Environmentalism

Bronx Residents Seek Expanded Waterfront Access Along The Hudson River

Although The Bronx is on the mainland, as a peninsula, we are surrounded by water yet access to our waterfront is limited especially in the West Bronx.

Now a group is pushing for greater access to the Hudson River in Riverdale by expanding a small 600 foot park by 2 miles all the way north to the Westchester County border at the City of Yonkers.

Changing The World With Art, From The Bronx to Broadway, & Best Hiking Spots in Our Borough|Bronx PM Links

The DreamYard Project is nurturing Bronx youth through the arts in hopes of changing the world, some of the works of the late Tony Award-winning Bronxite Boris Aronson who began his career in Yiddish theatre, and the greenest borough’s best hiking spots, all in this evening’s Bronx PM Links.

South Bronx Residents Create ‘Statement of Principles on Private Development’ As Gentrification Creeps In

In response to the wave of real estate speculation threatening the South Bronx and that will open the doors to hyper-gentrification, we present below a Statement of Principles on Private Development. These principles have been in the making for upwards of a year by members of the Mott Haven-Port Morris Community Land Trust (in consultation with experts in each area) in response to the decades of “development” without community engagement that has caused a health epidemic and now threatens mass displacement. As some of our elected officials choose to deny the existence of gentrification, many developers have already bought land, filed plans and erected buildings “as of right”, and many are not requesting any zoning changes, variances or government subsidies that would trigger wider accountability. Over the coming weeks, members of the community will be assessing adherence to these principles of each developer – from Carnegie, Cheskel Schwimmer and Chetrit to Hornig, JCAL, Savanna and Somerset, among many others – and sharing the information publicly so that we can best direct the breadth of efforts to protect and uplift our community.

1 Millionth Tree Planted in The Bronx Celebrated By Residents, Elected Officials & Of Course, Bette Midler

Today was a special day in The Bronx at Joyce Kilmer Park on 161st Street and The Grand Concourse. Local school children gleefully joined residents, elected officials, NYC Parks employees to celebrate the millionth tree which was planted last month at the park as part of the MillionTreesNYC program initiated by former Mayor Michael Bloomberg.

When the millionth tree was planted last month at the park, it was 2 years ahead of schedule as 2017 was the target date for completion of the project to green up New York City—especially the areas which lacked greenery and green streets such as The South Bronx where the ceremony took place.

The Bronx actually received the 2nd most number of trees with a total of 276,600 adding to the greenest of the five boroughs of New York City. Queens received the highest number of trees but only by a little over 8,000 more trees at 284,755.

New York Times Poll Suggests 36% of Bronx Residents Struggling To Get By

The New York Times has released an article on a recent poll they conducted which indicates that roughly half of New York City residents are barely able to make ends meet. In The Bronx, that number is at 36%. The Bronx also leads New York City with the percentage of residents (25% of respondents) who do not feel confident that local government elected officials are not addressing the multitude of problems facing our borough.

Randall’s Island Connector is Officially Open Providing a Direct, Safe, & Easy Access to 330 Acres of Parkland to The Bronx

The Bronx may be the greenest borough, with almost 25% of its land dedicated to parks, but residents in The South Bronx do not have equitable access to green spaces. Now that The Randall’s Island Connector—after 2 decades of wrangling with city agencies and community advocacy groups—area residents and the rest of the borough have access to an additional 330 acres of parkland.

The $6 million connector, which only stretches for a quarter mile under the Amtrak line from 132nd Street to Bronx Kill, is now paved with bike and pedestrian lanes so that Bronxites can enjoy the wide open spaces which Randall’s Island provides along with the many playing fields.

Bronx Urban Farmer, Karen Young-Washington, Wins $10k In National Contest

Karen Young-Washington, an urban farmer from The Bronx has just won $10,000 in a national voting contest held by NationSwell to help further the work her organization, Rise and Root Farm.

An AllStar Award Nominee favorite, Karen has been one of the local pioneers and leaders in urban farming in our communities serving as a role model which everyone in our borough can look up to.

Score! Final Link of 23 Mile Bronx River Greenway to Receive $10 Million for Completion

Thanks to US Senators from New York, Schumer and Gillibrand, Congressman Serrano, The Bronx River Greenway will receive $10 million from the US Department of Transportation to complete the missing links in our borough and create a contiguous connection from Hunts Point straight through the Kensico Reservoir in Westchester County along the river’s 23 mile course.

The Bronx’s Very Own Urban Farmer, Karen Young-Washington, Is In The Running For $10K Award

“The first plant that changed my life was a tomato,” says Karen Washington, a black urban farmer in the Bronx. “It was the one fruit that I used to hate.” But after watching one that she’d grown shift in hue from green to yellow to red and taking a bite of it, she was instantly hooked. “When I tasted that tomato, when it was red and it was ripe, and I picked it off the vine, [it]…changed my world because I never tasted anything so good, so sweet. I wanted to grow everything.”

For a quarter century, all manner of trees and flowers, fruits and vegetables, have thrived across abandoned lots in the Bronx because of Washington. Deemed “the queen of urban farming,” she’s an African-American woman who’s dedicated her life to greening New York City’s poorest borough. Since 1985, Washington has assisted dozens of neighborhoods build their own community gardens, taught workshops on farming and promoted racial diversity in agriculture.”

South Bronx Unite Meets with Mayor de Blasio and Speaker Mark-Viverito to Discuss South Bronx Environmental and Health Crisis, Including FreshDirect

Last week, members of South Bronx Unite met with Mayor Bill de Blasio, Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito and senior members of the city’s Economic Development Corporation to discuss the environmental and health crisis in the South Bronx. The neighborhood, surrounded by an 850 acre industrial area and three highways, suffers from asthma rates eight times the national average, and such disproportionate rates of respiratory illness were cited last month as among the causes of the deadly Legionnaire’s outbreak that claimed 12 lives and infected over 100.

Within the last month alone, residents of the over-industrialized nabe have been challenging the re-permitting of two fossil fuel power plants (with routine violations of emission levels) and the expansion of a 3,000 ton per day waste transfer facility (also with routine permit violations).

First Fatality in 2nd Legionnaires Outbreak in The Bronx—Or Is It Still The Same Outbreak?

The 2nd outbreak of Legionnaires in The Bronx, which is centered in the East Bronx neighborhood of Morris Park has claimed its first victim as 13 are confirmed infected.

Although city officials claim that this isn’t related to New York City’s largest outbreak of Legionnaires in history that occurred this past summer in the South Bronx and claimed 13 lives and sickened hundreds, one has to wonder of that is truly the case.

Port Morris Distillery Severs Partnership With FreshDirect After Community Protests

Last Thursday an event was held at Port Morris Distillery with The Bronx Brewery, Ruben Diaz Jr, FreshDirect, Marlene Cintron, Executive Director of the Bronx Overall Economic Development Corporation to celebrate the newly formed business partnership between PMD and FreshDirect.

Our borough president began tweeting and even sent out a press release as a victory of sorts in the many attempts his administration has attempted to divide our communities on the issue of FreshDirect coming to The Bronx.