Bronx News Roundup, May 27

The conviction of former Bronx state Senator Efrain Gonzalez--who was sentenced to seven years in prison yesterday for siphoning money from a nonprofit--is just the latest in a string of corrupt politicians across the city, the Daily News says.

It's not just hot dogs or cracker jacks at the ballgame anymore--here's a review of the new Yankee stadium's steakhouse.

Police are asking for help to find 13-year-old Stephanie Vasquez, who has been missing since Tuesday. Anyone with information is asked to call Crime Stoppers at 1 800 577 TIPS (8477).

Two Bronx residents were convicted of murder yesterday in relation to a 2007 shooting at a poker parlor in Manhattan.

More than two dozen alleged gang members were arrested yesterday in the 43rd Precinct, according to the Bronx District Attorney's office. The arrested of the reputed members of the Bloods and the Crips stemmed from a nine-month drug ring investigation.

Albert Einstein College of Medicine was awarded a $10 million grant for diabetes research from the NIH (the Bronx has some of the highest diabetes rates in the city).

A Kingsbridge church sent off supplies to Haiti this week after months of collecting donations.

Construction of the long-awaited South Bronx Greenway--the network of bike paths and walkways intended to connect several waterfront parks--will begin this summer.

New Settlement Apartments Raises $12,500 for Haiti

(Photo courtesy of New Settlement Apartments)

Last Friday, more than 600 children, teens and adults walked along the Grand Concourse to raise money for the recovery effort in Haiti following January's catastrophic earthquake.

Starting at the Grand Concourse at 172nd Street, the walkers marched south until they reached the steps of the Bronx County Counthouse, where they were met by Bronx BP Ruden Diaz, Jr., Deputy BP Aurelia Greene and Assemblymember Vanessa Gibson.

In the weeks leading up to the walk, children in New Settlement's after school programs and teens and young adults in its youth development programs learned about Haiti, created banners and t-shirts, and collected donations. In all, $12,500 was raised. The money is going to Partners in Health, a charity which has been active in Haiti for the past 20 years.

Based in Mount Eden, New Settlement Apartments is a project of the Settlement Housing Fund. The organization is currently building a school, community center and swimming pool on Jerome Avenue.

Bronx News Roundup, March 12

So much for spring's early and loving embrace. Forecast is for rain and wind for the weekend, folks. Since you'll probably be inside anyways, we suggest you fire up some popcorn and watch all those movies you've been meaning to get to. Personally? I'll be re-watching Rumble in the Bronx. You know you loved it.

In Bronx news:

The BBC has a story about Haitians granted temporary protected status in the Bronx. The article profiles one woman, Christanya Semplice, who has been living in the Bronx for 22 years without legal documentation. Temporary protected status allows people with similar circumstances to Semplice to work and study legally in the U.S for 18 months.

A lawyer representing the three Bronx buddies who face up to a year in prison for throwing a snowball at an off-duty cop is filing a false arrest suit against the city.

Bronx Bodegas selling illegal alcoholic concoctions to underage kids are getting hammered by the city and state. Two employees of Rodriguez Deli were arrested for selling vodka and fruit cocktails to an underage, undercover NYPD officer. The deli has since lost it's beer license.

Mexican artist Gabriel Orozco visited students at P.S 47 in the Bronx.

A Bronx woman has pleaded guilty to a hit-and-run that occurred last month in Brooklyn that left a mayoral aide brain dead.

A School Safety officer has been charged with the death of one person after drunkenly ramming her vehicle into a tree last night.

A Bronx woman was struck and killed by the 6 train last night, after she descended onto the tracks to retrieve a dropped bag.

Richard Izquierdo Arroyo, former chairman of the South Bronx Charter School and nephew to councilwoman Carmen Arroyo, is being charged with failing to prevent the harassment of a student by a teacher.

A little cycling guide. Here's hoping the weather clears up soon.

New from the Norwood News

The forces of nature could not derail the latest edition of the Norwood News from hitting the streets and appearing online this week. Here's a little preview of what we have in store.

We have a slightly tweaked version of the story we originally ran in this space on Monday about activist Desiree Pilgrim-Hunter's possible run for the senate seat occupied by Pedro Espada, Jr. (We hear Pilgrim-Hunter is holding a fundraiser tonight. These are the types of events that will determine if she's in it for the long haul.)

