Bronx Homeless Advocates Hope to Reveal Extent of Vacant Property in the City

Last month, the Norwood News featured an article about the unique learning center for homeless advocacy called Picture the Homeless (PTH) over on Morris Avenue. The article explored the story of one PTH member Arvernetta Henry and told of her struggle to hold her job as a teacher in the Bronx while being housed in a homeless shelter in Queens. Eventually, because of her long commute, she could no longer keep her job. Henry, like other homeless New Yorkers, remains frustrated with her situation and points to the city's numerous vacant buildings as a possible solution to the problem of homelessness.

This month, PTH and Hunter College’s Center for Community Planning and Development (HCCCPD) are teaming up for the first-ever count of vacant buildings and lots throughout the five boroughs.The survey aims to reveal the extent of vacant property in the city. 

“There should be no reason why there are so many homeless people in New York City when there are so many homes without people!” PTH member Alease Low says.

In Living Wage Battle, Vacca Remains Unconvinced

Editor's note: A version of this article first appeared in this week's Norwood News, out today.

Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz, Jr. at a rally last week in support of the living wage bill. (Courtesy Borough President's Office)

The City Council held a long-awaited hearing on a controversial living wage bill last Thursday, with both sides of the debate testifying about the potential effects of the legislation in a session that lasted over two hours.

The Fair Wages for New Yorkers Act, sponsored by Bronx Council Members Oliver Koppell and Annabel Palma, would require developers of projects receiving taxpayer subsidies of more than $100,000 to pay workers $10 an hour with benefits, or $11.50 without.

The bill, which sprang from the living wage fight that derailed a plan to develop the Kingsbridge Armory into a shopping mall, has the support of every Bronx Council member, with the exception of James Vacca, who had said he was waiting for a hearing on the issue before taking a side.

“He’s wary of any legislation that might prevent jobs, and I’m not sure he’s convinced,” said Vacca spokesman Bret Nolan Collazzi, in a phone interview after the hearing.

“We’re not planning on signing on at this time,” he said.

The legislation currently has the support of 30 Council Members; 34 are needed to override a mayoral veto.

The assertion that a living wage mandate would kill jobs was put forth in a report released by the city’s Economic Development Corporation last week. The 44-page study concluded that requiring employers to pay a higher wage would ultimately stifle commercial development and job growth.

Bronx Electeds Demand Equitable Trash Burden

Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz, Jr. and Council member Annabel Palma, the head of the Bronx Council delegation, joined up with other Council members and environmental justice advocates at City Hall today to rail against Mayor Bloomberg's plan to shelve the building of four new waste transfer stations -- three Manhattan and one Brooklyn.

As it stands now, some 60 percent of the city's waste is taken to transfer stations in Newton Creek (Brooklyn) and Hunts Point in the South Bronx. The new stations would have eased this saturation, which residents say leads to foul odors and heavy truck pollution.

"If approved, this proposal [to not fund the new transfer stations] almost exclusively concentrates the burden of handling NYC’s solid waste in a handful of low-income communities of color in Brooklyn and the Bronx – yet again," it said in a press release sent out by the New York Environmental Justice Alliance.

The release also warned that the city was considering creating "waste to energy" facilities, which would use incinerators and "whose siting may be restricted to environmentally overburdened communities of color" -- like Hunts Point.

Vacca and Palma Sponsor Blizzard Bill

It's hard to think about snow right now, with the weather outside hitting a sunny 73 and the Mister Softee trucks finally making their rounds through the neighborhood, but try to remember that post-Christmas blizzard that dumped two feet of snow on the city, leaving a string of stranded MTA buses--and perturbed residents--in its unplowed wake.

To avoid another snow fiasco like that one, Bronx City Council Members James Vacca and Annabel Palma sponsored a bill, passed last week, that requires the Department of Sanitation to prepare and publish snow-removal plans each winter for all five boroughs.

"Last December’s blizzard revealed how woefully unprepared the City was to deal with these kinds of major storms," Palma said in a press release.

The required plans must include a list of primary, secondary and tertiary streets (the terms the Sanitation Department used to classify blocks in order of plowing-importance) to be published online, along with criteria for each ranking.

