Beat-the-heat plan: 74,000 free a/c units

How do you stay chill in NYC during the summer of COVID-19?

City Hall is trying to figure out how to cool down New Yorkers before temperatures heat up without the benefit of public pools and local beaches, which will likely remain closed.

Based on Mayor de Blasio’s multi-pronged plan announced on Friday, thousands of lowincome New Yorkers will get air conditioners, the city will obtain generators to prevent power outages like last year’s massive Midtown blackout, set up cooling centers and open fire hydrants to ensure residents are safe even with pandemic restrictions.

“This is going to be a different summer than any summer we’ve experienced in the history of New York City,” de Blasio said during a remote briefing Friday. “A lot of things we loved about summer…barbecues, picnics, ballgames, going to the beach….Those things are going to be different for the foreseeable future.”

The city has no plans to open beaches or public pools this summer – yet.

“The beaches and the public pools, that’s not in the cards right now,” de Blasio said. “Again, we’ll see what the future brings, but not right now.”

De Blasio stressed most beachgoers would have to take public transit to the city’s shores, which doesn’t count as essential travel. He said the city is developing a plan for how to manage people flocking to beaches despite the closures, including preventing swimming when lifeguards aren’t on duty.

“We know there’s a danger in terms of people trying to go into the water, particularly young people trying to go in the water, so we have a lot of patrols out to deal with that now,” the mayor said.

To keep people cool without beaches and pools, the city will spend $55 million to buy 74,000 air conditioners for low-income seniors, including 22,000 for public housing residents. Installations will begin next week and city caseworkers will help identify people who need the units.

The state provided $20 million in funding for the air conditioners and de Blasio hopes the rest will be covered with federal grant money.

The city is identifying “cooling centers” in communities hardest hit by the coronavirus where social distancing is possible.