Tomorrow at Brook Park, thanks to the amazing folks at Green Worker Cooperatives, you have an excellent chance to participate in community building in The Bronx’s own version of the famous Stone Soup folktale.

From Green Worker Cooperatives:

The Sancochazo is organized by Green Worker Cooperatives, and our goal is to provide an opportunity for the community to come together, learn and get involved in the cooperative movement in NYC. We’ll have interactive games and activities for all ages, for you and the whole family.

The story of Stone Soup, which most of us read as children, captures the essence of the impact of community effort, that by working together, with everyone contributing what they can, a greater good can be achieved. Similar to that story, the Stone Soup Event will challenge community partners –cooperatives, social justice organizations, restaurants, and the community‐ to come together and get energized.

So join us, bring an ingredient for the soup, share a skill with the community but more than anything, have fun!!! Bring a team of your friends, family, neighbors to play together! You will want to take advantage of the beautiful day and have sancocho and other delights on the grass under a tree.

There’s much more to be announced, and we’re looking for volunteers to make this event a success! Please email ileia@greenworker.coop to share a performance, a dish, or lead an activity.

Hope to see you there tomorrow and check out this link to find out what you can contribute!

In the mid 80s, over the course of about 5 years, the City of New York sent out photographers to literally photograph every single property in the five boroughs resulting in over 800,000 images.

While I was perusing the interactive map, I was pleasantly surprised with seeing an old style carnival aka “las machinas” on Third Avenue and 156th Street which is where Aldi, Rite Aid, Foreman Mills, and others now stand.

These images were to be used by the Department of Finance to determine market value of properties for tax purposes but inadvertently created a time capsule or even a time machine of sorts if you will and now thanks to 80s.nyc can readily access the maps and just see what’s available.

What’s really jolting is seeing so many buildings abandoned in the South Bronx block after block without end sometimes and shuttered storefronts but then you’d get to an area like The Hub at Third Avenue and 149th Street and bright colored storefronts and droves of people all over the place further illustrating that life went on despite the hardships we went through during those decades.

Check out the website for yourself but be prepared to lose a lot of time going down memory lane…literally! Oh and thanks to Bronxite Javier Medrano for this awesome tip!

Called Bronx Point, L&M Development Partners won the bid to build a development on stolen public land known as Pier 5 which was designated as part of Mill Pond Park expansion at 149th Street right at the foot of the 145th Street Bridge.

The development calls for 1,045 units of (un)affordable housing which we all know will be luxury on the waterfront not made available to the actual residents who live in the neighborhood.

Bronx Point is slated to also include a multiplex and yet another food and beverage hall that will be run by curated by Brooklyn outsider Anna Castellani who curated the popular Brooklyn food hall Dekalb Market.

Besides the clear theft of land which the city denies is happening because they claim that it was never designated for parks despite that even the friggin’ map at Mill Pond Park shows it as part of the expansion as well as NYC Parks website had it as well along with the acreage of the site until they removed it, it is absolutely disgusting that the city has its hand so visibly in the gentrification process of the South Bronx.

This is absolutely unforgivable and we as Bronx residents will remember the sell-outs during election day.

“You can disguise luxury real estate by claiming that the “Universal Hip-Hop Museum” will be part of the development. But will it really? And is massive gentrification an adequate trade-off to finally aggregate our regional historical culture?” said Edwin Pagán, Program Manager, Bronx Culture Collective (BxCC).

Is our neighborhood worth that little to our community leaders that they will settle for crumbs just to have us displaced?

Today, Governor Cuomo came to The Bronx Museum to announce that The Bronx will be the recipient of a $10 million award to, “develop  a downtown strategic investment plan and implement key catalytic projects that advance the community’s vision for revitalization.”

Under Cuomo’s Downtown Revitalization Initiative, the purpose is to transform, “…downtown neighborhoods into vibrant communities where the next generation of New Yorkers will want to live, work and raise families.”

The area in question ranges from 165th Street down to the East River, West to the Harlem River and East to St Ann’s and 3rd Avenue capturing Melrose, Mott Haven, parts of Port Morris and the Lower Concourse which, in my opinion, is too large of an area for a “downtown” and it is incorporating neighborhoods and areas too far from the actual legitimate downtown neighborhood of Melrose where you have the concentration of courthouses located and other government offices. 

