Gatherings of 50 or more banned across state

Bellmore-Merrick restaurant owners step-up to help out

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To reduce the spread of the coronavirus, New York, New Jersey and Connecticut banned gatherings of more than 50 people effective 8 p.m. Monday night, according to Gov. Andrew Cuomo.

Restaurants, gyms, movie theaters and casinos will be closed. Takeout at restaurants and even bars, distilleries and wineries will be allowed, however. The state’s liquor law is being temporarily changed to allow for off-premises sales of alcohol.

Local restaurateurs step-up

In response to the tristate ban, restaurant owners in Bellmore and Merrick are doing their part to make sure residents can enjoy a meal safely, with many local eateries offering takeout and curbside delivery options.

“We’re doing all of the above,” said Lisa Livermore, co-owner of Bayou Jones in Merrick. “We’ll also be running some specials on margaritas and hurricanes to-go.” The restaurant is also offering a 10 percent discount on all pickup orders.

At Piccolo Ristorante in Bellmore, owner Tommy Valenti said the restaurant is offering curbside delivery so “you don’t have to get out of your car,” he said. Additionally, residents can purchase ready-made, heat-and-serve meals and make-your-own pizza kits to “keep the kids busy.”

Both owners were cognizant, however, of the negative implications the ban would pose on their businesses.

Livermore said Bayou Jones has laid off most of its wait staff, and is working with “a skeleton crew for safety measures.” “We’re not going to be making the income that we were,” she said, “but we’re hoping that people take advantage of this, because small businesses are disappearing.”

Valenti said Piccolo would “carry” its employees for the next two months, but was unsure if it would be able to do the same for the landlord, utilities and insurance payments. “I understand that it’s much more prudent to err on the side of caution,” he said. “I just hope that when we get on the other side, there’s not too many scars.”

N.Y. continues to respond to outbreak

The governor said the state is acting aggressively to stem the tide of new coronavirus cases to ensure hospitals and medical centers throughout the state are not overwhelmed. New York now has the most COVID-19 cases of any state in the nation, with 950, he said. In looking to China, South Korea and parts of Western Europe, it is only a matter of time, the governor predicted, before cases here rise exponentially.

The state is ramping up coronavirus testing, with a capacity of 7,000 tests a day expected by the end of the week. As of press time Monday, a little more than 7,000 people had been tested throughout the state. Long Island will soon be a mobile-testing site, though the governor did not say where mobile testing would take place. Jones Beach State Park has been suggested as a location because of its wide-open parking lots.

Cuomo called on the federal government to issue one set of closure guidelines that would apply to states across the nation, instead of the current “national patchwork of density-reduction closings.” New York, New Jersey and Connecticut coordinated their closure policies to ensure people do not go “state shopping”; that is, they would not hop from state to state to go out to a restaurant, bar or casino.

The state is also waiving all park fees at state, county and local parks to enable people to get out in the fresh air and exercise.

Cuomo said all local governments must reduce their in-house workforces by half, allowing “non-essential” personnel to work from home.

All police officers and emergency medical personnel must be supplied with surgical masks to cover their faces, according to the governor.

All school districts and local governments had to provide plans by the end of Monday to care for children and feed them after downstate school districts closed for two weeks. The governor suggested that parts of closed schools could be used for childcare. He noted that many “essential personnel,” including police officers and EMS workers, depend on the schools to provide childcare.

The state is not mandating that grocery stores, gas stations, pharmacies and medical facilities stay open after 8 p.m., but is strongly advising them to do so.

Cuomo urged the federal government, specifically the Army Corps of Engineers, to set up mobile hospitals. If the federal government does not do so, he said, New York could mobilize the National Guard, local building unions and private developers to set up facilities and retrofit existing spaces in places like old nursing homes to increase hospital bed capacity.

Despite measures to reduce coronavirus spread, the number of new cases is expected to rise, and “you must expect a significant inflow” of patients into New York’s hospitals, he added.