We fought the good fight and eventually lost to corporate greed and politicians who care nothing about the health of our communities.
Today top Bronx elected officials gathered to celebrate the opening of FreshDirect’s massive new headquarters on the Bronx waterfront in Port Morris at the Harlem River yards a move which was overwhelmingly opposed by the community and environmental groups.
Now FreshDirect gets to run over 1,000 trucks through our South Bronx streets creating an even more hazardous situation for our residents suffering from asthma in an area where we already have some of the highest rates in the nation of this deadly disease.
South Bronx Unite issued the following statement:
Top Bronx Dems To Cut FreshDirect Ribbon Despite Community’s Health Concerns
Local Mott Haven Group Partners with Columbia University to Document Air Quality Impact of Subsidized Developments at Harlem River Yards Like FreshDirect
Today, at 9:00 am, Bronx County Democratic Chair, Marco Crespo, and Borough President Ruben Diaz, will join a ribbon cutting ceremony in regard to FreshDirect’s opening in the South Bronx, according to City & State. The company will bring 1,000 daily diesel truck trips through the most polluted neighborhood in the five boroughs of NYC, according to the NYC Department of Health Statistics. FreshDirect opens its doors with a windfall $150 million subsidy despite lobbying to be excluded from living wage requirements, a troubling immigrant labor history and the refusal to perform a full environmental impact study to measure the effects of its trucks in an EPA-recognized environmental justice community where 1 in 5 kids has asthma.
.@FreshDirect is here! Today we officially cut the ribbon their new home in the #Bronx! Can you say #Jobs? With 1500 jobs for Bronxites, we are continuously showing our growth and vitality! pic.twitter.com/lpTA58vUu8
— Nathalia Fernandez (@Fernandez4NY) July 17, 2018
“This community has been bold enough to hope for cleaner air, healthier lives and a say in our future,” said Mychal Johnson, co-founder of South Bronx Unite and member of the Board of Directors of the South Bronx community land trust (CLT). “Today, behind three fences and two security checkpoints, they continue trying to tell us that this is good for us. And the Bronx machine is standing with them.”
Since April 2017, South Bronx Unite has been working in partnership with Columbia University to conduct a study examining how truck traffic affects air pollution and noise levels in the Mott Haven and Port Morris neighborhoods. The project was motivated by developments at Harlem River Yards in Port Morris. The before-and-after study will assess how the opening of this kind of food distribution facility affects traffic, noise and air quality—all known health risks.
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Last year for SummerStage, The Bronx’s legendary salsa and freestyle legend La India performed to a standing room only crowd at St Mary’s Park
Watch her performance below and don’t forget that Judy Torres will be performing at SummerStage at St Mary’s Park next week!
The homophobic New York State senator turned councilman Reverend Ruben Díaz Sr is currently under investigation after a five hour long Standards and Ethics hearing yesterday according to sources.
Welcome2TheBronx first learned of the scheduled hearing last Friday and it had now been confirmed that such a hearing took place along with the opening of an investigation according to the Gotham Gazette.
The New York City Council’s Committee on Standards and Ethics held a hearing on Monday concerning Bronx Council Member Ruben Diaz, Sr. and his alleged use of government email to send out political messages to colleagues and staffers across the Council, three knowledgeable sources told Gotham Gazette.
The Standard and Ethics committee, chaired by Staten Island Council Member Steven Matteo, would not reveal the subject of Monday’s hearing and only noted on its agenda that the hearing was about Section 10.80 of the Council rules, which covers “disorderly behavior” including “willful violation or evasion of any provision of law relating to such Member’s discharge of his or her official duties; commission of fraud upon the City; conversion of public property to such Member’s own use; knowingly permitting or allowing by gross culpable conduct, any other person to convert public property; or violation of the Speaker’s policy or policies against discrimination and harassment.”
According to one Council source who asked to remain anonymous to speak freely, Diaz Sr. has frequently sent out emails from his government account with his thoughts on issues he has worked on and those emails often crossed the line into political activity. A second Council source confirmed that the hearing was about Diaz Sr. and his emails, while a third said Diaz Sr. was the subject of the committee hearing, having to do with use of government resources for political purposes.
Let’s hope this gets him thrown out of the council and get rid of this horrible politician once and for all.
Read the full story at the Gotham Gazette.
After being separated by the horrific policies of the Trump administration a father and son have been reunited in The Bronx after 8 weeks.
Eris Hidalgo Ramírez, the 26 year old Honduran, was taken into custody after crossing into Texas with his 5 year old son.
