NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch warned Monday that the Big Apple will face a “threat environment” this summer that has never been seen in history — and it’ll come with a bill estimated to reach $92 million.
The city’s top cop said the combination of the FIFA World Cup and NBA Finals set to kick off this month will mean heightened security concerns, with America’s 250th birthday celebration also getting underway.
“I began my career building out the NYPD counterterrorism capabilities, and in my 18 years in government, I have not seen a threat environment quite like this one,” she told city lawmakers Monday at a City Council executive budget hearing.
The agency is on track to shell out $92 million on police overtime and extra equipment costs – as the department already faces a projected $20 million deficit in overtime funding.
Nearly half of that spending will be allotted from July 1-7 — when the majority of uniformed personnel have been instructed to plan on working 12-hour shifts due to expected event overlap.
Tisch warned the department may also need to add additional long days closer to the World Cup’s later rounds, culminating with July 19’s final at the Meadowlands in New Jersey.
Tisch explained the department is specifically concerned about vehicles driving into gatherings “on purpose or by accident” — and has been evaluating resources across precincts to ensure a responsible amount of security.
“We don’t want cars driving into these watch parties, either on purpose or by accident,” she said. “We don’t want to be using vehicle ramming attacks across the city.”
Mayor Zohran Mamdani has pushed for more FIFA and NBA Finals public watch parties across the five boroughs, while canceling permits for other events based on safety concerns.
Tisch noted that she expects Mamdani to announce a “robust” set of FIFA watch parties which will run the length of the tournament — and defended the planned scope of activity to council committee Chair Oswald Feliiz (D-15).
“I would appreciate it if you could think about the demands on this department in that context. We would like to facilitate a lot, perhaps we will be able to facilitate everything, but there will be a lot of celebrating in New York City,” she said.
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