Bronx News Roundup, July 19

We'll start the week off with the tragic story of the two Bronx teenagers -- Crystal Reyes, 15, of University Heights, and David Lee Luccioni III, 17, who was about to start his senior year at Grace Dodge High School -- who drowned yesterday in the Bronx River. (More from the Daily News, NY Post, NY1.)

According to city officials and news reports, Reyes was struggling after jumping into a fenced-off part of the river near the dam around 180th Street. Luccioni jumped in to save her. They both became entangled in tree branches below the surface. Both were taken to near-by St. Barnabas and pronounced dead on arrival at about 4 p.m. Despite the "No Swimming" signs, the spot is popular with young people looking to cool off. There were about 20 kids swimming in the area when Reyes began flailing and yelling for help and Luccioni went after her.

The Times has a more lighthearted summer river story about the local kids who jump off the cliffs in Spuyten Duyvil, much to the chagrin of the local MTA cops.

Speaking of the MTA, the budget-crunching agency is about to introduce a series of new cost-cutting measures, including jacking up prices on unlimited Metrocards and the creation of a "limited unlimited card" that would charge more for heavier users.

Two Riverdale synagogues that became targets in a failed bombing plot last year will receive federal grants to beef up their security.

Hundreds of city buildings, including 1694 Davidson Ave. in Morris Heights, are again deteriorating after being rescued decades ago. (The Davidson building is owned by Bronx Heights Neighborhood Community Corporation, a non-profit.  Back in 2008, tenants and board members began complaining about the way the organization was run and the affect this was having on the buildings.  Here's the story that appeared in the Mount Hope Monitor.)

A Bronx-born filmmaker is working on a documentary about New York accents.

News Roundup, April 21

There's a lot of Bronx news today! The big story on everyone's mind is the scandal surrounding Pedro Espada, whose offices were raided this morning by the FBI, the IRS and the Attorney General's office.

We'll have a separate roundup on the whirlwind of Espada stories in just a few minutes--until then, here's some other, non-Espada related news happening in the borough this morning:

A group of tenants in Kingsbridge are suing over unlivable conditions in their Heath Avenue apartment building, which has over 900 open violations. But instead of suing the real estate company that owns the property (which defaulted on its $35 million mortgage last year), the group is filing against the bank that owns the building's mortgage. This new legal approach would hold the bank responsible for the building's upkeep and repairs.

Speaking of banks--two Bronx men are being charged for holding up and robbing a TD Bank in White Plains last month.

Former Giants running back Tiki Barber is ditching plans to headline a fundraiser run at the Bronx Zoo this weekend due to scandals in his personal life (Barber recently split from his pregnant wife and is supposedly dating a former NBC intern). The race, however, will go on as planned (details here).

The Senate’s Task Force on Government Efficiency, chaired by Bronx pol Jeff Klein, released a report today saying that the state's Department of Transportation wasted $210 million in funds, much of it on outsourced work contracts that could have been cheaper if granted to state employees.

Congressman Jose Serrano is renting office space in the historic BankNote building in Hunts Point (there are also rumors that the nearly century-old building, once a site for the production of foreign currency, could soon be home to the Bronx's first brewery). 

Charges have been dropped against the Bronx man accused of stalking Oprah Winfrey's best friend, Gayle King, at her Connecticut home.

Two Bronx men are being tried in a Brooklyn court this week for allegedly beating a man to death in Bushwick last year because they thought he was gay, according to the NY Post.

A rally is being planned this Thursday at Bartow Community Center in Co-Op City to protest proposed cuts to bus lines by the MTA.

BoogieDowner reports that grocery delivery service FreshDirect is now serving customers in Westchester by driving through the Bronx--though it currently does not deliver to the borough, to the frustration of many Bronxites.

MTA Cuts Revised

Bronx bus riders can, for the time being, breathe a slight sigh of relief. The MTA originally planned on cutting the Bx18, which has the borough's fourth-highest ridership and runs from Tremont to Morris Heights.

Although the MTA has a $758 million deficit, a large public outcry caused them to rethink the proposed cuts.

Today they revealed a new plan that would eliminate $8 million in service cuts.

