Coronavirus Updates (May 22): Cuomo Says Long Island Could Reopen Next Week

Pictured Above: At the start of a past Shelter Island 10K

Cuomo: Long Island Could Begin Reopening Next Week

As Long Island awaits a 14-day decline in Covid-19 deaths, the last New York State metric that must be met in order for a region to reopen its economy, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo said in his Friday morning briefing that the island could begin to reopen its economy next week.

“If the number of deaths continue to decline the way it has and they get their tracing up and online, both regions could reopen this week,” Mr. Cuomo said of Long Island and the mid-Hudson region.

Mr. Cuomo said the state will now allow construction companies to begin moving their equipment to job sites in anticipation of beginning Phase 1 business reopening, which includes construction, manufacturing and curbside pickup of retail products, next week.

“The materials have to be onsite, safety precautions have to be onsite,” he said. “We’re hoping the deaths will decline and they will be reopenign this week.”

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Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone thanked the governor for acknowledging Long Island’s progress toward reopening in his Friday afternoon media briefing.

“We are ready,” he said, adding that the county is also opening its campgrounds and will begin taking RV camping reservations from July 15 forward on its website beginning at 7 p.m. tonight. Tent camping has not yet been reopened.

Reservations for between June 1 and July 15 were already in the county reservation system.

Mr. Bellone added that the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs has not agreed to allow scouts to place flags on the graves of soldiers in national cemeteries this Memorial Day Weekend, despite the county’s repeated requests.

“If we can reopen our beaches and have thousands of people coming to our beaches this weekend, how is it that we can’t have our Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts, on thousands of acres, be able to place American flags to honor veterans buried there,”

The county is, however, seeking volunteers to place flags on other graves throughout Suffolk tomorrow morning at 9:30 a.m. More details are online here.

Mr. Bellone’s media briefing is online here:

Southold Releases Summer Beach & Recreation Rules

Southold Town will be limiting beach access to residents only this summer, will not be opening up beaches to swimming before June 27, and will only be opening a limited number of pickleball and tennis courts at town parks, the town announced on Thursday, May 21.

Effective May 21, beach, road end and boat ramp use continues to be restricted to “Residents Only,” according to the town. All vehicles must have a “Resident Parking” permit displayed.

“This requirement will be strictly enforced,” according to the town. “Those who do not adhere to the rules are subject to removal….

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Shelter Island 10K Postponed to November

The 41st Annual Shelter Island 10K, held on the Saturday of Father’s Day weekend in June, has become the latest casualty of the coronavirus pandemic.

While the organizers announced Thursday they have pulled the plug on holding the event in June, they’re hoping to turn this disappointment into a two-fer, encouraging racers to continue to run the distance of the course on their own June 20, and compete in the rescheduled race on November 7.

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Suffolk Lays Out Pandemic Property Tax Relief

Suffolk County is submitting a request to New York Governor Andrew Cuomo to sign an executive order to allow residents economically impacted by the pandemic to delay property tax payments due June 1 to July 15.

The project, in the works for nearly two months, relied on sorting out the intricate financial relationships between towns, schools, fire districts, library districts and the county, and was dependent on financing through the Municipal Liquidity Facility, set up to help local governments stay solvent through the economic shutdown due to the Covid-19 crisis…

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Music: The Best Jams for the East End’s Food Pantries

All for the East End’s “Feed the Need” campaign is teaming up with the Sag Harbor American Music Festival in early June for “The Best Jams,” a virtual concert to support “food instability and other emerging needs resulting from the coronavirus pandemic.”

This one hour show airs on Saturday, June 6 at 8 p.m. and a second time on Sunday, June 7 at 8 p.m. on LTV, Facebook/Instagram Live and YouTube.

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