Bill de Blasio
New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio addresses the press following his meeting with President-elect Donald Trump at Trump Tower in New York City Drew Angerer/ Getty Images

A spokesman for the New York mayor Bill de Blasio has jokingly suggested Donald Trump's team pick up the bill for the policing cost of evacuating Trump Tower after a suspect package was found in the lobby.

The building was partially evacuated after the package was discovered, although it later turned out to be a package filled with children's toys.

De Blasio's spokesman Eric Phillips shared a post by Trump's pick for White House press secretary Sean Spicer, who thanked LAPD for dealing with the suspect package, adding: "No problem, we'll send you the bill."

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The jokey statement has hit a sore spot, as the presence of Trump's home and family members in New York is estimated to be costing the city $475,000 (£373,180) per day, with de Blasio having previously raised objections to the situation.

The city has added an additional 50 officers to daytime shifts in order to deal with traffic issues created by road closures around Trump Tower – creating a financial burden de Blasio said should be shouldered by the federal government.

"This is a very substantial undertaking," CNBC reported de Blasio as saying.

"It will take substantial resources, and we will begin the conversation with the federal government shortly on reimbursement for the NYPD for some of the costs that we are incurring.

"We are particularly concerned about overtime costs, and we think it's a very valid situation to turn to the federal government for the maximum possible reimbursement for those costs."

New York police chief James O'Neill told AFP reporters the force was expending "a tremendous number of resources" in the area to keep traffic moving through Midtown Manhattan.

The high cost of security has prompted de Blasio to apply for federal funding for Trump's security until the inauguration.

"It's a tough situation. It's an unprecedented situation. It's going to get, I think, better after 20 January, because the holidays will be over and most of the time Trump will be in Washington," de Blasio said at a press conference when he requested the reimbursement.