6 JULY 9, 2020 RIDGEWOOD TIMES WWW.QNS.COM
What you can and can’t do in Phase 3
BY ROBERT POZARYCKI
RPOZARYCKI@QNS.COM
@ROBBPOZ
The latest milestone in New York
City’s recovery during the COVID-
19 pandemic begins Monday, July
6, with phase three of reopening. But
unlike the previous two phases, the
atmosphere for this latest stage in
bringing the fi ve boroughs back into
high gear is one of trepidation.
Phase three brings the return of
personal care businesses such as
nail salons, massage parlors, spas,
cosmetic surgery and tanning salons.
Those looking to get a well-deserved
mani-pedi, full-body rubdown or new
ink aft er months of quarantine should
get an appointment in advance, wear
a mask and prepare to encounter a
socially distant environment when
they visit.
The third phase was to have included
the reintroduction of indoor dining,
but on July 1, Mayor Bill de Blasio and
Governor Andrew Cuomo scrapped
that plan for the time being. There’s
fear that allowing indoor dining in
New York City may result in a rapid
increase in COVID-19 spread, something
which occurred in other states
that reopened or relaxed indoor dining
rules in recent weeks.
Though indoor dining remains out of
the question, outdoor dining continues
across New York City. Restaurants and
bars have set up shop on the sidewalk
or even in the street in front of their
businesses. On Thursday, de Blasio
announced an expansion of the Open
Streets program to allow for more businesses
to set up larger street-side cafés
to safely draw in diners.
What can you do?
Regardless of what some may suggest,
the COVID-19 pandemic remains
rampant in the United States — and it’s
not disappearing anytime soon.
Aft er suff ering horrifi c losses of life
in March and April, New York state and
city now have among the lowest infection
rates in the country. Yet the fear
is that a sudden change in behavior —
combined with the spike in infections
in more than 30 states — might cause a
second wave of the pandemic here.
Aside from outdoor dining, the fi rst
three phases of reopening in New York
City permit a number of other activities,
provided you wear a mask in public
and practice social distancing.
Here’s a list of some other things you
can do in New York City as phase three
goes into eff ect:
Work on construction activities.
Building eff orts restarted during the
fi rst phase that began June 8.
Go shopping. Retailers started out
by setting up curbside pickup points,
but now a limited number of shoppers
can enter store locations to browse and
purchase items.
Get a hair cut. If you haven’t already
Photo by Dean Moses
trimmed the long quarantine locks,
thousands of barbers across the city
are waiting for you to come in. All are
advised to make an appointment in
advance to avoid waiting.
Visit an accountant’s offi ce. The
federal and state tax deadline was
pushed back to July 15 this year due to
the pandemic. Accountants have been
taking appointments for fi lings.
Looking to buy a home or rent an
apartment? Real estate offices reopened
BY ANGÉLICA ACEVEDO
AACEVEDO@SCHNEPSMEDIA.COM
@QNS
Congress member Grace Meng
convinced the United States
Postal Service to swiftly restore
a mail collection box that the
agency previously removed from the
corner of 98th Street and the northbound
service road of Woodhaven
Boulevard in Woodhaven.
Residents of the area complained
that the collection box was
suddenly removed from the corner
last month, which prompted Meng
to contact USPS. She learned it had
been taken away for repairs.
Those who live in the area objected
to the removal since it forced
them to walk several blocks to the
nearest collection box, leaving
many seniors unable to walk the
additional distance.
After Meng urged postal officials
to quickly replace the collection
box, the fixed box was reinstalled
at the site within days.
“This collection box serves an
important need for local residents,
and I’m pleased that those who use
it can continue to do so,” said Meng.
“Making my constituents travel
further to send out their mail was a
major inconvenience for them, and
physically difficult, if not impossible,
for many seniors. I thank the
Postal Service for being responsive
to the problem, and quickly returning
the repaired collection box to
the corner.”
during phase two, and you
can contact an agent to help you fi nd
a new dwelling.
Likewise, if you’re looking for a new
set of wheels, you can go shopping at
auto dealerships across the city.
Playgrounds reopened during
phase two, so if the kids are getting
bored, you can take them to your local
park and let them run around and
play for a while. We advise bringing
hand sanitizer and/or wipes to keep
their hands clean.
You can also visit New York City
parks and enjoy a walk through
them, or along the many open streets
established near the parks for safe
activity.
Beaches reopened on July 1, so you
can relax and enjoy a day in the sun
and surf across the city. But don’t
make it a group outing, as capacity
limits are in eff ect.
WHAT YOU CAN’T DO
(YET)
It’s still not clear whether indoor
dining will be permitted during
phase four of reopening in New York
City. No timetable has been established
for when that milestone will
be achieved.
Phase four is already in eff ect in
seven upstate regions of New York,
and involves the limited reopening
of higher education institutions,
low-risk arts/entertainment venues
(e.g. outdoor zoos, botanical gardens,
nature preserves, outdoor museums,
historic sites) and low-risk indoor
museums and aquariums.
The fourth phase also permits the
resumption of film and television
show production, and allows for professional
sports to return without an
audience.
The Mets and Yankees, however,
have already begun training at Citi
Field and Yankee Stadium for the start
of an abbreviated season. Whatever
games they play this year will not be
open to fans; they will be aired on
television or streamed on the internet,
along with other sporting events.
Many other activities remain off
limits as of phase three — including
shopping at large malls or going to
movie theaters. And the only way
New York will get there, as many offi
cials have said repeatedly, is if New
Yorkers continue to slow and control
the spread.
The best ways to do that are wearing
masks, practicing social distancing,
avoiding crowds and staying home if
they’re sick.
Queens rep. helps restore mail
collection box in Woodhaven
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