NEW YORK (WABC) — The Knicks watch party set for outside Madison Square Garden on Wednesday night has been canceled, but parties will go on at Wollman Rink and Brooklyn Bowl.
The New York Knicks take on the San Antonio Spurs for Game 4 of the NBA Finals at Madison Square Garden on Wednesday night.
Just before 5 p.m., the Knicks announced the watch party previously scheduled for outside MSG would not happen.
The decision to cancel came after MSG and its owner accused the mayor and the NYPD of turning the neighborhood into a “police state” and insisted that fans should be allowed to gather outside the arena, unrestricted.
Anthony Johnson has the latest from outside Madison Square Garden.
After the team’s loss on Monday night, Knicks fans spilled out of Bryant Park onto neighboring streets, sparking fights resulting in 21 arrests.
The NYPD and the city approved a permit for 999 ticketed attendees for Wednesday’s outdoor watch party. Mayor Zohran Mamdani said he knows the decision to cancel the watch party is “breaking hearts” across the city.
“We want to encourage every New Yorker to celebrate in this moment, to do so responsibly and to be looking out for one another through it all,” Mamdani said.
“The Knicks never agreed to what the city proposed,” an MSG official said. “So the watch party outside MSG was not canceled in the traditional sense. The Knicks do not agree to what the city proposed.”
The measures have also enraged nearby restaurants and bars, as well as civil liberties groups.
“It’s ruining my business,” said Angela Reilly, the owner of Molly Wee, an Irish pub near the arena. “I haven’t seen anything like this level of security in 46 years.”
Molly Biklen, the legal director of the New York Civil Liberties Union, agreed the tactics seemed heavy-handed. “Crowd control for major events is reasonable, but historic moments are not carte blanche for overpolicing or excessive NYPD responses,” Biklen said.
Some fans said it’s understandable, but bar owner Mike O’Brien said it’s overkill.
“Game Three? We had 30 people in here, tops,” he said.
Michael Kellman came to New York from Chicago, and missing Wednesday night’s watch party is a letdown.
“But I think the watch parties are still going to go on,” he said. “They’re still going to go on. OK, this is New York. Yes, it is-unofficially. There’ll be unofficial watch parties.”
During the conference finals last month, the NYPD announced it would not support watch parties outside the arena, citing “very rough” crowds as a public safety threat.
But that decision, which ultimately rests with the mayor’s office, was later reversed after the Knicks reached the NBA Finals for the first time since 1999.
Registration for the watch parties is available on the Knicks website.
The NYPD security plan for Game 4 is listed below:
Security Perimeter and Access Points:
There will be a security perimeter established around Madison Square Garden as there was on Monday night (as the Police Commissioner said there would be for Game 4 at the press conference on Monday).
That perimeter will run from West 29th Street to West 35th Street, between Sixth Avenue and Eighth Avenue.
Within that perimeter, beginning at 4pm, Seventh Avenue between West 29th Street and West 35th Street will be closed to vehicular and general pedestrian traffic.
Eighth Avenue will be open to vehicular traffic, but is subject to traffic closure if conditions necessitate a closure.
Unless you are going to the game or have business specific to that area, pedestrians should avoid this area.
Starting at 4pm, no one will be allowed inside the secure area unless they have a ticket to the game, a train ticket, are going to a business (restaurant or bar) inside the area, live in the area, have credentials, or have some other authorized reason to be there.
Everyone entering the secure area will be screened.
Screening locations will be open starting at 4:30pm. Please make sure you arrive early to allow enough time to get through the security points.
If you have reason to be in the secure area (as listed above), you can enter at one of four designated entry points where screening will occur.
Those entry points will be located on:
West side of Sixth Avenue at West 33rd Street
West side of Sixth Avenue at West 32nd Street
West side of Eighth Avenue at West 33rd Street
Northeast corner of Eighth Avenue and West 30th Street
Businesses inside the perimeter, including bars and restaurants between Sixth and Seventh Avenues, and those between Seventh and Eighth Avenues, will be allowed to operate with strict capacity limits.
If you plan to frequent one of those locations, you will need to be screened at a security checkpoint. The NYPD will help facilitate access to those businesses.
Please remember that certain items will not be permitted inside the secure area, including backpacks, bags, alcohol, or umbrellas.
The only exception is for travelers entering Penn Station, who will be allowed to carry bags needed for travel, but are subject to security screening.
Exiting Madison Square Garden:
Fans leaving Madison Square Garden after the game will be able to access public transit at Penn Station.
If you are leaving the area by foot or car, you will exit the arena onto Seventh Avenue or Eighth Avenue.
If you exit onto Eighth Avenue, you will only be able to walk southbound on the east side of Eighth Avenue until you reach 28th Street. East and west egress from Eighth Avenue will only be possible starting at 28th Street.
If you exit onto Seventh Avenue, you can either walk southbound on the west side of Seventh Avenue until you reach 28th Street or you can walk eastbound on 32nd Street until you reach Sixth Avenue.
If you are planning to take a taxi or another ride after the game, you will only be able to access vehicles starting at West 28th Street and Eighth Avenue, West 28th Street and Seventh Avenue, or West 32nd Street and Sixth Avenue.
Moynihan Train Hall/Penn Station:
For access to transportation at Moynihan Train Hall and Penn Station, including Amtrak, LIRR, and the subway, please use the entrances to Moynihan Station on the west side of Eighth Avenue at 31st and 33rd Streets, which will be outside of the secure area.
We do not anticipate any service changes or disruptions as a result of the security plan.
Game 4 between the Knicks and Spurs tips off at 8:30 p.m. You can watch the game on ABC 7. Pre-game coverage begins at 7:30 p.m. The Knicks lead the series 2-1.
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