Balancing public safety and trust in a neighborhood on edge

In the past few months, a number of efforts have been made by local officials and the NYPD to make Sunset Park safer, especially for pedestrians. Some of these efforts have run at odds with one another.

In response to dangerous driving conditions in Sunset Park, Community Board 7 and the 72nd Precinct of the NYPD have made independent efforts to improve street safety in the neighborhood.

The 2025 deaths of local pedestrians struck by hit-and-run drivers have brought the issue to the forefront. Kexun Chen and Faqiu Lin were killed on Third Avenue in July, and Judith “Jody” Byron, a 75-year-old woman, was hit by an SUV on Seventh Avenue in October.

The 72nd’s actions in advancing pedestrian safety, namely setting up traffic checkpoints around the neighborhood, have put some neighbors on edge.

Concurrently, Council Member Alexa Avilés has made calls for the NYPD to act with full transparency.

A push for slower streets

At March’s Community Board 7 meeting, the board voted unanimously to pass two resolutions asking DOT to make the streets safer.

The first resolution formally requests that the NYC DOT lower the speed limit on three lanes of traffic to 20 miles per hour and lower the speed limit on all streets adjacent to schools in the district to 15 miles per hour.

The second resolution formalizes the board’s support of a citywide 20-mile-per-hour speed limit. It also lays out that if the DOT does not lower the speed limit in Brooklyn Community District 7, the board requests a written explanation for why.

These resolutions are part of a push by community boards across the city to reduce speed limits. As of March 24, seven other community boards had passed similar resolutions.

Board member Jamie Fried elaborated on why these resolutions are so important. “The vast majority of cars on the streets in Sunset Park are ‘pass through’ drivers, meaning that they don't start or end their journey in the neighborhood, essentially using our streets as highways. This pair of resolutions from CB07, if implemented by the city, would slow down drivers and reroute traffic flow to prevent ‘pass through’ trips, creating a streetscape that prioritizes people who live and shop in the neighborhood over suburban car commuters trying to avoid the BQE.”

City Council Member Alexa Avilés calls for NYPD accountability

At the same Community Board meeting, Winnie Marion, Avilés’s Deputy Chief of Staff, spoke about Avilés’s support of the How Many Stops Act, “which requires reporting on demographics like racial demographics around how many people the police stop,” Marion shared.

Prior to the board meeting, on March 12, Avilés spoke at the 72nd Precinct Community Council meeting to remind officers that the community is “scared” right now as a result of actions by ICE. She asked that officers keep that in mind in their interactions with local residents. She reminded the officers that “when someone asks for their name and badge number, that’s something you’re supposed to be sharing.”

During the City Council Public Safety Committee meeting on March 18, Avilés spoke about these same concerns. She shared that constituents have shared videos of officers refusing to provide their name and badge number to those recording.

Avilés’s office explained the danger of incidents like this because it becomes “more difficult to follow up with officer complaints, and … it confuses residents who might mistake our NYPD officers for ICE.”

Avilés herself further elaborated: “I was very dismayed to see a video where my constituents asked an NYPD officer for their name and badge number, and instead of providing it, the NYPD officer left. During the City Council Public Safety Committee hearing, I asked Jessica Tisch, Commissioner of the NYPD, to confirm that every NYPD officer is required to offer up their name and badge number when requested. She agreed that what the officer did violates NYPD policy.”

This call for transparency comes at a time when some residents have expressed concern over police stops.

Checkpoints put neighbors on edge

Throughout 2026, the 72nd Precinct has set up safety checkpoints around Sunset Park. The stated purposes of the checkpoints are “pedestrian safety and borough robbery conditions,” per an NYPD spokesperson. At the checkpoints, officers are pulling over drivers and checking that the drivers have proper licenses, registration, and insurance.

The Sunset Post was on the scene of a Feb. 2 checkpoint and questioned officers about the appearance of profiling Latino drivers.

NYPD Officer Ahmed, who was controlling traffic at the checkpoint, said they were pulling over “every third car.”

While observing the stop, The Post noted that at times more than three cars passed without being stopped, and that the drivers who were stopped during that period appeared to be Latino.

“No, that’s not true. I don’t see it that way, so I don’t know. I’m not stopping them. I have no idea why they’re being stopped,” Officer Ahmed replied.

The Post later spoke to an NYPD spokesperson who stated that the checkpoints are unrelated to immigration enforcement and there is no evidence of profiling in who was pulled over.

“The NYPD does not engage in civil immigration enforcement, period,” the spokesperson said.

On March 8, a checkpoint was set up on Fifth Avenue between 47th and 46th streets. This stop attracted much bystander attention.

One individual, who asked not to be identified by name, stood on the side of the road as he watched his brother be questioned in his vehicle.

“I think they’re pulling over Latino drivers,” the bystander said. “They’re saying it’s random but they’re letting all these cars drive past and then they pull over my brother? And they’re asking for his papers?”

Ultimately, his brother was allowed to drive away from the checkpoint.