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Parks & Public Spaces
Application from Madison Square Park Conservancy for “Nintendo Animal Crossing,” a marketing event to be held in Madison Square Park from March 12th through March 13th, 2020
At the regularly scheduled monthly Community Board Five meeting on Thursday, February 13, 2020, the following resolution passed with a vote of 35 in favor; 0 opposed; 1 abstaining:
WHEREAS, The Madison Square Park Conservancy (“Applicant”) has submitted a permit application to the Parks Department for “Nintendo Animal Crossing,” a marketing event to be held in the southwest gravel section of Madison Square Park (the “Park”) on March 12th-13th, 2020 (the “Event”); and
WHEREAS, Set-up would begin at 8:00 PM on March 10th, 2020, with load-out to be completed before midnight on March 13th, the day of the event; and
WHEREAS, The Event would take place from 8 AM – 8 PM on March 12th and 13th , 2020, and is to consist of a 41-foot diameter and 18- foot high white igloo-type tented structure with a separate entrance and exit door, fully enclosed with internal projector screens and sound equipment; and
WHEREAS, The enclosed structure is the same that was used for a similar marketing event in 2019, which obtained Community Board Five’s approval, as the event is contained to the gravel area and will have limited impact on use of the Park; and
WHEREAS, The proposed event will have no sanitation impact, and no amplified sound outside of the enclosed structure, whose doors will remain closed except when members of the public are entering and exiting the structure; and
WHEREAS, Signage identifying Nintendo will be very restricted on the edges of the canopies surrounding the structure, and is smaller than what normally would rise to the concern of Community Board Five; and
WHEREAS, Although additional signage identifying the “Animal Crossing” property and logo is larger
than what is normally supported by Community Board Five, in response to community concerns, the
Applicant subsequently agreed to limit the signage to a few logo stamps on the globe, and reduce the
overall size of the logo by ten percent; and
WHEREAS, The Event will be staffed by five brand ambassadors, who will not leave the gravel area of
the Event; and
WHEREAS, Applicant has indicated that in return for the private use of public space for this Event, a
substantial contribution to the Park will be made, which is consistent with past practice per its contractual
agreement with the Parks Department, which allows for four annual marketing events, of which this is the
first for 2020; and
WHEREAS, Community Board Five believes that the nature and conduct of the event as proposed is
satisfactory and consistent with its past approvals for the four marketing events held in the Park in past
years; therefore, be it
RESOLVED, Community Board Five recommends approval of the application from the Madison
Square Park Conservancy for “Nintendo Animal Crossing,” a marketing event to be held in Madison
Square Park from March 12th through March 13th, 2020.