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It’s Monday.

Weather: Mostly sunny, with a high near 40.

Alternate-side parking: In effect until Feb. 11 (Lunar New Year’s Eve).

Bensonhurst and Brighton Beach in Brooklyn. South Ozone Park and Flushing in Queens. Hunts Point in the Bronx. South Beach and the surrounding neighborhoods on Staten Island. And Washington Heights in Manhattan.

Despite a scramble to vaccinate people as quickly as possible, the seven-day average rate of positive test results across more than 50 ZIP codes in these and other New York City neighborhoods remains over 10 percent, according to the most recently available city data.

[Health experts are wondering if officials will mull new steps and restrictions.]

Need for precautions

The rates underscore the need for people to adhere to public health guidelines, experts and officials say.

Mayor Bill de Blasio said on Sunday that the seven-day average positive test rate citywide was 8.82 percent, with more than 4,500 new cases and 273 new hospitalizations.

Officials note that the high rates are occurring despite an indoor dining ban, low transmission in schools and many companies still sticking to remote work.

“The reality is that personal behavior is what matters now,” Gareth Rhodes, an adviser to Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo, said.

If people are not careful, epidemiologists said, a mutation of the virus — such as the more contagious variant from Britain — will have the opportunity to take hold, threatening the effectiveness of vaccination efforts.

Months of vaccinations ahead

The limited supply of doses has slowed the vaccination effort, with Mr. Cuomo projecting last week that the state could temporarily run out. But on Sunday, officials said they had received a new batch of vaccine and sent 678,500 doses around the state.

Nearly 1.3 million doses have been administered statewide, the vast majority being the first dose of a two-dose vaccine.

Mr. Cuomo has said that at the current pace, it would be many months before even those people currently eligible for inoculation get both their doses.

Experts fear people may let down their guard.

“I worry about the focus on vaccines, rather than what’s happening with the virus,” said Dr. Wafaa El-Sadr, an epidemiologist at Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health.

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Want more news? Check out our full coverage.

The Mini Crossword: Here is today’s puzzle.

What we’re reading

New York City is hundreds of thousands of doses away from meeting the goal of administering 1 million vaccine shots by the end of January. [Gothamist]

An unmarked New York City Police Department car was stolen in the Bronx and stripped for parts, the police said. [Daily News]

Surveillance video showed a group of people beating a 26-year-old man in Chinatown just before noon on Friday. [N.Y. Post]

And finally: Rallying around New York City

The Times’s Troy Closson writes:

Life in New York City has been far from normal during the pandemic: No nightlife, no crowded sidewalks, thousands of closed businesses. Some people have declared that the city as we know it is “over.”

But a new initiative is trying to change that perception.

The campaign, NY Forever, is aimed at engaging residents in the city’s recovery and is hoping for at least a half a million people to take a pledge to support New York’s future.

The co-founders of the initiative, Risa Heller and Jonathan Rosen, said they were partnering with local groups, including New York Cares, with the hope of encouraging people to volunteer in their communities and take more responsibility for the city’s revival.

“It’s not enough to just cheerlead for New York,” Mr. Rosen said. “We all need to take a hands-on role in making it the city we want it to be.”

Dozens of celebrities well-known for their ties to the five boroughs are participating on social media, including the comedians Jerry Seinfeld, Amy Schumer and Roy Wood Jr.

It’s Monday — embrace your city.

Metropolitan Diary: Window shopper

Dear Diary:

In the early 1980s, I traveled to New York for business several times a year. I especially loved the store windows at holiday time.

On one visit, I stumbled on a tiny jewelry store with an amazingly intricate window display. It was so lovely I decided to go inside and tell the people working that I thought so.

Entering the store, I saw an older woman fiddling with something behind the counter. I approached her enthusiastically.

“I just had to come in and tell you how beautiful your window display is!” I said.

“We know, dear,” the woman said without looking up. “We’ve been here 35 years.”

— Kim Foley

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