State shutters schools in three Queens neighborhoods, but businesses can stay open for now
/
Gov. Andrew Cuomo said schools in three Queens neighborhoods with rising COVID rates will close Tuesday, but overruled Mayor de Blasio’s plan to also close non-essential businesses. Kevin P. Coughlin / Office of Governor Andrew M. Cuomo
By David Brand
Gov. Andrew Cuomo on Monday ordered schools to close in nine Queens and Brooklyn zip codes with rising rates of COVID-19, accelerating a school shutdown timeline proposed by Mayor de Blasio Sunday while breaking with de Blasio’s plan to also close non-essential businesses.
The school closures would specifically apply to Kew Gardens’ zip code 11415 (3.81 percent positivity rate), Kew Gardens Hill/Pomonok’s zip code 11367 (3.86 percent) and Edgemere/Far Rockaway’s zip code 11691 (5.63 percent). Schools will also close in six South Brooklyn zip codes. Overall, the plan will affect about 100 public schools and 200 private schools.
“These clusters have to be attacked,” Cuomo said Monday. “Stamp them out immediately and dramatically.”
The shutdown plan proposed by de Blasio would have closed schools and businesses starting Wednesday in zip codes where positive COVID rates have exceeded 3 percent for seven consecutive days — a benchmark for rewinding closure, de Blasio told reporters.
“The plan is to rewind in these nine ZIP codes — to rewind, to go back to address the problem by using the tools that we know work, which is to ensure that non-essential businesses are not open and a variety of activities are not happening,” de Blasio said.
De Blasio’s plan required state approval, which Cuomo refused to grant — the latest in a series of confusing disputes between the two leaders during an unprecedented pandemic. He said the state will lead enforcement mask and social distancing rules in the Queens and Brooklyn neighborhoods.
Cuomo said business closures could take effect if COVID rates do not go down, but he called on the health officials to develop better mechanisms for identifying specific places to close rather than shut down entire zip codes. Unlike de Blasio, he proposed closing houses of worship as well.
Another 11 zip codes with rising COVID rates — including four in Queens — are also on the city’s watch list and could face similar restrictions if they have a 3 percent positivity rate for seven consecutive days.
The Queens zip codes are Rego Parks’s 11374, Fresh Meadows/Hillcrest’s 11366, Hillcrest/Jamaica Estates/Jamaica Hills’ 11432 and Auburndale/Fresh Meadows/Pomonok/Utopia’s 11365.
The seven other watchlist zip codes are located in Brooklyn, including East Williamsburg’s 11211, which borders Ridgewood in Queens.
Minutes before de Blasio’s press conference, Gov. Andrew Cuomo seemed to lend his support for drastic action in zip codes where COVID rates are surging.
“Local governments have not done an effective job of enforcement in these hotspot ZIP codes,” Cuomo tweeted. “NYS will be doing aggressive enforcement starting tomorrow.”
“As we saw with bars and restaurants, when the state initiated enforcement actions compliance greatly increased,” he added.
