The 104th Precinct wants park-goers to take a hike out of Highland Park at curfew.
Starting later this year officers will make daily patrols through the park at 8:30 p.m. to tell people to leave by 9 p.m., when it closes.
Residents living near Highland Park, a green space with many trails and ball fields near the Brooklyn-Queens border in Ridgewood, have been complaining about people using the park through the late hours of the night.
The Precinct has heard complaints of drinking and loud music playing after hours in the park dating back to last year, and Captain Chris Manson said that the party has ended.
Officers will start making the rounds as soon as the weather is warmer. If someone is spotted after the curfew they will be issued a summons.
“I want people to use the parks, but at a reasonable time,” Manson said. “I expect a major quality of life improvement.”
Manson said the increased enforcement could begin around the end of March.
Park enforcement has been a major issue throughout the confines of the 104th Precinct.
There have been about 270 summonses issued to people in parks in the region over the last month alone, according to statistics by the NYPD. Sixty of those summonses were given to people for just being in parks after hours.
Also, nearby Forest Park will receive NYPD cameras later this year to help improve safety, after a string of sexual assaults.
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