HERE’S TWO YOU, BIG APPLE!
Gov says city ready for Phase 2 on Monday
ALBANY — New York City is on track to begin the second phase of the state’s coronavirus reopening plan next week as death tolls plummet, Gov. Cuomo said Wednesday, paving the way for a slate of long-shuttered businesses in the five boroughs to get back to work, including restaurants.
The expected Monday Phase 2 kickoff is in the cards because New York’s coronavirus death tolls and positive test rates have dropped to record lows, the governor said during a briefing from the state capitol.
“The numbers are good, so New York is on track to enter phase 2 on Monday,” Cuomo said. “We did it … We are stronger for it, I believe that. We’re stronger as a community.”
Seventeen New Yorkers died from COVID-19 on Tuesday, Cuomo reported — the lowest daily death toll by far since the pandemic hit the Empire State in March.
Along with the sinking death count, Cuomo said less than 1% of nearly 60,000 COVID-19 tests performed across the state Tuesday came back positive, signaling the virus is on the retreat.
“This is one of the best days for New York since we started,” Cuomo said.
With all arrows pointing in the right direction, Cuomo said — somewhat morosely — that he will hold his last daily coronavirus briefing on Friday after doing them every day for the past few months.
“These daily briefings, while fun, take a lot of time,” he said, adding he may still do an occasional briefing, just not every morning.
He added, “Now that we are on the other side of this, we’ll climb new mountains together.”
Cuomo’s optimistic announcement stood in sharp contrast to Mayor de Blasio’s comments just a few hours earlier.
In his own briefing, from City Hall, the mayor did not want to commit to a Phase 2 start date for the city, saying there are still too many unknowns about how recent mass protests against police brutality may have impacted COVID-19 spread.
“We’re all mindful we had a very unique situation with
the protests,” de Blasio said.
“If we’re judging by today’s numbers, we’re in great shape,” he continued, “but what we’re looking for going into the weekend is, do we see any variation there? I know the state’s very concerned about this as well. It’s a day-to-day discussion.”
In Phase 2, restaurants are allowed to open their doors to outdoor service at 50% capacity, as long as 6 feet of social distancing can be maintained between patrons. Indoor service remains prohibited.
In addition to restaurants, hair salons and barbershops will be allowed to reopen at 50% capacity, with the caveat that customers and staff must wear face masks at all times.
Other businesses that are allowed to resume operations with limited capacity in Phase 2 include real estate companies, most offices and car dealerships, among others.
In-store retail will be allowed to reopen with limited capacity and safety measures in place for shoppers and store workers.
“Employers, store owners, employees, individuals, local governments have to be responsible and do their job,” Cuomo said.
Long Island and the Mid-Hudson region, which includes Westchester County, are expected to begin the third phase of the reopening process next week.
Phase 3 allows for limited indoor restaurant service and allows a range of businesses, such as tattoo and piercing shops as well as facilities offering massage therapy, spa treatments, cosmetology, nail treatments, tanning and waxing to open.
During his briefing, Cuomo also took renewed aim at the Trump administration over its response to the pandemic, accusing the president and his advisers of putting lives in danger by urging states to rush to reopen their economies.
“The federal government is making a historic mistake,” he said.
Cuomo noted that COVID-19 hospitalizations are increasing in Arizona, Florida, Texas and several other states that started the reopening process before meeting coronavirus metrics set out by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
New York, meanwhile, is seeing those numbers decline.
“The numbers don’t lie,” the governor said. “The states without the smart reopening plans are going up. That is a fact.”
Earlier, during an appearance on “Good Morning America,” Cuomo warned that New York could experience a second wave of cases thanks to other states that rushed to reopen.
“You look at what’s going on around the country now with the spike and the number of viral transmissions. That is frightening,” he said. “New York is not an island. We can be doing a great job and getting the spread down and the rate of transmission down, but people travel here from other states.”