It’s hard to imagine New York City without the packed subway cars, long lines, and overwhelming tourist crowds that felt essential to daily life. Once the fear of the COVID-19 pandemic has waned, the city, like others around the world, will become clouded and fundamentally altered even after economic prosperity has been restored. In what feels like a revolving door discussion, except now perhaps asked with a sense of urgency, what do we want cities to be like in the years to come?
How New York City, the first COVID-19 epicenter in the United States, will rebound to a sense of stability and normalcy, is a question that financial, political, institutional, and cultural leaders are still pondering. It’s a delicate balance of tip-toeing the line for economic stimulation while also controlling the spread of the virus, but as businesses have shuttered, tenants struggle to pay their rent, and tourism is suppressed to a minimum, there is still much uncertainty about what life in New York City will look like in the future.
