BY BEN VERDE
Rules requiring proof of
vaccination are now in effect
across the city following a recent
mayoral mandate — and
they’re being met with mixed
feelings from Brooklyn business
owners.
Mayor Bill de Blasio announced
the new rules in
early August, after it became
apparent the rise in coronavirus
cases brought on by the
Delta variant wasn’t slowing
anytime soon, and as scores of
New Yorkers stood strong in
opposing the shot.
“If you want to participate
in our society fully, you’ve got
to get vaccinated,” the mayor
said on Aug. 3. “It’s time.”
The mandate requires patrons
of indoor gyms and fi tness
centers, restaurants, and
entertainment venues to show
proof of vaccination, either
through their CDC vaccination
card, the state’s ‘Excelsior
Pass’ or the city’s ‘Key to
the City.’
The rule offi cially went into
effect on Aug. 16, with the Department
COURIER LIFE, A 6 UG. 27-SEPT. 2, 2021
of Health authorized
to start fi ning non-compliant
businesses as of Sept. 13. To
ensure enforcement, nearly
600 people have been hired by
the city to check in on businesses
and canvass them with
information about the vaccine
requirement.
The mayor has cited rising
vaccination rates as proof
that the mandates will be effective
in stopping the spread
of COVID-19. “I am absolutely
certain this is going to motivate
a lot of people to get vaccinated,”
hizzoner said at a recent
briefi ng.
However, with businesses
throughout the fi ve boroughs
already suffering extended
closures, rent deferrals, and
the loss of staff, some shopkeepers
wonder if they can
handle another potential loss
of clientele resulting from the
mandate’s enforcement.
Still, while some Brooklyn
business owners have vocally
opposed the mandate, others
have expressed enthusiasm
about the edict — which, for
some, doesn’t change a thing.
Michael Carlin, co-owner
of Slope Fitness on Seventh
Avenue and Union Street in
Park Slope, says he started requiring
vaccination for members
of his gym soon after
the state’s mask mandate was
lifted in the early summer.
“I had always required
members to show proof of
vaccination so they can work
out without a mask on,” Carlin
said. “Although our politicians
A man shows proof of vaccination to access a gym in Manhattan on the
fi rst day of the mayor’s new mandate. Photo by Dean Moses
said you can go on the
honor system…I never did
that.”
More frustrating to Carlin
is the mandate’s selectiveness,
he said, lamenting that gyms
are subject to the regulation,
but not other indoor businesses
such as hair salons, or
major corporations.
“What I’m not fi ne with is
that Mayor de Blasio selected
three industries,” he said.
“Why not hair salons and nail
salons? Why not supermarkets?
Why not Target?”
Bay Ridge business owner
Jumana Bishara believes
the city can be doing more to
streamline the verifi cation
process.
“It’s been diffi cult and unfortunate
that we have to be
the ones that are enforcing
this rule,” she told Brooklyn
Paper, adding that some sort of
scanner might help businesses
who are currently stuck verifying
vaccination cards and
excelsior passes on their own.
“Having to ask somebody for
the card then having to ask
them for ID and verifying the
information, it’s just tedious.”
Vaccine mandates
for businesses gets
underway in Brooklyn
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