City To Give Out Free Face Masks In Central Park This Weekend

CENTRAL PARK, NY — The city will distribute free face coverings at three different spots in Central Park this weekend.

The free face masks will be available at the Tavern on the Green, the West 100th Street ramp and the Lenox Avenue ramp at different two hour periods throughout the weekend.

The distribution is part of an initiative to give away more than 100,000 masks in city parks through Tuesday, with plans to distribute an estimated 7.5 million face coverings in coming weeks to combat the spread of the new coronavirus.

"When you put on a face covering you are reducing the spread of this disease and taking one small step toward normalcy," Mayor Bill de Blasio said Monday.

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The masks will also be given out in Morningside Park at Morningside Avenue and West 114th Street and DeWitt Clinton Park at the Field House off West 52nd Street between 11th and 12th avenues.

Here are the details:

• Tavern on the Green: 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. on Saturday, May 9
• West 100th Street ramp: 2 to 4 p.m. on Sunday, May 10
• Lenox Avenue ramp: 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. on Sunday, May 10
• DeWitt Clinton Park: 2 to 4 p.m. on Friday, May 8
• Morningside Park: 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. Friday, May 8

More information about the mask distributions, including a map, can be found here.

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo issued an executive order in mid-April requiring New Yorkers to cover their faces in public when it isn't possible to adhere to social-distancing rules, which say to keep six feet apart from others.

Those who violate the rules may receive a summons.

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