By Gus Saltonstall
New signs posted around the recently renovated Wise Towers playground on the Upper West Side have left some nonresidents of the building with questions.
In the past week, signs that read “No Trespassing,” “For Wise Towers Residents Only,” and “Please Respect the Wise Tower Playground” have appeared around the New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA) complex’s courtyard at West 90th Street between Amsterdam and Columbus Avenues.
“Playground not public?” one reader emailed in.
“Can you investigate? Parents of the UWS are dying to know if we can still take our families there,” another reader wrote.
Neighborhood residents weren’t the only ones with questions.
Upper West Side Councilmember Gale Brewer emailed NYCHA and leaders of the Wise Towers Tenant Association on Thursday asking about the new signs.
“I write on behalf of many local residents, schools and child care programs that have expressed concern regarding the recent signage posted at the Wise Towers Playground on 90th Street between Amsterdam and Columbus Avenues,” Brewer wrote. “I am seeking clarification regarding the use of the Wise Towers Playground. Is its use now restricted to Wise Towers residents and their guests? Additionally, I would like to inquire about the basketball court located on the same block, just west of the playground.”
Brewer hasn’t received an answer as of Friday morning.
Tenant leaders of Wise Towers expressed concerns over how the playground was being used to West Side Rag back in January. One community leader from the NYCHA complex told the Rag at the time that while the new equipment was a great addition, they were concerned that too many nonresidents, who rarely visited the plaza before the new equipment was installed, were bringing their kids to play and possibly taking up space from children who live there.
A spokesperson from NYCHA gave another explanation for the signs. “In response to resident concerns about the treatment of the new playground equipment and grounds, Wise Towers’ property management has installed signage in an attempt to address those concerns,” the spokesperson told the Rag, but did not specify what the “concerns” were.
NYCHA developments are owned by the city, but are overseen by private property managers. In the case of Wise Towers, the development is part of PACT, which provides enhanced property management and expanded on-site social services.
“The PACT program unlocks funding for comprehensive renovations to NYCHA developments, including grounds and outdoor spaces, with the goal of improving the quality of life for residents, but also creating safe spaces for the surrounding community to enjoy,” the NYCHA spokesperson said, seemingly in contradiction of the “No Trespassing” signs.
The Wise Towers property managers did not immediately respond to the Rag’s request for comment.
As for the legality of these signs, the answers are still murky.
NYPD did not respond to West Side Rag’s request for comment on the question.
A source familiar with the situation, though, said that while the Wise Towers property managers were within their legal rights to put up the signs, there would not be any enforcement of them by authorities, and that the signs were meant more as a deterrent.
West Side Rag will update this story when more is learned.
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If an expensive private building tried to keep Wise Houses residents out of its public playground look out, it would be national news.
What expensive private building has a public playground?
LIncoln Towers
Waterline Square
Anyone can use the Waterline Square playground. We don’t live there and we use it all the time.
Acting as a deterrent is still bad. Take the signs down. Everybody is a NIMBY in this town!
Lincoln Towers has some playgrounds that are only for residents. How is this different?
Is Lincoln Towers private? The NYCHA housing is city housing so it’s public money paid for by tax payers.
NYCHA residents sign a contract and have obligations that market rate UWS residents do not have!
Lincoln Towers isn’t public housing maintained with taxpayer money.
It shouldn’t be! They should both be open to everyone.
Public housing. Public playground. Public access.
But apparently, the management company does not have an issue with the ever present mountain of garbage bags on the West 90th sidewalk in defiance of current City regulations regarding hours for garbage placement.
This doesn’t make sense at all. My child plays here from time to time. I can’t even get the parks department to do something about the rats on the playground, but these guys get signs basically saying f’off.
Hi, there is currently a man harassing people as they try to enter. If you want to add to your story, go see for yourself. He’s wearing a black T-shirt, black sunglasses and walks with a cane. He’s harassing and yelling at people as he stands in front of the 90th entrance.
If he’s not there when you arrive, he’s been going back and forth to his group of friends sitting 20 yards northeast of the 90th street entrance.
Additionally, the police were called this morning because a resident was harassing people. My kids and nanny witnessed it.
