Say It Ain't So!

The Daily News lays off Bob Kappstatter, a 43-year veteran of the paper, whose weekly column on the borough is a must-read.

Living Wage Face-Off in Daily News

Yesterday, the Daily News featured opposing viewpoints on the living wage issue in its op-ed pages. Take a look here and here and tell us, and your fellow BxNN readers, what you think (just click the "comment" button under this post). Obviously, this is on everyone's radar following the battle over the living wage issue at the Kingsbridge Armory, which has led to legislation being deliberated in the City Council that would require retailers to pay workers at least $10 an hour in developments that receive public subsidies.

Bronx News Roundup, June 15

The trial of four men accused of plotting to bomb Riverdale synagogues has being delayed due to prosecutors' failure to turn over necessary documents. Defense lawyers said they would file a motion to dismiss the case.

According to a report by the Citizens' Committee for Children, child welfare issues in the Bronx have become worse since the recession began.

A three-year-old Bronx boy survived after falling out of a third-story window that lacked window guards.

Bronx Democrat Joe Crowley's fund-raising history is under review by ethics investigators in the House.

A Bronx-based recycling company has been indicted over accusations that it filed false documents with New York State, in an effort to hide the illegal disposal of waste.

The Daily News's Bob Kappsttater details the latest goings on in Bronx politics.

A little local sports news, the Riverdale/Kingsbridge Academy Tigers win their first PSAL 'B' baseball title.

The Orioles are coming back to the Bronx, to play against the team that took away their position as world champions.

Tickets are on sale for the Inaugural New Era Pinstripe Bowl at Yankee Stadium in December. If you purchase tickets before Sept. 8, prices start at $30.

Bronx News Roundup, April 13

Mayor Bloomberg's $63 billion budget plan will cut more than half of pest control jobs in the city. Politicians says this could possibly lead to a bigger rat infestation in the Bronx.

A new law says the city can remove graffiti from buildings whether property owners respond to waivers or not.

The landlord of 1585 E. 172 in Soundview could end up in jail if necessary repairs aren't made. Tenants have been fighting in court for over a year.

Last night's Charter Revision Commission meeting at Hostos Community College took a turn when Councilman Koppell exceeded his time limit by four minutes as made a plea for an end to term limits.

Two Democratic state lawmakers sponsored a bill that gives principals in NYC the power to choose what teachers should lose their job due to budget cuts.

Police are searching for missing Bronx sisters. Both were last seen Friday on E. 174th Street.

Bronx resident Alex Johnson is going to college through new program that allows carpenters to receive college credit for apprentice work.

In the Daily News, Patrice O'Shaughnessy writes about Castle Hill resident Andrea Magnotti, a woman with bipolar disorder. Magnotti will be taking part in a public walk to raise awareness and funds for the National Alliance of Mental Illness' New York office.

An elderly Bronx male of 801 Co-Op Boulevard is missing. Police are seeking the public's help in finding him.

Bronx News Roundup, March 22

Here's some Bronx news for you on this rainy Monday:

Making history yet again, President Obama's health care reform bill gets passed with a 219-212 vote. Here's the NY Times breakdown of the bill.

Yesterday, a 23 year-old Bronx man was arrested and charged with murdering his girlfriend's 22 month-old daughter in a Soundview apartment. According to a spokeswoman for the city's medical examiner, the baby suffered blunt impact wounds and cuts of the liver and other organs.

A Bronx father of two, Orlando Salgado, was stabbed to death Friday night near E. 197th Street and Webster Avenue after trying to defend a teenager who was involved in a dispute earlier that day. The teenager was able to get away unharmed.

Montefiore Medical Center has opened the only pancreas transplant program in the Bronx and Westchester. It will treat people with severe, end stage diabetes.

Anti-abortion protesters stake out at Mott- Haven abortion clinic in national 40 Days for Life Campaign.

A Malian Cultural Center opens here in the Norwood section of the Bronx. It is the first of its kind in the United States. It is dedicated to the people from West Africa's Republic of Mali.

On Friday night, police shot a 30 year-old man armed with knives, who was threatening to kill somebody inside an apartment in a Mott Haven building. Officers demanded he dropped the weapons, he ignored the demands while approaching the officers. He was shot twice.

A Bronx man was shot to death after asking a neighbor to quiet down so his children could get some sleep, Sunday night. He was shot in the chest by the neighbor, who fled the scene but returned to turn himself in.

The MTA revises its plans to cut transit services.

