Bronx News Roundup, Wednesday, April 13

Weather: Nasty, cold, windy, drizzly. I think I saw my breath this morning. If we can make it through today, tomorrow is supposed to be beautiful -- warm and sunny.

Story of the Day: Environmental Injustice!
The Bronx has long fought against the idea that it is simply a dumping ground -- for city-funded homeless shelters, massive (and over-budget) water filtration plants in our parks and, of course, actual garbage. Some 60 percent of the city's garbage is dumped in two areas saturated with waste transfer stations: Newton Creek in Brooklyn and Hunts Point here in the Bronx. Manhattan produces 40 percent of the city's garbage, but has no transfer stations. Five years ago, Mayor Bloomberg said he would make the garbage distribution more equitable and open three new transfer stations in Manhattan and one in Brooklyn. That plan has now been shelved (Bloomberg pulled the funding, but a spokesman said he's still "fully committed" to trash equity, whatever that means), leading advocates to cry foul. "This . . . tale of two cities needs to end," Kelly Terry-Sepulveda, executive director of The Point Community Development Corporation in Hunts Point, told the Daily News. "We were moving in the right direction. Let's not backtrack."

Quick Hits: 
We'll start with the bad news. Police say a 17-year-old opened fire on East Burnside Avenue last night, killing 16-year-old Dontae Murray, who was shot in the head, and injuring another man who was struck in the hand.

One of the two female Bronx cops who stand accused of savagely beating a motorist while off duty said their accuser went "ballistic" and ripped open her shirt during their tussle. The NYPD is being sued for $25 million over the incident.

Tenants, advocates and elected officials say the New York Community Bank is irresponsibly dumping several Bronx apartment building mortgages that have reached foreclosure. They would rather see the bank sell to a vetted nonprofit organization.[link fixed]

By April 30, 18 Bronx schools identified by the state as low-performing, including Banana Kelly High School, MS 391 and Fordham Leadership Academy, will learn whether or not they will face closure. 

Police arrested and charged a man with the murder of a Bronx grandmother who was stabbed to death three months ago.

OK, now for some more positive stories. More alewife are being found in the Bronx River, an indicator that the river's water quality continues to improve.

Mott Haven residents are enjoying the city's Garden and Greening program. 

The city's Ghanaian population, much of it concentrated in the Bronx, turns funerals into party destinations and fundraisers.

The Times profiles Paul Sliva, the down-to-earth golf pro who plies his trade at the Bronx's Van Cortlandt Golf Course.  

And finally, as we reported yesterday, Soundview native and college basketball star Kemba Walker is taking his game to the next level, announcing that he would enter the NBA draft this year rather than return to the University of Connecticut for his senior season. Walker's on pace to graduate a year early in May. Here's some shaky video (but no ads) of his press conference yesterday.