It’s known as “college walk.” For 70 years, it was a publicly accessible path through Columbia’s campus. Now the mayor wants the padlocks off and the walk reopened.   Under a 1953 deal, Columbia bought the walk for $1,000 and a promise to build a pedestrian walkway — but whether that’s supposed to be a fully public walkway is in dispute.   Mayor Zohran Mamdani did not say whether the city would sue before the third anniversary of the October 7th Hamas terror attack on Israel. Protests on campus over the ensuing war in Gaza were a major reason for the lockdown.   A university spokesperson said “the Campus Access Advisory Committee will bring together differing faculty, student, staff and community perspectives to assess the complex operational and safety considerations and recommend responsible principles and practical steps toward more open access while preserving the necessary safeguards for our community.”   #columbia #nyc #zohranmamdani #nbc4ny