Both the harassing Wise Tower resident and the neighborhood community member who was there in their right were saying they would call the police to settle it. Police came and sided with the victim reiterating it’s open to the public. The woman who oversees the Wise Tower was also present and confirmed access is open to the broader neighborhood.
If the sign was put there illegally, someone should be fired.
They need help understanding how life works. I hope people continue to use the park and call the police if threatened until they come to an understanding. Private property is currently defined as what is owned personally- not what is provided to you for free.
To be fair, apartments are not free at Stephen Wise Towers, but they are heavily subsidized by the city. Tenants pay 30% of their income or the flat rate for the apartment, whichever is lower, up until they hit the flat rate threshold. For example, someone making $30,000/yr would pay $750/mo. People don’t pay $0/mo.
Right now, the maximum someone can pay is $1,909 for a studio, $1,961 for a 1-bed, $2,202 for a 2-bed, $2,748 for a 3-bed, $2,960 for a 4-bed, etc.
In my opinion, if someone is living in public housing (and is therefore extremely subsidized by the city) there needs to be fair concessions over what is private vs public. Of course, the public doesn’t get to walk into an apartment whenever they want, but there should be some compromise on things like playgrounds and basketball courts.
Free? no one lives there for free! i pay almost 2000 a month! The ignorance and entitlement is astounding!!!
People living in taxpayer supported housing, receiving welfare and other taxpayer supported benefits barring actual taxpayers from using a taxpayer funded rebuilt play ground. This is the new definition of entitled.
Those same people you’re talking about pay taxes as well. Please find something new to comment, your prejudice is showing. You don’t know them from a can of paint to make such comments.
Where’s the prejudice? The man’s simply stating facts. He’s as free to comment as you or anyone else.
I don’t know where you grew up, but I grew up in a NYCHA housing project not unlike Wise Towers. We were far from rich, but my parents paid taxes and we were never on welfare. I know from personal experience what a crummy living experience NYCHA provides. If a facility that’s actually NICE instead of filthy and broken-down is available to these residents, why not just leave it to them and be grateful that a playground isn’t the nicest thing in your life?
My son plays here frequently since it opened. It’s a friendly little playground on weeknights and on weekends, but with the signs recently, the vibe is different. We went here one night this week after daycare pickup and noticed the signs, as well as many people there at seemingly a block party for residents. They were playing music VERY loudly and it felt like it was meant as a deterrent/intimidation for any non residents to enter. I have been wondering about the legality of these tactics, and will keep an eye out for updates. It’s a shame that this is happening as it’s a nice space and it always seems really civil and friendly between all of the different people using the space until now.
My friend lives across the street. He’s moving to CT and said this was the last straw.
Residents feel they’re witnessing gentrification in real time. Since the renovation the park has been packed with non-residents. People who have lived in Wise their whole lives feel they haven’t gotten a moment to enjoy the renovated space. It’s sad that people are unable to have a better discourse about this.
For ex- what should residents who want to enjoy the park do when families with nannies are able to stake out space hours before they’re even able to pick their children up from school?
gentrification of the UWS lmao
They can share.. As we all do with all other playground s. This is a huge playground and there is plenty of room for everyone. I dont see how having ” exclusive playground ” is beneficial for the community.
I’m puzzled why anyone would think that facilities in private buildings such as Lincoln Towers, should be open to non-residents? It makes absolutely no sense.
Besides the issues of liability, residents pay for these facilities to be maintained. Does the reader also think that a playground or pool in the backyard of someone’s private house should be open to everyone?
The park is and has always been for Wise Tower residents and if Wise Tower residents aren’t able to comfortably take their children out to play because it’s flooded with non residents, then they have a right to ask non residents to go to another park. Central Park is one block away, Riverside is also very close, and there is a park that is right across the street attached to the church. So many people never wanted to go to the “projects” to play before the new bells and whistles, Just go somewhere else, it’s such entitled behavior. Welfare, tax payer, blah blah comments are standard racial bs. People have full time jobs and work hard to support their families just like everyone else. These developments are essential for families to succeed because of financial inequalities in the black/brown community and it should be a peaceful and safe environment for the kids of these beautiful families! Keep fighting wise towers!!!!!
It’s a large playground with plenty of space, the residents are free to enjoy the playground & likely will spend more time there given the proximity. NYCHA even states is this for ‘surrounding community to enjoy’. Those obnoxious signs need to go.
