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On Friday, Mayor Eric Adams anounced a new initiative designed to increase safety and quality of life for New Yorkers in Central Park. Dubbed the Central Park Conservancy Partnership, this initiative is part of the city’s newly expanded “Community Link” program, a multi-agency effort to address persistent community complaints in all five boroughs.
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The Central Park Conservancy Partnership will involve more than 20 city departments and community organizations, and will focus on enhanced enforcement, infrastructure improvements, and outreach directly to park visitors. Some of the program’s priorities include illegal vending, unlicensed pedicab operations, and noise enforcement.
According to a press release issued by the mayor’s office, enforcement activities in Central Park have already increased significantly in 2025. Parks Enforcement Patrol has issued 681 summonses this year, nearly 300 for pedicab violations, and close to 300 for illegal vending. The NYPD has issued an additional 460 summonses, including 194 for pedicab violations. So far this year, 19 pedicabs have been seized; last year at this time there was only 1.
City officials report there has been a 50 percent reduction in overall crime in Central Park year to date, a 90 percent reduction in robberies, and a 29 percent reduction in grand larcenies.
In addition to enhanced enforcement, the initiative includes the Central Park Conservancy’s new Ranger Corps. The rangers will be in the park seven days a week to assist and engage with park visitors regarding quality-of-life issues. Rangers do not have authority to issue summonses, but would work in close partnership with police and parks enforcement staff.
The city has also begun educating pedicab cyclists; created new vending maps to assist with compliance; and set about physical improvements such as adding new lighting and security cameras to raise visitor awareness.\
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The partnership is the latest among an expanding number of Community Link initiatives throughout the five boroughs. Since it was launched in 2023, there have been over 1,600 operations conducted in response to over 1,500 community complaints. In Central Park, the program builds upon prior work done along the 110th Street corridor where more than 1,000 summonses and over 100 arrests were made.
The city states its goal is to re-imagine Central Park as a safer, cleaner, and more inclusive space for New Yorkers, and the millions of visitors who traverse it every year.
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