Columbia University faces legal threat over campus closure; 1953 street agreement cited

New York City Comptroller Brad Lander has warned Columbia University it could face litigation if it does not reopen its campus to the public, citing a 1953 agreement that transferred West 116th Street to the university with conditions on public access to College Walk. The dispute centers on the university's continued closure of its campus, which has been in place since the 2023-2024 protests. This marks a formal escalation of a local governance conflict with potential legal and reputational implications for the university.