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COVID-19 Digest: June 23

COVID-19 Digest: June 23

June 23, 2020 • Estimated Reading Time: 11 minutes

COVID-19 Digest

Tuesday, June 23, 2020As NYC begins reopening, the digest will focus on the resources that help you make decisions about your businesses and your lives as New Yorkers.

Below and in our resource guide, you’ll find the latest information on government resources for businesses, city and state reopening measures, and return-to-office preparedness plans. If this can be useful to your colleagues and network, encourage them to sign up here.

The Latest in New York

The latest: New Yorkers statewide submit ballots in today’s primaries; Pres. Trump curbs immigration; alternate-side parking now only once per week; 4,000 NYC restaurants approved for outdoor dining.Confirmed Cases:

New York State: 389,085 (+597)
New York City: 213,056 (+315)
Statewide Fatalities: 24,766 (+27)
Daily NYC Infection Rate: 1.4 percent (+0.3 percent)

General Updates

A new study by Covid Act Now reports that New York is one of only three states — alongside New Jersey and Massachusetts — that is on track to contain COVID-19. (Covid Act Now)
But meanwhile, the US now accounts for one in every five new cases worldwide, despite being only four percent of the world’s population. (New York Times) Citing those failures, the EU is preparing to bar US visitors when it reopens its members’ borders on July 1. (New York Times)
Yesterday, Pres. Trump issued an order blocking green cards to four “nonimmigrant” visa categories. (Washington Post) The order also would block H-1B visas and make it harder for international companies to shift foreign executives to the US. (New York Times)
Mayor de Blasio has launched a joint task force of NYPD and FDNY to attempt to stop the illegal sale of fireworks at the source, following thousands of 311 noise and disturbance complaints. (POLITICO)
Mayo de Blasio announced the “biggest change in alternate side of the street parking in two decades:” from now on, New Yorkers will only be required to move their cars once a week instead of twice. (Gothamist)
And finally: if you haven’t already, get out there (with a mask) and vote!
- In-person poll sites for the primaries are open until 9pm. Find your site here.
- Note: Results will not come for days or weeks because of the large volume of mail-in votes. (NY1) Also thank you for voting! (Which, by the way, is also the title of a new book by our friend Erin Geiger Smith, out today. It’s chock full of insights on voting equality and innovation, plus how companies can (and are!) encouraging voting in a non-partisan way.)

One opportunity: Data.org, in partnership with the Rockefeller Foundation and the Mastercard Center for Inclusive Growth, have launched a $10 million Inclusive Growth and Recovery Challenge. The challenge is seeking innovative solutions that use data science to help people and communities thrive and build resilience, especially in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. Phase I proposals are due July 17. Learn more here.

Survey

The latest results: As Phase II reopening begins this week, did you return to the office today?

4.2%: Yes
95.8%: No

Today’s poll: After being pushed back several times due to the pandemic, New York’s primary day has finally arrived. More than 1.7 million New Yorkers requested absentee ballots and many others have opted for in-person polling sites. How did you participate in the democratic process today?

*|SURVEY: I voted early at a poll site|*
*|SURVEY: I voted via absentee ballot|*
*|SURVEY: I voted/am voting in-person at my poll site today|*
*|SURVEY: I didn't or can't vote in this primary|*

Reminder: If you haven’t already, please help us get to know you better by completing our quick audience survey here. Find the poll results from all previous editions of this newsletter here.

What You Need to Know

What to Know: Restaurant Reopening:

It’s almost unanimous that the reopenings New Yorkers are most excited about are restaurants and bars. ICYMI: yesterday they were allowed to reopen for outdoor dining across NYC, and predictions for what’s ahead are already pouring in:

Already, more than 4,000 restaurants have applied for and been approved to begin outdoor service immediately. (Gothamist)
But many of them aren’t out of the woods yet:
- As cash-strapped restaurants try to reemerge, NYC has lost two-thirds of its food jobs, with hundreds of thousands of hospitality workers still unemployed. (Eater NY)
- Making matters worse: New York’s to-go cocktail law is set to expire on Saturday, worrying owners who have been relying on that revenue. (Eater NY)
Here are some additional things to know if you’re planning to eat out:
- You’re required to keep your mask on whenever you’re not seated at your table. Eating outdoors is safer than eating indoors, but only when patrons adhere to social distancing and mask guidelines.
- Restaurants can open no earlier than 8am (or 10am on Sundays) and stay open no later than 11pm.
- Under the current plan, street seating will continue until September 8, the day after Labor Day, but sidewalk seating will remain through the end of October.
- And don’t worry: restaurants’ bathrooms will be open to customers.

Here are some more suggestions on restaurants opening for outdoor dining this week. (Time Out) And here’s a comprehensive list of restaurants open for outdoor service, sorted by neighborhood. (Eating.NYC)

In related food news:

What’s Gotten Into the Price Cheese? The Pandemic Has Wreaked Havoc on a Market That’s Rarely Volatile. (New York Times)
Ballpark Peanuts, a Classic Summer Pleasure, Have Been Benched (New York Times)

One last note: Just one day into reopening, restaurants are finding creative ways to bring customers back. We’ve seen a lot of great setups already, so we’re creating a quick wiki to capture them all as a resource that might help inform your first (or next!) outing. Explore more here. We’re continuing to organize and update regularly, so if you come across something we should share, send it our way and make sure it gets added!

What to Know: Return-to-Office:

Workers returning to an office will likely encounter new safety requirements like single-capacity elevators, staggered work schedules, one-way hallways, and even fix-foot circles around their desks to enforce social distancing. (Forbes)