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Residents complain of late-night gridlock, honking near Gospel club on Lafayette; CB2 transportation committee to review in June
Summary
Neighbors of a club on Lafayette Street told Manhattan Community Board 2 that late-night crowds and idling vehicles for a popular club are blocking traffic, inundating nearby housing with horn noise and, they say, at times obstructing emergency access. The board's Transportation & Traffic committee will take the issue up in June.
Neighbors told Manhattan Community Board 2 on Tuesday that vehicles dropping off and picking up customers at a club on Lafayette Street between Houston and Prince Streets have created long, late-night traffic backups and persistent horn honking that has kept nearby residents awake and, they said, at times impeded emergency vehicle movement.
"From 2 a.m. until 5 a.m. Thursday, Friday and Saturday it's basically gridlock traffic," said Nina Roberts, who lives at the corner of Lafayette and Prince Street. "The honking is just unbearable."
Neighbor Steven Rubenstone said the congestion can extend about a half mile and that videos he and other neighbors have captured show cars blocking the thoroughfare. Rubenstone said he has seen ambulances impeded by the blockage.
Board members and other speakers said the topic will be on the Transportation & Traffic committee agenda in June for a fuller review. A committee representative told speakers that the committee will consider possible responses and invited residents to consult the committee calendar for the meeting date.
Speakers listed possible mitigations discussed informally at the meeting, including relocating parked cars that sit next to the protected bike lane so the street could operate with an additional travel lane during peak drop-off periods. Roberts said she had discussed options with the club owner but that some potential changes — such as removing parking adjacent to the bike lane — would require city agency action.
A representative from Council Member Christopher Marte's office said the office had not previously heard of the problem and offered to follow up directly with the residents. Several speakers also said they had spoken on-scene with NYPD officers, who advised them to contact business regulation offices; residents said follow-up from those contacts had been slow or unhelpful.
The public session closed with multiple residents saying they would bring video and photographic evidence to the board committee meeting.
Next steps: The Transportation & Traffic committee will review the situation at its June meeting; the board recording shows residents were told how to find that committee's agenda online.
