Today, July 20th, New York City will enter Phase 4 of its reopening, but it won't be as expansive as originally anticipated. While New York has staved off another spike in infections for now, many states that have been less cautious are now seeing COVID-19 spread out of control.

"I want all New Yorkers to be on high alert," Governor Andrew Cuomo warned on Friday. "We are still in a precarious position, not because of anything we have done, but the negligence of the federal government and the states that listen to the federal government. I am very worried about the spread that we see across the country and the inevitability that the spread will be here. There will be a second wave. I would wager on it, but the question is how high is the wave?"

“We’ve got to strike a balance, and we’ve got time to look at the evidence," Mayor Bill de Blasio said last week. "Watch what’s happening around the country, watch what’s happening here in the city and make further decisions on some of these pieces, and we will do that very carefully."

Any plans for indoor dining, which was supposed to return in Phase 3, have been postponed indefinitely as socializing inside restaurants and bars appears to be linked to some of the recent outbreaks we're seeing around the country. Additionally, indoor spaces in general pose a threat, as the virus can linger in the air for hours — because of this, some indoor spaces that were set to reopen during Phase 4 will remain closed.

Cardboard cutouts of people to simulate of fans in the Citi Field stands

Kathy Willens/AP/Shutterstock

Phase 4 begins on Monday, July 20th

What will reopen?

  • Low risk outdoor arts & entertainment (this includes zoos, gardens, etc)
  • Sports (without fans — though Mets fans can order cardboard cutouts of themselves to occupy seats inside Citi Field)
  • Media production (film, music, television productions are now allowed to double capacity on set from 25% to 50%, with no limits on outdoor filming)

What NYC attractions can I visit during Phase 4?

(with limited capacity)

  • Statue of Liberty (interiors remain closed, but the grounds of Liberty Island) will reopen on Monday, July 20th
  • Empire State Building will reopen on Monday, July 20th
  • The Bronx Zoo, Central Park Zoo, Prospect Park Zoo, and Queens Zoo will reopen on Friday, July 24th
  • The New York Botanical Garden will reopen its grounds on Tuesday, July 28th
  • The Brooklyn Botanic Garden will reopen on August 7th
  • Governors Island reopened just ahead of Phase 4
  • 22 of the city's library branches also reopened recently for grab-and-go service

What will NOT be reopening in Phase 4?

  • Indoor cultural institutions (while some museums planned to reopen at the start of Phase 4, that will no longer be happening -- though the Met is currently planning to reopen at the end of August)
  • The NY Aquarium was originally set to reopen, but will now remain closed
  • Malls
  • Gyms
  • Movie theaters

The big question mark for parents and kids remains: Will schools be reopening later in Phase 4? The Department of Education is expected to present a plan to the state on July 31st, centered around a "blended" model of teaching, and with the option to remain fully remote. Cuomo is expected to approve or reject school reopening plans region by region in the first week of August.

Phase 4 is the final phase of New York's reopening, however, with so many Phase 3 and 4 components put on hold, the city and state still has a ways to go before it is fully reopened.

The number of new cases, percentage of tests that were positive and other data points are available at forward.ny.gov and our own statistics page, which is updated daily. Over the past two weeks, since NYC entered Phase 3, positive test rates have fluctuated from around 0.9% and 1.39%. As of Saturday, July 18th, NYC had a positivity rate of 1.25%, and New York State had a positivity rate of 1.08%. (For comparison, NYC positivity rates were 1.06%. and New York State positive rates were 1.04% when we entered Phase 3 on July 6th.)

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