New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio is threatening to shut down swaths of the city over elevated Covid-19 infections.

The Sunday announcement by the mayor stated that on Wednesday large areas of Brooklyn and Queens would go on lock down closing all non-essential businesses and schools.

These are the same businesses who have struggled under the mayor’s and Governor Andrew Cuomo’s draconian measures for the last 6 months and have somehow survived.

What do many of these neighborhoods have in common? Most have a sizeable Jewish orthodox community, which does not tolerate the taking of liberties by the local and state governments.

Many businesses in the affected areas have just begun to see a light at the end of the gloomy tunnel they have been in for the last 6 months. NYC restaurants were just allowed to have indoor dining at 25% capacity and now they face another lock down.

These neighborhoods will become ghost towns as shuttered store fronts will be the norm on the major avenues in Queens and Brooklyn.

Surely the city and state can find a better alternative than a lock down to curb the slightly elevated infection rates. Additional testing could conclude that the rate may not be as high as it is reported now. Better outreach to the different populations in the areas could also help lower the rate.

No, the city wants further to hurt small businesses, which are the lifeblood of the communities, turning the areas into food deserts with little alternatives as business owners are forced to close up shops because of bankruptcies.

I’ve said it numerous times, New York City will take probably a decade before it resembles anything like it was back in February because of the lack of leadership in the city and state. This latest pronouncement only stalls the efforts of businesses to begin to heal their injured balance sheets and neighborhoods.