NYPD Blocks Midtown Street With New 'Checkpoint'

MIDTOWN MANHATTAN, NY — The NYPD escalated its obstruction of a Midtown thoroughfare this week by installing a new "checkpoint" on East 51st Street, steps away from the department's 17th precinct.

Jake Schmidt, a software engineer who took a photo of the new checkpoint Friday morning, told Patch he passes the street during his daily commute, and first noticed barricades come up in June, partially blocking 51st between 3rd and Lexington avenues.

That closure got softer as the weeks went by, Schmidt said, and by last month, police were regularly letting pedestrians and delivery cyclists pass through via a small opening between the barriers.

But by Friday morning, that opening had vanished, replaced by a banner reading "NYPD Checkpoint" along with two officers stationed at the 3rd Avenue entrance. The Lexington Avenue side was also blocked.

Residents and safe streets advocates around the city have complained for months about NYPD barricades blocking streets, sidewalks, and sometimes entire blocks near police stations. Many of the closures began in June, amid widespread protests against racism and police violence following the death of George Floyd.

In at least one instance, on the Upper West Side, a police captain said barricades had been erected to protect the 20th Precinct from threats by protesters.

Reached for comment, NYPD spokesperson Detective Denise Moroney said that East 51st Street "is controlled access and has been for almost three months."

"The public/community and vehicles are generally allowed down the block," Moroney said.

Schmidt, though, said an officer at the checkpoint told him Friday that the street was open only to those with "business on the block," and that it was closed to through traffic.

The department did not respond to questions about the purpose of the checkpoint and who was being screened there.

A spokesperson for City Councilmember Keith Powers, who represents Midtown, said Powers "has expressed concern regarding street and sidewalk space being used in this way."

"Our office has reached out to the Mayor’s office to follow up as to when blocks where precincts are located will open back up to New Yorkers," spokesperson Liz Peters said.