NEW YORK MARRIAGE BUREAU REOPENS FOR IN-PERSON WEDDINGS
NEW YORK—Sae Feurtado and Richard Kissi’s long wait to say “I do” ended on Friday, when in-person weddings resumed at the Manhattan Marriage Bureau after 16 months.
Before COVID-19, thousands of people from all over the world exchanged marriage vows in the two chapels housed inside the late 1920s Art Deco building in lower Manhattan.
After postponing their wedding for nearly two years, it was the New York couple’s turn.
“It was meant to happen today,” said an excited Feurtado, 32, clad in a flowery gown and a dazzling headpiece, clutching a bouquet of purple flowers.
“It was worth the wait,” said Kissi, 34, sporting a blue and gray suit, said as the couple emerged from the building.
Under new reopening rules, wedding rites are by reservation only, City Clerk Michael McSweeney said, and couples are allowed to bring only one witness to respect the four-person limit in the pastel-colored East and West chapel.
Typically the civil ceremonies, which had been conducted at nearby City Hall until 2009, last about 10 minutes.
Couples are required to wear a mask. A plexiglass sheet has been mounted on the podiums from which officiants perform ceremonies.
A small shop leading to the chapels offers flowers, rings, veils and bowties for anyone who might have forgotten a wedding essential.
“We are delighted,” McSweeney said of the reopening.
Calderon and Fabian Gavilanes said they were able to lower their masks to seal their vows with a kiss on Friday morning.
Thrilled
Calderon, 31, wore a suit and tie to mark the big day while Gavilanes sported a light pink bowtie over a white shirt.
They said they were thrilled to finally get married after COVID-19 forced them to postpone their wedding, which was originally scheduled for last August.
A long line of celebrity couples have tied the knot at New York City’s Marriage Bureau, including baseball legend George Herman “Babe” Ruth, whose signature appears in a ledger book in one of the chapels.
For now, two ceremonies can take place every 15 minutes, said McSweeney.
Outside the building, George Taxi set up his flower stand on Friday for the first time since March last year.
“It feels great to be back,” said Taxi.