Community board proposes permanent gate that locks at midnight curfew at Washington Square Park

MANHATTAN (WABC) — A controversial idea is being tossed around involving a permanent fence at Washington Square Park.

Should the park get permanent gates so it can be locked at night?

Inside Washington Square Park, by the iconic arch and in the middle of NYU’s campus, music is playing and college students are hanging out.

The beauty of the park is that it is open to everyone.

But at midnight, it is locked by barricades that the police put in place.

Now, some want it to go further.

At a community board hearing on Wednesday, there was a conversation about whether a more permanent and aesthetically pleasing gate should be installed.

“It’s a topic that’s been bubbling around for 20 years,” Community Board member Rich Caccappolo said.

“I think the message those gates would send is this park is to be respected. So I’m all in favor of attractive, proper, formal gates,” resident Brian Meister said.

“The fountain is filled with debris. There are needles everywhere. And there is just debris everywhere in that park,” landscape architect George Vellonakis said. “Tompkins Square is one of them that has gates around it. Madison Square Park was built the same time, 1820s, that has gates around it. City Hall Park has gates around it. There’s nothing wrong with gates. All our parks around the world are locked at night.”

Not everyone agrees.

“We know that fencing goes against the idea of a publicly accessible area. This is a massive park with a massive monument that is world-renowned,” resident Morell Myers said.

“It’s a venue for openness and inclusion where all sorts of people can gather where people feel free,” another resident said.

There is currently no formal proposal or even a design.

There have also been no studies yet on how it would be done or funded.

And if it gets that far, it will have to be approved by the Landmarks Preservation Commission. The next possible vote would be held at the next meeting on May 21.

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