Bronx News Roundup Feb. 17

On Friday, the two tenants charged with the "Black Sunday" deaths of two firefighters in January 2005 were acquitted of all charges. The Daily News had an editorial criticizing the decision. A second jury is yet to determine the fate of the building's manager and the corporate owner.

Bob Kappstatter thinks Borough President Adolfo Carrion might get that much anticipated call from the White House this week. Carrion is giving his annual (and perhaps final) State of the Borough address at Lehman College this Friday.

A livery cab driver was shot and seriously injured in Longwood early this morning. On Saturday, another cab driver was shot - this time fatally - outside his Decatur Avenue home in Bedford Park.

In an illuminating interview with The Times, Rev. Wendell Foster, the former District 16 councilman, talks about growing up Alabama, his chance move to New York, the civil rights movement, and his efforts to break into politics and become the first black elected city official in the borough.

Dewitt Clinton girls fought off Bronx Science and Taft Education Campus to win this year's PSAL indoor championships.

The city has seen a recent surge in bedbug complaints. The neighborhoods with the itchiest people include central Brooklyn, midtown Manhattan, and parts of the north and east Bronx.

The Bronx is leaking jobs faster than any other borough. Local politicians are urging unemployed residents to apply for benefits to help ease their financial situations.

The Bronx Beat, a weekly newspaper produced each spring by students at Columbia University's Graduate School of Journalism, is up and running again. Stories include:

Danger Lingers at Two Crosswalks
Sidewalk book sales fill a retail vacuum
Teens take active role in fight against HIV

More here.

Noteworthy Bronx Beat articles

The Bronx Beat's most recent edition has a few noteworthy articles in it:

Water rate hike will drip residents dry has a great graphic showing water rates as a percentage of household income in various cities across the country, as well as the Bronx.

Money dwindles for green roofs highlights some of the work of Fordham Bedford Housing Corporation.