$23 Million to Preserve Affordable Housing

Fordham Bedford Housing Corporation (FBHC) will acquire and renovate 283 apartments in six buildings, thanks to a $23 million loan from the city's new Acquisition Fund. It's the first major loan made through the $230 million initiative.

Commissioner Shaun Donovan of the Department of Housing Preservation and Development, announced the loan yesterday in front of 2825 Webb Ave., one of the buildings acquired through the fund. He was joined by representatives of FBHC, Enterprise, and several banks and foundations that invested in the fund.

The Acquisition Fund was created to help non-profit developers compete with commercial developers, who can often move much faster to buy buildings because of the resources they have.

Here's coverage of the Acquisition Fund in Crain's New York Business. Readers can see more coverage in the July 12 issue of the Norwood News.

News Roundup for June 28

We learned from a Journal News blog that former Yankees outfielder Bernie Williams is returning to the Bronx August 18, this time wielding a guitar. Williams and Jose Feliciano will perform at "A Night of Unity and Hope," a benefit event at Utopia's Pardise Theater. Jim Layritz and Darryl Strawberry will also take the stage for a performance of "The Boy of Steel," a children's book by Ray Negron.

The police are questioning a suspect in the string of assaults on Kingsbridge Road. Channel 7 News online says the investigators think there may be as many as 10 attackers involved in the attacks.

The Black Star News recaps Bronx Week and interviews Adolfo Carrion about housing gains and development in the Bronx.

And there's lots of coverage of yesterday's blackout in the Bronx and Upper East Side, which disrupted subway service and traffic during the evening rush.

Not a day too soon

Roberto Clemente State Park's swimming pools - one small, one Olympic size - open for the summer today. Kids shorter than 42 inches go free (according to the park you get measured on arrival). For older kids there's a one dollar charge. For adults it's two dollars. Both pools are open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., seven days a weeks. Van Cortlandt pool, in Van Cortlandt Park, also opens today, as do fifty-something other outdoor pools across the city. Perhaps those fire hydrants can finally get some peace...

Community Board 5 elects new Chair

Community Board 5 board members voted, this evening, to oust current chairperson, Beverly Smith, and replace her with Bola Omotosho, a Nigerian-born doctor currently working out of Jacobi Medical Center. Omotosho officially takes over in September. He won by 16 votes to 4.

Smith, who works for the civilian arm of the NYPD, has been on the Board for 17 years and the chair, an unpaid position, for the last two. Her future plans include running for City Council. She says she has her eye on Council Member Helen Diane Foster's District 16 seat in the South Bronx. (Due to term limits, Foster's time is up at end of 2009.) Smith says she'll quit the Board for good in January to start campaigning.

Omotosho, a quieter less authoritative figure than Smith, describes himself as a good listener. Prior to the vote, he talked briefly about the "desperate need for new leadership," and how he wants to "work with everybody" and bring back "dignity and trust." Later, he said he had great respect for Smith, who he described as an "encyclopedia of this community." (Smith has lived in the neighborhood for four decades.)

The margin of victory suggests Omotosho has the Board behind him. He may have a harder time winning over the core group of local residents who attend the Board's monthly public meetings. Several, clearly disappointed to see Smith go, talked over his acceptance speech. "He doesn't have the experience," lamented Louella Hatch, the 46th Precinct's passionate (and outspoken) community council president. "He'll do whatever they tell him do to." By "they" Hatch said she meant the Board's district manager, Xavier Rodriguez.

Community Board 5 serves Mount Hope, Morris Heights, and parts of University Heights and Fordham. They'll be more about Omotosho, and his plans for the district, in the next print edition of the Mount Hope Monitor coming out July 25.

Community Board 7, in the northwest Bronx, is also going through a transitional period, following district manager Rita Kessler's recent decision to retire. Tomorrow's Norwood News looks back at her 17 years at the helm. We'll link to the story when it's on-line.

Arm Wrestling?

