There's a long list of places where it helps to have a reservation, including hotels, fancy restaurants and the hair salon.
Now add Borough Hall to that list.
This morning, Mayor Michael Bloomberg and Council Speaker Christine Quinn announced a lottery system for couples looking to reserve a spot at the city's five Marriage Bureaus—including one across the street from Borough Hall—to make history as .
"The record-breaking number of couples registering to marry shows how popular—and right—passing marriage equality was," said Brian Ellner, senior strategist at Human Rights Campaign, a LGBT advocacy group. "The lottery is a good compromise."
The lottery will be open to same-sex and opposite-sex couples. A total of 764 couples will be selected to have a guarantee that their ceremonies will be performed at five City Clerk offices located in each borough on Sunday.
In Brooklyn, the ceremonies will take place at Borough Hall, near the Marriage Bureau located at 210 Joralemon St, which will open at 8:30 Sunday morning.
Borough President Marty Markowitz will be present, as will a judge, minister and rabbi to preside over the first legal gay marriages in Brooklyn.
While reservations were encouraged, all couples with valid marriage licenses and a waiver of the state-required 24 hour waiting period were welcomed by Markowitz's office to come tie the knot.
Couples wishing to marry on Sunday can register for the lottery by going to the City Clerk’s website at nyc.gov or by calling 311. The lottery will close to entries at noon on Thursday, July 21.
