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By Cedar Attanasio and John Minchillo

The Associated Press

NEW YORK 鈥� Tourists once again climbed the steps of Manhattan鈥檚 beehive-shaped Vessel sculpture after it reopened Monday for the first time in three years, now with netting aimed at decreasing the risk of suicides like the ones that forced its聽closure.

Around 75 visitors had bought tickets and lined up to enter the metallic honeycomb structure on Monday morning. Within minutes, they passed through a security checkpoint and buzzed about the stairways and vista platforms, the highest of which is around 150 feet.

Flexible netting allowed visitors to stick out their phones, but not their bodies, to capture views of the sculpture鈥檚 interior and the surrounding cityscape.

鈥淭he pictures you can take from downstairs and upstairs, they are so beautiful,鈥� said Alexandre Paes, a software engineer from Rio de Janeiro.

This isn鈥檛 the first time the site has closed and reopened with new safety features. The climbable sculpture鈥檚 zigzagging stairs drew crowds of tourists when it opened in 2019. It closed after three people died after jumping from the structure and reopened with security guards and an unusual rule: nobody could visit it alone. Despite those safety measures,聽another person died in 2021, and it was closed again.

The Vessel reopened this week with floor-to-ceiling mesh barriers on all the walkable sections, partially obstructing some views, and much of the higher levels closed to visitors.

The sculpture was designed by Thomas Heatherwick and fabricated in Venice. But its backers were taken off guard by the safety issues.

鈥淲e wanted people to come here and have fun,鈥� said Andy Rosen, COO of Related Companies, which owns Hudson Yards.

On Monday, tourists did just that, taking selfies and chasing the ever-changing light that bounces off adjacent skyscrapers and filters through the hexagonal openings.

鈥淚t鈥檚 a little bit of turning the page,鈥� Rosen said, adding that even the narrower set of views allows visitors to interact with the sculpture and create a unique experience.

鈥淭he netting is good, not only for safety but for people like myself that are afraid of heights,鈥� said Daniel Palumbo, of Pennsville Township, New Jersey.

The Vessel rises from the ground like a stretched basket, hollow in the center with scalable staircases on the lower levels in every direction. The reopened portions of the structure allow visitors to scale the highest level at a single section at the exit of the structure鈥檚 elevator, facing the tallest chrome and glass skyscrapers of Hudson Yards.

鈥淭his view in particular I don鈥檛 think it鈥檚 the best one that we can take pictures of,鈥� said Paes, adding that he had already seen a more glorious view of the Hudson River from the nearby聽Little Island聽park. 鈥淚 think if you could go over there and take one of the river, it would be nice.鈥�

The elevator wasn鈥檛 working Monday morning, preventing some people from reaching the top and leading at least one patron to get a refund.

Editor鈥檚 note: This story includes a discussion of suicide. If you or someone you know needs help, call or text the national suicide and crisis lifeline at 988. There is also an online chat at聽.