Cuomo touts progress against virus, as reopening phase nears

New York Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo touted the state's results in dealing with the coronavirus pandemic as an example of how government can address a crisis like the one triggered by the killing of a black man by police in Minneapolis.

His comments came as New York City prepared to enter Phase 1 of reopening Monday, and Long Island was set to advance to Phase 2 on Wednesday. The Long Island Rail Road said it is returning to nearly full service on Monday. So are the city's subways and buses, as well as buses on Long Island.

And Suffolk County officials said they are in talks with the minor league Long Island Ducks to try to get games going by mid-July.

Cuomo also said he will decide this weekend whether mail-in voting on school district budgets and board seats scheduled for Tuesday will be delayed or amended.

He said Friday the state had been able to spur action in responding to the health threat by providing facts on the coronavirus and proposing actions people could take to curtail the spread.

As a result, the death toll has fallen from about 800 a day, eight weeks ago, to 42 on Thursday.

"We had the lowest number of deaths from coronavirus that we have had since the start," Cuomo said. "I did nothing. The people of the state radically changed how they behaved."

He suggested the state should pivot from there to address unrest over police treatment of black men in the same manner.

“That’s what we just saw in coronavirus, which will go down in history as one of the great transformational moments of society," he said, " … and this is the moment to lead in terms of social change.”

In one sign of how much the downstate region is progressing, Northwell Health said Friday it’s down to 465 COVID-19 patients at the 19 hospitals it owns and operates. That is a big drop from its peak of around 3,400 in April.

New cases of coronavirus continued a generally downward trend.

Nassau County reported 84 new cases, for a total of 40,797. Suffolk County registered 86 new cases, for a total of 40,239, according to state data released Friday.

New York City reported 534 new cases, for a total of 205,940. The state as a whole reported 1,075 new cases, for a total of 376,208.

Nassau County Executive Laura Curran said the percentage of people testing positive for the coronavirus continues to decline. Of 5,104 viral test results for COVID-19 returned, she said, 69 were positive in the county.

“The percentage of those testing positive has been consistently under 2% here … for more than a week,” Curran said. “An incredible difference from just a month ago when we saw 300 to 400 new cases every day, or two months ago when we were seeing over a thousand new cases every day.”

Despite those improvements, Curran said she is worried about the impact of the state shutdown.

“We have to get our economy going now,” Curran said. “As Long Island demonstrates huge progress, I believe we can accelerate reopening.”

She said 350,000 Long Islanders are on unemployment. “That’s one in three people in the workforce here on Long Island. Think about that.”

“We know how to come back and we know how to mitigate risk and we can do both at the same time,” Curran added. “We would welcome an early Phase 2.”

Trains and buses back to schedule

The LIRR plans to restore about 90% of its normal weekday schedule on Monday, railroad president Phillip Eng said. The LIRR has been running reduced train frequency by about 30% since late March.

The railroad will continue to charge off-peak fares, Eng said.

The LIRR will reopen ticket offices at Penn Station, Jamaica and Atlantic Terminal, as well as its Penn Station lost and found office. 

The railroad is deploying 85 station ambassadors, including at 27 stations in Nassau and Suffolk, to assist riders and monitor social-distancing efforts. There will be increased MTA Police presence at stations and on trains, though they have been directed “to make no arrests related to masks and crowding,” according to the railroad.

City buses and subways will be back at about 95% strength Monday, and closer to normal by Tuesday, New York City Transit interim President Sarah Feinberg said.

The Nassau Inter-County Express, or NICE Bus, announced plans to return to a regular schedule beginning Sunday. NICE has been operating on a weekend schedule on most routes since early April.

As New York City enters Phase 1 on Monday, construction is among the industries that will be allowed to restart, Mayor Bill de Blasio said. There are 32,000 such sites citywide ready to reopen, he said.

"It's a reminder, as recently as February how vibrant the economy of this city was and how vibrant it will be again," de Blasio said of the industry, which has been banned since late March.

Looking 'their Sunday best'

The Town of Babylon said it is distributing 1,000 donated face shields to the approximately 173 barbershops and beauty salons in the town as they prepare to reopen in Phase 2.

Long Island's second phase will bring back a wider range of industries, including in-store retail, administrative and office-type jobs, vehicle sales and real estate, including leases and rentals, as well as commercial building management and outdoor dining.

The state is requiring employees at the businesses to wear face coverings whenever they interact with customers.    

“Today, we’re getting our barbershops and our salons back up and running so that everybody can look their Sunday best,” Babylon Town Supervisor Rich Schaffer said.

Lisa Scrofano of Capitol Barber Shop said she is using all safety precautions to make customers feel comfortable. “Between the Town of Babylon giving us face masks and shields, providing sanitizer, my shop will be sanitized after every haircut,” she said.

Cuomo said he expects to make a decision by Sunday on whether school districts will be allowed to postpone public votes on budgets and school board seats, currently scheduled for Tuesday.

Districts are not holding in-person votes this year to avoid exposure to the virus, and instead are holding the voting through mail-in ballots they are sending to residents.

Bellone lamented that schools have been limited to virtual and drive-thru graduations. He said he is hopeful the state will permit traditional ceremonies later in the summer.

He said he is working with the Suffolk County School Superintendents Association to develop a plan to host those events safely.

“Watching your child walk across the stage and receive their high school diploma is something every parent looks forward to,” he said. “That’s a huge moment for every family.”