May 26, 2020
From Governor Cuomo @ 7:27 PM on May 26:
I hope you enjoyed Memorial Day weekend. Traditionally, Memorial Day marks the start of the summer season. This year, of course, things are different. The reopening process has begun. As we move forward, I am thinking about two things. First, we want to be sure that we reopen smart. We are carefully monitoring health data and indicators to watch that the numbers keep going in the right direction. We have firm controls in place. We are also thinking about how we can achieve a rapid and robust economic recovery. Government can stimulate the economy as we have in the past with public works. We have major infrastructure work that is long overdue. Now is the time to build, to create jobs, to drive the economy. We can use this reopening phase to make these too easily deferred projects real.
(Photo by Don Pollard)
Here's what else you need to know tonight:
1. The Mid-Hudson Region has met all seven metrics and began Phase 1 of reopening today. The region comprises Westchester, Dutchess, Orange, Putnam, Rockland, Sullivan and Ulster Counties. Long Island is still on track to reopen tomorrow, May 27th. To track where your region falls on reopening, visit the state's Regional Monitoring Dashboard.
2. Congratulations to the winners of the "Wear A Mask" PSA Video Contest. We asked New Yorkers to make a video on why it's important to wear a mask when in public, and after going through over 600 submissions and with more than 180K votes cast, we have two winners: "We New York," created by Bunny Lake Films, and "You Can Still Smile" by Natalia Bougadellis and Emory Parker. Both winning videos will run as public service announcements and can be viewed here. Thank you to everyone who participated and voted in the contest.
3. The New York Stock Exchange reopened their floor for trading today. After two months, many employees can return to the floor after the organization has implemented specific precautions to protect the health of its workers. I rang the opening bell this morning.
4. The number of total COVID hospitalizations continues to decline. Total hospitalizations fell to 4,265, from 4,348 the day before. The number of new COVID hospitalizations fell to 201, from 237 the day before. Tragically, we lost 73 New Yorkers to the virus yesterday.
5. The Nourish NY initiative is a growing lifeline for many NY farms. The recently launched program provides $25 million for food banks across the state to buy food from New York farms, including dairy products and produce. The initiative tackles two problems at once: making sure that food doesn't get wasted and that New Yorkers in need don't go hungry. So far, 87,588 gallons of milk and over 500,000 pounds of vegetables and fruit have been sent to food banks.
Tonight's "Deep Breath Moment": There's a new addition to Buffalo's Hertel Alley — a stretch that has become known for its street art and murals. The artist Chuck Tingley recently added a new mural celebrating essential workers during the pandemic.
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