Kiss Goodbye: Beso Lounge in Norwood Closes

By REGGIE FRANCOIS

A popular bar lounge in Norwood had its final hurrah the weekend of June 9, closing its doors after its restaurateur couldn’t agree on a lease renewal deal with the building’s owner. Gino Pacheco, owner of Beso Lounge, said the nighttime bar underwent renovations for three years and had been promised a lease for five more years. Despite a new owner buying the building for more money, Pacheco negotiated the lease in hopes for a similar lease deal he had when he first opened the business. The lounge’s original rent was $3,000 and the new building owner doubled the rent

Ahead of Mayoral Control of Schools Fate, Bronx BP Releases Report on G&T Inequity Fix

By DAVID CRUZ

Under a cloud over whether the fate of mayoral control of schools will be killed by the Albany Legislature, Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr. and his Brooklyn counterpart released a report outlining ways to equalize the public school system’s gifted and talented program (G&T), claiming it grossly excludes minority students. “We are totally optimistic…that before 12 o’clock strikes tonight the Legislature will come up with mayoral control expansion,” Diaz, standing next to Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams, said at a press conference in front of the New York City Department of Education (DOE) headquarters. “Should we go back to

Many of the residents of 3050 Perry Ave. returned home the day after a two-alarm fire tore through three apartments and injured 7, including four children June 15 in the Norwood section of the Bronx. The fire was the talk of the neighborhood. Perry Avenue resident Sonia Gonzalez heard screams moments before the sounds of several dozen emergency vehicles converged on the block. “I saw the flames when they started to blow out the front windows and some people were on the fire escape and they climbed down and the fireman went up,” Gonzalez recalled. Gonzalez added, “I just know one family

Inspirational Stencils, Courtesy of Bronx Community Charter School Students

By DEVIN DAE TUCKER

Six graders from Bronx Community Charter School (BCCS) are taking on a year-end street art project, creating stencil art to be displayed around Norwood. They feel their artworks will have a powerful impact on the community. “I think any time kids have an opportunity to do something authentic and real in their own community, the benefits are huge,” said Kendra Sibley, sixth grade teacher at BCCS leading the class. “It is incredibly empowering to them to know that their work is appreciated and that their voices can be heard.” Students were able to incorporate their stencil art with a

By DAVID GREENE

Seven people were injured, including four children, after a fast moving fire broke out in a six-story, non-fire proof building on Perry Avenue. A massive response by police and fire officials began moments after the blaze broke out on the fourth floor of 3050 Perry Ave., a six-story residence between East 204th Street and Mosholu Parkway North, at 9:30 p.m. on Thursday, June 15. Fires crews closed off the street, a neighborhood comprised mostly of two-family homes and residential properties mostly facing Mosholu Parkway. Fire officials could only say that ten victims were removed from the building, all suffering minor

The 52nd Precinct saw seven car thefts last month, and police say Ford models are the prime target. “There’s a lot of parts on Fords that are valuable like catalytic converters,” Deputy Inspector Peter Fiorillo, commanding officer of the Five-Two, said at the recent community council meeting. Ford motorcycles equipped with expensive Econoline headlights are also being swiped, Fiorillo said. “I’m expecting to see that go up more now that we’re in motorcycle season,” he said. “That’s something we have to look out.” Honda and Nissan vehicles are also being targeted. In May, the precinct, covering Norwood, Bedford Park, Fordham, Kingsbridge

Neighborhood Notes: Free Immigration Service

By DAVID CRUZ

A Pennsylvania man is coming at an end to his visit of several Bronx community boards, having brought a message he feels is given little publicity: If you’re a victim of sex abuse by a clergy member from the New York Archdiocese, you’re entitled to compensation through a temporary program set to expire at the end of July. For Shaun Dougherty, the New York Archdiocese has done little to promote it. “They should be shouting this from the rooftops. They have the means to make it very aware,” Dougherty, the man taking his message across the Bronx, told the Norwood

Plans Looks to Preserve Small Business Sector in Kingsbridge Heights

By REGGIANIE FRANCOIS

Members from different advocacy groups and small businesses owners took to the steps of City Hall Wednesday morning to speak on the lack of legal protections for commercial tenants and access to affordable spaces within their neighborhoods. This also includes the neighborhood of Kingsbridge Heights, where an impending ice hockey center at the Kingsbridge Armory threatens the existing commercial landscape, according to local shopkeepers. Christian Ramos, a member of the Northwest Bronx Community and Clergy Coalition and vice president of the Kingsbridge Road Merchants Association, is originally from Ecuador and has been living in the Bronx since 2001. He opened

Bronx Man Guilty in Killing of Rival Near Daycare Center

By DEVIN DAE TUCKER

A jury has found a Bronx man guilty in the murder a rival drug dealer in front of daycare center in Crotona Park two years ago. “As a unanimous jury found, Ruben Pizzaro shot and killed David Rivera in broad daylight in front of a daycare center in the Bronx,” Acting U.S. Attorney Joon H. Kim said in a statement. Rivera, 24, was gunned down in front of the daycare center near 175th Street and Crotona Avenue on Nov. 24, 2015. Pizzaro, known by associates as “Chullo,” was a member of a street gang that sold cocaine and crack cocaine near