New York City is expected to begin a "phase one" reopening on June 8, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo announced on Friday.

"We know where the hot spots are in the city, we want to focus on them next week, be ready to open," Cuomo said during a press conference in New Rochelle. "We're on track to open on June 8th, which is one week from Monday."

New York is the worst affected U.S. state by the COVID-19 pandemic, having registered more than 29,000 deaths, according to the Johns Hopkins University.

Other than the U.S., New York's tally is only shadowed by two other countries globally, the U.K. and Italy.

In his briefing on Friday, Governor Cuomo said the phase one reopening in New York City could open the doors for about 400,000 employees to return to work, but he cautioned against laxity in the fight.

"Remember that reopening does not mean we're going back to the way things were. Life is not about going back nobody goes back, we go forward," he said.

(With input from CNBC)