Mayor Bill de Blasio Warns Beaches in New York Might Be Closed For The Summer: ‘Lower Expectations’
Mayor Bill de Blasio told New Yorkers to “lower expectations” when it comes to summer plans, including visiting beaches and public pools, during his update on the coronavirus pandemic on Thursday.
A listener called in to ask de Blasio if it was possible that beaches could be closed all season, and he replied by saying he couldn’t imagine opening them up any time soon.
“Imagine Coney Island in the summer,” he told reporters. “Hundreds of thousands of people packed tightly together, I don’t see that happening any time soon.”
De Blasio shared his coronavirus update at City Hall on Twitter:
Join us at City Hall for an update on COVID-19. https://t.co/5B00AG86yC
— Mayor Bill de Blasio (@NYCMayor) April 16, 2020
The mayor then explained that people could go to the beach and walk along the water, but he does not think packed beaches with lifeguards on duty would be a reality for the next couple of months.
“Just for everyone’s sanity, lower expectations,” he said. “If we bring out lifeguards and it’s a situation where people think it’s safe to go to the beach and it’s safe to start resuming normalcy, it’s going to start endangering people.”
“So no, right now, we do not have a plan to open the beaches just like we don’t have a plan to open the pools,” the mayor added.
De Blasio then said that it would be too complicated to go from staying at home and social distancing to packing beaches, and feared it would reverse any progress made.
“I don’t want to create a situation where people start gathering,” he added. “If things evolve, we’ll assess our options going forward.”
