Tag: Verge

Nearly half of New York City bars and restaurants that were open pre-pandemic may close permanently within a year due to the coronavirus pandemic, according to an audit released Thursday by State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli.

If a third — about 8,000 — of the restaurants and bars close, the city would lose more than 100,000 jobs, the report says. If half, or 12,000, of the enterprises close, around 160,000 jobs will be lost.

The city brought back indoor dining at restaurants and bars on Wednesday with a limit of 25% of seating capacity plus additional requirements, including temperature checks, wearing masks, and leaving contact-tracing information. 

During the pandemic restaurants and bars largely closed or continued to operate for takeout and through delivery apps. 

But many have already closed and owners have been quoted as saying that they’ll have a tough time making the nut with a 25% capacity limit. 

“The industry is challenging under the best of circumstances and many eateries operate on tight margins. Now they face an unprecedented upheaval that may cause many establishments to close forever,” DiNapoli said.

The report shows how Covid-19 has devastated employment at eateries. 

In February 2020, more than 315,000 people were working in New York City’s restaurant industry. By April, restaurant employment had dropped 71% to 91,000 jobs as the city – hit hard by the pandemic – largely closed and locked down. 

“As rules loosened and outdoor dining was permitted, employment rose, reaching 174,000 jobs in August,” the DiNapoli report says.

In September almost 43% of restaurants and bars citywide received sidewalk-seating permits, including 50% of places in Manhattan, and over 40% for each of Brooklyn and Queens. But New York weather is turning cooler, and outdoor dining will not work well into the late fall and winter.

In June, the