Future for New York City,” aims to incubate solutions to the pressures exerted on New York by too much or too little water and envision new approaches to city-making, including commitment to innovative green infrastructure, well-planned coastal resilience, access to waterfronts and waterways, and connecting New Yorkers with the cultural vibrancy and memory inherent in our water.

The Water RFP recognizes that the future of the city’s public life depends on shifting our relationship with water in all its various forms–rain, oceans, rivers–and the multiple ways we engage with it–construction, art, play, drinking, sewage.

To do so, the Design Trust invites New Yorkers to turn their ideas for a more equitable water future into actionable solutions. The two-year initiative will develop up to five water project proposals into tangible initiatives, supported by $10,000 in funding and an incubation process guided by the Design Trust and an advisory committee of city agencies, community stakeholders, and design experts.

The Water RFP application is now closed! We received a wave of exciting new ideas for water and public space. After we dive into submissions, we will be inviting finalists to submit full proposals next month. Stay tuned for more water stories from around the five boroughs, leading up to the finalists and winner’s announcement in early 2026.