You are reading

Senior Centers Can Reopen Later This Month: Mayor

Mayor Bill de Blasio visiting a Manhattan senior center in 2019 (Ed Reed/Mayoral Photography Office)

June 1, 2021 By Allie Griffin

Senior centers in New York City can reopen later this month after more than a year of being shut down, Mayor Bill de Blasio announced Tuesday.

Indoor congregate activities can reopen on Monday, June 14, de Blasio said, and the centers can offer outdoor activities immediately.

“I’ve heard from so many seniors [that] they’re ready to go back to senior centers and I’m happy to announce our senior centers are coming back in New York City,” de Blasio said.

The city has been slow to reopen senior centers in comparison to retail services—since seniors face the greatest risk and chance of death from COVID-19.

“We know seniors bore the brunt of the COVID crisis — they were the most vulnerable,” de Blasio said. “We all had to do everything in our power to protect our seniors.”

He credited the high vaccination rate for the ability to reopen senior centers. Nearly 72 percent of city residents 65 and older have had at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine and more than 65 percent are fully vaccinated, according to city data.

Senior centers will be open to both vaccinated and unvaccinated New Yorkers. Social distancing rules, however, will continue to be in place at the facilities.

“We’ll be careful; we’ll be safe,” de Blasio said. “We’re going to make sure there is smart distancing and all the right precautions to keep our senior centers safe, but the time [to reopen the centers] is now.”

Local nonprofit leaders who run senior centers welcomed the mayor’s announcement.

“The re-opening of senior centers in New York City is an important milestone in the City’s fight against COVID-19 and it’s a step towards overcoming the social isolation many seniors felt,” said Judy Zangwill, Executive Director of Sunnyside Community Services, which operates the Center for Active Older Adults in Sunnyside.

The Center for Active Older Adults will reopen June 14 and Zangwill said she is excited to welcome the seniors back.

“We are overjoyed about this news and know that the seniors in our community are delighted as well,” Zangwill said. “It’s a clear signal that the city is returning to normal, even for the most vulnerable among us.”

email the author: news@queenspost.com

One Comment

Click for Comments 
Karin Worthy

Too little too late. I’m happy for those who will get to see their loved ones once again on a regular basis. As for me I still blame Cuomo for my father’s death. Yes he killed my dad by allowing covid positive residents back into nursing homes. Can’t stand seeing his smug face on TV like he did nothing wrong. I’m sure you won’t print this but glad someone read it.

Reply

Leave a Comment
Reply to this Comment

All comments are subject to moderation before being posted.

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Recent News

Halletts Point esplanade in Astoria opens, reconnecting community to East River waterfront

Aug. 22, 2025 By Bill Parry

When The Durst Organization broke ground on its massive Halletts Point project in Astoria on a cold winter day in January 2016, the speeches were delivered inside a massive brick warehouse that had cut off public access to a stretch of East River waterfront for generations. That warehouse is long gone, demolished and then replaced by two high-rise residential towers, 20 and 30 Halletts Point, which launched leasing earlier this year, and a 58,000-square-foot waterfront esplanade that opened to the public this month.

Queens Together launches ‘Unofficial US Open Dining Guide’ encouraging fans to sample restaurants along the 7 line

Aug. 20, 2025 By Shane O’Brien

The US Open returns to Flushing Meadows Corona Park this Sunday, with more than 1 million attendees anticipated to take mass transit to the iconic annual tennis event. With hundreds of thousands of fans set to take the 7 out to the Billie Jean King National Tennis Center, there is a world of delicious local eateries lying beneath the elevated train tracks should any fan wish to stop en-route to the US Open.