New from the Norwood News

The newest edition of the Norwood News is jam-packed with important stories about the northwest Bronx and it's online and on the streets now. Pick it up for free or browse through our award-winning Web site.

Here's a quick preview of what you'll find:

After a string of damaging blows to her public image -- including an atrocious attendance record at Council meetings and hearings, exorbitant phone bills and the funding of a non-existent tenants association -- The Norwood News spent two months gathering up the details and trying to get Councilwoman Maria Baez to tell her side of the story. Read the entire story here.

A successful program for high school dropouts in the northwest Bronx slated to be closed will stay open for at least another year.

We examine the complex and controversial trend of private equity firms scooping up scores of Bronx apartment buildings.

Plus, Bedford Park nuns assure a successful school's future by leasing their land...the story behind the new Farmers Market in Norwood...Crime down overall in 52nd Precinct, but same-old problems persist...Speaking of crime, vandals completely trashed the Oval Park rec center in Norwood, shutting the place for three days in the middle of summer.

Also, check out our expanded Neighborhood Notes section as well as Out & About, our entertainment and arts guide.

And don't forget to sign up for our e-mail edition and breaking news alerts by filling out a tiny form and creating a Norwood News acount.

Enjoy!

Bronx News Round-up

Here's a bundle of recent Bronx news stories, courtesy of one of our talented young reporters, Stephen Baron.

Bronx HIV Testing Push
The city health department wants every Bronx adult to get a free HIV test over the next three years, officials announced today.

To tie in with National HIV Testing Day, the city’s Department of Health and Mental Hygiene is launching the largest HIV testing initiative in the city’s history. The campaign, called “The Bronx Knows,” also hopes to reach the 250,000 Bronx adults who have never been tested.

Though the Bronx beats the other boroughs in testing rate, Bronxites count for nearly a quarter of the city’s HIV infections and a third of AIDS deaths each year. Among Bronx residents who tested positive in 2006, more than a quarter were already sick with AIDS.

The Norwood News has previously reported on Montefiore’s Adolescent AIDS Program and Bronx AIDS Services.

Bronxites can visit any of one of 40 testing locations in the borough for a free, confidential HIV test. Visit here for a listing of locations.

Pathways Saved
The Bronx alternative high school Individual Pathways at Walton High School will be open for at least one more year, which comes as a relief to neighborhood residents, the Daily News reports.

School Funding Restored
City Council restored $129 million to stave off school budget cuts in the approved budget last night, though the school funding came at the expense of money usually given to “library services, cultural affairs, legal aid, seniors and government services,” the Daily News reports.

Fordham and Botanical Garden
Fordham University announced with the New York Botanical Garden a new graduate degree program to receive a master’s degree or doctorate in environmental science, the Daily News reports.

Lehman College Student Raped
Police are on the hunt for a rapist who attacked a Lehman College student in her Washington Heights apartment, the Daily News reports. Police have not released the name of the 19-year-old student.