Rensselaer County begins first phase of reopening

TROY, N.Y. (NEWS10) — The first phase of reopening has allowed manufacturers like Alchar Printing to be back at full speed.   

The business had been operating at a limited capacity to serve essential vendors. But now they’re looking at the reopening as a sense of relief. 

“To see your friends, to see your coworkers, even from a far, just to interact with people in some regard was a huge celebration,” said Denise Padula, Owner of Alchar Printing. 

Although restaurants are not included in this phase, some are using this time to prepare.   

“We know that when we open up our top priority is going to be safety for our staff and our customers. The next thing that we want to do is still create that experience. We have a lot of ideas on how we are going to try to balance those two things,” stated Tim Taney, Owner of Slidin Dirty. 

Rensselaer County Executive Steve McLaughlin is also happy to get to this point but questions the process.  

“Churches are in phase 4. That’s not okay with me. The CDC has churches in phase 1. The state put them in phase 4. People have a right to practice their religion and we are going to be making some statements about that as well,” said McLaughlin.