Live events may not be resuming in either Los Angeles or New York City until 2021, according to the mayors of both cities.
"It's difficult to imagine us getting together in the thousands anytime soon, so I think we should be prepared for that this year," Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti told CNN anchor Wolf Blitzer on The Situation Room Wednesday (April 15).
"I think we all have never wanted science to work so quickly," he continued. "But until there's either a vaccine, some pharmaceutical intervention or herd immunity, the science is the science. And public health officials have made very clear we have miles and miles to walk before we can be back in those environments."
Garcetti's comments followed similar ones made earlier in the day to CNN by New York City Mayor Bill De Blasio, who called large public gatherings "one of the last things that we bring back online."
"I've got to see in my city real steady progress, even to start to think about relaxing some of those social distancing standards even a little bit," said De Blasio. "I want to get people back to work, of course. I want to get kids back to school. But I think it will take months to go through that whole sequence. And the last thing I want to do is gather 10,000, 20,000, 50,000 people in one place, that's like the exact opposite of social distancing."
The statements from both mayors are a grim reminder of just how long it may take before social distancing mandates lifted in significant cities. New York and L.A., both of which are home several major sports arenas and concert venues, are the two largest media markets in the U.S.