The Bx18 bus alone costs $1.2 million a year to run.

However the Bx14 bus, which runs from Country Club to Parkchester, will be cut. Instead, the Bx8 bus will go along the same path to the Pelham Bay Park subway station.

Service cuts to the Bx33 buses have also been restored. The Bx33 carries passengers from Port Morris to Harlem.

Riders in the northwest Bronx were also spared, as the Bx34, which connects the central Bronx to Woodlawn, and Bx10, which connect Norwood to Riverdale, were left off the list.

To view the revised MTA plans visit the NY1 Website.

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 8

The two-alarm fire at St. Nicholas of Tolentine Church this past weekend did not stop parishioners from attending Sunday service. The cause of the fire remains under investigation.

Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz, Jr. gave his first State of the Borough address at the Evander Childs High School campus on Gun Hill Road on Friday. We'll have more coverage (including video) on this a little later today.

A 17-year-old Bronx teen was pronounced dead at the scene of a hit-and-run accident last week. A full investigation is under way.

Bowing to pressure from politicians and enraged customers, Cablevision and ABC came to a temporary agreement to restore channel 7 last night 20 minutes into the Academy Awards. Reuters has more information on how they resolved their ongoing fee dispute.

A Bronx man, Marcos Cruz, was fatally stabbed while trying to be peacemaker during a bar fight at Glen Roy's Sports Bar and Tavern on E.149th street. Kevin Velasquez was arrested on Sunday and is being charged with second degree murder. You can read more here.

The Keep America Working tour, the national job tour organized by the Bronx Chamber of Commerce, monster.com and Congressman Joseph Crowley made a stop in the Bronx. The tour offered various job opportunities in the Bronx and attracted nearly 2,000 people. More Bronx jobs available can be found here.

The oldest Latin music store in the South Bronx, Casa de Amadeo on Prospect Avenue, is still the go-to spot for Latin music lovers.

Junior middleweight champion Yuri Foreman will fight former welterweight champion Miguel Cotto on June 5 at Yankee Stadium. This will be the first boxing match at the new stadium and the first since 1976.

Wild chickens in the Bronx have been shipped upstate!

Bronx News Roundup, March 5

The Bronx may get a lovin' spoonful of springtime this weekend. Forecast calls for sunny days with highs in the 50s. Of course, there is always the chance that it will snow again and I'll have wet socks for another week.
Some Bronx news:

The John F. Kennedy girls basketball team will be competing in the city finals this Saturday at 11am at Madison Square Garden. The Lady Knights beat out the #7 seed, Manhattan Central, in a semifinals game earlier this week to reach the finals for the first time since 2007. J.F.K will be playing the #1 seed Murry Bergtraum for the title.

Some Bronx seniors are speaking out against the MTA's decision to cut the Bx14. Many seniors rely on the Bx14 to get around. A large portion of middle school students also rely on the Bx14 to get to and from school at Villa Maria Academy.

Montefiore Medical Center recently developed a hand held device that may help prevent migranes.

More of a city-wide story here. The City Room blog at the Times talks about some new traffic signals that have been installed around the city.

Boxing comes back to the Bronx. Migul Cotto and Yuri Foreman will compete to see who can punch each other in the head the hardest at the new Yankee Stadium in June.

A woman, recently appointed "rabba" (a feminized version of rabbi) of a Bronx synagogue, is creating a stir amongst Jewish Orthodox authorities.

Here's a slideshow giving an update of the old Yankee Stadium demolition process. Is it just me, or does the stadium looks like a perfect location for future Snake Plissken adventures?

Bronx News Roundup, March 4

Good news: The snow from last week is almost all melted.

Bad news: It may snow tomorrow.

Bronx news:

Some coverage of the MTA hearings at the Paradise Theater on the Grand Concourse last night. (We'll have our coverage of this later today.)

A Bronx Community College student has received a $200,000 fellowship to study at Harvard University.

Police say a body pulled from Easchester Bay yesterday afternoon is that of the missing Scarsdale doctor who disappeared on Sunday.