As part of the Trump’s administration to crack down on undocumented immigrants and illegal border crossings, they were then cruelly separated sending the child thousands of miles away to The Bronx.
According to CNN, the father spent several sleepless nights not knowing what fate had befallen his child.
“I never gave up hope that I would see Jostin again,” Ramirez said. “While I was in detention I felt so helpless.”That helplessness appeared to have faded Friday afternoon, when the two were were reunited in the Bronx after eight weeks apart. Ramirez, staying with a friend in upstate New York, was driven down to the school where a local organization was caring for Jostin.“I feel so happy to have him with me again because I feel like I was missing my heart as long as I was without him,” he said as he held his son, moments after being reunited.Eris Ramirez and his son were apart for eight weeks before being reunited Saturday.Ramirez is one of the lucky parents who has been reunited with his child well before the court-imposed July 26 deadline requiring children 5 and older be returned to their parents. The government said in a court filing Friday that there are about 2,551 children 5 and older who are eligible for these reunions.
Now let’s hope that the rest of the families are reunited.
It’s been almost six years since Hurricane Sandy slammed into NYC and many coastal communities throughout NYC and The Bronx are still recovering from its devastating impact.
Now the US Army Corp of Engineers is proposing to build a massive 5 mile seawall stretching from NYC to New Jersey including a smaller one between Throggs Neck and Queens to protect from storm surges.
These proposals are a result of a $19 million study and although no estimate has bee been determined, a previous study i. The 2013 indicated a price tag of $25 billion for a similar proposal.
NJ.com reports:
Many environmental groups, however, would prefer nothing is done at all on such a scale as they believe it is simply destined to fail.
Instead they propose more natural resiliency efforts.
Head over to NJ.com for the full story.
Bronx freestyle legend Judy Torres will perform a free concert this month at St Mary’s Park.
Torres will be joined by the hit group TKA and DJ Grand Wizard Theodore as part of the annual City Parks SummerStage program of free concerts throughout NYC.
The performance will take place on Thursday July 26th from 7-9pm so make sure you get to St Mary’s early enough to get a good seat as these events tend to get packed quickly.
This will be the first in a series of events at the park (you can see the full roster below)
Thursday, July 26
Judy Torres / TKA / GrandWizzard Theodore
Saint Mary’s Park – 450 Saint Anns Avenue, Bronx, NY 10455
7:00 – 9:00PM
FREE
Friday, July 27
Bombazo Dance Co / The Sabrosura Effect in association with Pepatian
Saint Mary’s Park – 450 Saint Anns Avenue, Bronx, NY 10455
7:00 – 9:00PM
FREE
Saturday, July 28
Spanish Harlem Orchestra
Saint Mary’s Park – 450 Saint Anns Avenue, Bronx, NY 10455
4:00 – 7:00PM
FREE
Sunday, July 29
Charlie Aponte
Saint Mary’s Park – 450 Saint Anns Avenue, Bronx, NY 10455
4:00 – 7:00PM
FREE
You don’t have to tell anyone from The Bronx that the number of people taking the subways to work has dramatically increased in 20 years since the MTA began releasing station-level data.
In a piece in the New York Post today talking about the future of New York depending on the subway, it is reported that the number of workers commuting to work by subway in the South Bronx neighborhoods of Melrose, Mott Haven, Hunts Point, and Longwood has more than doubled while the city as a whole as only increased by 30%.
Ridership is also up by 71% in the area outpacing the city at slightly over 40% growth.
The opinion piece describes that this increase isn’t just solely due to population growth but the biggest force behind it is the city’s workforce.
In the South Bronx there are thousands more people working since the 90s where in these neighborhoods where the labor force has grown by 38% since 1990.
Back then, less than half of the adult population was working whereas now you have it’s at an even 50%.
These workers rely on subways. In 1990, 65 percent of the area workforce commuted via public transit; by 2016, the figure was nearly 70 percent. The number of people commuting on public transit to work from these South Bronx neighborhoods has more than doubled since 1990, from 17,500 to 35,600.
This may seem obvious: Don’t all New Yorkers take the subway to work? Nope. Wealthy Lower Manhattan is similar in size and population growth to the South Bronx. It grew by 30 percent since 1990.
In 1990, 50 percent of its commuters took public transportation; by 2016, 53 percent did. Yet that hasn’t translated into soaring subway-ridership numbers. The number of people taking transit to work has increased 30 percent, compared with the South Bronx’s more than 100 percent growth.
