Neighbors fed up with late-night park parties

Enough is enough.

Residents living near Dyker Beach Park, particularly at Bay Eighth Street, want the loud music and late-night parties to stop.

Nearly 200 people signed a petition asking NYC Parks and the NYPD to improve the situation in the barbecue area where the parties take place.

At a meeting of the park committees of Community Boards 10 and 11 on April 28, locals said large events with amplified sound and strobe lights have ruined their weekends for the past two years. They also complained about alcohol use, empty bottles, discarded drug paraphernalia, fireworks and general disorder.

The park is open from 6 a.m. to 1 a.m. but the petitioners want it closed by 10 p.m.

“What good can come out of anything at 1 in the morning?” asked resident Angelo Bruno. “I lost my park. I won’t walk in the park. You can’t even walk through the park on weekends.”

The NYPD requires a permit for amplified sound and NYC Parks requires a special event permit for any gathering of 20 or more people. Parks representatives said they rely on their workers and the public to alert them to anything out of the ordinary. NYC Parks Enforcement Patrol (PEP) members then show up and speak to party organizers.

PEP said they issued tickets to illegal vendors last year but say they are short of staff. Police officers have also joined the patrol. Capt. Andrew Tolson, commander of the 68th Precinct, said officers started issuing summonses this year for open alcohol containers and have increased their presence as summer approaches.

“We are stretched thin but every complaint is important to me and my officers,” Tolson said.

CB10 and 11 will create flyers listing park rules in multiple languages for auxiliary officers to hand out. The boards will also send a joint letter to the Parks Dept. asking for an earlier closing time and the elimination of the barbecue area.

Slides from the meeting about disorder in Dyker Beach Park. Courtesy of Community Board 10
Slides from the meeting about disorder in Dyker Beach Park. Courtesy of Community Board 10

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