By Gus Saltonstall
There is a storm coming.
A powerful nor’easter is forecast to hit the East Coast in the coming days, including New York City. Strong winds began to make their way through the five boroughs on Wednesday.
As of Thursday, there is a 25 percent chance of rain on Friday and a 94 percent chance of rain on Saturday in the city, according to AccuWeather. Apple’s weather app is forecasting more than 2 inches of rain on Saturday.
The storm is notable in and of itself, but is given extra significance due to a major event happening Saturday in Central Park.
The Global Citizen Festival is set to begin at 4 p.m. on the Great Lawn. More than 50,000 people are expected to attend.
Rain is forecast to begin around 3 p.m. that day.
In 2023, the Great Lawn was badly damaged when the Global Citizen Festival coincided with Tropical Storm Ophelia, which caused more than $600,000 in damage and closed the lawn to the public almost two months earlier than its standard winter shuttering.
There is no rain date for the festival.
Upper West Side Councilmember Gale Brewer, who is a longtime proponent of moving the Global Citizen Festival elsewhere, sent a letter on Wednesday to the Mayor’s Office, New York City Parks Department, and Central Park Conservancy.
“Every year, I write to the Mayor to complain about granting a permit to Global Citizen for their use of the Great Lawn in Central Park,” Brewer wrote. “A nor’easter storm is expected this weekend. The last time that a storm hit the same day as the Global Citizen concert, the event went forward, and the Great Lawn was destroyed.
“After much press attention, the concert promoters paid for the restoration, but the Great Lawn was out of commission for months,” she added. “The promoters said, ‘It is closed anyway for the winter.’ No, it was not winter yet.”
Brewer highlighted Randall’s Island as a better spot for the concert.
In preparation for the concert, the Great Lawn has been closed to the public since September 21. It will also be closed from September 27 through at least October 2, depending on its condition after the concert.
A spokesperson from the Parks Department told West Side Rag the following, when asked about the coming storm and whether there was a chance the concert would be called off.
“We’re aware of the current weather forecast and, as with every large-scale event, we continuously monitor weather conditions in coordination with our sister agencies and event partners,” the spokesperson said. The agency did not confirm whether there was a chance the concert would be postponed.
Global Citizen Festival raises money for humanitarian causes across the world and will be headlined this year by Lauryn Hill and Wyclef Jean, Lenny Kravitz, John Legend, Lainey Wilson, and Shaboozey.
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You already covered this so many times. Maybe wait for the “news” to happen before writing about it?