A profile on the energetic new commanding officer of the 52nd Precinct. Plus an editorial on his prospects and how the NYPD can help communities police themselves. (Here's a hint: it's by providing them with more detailed information about where crime is happening in the neighborhoods they live in.)

In other crime news, we have a story on the two 52nd Precinct cops who were suspended after a video surfaced of them beating a hand-cuffed suspect. Also, there's a brief about the precinct's first murder of 2010. 

The COVE, a youth center in the Knox-Gates neighborhood, has reopened under new (old) leadership and a new focus.

DeWitt Clinton High School just opened a brand new Business Center.

Speaking of high schools, the Bronx Science boys basketball team compiled more wins this year than the last two combined and almost made the postseason.

A team of doctors from Montefiore Medical Center, just back from Haiti, tell their story about participating in the massive post-earthquake relief effort.

Plus: find free programs and services throughout the Bronx in our expanded Neighborhood Notes section (seriously, this page is packed with invaluable info) . . . find out what's going on arts and entertainment-wise in or Out and About section . . . and our Inquiring Photographer asks readers what they think about the looming city budget cuts.

Bronx Immigration Seminar to Focus on Haiti and 2010 Census

State Senator Ruth Hassell-Thompson, along with the Bronx Americaribbean Chamber of Commerce will be holding an informational seminar this Friday, Feb. 5 at 6 p.m. at the Haitian Congregation of the Good Samaritan Church at 661 E. 219th Street (corner of 219th Street and White Plains Road).

The seminar will discuss how to understand temporary protected status (TPS) and how Haitians can receive TPS.

The seminar will also have a Haiti update and a session on Census 2010. TPS applications can also be filled out at the meeting (passport or resident alien card required).

Questions? For more information call Carolyn D. Jones at 718-547-8854, Krystal Serrano at 914-497-1931, or Rev. Nathaniel Saint Pierre at 718-881-3779

Mt. St. Ursula's "Change Wars" Bring In Big Money for Haiti

The students of Mount St. Ursula should be proud of themselves. In a mission that started as a student fundraiser, each class was challenged to fill up a water jug with pennies, nickels, dimes and quarters to raise money for the school. Competing amongst themselves, the winners would get two class dress-down days (and some good, old-fashioned bragging rights).

During the course of collection, the tragedy in Haiti struck. Everyone at the school was in agreement: all the funds collected would be sent straight to Haiti. MSU would utilize Catholic Relief Services, known for being one of the most efficient charity organizations in the world, ensuring that 94% of donations would go straight to the recipients. Mount St. Ursula's Office of Development/Alumnae Relations and its Student Council continued the effort, and on January 20th, it was announced that $1,350.32 had been raised, $1,000 of which went to Catholic Relief Services. It was, after all, still a competition... and victory went to the sophomore class.

Mrs. Anna Ramos, Director of Development, announced, “I am so proud of our students who so generously contributed to the fundraising event. Their energy, positive spirit and willingness to help the victims of the earthquake in Haiti, are just reminders of how our students are empowered to serve others in the community and the global society.” Students of MSU are currently making plans for more fundraising efforts to support the people of Haiti.

Photo Above: (left to right) Moderator, Mr. Glenn Stordeur, alongside the Student Council Advisory Board – Kailani Capote ’10, Kiara Vega ’10, Crystal McMillian ’10, Adeola Okoduwa ’10 and President, Fr. John Vigilanti.

Back From Haiti, Councilman Says: 'It was horrible. I saw dead people.'

On Monday, 14th District Councilman Fernando Cabrera, his daughter and about a dozen other people from the Bronx chapter of the Latin and African-American Chaplain's Association (LACA) boarded a JetBlue flight to the Dominican Republic, carrying big bags and suitcases full of emergency supplies: antibiotics, bandages, baby food and more.

On Tuesday, at 1 a.m., the crew loaded themselves and the supplies into a 12-passenger van and a jeep and made the seven-and-a-half-hour trip to the Haitian capital of Port-au-Prince. What Cabrera saw was total devastation.

"It was like if you walked down Broadway and every other building or more were completely destroyed," he said, in a phone interview this afternoon, his voice hoarse with sickness and exhaustion.

"It was horrible," he said. "I saw dead people. One house was crushed. There was a girl, you could tell she almost made it out because her hand was sticking out."

Cabrera said more and more locals are flocking to the area's hospitals. The most immediate problem, he said, is a lack of supplies. Amputations and C-sections are being performed without anesthesia. He said the supplies are there, but they're not getting to the hospitals.

