Many have seen the Netflix ‘Becoming’ documentary on Michelle Obama but did you know that it was directed by a Bronx woman?
Nadia Hallgren, a Puerto Rican and Black filmmaker and cinematographer hailing from Soundview, was approached Higher Ground, a film production company by the Obamas, and was told that they she should be the one to direct it.
Hallgren told Essence, “This wonderful woman that everyone loves, it was a whole life in-the-making and a whole set of experiences that built up to the moment where she stepped on stage as the first lady.”
“It was really important for me that we understood how that life becomes what it is — and it’s through community, it’s through love, it’s through parents who fought so hard to make sure their children were educated.” added Hallgren.
On the warm spring night of June 1, an eruption of looting left the owners of more than 100 Bronx businesses shattered.
Three weeks later, the fallout from that night lingers over the city’s poorest borough like a curse. Livelihoods are in danger, neighborhood services like pharmacies are reeling and initiators of the chaos appear to have mostly escaped unscathed.
The working law enforcement theory is that organized crews of thieves took what they wanted and fled before locals entered already-looted stores and got caught by cops.
And unlike luxury goods outlets such as Coach and Bergdorf Goodman hit by looters that same night in Manhattan, the stores set upon in The Bronx were almost all mom-and-pop operations.
Now those shopkeepers find themselves lost in a bureaucratic maze, struggling to get back on their feet as Phase 2 of the city’s reopening kicks in Monday.
Emergency grants announced by Mayor Bill de Blasio for Bronx small businesses hit by looters that night remain mostly just a promise. As of Friday, only five of the 125 operations identified as victims had been approved to receive funds, said Samatha Keitt, spokesperson for the city Department of Small Business Services.
“We understand the frustration that they’re feeling because their businesses have been hugely impacted. Setting up a program in two weeks is a huge feat,” Keitt said.
She suggested that business owners who are having problems applying should call an emergency hotline SBS set up (888-727-4692). “We’re actively acting to make sure these businesses are taken care of,” Keitt added.
‘They Gambled on The Bronx’
Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr. is furious that local shopkeepers — many of them Black or Hispanic — aren’t getting the help they were promised while corporations and airlines have already received millions in federal pandemic aid funding.
“This is why people protest,” fumed Diaz, who has been trying to help businesses targeted by looters June 1. “When you talk about systemic racism — these are minority owners. These are hardworking people who put everything into this.
“They gambled,” he added. “Of all places, they gambled on The Bronx. They helped us with the narrative of the comeback-kid story, and here we are weeks later and we don’t even see the light at the end of the tunnel.”
Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr.
Diaz sees many victims in the looting.
The night of June 1 and into the pre-dawn hours of the next day, looters descended on several Midtown stores selling luxury items after similar sprees in SoHo that followed largely peaceful protests. At the same time in The Bronx, highly organized groups of thieves targeted dozens of small businesses on Fordham Road, Burnside Avenue and in between.
The looters appeared to target specific items such as sneakers, electronic devices, lottery tickets and store ATM machines. It was hit-and-run, with the perpetrators jumping into waiting cars and escaping long before cops arrived.
“They had cars. They compromised the gate. They go in and loot whatever they’re going to loot. And then they’d scream to the locals, ‘Hey, over here!’” Diaz Jr. said.
“The initial planners are not from the neighborhood,” he added. “Then people from the neighborhood took advantage and entered the stores.”
‘Our Door is Open’
That’s when the cops arrived, nabbing 58 people — mostly teenagers and 20-somethings from the neighborhood. According to complaints filed by Bronx District Attorney Darcel Clark, many of those arrested were caught inside already-looted stores without having taken anything.
A 19-year-old and a 20-year-old were found hiding in the ceiling of First Aid Pharmacy on E. Tremont Ave. A 22-year-old was seen exiting Paradise Pawn & Music on Grand Concourse with a white guitar in hand. A 24-year-old who was caught inside Jimmy Jazz on E. Burnside Avenue told cops, “I just want some sneaks.”