“Working collaboratively to revitalize our downtowns is the cornerstone of forward thinking economic development policy. The Governor’s initiative, combined with the work of local Bronx officials and South Bronx community based organizations, like the Third Avenue Business Improvement District, strengthens the economic fabric of our neighborhoods and provides an entry point for small businesses to thrive.” said Michael Brady, Executive Director of the Third Avenue Business Improvement District which sits at the busiest intersection outside of Times Square with over 200,000 pedestrians traveling through each day. 

Brady added, “The Third Avenue District is the heart of the South Bronx commercial corridor and is delighted to have the opportunity to work hand in hand with State and Bronx leaders to transform the Bronx’s oldest commercial district. The Bronx deserves equity in resources and investment.”

According to Governor Cuomo, over 100 applications were received by the state for the Downtown Revitalization Initiative so instead of selecting just one finalist, 10 were chosen to each receive $10 million. (you can view The Bronx’s PDF application here). 
“How do we work to continue to make sure that The Hub continues to be the Times Square of The Bronx?” said Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr. 

“This award will help us do that.” he added. 

While this is a good thing for our community to receive such funds to chart our future, the question becomes why now? Why didn’t we get something like this earlier when we really needed it? 

We know the answer to that and the face of The Bronx is slowly changing as developers are pushing gentrification upon us. 

Money ultimately talks. 

Now we need to make sure that these monies are put to good use so that our residents are the ones who benefit and not some hypothetical future gentrifier. 

PS. The Bronx never went anywhere so I don’t know why they say The Bronx is back. 

The ultimate bad boy turned boxing legend born in The Bronx, Jake LaMotta has passed away at 95 in a nursing home in Miami from dysphagia pneumonia.

Born in The Bronx on July 10, 1922, Jake entered the world of boxing through unfortunate circumstances with his father forcing him to fight neighborhood kids where folks would throw money at them. 

His father would later collect the money to help pay the rent. 

LaMotta went on to have a career that lasted over a decade until he retired in the mid 1950s after sustaining an injury during a fight. 

Known as the Raging Bull, which was the name of his memoir and the 1980 biopic movie starring Robert DeNiro who won am academy award for his role as LaMotta won 83 fights during his career. 

Another Bronx legend had gone to rest. 

Last week after it was revealed that a bunch of clueless former Google employees wanted to “destroy” all bodegas by introducing an app controlled vending machine we, along with the rest of the internet, decimated their lack of cultural sensitivity and complete disregard for everything that bodegas stand for.

But the best take down of those idiots (we’re not gonna sugar coat it or mince any words, they ARE idiots) is by Bronx born and raised actress, producer, and writer, Jenni Ruiza.

Don’t take it from me, watch for yourself below:

Ever find the perfect frames only to not have them sit quite so perfectly on your face because, like me, one ear may be slightly higher than the other? Well thanks to Metro Optics, our favorite eye care spot in The Bronx, that’s one less hassle for you to worry about.

Through the magic of 3D printing (because let’s face it, that pretty much looks like magic even though it’s science) and a cool selection of Roger Bacon eyewear, the Dutch company who offers the 3D printed specs via Metro Optics, you can finally get the frames your face deserves!

But seriously, The Bronx may be known for all the sneaker heads that live here but we’re also very much into our eyewear and that’s where Metro Optics comes in with their selection of literally hundreds of different frames to choose from but let’s focus on the Roger Bacon 3D specs.

The frames themselves are pretty simple looking but that’s where I think they kinda rock because, well, less is more. The color selection is pretty cool with a bright red, blues, and dark charcoal grays in the mix.

Now how does the customization work you ask? Well, a trained technician at Metro Optics takes a scan of your face (actually your entire head) that turns the images it takes into a 3D virtual reality digital model of yourself.

Once that’s complete, you can look at a larger screen and see what different frames and colors will look on you and since it’s a 3D image of you, you get a much clearer picture of what it will look like.

And it’s this same avatar of yourself that allows for the customization of the frames from the bridge of the glasses to the temple length which are tailored to your exact face allowing for the most perfect fit you can get and the frames are super lightweight too so you’re getting the ultimate in comfort too.

Once the order is placed, your specs are 3D printed over in The Netherlands (Shout out to the other place with THE in their name) and then shipped back to Metro Optics where you can pick up the final product.

