New York City official Zohran Mamdani has disclosed that Taylor Swift paid a significant sum to the city for her July 3 wedding to Travis Kelce at Madison Square Garden. The event, which necessitated the closure of surrounding streets and police intervention in the Manhattan area, resulted in permit and response fees exceeding $160,000.
Addressing questions regarding how the Grammy-winning artist compensated the city for police overtime, Mamdani explained that the permit was finalized just days before the ceremony. He noted that Swift had already cleared the costs associated with the event and the subsequent public safety response.
The wedding, which took place on the evening of July 3, was confirmed by Swift’s representative, Tree Paine. Following the ceremony, a sign reading “JUST&T MARRIED” was displayed outside the venue. The extravagant celebration, estimated to have cost upwards of $20 million, hosted approximately 1,000 guests, including celebrities such as Selena Gomez, Ed Sheeran, Jennifer Lopez, Karlie Kloss, Gigi Hadid, Bradley Cooper, Tom Cruise, and Zoë Kravitz. Guests arrived via a fleet of black SUVs, Escalades, buses, and Ubers that lined 31st Street.
The wedding party featured Austin Swift as the man of honor and Jason Kelce as the best man. The couple wore Christian Dior Haute Couture designed by Jonathan Anderson, and the ceremony was officiated by Adam Sandler.
Madison Square Garden has served as a significant location for Swift throughout her career. She performed her first show there during the 2009 Fearless Tour, returned for the 2011 Speak Now Tour, and celebrated her 30th birthday at the venue during the 2019 Jingle Ball. The couple’s relationship began in the summer of 2023 after Kelce mentioned on his “New Heights” podcast that he had unsuccessfully attempted to give Swift a friendship bracelet with his number on it at her Eras Tour concert. Swift later referenced the incident during a guest appearance on the podcast on Aug. 13. Thirteen days after that appearance, the couple announced their engagement on Instagram with a post captioned, “Your English teacher and your gym teacher are getting married.”
Contributing: Bryan West and Charlie Carballo, USA TODAY