All of these young men now face third-degree burglary charges that could net them a stint in prison if they’re convicted.
One 22-year-old man faces a stiffer punishment, if convicted, because he was also charged with possession of a gun after allegedly taking medication from Planet Pharmacy on the Grand Concourse. His lawyer, Troy Smith, said the weapon belonged to someone who escaped, and that his client was “in the wrong place.”
“Young people sometimes make silly decisions,” Smith said. “They don’t have the wisdom that people of age have. That was certainly the case with my client.”
For the owners of Planet Pharmacy, the devastation hit on multiple levels.
Beatrice and Foster Akuoko, who are from Ghana, opened Planet Pharmacy six years ago. They serve the nearby Ghanian community, and senior citizens from the neighborhood are regular customers.
“Our door is open to everybody,” Beatrice Akuoko said. “We’re doing our best to help the community. We try to appear as one of them.”
“It’s very sad people would do something like this,” she said. “It’s sad because we are always here for them.”
Foster and Beatrice Akuoko outside their Bronx pharmacy
As of last week, Akuoko said, her business was able to handle only about half of its prior customer base because her computer was trashed and she has to track orders by hand.
Some regulars have transferred to other pharmacies, but most of the local seniors are staying with the Grand Concourse store.
“We’re planning to come back as much as possible for our community,” Akuoko said.
She is struggling, though, to gather all the information her insurer requires.
‘They Need Grants’
That is a common theme among many of the owners still trying to figure out how to obtain government aid, hobbled by bureaucratic obstacles and confusing layers of paperwork.
Besides de Blasio’s emergency $10,000 grants, the state Department of Financial Services promised to pressure insurance companies to expedite claims, and the federal Small Business Administration offered low-interest loans of up to $250,000.
Diaz notes that many of the owners didn’t have insurance for theft, and the SBA requires an immaculate credit history — a tough sell for owners who’d already run up credit card debt while struggling to stay afloat during the COVID-19 lockdown.
The borough president had been promoting taxpayer-subsidized low-interest loans to small businesses before the looting and had 60 applications pending. So far, only a handful of businesses hurt by the looters have signed up.
“Obviously, they need grants,” he said.
Diaz cited the case of Bronx Optical Center, which lost more than $170,000 to looters.
‘Don’t Know Where to Begin’
On June 1, Bronx Optical’s owner, Jessica Betancourt, 38, got a call around 11 p.m. from one of her employees who lives in the neighborhood letting her know there was looting going on along Fordham Road, a few blocks north of her store.
From her home in New Jersey, Betancourt began monitoring security cameras running inside the store.
When she observed people trying to smash through the store’s metal gate, Betancourt and her husband drove into the city.
There, they say, they encountered cops from the 46th Precinct. They asked police to stay while they retrieved what they could from the store, but officers said they had to go to respond to looting elsewhere.
Betancourt and her husband, left alone on the street, decided it was too dangerous to stay and returned home. At 3:14 a.m. on June 2, she watched the security camera as five men broke through the metal gate, smashed glass cases and overturned display boxes of eyeglass frames.
The aftermath of looting at the Bronx Optical Center in early June.
The thieves were fast and organized, fleeing before police arrived. Later that morning, Betancourt returned to find her shop trashed. The thieves had used a crowbar to pry open a safe and removed $13,000. Her losses totaled $171,843.
De Blasio arrived later that day at her demolished store with a gaggle of TV cameras in tow.
“He said to me, ‘I’m going to help you,’” Betancourt recalled. “Two days later he announced grants of up to $10,000. I got really mad. It’s an offense to me.”
Betancourt, who just got the application for the grant Thursday, two weeks after de Blasio announced the “emergency” program, said, “This is b.s..”
Bronx Optical Center owner Jessica Betancourt
“I’ve put my life at risk. I’ve done this to serve my community and this is how we get treated. Like I say, The Bronx is a forgotten place. We’re not Macy’s. We’re hardworking individuals.”
“Mentally, I’m not okay,” she added. “I’m sitting here, I don’t know where to begin.”
