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Bloomberg And Brookfield Playing Hot Potato Over Zuccotti Park
By
Ben Yakas
Published Nov 11, 2011
Modified Nov 11, 2011
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By
Ben Yakas
Published Nov 11, 2011
Modified Nov 11, 2011
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Next week will mark the second full month that Occupy Wall Street protesters have been encamped in Zuccotti Park. And ever since an aborted attempt to clean the park in early October, there hasn't been much movement to remove them from there. But it seems part of the reason for that may be because neither Mayor Bloomberg nor Brookfield Properties, who own the publicly-owned private space, want to take responsibility over enforcing the so-called park rules: "The city of New York enforces all the laws. It's not our business to enforce the laws. We have regulations for the site. That's a different thing. But as far as the laws are concerned, they enforce the laws," Brookfield chief John Zuccotti told the Post.
Since that near confrontation, anytime Bloomberg has been asked about the park "rules"—which prohibit tents, among other things—he's blamed Brookfield for not enforcing its own rules, or asking the city to intervene. Brookfield, who admitted that intervention from public officials led to them backing off from their vow to wash the park last month, may have the upper hand on this one: according to Urban Elephants, Bloomberg could put pressure on Brookfield by enforcing "the strict rules of the city's byzantine zoning text" against Brookfield Properties any time he wants to, by imposing fines or clearing the park.
Of course, Bloomberg and his administration have had a difficult time deciding upon the right tone and policy to take with OWS—so much so that it's led to a constant barrage of shifting viewpoints from Hizzoner, split between damnation for any "class warfare" and neighborhood disruption, and respect for free speech and the large issues surrounding the economy. The Post's Steve Cuozzo has had enough: "Nobody’s been killed—at least not yet. But Michael Bloomberg has been plain chicken about taking the steps needed to return the city’s most wounded, heroic neighborhood to its residents and businesses."
Besides the matter of enforcing "rules" in the park, Bloomberg has seemingly had a split personality when it comes to OWS's impact on tourism in the city. He believes that Occupy Wall Street is bad for tourism and businesses in the neighborhood, except for those times when he says he thinks Occupy Wall Street is "a tourist attraction."
But it seems as though everyone from Fox News to Associated Press to reporters from Reading, PA agree that Zuccotti Park has gone from a half-used ugly urban to the NYC place to visit. Mother Jones agrees, and interviewed some tourists on why they're flocking to see Zuccotti.
Tagged
brookfield properties
mayor bloomberg
occupy wall street
ows
protest
tourism
tourists
Zuccotti Park
Ben Yakas
Ben Yakas is a former Gothamist reporter.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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