New York City enters Phase 1 reopening today

New York City on Monday begins its phase one reopening efforts, after several months of coronavirus-induced shutdowns.

The city is working through the country's worst coronavirus outbreak, which since mid March has claimed about 22,000 lives. 

As many as 400,000 people are expected to return to work Monday, as the city opens construction sites and retail stores for curbside and in-store pickup.

Commercial buildings will also be permitted to check the temperature of people entering them. Though the phase one reopening plan of many cities has included outdoor service at restaurants, New York establishments will have to wait until phase two to seat anyone, al fresco or otherwise.

Until Sunday morning, the city had been under a curfew beginning at 8 p.m., due to a wave of protests that turned into riots at night. The curfew was initially scheduled to lift on Monday morning. But Mayor Bill de Blasio unexpectedly ended it a day early.

The wave of violence brought about by out-of-control protests across the city last week has forced some retail owners to behave more carefully during reopening efforts this week. Storefronts in Manhattan and the Bronx boarded up their windows last week in fear of looters, and several big-name stores have chosen not to open today as a result. 

The city is the final part of New York state to meet the seven required metrics to reopen. Parts of upstate New York have already moved into phase two of their reopening, which allows most stores, offices, and beauty salons to reopen with capacity limits.