Bronx News Roundup, March 18

We'll start with the stories about the death of health advocate Megan Charlop.

Here's the Daily News article on Charlop's death. You can read more here and here. Here's our post on Charlop's death.

A man was shot and killed yesterday while driving on Eastchester and E. Gun Hill roads. The shooter is said to have been following the man who was driving an impala and sped off after the shooting. Investigations are underway.

The mastermind behind last May's plot to blow up two synagogues in Riverdale may have actually been a government agency informant. New court papers reveal interesting information in regards to the case.

Governor Patterson loses fifth top state official from his administration. Press secretary and acting chief spokeswoman Marissa Shorenstein resigned her position in the middle of the domestic violence case scandal.

College students partying might be trouble for the 238th Street neighborhood in Riverdale.

Senator Jeff Klein introduces bill that may require non-profit organizations, including private colleges to pay property taxes. Senate officials estimate that the proposal could be quite expensive costing about $1.2 billion dollars.

Bronx News Roundup, March 17

Happy St. Patrick's Day! Let's be safe, enjoy the weather and read some Bronx news!

A little less than 700 Bronx residents remain without electricity in the aftermath of last week's storm, but Con Edison promises to have all residents electricity restored by tonight.

Thanks to the $10.6 million from the federal stimulus package, the Jericho Project, will be able to continue their development of two residences for homeless Bronx veterans at Kingsbridge Terrace.

Bronx P.S. 59's the Keltic Dreams Irish Dancers are taking a trip to the White House today. They will be performing at a reception for Irish Prime Minister Brian Cowen in celebration of St. Patrick's Day.

Montefiore Medical Center can now help patients who experience severe allergic reactions to medicine with a new specialty service, the Drug Desensitization Program. They are the only hospital in the metro New York region to offer this service.

Senator Eric Schneiderman, of the Bronx/Manhattan, introduced the Strangulation Prevention Act on Tuesday. This bill will upgrade the crime of choking a domestic partner into unconsciousness to a felony. Currently choking is charged as a misdemeanor in most domestic violence cases.

State Senator Ruben Diaz Sr., a staunch opponent of gay marriage, feels a compromise can lead to the legalization of civil unions or domestic partnerships in the next session.

Legendary Cuban trumpeter Alfredo (Chocolate) Armenteros will be reuniting with the influential Bronx ensemble Grupo Folklórico y Experimental Nuevayorquino. They will be performing on Sat. March 20 at Hostos Center for the Arts and Culture.

NY Daily News: "Best of the Bronx is its people."

Find out where the best food and entertainment is available in the Bronx, according to the NY Daily News Best of the Boros.

Cash AND condoms for gold at a Bronx pawn shop on 161st street.

Bronx News Roundup, May 4

The Daily News features a successful company in the Bronx that focuses on cleaning out the homes of hoarders.

An 84-year-old Bronx "Grandma" is one of NYC’s volunteers of the year.

Judge Sonia Sotomayor, a Bronx native, is being considered as a possible replacement for Supreme Court Justice David Souter, who announced on Friday that he will be retiring.

A new tell-all book about Yankees third baseman Alex Rodriguez’s alleged steroid use, A-Rod: The Many Lives of Alex Rodriguez, hits shelves today.

The Gotham Gazette reports that the Bronx Democratic Party has announced the candidates for the two vacant State Assembly seats left by current Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr. and his Deputy Borough President Aurelia Greene. Marcos Crespo, 28, will be their candidate to replace Diaz in the 85th Assembly District and Vanessa Gibson, 30, will be their candidate to replace Greene in the 77th Assembly District.

Audience members at the Tribeca Film Festival liked the movie “City Island,” about a troubled Bronx family, so much that it won The Heineken Audience Award, which comes with a $25,000 cash prize for writer-director Raymond De Felitta.

A Sign of the Slump?

Opinion by Guest Blogger Gregory Lobo Jost
New York City has seemed immune to the housing downturn afflicting most of the country, but there are plenty of signs that it may just be a matter of time. Foreclosure numbers continue to rise (at least in the outer-boroughs), many of the newly constructed infill housing (multiple 2- and 3-family homes on one lot) in the West Bronx sit vacant with For Sale and For Rent signs in the windows simultaneously, and now the latest from the Daily News: New housing construction down by one-third.

According to the article:

a new report from the city's housing and buildings departments shows building permit applications plunged 33% in the Bronx in 2007. Permits were issued for 3,104 new residential units in the Bronx last year, compared with 4,658 in 2006.