It is a NYCHA resident children’s playground. There are lots of other playgrounds in the city for non NYCHA residents. I didn’t notice outsiders using the old playground or any other NYCHA playground.
I went to today with my son and was physically blocked from using the playground by a middle aged lady and two larger younger men. I looked over their shoulder to see the playground was EMPTY, sans three adults smoking weed and openly drinking in the playground.
Great work NYCHA… you let your residents annex a public playground!
Either open up the playground to the public or divert the money used to fund the building and its tenants “lifestyles” from next years operating budget until the city it made whole, then let’s see how quickly those signs come down!
As someone who was also present when the cops were called by the Nannie’s and the resident the cops sided with the resident and had everyone leave the park. Please stop spreading misinformation as this only harms positive discourse.
I have been living over here for over 20 years. The gentrification we have been experiencing is unfair and ridiculous to us. We have not been able to enjoy our playgrounds with our children nor play music without certain people complaining and calling the cops about it. There’s other playgrounds you can take your children to without disturbing us. And Those “taxpayer” comments tells you who is mad along with the racism in this community. We’ve waited a long time for this renovation and it is beautiful. Our children here can enjoy it and would like to as such free of any micro-aggressions. You don’t live here yet use the playground and treat others with disrespect.
I worked on that project and can share that there were many resident complaints even before the renovation of groups of private school students commandeering the basketball courts. Apparently this has now spread to the younger kids as well. My advice is walk the two blocks to Riverside Park’s lovely playground and leave this long-awaited amenity to the families for whom it was built, and who have little else.
“commandeering”, or simply “enjoying”?
Who is your advice for, by the way?
re: “commandeering” or simply “enjoying”? Well, how about just “taking over” so the actual residents can’t use the facilities? And you asked “who is your advice for?” I read it as being for folks who do not live in this public housing and who could easily go to alternative parks/ playgrounds as mentioned in other comments.
To those saying it is pudlic housong funded by tax dollars and therefore open to the public: do you know this for a fact? The apartment buildings and even individual units are funded by taxes but surely we can’t all walk right it.
It’s pretty sad that Gail Brewer doesn’t seem to know the answer to this question and has reached out to the building to ask.
This development is home to predominantly POCs. These families face segregation within the PS system. These children are zoned for ps166 and ps84 yet they are pushed to farther schools or charter schools. Parents work 9-5 or even 2 jobs to support their families. To comment on them needing government assistance highlights the prejudice they face daily. This is something they want to fight for. They are protecting a park that was not looked at before. It is egregious to claim entitlement. You’re fighting over a project park. please visit another project if it means so much to you.
Even if everything you say is true, none of these are valid reasons to exclude anybody from a playground. Either the property owner/manager built it for public use or it didn’t. The absence of locks and the absence of any gate on the north side indicates that the owner/manager intended for this to be used by the public, not restricted to a limited set of people. The fact that Wise residents have difficult lives has absolutely nothing to do with the public’s legal (or ethical) right to access that space.
Wasn’t this renovated with public funds?
Yes public funds for that public housing community. Their homes, their playground. You are not entitled to go in to their living rooms, either. Lotta public funds go to the parks department for public-for-all parks and playgrounds too. Take a minute and appreciate a difference you may not have appreciated before, and walk another block or two. Lovely public playground and community garden open to all in the same block on 89th and 90th. Not to mention Central Park and Riverside as others have said.
The residents of Wise Towers have felt harassed and bullied by nonresidents. A nonresident grabbed a child because she would not get off the swings. There have been multiple instances of nonresidents having their children pee in the park. A girl was peeing right in front of a tenant’s window. A nonresident called the cops on a 13-year-old girl for how she was playing. The kids are not the issue, it is the parents and the environment they are fostering in this park. Which is private to wise towers despite popular belief which is rooted in unsupported facts. No one went to the park before the renovation and they can continue to visit the countless nearby nyc public parks.
It is incredibly unfortunate that any residents of Wise Towers feel harassed and bullied. They have every right to be treated with respect, particularly in their own backyard.
However, the fact that they have the right to be treated with respect does not give individual residents the authority to exclude the local community from their playground. Only the property manager and owner has that right, not individual residents. If individual residents feel that somebody is trespassing, they should call the police or demand that the property manager take action – such as installing a gate and locks instead of building a playground that has no gate whatsoever on the north side.
