State Releases Details for Phase 2 Reopening

ALBANY – The Forward New York Website has released guidelines for Phase Two reopening. As previously mentioned, all professional services and offices, along with most retail operations, are permitted to reopen as long as they adhere to state health and safety guidelines as they pertain to COVID-19. However, retail operations located within large shopping malls are not yet permitted to open, unless they have an exterior entrance that doesn’t require walking withing the mall itself.

Businesses and Industries allowed to reopen under Phase Two include:

• Offices;
• Real Estate;
• Essential and Phase II In-Store Retail;
• Vehicle Sales, Leases, and Rentals;
• Retail Rental, Repair, and Cleaning;
• Commercial Building Management;
• and Hair Salons and Barbershops.

More details can be found on the Phase Two Industries web page.

Officials say that if guidance has not yet been published for your specific industry, but you are permitted to reopen, please refer to the NY Forward Safety Plan template.

In addition, pursuant to the Governor’s New York on Pause Executive Orders, the following businesses remain closed:

• Malls; specifically, any indoor common portions of retail shopping malls with 100,000 or more square feet of retail space available for lease; however, any stores located within shopping malls, which have their own external entrances open to the public, separate from the general mall entrance (e.g. strip malls), may open;
• Dine-in and on-premise restaurant or bar service, excluding take-out or delivery for off-premise consumption;
• Large gathering/event venues, including but not limited to establishments that host concerts, conferences, or other in-person performances or presentations in front of an in-person audience;
• Gyms, fitness centers, and exercise classes, except for remote or streaming services;
• Video lottery and casino gaming facilities;
• Movie theaters, except drive-ins; and
• Places of public amusement, whether indoors or outdoors, including but not limited to, locations with amusement rides, carnivals, amusement parks, water parks, aquariums, zoos, arcades, fairs, children’s play centers, funplexes, theme parks, bowling alleys, family and children’s attractions.