This may have something to do with a fuel shortage that forces motorists to wait in lines at the few working gas stations for hours. In order to get back to the D.R., Cabrera said they paid someone $10 for a gallon of gas.

Port-au-Prince is also in desperate need of more skilled physicians. He said his church, New Life Outreach International and LACA are raising money to sponsor the stays of qualified doctors. For just $7,000, Cabrera said, they can pay for 15 doctors to be in the disaster zone for a month.

Through fundraising at the church and elsewhere, Cabrera said LACA is bringing in $3 million in supplies for the relief efforts.

For more information and/or to donate to the cause, you can call New Life at 718-562-2230 or LACA, at 718-842-8555. They will provide you with more information about how to donate.

You can also donate to the Red Cross's efforts at redcross.org, or you can just donate $10 to the Red Cross by texting "Haiti" to 90999.

Bronx News Roundup, Jan. 20

Fundraising for Haiti has been met with huge success in the Bronx. The Daily News reports on this, including last Saturday's effort, hosted by Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr. and the New York Hispanic Clergy organization, which raised over $50,000 in monetary donations, as well as two boxes of supplies.

An off-duty police officer was one of four people who were injured in a three-car crash in Pelham Bay Park last night. One driver, who initially fled the scene, has been taken into custody.

Timothy Honey, a Bronx man (and reportedly, a William S. Burroughs lookalike) is being sought in connection with a string of armed robberies in Greenwich Village.

The Tri-State Transportation Campaign has deemed East Gunhill Road, the Grand Concourse and Broadway highly dangerous to pedestrian traffic. In their report, the organization praised city efforts, but criticized the state Department of Transportation. In addition, figures from 2009 were not reflected in the report, a year that saw its own fair share of pedestrian deaths on these streets.

Tired of staring down a pitch-dark tunnel? Done with straining your ears in hopes of hearing your train screech down the tracks? Some Bronx commuters are in luck: five stations in the Bronx have received countdown clocks, tracking the arrival time of trains by the minute.

Bronx Democratic Chairman Carl Heastie implores the media to look past race. When questioned as to whether he will be supporting Harold Ford Jr.'s primary run, Heastie replied, "I don't feel that I have to support him just because I'm black. There's this expectation that because he's black and I'm black, I have to run to support him, and damn a sitting U.S. senator. I'm trying to get people thinking beyond race."

Possum and skunk infestations are irritating the residents of a Throggs Neck housing project. However, their demands for help are not being met.

Just wondering, have you ever been able to drive from the Bronx to midtown in five minutes? "24" hero Jack Bauer need not apply.

Bronx News Roundup, Jan. 19

A Bronx building that was the site of a key moment in the birth of hip-hop is deteriorating in the hands of real estate investors. As the Bronx News Network noted, community members attempted to prevent the sale of the building to speculators, and its current disrepair could be a sign of things to come in the area.

A new report finds that poorly maintained roads and bridges are costing Bronx commuters thousands of dollars and wasting dozens of hours spent in traffic each year.

A Riverdale native is working on plans to open a brewery where he hopes to sell such brews as Bronx Riverd(ALE), Bronx Bomber Red Ale, and Mother Hefe'n Bronx. The Riverdale Press has more on the story.

A bright spot in the Haiti tragedy-- a Bronx brother and sister fly to Haiti to find their elderly father, and are joyously reunited.

City officials are eying Webster Avenue and Eeast Fordham Road for a possible zoning change, which they hope will revitalize the area.

Ex-state Sen. Efrain Gonzalez, who, as the Norwood News noted, pleaded guilty to fraud charges last May, now has a new lawyer and wants a do-over.

The Bronx Opera presentation of Mahler's “Die Drei Pintos" gets a mixed review from The New York Times.

The renovation of Harris Field is now expected to cost $5 million more than anticipated. The discovery of heavy metals contamination at the park has slowed progress and put the project over budget. (More on this from the Bronx News Network)

A team of robbers posing as utility workers reportedly scammed their way into six Bronx homes yesterday. No arrests have been made.

Daily News columnist Bob Kappstatter thinks Attorney General Andrew Cuomo might not have the goods to nail State Sen. Pedro Espada directly.

