Brooklyn Coronavirus Update and Open Thread: Peak Passed (4/27/20)

We’re in the seventh week of sheltering in place and the 25th day of home schooling for New York City schools.

New York City appears to have passed the peak of infection — at least on this go-round — and more testing is urgently needed so we can relax the shutdown rules. Less hard-hit regions are eyeing ways to open up without setting off more infections.

Meanwhile, millions of unemployed people in New York have still not received aid and cannot buy food or pay the rent or mortgage. Only 14.6 percent of New York State residents who are eligible for unemployment have actually received money as of Friday, according to a New York Times editorial on aid. Nationally, only 26 percent of eligible small businesses have been able to access the payment protection plan. Artists are out of work, with 62 percent nationwide reporting they are “fully unemployed” because of the shutdown, according to nonprofit advocacy group Americans for the Arts.

An essay by the owner of East Village restaurant Prune on shutting down the beloved eatery seems a bellwether for the restaurants, stores and other Brooklyn businesses that make Brooklyn unique. Restaurant owners and industry watchers predict that maybe 25 percent of small restaurants nationwide will survive the shutdown.

A New York City Council bill introduced Thursday addresses some of these concerns. It would suspend evictions for residents and businesses until April 2021. It would also suspend personal liability clauses in commercial leases so small business owners don’t face personal bankruptcy or financial ruin on top of everything else.

Insurance companies are not honoring business insurance because of the pandemic (and lawsuits are pending). Some skilled Brooklyn artisans in the construction trade, such as carpenters and masons who specialize in historic preservation, have been caught overseas and unable to return to finish jobs, a homeowner told Brownstoner.

The head of the building trade association New York Building Congress is calling for 24-hour construction in New York City, The Real Deal reported, even as workers and residents warn it is dangerous for employees and disturbing to neighbors who are now working from home and home schooling and need to sleep.

Optimum Online, which has a monopoly in parts of Brooklyn, has had near-constant slowdowns and outages, making it challenging for locals to work and learn from home, going by the torrent of outraged comments on Twitter.

A few bright spots: Parking is easy to find, streets are quieter — except for the emergency vehicles and the speeding cars — neighbors are socializing (from safe distances), the spring flowers are beautiful.

How are you weathering the shutdown, and what are your concerns and thoughts? What do you think should be done in Brooklyn to combat the spread of the virus and save local businesses and jobs? Please feel free to comment in a respectful manner (please, no personal attacks, nothing libelous). If you are not already logged in, go up to the top right hand side of the page and log in to be able to comment.