Indoor dining shut down in NYC in December, after only being open for about two months.
And now it may be reopening again…
Governor Cuomo said in his daily press conference on Wednesday that they would announce a “plan for the New York City restaurants by the end of the week,” as the government has been feeling increased pressure from local communities to reopen as most other NY regions allow it, along with neighboring states like New Jersey.
“New York City, obviously is in a different situation given the density, given crowding, and we’re hyper-cautious in New York City, but still following the data,” he said. “We’ll be talking to the officials, elected officials, I’ll be talking to the mayor…and the restaurant community from a planning point of view, and by the end of the week, we’ll have a plan on New York City restaurants. I fully understand how difficult it is that they are closed, not just for the restaurants, but all the people who are employed there. On the flip side is how fast this virus can take off.”
Of course, it will still be tiered, starting at 25% capacity.
And it will happen at just the right time, as a polar vortex is bringing some of the coldest temps of the season to NYC this week.
The NYC Hospitality Alliance, which has been advocating for the local restaurant industry throughout the pandemic, has said in response:
“We’re happy that Governor Cuomo heard the voice of New York City’s decimated restaurant industry and we look forward to working towards a plan that hopefully reopens indoor dining soon.
“As the Governor acknowledged, it’s paramount these decisions are based on data. And, because New York City has lower infection and hospitalization rates than nearly all counties in the rest of the state where indoor dining is open at 50% occupancy, our city’s restaurants must be treated equitably and reopened safely. Highly regulated, limited occupancy indoor dining has been a minor factor for virus transmission and full shutdowns have exacerbated the current economic crisis, which has permanently shuttered thousands of restaurants and bars and put over 140,000 people out of work in our city.”
featured image source: Shutterstock