Help Local Reporters in Haiti

By now much of the world has learned about the catastrophic earthquake that happened in Haiti this week. I think everyone at the Bronx News Network would agree with me in saying that our hearts go out to everyone in the Bronx who has been affected by this tragedy. As reporters, we are used to covering grim news, but it never makes it easier. We want to share a story about the Editor of the Haitian Times, based in Brooklyn, New York, and how you can support him and his team of reporters who are in Haiti this week.

Gary Pierre-Pierre, Editor of the Haitian Times, took a group of reporters to Haiti after Tuesday's earthquake. As they were unable to fly directly into Haiti, they flew into the Dominican Republic. After renting a van and buying food, water, sleeping bags, and other supplies, they drove to Haiti. Gary reports that everyone, including journalists, is sleeping in the streets. There are no bathrooms. There is no food. There is no water.

Gary reports that there is no phone or internet service. Not even cell phones are working. His group is reporting in Haiti and driving back to the D.R. to file their stories. In 24 hours, Gary has already spent $2,000 on basic supplies of food, water, and gas.

The Haitian Times is letting people post pictures and names of family members they are trying to locate in Haiti, and as you can imagine, their small staff has been overwhelmed with requests.

Ways to Help:

1) The Haitian Times is looking for an IT person that can help them create a site to upload pictures so that the Times staff can deal with other tasks.

2) Donate to the New York Press Association by calling (518) 464-6483. The NYPA is sending Gary money several times a day via Western Unions in the D.R. You can also send a check to NYPA at 1681 Western Avenue, Albany, NY 12203.

Show your support for community media in any way you can. Go to the Haitian Times for more news.

"Let's get our hands to the plow" - Cabrera holds press conference on Haiti Earthquake

Mt. Hope Housing Company CEO Fritz Jean, a first-generation Haitian, talks about the need to help earthquake victims. He's flanked by district leader Hector Ramirez (left) and Councilman Fernando Cabrera (right). (Photo by Amber Rodriguez)

District 14 Council Member Fernando Cabrera held a press conference today to talk about his plan to help victims of  7.0 magnitude earthquake that ravaged the Haitian capital yesterday afternoon.

Cabrera, along with a team of church and district leaders, will be on a flight to the Dominican Republic on Monday, noting that it would be easier and faster to cross the border into Haiti than fly there.

First and foremost, Cabrera's team is taking into account the Consulate General of Haiti's immediate call for medical services. They have noted that survivors of the earthquake are largely affected by a need for medicine, especially those who suffer from high blood pressure or diabetes. Due to vast hospital overcrowding, there has also been a call for tents in order to remain operational even outside normal hospital facilities. This will be the team's immediate concern, channeling their initial efforts into the hospitals and general medical care.

Cabrera's New Life Outreach International church emphasizes humanitarian efforts abroad and has completed projects in the Dominican Republic an Africa.

Also in attendance was Fritz Jean, CEO of the Mount Hope Housing Company, a member of Cabrera's team and a first-generation Haitian. Expounding upon Cabrera's call to immediate action, Jean added, "We have to sustain the movement." Jean is only one of the many leaders in attendance that will be continuing to accept donations - monetary, clothing, medicine, food and water - throughout their campaign.

Also addressing the widespread concern as to where funds will go, Jean promises that "the resources will get to the people," and the funds and donations will be doled out to everyone in need of them, as well as avoiding the fizzle-out affect that plaques many aid missions.

When asked what our readers could do immediately, Cabrera encouraged involvement. The team is currently raising more money to provide medical supplies, but food and water will soon follow. Cabrera wishes to point our readers to the Latin- and African-American Chaplain Association (LACA): Call (718) 842-8555 if you wish to donate or help in any way.

This Saturday: Help Victims of Haiti Earthquake

This Saturday, at the intersection of Aldus Street and Southern Boulavard, Bronx residents (and others) can drop off clothes, non-perishable food, and money, to help the victims of yesterday's earthquake in Haiti.

The aid drive is being organized by Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz, Jr., State Sen. Ruben Diaz, Sr., and the New York Hispanic Clergy Organization. It starts at 12 p.m.

In a statement, Diaz, Jr. said:

Tragedy has struck the Haitian people and as a community The Bronx is ready to give them a hand. I am calling on all Bronxites to show solidarity and support, making donations through our office at Saturday’s event or through any of the many relief organizations available. In difficult times, we all can make a big difference with donations, even small donations, that will help to provide food, water and medicine to the victims of this terrible natural disaster.

For more information, call Diaz, Jr.'s office at (718) 590-6001.