The Briefly for May 22, 2020 – The "The Beaches Will Be Open This Weekend" Memorial Day Edition

Today - Low: 60˚ High: 69˚

Possible drizzle in the evening.

This weekend - Low: 53˚ High: 65˚

Do you have blood? Can you spare some? The city's blood supply is running "dangerously low." (Kathleen Culliton for Patch) What are you doing to experience new things while staying at home? SNL's Heidi Gardner is trying a new cereal each week. (Chris Crowley for Grub Street) If the ban on city dwellers continues, City Council Member Keith Powers has threatened to cancel SantaCon and ban Long Islanders from St. Patrick's Day celebrations. Please? Will you promise? (Adam Nichols for Patch) After a week of back and forth, the city's beaches will be open this weekend, but with no lifeguards and swimming won't be allowed. (Todd Maisel for amNewYork Metro) Nathan's is the biggest game in Coney Island hot dogs right now, but they got there by playing dirty. Coney Island's original hot dogger is Feltman's. (Alyson Krueger for NY Times) McSorley's is back after its longest closure since opening in 1854. (EV Grieve) Scarr's Pizza is back too. (Elie Z. Perler for Bowery Boogie) Archdiocese of NY shared a "Faith Forward" plan, which outlines a five-step plan to reopen New York's churches. (Ron Lee for NY1) Religious institutions can begin holding services, assuming they limit occupancy to ten or fewer people indoors, everyone must wear a mask and follow social distancing protocols. (NY1) Some suggested Memorial Day reading, care of the city's independent book shops. (Danielle Valente for Time Out) The mayor ran for office on the idea that he wanted to bridge the gap between the two New York Cities, but if you look at the neighborhoods that have received open streets and those that have not, he's continuing in the tradition he rallied against by denying some of the hardest-hit neighborhoods by the Covid-19 virus open spaces. (Julianne Cuba for Streetsblog) State Assemblymember Carmen Arroyo has been removed from the Democratic primary ballot after being caught altering signatures and dates on her petition to remain on the ballot. (Ed García Conde for Welcome2TheBronx) Central Park Park Ranger Ashley Whited rescued a team of orphaned ducks after a snapping turtle attacked and killed their mother. (Anthony Pascale for NY1) The pandemic has shown what has always been possible, including to-go drinks from bars and restaurants. State Senator Brad Hoylman introduced legislation that would allow bars and restaurants to sell to-go drinks for two years after the pandemic is over. (Tanay Warerkar for Eater) This weekend kicks off the Loisaida Festival, digitally of course. (EV Grieve) Here's the latest plan from a giant developer for the "future" of Long Island City, leaning heavily on commercial property, with 10-to-12 million square feet of space on 28 acres of land surrounding the area that Amazon HQ2 never was. (Christian Murray for LIC Post) Big companies like Facebook and Mastercard are rethinking massive leases in Manhattan after allowing employees to work remotely on an ongoing basis. Facebook is or was close to signing a lease int he Farley Post Office building next to Penn Station, so it remains to be seen if they'll go through with the deal. I guess you could say it's complicated 🥴. (Danielle Balbi for The Real Deal) Video: Climbing to the top of the Woolworth Building, in what appears to be less than legal means. (Matt Coneybeare for Viewing NYC) The mayor says the city could be on its way to start phase one of reopening in the first half of June. This is, of course, not a guarantee, and we'll have to see how well the city fares during this holiday weekend as temperatures are looking favorable. One spike and we ain't opening in June. (Alejandra O'Connell-Domenech for amNewYork Metro) I don't know if it's welcome news, but it's a step towards normalcy. Beginning on Monday, you can file lawsuits electronically for the first time in multiple weeks. (Brendan Krisel for Patch) A guide to New York's contact tracing programs. (Danny Lewis for Gothamist) With the rise of MIS-C cases in the state, Governor Cuomo hasn't made a decision about summer camps across the state, but it's looking less likely. (Zack Fink for NY1) 176,000 students will be attending summer school, but it won't be in person. The governor canceled in-person summer classes. The governor went as far as to say that it's in question if schools will reopen in the fall. (Kathleen Culliton for Patch) The Landmarks Preservation Commission approved an $8 million project to install a new pedestrian plaza beneath Brooklyn Bridge Park, which will replace a fenced-in parking lot, which is there today. (Kevin Duggan for Brooklyn Paper) What is New York without New York bars? (Megan Abbott for NY Times) Ridership is on an uptick, so the Staten Island ferry will increase its rush-hour service. (NY1) Fleet Week is still happening... virtually? (Ron Lee for NY1) 15 restaurants and bars that have permanently closed because of the coronavirus. (Noah Sheidlower for Untapped New York) This shouldn't be a surprise, but that all-male restaurant panel the president has convened, which called him "one of us," ain't gonna help. (Chris Crowley for Grub Street) Here are the CDC's guidance on using cloth face coverings. (Norwood News) Is this NYC's oldest manhole cover? (Michelle Young for Untapped New York) * Seinfeld voice* What's the deal with all these late-night fireworks? (David Cruz for Gothamist) 8 restaurant reopenings to be excited about this week. (Serena Dai for Eater) Thank you to reader Shiloh for today's featured photo!