Weather: A sunny morning gives way to scattered thunderstorms that may bring heavy rain and dangerously strong gusts. High in the low 90s. |
 | | Chang W. Lee/The New York Times |
|
During the early months of the coronavirus pandemic, large swaths of New York City looked like ghost towns. Many businesses were closed, and plenty of New Yorkers — particularly the wealthy — fled to second homes. |
The city has since slowly begun reopening, but things are far from normal. The changes — no Broadway, no nightlife, uncrowded subways — have led some people to proclaim that New York City is “over” as we know it. |
For instance, in a much-talked-about LinkedIn post this month titled “N.Y.C. Is Dead Forever. Here’s Why,” James Altucher, an author and podcaster, argued that the city was at a low in terms of financial ruin, culture and real estate. |
“This time it’s different,” he wrote. “You’re never supposed to say that but this time it’s true.” |
Here are some reasons people say New York is ‘over’ … |
The concern about a second wave of infections has made it unclear when countless employees will return to work. Office towers sit empty. Foot traffic has dwindled in Midtown Manhattan and other commercial centers. |
A report last month by the Partnership for New York City, an influential business group, estimated that roughly one-third of the city’s small businesses may never reopen. To that point, my colleague Troy Closson wrote about shops that survived the Great Depression and both World Wars, but were unable to weather the pandemic. |
Also, a recent study by the city said that about 1,200 restaurants had permanently closed since March. Indoor dining is still not allowed in the five boroughs, and restaurants that are trying to take advantage of outdoor dining are struggling. |
… and here are some reasons people say it’s not. |
Several New Yorkers have argued that cynics aren’t giving the city enough credit. Some have also suggested that people who fled were largely white gentrifiers who would have eventually left anyway. |
On Monday in a Times op-ed, the comedian Jerry Seinfeld responded to the LinkedIn article: “Real, live, inspiring human energy exists when we coagulate together in crazy places like New York City,” he wrote. “Feeling sorry for yourself because you can’t go to the theater for a while is not the essential element of character that made New York the brilliant diamond of activity it will one day be again.” |
There are glimmers of a rebound, too: According to Resy, a reservation app, restaurants are performing at around 23 percent of last year’s volume. My colleague Sharon Otterman wrote that while that number is still very low, in mid-July it was only 10 percent. |
Sandra E. Garcia, a Times reporter and native New Yorker, noted to me, “If New York is dead, why was Cam’ron freestyling in Harlem on a hot summer night?” |
Michael Wilson, a Times reporter who has documented the mood of the city during the virus crisis, said: “I see so many New Yorkers doubling down and riding this out. New York is over when New Yorkers collectively agree it’s over, which is why it will never happen.” |
Mayor Bill de Blasio announced a plan for outdoor learning at city schools. [Gothamist] |
East River State Park in Brooklyn was renamed for Marsha P. Johnson, a L.G.B.T.Q. rights activist. [1010 WINS] |
The Queens Village Republican Club was still planning to host an event with Stephen K. Bannon, President Trump’s former adviser, who was charged last week with fraud. [Queens Daily Eagle] |
And finally: Crummy college quarantine food |
The Times’s Amanda Rosa writes: |
A lemon as a side dish. Some lettuce in a plastic bag. A sandwich for a student with gluten allergies. Salads with chicken for vegetarians. |
Welcome to college. Bon appétit. |
As students arrive on campuses in New York for an academic year upended by the coronavirus pandemic, administrators are grappling with an array of challenges — including how to isolate students coming from the many states subject to New York’s 14-day quarantine rule. |
Feeding those students, it turns out, is a big task. New York University and Cornell University, among others, have dealt with it by providing meals at no charge to out-of-state students who have been allowed to move into dormitories before classes start. |
The prospect of free food may sound good, but what showed up in brown paper bags three times a day at N.Y.U. got poor reviews from students, who were quick to share TikTok videos and memes of their unripe oranges, watermelon chicken salads and other unhappy meals. |
Danielle Gould, a sophomore, tried to make the best of the situation, posting a video of a breakfast she received as an “incoherent sounds” meme on TikTok. What did it show? A cookie, chips, salad dressing, salt and pepper. |
Even if students are not well fed, Ms. Gould said, “at least people can be entertained.” |
Annette Yang, a first-year N.Y.U. student studying media, culture and communications, said that she had not received some meals and that some of the food she did get smelled as if it had gone bad. |
“PLEASE DON’T SKIP MY ROOM FOR FOOD!” Ms. Yang wrote on a sign she posted on her door. “I haven’t gotten food today or yesterday. Pls help.” |
On Thursday, N.Y.U. issued a statement apologizing to the 2,600 students who are living in isolation, for what it said were “valid” complaints about a “particularly regrettable error.” |
It’s Tuesday — keep on keeping on. |
Metropolitan Diary: Trick or treat |
It was my first Halloween in my first Manhattan apartment. |
Having grown up on Long Island, I assumed that trick-or-treating was strictly a suburban phenomenon, so I had not kept track of the date. |
But shortly after I returned home from work on Oct. 31, my bell rang. When I opened the door, I was surprised to find a small boy wearing a costume and holding a shopping bag that appeared to be empty. |
“Trick or treat?” he said hopefully. |
“Wait a minute,” I said before running off to the kitchen. |
No treats anywhere. But I didn’t want to send him away empty-handed. |
In desperation, I grabbed a cantaloupe from the counter, rushed back to the door and dropped the melon into the boy’s bag. |
As he walked away silently, he appeared to be staggering under the weight of the unusual treat. |
New York Today is published weekdays around 6 a.m. You can also find it at nytoday.com. |
We’re experimenting with the format of New York Today. What would you like to see more (or less) of? Post a comment or email us: nytoday@nytimes.com. |
|
No comments:
Post a Comment