Roberto Clemente Pools Reopen After 2 Year Hiatus

(File photo by Rebecca Chao)

 Some good news during this sweltering heat wave: the Olympic-sized swimming pool at Roberto Clemente State Park finally reopened last week, after a major renovation job kept it closed for two hot summers in a row.

Local residents--particularly those at who live at nearby River Park Towers--had been angered by the timing of the project, which started in the summer of 2009 and was originally supposed to take just one year.

When the pool still didn't open last summer, the State Parks Department said the delay was because of the how extensive the renovations were. The new facilities include a completely refurbished main pool and dive tank, new spray pad area with over 20 spray features, new wading pool with a fountain and new locker rooms.

There will be a reopening celebration tomorrow morning. For more information, call the park at (718) 299-8750.

Fire Devastates Rebounding Community

A row of businesses on Jerome Avenue were destroyed by a fire last Friday. (Photo by David Greene)
 

By DAVID GREENE

The neighborhood of Burnside, which has enjoyed a sort of renaissance and building boom in recent years, suffered a major setback last week as a row of stores burned down along the bustling shopping corridor of Jerome Avenue.

According to officials from the FDNY, the fire broke out inside a laundromat at 2081 Jerome Avenue at 9:53 a.m., on Friday, April 29

The blaze continued to rage, prompting officials to declare four-alarms and requiring 168 firefighters, who remained on the scene long after the blaze was brought under control at 2:12 p.m.

The fire destroyed six businesses: the Bronx Eagle Cafe restaurant, a barber shop, a children's store, a beauty salon, a locksmith and the laundromat where it began. A nearby nail salon and the MARC Academy Pre-K and After School Program suffered smoke and water damage.