Behind the difference is residents’ participation in the workforce, which has not grown in lower Manhattan as it has in the South Bronx. Back then as now, 75 percent of adults worked.
Because the percentage of people working has not grown and because such a high percentage of residents walk to work — 27 percent, versus 10 percent in the South Bronx — the number of people taking public transportation hasn’t grown as much.
The difference is reflected in ridership at stations in each area. In the South Bronx, between 1998 (the first year for which the MTA made station-level data available) and 2016, ridership grew by 71 percent, far faster than the city as a whole during that period. In lower Manhattan, ridership grew at 40 percent, slightly below the city’s overall rate.
It’s not tourists who are crowding our subways; it’s poorer and middle-class New Yorkers who work.
Can you imagine how packed these subways and stations will be beyond what they already are as thousands of more apartments are completed in the South Bronx? What about the thousands more that will arrive thanks to the Jerome Avenue Rezoning?
If our city’s current infrastructure can’t handle our existing population, how are we expected to deal with tens of thousands of more residents?
The closing remarks says it all:
New York can’t continue this workforce miracle if subways keep falling apart. Even as late as 1998, the subways had space to absorb New York’s new workers.
Now, they’re full, and most residents of the South Bronx don’t have other options. Without the ability to afford a car, or to walk to a good job, it’s take the subway — or don’t work at all.
It’s Friday and we’re sure you need a good laugh right about now as many of us wrap up our work week.
A video by Thrillist and Delta Airlines ridiculously compares Orchard Beach to the Florida tropics 😂 LOL!
Now don’t get us wrong we absolutely love Orchard Beach but this ad to get folks to travel to Florida is just so off the mark.
About the only accurate depiction is that it takes almost as long to get to Florida as it does to Orchard Beach on the 6.
Equally grating is travel host Dolapo Sangokoya continuously and incredulously asking if she’s really in The Bronx while at Lickity Split and other City Island locations.
The Bronx is beautiful and diverse. We are a beautiful borough so stop pretending we’re not!
At one point in the video two couples are dancing bachata but she says “Salsa dancing is a tradition at Orchard Beach”.
Face-palm.
Besides the good laugh the video provided the comments are even better.
Watch the video and let us know your thoughts!
Oh and shout out to our friend Desirée who let us know about this crazy video!
Welcome to the hidden beach gem of the Bronx, Orchard Beach. Brought to you by @delta. #ad pic.twitter.com/sm1xmGPopV
— Thrillist (@Thrillist) July 9, 2018
Check out these reactions to the video!
What Orchard Beach ACTUALLY looks like but k.. pic.twitter.com/xFdOdUw6Ld
— LMD (@__lisaamarie) July 10, 2018
I’ve gone to this beach my whole life and never knew I was living in paradise like that. Why didn’t they show the floating used baby diapers in the water?
— Brikena (@BrikenaStyles) July 10, 2018
pic.twitter.com/hD54663XgN
— Scamnade Clermont 💼 (@718Shaun) July 10, 2018
Bronx-based chef Caitlyn Napolitano from the Los Viajeros food truck has won the champion title on Chopped this week according to News12 The Bronx.
Los Viajeros food truck’s menu is inspired by the cuisines of Mexico, Dominican Republic, and Cuba and can be found in The Bronx every Wednesday from 11:30AM – 2:30PM in front of Jacobi Medical Center at 1400 Pelham Parkway.
You can also catch them at the following locations at the same time as well on the following days:
Once again, congratulations to Los Viajeros!
After the brutal killing of 15-year-old Lesandro Guzman-Feliz aka “Junior” by gang members in the Belmont section of The Bronx, New York State will be investing $18 million in youth programs and other preventative measures.
Although the monies are a much welcome relief for our communities we cannot say enough that why did it take a tragedy for The Bronx to get this needed funding for youth programming and anti gang measures?
Bronx residents have been clamoring for increased funding for years now especially for youth programming to keep our kids off the streets.
This isn’t something new that Bronxites said overnight, “Hey, let’s get more money for kids.”
I hate to sound cynical and jaded but it is an election year for Governor Cuomo so we have our answer why we’re getting the money now.
Diaz Jr. and Gov. Andrew Cuomo talked to a group of community members gathered on Thursday about the pursuit of “justice for Junior” — a rallying cry shared on social media after the teen’s death — and put an end to children feeling the need to join gangs.
“The gangs are here to fill a void,” Cuomo said. “Lack of family support, opportunities, jobs, relationships. When you have that void, [joining a gang] feeds that need.”
With this investment, Cuomo hopes to “fill that void before it’s created.”