Individual residents engaging in self-help by threatening parents with children is an incredibly awful idea – think of a “momma bear.” Far better to deal with this through official channels.
This is easy! The housing project is public and funded with taxpayer money. That doesn’t mean anyone can just walk into someone’s apartment and use their kitchen or bathroom. Along with the apartment, residents have been given a renovated playground. Good for them. This doesn’t mean anyone can use this playground. It’s part of the complex and in this regard should be thought of similarly to Lincoln Towers playground just for residents.
Noah – A private building with a public playground?
I witnessed a woman yelling at a man with a stroller, shouting that he was trespassing, and threatened, “If I see you here again, I’ll slap your face!” What’s especially sad is that it was so nice to see the children happily playing together. The kids are just fine; it’s the adults that have a problem. And while I understand the Wise Towers residents wanting their facilities to themselves, this kind of behavior is spreading a message of hate.
I’m pretty left wing. But. Since this is public, taxpayer supported housing, the playground should be considered public. People are not entering the buildings themselves, just the playground Private buildings are different, one big reason – insurance liability. The city already holds that type of insurance. Just open all nycha playgrounds, and put them under parks department. Some neighborhoods don’t have many playgrounds and the closest for non nycha residents may be on nycha property.
I’m reading a lot of comments on both sides, but a whole different perspective that needs to be stated is the benefits of the diversity of the playground being open. Kids playing together, meeting new people, and interacting positively with others from different socioeconomic backgrounds, absolutely a positive.
These children have been harassed by Nannie’s and parents sharing that they are not allowed to play with the children from the neighborhood. Shame on them. I witnessed this myself. I have returned back to the neighborhood after many years away. The comment about someone sharing their nanny takes their kids here exactly and they don’t want the children playing with local residents. Children should play without impunity adults misbehaving. Public housing is not public park due to liability. Residents sign contracts others don’t. Start with reversing. the redlining of our neighborhood school PS 166 then ask us to take our signs down. Our children cannot attend 166 or play in the playground across the street. Trinity does not allow our children to play there either. Yes in an equitable world this would be a no brainer, yet the equality is rampant and there is no equity. We can’t even walk in our neighborhood garden without be harassed because the person who is gardening lives on West End and has made it clear we are not welcome! All Parks and Gardens should be public but they are not!
About the Lincoln Towers’ playgrounds comparison. Lincoln Towers is now coops but they were built with taxpayer money as Mitchell-Lama housing. Indivicuals own the apartments but when did the city give them the right to limit access to the playgrounds that most likely were originally built with public money?
In any case it is un-neighborly as opposed to the beautiful new playground at Waterline Square. That isn’t listed in the parks department website so it must be owned by those buildings.
The fact that this playground doesn’t have bathrooms (which is my assumption since non resident kids are peeing in the park) makes me think it was never intended for public use. If you live in the building you cam just run in to your own apartment.
As a parent of younger kids, trust me, there are A LOT of playgrounds without bathrooms. Off hand, every Central Park playground on the Upper West Side does not have a bathroom in the playground, with some of the Park bathrooms being a schlepp to get to. Playground 89 and St. Gregory’s Playground don’t, but you can argue that they’re part of the school facilities (yet are open to the public during non-school hours) There are many without nearby playgrounds, particularly further afield.
I hate to be the bearer of bad news but MOST playgrounds have no bathrooms. Whether a playground has a bathroom or not has absolutely nothing to do with whether it is “intended for public use.”
The members of the Wise Tower community have been there since the 1960s. If they tried to hang out in the court yards of the doorman buildings surrounding the park, police would be called immediately. The non residents have kids they cannot discipline, those kids bully the kids that live in the buildings. Some people were bbq’ing. If the non residents had more respect this wouldn’t happen. The signs were put up so people can RESPECT THE COMMUNITY THE PARK IS IN. this is not Central Park this is not Riverside this is a park in between two FORMER HOUSING PROJECTS.
There should be rules of conduct. Not rules of exclusion.
Yes. Neighborhood outsiders should come. Bring nannies to reinforce the privilege of six figure families — and find poor NYCHA residents who appreciate the way you flaunt it. Yes! And invite them to come and play with the hasidic, reform, and orthodox kids on 97th St. And the nearby Trinity kids. Sharing resources and can be a beautififul thing — especially when jt’s a two-way cultural exposure.
