Construction Almost Finished at Tremont Park

Construction on the playgrounds in Tremont Park should be finished by the end of June. (Photo by J. Evelly)

 Ongoing renovations at the two playgrounds in Tremont Park should be wrapped up in time for summer, according to a Parks Department spokesperson who says construction should be finished by the end of the month.

The two play areas along the park's eastern edge, one at Tremont Avenue and Arthur Avenue and another at Arthur Avenue and East 176th Street, have been fenced off since construction began last spring.

The renovation project is costing $4.5 million total and includes the installation of a lawn to replace the deteriorated bocce court and pathways between the two playgrounds. The city is also constructing  new benches, swings, play equipment, water play areas, fencing, and new wheelchair accessible ramps for the existing restrooms.

Venerable Lechonera Serves Up a Feast

El Nuevo Bohio (The New Hut) is located at 791 E. Tremont Ave. The holiday season is the restaurant's busiest. (Photo by G. Pinto)

[Ed. note: this article appears in the latest issue of the Tremont Tribune, which it out on streets now.]

By FAUSTO GIOVANNY PINTO

At El Nuevo Bohio, pernil is prince. It is also in high demand, the hands-down favorite among all who visit the Puerto Rican restaurant.

“If I don’t have pernil, these people will kill me,” jokes manager Roy Fernandez.

Patrons come from all over for the pernil or roast pork, which is served with your choice of a side, a piece of crispy chicharron (pork skin), and a side of mojito, a crushed garlic sauce. They flock there from the five boroughs, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Connecticut, and upstate New York, as did recent newcomer Dan Shapiro. This was the second time in two months that he’d made the trip down from Rockland County.

“The atmosphere here is very easy and the roast pork tastes better than any other place I’ve been to,” said Shapiro, who likes to add a plate of white rice and red beans as well as chicken soup to his order.

Bronx News Roundup, Jan. 9

The Daily Politics' says it's uncovered another sign that Bronx Borough President Adolfo Carrion is on his way out. Earlier today, Carrion's office sent a notarized letter to the City Clerks Office, which designated Deputy BP Earl Brown as his successor in case of sickness, suspension or absence. If Brown, for whatever reason, can't perform the BP's duties, Carrion's executive assistant Karen McGuiness would take over. The Adolfo watch continues...

If Carrion leaves, Liz Benjamin says Assemblyman Ruben Diaz Jr. and City Council member Joel Rivera would probably be running in a special election, with CM Jimmy Vacca also mulling a bid.

Earlier today, former "A Bronx Tale" star and "Sopranos" part-timer Lillo Brancato, Jr. was sentenced to 10 years for attempted burglary after being acquitted on murder charges last month. Brancato was present when his friend, Steven Armento, shot an off-duty Bronx police officer, Daniel Enchautegui. Armento was sentenced to life in prison this past fall. More from the AP and NY1.

Some harrowing testimony from a Bronx firefighter who escaped a deadly Tremont apartment building blaze in 2005. The fire killed two other firefighters.

The co-founders of the Knowledge Is Power Program (KIPP) , which operates a handful of middle schools in the Bronx and upper Manhattan, give Obama some advice on how to change the education system.

In a citywide story, I thought was interesting, an MTA proposal would ask environmentally-conscious riders to pay extra to contribute to the "greening" of New York's transit system.

Also, the Times writess about Nat Hentoff's 50 years as a writer at the Village Voice. As far as journalists go, he's an icon. Thanks for all your good work at the Voice and we hope to see your byline elsewhere soon.

Talk About a Fixer Upper ...

Front page of the New York Times Home section from Wed. features the incredible story of this mansion in Mount Hope and the brave family that is moving in and rehabbing it. (NYT photo by Christian Hansen)

Bronx News Round-up, Sept. 10

Welcome to Monday, hope everyone enjoyed their weekend. Here' some links to news stories that should get you going and informed this week.

The big story over the weekend was a bloody shootout on Friday night between an undercover transit policewoman and "a parolee with an extensive criminal record" on the 4 train at the 176th Street stop. The story in the Times is kind of convoluted, but basically it appears the "parolee" put a female officer in a headlock when she and two other cops tried to escort him off the train for violating transit rules. The suspect then started shooting at the two other officers, who returned fire, with 13 shots, and killed the gunman.

The female officer was shot three times, but is in stable condition. It's unclear whether the female officer was the victim of friendly fire or was hit by the now-deceased gunman.

More tragic news came last night/early this morning, when a fire took the life of an unidentified 22-year-old woman in Williamsbridge. The woman was sleeping on the second floor of a small two-story house on East 224th Street. Two other residents were injured and taken to the hospital. NY1 reported that more than 100 firefighters showed up to fight the blaze and that three of them were injured.

Bunch of stories out today about how bank branches are popping up all over New York City, except for in the city's poorest neighborhoods. From 2000 to 2006, 168 banks branches opened citywide. Of those, only 24 opened in the Bronx, according to a report released by Queens and Brooklyn Congressman Anthony Weiner and Brooklyn Councilwoman Letitia James.

The report also said the banks were concentrated in wealthy neighborhoods. In Murray Hill there a bank for every 1,500 people, while in Tremont, here in the Bronx, there is one for every 69,000 people.

Weiner and James pointed out that the disparity means people in poorer neighborhoods are forced to cash paychecks at rip-off check cashing shops (which are not surprisingly more prevalent in those poorer areas) and also that people in places like Tremont will “have less take-home pay, are less able to accumulate long-term and emergency savings (making them more vulnerable to high-interest loans), and have a harder time establishing credit or qualifying for a loan.”

Here's links to the stories on the Times blog, The Post, and the Daily News

And also, while we're talking about money, here's a story int the Daily News about Bronx boy turned international fashion icon, Ralph Lauren, who was born Ralph Lifshitz. He celebrated his 40th year in fashion on Saturday night in Central Park.

Congrats Ralph! Don't forgot about us!

Upscale Nightclub Coming to Tremont Avenue

New in the Mount Hope Monitor is a story by Joe Hirsch about Daddy O's, an upscale nightclub that is coming to 369 E.Tremont Ave.