"During the December blizzard, we heard a lot of talk about tertiary streets and how they were the lowest priority for snowplows. Well, tertiary streets are where taxpayers like you and I live, and many of us didn’t see plows until days after the blizzard was over," Vacca said.

"That’s unacceptable. This bill will put the City’s feet to the fire so that they are forced not only to have a plan but also to explain why they chose to have the plan they chose to have."

During this winter's blizzard, some outer borough streets and neighborhoods went unplowed and snowed-in for several days, to the frustration of those who lived there.

The new law also requires the Sanitation Department to provide detailed plans for removing snow from bus stops, an inventory of snow management equipment and personnel by community district, and contact information for personnel that residents and elected officials can call on.

Bronx Pols Denounce Bloomberg's Budget Cuts

A few of our local representatives here in the Bronx are none too pleased with Mayor Bloomberg's updated financial plan, which contains cuts to jobs and services from nearly every city agency.

On Nov. 18, Bloomberg announced the new round of budget gap closing actions, including laying off thousands of city employees, measures he says will reduce the city's deficit from $3.3 billion to $2.4 billion for the fiscal year 2012. The plan's gotten its far share of negative reactions so far.

City Council Member Annabel Palma, whose district includes Parkchester and Soundview, sent out a statement earlier this week calling proposed cuts to the city's Administration for Children’s Services "troubling."

Bronx Faith Leaders Throw Support Behind Living Wage Bill

Ed. note: This story appears in the latest edition of the Norwood News.

Clergy members from the Bronx and across the city led a silent march on City Hall on Nov. 17 to voice their support for the Fair Wages for New Yorkers Act, or “Living Wage Bill.”

The legislation, sponsored by Bronx Council members Oliver Koppell and Annabel Palma, would require most development projects that receive public funding to pay workers employed there a living wage — $10 an hour with benefits or $11.50 an hour without.

The bill was sparked by a contentious debate last December over the redevelopment of the Kingsbridge Armory, when the City Council — backed by a fierce coalition of Bronx advocates and Borough President Ruben Diaz, Jr. — voted down plans for a shopping mall at the hulking Kingsbridge Road landmark.

The Related Companies would not agree to require retailers to pay a living wage there, despite the fact that the group was slated to receive tens of millions of dollars in subsidies, had the project been approved.

The Fair Wages for New Yorkers Act has gained momentum since its introduction in May, and faith leaders from churches and synagogues across the city say they are putting their support behind the bill.

“I am distressed by the number of our parishioners who are behind in their rent, deep in debt and working second jobs to try to catch up,” said Rev. Doug Cunningham of New Day United Methodist Church, a parish based in Bedford Park and Norwood.

Kingsbridge Armory Battle Inspires Citywide Living Wage Bill

Two Bronx politicians are picking up the torch from the living wage campaign that was at the heart of last year's battle over the Kingsbridge Armory.

City Council members Oliver Koppell and Annabel Palma introduced a bill yesterday, dubbed the Fair Wages for New Yorkers Act, that would require all development projects that receive public subsidies from the city to pay workers eventually employed there a living wage--$10 an hour with benefits or $11.50 an hour without.                                                                                      

Living wage--just $2.75 more than the mandated minimum wage of $7.25, and adding up to about $18,000 a year, according to Koppell--was a hot button topic last year during the redevelopment of the Kingsbridge Armory. The City Council voted down plans for a shopping mall at the hulking Bronx building in December because Related Companies, the developer, would not agree to a living wage provision for workers there, despite the fact that the group would be getting millions of dollars in taxpayer funded credits.

"Today, we're showing everyone that this debate is not just about one parochial section of the Bronx. This is a citywide debate," said Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz, Jr., who joined a bevy of Bronx pols and leaders--and those from other boroughs--on the steps of City Hall yesterday to show their support of the bill.

Bronx News Roundup, May 25

A 14-year-old girl has gone missing from her home on East 168 Street, and the police are asking for the public's help in locating her. 

The Daily News' "Best of the Borough Series" looks at Bronx food, Bronx culture, Bronx sports, and the Bronx for kids.

