Picnics and yoga? Forget about it. It’s more like an open-air rave each weekend at the Gun Hill Meadow inside Van Cortlandt Park, which stretches along West Gun Hill Road and Jerome Avenue.

After years of filing 311 noise complaints, residents at Knox Place, Gates Place, DeKalb Avenue, and West Mosholu Parkway say the late-night open-air sprees have gotten progressively worse each year, and are already untenable as the summer surpasses its halfway mark.

After 165 noise complaints were logged for the area this year alone, the majority between June and July, 98 residents penned and signed a formal letter of complaint dated July 16 to Mayor Bill de Blasio, the NYPD, Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr., Councilman Andrew Cohen, Assemblyman Jeffrey Dinowitz, and other elected officials. So far, Cohen has personally met with frustrated residents, and is now pushing for even greater enforcement.

“Frustration and Outrage”
The letter was written to express the group’s “frustration and outrage” at the recurring summer bashes which some say last until 4 a.m., well beyond the Parks Department’s rule of closing parks at dusk.

On July 26, packed parties were still rocking at around 9 p.m. As a hookah was shared among one group, another group opted for alcohol poured in plastic cups, which were eventually scattered to the ground. A DJ was spotted playing loud rap music from a sound system, creating a club-like atmosphere. Meanwhile, as day transitioned to night, heaps of trash dotted various parts of the park, reaching a barricaded portion of the park primed for a parking lot. All this took place despite the presence of three Parks Enforcement Patrol officers who were talking among themselves. A local bodega owner said the outdoor activity pales in comparison to other weekends.

The rowdy behavior didn’t end there. The next day, one partygoer is seen slapping a Parks Department horse in the face in the presence of a mounted officer in a video published by The New York Post on July 28. The defendant was not charged, but did receive separate summonses for disorderly conduct and smoking in the park.

“This is one more example of the out-of-control behavior that can occur in our parks, especially Van Cortlandt Park and Mosholu Parkway during the summer,” Cohen said in a statement. “I think this awful incident is indicative of a need for greater enforcement efforts in our parks.”

The incident has put the Parks Department and NYPD on alert.

It also complements accounts published in the letter sent to officials, a copy of which was provided to the Norwood News, which cites “a total lack of disrespect for residents” by thousands of people using the park each weekend, some arriving by tour bus, and some carrying gas-powered generators.

The letter details rock-concert volume music, smoke pollution from barbecues, vast quantities of litter left behind after parties, how a public electricity grid located on the park’s sidewalk is used to power music systems and how dozens of barbecue grills are set up.

50th and 52nd Precincts Team Up
Cohen said the marathon parties is an ongoing problem, bringing it up at precinct council meetings with both the 50th Precinct, which has jurisdiction over the physical park, and the 52nd Precinct, whose jurisdiction covers the impacted, adjacent residences, creating a jurisdictional conundrum that has perhaps not helped the situation.

The issue stood as one of the many topics at a July 25 meeting organized between Cohen’s office, various Norwood residents, and the 50th Precinct Commanding Officer, Captain Emilio Melendez, who confirmed that the 50th and 52nd precincts are already working together to ensure greater enforcement of park rules and will continue in the same vein.

Residents also offered verbal accounts, including instances where sections of the park were cordoned off with caution tape for private gatherings and that the signs denoting the prohibition of barbecues in the park have been removed.

Striking a Balance
Those contacted for this article asked not to be quoted for fear of reprisal, an indication of just how acrimonious the situation has become among neighbors in the area. Some signatories said additional residents also agreed with the letter’s content but didn’t sign as they felt intimidated.

The group said their actions are bearing some results, with greater Park presence evident for the last three weekends, both in patrol vehicles and on horseback. They have also witnessed Parks officials preventing the cordoning off of specific areas and precluding the setting up of speakers.

For Ana Garcia, 21, a frequent park goer, preventing families to come together isn’t a solution, but striking a balance should be. “A lot of people come here just to have a good time with their friends and family,” she said. “I understand if it’s like after a certain time but honestly, I’ve been here a lot and people just do their own thing. Nobody really bothers anyone. Well, the residential is not really right next to the park so I don’t see how it affects them that much.” Garcia conceded that people could do more to clean up afterwards.

Given that park rules state no person shall play or operate any sound reproduction device in any park without a permit, while barbecuing next to trees, tree roots or buildings and in non-authorized areas is prohibited, as is littering and dumping of debris, Cohen was asked at what point enforcement kicks in.

“No one is being murdered. It’s not an index crime and getting the NYPD to take care of these quality of life crimes sometimes takes some effort and also like where they fit on the spectrum of responding to other crimes in the district,” he said. “At some point in time, in the evening, the party’s gotta be done.”

No arrests were reported the weekend of July 27.