Lady Liberty is behind bars.
An ugly, black fence sprawled across Battery Park’s only strip of open waterfront is blocking views of the iconic statue — infuriating neighbors who had been patiently waiting for that section of the park to reopen after a lengthy redesign.
The National Parks Service erected the gate — with sandbags haphazardly strewn across its bases — last month as a security screening for Statue City Cruises and inadvertently making it impossible for tourists and locals alike to enjoy unobstructed views of the Hudson.
The only way to get on the other side for an unobstructed view would be to buy a ticket for the cruise, activists complain.
“You can no longer walk to the water’s edge and take a picture … It’s completely unfair to the public and anybody who’s looking to enjoy that park,” Tammy Meltzer, Community Board 1’s chair, told The Post.
The panel unanimously passed a resolution last week calling out the NPS’s US Park Police, along with Statue City Cruises, for commandeering the small patch of waterfront.
The two parties erected the fencing “without consultation” with the city Parks Department, which has jurisdiction over the parkland, the board alleged.
But Statue City Cruises and US Park Police said the blockade was re-erected to replace one that had been standing long before the area went under construction.
The sprawling fence sits between two sections of ongoing work, meaning the only patch of visible waterfront views is blocked.
The only way to see unobstructed views of Ellis Island under the current conditions is to cough up the $26 fee to board the cruise, the residents complained.
“[They] basically privatized on a pay-to-play basis to be able to see the Statue of Liberty,” fumed Meltzer.
“It’s beyond sad. It’s actually truly unfair that you’re turning a public park meant to serve everyone into ‘If you want to take a picture without a fence, you’ve got to pay for it.’”
The blockage was disappointing for Zach Deedler of Michigan, who slotted a bike ride visit to Battery Park so that he and son, Xavier, 13, could catch “at least a view” of Lady Liberty.
“We rode up and down that area and couldn’t find anything where there wasn’t a fence, or we could see it … I tried to take a picture through the fence and that wasn’t working out!” said Deedler.
The cruise line and US Park Police claim the fence is needed to conduct security screenings for sightseeing ferries, a mission the CB1 supports, but says has gone too far.
CB1 and Battery Conservancy are asking that the fence be reduced to in size and to remove the fencing when operations end for the day, the latter of which the US Park Police claims it had already been doing.
The stakeholders, along with the city Parks Department, attempted to meet with US Park Police and Statue City Cruises to address the issue, but both refused to show up.
“Reopening as much as possible of the waterfront at The Battery is essential to ensuring that New Yorkers and visitors can access and enjoy one of the city’s most iconic public spaces,” city Parks said.
For its part, Statue City Cruises passed the blame onto the NPS, saying the blockade had nothing to do with money.
“The planning and placement of fencing related to security screening activities in Battery Park is solely under the purview of the NPS and the US Park Police. Statue Cruises does not determine the security procedures at the Battery,” the company said.
The US Park Police reiterated that the fence provides “a critical security element protecting the monument and the millions who visit it each year.”
“It has occupied the same footprint at Battery Park since 2004. We’re happy to report zero security breaches since,” a spokesperson said.