Mayor Bloomberg says the so-called living-wage bill is "poorly thought out and will not work."  The bill (full name: The Fair Wages for New Yorkers Act ) is sponsored by council members Oliver Koppell and Annabel Palma.  It's being introduced today.

Thirty-six individuals have so far graduated from the Osborne Association's Green Career Center in Morrisania.  The center, which opened in March, provides former prisoners with the skills to land a "green" job.

On her blog, a Bronx teacher laments the lack of news coverage Sunday's double-murder in Mount Hope has received. 

This summer, several Bronx pols "will find themselves in real knockdown brawls to hang onto their seats," says the Daily News' Bob Kappstatter.

The Bronx Democratic Party has endorsed Eric Stevenson, a district leader who's running for Michael Benjamin's assembly seat.  Benjamin plans to step down and may challenge Congressman Jose Serrano. 

In an editorial at the weekend, El Diario la Prensa criticized the National Puerto Rican Day Parade Committee for giving State Senator Ruben Diaz, Sr. a lifetime achievement award.  Diaz is undeserving because of his opposition to gay marriage, the paper argues.  You can read Diaz's response to the editorial here. 

iPADs are banned from the Yankee Stadium. 

The Bronx Zoo's lion cubs are nameless no more.  Daily News' readers picked out Nala, Adamma and Shani.

The Bronx Halls of Justice has been open two years, but court officers' radios still don't work inside, increasing the likelihood of prisoner escapes.

The first in a two-part series about life in River Park Towers, a huge housing complex in Morris Heights on the edge of the Harlem River.  While the view is stunning, the buildings and apartments have seen better days. 

Bronx News Roundup, May 24

It's Monday and it's cloudy... not a great combo but here's some Bronx news to help awaken your senses!

Two 19-year-old men were killed early yesterday at East Burnside and Walton, in what police say was a gang-related attack. Irving Cruzwas pronounced dead at the scene and Raffy Taveras, who was shot in the neck, was pronounced dead at Bronx Lebanon hospital. No arrests have been made.

Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz, Jr and local health advocates, are taking a stand against Big Tobacco, announcing the formation of the Bronx Smoke-Free Partnership, a group aimed at stopping tobacco marketing towards children in the borough, as well as creating more smoke-free outdoor spaces.

The New York State Health Department released an online map of areas in the Bronx that are at high risk for cancer.

Hundreds of Bronx residents showed up for the bone marrow donor drive this weekend in effort to find a match for the 6 -month old baby girl who has a rare blood disorder.

City Council members Oliver Koppell and Annabel Palma may cause an uproar in City Hall, when they propose a bill that guarantees a wage of at least $10 for workers of development projects that have received more than $100,000 in public subsidies.

Bruckner's Bronxdale Houses will be renamed in honor of former resident, Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor.

Bronx Council Members & Committee Assignments

[Updated, Jan. 29, 10:10 a.m.]

City Council members were appointed to their respective committees and chairmanships last week and we thought we would give you an idea of what issues the Bronx delegation will be focusing on and in which areas they will hold some sway.

Click "Read more" at the bottom of this post for a listing of all your Bronx Council Members and their assigned committees and chairmanships.

A few quick notables:

Oliver Koppell of District 11 kept his position as chair of the Mental Health Committee, continuing a streak that dates back to 2006. Also, newly-appointed District 14 council member Fernando Cabrera has become chair of the Drug Abuse Sub-committee. (Drug Abuse is a sub-committee of the Mental Health Committee; it's one-person subcommittee formerly chaired by Annabel Palma.).  Meanwhile, Larry Seabrook (District 12) has maintained his place as chair of the Civil Rights Committee.

Each Council Member receives an additional stipend for those expenses related to the committees which they chair, and yet another if they hold office (although, in the Bronx's case, the only applicable member is Joel Rivera of District 15, who is also Majority Leader).

Bronx News Roundup, Friday Dec. 11

City Hall magazine says Bronx Democrats are shying away from challenging controversial Bronx State Senator Pedro Espada, Jr. Two names mentioned as possible challengers -- Lillian Perez (chief of staff for Sen. Eric Schneiderman) and Haile Rivera (a local activist and former Obama organizer) -- have said they're not looking to run against Espada.