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On Thursday evening, Bronxites Rafael Peña and Alexandra Haridopoplos were walking into Van Cortlandt Park when they stumbled upon a terrifying scene and symbol of hate.
Three nooses were left hanging from trees inside the park’s entrance near 242nd Street on the West side of the park.
According to Gothamist, a third witness reported the incident to the 50th Precinct but Peña and said they didn’t seem to take the incident seriously nor did they even bother filing a police report. A spokesperson for the NYPD claimed it was a rope to hold a piñata in an area popular with locals for parties.
But coming to that conclusion without an actual investigation is disturbing given the fact that a Black Bronx man was found dead hanging from a tree in Fort Tryon Park in Manhattan.
Image of noose at Van Cortlandt Park provided to Gothamist.
And he isn’t the only one found dead hanging with a noose around his neck as several Black men across the country have also been found dead hanging from trees.
All have been ruled suicides so far but according to people who knew the victims, it doesn’t add up. Demands are growing every day to fully investigate these incidents as hate crimes given the vile history of lynching Blacks in this country.
What’s even more troubling is that earlier this month, in the same park, a backpack belonging to an ex-marine was found containing AR-15 assault rifle along with ammunition. The ex-marine, Nicholas Bingman of nearby Mount Vernon, was found to have troubling messages on his phone including one that said “kill all enemies.”
But he was eventually released on a $300,000 bail.
This isn’t surprising to anyone living in The Bronx especially those of us familiar with that area. Two years ago there were flyers put up at the edge of Van Cortlandt Park calling white supremacists to march through Woodlawn to defend their heritage and show of strength against what the flyer called an, “invasion of Black thugs into the neighborhood.”
So given the racist history of the area, we’re not gonna just sit back and accept the NYPD’S lazy response that this noose was from a party. We demand a full investigation connecting these dots because they are connected.
Please note: A previous version of this article stated that the nooses were found in the East side of the park on the Woodlawn side and has been since corrected to the west side of the park. Our original source article at Gothamist was incorrect.
On June 19, 1960 The Bronx’s premiere amusement park opened its doors in the northeast section of the borough.
Before Co-op City, the world’s largest cooperative development that over 50,000 residents call home was built, there was Freedomland.
Freedomland /Image Courtesy of Thomas X Casey
Built in the marshlands and coastal area along the Hutchinson River, Freedomland was a short lived amusement park with America as its theme.
It billed itself as the world’s largest entertainment center before changing that to world’s largest outdoor family entertainment center but regardless of what it called itself, some say it was doomed from the day it opened its doors on June 19, 1960.
From lawsuits due to accidents and conspiracy theories that it was never meant to last long and just simply serve as a test that the marshlands could sustain large structures that would pave the way for Co-op City’s construction, the park closed its doors in 1964 and demolished.
During its short life, millions of visitors enjoyed this fabled theme park now buried deep in our history and the memories of Bronxites who went there.
It wasn’t until two and a half years after Lincoln emancipated enslaved Blacks in America that the news was heard in Galveston, Texas.
That day, June 19, 1865, has been forever known as ‘Juneteenth’ and more recently as Freedom Day, the day that Blacks were finally free.
But in the 155 years since that day, Blacks in America are still struggling to find true equality. Hundreds of years of systemic and institutional racism has continued to keep that dream away.
In The Bronx, we have seen it played out through the disinvestment of our communities by government agencies, redlining by banks, dumping of polluting industries in low-income and predominantly BIPOC communities and the resulting health crisis.
With the arrival of the COVID-19 pandemic, our borough became the epicenter with the highest rates of infection as well as highest rates of mortality due to the coronavirus. And in within the Black community, the impact has been particularly devastating with a significantly higher mortality rate.
From The Bronx African American History Project
On Juneteenth we remember the thousands of Black women that came to the old Lincoln Hospital to study and become nurses, many who came not just from around the country but from the Caribbean and even Africa.
We remember the resiliency of that community spirit that is The Bronx way that helped rebuild our borough from the ashes.
