Bronx News Roundup for August 26

A Bronx man is being held without bail after fingerprints from a minor charge were found to match those sampled from a rape victim in 1993. In 2007, the man's cousin was charged in connection to the crime and now faces up to 25 years in prison.

A worker for Tri-State Electrical Contracting was struck by a lift on the Throngs Neck Bridge. The worker's company was ironically a subcontractor of E.E. Cruz Contracting, the company found responsible for the July 10th fire that shut down Bronx traffic to and from the bridge for more than two weeks.

According to a poll done by the New York Daily News, 76% of baseball game and park-goers rated most of the parks in the Bronx area outside Yankee Stadium with D's or F's on a scale from A-F in terms of maintenance. Residents say they haven't seen where much of the $220 million has gone that was allotted in 2004 by Mayor Bloomberg to revitalize city parks.

Councilman G. Oliver Koppell of the Bronx calls on Sen. Diane Savino to make an apology for remarks that Gov. David Paterson's vision is affecting his ability to govern.

Leaks persist after $32 million was given to do repairs at the Grand Concourse tunnel at 161st Street. The situation has residents wondering where their tax dollars are going and Borough President Ruben Diaz, Jr. calling it "an ice skating opportunity" for cars.

Mosquitoes infected with the West Nile Virus have been found in the east Bronx. Health officials advise residents of the Ferry Point Park area near Whitestone Bridge as they plan to spray for bugs in the area tonight.

A Bronx team proves the game of cricket will continue to have a big following as the Bronx Lions, the cricket team for Lehman High School that was nonetheless eliminated from playing in the tournament, showed up with hundreds of others to watch the NYPD youth cricket match that was reported on by NBC News.

Some residents of the South Bronx have started up a small farm to raise organic produce as well as interacting with the community to raise cultural and historic awareness of the land.

New in the Norwood News

Fresh, insightful and informative stories from the Norwood News are online and on the streets now. Find out what's going on in Norwood, Bedford Park, North Fordham and University Heights with one click.

Here's a preview of some of the stories featured this issue:

Confirming what local parents, students, activists and local officials have been saying for years, a new report outlines the overcrowding problems in local schools. District 10, which includes all the schools in the Norwood News coverage area is the third most crowded district in the entire city.

In that same vein, Bronx schools are lacking facilities for proper physical education, says a new report by the Bronx Borough President's office.

A missing Celia Cruz Bronx H.S. of Music went missing and then was reunited with her family eight days later. What happened to her remains a mystery.

Cricket Mania: The Norwood News explores the inaugural high school cricket season. Plus, Mt. Hope Monitor editor and cricket fanatic James Fergusson explains why cricket is really the world's best sport and dissects all it's nuances.

And much much more at the Norwood News' award-winning Web site.