The Riverdale Press talks about how the owners of the new Bronx Brewery are continuing a long borough tradition of brewing beer right here in the Bronx (well, they're stationed out of Yonkers, for now). The Bronx Brewery recently premiered its new brew, Riverd(ale), at the Bronx Ale House.

Here's a little story (from Fox News!?) on some hero cops who escorted a Long Island woman through the blizzard last week to the Montefiore Medical Center where she received a new liver.

Another story from The Riverdale Press talks about how Bronx residents in Kingsbridge and Riverdale are still waiting to feel the positive effects of recent stimulus funds.

Here's an article that has to do with a recent news story in Philadelphia, where a Principal used a laptop webcam to spy on a student and accuse him of using drugs. Skip to the middle of the article to read a particularly weird quote from a Bronx school administrator, who says spying on students through laptops is "always fun." Yeesh.

Borough Prez. Ruben Diaz Jr. recently launched a new website. Check it out here.

Several Bronx men with connections to a marijuana grow house were recently arrested after the property was busted.

Bronx MTA Hearing Met with Protests

Students rallied outside an MTA public hearing to protest the elimination of student MetroCards.

A flood of outraged residents and elected officials lined up to voice their concerns to MTA board members last night at a public hearing at the Paradise Theater on the Grand Concourse. The transit agency has proposed drastic service cuts and fare changes to cover it’s nearly $400 million budget shortfall.

Speakers at the hearing conveyed their anger as well as a sense of déjà vu, having made the same pleas  to stop service cuts last year, when the MTA faced a similar deficit.

Some of the most troubling changes stemmed from the proposed elimination of student MetroCards—which provide three free rides on school days—as well as reduced Access-a-Ride service for the disabled and elderly and the discontinuation of the Bx18 bus, which runs between Undercliff Avenue and the Grand Concourse.

Borough President Rueben Diaz, Jr. was the first to take the podium, telling MTA chairman Jay Walder and other board members that they were underestimating the role mass transit plays in the lives of Bronx residents, the majority of whom don’t have access to a car.

“I’m glad you’re here, Mr. Chairman, but maybe one day you and I could take a walk around the Bronx,” Diaz said. “People need these buses.”

His testimony was followed by similar speeches from Council Members James Vacca and Oliver Koppell, Assembly members Jeffrey Dinowitz and Vanesssa Gibson, and representatives from the offices of several other Bronx officials.

“You’re picking on the elderly, the disabled and the students,” said Dinowitz, adding that the MTA should look inward first as it looks to make cuts. “I’m sure you’ve got a lot of people in the MTA who make more than the governor.”

A seemingly endless line of residents approached the microphone with stories of transit woes: the high school student who gets up at 5 a.m. to take two buses to get to school on time; the disabled woman who relies on Access-a-Ride to get to her doctor appointments in Brooklyn.

Sen. Jeff Klein on Proposed MTA Cuts

This week, the MTA is hosting a series of public hearings on possible service cuts and fare changes to the city's subway and bus lines. In an effort to dent it's nearly $400 million budget shortfall, the agency has proposed cutting student metrocards and making the following changes to Bronx bus lines:

Discontinue Bx14, Bx18, Bx25, X32, BxM4A, BxM7B and the Barretto Park Pool bus service. Discontinue Bx20, Bx33, Bx34, and Bx55 on weekends. Discontinue Bx34 overnight. Reduce operating hours on Bx17, Bx20, Bx32, Bx33 and Bx55. Reroute or discontinue portion of Bx5, Bx8, Bx26, Bx28, Bx30 and Bx41. Extend portion of Bx39.

The Bronx hearing will be held tomorrow night, Wednesday March 3, at the Paradise Theatre at 2043 Grand Concourse at 187th Street at 6 p.m. We'll be covering the meeting, so be sure to check back here for updates.

This morning, State Sen. Jeffrey Klein sent along this letter expressing his concern over the MTA's proposed changes and urging residents to attend tomorrow's meeting:

Dear Editor,

This week, community leaders and residents will attend a very important hearing regarding an ill-advised proposal by the MTA to eliminate the BX14 and BXM7B daily bus services, the BX34 weekend bus service and vital MTA Student Metrocards. I know how vital these services are to thousands of Bronx residents and will do everything I can to prevent these cuts from happening.

