At CUL DE SAC, our mission is to make wellness and sauna affordable and accessible to all 8.5 million New Yorkers. This fall we’re raising $55,000 on Kickstarter to fund the next step towards our permanent community sauna: a four month winter residency opening in November.
For the past ten months we’ve turned parks and community gardens into open-air bathhouses as a proof of concept while working toward a permanent space. Across three locations and 300+ hours of operation, we’ve run more than 1,500 sauna sessions and brought in over 45 cultural partners. Four community nights were free or discounted, and two of those went to LGBTQ+ young people experiencing homelessness through the Ali Forney Center and New Alternatives.
This campaign keeps our community sauna running outdoors in the elements six days a week through the coldest months of the year (November 2026 – February 2027).
If you’re a New Yorker, we’re building this for you and our city.
If you are a sauna enthusiast, wellness practitioner, or supporter of public space anywhere in the world, CUL DE SAC is a test case in civic design. If a sliding-scale outdoor community sauna can work in New York City, one of the hardest real estate and permitting environments in the country, it can work anywhere.
If you are a prospective donor or partner at higher levels of contribution, reach out directly at hi@culdesac.nyc.
Hit “Notify Me” on our Kickstarter to support the vision and get notified when we go live on Tuesday, Sep 29 at 9AM.
