Bronx News Roundup, Friday, June 17

Happy Friday folks and welcome to our Friday edition of the Bronx News Roundup. Let's get to the news!

Weather: Cooler, periodic bouts of rainfall, high in the upper 70s. Should be nice most of the day Saturday, then rain is expected to return Saturday night and into Sunday.

Story of the Day: So, Who Owns The Land Near Lehman HS?
The Bronx is on the front page of today' edition of the NY Times (and it has nothing to do with Pedro Espada or hate crimes!) with a story about the protracted football field at Herbert H. Lehman High School. The field is 80 yards long, too short for regulation football, soccer or lacrosse games. It forces the school to struggle with scheduling all of its home games in these sports on other schools' fields. The DOE's School Construction Authority is in the middle of a $5 million renovation of the field, but is not planning on expanding it so Lehman's celebrated football squad, one of the best in the city, can play home games on campus. The DOE says they couldn't expand the field because the land would need to be acquired from the Army Corps of Engineers and the agency had no interest (or resources, they say) to purchase it. But the Army Corps says it doesn't own the land and has no clue how that idea was implanted as fact in the collective minds of the DOE. So, again, we ask, who owns the land? And why didn't the city take the time to give Lehman an extra 20 yards of field?

Quick Hits (click Read More for the rest of the Roundup):

Art Rich Bronx

On Wednesday June 3rd in conjunction with the Bronx Culture Trolley, the Bronx Council on the Arts is organizing an evening of art to celebrate BRIO's 20th Anniversary. Click here for details.
A month ago on May 2nd, the Bronx Council on the Arts organized the 3rd annual Mott Haven Open Artist Studio Tour. The photographs are a fleeting glimpse into the Bronx art universe, rich in art and personalities. I would like to thank Mr. Ben Stock for being my guide and introducing me to the artists and their work. Please click on the images for captions and larger images.