Pest Control in Theater District & Times Square, Manhattan
The Theater District surrounds Times Square, roughly spanning 40th to 54th Streets between Sixth and Eighth Avenues, where most of Broadway's roughly forty theaters are located. Neon billboards, crowded pedestrian plazas and flagship stores make it one of the most visited places on Earth. Restaurant Row on West 46th Street caters to pre-theater diners, and Shubert Alley links several historic stages. While hotels dominate, residents do live here in high-rise rentals and older walk-ups, often actors, musicians and theater workers. The Times Square-42nd Street station serves the 1, 2, 3, 7, N, Q, R, W and S, with the Port Authority Bus Terminal and Bryant Park close by.
Also known as: Times Square, Broadway, Theatre District.
About Theater District & Times Square
Originally called Longacre Square, the area was a hub for carriage makers and horse stables until the New York Times moved into its new tower in 1904 and the square was renamed. Theaters followed, creating the Great White Way. After decades of decline in the 1970s and 1980s, a redevelopment effort in the 1990s brought corporate tenants and family entertainment, and pedestrian plazas were added in 2009.
Common Pest Problems in Theater District & Times Square
Few places produce as much food waste as Times Square, where street vendors, fast-food chains, restaurants and millions of visitors create a constant supply for Norway rats. Rats nest in subway infrastructure, tree pits and building basements, and are frequently seen after theaters let out. Hotels and restaurants with large kitchens support German cockroaches that can spread through shared walls into residential buildings. Backstage areas and old theater basements also harbor rodents.
Pigeons are a fixture of the pedestrian plazas, fed by crumbs and tourists, and they roost on billboards, theater marquees and building ledges, making bird-control installations routine. In apartment buildings squeezed between theaters and restaurants, mice can travel through old utility runs and service corridors, especially during cold months. Theaters themselves have large basements, prop storage rooms and concession areas that also need vigilance, and residential buildings in the area often share walls with these busy commercial spaces around the clock.