I used to walk through the playground as a shortcut to Trader Joes, There was a woman there yesterday who would not let me through. I appreciate the need to protect children but to cut off the ability to just walk though the playground seems excessive. FWIW further west there is a passage between W91/90th streets.
Maybe the root cause is an effort to restrict people who display offensive and anti social behaviors and instead of addressing the concerns outright management is creating rules that unfortunately penalize many law abiding and respectful people? We see this everywhere and every day but are afraid to call it out due to fear of being ostracized. Perhaps this gives insight to other signs or things we see that some claim are discrimination driven and really its to prevent law breakers and other disrespectful people from ruining it for others. Its a shame really.
There is misinformation being spread on this site that Wise project residents receive “free housing. In fact, NYCHA requires each resident pay rent equal to 30 percent of their household income. Income is reviewed yearly, and failure to report increases can result in eviction.
That’s right, thanks for clarifying, although worth noting there are no work requirements and NYCHA still provides heavily subsidized housing as the rents collected have not covered much needed maintenance.
I’m glad that NY provides subsidized housing, but am worried that excluding the surrounding community from playgrounds supported by public funds will erode the public support in the long term.
@UWS Dad – exactly correct. Putting aside the legal and ethical issues raised in these comments, the actions of the tenant association are one of the dumbest PR moves they could make for support of public housing.
“Hey, let’s convince the surrounding community to rally for us by scaring toddlers and making them cry!!!” Said no PR firm ever.
Since what they seem to want is respect, there are so many better ways to achieve that goal.
If the area was rehabilitated and you have outsiders from the neighborhood taking the playground and sitting areas from the residents who live in Wise Towers the YES I agree with the signage for residents of wise towers only…Would private bldgs with playgrounds allow NYCHA residents in their backyard. Outsiders feel entitled to not just occupy the playground but not allow the WISE towers kids a parents to enjoy the playground and sitting area. UNFAIR…Let the kids and residents who live in wise enjoy THEIR playground.
People in the comments talking about public funds, taxpayer dollars, and “proper channels” — take a minute and put on your human thinking cap. This is a classic case of “just because something is legal, does not mean that it is right.”
You know exactly who the park was intended for. You know exactly what dynamics are created by this influx of wealthy, white children and families into this space built for NYCHA residents. And if you really stretch that humanity within you, you can even imagine how it makes the kids who live in the towers feel as they are crowded out and policed (by nonresidents and NYPD) over what was supposed to be a nice thing *for them*. How it makes their parents feel.
Those claiming NYCHA resident entitlement are so close, yet so far. The entitlement is coming from the other end of this argument. You would never take your kids to a dilapidated NYCHA playground. You are insisting on access to Wise’s because of an innate belief that all of the nice things belong to you. Doing so sends the message to residents that they deserve nothing nice at all.
Don’t “well actually” your way out of human decency. Be better than that.
@Lifelong NYer: Actually, it is you who are making a ton of incorrect assumptions about families who have been using the new playground since it opened many months ago.
Speaking for myself, I never heard the name “Wise Towers” until a few days ago. I don’t make it my business to ask about the financial status and history of the hundreds of buildings in my neighborhood and their residents. They are my neighbors and they deserve respect, and that’s it – so no, I do not “know exactly what dynamics are created.” Over the winter, I walked past this playground with my child, saw that it was open to the public, and started using it.
Whenever my child interacted with other children (at this playground or any other), I never asked their financial status or cared who they were. I insisted that my child share the equipment and act with respect towards others in a manner appropriate to toddlers.
As to your comment that “just because something is legal, does not mean that it is right,” I wish you the best of luck enforcing a vague, disputed, unwritten morality code on a bunch of toddlers and their parents, many of whom have absolutely no idea why anybody would prefer an empty playground to a playground full of neighborhood children.
As I said on a different part of this thread, either the owner/manager of this property has the legal right to exclude others or they do not. Building a playground without locks and without a gate at the north entrance is a clear sign that there was no intention to exclude anybody. The residents are not the owner/manager and have no legal right to exclude anybody without explicit permission from the owner/manager to do so.
