Bronx News Roundup, Dec. 22

A four-alarm fire that forced the evacuation of a building on the Grand Concourse yesterday was caused by a burnt batch of Christmas cookies, according to a neighbor.

Bronx teenager Justin Tavarez, 19, who was charged with a hate crime this weekend after a late night scuffle in a diner, told friends he was provoked by the victim, who was taunting him over a girl.  Tavarez allegedly smashed a plate over the head of a 42-year-old man while making racial comments, according to police.

John Martinez, the man accused of robbing a number of women in Co-op City and Manhattan while wielding an ice pick, pleaded not guilty yesterday.

The recently indicted Sen. Pedro Espada, Jr., submitted paperwork earlier this month to cash in on his $9,000 a year state pension.

A new bill introduced in Congress this week would provide federal funding for the removal of PCBs, a dangerous construction material, from the city's public schools. This summer, tests found elevated levels of the chemical in three schools, including PS 178 in Co-op City.

A Bronx woman was sentenced to 25 years to life yesterday in the Bronx Supreme Court for the 2003 murder of a 91-year-old woman.

A city sanitation worker was struck by a car and killed yesterday while crossing the street in Castle Hill. Angel Roldan, 39, worked with the Sanitation Department for 11 years; he leaves behind a wife and two children.

The suspected Bronx church burglar, who was busted by police last weekend, says he targeted the houses of worship because he was angry over pedophile-priest scandals. Nathaniel Linden, 51, is believed to be responsible for a string of church break-ins over the last month.

More Bronxites, and residents across the city, are opting to worship from their homes instead of a traditional church, according to ABC.

A&P, the supermarket chain which owns Pathmark, Food Emporium and Waldbaum's, filed for bankruptcy earlier this month. The future of all these stores is uncertain, though the company says it's refinancing and hopes to turn things around over the next year.

Bronx-born actor Steve Landesberg, known for his role on the long-running sitcom “Barney Miller,” died in Los Angeles Monday from colon cancer. He was 74.

Bronx News Roundup, Dec. 8

The "ice pick" mugger, now identified by police as 39-year-old ex-con John Martinez, is being charged with a number of offenses in connection with a string of robberies in the Bronx, and one in Manhattan.

Former heavyweight boxer Iran Barkley's championship belt was stolen from a Bronx public housing complex in October, according to police. Barkey, who retired from the sport in 1999, has come upon some hard times since.

A man was found stabbed to death inside his apartment in Tracey Towers, on Mosholu Parkway, early this morning.

State Senators Pedro Espada, Jr., and Ruben Diaz, Sr. were among several politicians that missed yesterday's Albany session, as the legislature voted down a rescue plan for the city's OTB. Espada has "effectively retired," the Times Union says, while the Rev. Diaz "hates gambling."

Bronx drivers are fuming over Mayor Bloomberg's plan to hike meter rates in the outer boroughs by a quarter, to $1 an hour.

Parents, teachers and students at the six Bronx catholic schools slated to close this year after funding cuts are fighting the archdiocese's decision.  The schools, along with 26 others across the state, were chosen for their low student enrollment numbers. 

Grammy-nominated Hip-Hop producer Swiss Beatz, from the Bronx, is inspiring NYU students as an advisor at the school's Clive Davis Department of Recorded Music.

Girls volleyball teams from high schools throughout the Bronx had a stellar season this year, according to the NY Post. 

This week, the DOE announced another round of schools it plans to close based on poor performance. With ten on the list, the Bronx has more schools on the chopping block than any other borough.

Students at John F. Kennedy High School, which is of those to be shuttered, told NY1 that while the school has its problems, things were getting better this year. 

City Council members and Public Advocate Bill de Blasio are looking to increase penalties for landlords who receive repeated complaints for not providing heat and hot water.  According to city data, residents in Community Board 7--which includes Norwood and Bedford Park--filed the most heat complaints in the city last year.

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Bronx Weekend News Roundup, Dec. 6

Just saw a snow flurry outside of our window here across from Williamsbridge Oval Park. It appears the Bronx is unlikely to get more than that today.

Tragedy struck this weekend on Saturday afternoon when Londell Byrd, 18, a Mt. St. Michael Academy student who was planning on attending Pace University next year, was shot and killed in Soundview. Police and family say they identified a suspect in the case, 18-year-old Jimmy Delgado, who they say got into a fight with Byrd on Friday. Delgado allegedly came up to Byrd offering peace before opening fire and shooting Byrd in the torso.

In other Bronx-related crime news, police say a man who might be responsible for the so-called "ice-pick muggings" in Co-op City and Manhattan may be in custody in New Jersey.

One of the five suspects charged in the Morris Heights anti-gay hate crime attacks  pleaded not guilty on Friday, saying he was home after work when the attacks took place.

Residents were forced to evacuate a Highbridge-area apartment building after the fire department discovered it only had one working exit.

Bronxite Mariangela Patrone, whose family owns a gift shop on Arthur Avenue, won a Rockefeller Center gift-wrapping contest, earning a $10,000 prize. The Daily News has video of Patrone in creative action:

A Bronx teacher searches for a place to buy.

Photos of world-renowned guitarist Jose Feliciano's performance at the Bronx's Lehman Center on Saturday.

Former Fordham University quarterback John Skelton, a rookie with the Arizona Cardinals, threw his first passes in the National Football League yesterday. Skelton, the first Fordham player drafted into the NFL since 1968, looked decent in his debut and may become floundering Cardinals new starter.

In other Bronx-related sports news, Syracuse will play Kansas St. in the inaugural Pinstripes Bowl at Yankee Stadium on Dec. 30.

A wake service was held for Juan Marte, 46, who died in a fire that engulfed a Mt. Eden apartment building on Nov. 27.

A Bronx woman was sentenced to three years for stealing hundreds of thousands of dollars in gold and other valuables in Virginia. 


Ed. note: Start a discussion about any of these stories, or anything else you want to talk about in our reader's forum. Highlight problems in your neighborhood with our SeeClickFix feature. And find out what's happening in our constantly-updated events calendar.