Bronx Links, Wednesday

Welcome back to Breaking Bronx. Here are some local news stories we’re reading this Wednesday afternoon: It’s baseball season! But for some Bronx teams, there are challenges to face before hitting the field. Players at the Bronx High School of Science, and other high school who were hoping to use the sparkling new baseball diamonds at Harris Field, are unexpectedly stuck waiting another season because the grass on the fields is not ready. The Riverdale Press first wrote about the delay in March; the Times‘ School Book blog covered it today, with a video (see below). Students have been without

The Bronx is just 24 miles from a major nuclear power plant and Assemblywoman Naomi Rivera wants to know why there isn’t a plan in place to protect the 1.4 million people living in the city’s northernmost borough. At a press conference in Norwood yesterday, Rivera publicly released her letter requesting state hearings on the emergency evacuation plans of local, state, and federal governments in case of a nuclear meltdown at the Indian Point Energy Center. Surrounded by kids from the Mosholu Montefiore Community Center as well as regional environmental watchdogs, Rivera said she is unhappy with the 10-mile radius

Editor’s Note: Every Wednesday, Breaking Bronx features a health-related story, event or tidbit as part of an online expansion of our Be Healthy! column. Bronx Photo Exhibit Spotlights Public Housing Health Hazards When the ventilation fan in Maribel Baez’s bathroom stopped working, a black patch of mold began to grow on her ceiling. She called the New York City Housing Authority, which runs the Melrose Houses in the South Bronx, where she’s lived for four years, and tried to get the problem fixed. NYCHA told her it would be two years before they could send a repairperson out. The mold

Since the Department of Education announced plans to close Middle School 80 at the beginning of March, a group of concerned parents and local activists have been attempting to advocate for keeping the spirit of the school, as well as its most valuable programs, intact.

Bronx Notes: Learn Comic Culture at Bronx Library Center

The New York Public Library has partnered with professional Bronx cartoonist Ivan Velez to offer a series of cartooning and manga classes for interested teens who want to learn the ins-and-outs of the comics industry from real comic book artists and writers.

Parents, Activists Organize Walk to Save MS 80 This Afternoon

A group of parents and local activists will be holding a walk this afternoon to save MS 80, the school on Mosholu Parkway that has already lost its principal after it was designated for the Department of Education’s turnaround program. Under the turnaround program, the school would undergo a complete facelift, which would include hiring a completely new staff (although up to 50 percent of the current staff could be rehired) and taking on a new name.

Bronx Links, Monday

Obviously slow day on the blog today as we begin production on this week’s print edition of the Norwood News. In the meantime, here’s a rundown of the latest Bronx stories making the news.

Legal Services NYC-Bronx To Open Community Office at the Hub

A group that offers free legal services to low-income Bronx residents will be getting a new and improved home at the busy HUB commercial corridor, at Brook Avenue and E. 149th Street, a number of local elected officials announced last week. Legal Services NYC-Bronx will move into a commercial condominium that’s being built as part of City-sanctioned development project on a stretch of undeveloped property at the HUB. When completed, the group’s new offices will feature a green space and be fully handicap accessible, according to a press release sent out by Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz, Jr., who is

Funeral Arrangements Set For Bronx Teacher Justin Bravo

Arrangements for the funeral of late Bronx teacher Justin Bravo, who died in a motorcycle crash on Mosholue Parkway Wednesday morning, were posted in our comments section earlier today. Here’s a link to the obituary page, on the website of Johnstons’ Funeral Home, where visitation will be happening.