Bronx News Roundup, Friday, Aug. 12

Happy Friday folks. Let's get down to Bronx business. To the news!

Weather: Not a cloud in the sky today and tomorrow, with temperatures staying relatively mild in the mid-80s. Look for Sunday showers to break the loveliness.

Story of the Day: Striking Workers Bash Verizon Scab Practices
Yesterday, the Village Voice found a handful of striking Verizon union workers in the South Bronx criticizing their scab worker replacements for shoddy and unsafe work practices. At least a few Bronx politicians, including State Senator Jeff Klein and Assemblyman Jeffrey Dinowitz, have voiced their support for the 45,000 members of the Communications Workers of America who say Verizon is unfairly "dictating" (not negotiating) terms for a new contract. Here's video the Voice shot yesterday:


Quick Hits:

Bronx News Roundup, Aug. 27

The quarter-finals of the Bronx Open, a women's tennis tournament, are being held today. The New York Times says:

Recognizable players from the women’s tour, in competitive, sometimes controversial matches, with fans watching from about a yard away, in an outer borough park — only it’s not the United States Open qualifying but the EmblemHealth Bronx Open, which is taking place this week on the hardcourts in picturesque Crotona Park.

There's no admission charge today or tomorrow.  Watching Sunday's singles final will set you back $10.  The US Open itself starts on Monday.

NY1 wraps up its week-long "Once Upon a Time In The Bronx" series with a look back at the storied history of Van Cortlandt Park.

The daughter of a Bronx woman who died at Jacobi Medical Center is suing the hospital for allegedly harvesting the deceased woman's organs without permission.

In court yesterday, the defense lawyers representing four men accused of trying to blow up two Riverdale synagogues, continued to paint their clients as dupes, cynically lured into a plot they would never have devised on their own.

Police say a 21-year-old man was shot dead in Mott Haven around 4 a.m. this morning.

Carl Paladino, a Republican gubernatorial candidate, received a warm welcome in the Bronx yesterday from State Senator Ruben Diaz, Sr. and other Hispanic ministers. Diaz also wants to meet with Attorney General Andrew Cuomo. So far, Cuomo hasn't shown much interest.

Michele Carlo, a Brooklyn-based writer of Puerto Rican heritage, has written a memoir - "Fish Out Of Agua" - about her childhood years in the Bronx. Here's Carlo's website.

Bronx News Roundup, August 24

A Bronx cab driver was shot dead late last night in Mott Haven. This murder is the second fatal shooting of a cabdriver in the Bronx in the span of about a week. Police arrested a 31 year-old suspect carrying a gun near the murder scene soon after the Sunday shooting.

This week, Crotona Park will host the annual EmblemHealth Bronx Open, where children from around the tri-state area can play tennis for free with some of the top ranked women's players in the sport. The Bronx Open will also feature the fourth annual tennis match between the New York City Fire Department and the New York City Police Department.

A Bronx woman, Gloria Ford, was killed yesterday afternoon in a kitchen fire at her Norwood apartment. Police are still investigating the cause of the fire.

After an eight year-old girl, Destiny Antonio, fell seven stories from her Bronx apartment building last Friday, her mother, Robin Antonio, is being investigated by the Administration for Children's Services. Robin Antonio claims that she complained to housing authorities about the broken window before the incident. Robin Antonio's daughter suffered a broken pelvis and leg from the fall and she is recovering in the hospital.

In Hunt's Point, a dad saved his three year-old son from being attacked by a 120-pound Husky dog.

Bronx News Roundup, Aug. 21

The Bronx Open - an annual tennis tournament in Crotona Park - starts on Monday. More than 30 of the world's top 100 women will take part. This year, there's no men's side of the draw. The event is free, except finals day on Aug. 31 which costs $10. The New York Junior Tennis League will provide free tennis throughout the week. Here's Adi Talwar's photos from last year.

The parents of a young boy killed by a van last summer as rode his bike to school are suing the city for $10 million.

Could the Stella D'Oro cookie factory in Kingsbridge stay open after all? The current owner, who has been threatening to close it after losing a labor dispute, may have found a local buyer.

Today's New York Times carries an article adapted from Constance Rosenblum's new book, Boulevard of Dreams, a history of the Grand Concourse.

As we mentioned in yesterday's roundup, City Council candidate Yudelka Tapia's campaign manger, Onix Sosa, has been hired by Pedro Espada, the ethically challenged state senator and majority leader. When asked about this yesterday morning, Tapia hadn't heard the news. Later, her communications director sent out press release saying she's parted ways with Sosa because she "felt that the job Sosa took was not consistent with the message she is trying to communicate to the voters of the 14th District." Tapia campaign is staffed by volunteers. In fact, Sosa was the only one on the payroll, Tapia said. She's hired a new campaign manager, a former volunteer.