The ever-optimistic Borough President's Office counters that

the numbers do not represent a leveling off of local housing development, because there were still a record number of dollars invested last year — more than $925 million, compared with $713 million in 2006 and $237 million in 2002. Carrion's office said that more "substantial structures" were built in 2007 — including multi-family apartment buildings on smaller parcels of land and more elevator buildings, which cost more to build. The investment dollars also went into significant renovations of buildings. "It was a great year for housing in the Bronx — the fourth largest year in decades," said Carrion. "That's something to take notice."

Nonetheless it will be interesting to see how this plays out in the Bronx. No matter what, there will be some winners and losers. If housing prices do decline, current homeowners -- especially those in foreclosure who need to sell -- and banks will lose out. But if prices stay at the levels they are now, our affordability crisis will get worse as operating expenses like fuel and water continue to rise.

Mitchell-Lama Task Force to Meet Tomorrow at Fordham University

The Bronx Borough President's Office, Tenants and Neighbors, and the Mitchell-Lama Residents Coalition will host an educational session for Mitchell-Lama residents tomorrow (Saturday Septmber 29) at Fordham University. The event will be held in the McGinley Center from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.

According to the Bill Egbert's article in the Daily News, "The talks will center on how to organize building residents, how to stop a buyout and how residents can make their voices heard in the legislative process now surrounding the Mitchell-Lama Housing crisis."

A similar event was held back in May.


UPDATE:

Crain's is reporting that the New York State Housing Financing Agency (HFA) will

"offer low-cost financing to owners of Mitchell Lama developments, in an effort to keep them in the affordable-housing program. HFA also said it plans to offer up to $15 million of zero-interest repair loans to Mitchell Lama developments in need of immediate improvement."

This move by Spitzer may keep some buildings in the program and improve conditions in others, both of which are good things.

Vacant New Homes Spreading Throughout City

The Times' David Gonzalez has a feature piece out on the spread of vacant newly constructed homes, especially in Far Rockaway, but also spreading out to neighborhoods in the Bronx.

Since most of these homes were built or planned before the recent subprime/credit catastrophe, the market for them has dried up significantly. Many single family homeowners who decided to cash out in the past few years and leave the neighborhood opened the door to developers to tear down their houses and build (usually ugly) 2 and 3 family homes. If you'd like to see how a block can change, visit Davidson and Grand Avenues in Kingsbridge Heights.

Gonzalez also interviews a Bronx homeowner that was a victim of deed theft, a practice that is now illegal in New York State.

The Daily News also is running a story in the Money section on homeowners in Queens that have been scammed. It's a good read to get the feel for how people are lured into these traps.

Daily News Digs into Filter Plant Bid Fiasco

Bill Egbert of the Daily News does some digging and finds more details on why a deal with a consortium to build the filtration plant in Van Cortlandt Park went sour. Cost was not cited as a factor in a letter from Consortium leader Perini Corp., but rather "attendant circumstances." According the article, filings with the Security and Exchange Commission show that Perini is the subject of an investigation relating to "its contracting with disadvantaged, minority and women-owned businesses ..."

One question: Why does the Daily News consistently relegate hard news like this to its "Metro News" page, which often isn't available to Manhattan readers, and even some of the other boroughs? The filtration plant is hardly just a local issue. Croton water supplies parts of Manhattan and more in times of drought. And all city water rate payers are footing the bill for the mounting fines the federal government is levying on the city for failing to seal the deal on a plant construction contract by the Feb. deadline.

Poor need housing, not handouts

In this week's Bronx Borough section of the Daily News, columnist Patrice O'Shaugnessy contrasts Bloomberg's experiment on paying poor New Yorkers for good behavior with the lack of well-paying jobs and affordable housing in her piece, Poor need housing, not handouts:

"Some critics of the plan said personal behavior isn't to blame for intractable poverty: The economy, driven by low-wage jobs that have shrunk the middle class, is the big factor. They say giving people decent-paying jobs and independence would break the cycle. The dearth of such jobs is keeping people down, generation after generation.

In certain areas of the Bronx, the working poor are paying more than half their meager incomes for rent; they'll never get ahead. And the number of apartments affordable to them is shrinking, say housing advocates."

Her column highlights UNHP's work on affordable housing and the recent forum and study on Shrinking Affordability in NYC.

More Coverage of WBNN

City Limits has an article about the Mount Hope Monitor and the West Bronx News Network.
And the Daily News' Bronx edition gave it some ink today, too.