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Teen Brawls at Brooklyn Bridge Park Lead NYPD to Close Pier 2

 Pier 2 in Brooklyn Bridge Park is home to basketball courts, bocce and handball courts as well as a skating rink.
Pier 2 in Brooklyn Bridge Park is home to basketball courts, bocce and handball courts as well as a skating rink.
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DNAinfo/Nikhita Venugopal

BROOKLYN HEIGHTS — Police have shut down the Pier 2 sports courts of Brooklyn Bridge Park periodically due to a series of fights between teens from outside the neighborhood — even closing the park before the teens show up.

The teenagers not only cause problems in the park, but also harass people in Brooklyn Heights as they walk from the pier, along Joralemon Street to the subway station, residents said at a community meeting with police Tuesday night.

"There's been menacing, there's been verbal threats, I saw a woman being hit in the head with a basketball," resident Steve Rothman said.

"Someone threatened to throw a rock at my head," he added, after the meeting. 

Deputy Inspector Sergio Centa, the 84th Precinct's commanding officer, said police have had to actively "clear out the pier" this year and even proactively keep it closed in expectation of violence.

A huge fight Wednesday last week brought out hundreds of teens, some carrying bottles and sticks, according to Centa and reports. A fight has also occurred earlier in the week on Monday. 

Police cleared out the pier during both instances, and the pier remained closed following Wednesday's brawl as well. 

"I can't take the chance of the group coming back," Centa said. 

Centa also proactively closed Pier 2 after spotting a Facebook event for a party at the courts during spring recess last month.

"[I] didn't like what I was seeing for the next day and I made the decision to close the park," Centa said. He declined to to elaborate on details of the Facebook event or why he considered it dangerous. 

That same week, on Monday, April 25, one man was assaulted and had to be taken to the hospital, he added.

"Brooklyn Bridge Park is my No. 1 priority right now," Centa said. 

But once the pier is cleared, the trouble doesn't end as the teens walk through Brooklyn Heights, according to residents. 

Police officers have been assigned to regulate pedestrian traffic on Joralemon Street in such situations. 

"We're not going to let 500 people go up at once and cause issues on Joralemon Street," Centa said.

Pier 2, which opened in May 2014, is home to five full-sized basketball courts, bocce, shuffleboard, handball courts as well as a roller rink.

Some residents questioned why the Brooklyn Bridge Park Corporation, which did not have a representative at the meeting, wasn't more actively involved in the issue.

"Brooklyn Bridge Park has become a destination for millions from across the city, and we cannot allow the actions of a few affect the enjoyment of this wonderful amenity," spokeswoman Belinda Cape said in a statement Wednesday morning. 

"Together, Borough President Adams, NYPD and BBP are actively working on a Pier 2 action plan to ensure that the park and the surrounding neighborhoods are safe for residents and visitors."

Borough President Eric Adams said Wednesday he was working with park leadership and the 84th Precinct on "a joint plan of action that should improve safety in and around the pier in a proactive fashion."

"The actions of a few misguided and poorly-behaved teens will not be allowed to overwhelm the experience of the thousands of children and families that safely enjoy Pier 2 every day," he said in a statement. 

Police presence in the park has been increased since earlier this year and in the wake of the incidents, Centa said. 

Weekends often bring roughly 65,000 people to the park but now "you can see as many as 30 to 40 cops in the park" on Saturday and Sunday as well he said.

Leslie Lewis, the precinct's community council president, praised Centa and the precinct for their efforts.

"When there was a need for cops, our commanding office asked for them," Lewis said. "And that's the best we can ask for."