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HomeCoronavirusMalls Not Too Distant From NYC Reopening in midst of COVID-19 Recovery

Malls Not Too Distant From NYC Reopening in midst of COVID-19 Recovery

Malls Not Too Distant From NYC Reopening in midst of COVID-19 Recovery

Following NY Governor Cuomo’s announcement earlier this week about allowing malls to reopen, not so distant locations are doing exactly that as of today or the very near future.

Just two days ago, the Governor followed up on that which he’d been talking about since June 26: Air Conditioning filtration and ventilation capable of filtering out the Coronavirus.

He laid out just some of the requirements needing to be met in order for a mall to reopen. Additional related details can be found below as well as at the official NY State Forward Pages.

Palisades Center Mall in West Nyack, NY has reopened today. It’s located right off of I-87 North/I-287 West and about a five minute drive north of the Mario Cuomo Bridge.

Their homepage features the following graphic:

We’ve visited Palisades Mall on a regular basis for near 20 years now. We’re happy to be seeing it reopen. We’re likely to visit over the weekend and report back.

Another mall would be Roosevelt Field Mall in Garden City, NY. Basically, Long Island’s Nassau County.

We’ve visited Roosevelt Field mall maybe once or twice a year for the past decade. I’ll be making sure to go there very soon. As per their site, they’re reopening today as well.

It is one of a number managed by the Simon Group of Retail Properties. It would appear that most if not all of their NY properties are opened as well. These include the Shops at Nanuet; The Westcheter in White Plains; Walt Whitman Shops in Huntington Station; Smith Haven Mall in Lake Grove, and others.

Word has it that the Broadway Commons Mall in Hicksville, NY (also in Long Island) will be opening its doors on Saturday, July 11, 2020. It’s managed by Pacific Retail Capital Partners which also has two additional properties in New York. One being the Galleria in White Plains and Colonie Center in Albany being the other. It’s not clear if/when those other two will be reopening.

NYC which is currently in Phase 3 is expected to likely enter Phase 4 on July 20. That is, if its related health metrics continue to be positive. It’s not clear, as of this writing, to what extent the city would be able to partake in that which is included with Phase 4 considering how indoor dining (a part of the Phase 3 reopening) was postponed. The city does have its share of interior malls as well.

As I’ve mentioned in other posts, and elsewhere, Connecticut’s malls have been opened to the public since the first day of the state’s entry into Phase 1 Reopening. On May 21, 2020, we visited that mall on the second day of its reopening and have since returned several times.

There were very few individuals at the mall that first day. Yet, that picked up with every one of our returns. Things appeared to work out very well for them, methinks. Everyone was orderly, and adhered to social distancing rules and guidelines. I’d guesstimate that 98% of people within were wearing a mask with security reminding those in need of a reminder.

Below, is just a portion of the mandatory guidelines set forth by the State of New York for Malls’ reopening.

For malls that are greater than 800,000 square feet, ensure building HVAC system filtration meets the highest rated filtration compatible with the currently installed filter rack and air handling systems, at a minimum MERV-13, or industry equivalent or greater (e.g., HEPA), as applicable, and as certified and documented by a certified HVAC technician, professional, or company, ASHRAE-certified professional, certified retro-commissioning professional, or New York-licensed professional building engineer.

If a mall greater than 800,000 square feet is unable to meet a building HVAC system filtration rating of MERV-13 or greater, malls must have a certified HVAC technician, professional, or company, ASHRAE certified professional, certified retro-commissioning professional, or New York licensed professional building engineer certify and document that the currently installed filter rack and air handling system would be unable to perform to the minimum level of heating and cooling that it was otherwise able to provide prior to the COVID-19 public health emergency if such a high degree of filtration (i.e., MERV-13 or greater) was installed. Further, malls must submit such documentation to DOH for review and approval to operate at a lesser filtration rating of MERV-11 or MERV-12 with additional ventilation and air filtration mitigation protocols. In all instances, however, Responsible Parties must maintain a building HVAC system filtration rating of, at least, MERV-11.

For malls that are less than 800,000 square feet, ensure building HVAC system filtration meets the highest rated filtration compatible with the currently installed filter rack and air handling systems, at a minimum MERV-11, or industry equivalent or greater (e.g., HEPA), but ideally MERV-13, as applicable, and as certified and documented by a certified HVAC technician, 8 professional, or company, ASHRAE-certified professional, certified retro-commissioning professional, or New York-licensed professional building engineer.

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