(New York) The mayor of New York has announced that he is planning a “complete reopening” of his city on 1is July while predicting an “extraordinary summer”. Although his optimism is not unanimous, there is no possible doubt: New York is no longer the ghost town it was at the start of the pandemic.
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The din of a construction site almost buries the music coming out of the speakers a salsa dancer has set up in the heart of the Times Square pedestrian zone. Protesters walk among the crowds of tourists and strollers holding up posters against repression in Colombia. Accompanied by a cameraman, a reporter from the Newsmax channel, microphone in hand, asks everyone if Yoda, a Star Wars character, is a Democrat or a Republican. And the naked cowboy is strumming his guitar.
On his very first trip to New York, 23-year-old Jeff Black widens his eyes as he observes this spectacle as noisy as it is colorful and teeming.
“It’s pretty crazy to see how many people are still here,” said the student from Traverse City, a small town in Michigan, on May 4, 2021, more than a year after New York became the epicenter of the coronavirus pandemic in the United States.
“As I discover the city, I have the impression of a certain normality. There are just a lot of interesting places, a lot of interesting people, ”he adds.
PHOTO RICHARD HÉTU, SPECIAL COLLABORATION
Christina Hansen, coachman in Central Park
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A little later, in Central Park, Christina Hansen gives feed to her horse, King, after taking an Asian family through the green and flowery lung of Manhattan in her horse-drawn carriage. Her gaze is that of a New York coach who has seen others.
“New York is coming back,” said the 40-year-old in a top hat. “People are coming out. People are happy to be here, happy to have some form of normalcy. People’s attitudes have certainly changed. People have better morale. ”
Notice to critics
And Bill de Blasio does everything to maintain this feeling. On April 29, the mayor of New York announced that he was planning a “complete reopening” of his city on 1is July.
“We are ready for stores to open, for companies to open, for offices, theaters to open, to the maximum of their capacity,” he said, referring to the success of the vaccination in New York, where 40% of residents are fully immunized.
PHOTO ANGELA WEISS, FRANCE-PRESS AGENCY
New York will allow stores, businesses, offices and theaters to open to their maximum capacity.
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Two days later, he retweeted a Bloomberg article on New York’s “comeback” adding this comment for those who had previously written his city’s epitaph: “Sorry, detractors. New York City is coming back like never before! ”
It will also reopen sooner than the mayor of Blasio had deemed it prudent. Jealous of his prerogatives, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo on Monday announced a 24-hour subway reopening on May 17 and a lifting of most restrictions on shops and cultural venues on May 19.
In the meantime, there is no doubt that New York is no longer the ghost town it was in the early days of the pandemic. Traffic jams are back, as is the noise and complaints from citizens that accompany it.
The sidewalks are also busier, but not as busy as the city’s large parks. These have regained their pre-pandemic crowds, according to Orbital Insight, a data company that tracks the movement of people and goods.
PHOTO RICHARD HÉTU, SPECIAL COLLABORATION
Elisabeth Fernandez in Bryant Park
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Elisabeth Fernandez won’t complain. “I’m happy to see the city reopen,” said the 27-year-old, basking in the sun in Bryant Park, an island of greenery in the heart of Manhattan. “Even though there are people who are still worried, I am very optimistic. Things are improving. ”
Will the rich come back?
This optimism is not universal, however. 45-year-old florist Sam Abulawi is among New Yorkers worried about the effect of certain changes brought on by the pandemic.
“A lot of rich people have left New York,” laments the merchant, whose store is just steps from the famous Flatiron Building.
PHOTO RICHARD HÉTU, SPECIAL COLLABORATION
Sam Abulawi, Manhattan Florist
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“They are being replaced by people from the middle class who have been drawn to the drop in rents. I have nothing against these people, but they are not as good for our business as the rich. The rich can spend up to $ 700 a week on flowers. Will they come back? With all the homeless people you see on the streets now, I’m not sure. ”
Sam Abulawi says he has managed to survive the pandemic through his online sales and home delivery service. But he specifies that online commerce has won out over most of the neighborhood clothing stores, including those located on 5e Avenue. “The pandemic has been very hard on retail traders,” he says.
David Isaac, owner of a women’s clothing store, can attest to this. He says he survived the pandemic for one reason only: he did not have to pay the normal price of his rent. “If I had to pay the normal price, I would have to close the shop tomorrow,” he says.
He estimates at “at least two years” the time he will need to regain his pre-pandemic turnover. Since March, his business has increased by “5 to 10%”.
Does he sleep better? “Yes, I sleep 5 to 10% better,” he replies, half-fig, half-raisin.
“I am very optimistic”
Pending the reopening of the major Broadway theaters, slated for September, and the eventual return of office workers to empty Manhattan towers, the restaurant business is perhaps the one experiencing the strongest rebound in New York these days. -this.
PHOTO GAIA SQUARCI, REUTERS
The terraces set up outside the restaurants in the aftermath of the pandemic are crowded.
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Since the return of good weather, the terraces outside the restaurants following the pandemic have been crowded. Many more customers are also eating indoors, one of the consequences of vaccination.
“We have repeatedly heard people say: ‘We just had our second dose two weeks ago to the day and we went out to celebrate” “, says Jacques Gautier, chef and owner of Palo Santo, restaurant of the Park Slope neighborhood in Brooklyn, a few hours before welcoming its first customers of the evening.
That day, the Washington-native restaurateur offered his customers a home delivery service for the last time since March 2020. This service, which allowed him to face the pandemic without having to lay off a single employee , is no longer necessary for its survival.
It’s been really good for us for about a month, he says. I have the impression that we have returned to almost normal figures.
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Palo Santo, restaurateur
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Does he share the optimism of Mayor de Blasio, who predicted an “extraordinary summer” in New York?
“If the business we’ve done in the past two months is any indication, I would say yes, I’m very optimistic,” he replies. We have really seen a lot of our customers come back. And it’s been very good for us. ”
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