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August 24, 2012
In Brooklyn, Working Out Nets Stadium’s Police Beat
MetroFocus [Thirteen.org]
by John Farley
“When the arena opens there are going to be changes to people’s quality of life,” Capt. Michael Ameri, standing next to City Councilmember Letitia James, told a roomfull of people at Brooklyn’s 78th Precinct, where he is the commanding officer. The public meeting on how the new Barclays Center and surrounding area would be policed drew approximately 60 area residents on Wednesday.
...Because the arena’s footprint sits within three police precincts — the 77th, 78th and 88th — the city went for efficiency and unofficially selected the 78th Precinct to cover Barclays Center, as well as the Atlantic Mall and Atlantic Terminal, last March. On August 13, Mayor Michael Bloomberg and Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly sent a letter to City Council requesting approval for the redrawn boundary 78th Precinct, which will also expand to cover a triangle wedge of residential streets between Flatbush, Atlantic and Vanderbilt avenues. The Council has 60 days to respond to the request, but permission has been tacit as the stadium will open on September 28 with a Jay-Z concert and the 78th has already been preparing for its expanded beat, which will include a special “arena detail” and considerable overtime for many of its officers.
That overtime, said James (D-35), is going to be covered by the taxpayers of the City of New York.
“I believe Forest City Ratner should cover the overtime costs, but at this point, it’s the taxpayers. Which is why I opposed it [Atlantic Yards] from day one,” James added.
Echoes of that frustration, after years of legal battles, pervaded the room, but the point of the meeting was clear: to work out how the police are going to deal with a huge influx of people (the arena has 18,000 seats).
Related coverage...
Park Slope Patch, Traffic Biggest Concern, Not Crowds, After 78th Precinct Takes Over Barclays Center
“To be honest with you, that's my biggest concern with this arena is traffic,” [78th Precinct Commanding Officer Captain Michael Ameri] said to a room filled with about 60 residents from Park Slope, Fort Green and Prospect Heights. “We will have beyond sufficient number of traffic agents and we will pull cars away from the arena so cars close to the area can leave.”
...“We will set the tone early — we will flood the area with traffic agents and tow trucks. We want the word out that if you break the law, you’ll not only get a ticket, but you’ll get towed,” Ameri said, explaining that on opening day tow trucks will be there. “Once the word is out that you’ll get towed, people will be scared.”
Posted by eric at August 24, 2012 10:32 AM