Op-Ed: One Year Later, US Response to Hurricane Maria Abysmal

Neighborhood Notes: Free Immigration Service

By FERNANDO CABRERA

Not since Hurricane Katrina have we seen the U.S. government fail so miserably in addressing a domestic humanitarian crisis as it has in the U.S. Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. A full six months after Hurricane Maria made landfall in Puerto Rico on Sept. 20, 2017, ravaging the island, our federal government continued dragging its feet in providing relief to rebuild Puerto Rico’s most basic infrastructure functioning and reliable electricity, healthcare, operational schools, bridges, roads and reliable communications. These aren’t luxuries; they are basic necessities for any community to jumpstart its own economy, generate and maintain jobs, and restore a sense of

Petitioners Gather Support for Elevator at Mosholu Train Station

By DAVID CRUZ

Ahead of the MTA Board meeting on Sept. 26, petitioners pushing for the installation of an elevator at the Mosholu Parkway No. 4 station stood outside the station just over a week before the meeting to collect signatures. The plan is to present the signatures at the meeting in downtown Manhattan. Jason Caraballo, a manager at Montefiore Health System’s Office of Community & Government Relations, broached the subject with straphangers during the evening rush. Caraballo teamed up with Frederic Klein, an employee at Assemblyman Jeff Dinowitz’s office, and Kenny Agusto from Sen. Jamaal Bailey’s office. The petition gathering is part

A Career Change Later a Bedford Park Bakery Opens

By JOSEPH KONIG

Angel Espinal opened Confectionaires, a new bakery at 2961 Webster Ave. and Bedford Park Boulevard, on Aug. 11. For Espinal, the bakery — which serves up a wide-ranging menu of fresh baked pastries, cakes, breads and coffee — is a second career of sorts. After nine years in the personal training industry, Espinal found a new passion in the cake-making business. “What attracted me was the artistry of the pastries,” Espinal said. “I would go into the nice bakeries, Bouchon Bakery, Maison Kayser, Dominique Ansel. It was like they were selling art that you can eat. I always had a

Teen Talk The 52nd Precinct is inviting children ages 12 to 18 to share their concerns on bullying, gangs, drugs, and domestic violence/teen dating over free McDonalds burgers and fries at a date that’s to be determined. Anyone interested can call the precinct’s Community Affairs Unit and speak to Police Officer Crystal Reveron at (718) 220-5824 for more information and to reserve a spot. Resource Expo The Bronx Library Center, 310 E. Kingsbridge Rd., is hosting the annual Resource & Career Expo on Sept. 14 from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Employers in the retail, manufacturing, security and law enforcement,

By DAVID CRUZ

Prosecutors have now charged a fourteenth Trinitarios suspect in the killing of a 15-year-old in Belmont which sparked citywide outrage throughout the summer. Frederick Then, 19, of Reading, PA, faces a litany of charges including second-degree murder, first-degree manslaughter, and second-degree conspiracy, in the killing of Lesandro “Junior” Guzman-Feliz. Junior was stabbed outside a Bronx bodega on June 20 by a group of men. His killing was caught on surveillance video, prompting outrage over the brutality of his death. “The defendant, along with 13 others already indicted, allegedly plotted an act of violence with members of the “Los Sures” set

By DAVID GREENE

This week we asked readers what they think about the city’s plan to expand the speed camera program that places cameras with radar detection around public schools, increasing the number from 140 to 290 locations. It doesn’t matter. I mean, people are going to drive any way they want. But around schools, personally I would drive the speed limit and just speed up afterwards. I don’t think it will change anything. People are going to do anything they want to do at the moment. They make laws for different reasons. If you’re passing a school you shouldn’t be speeding, that’s

Mary Vallati was honored with a street renaming just outside where she lived. Now, those who knew Vallati will tell you she was a person with a real love for the community up until the time she passed away last year. At 102 years old, almost 40 years after the average age of retirement, Vallati continued volunteering her time for causes seen as vital to the community. She was there to hand out raffle tickets at 52nd Precinct Community Council gatherings, and doing her part sending mailers for upcoming Bedford Mosholu Community Association meetings. At 102 years old you can’t

At 76 years Old, Bedford Park Local in Fight for Better Quality of Life

By DAVID CRUZ

All Andrea Ortiz wants is peace and quiet. Sitting on her flowery couch in her fourth-floor one-bedroom apartment on Briggs Avenue, Ortiz is at her wits end, frustrated over the ongoing noise originating from her upstairs neighbor. But the problems didn’t just spring up this year, or the year before, but in February 2015, shortly after the sale of her building to The Related Cos., a multi-billion-dollar real estate firm that purchased a portfolio of properties with funds from the New York City Pension Fund. “From there, it’s been hell,” Ortiz said. Her only theory is that management is attempting

By PROF. ANTHONY RIVIECCIO, MBA, PFA

Yes, everyone wants that million dollar refund next year. But very few understand that it takes tax planning to execute your perfect tax return (and refund) for the following year. It’s like making a cake, right? To make a beautiful cake–in the evening–one must prepare and get the right ingredients in the morning. But wait. A new chef has been hired: President Donald Trump. And he created “new ingredients” for you to prepare your cake or tax return for next year. The 2017 Trump tax bill is not a tax reduction. It is not tax reform. It is, in my