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New York Today

The Next Phase of Reopening

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It’s Monday. The High Line is reopening next week, and you’ll need a free, timed-entry pass to visit. They’ll be available starting Thursday.

Weather: Sunny in the morning, but watch out for afternoon thunderstorms. High in the low 90s.

Alternate-side parking: Suspended through Sunday. Read about the new amended regulations here.


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Credit...Hiroko Masuike/The New York Times

Today, life in New York City moves a little closer to what we might call normal. Welcome to Phase 3.

Broadly, that means the city, once an epicenter of one of the worst pandemics in modern history, is continuing to loosen the restrictions put in place to contain the coronavirus.

[Read our latest story on New York City’s entry into Phase 3.]

Expect to see the reopening of nail salons, massage centers, spa salons, tanning salons and tattoo shops, and the return of some “low-risk” youth sports. Don’t expect to see the resumption of indoor dining, though.

The entry into a new phase underscores the diverging narratives emerging across the country. While New York City is taking steps to reopen, other parts of the nation are finding that lifting restrictions can have negative effects.

On Saturday, for example, Florida and South Carolina once again posted daily records for new coronavirus cases. And in Houston, hospitals were reporting a dangerous surge in patients.

[Confused? Want to brush up on New York’s path to recovery? Check out our guide on what each phase means.]

New York City’s Phase 3, however, isn’t a neat success story. The continued pause of indoor dining shows that the path to normalcy will not be as linear as the sequence of phases might suggest.

New Yorkers were supposed to be able to enjoy indoor dining starting today, with some capacity restrictions in restaurants and bars. But Mayor Bill de Blasio and Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo last week decided to delay indoor dining indefinitely.

They cited the danger of having people gather close together indoors, and said people frequenting bars and restaurants were most likely contributing to the huge increases in coronavirus cases seen in other states.

“It is not the time to forge ahead with indoor dining,” Mr. de Blasio said on Wednesday.

Still, it feels as if the city is moving in the right direction.

The 9/11 Memorial reopened to the public on Sunday, with hand sanitizer, face mask requirements and “regular deep cleanings.”

But even as Mr. Cuomo announced on Sunday that Phase 3 would go forward, he urged caution, saying residents should wear masks and stay distanced from one another lest New York give up the progress it has made in curbing the virus.

That concern was apparent over the weekend, as some on social media shared photographs of Fourth of July gatherings that appeared to not meet social-distancing guidelines.


A Kennedy Wife and a Professor Compete to Run Against a Trump Backer

Why New York Buses Are on the Rise in a Subway City

With Plexiglass and Piles of Hot Dogs, a Fourth of July Tradition Lives On

How You Get Your Berries: Migrant Workers Who Fear Virus, but Toil On

Want more news? Check out our full coverage.

The Mini Crossword: Here is today’s puzzle.


An upstate man faces federal charges in connection with a Molotov cocktail attack on an occupied New York Police Department vehicle during protests against police brutality in May. [Gothamist]

Amid Independence Day celebrations, a number of shootings over the weekend left at least four people dead and 36 others injured across New York City. [amNY]

Shootings and fireworks alike are setting off ShotSpotter’s audio sensors, as scrutiny of the technology grows. [The City]


The Times’s Carla Correa writes:

Hamilton” again stands apart from other recent Broadway hits: The musical began streaming on Friday on Disney+.

One viewing suggestion, from the comedian Sofie Hagen on Twitter: “If you really want the full Live On Broadway experience, when Lin-Manuel Miranda first walks on stage as Hamilton, pause the video and stand up and clap for ten minutes. Then sit down and press play again.”

With Broadway shuttered through the rest of the year, why can’t we stream more productions? Elisabeth Vincentelli recently wrote about the options — and the state of theater streaming — in The Times’s Arts section. You can read the full article here.

  • For musicals, she wrote, “the websites Filmed on Stage and Thespie can help point you to many of them, such as the West End production of ‘Gypsy,’ starring Imelda Staunton and available to buy or rent on Amazon, iTunes and YouTube.”

  • “Musicals are also a portion of the long-running PBS Great Performances series, while Netflix lists popular properties as different as ‘Shrek the Musical’ and ‘Springsteen on Broadway.’”

  • “The closest thing to a Netflix for theater is BroadwayHD, which has about 300 titles in its catalog, from hits like ‘Kinky Boots’ to vintage nuggets, including Lee J. Cobb reprising his Willy Loman in a 1966 CBS telecast of ‘Death of a Salesman.’”

  • “The British-American Marquee TV is another service that offers all-you-can-watch for a weekly, monthly or annual fee.”

It’s Monday — press play.


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Dear Diary:

One day last spring, I was walking west from Alphabet City to Pier 34 to watch the sunset.

Somewhere in the West Village, I noticed a young woman walking the same direction a few paces in front of me. I watched for a block or two as she kept reaching one arm around behind her to try to button a loose button at the back of her blouse.

I wanted to help her, but I was nervous about asking and I didn’t want to bother a stranger, especially over something as personal as a loose blouse button.

After a while, we both wound up at a corner waiting for the light to change. I took off my headphones.

“I’m sorry to bother,” I said, “but could I help you with that?”

“Oh, my God,” she said. “I’ve been wanting to ask you for blocks but was too nervous to ask.”

— Perry Khalil


New York Today is published weekdays around 6 a.m. Sign up here to get it by email. You can also find it at nytoday.com.

We’re experimenting with the format of New York Today. What would you like to see more (or less) of? Post a comment or email us: nytoday@nytimes.com.

Mihir Zaveri is a general assignment reporter in New York. He previously worked at The Houston Chronicle. More about Mihir Zaveri

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