Allison Kaden, Pix 11, 6.8.20
ASTORIA, Queens — Curbside retail, manufacturing and construction brought hundreds of thousands of jobs back to New York City Monday as Phase 1 of reopening began.
For months these businesses have been shuttered due to the novel coronavirus pandemic.
Sunny skies and warm weather brought New Yorkers outside as the city started to reopen. In Astoria, Queens, streets were filled with mask wearing pedestrians and car traffic.
But blocks were a mix of reopened businesses and shuttered storefronts.
“This will probably be, God willing, the most difficult thing I have ever gone trough in my life,” said Mackenzi Farquer, whose store, Lockwood, is open for curbside pickup. “It was challenging to lay off my staff, to have no income, to sort of reimagine a business that I have been building for years.”
With a new set of rules came a new strategy.
“Our visual merchandiser moved everything up front, sort of like the greatest hits of what we have been selling during quarantine,” she said. Farquer only opened two of her five locations. She is starting slowly.
Phase 1 reopening
It’s been 100 days since the pandemic began. Monday, reopening began for some businesses.
By: Allison KadenPosted at 6:33 PM, Jun 08, 2020 and last updated 6:33 PM, Jun 08, 2020
ASTORIA, Queens — Curbside retail, manufacturing and construction brought hundreds of thousands of jobs back to New York City Monday as Phase 1 of reopening began.
For months these businesses have been shuttered due to the novel coronavirus pandemic.
Sunny skies and warm weather brought New Yorkers outside as the city started to reopen. In Astoria, Queens, streets were filled with mask wearing pedestrians and car traffic.
But blocks were a mix of reopened businesses and shuttered storefronts.
“This will probably be, God willing, the most difficult thing I have ever gone trough in my life,” said Mackenzi Farquer, whose store, Lockwood, is open for curbside pickup. “It was challenging to lay off my staff, to have no income, to sort of reimagine a business that I have been building for years.”
With a new set of rules came a new strategy.
“Our visual merchandiser moved everything up front, sort of like the greatest hits of what we have been selling during quarantine,” she said. Farquer only opened two of her five locations. She is starting slowly.
But not every business owner reopened. Everything from small shops to major chains had gates down and locks on doors in Astoria.
The Small Business Services Commissioner, Jonnel Doris, told New Yorkers Monday that, “…if you need capital, if you need financial support as a small business to get you going we help you as well. We have federal, state and city funding available.”
Construction and manufacturing started up in New York City as well. According to the de Blasio administration, 32,000 construction sites resumed work. New York Building Congress President Carlo Scissura said construction will help New York’s economy get back on track.
“You will see a buzz of activity. You will see cranes moving again. You will see people out and about in the five boroughs building things that are critical for New Yorkers,” he said.
As hundreds of thousands of New Yorkers get back to work, Mayor Bill de Blasio reminded people there is still work to be done, if the city wants to get to Phase 2.
“Don’t forget the lessons we’ve learned. We got this far by the hard work and the discipline. We gotta stick to it so we can get to next phase and next phase and the next phase,” de Blasio said.
Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced there 384 new COVID-19 cases in New York City. Due to the reduction in cases, he announced elective surges are allowed to resume.
The New York City Small Business Services has a hotline for help and questions. That number is 888-SBS-4NYC.
https://www.pix11.com/news/coronavirus/back-in-business-new-york-city-begins-phase-1-reopening