Cuomo said an $18 million investment will be made for programs and services that battle the gang problem from its root.
Included in the investment is $1 million to the Madison Square Boys and Girls Club in the Bronx for a computer lab, to keep the facility open late at night and give children an alternative place to go instead of the streets.
Another $250,000 each will be invested to the Police Athletic League Inc. (PAL) and community-based organizations in schools and in the neighborhood that can help inoculate children from the seduction of gangs and stop gang recruitment.
Mental health programs and counseling in schools will be given an investment of $250,000, and about $5 million will be invested into the Roberto Clemente State Park.
A family resource center that can treat the whole family and provided gang intervention will receive a $2 million investment for more community-based services.
Sound off in the comments below with your thoughts.
The New York City Environmental Justice Alliance has identified the twelve most heat vulnerable communities in the city and unsurprisingly twelve are located in The Bronx.
Dozens of neighborhoods that make up Bronx community boards 1 through 6 like Hunts Point, Melrose, Mott Haven, Port Morris, Longwood, Fordham, Belmont, West Farms, and many more are at higher risks for fatalities during heat waves.
50% of all heat related fatalities between 1979 and 2014 were Black residents according to study by NYC Department of Health yet only account for 25.1% of NYC’s total population.
This is largely attributed to the fact that communities of color are often used as dumping grounds for industry and waste management, something the South Bronx is all too familiar with.
Because of this very fact, Hunts Point was singled out due to the neighborhood’s lack of green spaces as well as being home to the largest food distribution industrial park in the world.
The Outline writes:
According to Grist, Hunts Point is a major waste dump site — over a dozen waste stations are located in the 13,000-person neighborhood. It’s also a major truck route, creating a build-up of exhaust that heats the area. Meanwhile, Hunts Point lacks virtually any green space to help stabilize temperatures.
Over at The Grist, they report:
On a hot summer day in New York City last July, Ajohntae Dixon was studying at home when he began struggling to breathe. With no air conditioning in his apartment, the temperature inside surged, and the 15-year-old’s gasping quickly progressed into a full-blown asthma attack under the oppressive heat. He took his inhaler and then tried his nebulizer, but he was still fighting for air.
By 8 p.m., Dixon was in the emergency room. And after that overnight hospital stay, he and his mom installed air conditioners in each of their rooms to cut the chances he would have to go back.
While Dixon was able to make it to a hospital during his asthma attack last summer, many others who suffer from chronic health conditions aren’t so lucky when the temperature spikes.
Hunts Point’s primarily black and brown residents live near heavy industry that fulfills two city-wide necessities: bringing food in and getting waste out. It is home to the largest wholesale produce market in the world and hosts more than a dozen waste-transfer stations. (The South Bronx handles almost a third of New York City’s waste.) As a result, a neighborhood with 13,000 people has one of the highest concentrations of truck traffic in the Big Apple. And those vehicles pipe in hot exhaust to the already sweltering community — contributing to higher rates of asthma linked to pollution.
Hunts Point has long been a part of the city with one of the lowest parks-to-people ratios. But over the past decade, locals have pushed to develop more green space along its riverfront. “Traditionally, this community has been understood by the City of New York as an industrial area in nature,” says Angela Tovar, director of community development at The Point CDC. “So there was no prioritization of street trees, of any sort of mitigation to be able to bring down the temperatures in the community.”
Indoor temperatures in large city buildings are often even hotter than outdoor ones, especially at night. So people without air conditioning, senior citizens, and anyone who has difficulty getting out and about to find a place to cool down are especially vulnerable during a heat wave. People with chronic medical, mental health, or developmental conditions are also at greater risk.
According to the city’s Office of Emergency Management, a majority of heat-related deaths occur in homes without AC. In all twelve New York neighborhoods with the highest heat vulnerability, between 21 to 34 percent of residents are living below the city’s poverty threshold. In Hunts Point, the average median household income is slightly more than $22,000; after paying for rent and food, many residents don’t have enough left over to buy an air conditioner or pay for the extra electricity needed to power it.
Read the full stories:
Since 2009, Welcome2TheBronx has been a popular online platform dedicated to highlighting the vibrant culture, history, and ongoing developments within New York City’s northernmost borough. Founded by life-long resident and community advocate Ed García Conde, the site features local news, personal stories, and in-depth coverage of issues such as gentrification, community empowerment, art, and real estate. Through its engaging content and active social media presence, Welcome2TheBronx has become a trusted resource for residents and visitors alike, shining a spotlight on the unique identity and rich heritage of the Bronx.
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