Bronx News Roundup, March 2

A man has died after falling down an elevator shaft in an apartment building on the Grand Concourse.  (UPDATE 12 p.m. - the incident happened at 1749 Grand Concourse, also known at the Lewis Morris.  This building, it seems, is rarely out of the news. In 2008, a man was shot dead in the lobby. A year before, one person died and 40 were injured when a fast-moving fire swept along the corridors and up and done the stairs. The building is owned by SG2 Properties, a private equity firm that was taken to court by the Urban Justice Center for failing to make repairs in the apartments. SECOND UPDATE 8 p.m. - SG2 no longer owns the building.  Thanks to Marie Toribio, a tenant, for pointing that out.  The new landlord is Lemle & Wolff, Inc.)

One of Assemblyman Peter Rivera's aides is calling on Gov. David Paterson to resign.  Bronx Democratic Party Chairman Carl Heastie, meanwhile, says the governor should be allowed to serve out his term.

March 7 is Oscar-night, but Cablevision subscribers in the Bronx may have to watch something else, following a contractual dispute between Cablevision and WABC.

A church is the north Bronx is helping undocumented Haitian immigrants apply for Temporary Protected Status (TPS) so they can stay here legally, rather than return to their earthquake-ravaged homeland.

For the past two decades, a Bronx man who works for the city's Department of Planning has been helping the Census Bureau track down elusive populations.

Nearly 270,000 Bronxites don't have a bank account. A new program, NYC SafeStart, is hoping to change this.   

With service cuts imminent, the MTA is hosting a public hearing at the Loew's Paradise Theater tomorrow night.

A talented boxer from the South Bronx will return to the ring next week, after taking time out to have a baby.  Nisa Rodriguez is hoping one day to compete in the Olympics.

The Bronx has a new community newspaper.  The Bronx Free Press is an off-shoot of the Manhattan Times, a Washington Heights weekly published by David Keisman, who used to run the Bronx Times, and Luis Miranda, who along with Roberto Ramirez (the one-time Bronx Democratic Party boss) heads up the MirRam Group, a political consulting firm.

MTA Takes Another Hit at Bx34 Bus Service

While the Bx34 bus managed to dodge the chopping block during a round of service cuts last month, the MTA is now proposing to discontinue its overnight and weekend service. A series of public hearings will be held in March--the link lists a number of other Bronx cuts and reductions--followed by a vote on the service changes. If approved, the changes would most likely go into effect in late spring or early summer, according to an MTA spokesperson.

The Bx34, which runs from Woodlawn to Fordham Rd, was spared from complete elimination at the end of January.

Vacca, New Transportation Chair, Rails Against MTA Cuts

When City Council committee assignment were doled out this week, east Bronx Councilman Jimmy Vacca (right) was named chairman of the Transportation Committee. In a statement released today, Vacca says addressing the MTA's mountain of proposed cuts and changes will be "in his immediate line of fire."

For the past several weeks, perhaps anticipating his ascension to transportation chairman, Vacca has railed against the cuts of subway and bus lines as well as the Gov. Paterson's underwhelming support for student Metrocards.

“There is no doubt that we face storm clouds ahead. The specter of the MTA eliminating numerous bus and subway lines as well as student MetroCards means I won’t have much time in the bullpen. But I relish the challenge and have already begun my fight. Last month, Speaker Quinn and I laid out a specific, fully-funded plan to ward off this year’s cuts, a plan that many MTA board members supported in whole or in part at their last meeting. I am today renewing my call for the MTA to consider every option before resorting to cuts that could not come at a worse time for cash-strapped New Yorkers.”

Last week, there were reports that the BX34, which connects Fordham to Woodlawn, and overnight service for the BX10, which connects the rest of the Bronx to Riverdale, would be saved.

But the MTA would not confirm anything and the final proposal is still being worked out. Whenever that happens, the MTA will hold hearings in all the boroughs.

We'll keep you updated as we learn more.

Governor Paterson Spreads Message Hope and Frugality in the Bronx

Last night, Governor Paterson came alive on the stage of a Lehman College auditorium during a "Community Conversation," promising a better future for the Bronx while rattling off statistics of how he has improved the borough and the state since he has been in office.

