Progress In Washington Square Park
The improvements in Washington Square Park (WSP) during the last few weeks have been very encouraging. Many of our concerns have been met with initiatives that are showing traction and if continued, will mark the end to the unusual level of lawlessness we've seen since April.
The police are closing the park at midnight, the turnaround for graffiti cleanup is more consistent, amplified sound has been drastically reduced, there’s been less than a handful of fireworks launched in the Park since July 4, and ten different social service providers are working together to help those in-need. We are witnessing the cumulative effects of numerous efforts by numerous stakeholders, including the Washington Square Association. Maintenance of these efforts will be key to building on the momentum.
In addition to regularly attending meetings important to the Washington Square area, like last week’s Community Board 2 (CB2) meeting on WSP, the Washington Square Association participates in a working meeting with leaders from Parks, NYU, CB2, other city and state government, and area non-profits like The Village Alliance and the Washington Square Park Conservancy. To quote Parks Commissioner Bill Castro at our meeting last Wednesday, "This is a good news [update]"!
Enforcement Updates
Park Closing On Time: The NYPD has been able to close the Park at midnight for two weeks without fail and without incident (with the exception of 1-2 “flareups”). Several soft policing strategies have had an enormous impact including increasing visibility through regular patrolling, adding the noticeable solar powered camera near the Arch and, starting July 10, the use of flood lights to illuminate the fountain area one hour prior to closing.
Increase in NYPD Presence: It is now common to see officers patrolling the Park during the day and night which has had the added benefit of empowering PEP officers to encourage visitors to observe Park rules, such as amplified sound.
Increase in Park Staff & Park Enforcement Patrol (PEP): Washington Square Park now has more Parks staff than it has had in several years, thanks in large part to the utilization of Mayor DeBlasio’s City Cleanup Corps recovery hiring program. Securing additional funding for salaries and the reallocation of resources for sites under construction have also helped. These additional resources will continue through the summer season.
PEP: By securing funds for overtime, PEP officers now serve the Park until midnight (four to six officers on weekdays and six to ten officers on the weekend).
Park Maintenance
Physical improvements: We are now seeing the culmination of a lot of work done over the winter and spring. These include replacing the bollards, repairs to fountain piping, lighting, and exterior jets restoring it to working order, comfort stations, particularly the women’s station, have been plagued by plumbing issues for years. Parks replaced their plumbing systems and fixed the lights so they are practically brand new. Parks also conducts regular sweeps of playground sand.
Lighting: Lighting outages have been a constant problem for years with approximately 33-50% of them going out every 45 days. Addressing the issue has been challenging for a variety of reasons including because the Department of Transportation (DOT) manages all but the four light poles surrounding the fountain. Through inter-agency outreach and collaboration, the DOT’s relationship with the Park has become much more robust; they are more responsive to outages than ever and have increased the frequency of their visits.
LED Upgrades: Thanks to funding from the Washington Square Park Conservancy and the City Parks Foundation, the 16 bulbs on the four poles managed by Parks have been replaced with LEDs. In the Fall, the DOT has committed to upgrading all of the lights they manage in the Park to LEDs.
Graffiti: Parks now has more than one person dedicated to cleaning up graffiti who is training others, resulting in a faster and more consistent turnaround.
Other Updates
Opening the Northwest Corner: The Northwest corner of WSP was closed due to the level of drug and criminal activity with the intent of opening it back up slowly as programming was identified to fill the space. As of last week, the Northwest corner is now open Wednesday - Saturday in the afternoon from 2-5pm. The Washington Square Park Conservancy’s programming for children, featuring Miss Debbie, is wonderfully leading the way. With increased programming and the presence of social services providers in the park regularly, the Parks Department hopes to open the area fully quite soon.
Violence Mitigation: The Mayor’s office has signed a contract with Street Corner Resources (SCR) to serve Washington Square Park on Saturday evenings. SCR is a non-profit that was born out of concern for gun violence and gang activity amongst Harlem’s youth and in addition to their anti-violence work, they provide teenagers and young adults with greater access to employment, education, training, mental health, legal aid, and other supportive and wrap-around services. On Saturdays, they will be bringing in a mobile unit and ten peer contacts who will focus on violence mitigation/de-escalation tactics and providing youth resources. They will also be doing an assessment of the Park to make recommendations.
Social Services -During the aforementioned working meeting in late-June, Gale Brewer, Borough President, pledged to work on increasing the number of days the Department of Homeless Services (DHS) serves the Park from two to four days. A month later, ten different social service providers including the DHS, the Department of Health’s Heat Program, and eight non-profits are making services are available in the Park seven days a week. They will be working with individuals who have longstanding issues, namely long-term substance abuse, incapacitating mental health challenges, and chronic homelessness. Many of these organizations, like SCR, are going to focus on peer outreach and are working on metrics to track progress in the Park.
We are already seeing the increased social service presence have an impact. A chronically homeless man who had long resided in the Park, kept a significant amount of his belongings there, and had been harassing Parks maintenance employees is just one example. He reached out to one organization canvassing the Park about housing services, was connected to resources, and within weeks, was placed in an apartment in Williamsburg. He pledged to, and did, move all of his belongings from the Park to his apartment. He still drops by the park regularly.
Addressing Bicycle Traffic: The NYPD and Parks Department met last Wednesday to discuss addressing the numerous bike riders who speed through the Park, making it difficult for pedestrians to walk in it safely. Because it is unsafe for enforcement officers to step in front of moving vehicles of any kind, the focus will again be on soft policing by encouraging people to dismount at the entrances and walk their bike through the Park.
NYU Students Return August 30 : NYU continues to take safety seriously and will be requiring staff and students to be vaccinated to be on campus (unless they have health or religious reasons for opting out). They will expect students to be in compliance with whatever rules the Parks Department stipulates or face consequences.
New Parks Community Calendar! One of the most effective strategies for encouraging accessibility for all in Washington Square Park is through diverse programming. Thanks to the efforts of Will Morrison and the Parks Department, you can now easily find out what’s going on and what you’d like to attend: https://www.nycgovparks.org/parks/washington-square-park/events
Again, what we are seeing is the result of a myriad of efforts that are by no means over. We all must be vigilant in making sure this new momentum continues. The Washington Square Association will continue to monitor the status of the Park and engage related stakeholders. We encourage you stay informed by attending meetings of Community Board 2, the 6th Precinct Community Council, and the City Council (see below for more information). The Washington Square Association will be in attendance, we hope to see you there!
Great Washington Square Park And Neighborhood Resources
Community Board 2 Calendar -Sign up for CB2’s mailing list for up-to-date information.
6th Precinct Community Council -Meetings typically take place on the last Wednesday of each month at 7:30 PM at Our Lady of Pompeii Church. To be added to the email list for meeting notices, please email 6thprecinctcommunitycouncil@gmail.com.