NWBCCC Unveils Roadmap to Abundance

By DAVID GREEN

Paving the way to housing equality stood on the top of an agenda for a social justice group the last week of July. Hundreds of Bronx residents turned out for the Northwest Bronx Community and Clergy Coalition’s (NWBCCC) unveiling of its Roadmap From Displacement to Abundance Community Resource Fair, held on Sunday, July 31 at St. Nicholas of Tolentine Church on Andrews Avenue North in Fordham. The campaign, part of NWBCCC’s core mission tenets, offers information to combat displacement. The group took a broader look at fighting issues of tenant harassment in the Bronx. Invited guests included state Senator

Norwood residents gathered at Oval Park to hear music from Orquesta SCC, a salsa dura band with quite the following. The group performed August 11, and was sponsored by local Assemblyman Jeff Dinowitz as part of the 2016 Summer Concert Series in the Northwest Bronx. Photos by Miriam Quinones. “There is no better way to spend a beautiful summer evening than by listening to talented musicians play music with friends and family,” said Dinowitz. “I was so excited to see hundreds of community members attend these concerts which are excellent opportunities for people of all ages to relax and enjoy quality music together. I am proud to

By DAVID CRUZ

Amid a legal battle with their landlord, tenants of an apartment building were thrown a curveball when their Bedford Park home they’re fighting to stay in went up in flames. The fire at 267 East 202nd St. injured ten people and killed a family dog. FDNY initially said the cause of the fire was electrical, with a tenant’s air conditioner to blame. The home was left vulnerable, as no fire alarms were functioning. The fire marshal’s office is now conducting an investigation. News of the fire, resulting in the building deemed unlivable, complicates a bitter lawsuit filed by tenants who attempted

The 52nd Precinct and community members came together as one at the annual National Night Out Against Crime, a nationwide event intended to bring communities and police departments closer together. Check out photos at the August 2 event held at Poe Park in the Kingsbridge/Fordham section of the Bronx. [URIS id=21560]

State Says Park Reservoir Board Must Follow Mitchell-Lama Guidelines

By DAVID CRUZ

A state agency that oversees administrative decisions for Mitchell-Lama cooperatives has told the Board of Directors of Park Reservoir to comply with rules when it comes to changing management firms. The latest comes as a majority of board members for the Van Cortlandt Village complex seek to officially replace its longtime management company, Amalgamated Housing Cooperatives, at a board meeting scheduled Sept. 11. The letter could delay the vote, resulting in board members starting its vetting process all over again and giving supporters of Amalgamated more time to hammer out any differences. In a two-page letter obtained by the Norwood News, the

By DAVID CRUZ

Jose Cotto, living a seemingly solitary life on Decatur Avenue for the last several years, replays the circumstances leading to his mother’s death, Santa Torres, at a hospital in the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. She died June 6, 2014, a day after undergoing simple surgery on a fractured hip from a fall while seeing her daughter in Puerto Rico. But after receiving several multiple doses of morphine Torres, 89, passed away from a heart attack. Torres’ main residence was in the Bronx. Living with her son for several years, the two were inseparable. These days, the apartment she lived in

This week we asked readers their thoughts on the recent shootings of police officers and black men across the country. I believe that no matter what race, religion or sexuality, we are all at the end of the day human. Racism has always been a big issue in this society. We shouldn’t harm or hate one another just because we are different from each other. I personally believe if we stopped this nonsense and just accept the fact that that we’re all different, but at the same time we all still breathe, eat and feel the same things, then maybe

By ADRIANNA LOMBARDO

A quintet of musicians forming the Bardekova Ensemble put on a free performance at the Poe Park Visitors Center in Fordham on July 10. The music troupe is a non-profit organization funded through the Bronx Council of the Arts. They bring free or low priced concerts to the Bronx community, an area lacking in music performances when compared to the rest of the city. These free concerts are open to the public. Members from the Bardekova Ensemble have performed with members of the New York Philharmonic and the Metropolitan Opera. Members of the Bardekova Ensemble include Richard Parately (flute), Akari

With more than 2,300 housing violations and a muddled reputation, the time had come for New York City’s worst landlord to take his place on the hot seat. Ved Parkash, long dubbed the worst landlord in New York City by the Public Advocate’s annual worst landlord’s watchlist, finally met with some of his residents in a Q&A forum at the Concourse House at 196th Street and the Grand Concourse in Bedford Park on July 12. For his part, Parkash sat in the center by his lonesome, left to answer tough questions from raging tenants. The Parkash Tenant Coalition, a