“No one would know the despair of unemployment like the people in the Bronx would,” said Paterson, who said that the Bronx unemployment statistics indicate a state of emergency. However, at the same time, the governor openly admitted that New York is going to have a negative cash balance for the first time in the state’s history. “What we will have to do is tighten our belts,” said Paterson.

Before Paterson took the stage with his double-sided message, Councilman Oliver Koppell (who represents the district that includes Lehman College), Bronx BP Ruben Diaz, Jr., Assemblyman Carl E. Heastie and Assemblyman Jeffrey Dinowitz each took a moment to express their support for the governor. Not surprisingly, Diaz came to the stage booming, "Is the Bronx in the house tonight?!" and got the crowd of Bronx residents cheering on their feet.

After Diaz left the stage, the crowd quickly turned more serious. When Paterson arrived, the crowd was clearly happy to see and communicate with such a powerful elected official, but they also wanted answers about how the Bronx is going to survive and earn money in this recession.

The audience was most concerned with the proposed MTA cutbacks. In the most recent proposed cutbacks, the MTA would no longer offer MetroCards to public school students. This has caused a universal outrage throughout the Bronx, where many parents are unable to afford a daily MetroCard for their kids. Single parents, teachers and students all asked the governor about how he plans on dealing with this financial and educational crisis.

“No one should not go to school because they cannot afford to get there,” said Paterson among a wave of applause. “Between now and September I will find a way to make sure the young people will not pay for these MetroCards.”

Bronx residents also hounded Paterson for more money for school programs, small businesses and better insurance policies.

While the governor could not make any definite promises or plans for the future since the state is currently posting a deficit, he did remind the crowd that during his years in office he has fought for and improved minority business ratings and school programs. Still, he will have to cut back a number of programs to get the state out of debt.

"I am not going to let New York State run out of money on my watch," said Paterson.

Bronx News Roundup, Dec. 16

A survey recently released by the Department of Health lists the Bronx, along with the Upper East Side of Manhattan, as having the highest levels of air pollution in New York City.

If the MTA cuts the Bx14 bus line, which it plans to do, residents of the Country Club section of the Bronx will have to walk about a mile to access public transportation.

St. Barnabas Hospital will use federal stimulus money to build a new parking garage. The garage will create new construction jobs, but it will eliminate parking attendant jobs.

Yesterday, Governor Paterson signed a bill at the Morris Park Community Association to protect homeowners from the foreclosure crisis. The community association is in an area that is severely affected by foreclosures.

It's official-- the Landmarks Preservation Commission designated a row of nine houses on Perry Avenue in Bedford Park as New York City's 100th historic district. Click here to view a Norwood News story about the houses.

Residents of the Bronx, especially around Kingsbridge Heights and Mosholu Parkway, have an overwhelming pest infestation.

NY1 recently went on a tour of the now dry "Bronx Swamp" in Mott Haven.

Yesterday, students of Alfred E. Smith High School, a vocational school in Melrose, protested the Department of Education's plan to eliminate their school.

Check back on the blog for a news roundup regarding the Kingsbridge Armory later this morning.

Bronx News Roundup, August 17

Both Bronx residents and baseball fans are fighting to save the old Yankee Stadium's Gate 2. Although New York City has plans to remove the gate which would cost around $10 million to preserve, Yankee and Bronx enthusiasts argue that the gate should be used as an entryway into the new Heritage Park. Visit the Save Gate 2 website for more information on how the gate will preserve Bronx history.

[On the flip side, there was a protest yesterday afternoon calling for the old stadium to be torn down immediately and for the Yankees to fulfill promises they made to the community concerning jobs and environmental protection. More on this, including photos, later today.]

Continuing on with the ever interesting and chaotic chronicles of Senator Pedro Espada Jr.'s summer of controversy, the Senator now says that he is making efforts to stop nepotism in his office. Senator Espada Jr.'s son was recently hired for a $120,000 a year Senate job, but resigned after one week amid a sea of criticism for nepotism.