Take a look at the video below on Fordham’s Bronx African-American History Project which recorded the oral histories of hundreds of Black Bronxites between 2002 and 2018 giving a unique insight into the past. After the video follow the link to the archives so you can read or listen to the histories for yourself.
To listen or read some of the hundreds of oral histories, you can go to the digital archive here. You can learn about Robert Nesbitt who was born in 1924 and was in the Tuskegee Airmen Unit or Ms. Genevieve Smith-Brown who was born in 1937 and was a fierce activist and president of the Mid-Bronx Desperadoes.
You can also learn about our beloved late, Morgan Powell, a friend and fighter for environmental justice and a fierce local historian.
Photo of Morgan Powell via his Facebook Page / Photo By Charles Vasser
The archive is a beautiful window to the many unsung heroes of our beloved Bronx and Black Americans that should be celebrated every day not just in February or on Juneteenth.
They are the the people we should be teaching our children in school in history classrooms.
One of America’s Great Streets, Arthur Avenue and the heart of New York City’s REAL Little Italy, is seeking to close off the legendary road to vehicular traffic so that its many restaurants can safely practice social distancing by way of outdoor dining.
As we quickly approach phase 2 reopening in New York City after being shut down for almost three months due to the COVID-19 pandemic, outdoor dining is one of the ways listed that restaurants can reopen to patrons.
To that end, the Belmont Business Improvement District is working to fast track approval of closing off the street in Little Italy to help the many struggling restaurants which have been forced to quickly adapt to the new coronavirus social distancing reality.
If approved, Arthur Avenue will be closed to vehicular traffic on weekends from 5pm to 11pm creating an outdoor dining experience.
The proposal is to only close the avenue on weekends from 5pm to 11pm which would also allow restaurants to remain open later than usual.
If successful, The Bronx will then have a slice of Italy with an open piazza outdoor dining type of environment even if only for a few days a week.
“Everyone stays open later, it becomes like an event,” he said.
Franz (Frank Franz, Belmont BID treasurer) anticipates these weekend exclusive street closures to happen roughly between 5 to 11 p.m., potentially including Friday nights as well.
Also, aside from the business lunch crowd on weekdays, it’s over the weekend when the iconic Bronx street sees a majority of its ravished diners, according to Franz.
While many of the plan’s other details remain in the oven, Franz noted that tents, coverings, and heating elements for colder months are all being looked into for the restaurant corridor.
This is a no brainer and we sincerely hope that DOT, city agencies, and local elected officials make this happen.
It should also be noted that there would be 15 foot wide space left open for emergency vehicles to get through.
We don’t have enough places to eat outdoors and what better place to do it than in New York City’s REAL Little Italy?
Last night on America’s Got Talent the W.A.F.F.L.E Crew, a Bronx-based dance group, not only got a standing ovation from the crowd but also from the judges including Simon Cowell.
Members of W.A.F.F.L.E Crew, which stands for We Are Family For Life Entertainment, come from different parts of the city and utilized dancing in the streets and subways not just as an outlet but as a way to survive.
Many in the crew described how they used dance to escape high crime and shootings in their neighborhoods that took the lives of their loved ones. Then they realized that through their dancing, they were able to help with the bills at home.
Screenshot from last night’s episode.
After their audition on America’s Got Talent and the standing ovation, Simon Cowell just slapped the golden buzzer which can be only used once per season of the hit show.
By pressing the buzzer, Simon changed the course of these young Black men’s lives by sending them straight to the live final show of competition overriding any other judge’s decisions.
He went on to say that not only was this his favorite audition so far but it’s what he’s been waiting for all season despite not being a fan of dance numbers.
We’ve been hearing a boom here and a boom there since April every now and again but since May, it’s been quite an extraordinary crescendo of fireworks going off across The Bronx and New York City.
Well maybe not extraordinary but definitely annoying.
According to Gothamist, 311 complaints for fireworks has increased by a mind-boggling 4,000% for the past two weeks compared to the same time last year.
According to 311 data analyzed Gothamist, during that same period last year there were only 21 complaints but these past two weeks have seen 849 such complaints across NYC.