This technology is available at Metro Optic’s flagship store at the Throggs Neck Shopping Center or their Westchester Square location (the ONLY other place you can get these in the New York Metro area is at a shop on Long Island!) so if you’re interested, head on over and check it out along with the other hundreds of frames their offer on top of some of the best quality eye care you’ll get in our borough.

The hateful and hate-filled and homophobic New York State Senator Ruben Diaz, the same one who aligned himself with Republican (and another disgusting human being) Ted Cruz and brought him to The Bronx won yesterday’s Democratic primary election as he seeks to move from the state level back into City Council.

But make no mistake. He didn’t win with a mandate whatsoever. He was and is not wanted by the people of the district and for someone with such name recognition performed quite poorly. So poorly that 58% of voters chose someone else and should be embarrassed and it should serve as a sobering call that his name alone won’t necessarily save him in the future.

With 9,164 residents of City Council District 18 who voted, only 3,845 voted for the gross excuse of a man who is our state senator representing 42%.

A resounding 58% said NO to Ruben Diaz, 5,319 people to be exact which was divided up by other candidates like Amanda Farias, Elvin Garcia, William Moore, and Michael Beltzer.

These candidates need to regroup and pool their resources and collected efforts and perhaps even have one run against Diaz come November and maybe, just maybe they might be able to block him from entering the Council come January.

Wishful thinking? Perhaps, but we can’t give up on bringing down the corrupt Bronx Democratic political machine that builds political family dynasties instead of improving our communities.

First of all, a bunch of privileged idiots not only want to destroy bodegas but they are doing so by calling themselves Bodega AND using a bodega cat as their logo.

Two weeks ago we spoke about how bodegas are an integral part of what makes The Bronx so awesome.

Sure they are not bastion of healthy eating (generally speaking) but they are a place where local residents can get their basic staples, feed their families and many times get credit extended to them when times are tough because that’s what a bodeguero does: He builds community.

It’s not like you can logon to Seamless or FreshDirect and say, “Hey, I need a dozen eggs, 2 gallons of milk, 10lbs of rice but can I pay you next week?”

If you check those apps, that is NOT an option but it is one at most of your bodegas.

Can this Bodega app make you a chopped cheese just the way you like it? Or a fresh deli sandwich? Mangu with queso frito and longaniza?

We’re not saying Bodegas are perfect because they aren’t and surely there’s room for improvement but the audacity and greed of Silicon Valley not only wanting to destroy the way of life for so many immigrant families of color and mom and pop shops should disgust you.

We’re not even talking about the utter cultural appropriation of the word bodega which they claimed they had vetted with the Latino community and apparently 97% of them said they’re cool with it but we know that’s bull.

But how do you in good conscience think that it’s ok to destroy the livelihoods of people and disrupt entire communities?

At least we know they’ll fail miserably if they even try to come into The Bronx and if it’s up to Frank Garcia, chairman of the New York State Coalition of Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, he’d ask that members do not allow these soulless “bodega” pantries on their properties in the entire state of New York.

Bodegas are an important part of our culture and we’ll protect them how Bronxites know best.

Today we celebrate our 8th year anniversary writing, ranting, photographing, documenting, and publishing on all things that make The Bronx such a wonderful place.

Since we started our journey on September 12, 2009, there have been 1,731 articles and posts, 2,905 Instagram images, 15,500 tweets, quoted, appeared, and featured in the mainstream media over 400 times from the very fist at the Mott Haven Herald to dozens of times on NY1, News12 The Bronx, The New York Times, Curbed, Brick Underground and many more.

Heck, we’re even in a few books now, including Vanishing New York: How A City Lost Its Soul by the amazing chronicler of gentrification, Jeremiah Moss.

And last but certainly not least our entire website is now archived by Columbia University Libaries for posterity.

When I published that very first post in what seems like forever ago, I had no idea where this was going. All I wanted to do was just to get the stories out there from our corner of our world which weren’t being told or shared by the mainstream media.

I was sick and tired at how everything they wrote about us was all negative so that’s basically how this all started: To celebrate The Bronx, its people, the history and rich culture that we are lucky to have.

Back in 2009, we only had The Boogie Downer (Rest in Peace to the first awesome Bronx blog that inspired me to take the jump. Alas, it is only but a memory) and of course, BronxMama run by the incredible Nicole Perrino.

