Central Park was supposed to be a battleground for an informal watergun fight this weekend, but parks officials are putting a kibosh on the the event after 60,000 people RSVP’d to a Facebook invite. Brynn Gingras reports
Central Park was supposed to be a battleground for an informal watergun fight this weekend, but parks officials are putting a kibosh on the the event after 60,000 people RSVP'd to a Facebook invite.
Organizers Brian Alberto Delacruz and Joshen Abreu created the Waterfight NYC event, inviting the public to meet on the Great Lawn Saturday with water guns and water bottles. By Friday, more than 64,000 people replied that they would be attending.
The organizers subsequently wrote in a message to eventgoers: "It seems the large volume of unexpected RSVPs this year has made the Parks Department worried about the lawn and littering, which are our worries, too."
The organizers said they would move the water gun fight off the lawn and into walkways between 66th and 86th streets on both the east and west sides.
The concern for the Parks Department is the integrity of the grass: that many people running and spraying water could ruin it, the department said. Unsuspecting bystanders could also get sprayed.
In a statement, the Parks Department apologized for being "wet blankets" but reminded the public that the even does not have proper permits, so police could technically intervene.
But Delacruz said, "It's not illegal to be in the park and have a water gun. That's my answer to them."
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Anna Osgoodby of the Upper East Side said she's planning to attend despite the controversy.
"We're still going. We're ready to go," she said.