In The Bronx, the 10463 zip code covering Kingsbridge, Spuyten Duyvil, and parts of Riverdale had the highest number of complaints in the borough and was one of the top 5 across New York City.
There’s no real answer as to why this is happening but I don’t think it takes a rocket scientist to make the connection between boredom from being under basic lockdown due to the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic.
MELROSE—One of the most anticipated affordable housing developments in The Bronx, La Central, is officially accepting applications for 494 apartments ranging from studios to four bedrooms with rents as low as $395 for studios, $426 for 1 bedrooms, $521 for 2 bedrooms, $594 for 3 bedrooms, and $669 for 4 bedrooms—all within just steps of The Hub and the 3rd Avenue/149th Street Station on the 2 and 5 lines.
Lucky residents will enjoy such amenities like central HVAC systems, roof top terraces, stainless steel appliances, dishwashers, bike storage, community rooms, and even a resident garden program.
556 Bergen Avenue (left) and 600 Bergen Avenue (right) at La Central
The 494 apartments are spread across two buildings along Bergen Avenue at Westchester Avenue, 556 Bergen and 600 Bergen Avenue and represent the second and third buildings to open up at the massive five building development. Two more buildings have yet to break ground including a 25-story building at the northern end of the development.
Rendering of La Central
This latest phase of La Central to open up for the affordable housing lottery will also include a YMCA equipped with swimming pools, steam and sauna, basketball courts, fully equipped gym, and classrooms for a host of fitness classes.
Last year La Central’s first building with 160 apartments opened up at 626 Bergen Avenue with 60% of those units set aside for formerly homeless individuals with special needs.
Income requirements for La Central Buildings A and B
Once completed, La Central will have 992 apartments across 5 buildings making it one of the largest affordable housing developments in the borough.
600 Bergen Avenue
Its location at The Hub, the commercial heart of the South Bronx and the oldest shopping district in the borough is bound to change the character of a struggling commercial corridor dotted with mom and pop shops with national chains sprinkled in between.
With thousands of new residents living in the new complex once its open, the face of The Hub will never be the same again.
556 Bergen Avenue which will also house a massive YMCA.
This current phase is mostly for low to moderate income households, with 75% of the units reserved for those making 30, 40, 50, and 60% of the Area Median Income, 25% of the units (for a total of 121) are reserved for middle income families.
In order to apply, go to Housing Connect here and best of luck. You have until August 14, 2020 to apply so hurry up.
Please note: Welcome2TheBronx is NOT affiliated with this listing or any other real estate developments nor do we receive any commissions from these posts. We are simply bringing the news to you.Please do NOT contact us as we cannot help you with these listings.
Want a beautiful estate overlooking the Hudson River and the Palisades but don’t want to leave New York City?
Well then The Bronx is just that place. Riverdale to be exact.
While many people do not associate such types of homes and neighborhoods with our borough, the fact is that Riverdale, Spuyten Duyvil, and Fieldston tucked away in the northwest corner of our borough is indeed The Bronx.
5501 Palisade Avenue in the Estate Area of Riverdale is currently on the market for $5,900,000 and is currently the most expensive single family home on the market.
That does look like a sweet property. Personally, I wouldn’t subdivide it.
Honestly just looking at the listing you can see why they’re asking a pretty penny for this home with stunning views of the Hudson and Palisades and in the area of social distancing, 1.69 acres of land helps keep the neighbors at bay and give you more than 6 feet distance from any visitor you may entertain on your property.
So what do you get for this price tag besides the views?
This 3,387 square foot Greek-revival home comes with 6 bedrooms, 5.5 bathrooms, 2 fireplaces set on a generous 1.69 acre lot that is described as, “perfectly manicured park-like grounds.”
According to the listing, the lucky owner of this home can either keep the lot as is or tear it down and build one to four new homes on the expansive lot as per new survey and zoning analysis.
This more than likely is the reason as to why the listing has almost doubled in asking price in four years when it was listed for $3.2 million in 2016.
