Chaos and disorder is plaguing the streets of Manhattan’s Lower East Side.
Following the ending of coronavirus restrictions, residents are now having to deal with the non-stop of noise from nightlife generated by packed restaurants, bars and nightclubs.
There are more than 100 venues in a packed area known as Hell Square and plenty of revelers keen to make up for a lost year of partying when bars and restaurants were either shut or operating in a limited capacity.
Locals got used to the relative peace and quiet, but now with partying back in full swing residents say it is not just crazy crowds that are keeping locals awake at night: but crime too with drug dealing and muggings now a frequent occurrence.
Following a year of shutdowns, bars and restaurants are in full swing in New York’s trendy Lower East Side, but the resumption of noisy partying is making life miserable for residents. Pictured, people waiting outside The Slipper Room in the Lower East Side
Drug dealing, muggings and noise lasting until past 4:30am are common
It is similar to the disturbances that had affected Washington Square Park in recent weeks.
The disruption continues until the small hours of the morning with shouting, screaming and even dancing on the roof of parked cars happening even at 3am.
Reports from the New York Post suggest the NYPD are doing very little to quell the noise with complaints from residents continuing until past 4:30am on recent Sunday morning.
The tools at the police’s dispersal appears to be limited with just a summons for ‘unreasonable noise’ handed out to the perpetrators.
‘It’s like a breakdown of civilization,’ said 62-year-old Patrick Walsh, to the Post, who claimed the noise was so bad it was as if the party was taking place in his own apartment.
The NYPD are promising more patrols to combat the problem although few arrests have been made so far
More than 1,000 complaints were logged in the area about sidewalk and street noise between January and June with late night partying continuing until 4:30am in some cases
‘Nothing seems to be done. This needs to be looked upon, I believe, as an assault — a physical assault upon our person.’
‘They said this to me,”‘Well, we didn’t have a summer last year.” As if they alone suffered the consequences of COVID,’ he said.
Other residents have said they are afraid to leave their home because of street sellers freely offering coke or weed, together with countless aggressive and drunk people in the area.
‘It seemed like they were allowed to party until dawn and then the police would shut it down,’ another woman said. ‘It’s incomprehensible to me.’
Crime overall in the area has rocketed year-on-year with 85 assaults compared to 61 in 2020 and petty larcenies up from 375 to 563. More than 12 hate crimes have been reported compared with four in 2020
More than 1,000 complaints were logged in the area about sidewalk and street noise between January and June.
Crime overall in the area has rocketed year-on-year with 85 assaults compared to 61 in 2020 (a 39 percent increase) and petty larcenies up from 375 to 563 (a 50 percent rise).
More than 12 hate crimes have been reported compared with four in 2020.
Random muggings also appear to be a common occurrence.
On one weekend evening, a man had his wallet and watch stolen during an attack while waiting for an Uber.
While attempting to fight the assailant, another three accomplices are said to have joined the assault leaving the victim with torn clothes and a bloody face. No arrests have been made, report the NYPD.
On May 19, all pandemic restrictions, including mask mandates, social distancing guidelines, venue capacities and restaurant curfews were lifted by New York Governor Andrew Cuomo
‘The post-Covid world has produced a new variation of Hell,’ wrote Diem Boyd, the head of the L.E.S. Dwellers community group.
‘Hundreds of transients and transplants without a scintilla of decency pour out of the bars, clubs, and outdoor party sheds, lured by a roving street DJ, mob our streets to what is akin to an illegal occupation.’
The NYPD say they will address the problems by putting more officers on patrol going forward in order to tackle any large groups or unreasonable noise.
In a recent attack, a man was mugged while waiting for an Uber and had his wallet and watch stolen. Pictured, women wait for an Uber after going out at night in the Lower East Side
Crime has intensified in New York City as shootings, stabbings and rapes run rampant in the City That Never Sleeps
Shootings, rape, stabbings and general mayhem are running rampant throughout the Five Boroughs with authorities seemingly unable to do anything to stop it.
Latest official figures show murders citywide are up 12 percent from 189 at this time last year to 212 so far in 2021.
Rapes are up from 650 to 684 in the year to June 27. Felony assaults are up from 9,399 to 10,045.
The most dramatic crease is in gun violence, with incidents up 43 percent from 503 to 718 and those injured or killed up 36 percent from 606 to 826.
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Felony assaults and murders in New York City have gone up this year compared to the same period in 2020, according to NYPD data
