Washington Heights Is No Longer A COVID Yellow Zone: Cuomo

WASHINGTON HEIGHTS, NY — Governor Andrew Cuomo announced Friday he was rescinding the Executive Order that still classified five areas in New York as Yellow or Orange Zones — including a section of Washington Heights.

At the end of November 2020, Cuomo said a part of Washington Heights would become a Yellow Zone, meaning added restrictions for businesses in an effort to counteract the rising number of COVID-19 cases in the neighborhood.

The governor's office mapped the Upper Manhattan Yellow Zone from 133rd to 187th Streets between Hudson River and the East River to the north, before narrowing along St. Nicholas Avenue further south.

However, even in the early days of the Yellow Zone classification in Washington Heights, rarely were there any reports of the specialized guidance getting enforced.

The state's guidance for Yellow Zones included capping non-residential gatherings at 25 people indoors and out, capping residential gatherings at 10 people, limiting houses of worship to half capacity, and having restaurants limit tables to no more than four people.

On Jan. 27, Cuomo announced he would eliminate nearly all of New York State's COVID-19 cluster zones and their associated restrictions. Among the five zones not included: the yellow zone that covers much of Washington Heights and parts of Harlem.

Specifically, yellow "precautionary" zones are the third tier of Cuomo's cluster action initiative to tackle local coronavirus spikes, with Orange Zones having even tighter restrictions and Red Zones drawing the most severe measures.

Throughout the pandemic, Harlem, Washington Heights and Inwood have posted some of the highest coronavirus positivity rates of any Manhattan neighborhoods.

The Upper Manhattan Yellow Zone is officially no more, though, as Cuomo announced Friday, "he will rescind the Executive Order establishing the micro-cluster zone strategy in light of New York State's progress against the COVID-19 pandemic."

Read More:

• New Yellow Zone Announced In Washington Heights As COVID Surges
• Upper Manhattan Still 'Yellow Zone' As Cuomo Lifts Most Areas

Patch reporter Nick Garber contributed to this report.