There is another nearby property at 4490 Fieldston Road even more expensive, however, it’s a package deal with two 1 acre lots included plus the main lot with a 2,224 square foot house all for $6,888,888.
Please note: Welcome2TheBronx is NOT affiliated with this listing or any other real estate developments nor do we receive any commissions from these posts. We are simply bringing the news to you.Please do NOT contact us as we cannot help you with these listings.
While many area residents are helping businesses destroyed by looting early last week, one particular pair stands out.
Ricardo Torres and his partner Ryan Ehrlich of the Queens-based contracting company, Paintworks & Decorating recently helped several local businesses in the affected areas rebuild their damaged stores free of charge.
After watching the videos of the looting along Fordham Road and Burnside Avenues, the two felt a need to reach out and use their skills to help out some of these businesses and spread positivity. “I just want to bring positivity back. Everybody is locked down because of quarantine, depressed, stressed out and I just want to give positive energy and help out, and that’s all I’m interested in doing,” Torres told News12 The Bronx.
Before and after at WK Multiservices/Images via Paintworks & Decorating
According to Alison Jaquez, co-owner of H&H Mobile, getting the store back up and running would have taken several months. But now, thanks to these good samaritans this small business in The Bronx has a headstart on the road back to recovery.
To date, they’ve also helped Asencio Pharmacy on E 174th and Morris and WK Multiservices on the Grand Concourse and 182nd Street which cost Torres and Ehrlich $288 in materials.
At work at H&H
Back at H&H they spent $310 on removal of debris, patching up holes, and repainting the store.
Because of overwhelming positive feedback from people wanting to help, Paintworks & Decorating has launched a GoFundMe to cover the costs of materials only as they are donating their labor as well. If you’re interested in helping out, you can donate here.
Watch the full videos from CBS2 and News 12 The Bronx below:
In just over a month since launching service in The Bronx, the popular electric moped ride sharing service Revel has expanded its service area in The borough.
When they launched in late April they pretty much covered everything south of E Tremont and west of the Bronx River and now that service area has been pushed further north to Fordham Road and covers such neighborhoods as Belmont, Little Italy, West Farms, Crotona, Mount Hope, Morris Heights, Fordham Heights, Claremont Village, and Charlotte Gardens.
This expansion is also exciting as Revel launches their new mopeds which are painted a brighter blue to better stand out and has deployed 200 of these new vehicles in The Bronx before any other of their markets in the country.
In a press release issued by Revel, New York City Council Member of The Bronx Rafael Salamanca Jr said, “The Bronx has shown amazing resilience in surviving the peak of COVID-19 and coming back stronger than ever.”
“Now, with New York City starting to reopen and more people going back to work, we need to ensure that our communities feel safe and supported. A big part of this is making sure they have transportation options. Revel has become an integral part of our streets since coming here in April and I’m proud to help them grow into the Central Bronx.” added Salamanca Jr.
Revel’s expansion northward from E Tremont to Fordham Road.
Co-founder and CEO of Revel, Frank Reig said, “In the weeks since Revel first came to the South Bronx, demand has been off the charts and we’ve heard from so many users who love having a new way to get around,”
He then added, “Given this response, we decided together with Council Member Salamanca to expand up to Fordham Road. We’re excited to serve even more of the Bronx and debut our new moped design here.”
And off the charts demand has most certainly been.
Since their expansion into The Bronx, the company has recorded 25,000 trips that began or ended in the borough—that’s 15,000 since we reviewed them back in early May.
In fact, within days of our article, it became harder and harder to find one and everywhere you turn you see someone riding by on a Revel.
We ran into a fellow Revel user who told us she loves using them to get around.
This expansion is definitely something we welcome especially for a quick trip to Little Italy (the real one of course) to get some delicious raviolis at Borgatti, fresh mozzarella at Cada Della Mozzarella, or a nice olive loaf at Madonia Bakery.
Check out our extensive review of the system and enjoy your ride safely!
Now if only we can convince them to expand to the East Bronx where residents are eagerly awaiting.