The Daily News reports that Council members Oliver Koppell and Annabel Palma are introducing a bill that would tie the creation of living wage jobs ($10 an hour, plus benefits or $11.50 an hour) to city-subsidized development projects.

[Side note on this effort: A little too late for ensuring living wage at the Bronx's Kingsbridge Armory project, where the developer, The Related Companies, is receiving millions in city tax breaks and a discount on the sale price. It's also too late for this to bill to pass before the end of the year. All Council bills die on Dec. 31 and there's no way it's getting done by then. However, it's true that there is momentum for "living wage" legislation and many Council members are pledging to take up the cause in early 2010. Koppell and Palma's bill will get the ball rolling.]

The city is telling all public school principals to prepare for a 1.5% midyear budget cut. Here's how the principal of the Bronx Center for Science and Mathematics, a successful small high school in the south Bronx, is planning to make the cuts.

Since 2007, food stamp usage in the Bronx has gone up 27%.

A look at all the best high school football players in the Bronx this year. And here's the borough's best girl volleyball players.

Bronx schools have improved according to the DOE's overall school grading system.

The brother of the Bronx mother who was shot execution style on Monday morning wants justice.

A new report say there are more than 500 stalled construction projects in New York City. But only 24 of them are in the Bronx.

Two Bronx high schools -- High School for American Studies at Lehman College and Bronx Science (the two are literally blocks away from each other as part of the northwest Bronx's education mile) -- have been named to U.S. World and Report's top 100 American high schools.

Bronx News Roundup, Oct. 15

Police are looking for a 13-year-old Soundview girl who's been missing since Monday morning.

The number of affordable housing units built in the city since 2002 has been dwarfed by the number of units lost to this category, due to gentrification and rent deregulation. In the Bronx, 1 in 3 residents are spending 50 percent or more of their income on rent or mortgage payments.

Could Santeria, a religious practise that involves sacrificing animals, explain - or at least partly explain - why four goats have been found wandering the Bronx in recent months?

Two Italian-speaking men have been tricking their way into people's homes in the northeast Bronx, and then robbing them.

Despite the economic downturn, state senators in the northwest Bronx have been allocated more "pork" (aka: member item money) than last year, to the benefit of local non-profits. The reason? The Democrats now control the Senate, and with that control comes perks for Democratic senators.

On Nov. 3, Councilwoman Annabel Palma will face a surprisingly well-funded candidate from the Green Party. "This is the first taste of a two-party choice Bronxites will have had in some time for a local election," says Bronx County's Green Party chairman.

At a public hearing tonight, Bronx residents will have the opportunity to praise (or slam) Cablevision, whose citywide franchise is up for renewal. The hearing is being chaired by Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz, Jr. According to the Daily News, Diaz is especially interested in Bronxites' opinion of Cablevision's telephone and Internet services, as well as BRONXNET (which is funded by Cablevision).

NY Dems to Senate: Confirm Sotomayor (and quickly)

Don’t even think about blocking her.

That was the message Rev. Al Sharpton, Bronx BP Ruben Diaz, Jr. and others, wanted Republicans to hear loud and clear yesterday morning.

They had gathered for a press conference at Bronxdale Community Center in Soundview to urge the Senate to confirm Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor – who grew up in a nearby housing project – and to do so swiftly, before the August recess.

“We’re here today to say ‘put politics aside, put the politics of destruction aside,’” said City Comptroller and mayoral candidate Bill Thompson. “We’ve already started seeing people like Rush Limbaugh and others start to come out and say no. What we say to them is stop and stop now… let us [confirm] somebody who truly embodies the American dream.”

Sharpton touted Sotomayor’s experience as a judge and said there “should be no questions on either side” about her capabilities. Republicans shouldn’t have any complaints, he said, because Sotomayor was first appointed to the federal bench by one of their own, President George H.W. Bush.

Sharpton said he would lead a delegation to Washington D.C. to ensure her confirmation goes smoothly.

Here’s a news roundup we posted earlier today on all things Sotomayor.



TOP PHOTO: Ruben Diaz Jr. is at the mic. Second from left is Thompson and second from right is Sharpton. On the right is Annabel Palma, a Bronx council member whose district includes Soundview.
BOTTOM PHOTO: Bronxdale Houses, where Sotomayor lived as a child, is made up of 28 seven-story apartment buildings.

