Artist Crackdown at Washington Square Park Resumes

NYC Parks Department Insists “there has been no crackdown in enforcement or change in our policy”
Late last month, artists who display their art at Washington Square Park’s Fountain Plaza were evicted from their locations, informed by Parks Department Park Enforcement Patrol (PEP) officers that there were only two spots they were allowed to display their art – one west and one east of the fountain.
The Parks Department is framing this enforcement as no change in policy. Yet, for the entire nine months prior – in fact, years prior – artists have been allowed to display their art around the Fountain’s circle. Over the last month, PEP officers have forced artists to take down their tables and art and leave immediately.
2010s “Performance Crackdown”
Those who have read this blog for a while know that this issue first reared its head in 2010/2011 under Mayor Michael Bloomberg. Musicians and buskers were ticketed for performing in the park near its Fountain and famous Arch.
There was a lot of media coverage at this time, including a very prominent New York Times article.
Termed the “performance crackdown,” it focused on musicians and buskers. The so-called “expressive matter” rule when applied stringently said you had to be a certain distance from the Park’s Arch, Fountain and benches to perform (or display art). This left two spaces – the two allowed spaces that are now curiously in effect.
After media attention and public outcry, in 2013, the Parks Department told the community they would not be limiting spaces for art or performance at the park.
At a Community Board 2 Parks Committee public hearing, Manhattan Parks Commissioner Bill Castro informed the public: “You don’t have to be x feet away from anything.”
Then-Manhattan Parks Commissioner Bill Castro Puts Table Rule Into Effect at Park
At that time in 2013, Bill Castro put into play a new rule that changed everything. Castro said the only thing which would now be enforced was that musicians and artists needed to have a table to display their art or CDs, rather than items on the ground. It was very convoluted the way this topic was presented. I came away from from the meeting thinking that artists could only ask for donations but that was wrong: they were able to sell – on a table.
The table rule drove out some artists like Mother Pigeon/Tina Tractenburg who displayed her felt pigeons on the ground. It actually ended up commercializing the art around the park to some degree as it made it easier to sell. I never thought it was a good rule. You’d think by now the Parks Department would learn that sometimes things are best left as they are.
NYC Parks Department Statement on the Current Artist Situation at the Park:
When asked recently by WSP Blog what – and who – was behind the change, the New York City Parks Department press office provided this statement:
“Washington Square Park is a bastion of artistic expression. We support expressive matter vendors performing in parks, following longstanding related rules. There is nothing to the assertion that the conservancy dictates Parks policy or the management of the park in any way – that is solely the responsibility of the agency commissioner and those who represent the agency on their behalf.”
In my query, I didn’t ask about Washington Square Park conservancy. This private organization – founded by four neighborhood socialites who misrepresented pretty much everything about themselves when they came before the public for “approval” – is clearly involved in way too much at the park. However, in this Parks’ statement, there’s this defense-offense posture that’s going on.
Parks: Washington Square Park conservancy “is essential a ‘friends of group'” with “no legal agreement”
The Washington Square Park Conservancy is still trying to get a license agreement to run the park even tho’ they denied they ever intended to do so back in 2013. (They did intend to at the time they said no; community push back pushed that back.)
Per more recent FOIL documents Washington Square Park Blog obtained, they are still trying. But here, NYC Parks is diminishing the private group’s involvement at the park. It’s actually sort of fun.
“Regarding the Conservancy: There is no legal agreement, operational or otherwise, between Parks and the Washington Square Park Conservancy. The conservancy is essentially a “friends of group” – they provide support for the park through stewardship, financial support, and programming. We have hundreds of friends of groups across the city that support our parks on varying scales of engagement and ability. Additionally, Community Board 2 recently issued a resolution supporting the dual role.”
Community Board 2 Never Lets You Down in Reinforcing Their Bad Operating Procedures From 2013 re: Private Conservancy
This isn’t surprising that Community Board 2 (CB2) is perpetually trying to justify the “murky” way they supported, enabled and pushed through this private group of four wealthy neighborhood socialites who flagrantly violated any aspect of transparency and trust in 2013.
I’m not aware of this new resolution on the “dual role” but the CB2 Parks Committee at times throws these items into their meetings when general agenda topics are all that is listed, seemingly nothing related to Washington Square Park. The “dual role” should not be allowed; this conflict of interest blurs too many lines and is unnecessary.
Why is Community Board 2 not getting involved?
CB2 Chair Brad Hoylman (now New York State Senator) led a public hearing on the performance crackdown in 2011. The board’s Parks Committee has held public meetings related to issues around musicians and artists over the years. Yet, they refused to get involved last year when things bubbled up. Since private conservancy formed, the Parks Committee has taken a back seat more and more over time. That’s not a good thing.
As critical as I’ve been on things the Community Board has done, they should be out front on issues related to this iconic neighborhood park vs. letting a private entity make decisions the community previously played a role in. There is supposed to be a mechanism via the Board (in theory) for transparency and a place for the public to work out issues.
Parks Department Doubles Down: “There has been no crackdown in enforcement or change in our policy.”
In addition, the Parks Department doubles down stating “there has been no crackdown in enforcement or change in our policy.”
And: “For more information on our Expressive Matter Vending policy read more: https://static.nycgovparks.org/images/pagefiles/57/expressive-matter-faq.pdf; https://www.nycgovparks.org/rules”

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Previously at Washington Square Park Blog:
Protesting Police Over-enforcement of Artists at Washington Square Park | Creative Action July 30th July 29, 2023 [a lot of history on this topic in this article]
Performance Crackdown at the Park — Parks Commissioner says Bob Dylan Could Still Play at WSP; With New Rules, Is That even True? December 6, 2011
City Reverses Course on Performance Crackdown at Washington Square Park – No More Ticketing and Fining of “Entertainers and Buskers” May 10, 2012
Community Board 2 Letter to Parks Commissioner: Parks Department Rules at Washington Square “Overly Restrictive and Unnecessary” February 2, 2012
60 Years Ago This Month, The 1961 “Folk Riot” at Washington Square Park Occurred April 28, 2021
Photos: Cathryn
Why does the Park have to be a flea market? What benefit to Greenwich Village, the people of NYC and Tourists? Art, drugs, trinkets, food…there are plenty of other places to sell.
Hello,
My name is Erjon Marku, for the past 12 years i’ve been a street expressive matter vendor, i have been displaying my art in Washington square Arch for the past 3-4 years. 9/30/2024 I was arrested for not obeying the final time because they have moved me over 10 times in the past month, and im the only one getting diciplined, but they gave me two options as to where to set up and im there today at the only one of two legal spots to display my art here at washington square park. They issued me two violations, one for unlawful vending, which im not and the other for not moving, although im always the example every time there is bad news for the park, im the only one that has positive art, im usually the first artist in the park in the morning and the first one that leaves at evening hours, they took all my things and handcuffed me and it took them 5 hours, 1 hr in handcuffed in the minivan right close to the arch on display on the park, i would like to get all my property back, clips, sticks, colors bag with sharpies, an original book with 8 originals that I already have in my collection. What i would like to ask and to comment on is, why am I the only one who is being pushed around and harrassed also where are my 6 crates of wine that i kept my art prints in? None of that is on the invoice of the county clerk, i have filed with 311 for my missing property and i look forward to hearing from someone from the parks department with my property. I have video of the whole arrest, and my property is visible when being arrested, but not on the property list that they handed to the nypd 6th precint,
Where is my property. And why is the news being silent on my arrest?