We have helped shaped the narrative when it comes to The Bronx but this isn’t because of myself but because of all of you who have believed in what I do and uniting our collective voices.

That’s a huge achievement that as I sit back and think about it all, I really never thought it would happen but with your help and persistence, we did it. YOU did it.

And what about the slew of websites and social media accounts that have since followed us each adding their unique voices to the mix filled with Bronx pride and even if we don’t agree with some of them, we can’t help but look back and smile that we’ve inspired, together with BronxMama, to to not follow our lead but to join us in telling their stories too.

As we look towards the next 8 years and beyond we can promise you one thing: We’ll still be loud, we’ll still rep The Bronx proud, and most importantly, we’ll NEVER sell ourselves out or The Bronx because The Bronx is NOT for sale.

Our integrity means more than being featured in pro-gentrification pieces in the media just for simple exposure. We’re better than that and we won’t go down that route ever and it’s not like the opportunities haven’t presented itself but we are not blinded by money. There is no dollar amount that can be sent my way to ever sell out my community. Ever. It just won’t happen.

That being said, thank you to all the friends we’ve made along the way, all the opportunities. For all the good times and especially the bad times where we learned to grow together.

We love you all from the shores of City Island in the East Bronx to the “bluffs” of Riverdale to the ethnic melting pot of the South Bronx.

Every. Single. One. Of. You

Let’s make some more memories together, ok?

East Bronx residents, is this who you want representing you? 

NYS State Assemblyman Mark Gjonaj is bent on paving his path to the city council by whatever means possible.

Gjonaj had already set a record for city council races with a war chest of over $700,000 filled with donations from real estate interests and now from individuals indicted on charges of money laundering connected to drug trafficking and even weapons smuggling into Kosovo.

Make no mistake, however, Gjonaj does not act alone in his quest for glory. Equally culpable in pushing this candidate is the corrupt Bronx Democratic Machine.

Tomorrow you decide at the polls, District 13 communities of the East Bronx, and we urge you to make an informed decision that you won’t end up regretting later on.

Your communities are at stake which is why we feel strongly about endorsing John Doyle who hasn’t been purchased by private interests and instead has been supported by those who actually live in the community. 

Tomorrow, Tuesday September 12th is primary day and our city, our borough’s future is at stake. This isn’t hyperbole but a statement of fact as dysfunctional and ineffective Albany politicians like NYS Senator Ruben Diaz, NYS Assemblyman Robert Rodriguez, and NYS Assemblyman Mark Gjonaj are attempting to bully their way into the New York City Council.

It is our responsibility as decent citizens not to let this happen which will leave a lasting legacy of harm on our city which has come so far for everyone.

That is why we are happy to endorse the following individuals in the following hottest races in The Bronx:

Diana Ayala, City Council District 8 (El Barrio/East Harlem, Mott Haven, Port Morris, Concourse, Highbridge, Longwood)

With all of the issues facing district 8 (which is being vacated by term-limited NYC Council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito) from health crisis to the opioid epidemic, homelessness, and gentrification just to name a few, we need someone who is not only intimately aware of these issues but someone who has been working boots on the ground in our neighborhoods and no one on this ballot is more better prepared and informed than Diana Ayala.

A survivor of domestic violence who also has lived through the shelter system and in NYCHA, Ayala is literally the face of District 8 making it more clearly why we need actual representation who we can be confident that will best represent us.

Ayala’s track record first as Constituent Services Director and then Deputy Chief of Staff for NYC Council Speaker Mark-Viverito has already shown us some of what she’s capable of accomplishing together with the community from her commitment to our senior population, especially in Mott Haven to her fight against the scourge of K2 which led to legislation passed by the Council to combat against this epidemic, shows us that she is more than capable of doing the work necessary for the betterment of our communities.

John Doyle, City Council District 13 (Allerton, City Island, Country Club, Edgewater Park, Ferry Point, Locust Point, Morris Park, Pelham Bay, Pelham Gardens, Pelham Parkway, Schuylerville, Silver Beach, Spencer Estates, Throggs Neck, Van Nest, Waterbury LaSalle, Westchester Square, Zerega)

The Bronx’s geographically largest city district is currently led by term-limited Jimmy Vacca and the race is one of the most crowded in our borough and although there are a couple of qualified candidates to represent this part of The Bronx there is no one better suited or prepared than John Doyle.

