Shopping for groceries during a pandemic can be a fraught experience while trying to maintain social distancing, and some grocery stores in Greenpoint are adjusting their procedures to protect customers and workers.
To slow the spread of coronavirus, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends standing at least six feet from one another when in public. Grocery stores can quickly draw crowds during certain hours of the day and to help the flow of customers, crowd-control measures have been put in place at Greenpoint’s Associated (802 Manhattan Ave.) store.
Associated instructs customers where to stand with taped markers on the ground. A bright blue rectangle with the word “LINE” greets customers waiting at the front of the store, and markers show customers where to stand near the registers during checkout.
A sign posted near the entrance states “we will limit the amount of the people in the store,” along with directions to keep a distance of at least six feet between customers.
Whole Foods is also now limiting the number of customers that can shop inside at once to 50 people at all 13 of their NYC locations, and lines have started to stretch down the block at their Manhattan stores.
Protective measures at Greenpoint’s Associated store go above and beyond as the store is also offering a complementary pair of latex gloves to every customer upon entrance.
The elderly are the most at risk demographic from coronavirus and some stores have begun to reserve hours for senior citizens.
Downtown Marketplace (921 Manhattan Ave.) now sets aside the first two hours of business (7:30 a.m. – 9:30 a.m.) for people 60 years and above, barring all other shoppers.
Customers can also do their part in protecting themselves and others by washing their hands before and after trips to the grocery store and by using contactless payment methods if possible.