The city is considering a plan to limit the number of people that can go into some parks, Mayor Bill de Blasio said at a coronavirus press briefing Thursday.
The mayor said he and the police commissioner have had "extensive conversations with members of both our teams and other agencies as well" about a plan, and suggested there will be more details at Friday's briefing.
De Blasio suggested that it would apply only to parks that lend themselves to overcrowding.
"We've got some parks that are just, the way they're set up is, it's just too easy to have crowding," the mayor said. "We can't let that happen, and we have to limit the number of people going in."
He also suggested that any potential plan might be altered based on how the rollout goes.
"It’ll take some experimentation," he said. "It’ll take some effort to make sure it works, but I think it’s a good direction."
In a statement, the advocacy group New Yorkers for Parks called on the mayor to restrict access to parks "in a way that is equitable across the city."
"The City should also enforce any restrictions equitably," the statement goes on to say. "Across the city, all people and all communities must be treated with the same level of oversight and respect, and we encourage an approach that emphasizes education over enforcement."
People have been spotted in multiple city parks not complying with social distancing as the weather warmed up. NY1's cameras noticed some people violating the orders in Washington Square Park and Prospect Park, and at the Christopher Street Pier, on Sunday. Other examples of people not social distancing went viral on social media.
The NYPD issued 70 summonses for social distancing last weekend, and a violent arrest on Sunday that was caught on video led to an officer being placed on modified duty. That incident has prompted concerns that the police are not enforcing social distancing violations equally.
The city's main police union has also called for the end of police enforcement of social distancing.
"As the weather heats up and the pandemic continues to unravel our social fabric, police officers should be allowed to focus on our core public safety mission," the union wrote in a tweet. "If we don’t, the city will fall apart before our eyes."
Asked if he was concerned the arrests could turn tragic, the mayor reiterated that the NYPD "has to lead the way in keeping people safe."
"The way you keep people safe in New York City is to use the finest police force in the world to protect people. That is a fundamental truth," de Blasio said. "And when confronted with the biggest crisis we’ve ever known, we’re not going to sideline the NYPD. We’re gonna use the NYPD to the fullest, but with smart protocols, smart training, figuring out what works and what doesn’t work."