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Governor Cuomo Floats Reopening Indoor Dining In New York City
By
Danny Lewis
Published Jan 27, 2021
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By
Danny Lewis
Published Jan 27, 2021
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Governor Cuomo is considering once again allowing New York City to reopen indoor dining, just days after saying diners would have to stick to eating outdoors, or ordering takeout and delivery for the foreseeable future.
During a press conference on Wednesday, the governor said that declining positivity rates across the five boroughs spurred him to reconsider the state ban. Cuomo said allowing establishments to reopen indoor dining at 25 percent capacity could help the businesses devastated by the COVID-19 pandemic, while the sales tax income would help ease New York State's $15 billion budget hole.
“Opening up restaurants, opening up businesses, generates more revenue, which means we're less dependent on the federal aid,” said Cuomo.
Industry leaders hailed the reversal, which came after the governor said Monday that he was “not contemplating” the return of indoor dining, even as several other states announced they would allow diners to sit, eat and drink inside.
“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,” NYC Hospitality Alliance president Andrew Rigie said in a statement.
The state is also facing several lawsuits from New York City restaurant owners, who say the ban is unfair. But some epidemiologists and public health experts say it’s still much too dangerous for both customers and restaurant workers to reopen indoor dining. Dr. Denis Nash, an epidemiologist at the City University of New York, said the twin issues of a vaccination effort hamstrung by a lack of supplies and growing concerns over new variants of the coronavirus make indoor dining an unnecessary new vector for transmission.
“No doubt we could use the tax revenue, but we could also use fewer deaths and hospitalizations,” said Nash. “So I don't understand the calculus.”
The financial strains of the pandemic has certainly hammered the state government and caused hundreds of restaurants to close up shop. But Dr. Dara Kass, an associate professor of emergency medicine at Columbia University Medical Center, said it’s unclear how much of an economic impact reopening a fraction of indoor dining would have, in exchange for potentially contributing to spreading the coronavirus. Instead, she thinks Cuomo should be encouraging New Yorkers to order takeout and delivery, to eat in the comfort and safety of their homes.
“How much better is that for our local economy and for the restaurants than having a better and more robust delivery program?” said Kass.
Cuomo said the state Health Department is developing reopening plans, and he is discussing the issue with restaurant owners, public health officials, and the de Blasio administration. He said he would have more details about indoor dining this Friday.
Tagged
COVID-19
pandemic
indoor dining
Danny Lewis
Danny Lewis is a former Gothamist and WNYC reporter.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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