District 13 is diverse in not just the basic demographics of ethnic backgrounds but it is also economically diverse as well as politically with a one of the largest concentrations of Republican voters and although Doyle is a Democrat through and through, he has demonstrated being able to work with everyone and bring consensus to the issues that matter to the communities of the East Bronx.

If the people of District 13 are truly concerned about issues like over-development then they should stay away from NYS Assemblyman Mark Gjonaj who has bullied his way into the campaign through the backings of the Bronx Democratic machine as well as hundreds of thousands of dollars ($716,469 to be exact breaking all city council records and where is that money coming from you ask? Almost $100,000 from real estate interests who know Gjonaj will side with them when it comes to rezonings and over-development). Remember Gjonaj’s roots as a real estate broker and one of the wealthiest lawmakers in the state and ask yourself if he’s TRULY looking out for you and your pockets or his.

Randy Abreu, City Council District 14 (Morris Heights, University Heights, Fordham, Kingsbridge)

The issues of District 14 have only gotten worse under current Council member Fernando Cabrera but that shouldn’t be much of a surprise from a highly homophobic man who actually endorsed Uganda’s anti-gay policies which includes the death penalty for members of the LGBTQ community.

This is not to mention that residents of District 14 are some of the most rent-burdened in NYC making them even more vulnerable to the forces of gentrification but during his tenure, things have gotten only worse. Cabrera actually said that it is harder to be rich than it is poor yet his constituents of which almost 60% are under the poverty line would disagree with this statement.

That’s where Randy Abreu comes in. In order to continue towards a truly progressive New York City, we need someone who will work for everyone and not just those who fall in line. Abreu has a commitment to bring better employment opportunities for Bronx residents by creating the borough’s first Grassroots Community Media Center, “…which will offer free media training and certification courses to Bronxites.”

Abreu understands that bringing jobs isn’t merely the solution because what good are they if Bronxites don’t qualify due to lack of skills? We must also step up and train our workforce to be able to uplift everyone.

Elvin Garcia, City Council District 18 (Soundview, Castle Hill, Parkchester, Clason Point, Harding Park)

Yet another seat being vacated by a term-limited council member, this time Annabel Palma, and yet another seat under attack by Albany with State Senator Ruben Diaz trying to infiltrate and bring his message of hate on the city level.

Elvin Garcia is the antithesis of what Ruben Diaz stands for. In his decades in office, the district still hasn’t progressed much and let’s not forget his homophobic ant-lgbtq stance despite having a lesbian grand daughter. As an LGBT leader here in The Bronx, there’s absolutely no way I can even agree with this man.

That’s why Elvin Garcia is our choice for this crowded race. He’s a fresh, young face as well as an openly gay man which we need to continue seeing more of in terms of representation.

For almost 3 years, Garcia worked as Mayor Bill de Blasio’s Bronx Borough Director as well as an LGBT Liasion to the mayor affording him the opportunity to work with a hugely diverse borough like The Bronx in its entirety. It is this experience that he brings to the table to be able to work with many different groups and sides that we feel Elvin will make a great addition to the Council in order to continue on an inclusive progressive path.

To let Diaz steal this seat (and let’s be frank it’s stealing and do we really need to spell it out for you on why?) will set the city backwards, instead of forward. We know Diaz is easily bought and sold by lobbyists, we’ve seen him easily give away are environment and children’s health to FreshDirect in exchange for a few hundred turkeys during the holidays.

Honorable Mention:

Rafael Salamanca Jr, District 17 (Concourse Village, Crotona Park East, East Tremont, Hunts Point, Longwood, Melrose, Morrisania, Port Morris, West Farms, North Brother Island, South Brother Island)

This one I’m sure is a bit of a surprise since we endorsed opposing candidate and worked for Julio Pabon when Maria del Carmen Arroyo stepped down but we appreciate seeing how hard Salamanca has been working and in many ways for the better than his predecessor. The changes are definitely noticeable especially when responding to constituent concerns, something that we did not get under Arroyo. Our district suffered greatly under her and her lack of responsiveness to actual constituents.

Don’t know where to vote? Find out here at NYC’s Poll Locator. Remember, poll sites open tomorrow, Tuesday September 12th from 6AM-9PM.