Washington Square Park Gets A Weekend Curfew Amid Safety Concerns

WEST VILLAGE, NY — Washington Square Park has a new curfew after the New York Police Department recently announced that the iconic Lower Manhattan public space will be closing earlier on Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays due to a variety of safety concerns.

In coordination with the NYC Parks Department, NYPD announced over the weekend that the closing time for the park will be moved from midnight to 10 p.m. on the three days.

"This decision was made due to safety concerns following several recent incidents where large, and sometimes violent groups have refused to leave the park, and engaged in disorderly behavior," police said in a statement to Patch.

Police described some of the bad behavior as people jumping on vehicles, making threats to officers, and throwing objects at police and firefighters.

A Lower Manhattan Community Board 2 member told CBS that the weekend parties in Washington Square Park have been getting bigger and louder since the beginning of April, causing many people in the Lower Manhattan neighborhood to complain.

A spokesperson from the NYPD provided five incidents to Patch to highlight the misbehavior that has been going on in the park.

Four of the five incidents took place on May 22 and 23, which included objects getting thrown at officers, threats made to officers, and groups refusing to leave the park.

The decision to move the closing time will be reviewed on an ongoing basis.