Palisades Center Planning To Reopen Friday

WEST NYACK, NY — Shopping malls will be allowed to reopen beginning Friday, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo said Wednesday.

That's welcome news, said the CEO of Pyramid Management Group, which operates the Palisades Center and other malls across the state.

"The Governor’s announcement was great news for Pyramid’s tenants, their employees, our own employees, and all of the people living in the communities where our properties are located,"Stephen J. Congel said in a news release. "We look forward to re-opening our properties on Friday across New York State."

Palisades Center’s tenants have taken extensive measures to ensure the safety of shoppers and workers, company officials said. That includes:

• Enhanced cleaning and sanitizing
• Proactive touchless disinfecting
• Face masks required to be worn by all guests
• Social distancing prompts & signage
• Directional prompts & signage for foot traffic patterns
• Hand sanitizer stations
• Ongoing curbside pick-up options
• Increased air circulation, air filtration and the amount of fresh air pumped into the center
• A "Safety First" PSA awareness campaign; and
• Covid-19 guidance for visitors and store employees.

In addition, on-site security teams have been directed to enforce all of the state guidelines.

"The property needs to fully open sooner rather than later in order for tenants to have a fair shot at salvaging their businesses and keeping people employed in the local communities that they serve," Palisades officials argued Wednesday morning. "The impact on local sales and property taxes are substantial. In the meantime, New York residents are flowing across state borders to shop at malls in neighboring states, with no adverse health consequences documented."

Julene Finley of Color Me Mine pottery painting studio in the Palisades Center pointed out that businesses like hers were blindsided four weeks ago when state officials removed malls from the reopening process.

"We are ready. We have thoroughly prepared to reopen our businesses under the state’s safety guidelines, and the mall’s management has done its part as well," she said. "We really need to re-start our businesses and provide jobs to our workers immediately. We are being treated unfairly and there is no logical reason to force us to remain closed."

County Executive Ed Day has called for weeks to allow malls to reopen.

"The Palisades Center hosts over 225 businesses which employ nearly 5,000 people. In 2019, this property paid $21.4 million in property taxes and generated over $22 million in local sales tax revenue," he said on Facebook in June.

SEE: NY Malls Can Reopen Soon; Guidance Coming On Schools