Why is this the upper west side in a nutshell of comments. Half of the people upset about the signs live in stabilized apartments and pay less than these NYCHA residents and live in doorman buildings, the other half have enough money to build a new playground on a privately built island in the Hudson. Find a hobby, find happiness and move on.. let Nycha have a sliver of silence from the noise that is the whining of an upset group of “taxpayers”..
– CB7 Constituent
Every building has the right to reserve its communal facilities for those who are residents of that building. “Expensive buildings” do that as a matter of course.
If this playground was getting too crowded for comfort of course restrictions are appropriate, naturally.
Perhaps the building management and tenant’s association can welcome community children to play twice a month as a good will gesture toward the neighborhood, with new signs clearly stating which days all are welcome.
Wise Towers hasn’t many children in the development except for residents few grandchildren it was a bad idea to build a playground that wasn’t really needed when most residents are elderly or seniors
It appears that the repairs were funded by a multi-million dollar equity refinance loan. Information is public Information on ACRIS. There is a public park right across the street that is used by the Private School renting the old St. Gregory Church and School from The Archdiocese of NYC, one if NYC’s wealthiest land owners that mainly operates tax free. That’s who the complaints should be directed to. If Wise Tower chooses to protect their playground from nonresidents causing wear and tear on their new playground, they have every right. Technically it is their property. Public Housing doesn’t mean it’s open to the public.
So much discussion of what the status of the park should be but nothing on what the status of the park actually is. This should be open and shut – it’s either public or it’s not. I can’t believe Brewer hasn’t been able to just get an answer to that very simple question,
As a resident . I didn’t mind outside children attending the park, but it has become a zoo EVERY DAY with mostly children that more than likely are not wise residents just overcrowding. By the time I pick up my child from school. I want her to enjoy the playground but she is constantly waiting for the swing or the slide because all I see are kids in uniforms taking over the playground. And as a parent. I always struggle to find a seat while keeping a eye out for my child with all the strollers everywhere, school bags taking up the benches. It can be very annoying. It really limits our park days. I’m reading the comments from non residents of wise towers complaining because they “frequently take their kids” and now they are upset. Some people even drive to our playground. Signs are up in walkway about dogs not being allowed. You know how many dog moms and dads let their dogs crap and they leave it there. And the only way they’ll pick it up is if you catch them . So disrespectful. The cleaning crew are constantly on the clock cleaning up non residents mess. Its becoming quite ridiculous.. early morning. Daycares are there as early as 9:30 10 am. Like whyy?? Sorry to say I really hope it limits the overcrowding. my babygirl is tired of waiting to enjoy our building park. I really think if it wasn’t overcrowded the outsiders would be welcome but it’s not central park. So I’m hoping the signs stay. Sorry not sorry
5/29/2024 Update: NYCHA Police (“PSA 5”) considers this a public playground and it will not ticket non-residents with children who play at this playground. The signs were put up by Wise Towers’ brand new management company at the request of tenants without investigating the legality or enforceability of the signs.
Leave the Wise Tower Playground for the Tenants. There are plenty of other options around. Sure, you have a “right” to use it. That doesn’t mean you should. If I lived there I’d be upset, too. My wife grew up a block away and her mother always told her that playground was for the tenants to use. She knew perfectly well that no one could stop her from using it–she just had the sense to recognize that the tenants deserved to have an outdoor space to call their own.
Looks like there is caution tape up now.
It seems to me that the key is establishing what the law is. Is this space considered a “public space” under relevant zoning or similar rules? If so, my understanding is the owner is legally obliged to allow the public to have access. If that is not how the space has been classified for zoning, tax and other purposes, then access can be restricted. If the tenants of the Wise House don’t like it being a public space, work on having the law changed and/or getting the space reclassified. This is also true for the tenants at Waterline Square — their playground is classified as a public space and that is why the public is permitted unfettered access. If they didn’t like that and wanted to restrict access, they would need to get the area rezoned and/or get the law changed. The idea is private citizens don’t get to rezone NYC (remove spaces from the public domain) by personal decree — they don’t get to put up a sign and say this playground is now mine or put up a sign and say you can no longer use this piece of sidewalk. Taken to an extreme it would be a total disaster if we started to allow people to claim otherwise public spaces as their own. Therefore, the real question is how this space is classified legally.