In BP Ruben Diaz Jr.'s budget for 2010, over 40 Bronx schools, parks and cultural organizations will receive $21 million in funding. The much needed money will go towards improving houses, playgrounds, libraries, sports facilities and a slew of non-profit groups.

After eight years and only slight progress in completing the Ferry Point golf course, the Parks Department is estimating that the project will need another $80 million to be completed. The construction process already has dealt with many controversies including a FBI investigation for supposed dealings with the mafia.

Bronx politicians speak out against the MTA after the Daily News broke the story about the MTA cutting back student discounts on express buses to Manhattan.

Early this morning a Bronx cab driver, Amadou Ndiaye, was shot dead in an attempted robbery in the Baychester. Police are still investigating the crime.

Yesterday afternoon, two men were wounded in a gunfight in Crotona Park.

Bronx News Roundup, August 14

State Senator Pedro Espada, Jr. negotiated a job for his son as part of the deal he struck to return to the Democrats, a possible violation of state law, an anonymous senior Democrat told the NY Post. Espada denies this claim.

On Wednesday, Espada's son, Pedro G. Espada, a 35-year-old former City Councilman, resigned from the plum $120,000 a year job that was specially created for him under a cloud of controversey. Attorney General Andrew Cuomo said he was satisfied with the younger Espada resignation and the elder Espada's assertion that he didn't influence the hiring of his son in any way. Still, it doesn't look good for Espada or Senate Democrats who are still holding onto a slim 32-30 majority.

Newsday's snarky editorial on Espada and other political "spin" efforts of the recent past.

The Albany Times-Union says, based on the latest episode inolving his son's employment/resignation and several other legal investigations currently underway, Espada should step down from his post.

Others are calling on Cuomo to continue investigating Espada's role in the hiring of his son.

Liz Benjamin writes that Bronx State Senator Ruben Diaz, Sr. says there's a big difference between political family dynasties and nepotism.

In other news:

Student riders in the Bronx and other outer boroughs who depend on express buses to get to school will see their discounts disappear this fall as part of the MTA's budget hike. Students will have to pay the full $5.50, up from the $2.50 they paid last year.

Yesterday, authorities found two piles of human waste on the lobby floor of the Bronx County Courthouse.

A Bronx man has been accused of exposing himself to a woman on the subway.

Montefiore Medical Center is having success with its electronic records system as well as dispensing information to its Bronx clients via the internet.

Bronx News Roundup, April 22

Check out our BP election post if you haven't already.

New York's new Catholic Archbishop Timothy Dolan visited the Catholic Charities food pantry in west Bronx last Friday. Bronxites were excited about the visit. One person said, "Touching him is like getting some part of Jesus. It's like a blessing. I think this is the best thing I've ever seen."

A quick report from WNYC on the NYPD's gun buy-back program, which hits the Bronx Saturday.

Keeping you updated on the latest MTA rescue plan: six upstate Democrats are balking at a payroll tax. [More from Bronx State Senator Pedro Espada on this later]

Firefighters helped save a Bronx family when their Fordham-area home ignited into flames early Tuesday morning.

Speaking of fire, a fire standpipe at a Mott Haven school complex recently failed a safety test.

And finally, a new lion cub at the Bronx Zoo is shy.

Bronx News Roundup, April Fool's Day

Not surprisingly, the state government failed to meet it's April 1 budget deadline, passing only one budget bill last night.

However, Bronx State Senator Ruth Hassell-Thompson, provided some drama and heroics when she was rushed to the hospital, diagnosed with walking pneumonia, and then later returned, accompanied by three paramedics to vote on the one budget bill. Her fellow lawmakers gave her a standing ovation.

From now on, we will call Hassell-Thompson the Willis Reed of New York state senators.

And MTA rescue plan, which was reportedly coming together yesterday, was again derailed by a small group of state senators (this time of the upstate variety) who balked at a higher payroll tax.

Two Liberian immigrants who lived in the Bronx and were killed in the former Long Island condo of football player Jonathan Vilma may have been murdered as payback for a counterfeit money scam they concocted.

Yesterday, the Daily News' Bob Kappstatter dished on the vacant county clerkship, Diaz, Jr.'s plans for a swift transition and district leader Kenny Agosto's language skills.

