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New York’s governor yesterday lifted the statewide indoor business mask-or-vaccine requirement. Starting today, masks will be optional for businesses and local governments to enforce. Palisades Center in West Nyack has already announced they are dropping the mask policy at the mall, though individual shops in the mall may have different requirements, so you might want to keep a mask handy anyway, wherever you go. In her COVID update yesterday, governor Kathy Hochul said the number of cases has declined since Omicron peaked on January seventh, enough to lift the mask mandate…

No fan of the masks, Orangetown supervisor Teresa Kenny says it’s long overdue, and she hopes the mandates don’t return…

Schools were not included and therefore students and teachers must still wear masks. Hochul said the rules for schools will be re-evaluated early next month. Rockland Assemblyman Mike Lawler says, however, “It makes zero sense” for the mask mandate in schools to remain in effect.

Meanwhile, the number of COVID cases and hospitalizations in Rockland continues to drop, though the death count has risen yet again. We’ve got 1,133 total fatalities due to COVID, that’s up four since last Friday’s report. We’ve got 34 hospitalized with COVID, that’s down four, and the total number of active cases is at 1,470, down about 800.

After weeks of confusion and delay, the legislature last night approved the budget necessary to create an office of Building and Codes to take over that function for the village of Spring Valley. The county is state-authorized to do that come Monday. Justin Schwartz heads up the Rockland Illegal Housing Task Force and co-hosts the “Who Wants to Be a Volunteer” program here on WRCR, and says the budget was approved unanimously and without comment…

The legislature also approved the appointment of former Suffern mayor Ed Markunas to head up the new office. The state-authorized move to take over the village building department comes in the wake of last year’s fatal fire at the Evergreen Adult Home in which Spring Valley firefighter Jared Lloyd and a resident were both killed. Two former Spring Valley building department employees and four others have been charged in connection with the blaze.

The two victims of a fatal wrong-way crash on the Palisades Parkway early Sunday morning in Clarkstown have been identified. State Police say based on their preliminary investigation, 22 year-old Aristan Garandeau of Croton-on-Hudson entered the roadway traveling southbound on the northbound side. He then struck a car head-on between exits nine and ten that was traveling north driven by 27 year-old Brendan Seabrook of Wilkes Barre, Pennsylvania. Garandeau was pronounced dead at the scene. Seabrook was taken by New City EMS to Montefiore Nyack Hospital where he was later pronounced dead. The incident remains under investigation.

Two people were killed, and another injured after a car accident on the Palisades Parkway in Clarkstown. News 12 says State Police believe the crash happened after one car headed south in the northbound lanes early Sunday morning between exits 9 and 10. The person injured is expected to survive. The Parkway was closed for several hours for the accident investigation. No other details were available.

[Update 9:15AM]: roadway has been re-opened

[8AM]: The Palisades Interstate Parkway Northbound between exits 9 and 10 is closed due to an early-morning accident Sunday. No other details were available.