Bronx pols endorse Thompson for mayor

At yesterday's Puerto Rican parade on the Grand Concourse, a handful of Bronx politicans endorsed fellow Democrat, City Comptroller Bill Thompson, for mayor, according to a press release from Thompson's office.

Assemblyman Carl Heastie, the Bronx party chairman, said:

The Bronx wants a mayor who understands that there are families, hard working people, businesses, schools and strong, proud communities outside of Manhattan. Bill Thompson will be a mayor for the Bronx because he knows this borough and he understands the challenges that hardworking Bronx residents are facing. Bill will fight for The Bronx and for all New Yorkers.

Added Assemblyman Jeffrey Dinowitz:

Bill is going to represent working New Yorkers, middle class New Yorkers in all 5 boroughs and that’s what we need. He will improve schools and we will see real results in our education and not just the same half baked statistics that we are used too. I am proud to endorse Bill Thompson for Mayor of New York.

Councilmembers Oliver Koppell, Annabel Palma, and Maria Baez also gave Thompson their backing.

UPDATE: Koppell says he yet to make any endorsements. More here.

6 of 7 Bronx Council Members Vote for For Bloomberg As Term Limits Extenstion Passes

The headline pretty much says it all. The City Council, with strong support from the Bronx delegates, essentially voted to keep Mayor Michael Bloomberg in office for another four years. (Of course, there will be the whole formality of an actual election next year, but let's be honest here.)

Annabel Palma was the one voice of opposition from the borough. James Vacca, who earlier joined Palma as a "no" vote, flipped sometime in the last 48 hours. And fence-sitters Helen Foster and Maria del Carmen Arroyo sided with Bloomberg in the end. Larry Seabrook, Maria Baez, Joel Rivera and Oliver Koppell all voted for the opportunity to keep their jobs for another four years as well.

It will be interesting to see the fallout from this. Bloomberg, who will spend whatever it takes to win re-election, will almost undoubtedly remain in power (though his image as a reformer and non-traditional political outsider will take a big hit). But what about the Council members who sided with him.

Joel Rivera is probably challenge-proof. (Not sure about Vacca, Seabrook, Arroyo and Foster)

But Maria Baez, who's been under fire all year for everything from her terrible attendance record to extravagant cell phone bills, will face one if not two or three tough challengers.

And Oliver Koppell, who didnt' do himself any favors by siding with Jose Rivera (and not the Ben Franklin Club) in the Bronx Democratic Party battle, steps back into a race featuring a handful of well-funded challengers. (Although the number of challengers just dropped by one as Jamin Sewell, his counsel for the past four years and a candidate for his boss' formerly term-limited job, just sent out a press release saying he would drop his campaign in deference to Koppell.)

In any case, stay close because this will take a while to sort out.

Latest on Term Limits from the Bromx

Happy Term Limits Vote Day! We'll continue to follow all the action today as it unfolds down at City Hall, but here's a couple of quick updates.

This morning the City Council's Government Operation Committee voted 6-0 to approve Mayor Bloomberg's plan to extend term limits to include a third four-year term. Interestingly, the one Bronx member of the committee, Larry Seabrook, who had indicated earlier that he supported the term limits extension, abstained from voting.

According to the latest tally on NY1, Seabrook is still one of 19 "yes" votes on the proposal. Meanwhile, 22 Council members are against the legislation.

The opponents apparently lost an ally sometime between yesterday and today as east Bronx Council member James Vacca, who came out early against the plan, has flip-flopped and is now sitting on the fence. Annabel Palma is the only Bronx delegate who is now openly opposed to the plan, while term-limited Council members, Joel Rivera, Maria Baez and Oliver Koppell support the extension.

Meanwhile, constituents of Bronx member Maria del Carmen Arroyo, who says she's undecided after initially expressing her support for Bloomberg's plan, want her to make a decision. Helen Foster joins Arroyo and Vacca on the fence.

The full council vote is scheduled for around 2 p.m. today. The legislation needs 26 votes to pass. Stay tuned to see how this plays out and how the Bronx votes.