Constricting the street, parking on the sidewalk, oculus lights past midnight: how the Barclays Center still encroaches on public space

Yeah, I know it's ho-hum after more than a decade, but when i was walking around the Barclays Center Wednesday afternoon, I couldn't help but be reminded how it's a particularly tight fit, especially on Dean Street.

Take the photo below. Because a bus--presumably related to the Madonna concert that evening--was dominating the parking lane, a delivery truck was forced to double-park while unloading. (I believe the deliveries were for the 461 Dean residential tower, which flanks the arena.) 

That then blocked the bike lane and constricted the street.

Oculus lights past midnight

Arena neighbors on Pacific Street, below Flatbush Avenue, have periodically complained that the bright lights from the oculus, when left on past midnight, are disturbing to their sleep.

That was a recurring issue in 2018, though the arena said it had taken measures to make improvements. This week, though, the problem returned, because the Madonna concert started late, frustrating fans--a NY Post source suggested there were tech issues.

So the arena left the oculus lights on so guests could exit safely at 1 pm, according to an email an arena rep sent neighbors. (Note: the arena had "estimated" that the show would start at 8:30 pm and end at 11:30 pm. That was way off.) 

It's understandable that the arena would leave the lights on for safety in that case. It's just another reminder how it's a tight fit, and when something goes wrong, there's little margin for error.

Parking on Dean Street

Below, looking east on Dean Street between the arena entrance and the "pad" outside the loading dock, a vehicle was yet again parked on a public sidewalk.

As I reported in May 2021, I was told by a vehcile's driver that they had been encouraged by the arena to park there.

"First and foremost, we don't encourage anyone to park on the sidewalk," said arena spokeswoman Mandy Gutmann in response to my query. "We really do our best to manage the many moving parts of an event night and we're very mindful that, when we do have to shift things around, that we continue to leave room for pedestrians to use the sidewalk." 

But then she defended the practice: "I'm not sure if you're aware of this but the vehicle that is sometimes parked partially on the sidewalk is actually the one that houses our K-9 unit for explosive detection. So this is the resting spot for that K-9 unit."

The written notes from that Quality of Life meeting listed my multiple questions:

• How is it that the arena encourages parking on the Dean Street sidewalk just east of the Dean Street entrance and before the loading dock?
• Is that portion of the sidewalk public property or is that considered part of the arena property?
• If the latter, what are the dimensions of the arena-controlled sidewalk and where, in project documents, is that listed?
• Why does the K-9 Unit need to be housed in a car on the sidewalk?

The response:

The arena does not encourage any of its guests to park on the sidewalk. The vehicle for the explosive detection K-9 unit is occasionally partially parked on the sidewalk. The K-9 unit is not housed in the car, but the vehicle is temporarily parked on the sidewalk close to the arena entry.

That didn't answer the questions.