NYC businesses are preparing for possible civil unrest regarding the results of our upcoming Presidential Election, so much so that they are actually boarding up their windows and more to help prevent damage.
Famed Fifth Ave haunts like Saks Fifth Avenue, Macy’s and Tiffany’s have used plywood to block off their windows. It mainly seems to be in Manhattan, with the primary neighborhoods being SoHo and Midtown, and a particular concern for luxury good stores.
The NY Post reported that the list of stores taking precautions includes: Bloomingdale’s, Nordstrom, Louis Vuitton, Bergdorf Goodman, Dolce & Gabbana, Levi’s, Gucci, Dior, and Nike.
CBS2 reported that some were even going a step further, hiring private security guards (this is the case for Nike).
When asked about the precautions at a press conference this morning, Mayor Bill de Blasio said: “I checked in with our Police Commissioner last night. We do not have any specific reports or specific threats at this point.”
“Everyone, of course, is concerned about the election results and what plays out after,” he continued. “But I want to emphasize, at this moment, we don’t see a specific challenge. We are ready for all sorts of challenges. A lot of preparation has been happening over the last few weeks and I’m meeting with City officials, PD officials today to continue that preparation.
“As to the stores – look, every store owner has to make their own decision. Again, we do not have a specific threat. I respect the decision of each store owner. We are not giving guidance to store owners to do that, but if that’s what they choose to do, we certainly understand.”
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