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Mayor Cautions As Another Storm Hits The Bronx

The rain has turned to snow here in the northwest Bronx and elsewhere in the region this afternoon and it might not stop until 3 a.m., according to the National Weather Service. Combined with winds that could reach close Sandy levels of 30-50 miles per hour, city officials are advising people to take “significant precautions.” Here’s an alert the mayor’s office sent out earlier today:

No Surprises in Local Election Results as Democrats Sweep the Bronx

You may have heard that President Barack Obama won re-election late last night. That wasn’t a huge surprise to Bronx Democrats who supported him. It also won’t surprise you to know that Democrats swept every state election in the Bronx unless you consider that two candidates in the borough — state senators Ruben Diaz Sr. (32nd District) and Jeff Klein (34th District) — ran, and won, on both the Democratic and Republican tickets.

Election Day Dispatches: ‘Zen’ Gustavo Rivera Talks Obama and Upstate Races

Looking like a dapper G-Man straight from the cast of the “Untouchables” — dark suit, long dark trench coat and fedora pulled down low — State Senator Gustavo Rivera walked into PS 86 in Kingsbridge Heights to vote. I asked him if he was nervous about election day. Not so much about his own race, which pits him against Conservative/Republican Michael E. Walters, who received 6 percent of the vote in 2010 against State Senator Ruben Diaz Sr. But more about his party’s candidate for president, Barack Obama.

Election Day Dispatches: Heat and Long Lines at JHS 80

Poll site JHS 80, which is poll site number X0037, located on 149 East Mosholu Parkway, had about 35 people waiting on line to vote. Robert Cruz, a recent voter, is disappointed with the process of voting this site presented him with. He said he waited nearly an hour to be able to vote in a cafeteria lacking air ventilation. “Waiting almost an hour can discourage people from voting,” he says.

Election Day Dispatches: Van Cortlandt Village

This morning, my wife Tessa, amazingly, woke up early and dutifully fulfilled her mission of voting soon after the polls opened, at 6 a.m., inside the Kingsbridge Heights Rehabilitation Center on Cannon Place, just a block from where we live. When she returned, she deposited our 21-month-old daughter into bed with me (to “snug-oh”) and reported that there was about 10 people waiting in line. But it moved swiftly, she said, and the machines worked perfectly fine.

Last-Minute NW Bronx Voting Guide

We’ll post some election day links and check in at some polling sites in the northwest Bronx throughout the day. But first, some need-to-know info on this election day. Good luck to everyone, especially those attempting to participate while overcoming storm-related obstacles.

Afternoon Fire Breaks Out at Historic Bronx Theater

Firefighters are continuing to monitor a fire that broke out this afternoon at the historic Loew’s Paradise Theater on the Grand Concourse. While the blaze is mostly under control, fire officials say they want to make sure it isn’t roaming inside the theater’s walls.