Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce are preparing to tie the knot at Madison Square Garden this Fourth of July weekend with a lavish ceremony and surrounding street closures. But what will it cost taxpayers?
Jeff Bezos took over the entire city of Venice for his wedding last year to Lauren Sánchez. Now, Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce have booked Madison Square Garden over the Fourth of July weekend for their nuptials. And it’s costing New York City “almost as much as a Trump visit.”
“If I can compare it to any type of event, I would compare it to a presidential event,” said former NYPD chief of department Rodney Harrison. “You have to close down roads and have arteries to get people around.”
While it’s unclear how much the city paid to host Donald Trump at MSG in June for the NBA Finals game, the NYPD estimated that the security detail deployed to protect him while in the city costs around $308,000 per day.
At least the Swift-Kelce affair will not be quite as extravagant—in terms of security, anyway. The security detail surrounding what is being called “America’s royal wedding” is estimated to cost the New York Police Department $160,000, with approximately 130 officers stationed for the event.
That will include 70 detectives, who cost a minimum of $95,200, as well as another 50 junior officers costing $63,000. On top of that, more senior-ranking officers are expected to be on hand, which pushes the cost above $160,000.
Taxpayers typically pay for public safety coverage for high-profile events in the city. According to New York Rep. Nicole Malliotakis (R), Swift and Kelce, not taxpayers, should reimburse the NYPD for costs related to their wedding security—but the pair is reportedly already footing the bill.
But the timing is also important. Concerns abound that the wedding is placing an unnecessary strain on the city, which is undergoing extreme heat and is already filled with visitors for both the United States’ 250th birthday celebrations and the FIFA World Cup.
Just another day in New York City, though the Swift wedding is casting a contradictory light on ‘man of the people’ mayor Zohran Mamdani.
While Mamdani is quick to espouse policies that tax the rich and lower the costs for everyday New Yorkers, the politico is careful about which billionaires he attacks and which he leaves alone. Case in point: in a high-profile stunt, the mayor doxed billionaire Ken Griffin outside of this penthouse while announcing a tax on the superrich.
For Taylor Swift, another powerful billionaire, Mamdani is decidedly hands-off. Not only is he allowing the wedding, but he is also facilitating New York tax dollars to protect an ultra-lavish event accessible only to the wealthiest celebrities and CEOs. While urging New Yorkers to protect themselves against extreme summer heat, the mayor quipped, “And if you happen to be getting married at Madison Square Garden, you will be staying inside.”
Back to the wedding at hand, the billionaire pop princess and her three-time Super Bowl champion fiancé will host around 1,000 guests at MSG, which has a capacity of up to 22,000.
However, some reports say that Swift and Kelce are already married, having exchanged vows in front of a tiny group of loved ones ahead of the 100-person rehearsal dinner on Thursday. On Friday, they are expected to throw a party at the venue for more than 1,000 friends and family.
