Corning’s Centerway Square named 5th best public square by USA Today’s 10Best

CORNING, N.Y. ( WETM ) — Centerway Square in Corning was voted as the fifth best public square in the U.S. by USA Today’s 10Best readers after previously coming in first and second place.

Centerway Square was one of 20 public squares from across the country to be nominated to be on 10Best’s 2024 list of Best Public Squares in the United States. Voters had four weeks to narrow down the nominees to a ranked list of 10, and Centerway Square received the fifth most votes, earning it a spot on the list for the fourth year in a row, albeit at a lower ranking.

10Best readers ranked Centerway Square in first place when the Best Public Squares list debuted in 2021 . In 2022 , Centerway came in second behind Burlington’s Church Street Market Place, and in 2023 , Centerway came in second behind Detroit’s Campus Martius. Campus Martius ranked number one again this year.

10Best’s panel of experts nominated squares to the list based on their aesthetic value, historical significance, and communal importance. The panel named Centerway Square’s 50-foot-tall clock tower, street lamps, café seating, and covered stage as reasons it made the list.

Corning was also recognized as having the seventh-best small-town cultural scene in the U.S. by 10Best readers . The Corning Museum of Glass, the Rockwell Museum, and the Gaffer District helped Corning earn this designation.

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