It’s open season on the city’s “open streets.”Drivers across town are brazenly tossing aside street-blocking barriers set up as part of Mayor Bill de Blasio’s plan to provide outdoor recreation space amid the coronavirus pandemic. While the “open streets” are in effect between 8 a.m. and 8 p.m., motorists making deliveries or dropping people off are still allowed to drive through slowly, and utility, emergency and city service vehicles are OK, too. A City Hall spokesman said enforcing the open streets is a collective responsibility, with the Department of Transportation, local NYPD precincts and community organizations all pitching in. “I say people are trying to eat dinner, can you play down the street or in the park? Arlind Belegu, a building superintendent on the block, said fights between parents who want their children to play in the open space and others on the block can get heated.

Source: The Local June 28, 2020 23:15 UTC