Yes, indeed. The Bronx Arm-Wrestling Championship on Mosholu Parkway at last Sunday's Bronx Week Parade and Festival. That and more improbable, yet delightful scenes from the Parkway in the next print edition of the Norwood News, which hits the streets tomorrow.
(Photo by Jordan Moss)

News Roundup for June 27

The NYPD released details yesterday of a string of attacks on Kingsbridge Road between Morris and Jerome which have left one man dead and five hospitalized. A Daily News article says that the first attack happened June 1, and the others happened June 22 and 23. We'll be following this story closely.

The Rent Guidelines Board voted 5 to 4 to approve rent hikes of 3 percent for one-year lease renewals and 5.75 percent for two-year leases, effective October 1. NY1 reports that, as usual, neither tenants nor landlords are satisfied. In May, Greg Jost wrote here about the affordability gap in the West Bronx.

The Citizens Budget Commission released a report showing a discrepancy in the upkeep of parks in wealthy and low-income neighborhoods. You can read the full report here.

The Daily News reports that the City Council is expected to pass a bill restricting the amount of money donors can give if they do business with the city.

Update: The bill passed 44-4. Oliver Koppell was one of four Council members opposing the bill, which he said was inconsistent, according to the Daily Politics blog.

Chianese and Moreno Get Down on Mosholu

Rita Moreno, 76, but acting and looking more like 46, grooved with Soprano big Dominic Chianese to blaring salsa on a float at the Bronx Week Parade along Mosholu Parkway Sunday. The two are former Bronx Walk of Fame inductees who returned for the 10th anniversary of Bronx Week. More on the parade and the preceding Bronx Ball at the Loew's Paradise in the next edition of the Norwood News, which hits the streets Thursday.
(Photo by Jordan Moss)

News Roundup for June 26

The Daily News reports that the Bronx Overall Economic Development Corp. (BOEDC) has been using a Brooklyn printer for its BXBusiness publication, a tabloid newspaper featuring Bronx business stories produced by the Murdoch-owned Courier-Life Publications. Our question is, are there any printing presses in the Bronx? The Norwood News is printed in Brooklyn and every other Bronx paper we know of is printed outside the borough.

Sewell Chan reports in the NYT City Room blog that Rep. Charles Rangel is supporting Bloomberg's proposal for a waste transfer station on the West side of Manhattan, a contentious issue between Manhattan residents and those fighting to keep extra waste out of the Bronx and Brooklyn.

Starry Night

Robert Klein, Dion DiMucci (of Dion and the Belmonts), and Danny Aiello (far right) were among the stars who turned out for the 10th annual Bronx Ball at Loew's Paradise on Saturday night. Aiello and Klein had been inducted in previous years. Dion was one of the inductees this year.

More news and photos to come on the Ball and the Bronx Week Parade on Mosholu Parkway in the next edition of the Norwood News. And we'll upload a few more photos here as a preview in the next couple of days. (Photo by David Greene)

News Roundup for June 25

Gotham Gazette released an analysis of individually sponsored member items from this year’s city budget. The list shows Helen Foster sponsored only one item (compared with Oliver Koppell's 14 items and Joel Rivera's 33), but it was for $102,187. (Via Politicker)

Bronx pols sounded off on childhood obesity in a NY Post story about Bronx's fitness problem. According to Department of Education statistics obtained by The Post, 25 percent of Bronx elementary school students are considered obese and more than 42 percent are overweight.

Fireworks Event Tonight

Bronx BP Adolfo Carrion and State Senator Jeff Klein invite Bronx families to kick off your Independence Day celebrations early at "New York Salutes America," a Fireworks Festival tonight at Orchard Beach. Here are the details:

Fireworks Festival
Monday, June 25
Orchard Beach
6:30-8:30 PM, fireworks at 9:30

Featuring barbeque, music, magicians, face painters, balloon artists, and a musical performance by Alive-N-Kickin'

Half-Nelson Park Celebration

Although thunderstorms broke over "For the Kids Day" at Half-Nelson Park on Saturday, June 16, they didn’t dampen the children’s spirits. Read more on the Mount Hope Monitor Web site.