More from the Times on the mishandling of the Yankees community fund money.

Just to flesh this out a little here: Basically, a lawyer hired by the Yankees to oversee the fund filed a lawsuit against Serafin Mariel, who is the chairman of fund, for putting the money into the bank (New York Community Bank) he founded and still works for. The lawyer says this constitutes a conflict of interest. And also, because the money isn't earning any interest, he says it's just irresponsible investment. The lawyer also says the fund hasn't paid him the $35,000 he says the Yankees said he would be paid for overseeing the fund.

Assemblyman Ruben Diaz, Jr. and Councilman Joel Rivera (who helped appoint Mariel) both defended him, but said the matter would be up to the courts to decide. Hope that helps.

Speaking of the Yankees, Metro-North officials say the stop at the new Stadium will open on May 23.

Bronx News Roundup, March 26

Daily News columnist Michael Daly says Pedro Espada and Ruben Diaz Sr. are "traitors" for not supporting the bridge tolls which could have prevented the likely M.T.A. fare hikes and service cuts. Barring a last-minute rescue plan in Albany, the fare increases will be implemented on May 31, while the service reductions will phased in over the next few months. See here for a map showing how transit will be affected in your neighborhood.

A Bronx mom is suing the city over toxic contamination in her children's school.

Victor Toro, a Bronx resident and activist who fled Chile in the 1980s after serving jail time for fighting the dictatorship there, will be allowed to stay in America a little longer after deportation proceedings against him were temporarily suspended. More here.

Out-of-work Bronxites are flocking to the Bronx Library Center on East Kingbridge Road for help with their resumes and to attend free computer classes.

A high-performing charter school in Claremont has been put on probation for not meeting state requirements for teacher certification. There was an editorial about this in yesterday's New York Post.

The principal of elementary school in Riverdale allegedly compiled a "hate-list" of his least favorite teachers.

They Weren't Kidding: MTA Pulls Trigger on 'Doomsday' Fare Hikes and Service Cuts

The MTA's service cuts will include elimination of weekday service
of the Bx34, which connects Fordham to Woodlawn.

The MTA voted earlier today to impose massive service cuts, significant toll increases and huge fare hikes on transit riders throughout the New York metro region.

The fare hikes, which will raise the fee per bus or subway ride from $2 to $2.50 (and the price of a 30-day pass, from $81 to $103) will take effect May 31.

The service cuts, which will eliminate several vital lines connecting Bronx neighborhoods -- including the complete elimination of weekday service for the Bx14, 18, 20, 30, 34 and 4; several other lines will be significantly scaled back -- will be staggered throughout the next few months.

For a complete list of service cuts, click here.

After announcing the proposed cuts in November, the MTA said the only way to stave them off would be if the state stepped in with some revenue generating legislation.

The governor and Assembly leadership proposed a plan, endorsed by consulant Richard Ravitch, that would bridge the MTA's budget gap through an 8 percent fare hike, a series of tolls on bridges across the East and Harlem rivers and a payroll tax. But the Senate refused to support the bridge tolls, instead offering only a 4 percent fare hike and smaller payroll tax as stop-gap measure. The governor and MTA said it simply wouldn't be enough.

Today, Bronx Assemblyman Jose Rivera said there was absolutely no way lawmakers in Albany would impose the tolls the MTA was asking for. "I would lie down in front of traffic on the Fordham Road bridge [he meant the University Heights Bridge] before that happened." He added, "Those aren't even bridges, those are just the extension of roads."

In a press release, State Senator Pedro Espada, Jr. blamed everyone except the state's Democrats. "The MTA took on too much debt, too much risk and is now trying to saddle the victims, in this case the ridership with bailing out years of bad decision making not only by the MTA but a three-term governor [Pataki] and [Republican] members of the Senate no longer in the majority."

He also said all was not lost -- yet. "I believe there is ample time for Albany to step in and prevent these massive fare hikes and service cuts."

The Times' City Room blog has more about the MTA vote, including how a parade of MTA employees and riders spoke before the vote, mostly about how the cuts and fare hikes would disproportionally affect the middle class.