The new travel rules: Can they be enforced?
A look at the new state travel rules and the enforcement
Cars zip across the border between Connecticut and New York in this March 29 photo. Credit: AP/Seth Wenig
New York’s new COVID-19 rules for travelers are now subject to the same challenge as the previous restrictions: how to ensure the countless visitors are obeying the rules.
Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo signed an executive order Saturday saying travelers arriving from out of state — including New Yorkers returning home — can avoid a 14-day quarantine by doing the following:
- Get a negative coronavirus test result within three days before their departure for New York.
- Quarantine for their first three days in New York.
- Get another negative test on the fourth day after they arrive.
Previous rules required visitors from states with high infection levels to quarantine for 14 days, and to submit forms with contact information for health workers to follow up. Those forms are still required.
The new rules apply to travelers from any state, except for the five that border New York. Those who spend less than 24 hours out of state would be exempt from the three-day quarantine, but would have to get a negative test on the fourth day.
But even the governor's office acknowledges it's impossible to make sure everyone is complying. And there's confusion over who should be monitoring it.
The number of new positives reported today: 216 in Nassau, 179 in Suffolk, in 1,067 New York City and 2,997 statewide.
January Regents exams canceled because of the pandemic
Traditionally, about 300,000 students statewide take the January Regents exams, while about 1.6 million participate in June testing. Credit: Newsday / J. Conrad Williams Jr.
The state Regents exams originally scheduled for Jan. 26-29 have been canceled because of pandemic disruptions, top education officials said.
This is the third time in eight months the state scrubbed the exams, which are administered at the high school level. Students who pass course-credit requirements during this semester will be exempt from taking the exams in those subjects, officials said.
Betty A. Rosa, the state's interim education commissioner, cited unevenness of school schedules as a factor. State officials said a decision will be made later in the school year about the scheduled June round of exams.
"The decision was to me a no-brainer," said Roger Tilles of Manhasset, who represents Long Island on the state's Board of Regents.
Adding LI warehouses to deliver packages during online boost
Amazon associate Crystal Anthony works at the retail giant's last-mile warehouse in Shirley. Credit: Amazon
Amazon, Home Depot and other big retailers are opening warehouses across Long Island thanks to the coronavirus-fueled boost in online shopping.
They're called "last-mile" warehouses, which means retailers can ensure merchandise makes the last leg of its journey to customers' homes quickly.
Amazon has two warehouses in Bethpage and one in Shirley, with plans for more locations in Carle Place, Syosset and Westhampton Beach. A Home Depot facility is going up in Hicksville, and Stop & Shop is adding a sixth "wareroom" at its Hempstead Village supermarket.
"With COVID, even more people are shopping online because they’re worried about catching the virus" when they walk into a store, said Richard Kessel, chairman of the Nassau County Industrial Development Agency. "So, retailers must have warehouses closer to customers’ homes to better deliver the merchandise."
Bellone: Suffolk County monitoring 'new clusters'
Voters line up to cast their vote during early voting at the Stony Brook University Campus in Southampton on Oct. 25. Credit: Randee Daddona
County Executive Steve Bellone said Wednesday that the Suffolk County Health Department "is monitoring new clusters" of COVID-19 at a voting site and in the Shoreham-Wading River school district.
The first cluster is related to an early voting site at the Stony Brook Southampton campus, which as of Wednesday had been connected to 10 positive cases — six of whom were working at the polling site. There are 48 contacts associated with the site who are under quarantine.
In Shoreham-Wading River, three positive cases emerged after a gathering of 32 people, and 161 people were placed under isolation or quarantine as of Wednesday.
"It’s another example of an instance where you’re complying with the gathering guidelines, but if the proper precautions aren’t taken — and to a certain extent even if precautions are taken — you can end up in a situation like this," Bellone said.
More to know
The Pet Valu location in Jericho is one of six on Long Island that will be closed, the chain said. Credit: Newsday/J. Conrad Williams Jr.
Pet supply chain Pet Valu is blaming the pandemic for its plan to close its 358 U.S. stores, including six on Long Island.
The U.S. set another record for daily confirmed coronavirus cases, as states around the country posted all-time highs. Daily new confirmed cases surged 45% over the past two weeks to a record seven-day average of 86,352, data shows.
Long Island’s frenzied real estate market is starting to calm down, with a still very-busy market, but less elevated than in previous months, according to a report.
The number of Americans seeking unemployment benefits fell slightly last week to 751,000.
ESPN announced it's eliminating about 500 jobs worldwide, including about 300 through layoffs, due largely to the pandemic.
News for you
Fried-chicken sandwiches are the stock in trade for Mother Cluckers, a new ghost kitchen from Lessings that operates out of Bay Shore. Credit: Lessings Hospitality Group
New ghost kitchens to check out. Perfect for social distancing, these kitchens produce dishes for takeout and delivery only and have no street presence. And now there's two more on Long Island specializing in fried chicken: The Portly Porker and Mother Cluckers.
'Bah Humbug!' The village of Port Jefferson is canceling its annual Charles Dickens Festival due to the pandemic. The annual two-day festival over the first weekend in December would be too big a draw to comply with social distancing guidelines, the mayor said.
Find a ski resort that's a drive away. Learn how to ski or brush up on your skills with a trip to a ski resort this season. We've got a roundup of resorts that are within 125 miles of Long Island. Keep in mind: All resorts adopted some safety precautions for COVID-19. Check before you go.
A livestream concert series with Broadway stars. Adelphi University is bringing the cabaret to you. It's launching the "Live From Adelphi Concert Series," a biweekly program from Adelphi's Performing Arts Center that premieres 5 p.m. Sunday. Some Broadway and cabaret stars will be part of the livestreamed series. Get the details.
Plus: Hundreds of thousands of absentee ballots submitted by Nassau and Suffolk county voters this year haven’t been counted yet. Here are the local races to watch as they're tallied.
Sign up for text messages to get the most important coronavirus news and information.
Commentary
Credit: Getty Images/Tom Werner
In a pandemic, every day is bring-your-child-to-work day. Sarah Green Carmichael writes in a column for Bloomberg Opinion: Years before "Take Our Daughters and Sons to Work Day" became a thing, my dad occasionally brought me to his office as the need arose.
There was something a bit thrilling about gaining entry into this adult world of cubicles, dry-erase boards and name badges. It was a novelty to see Dad in this grown-up space. But today, when so many parents are working from home alongside kids who are schooling from home, every day is bring-your-child-to-work day. And "novelty" no longer describes it.
Nor is the pandemic experience likely to create the positive effects hoped for by the organizers of take-the-kids-to-work events. For one thing, the children aren't getting an especially exciting view of what their moms and dads do for work. Parents who are capable of working remotely tend to be knowledge workers, whose work mostly happens inside the brain. There's not a lot to see. Nor are kids getting to see the fun parts of work, like business travel or professional conferences. Keep reading.
Erin Serpico is an assistant web producer who joined Newsday in November 2018. Originally from New Jersey, she now covers community events and produces local content for newsday.com while also helping run the homepage.
