Inquiring Photographer

Neighborhood Notes: Free Immigration Service

By By DAVID GREENE

This week we asked readers if they believe the accuracy of the most current statewide jobless figure of 5.1 percent and whether these jobs pay enough for a person to pay their bills and grow into the job. I don’t think so. Maybe these jobs can pay a part of a month’s rent. I mean, I’m a college student. They’re not the kind of jobs you can sustain a life by yourself, but if you had a roommate or lived with family, it could help. A lot of these jobs seem like fast-food jobs. I’ve noticed that if you know

By WENDY JOAN BIDDLECOMBE

The long-abandoned two-family house at 3259 Decatur Ave., next to PS 56’s recess yard and considered an eyesore for nearly a decade, is once again legally reoccupied, but is far from fixed up. Elisabeth Von Uhl, a resident in the Norwood neighborhood, has been concerned for a while that the home is an unsafe property that could put school children in harm’s way. Like other neighbors, she’s called 311, and Von Uhl said she reached out to the police and wrote letters to local officials pleading they do something to address the neglected home. A tenant has moved in since

Editor’s Pick Elvis Is in the House The public is invited to go down memory lane with Elvis Presley in one of his best films, “Jailhouse Rock,” on Jan. 7 at 2:30 p.m. at The Bronx Library Center, 310 E. Kingsbridge Rd. For more information, call (718) 579-4244/46/57 or visit www.nypl.org. Onstage The Bronx Library Center, 310 E. Kingsbridge Rd.,

Dear Fellow Readers, The Norwood News, covering the Bronx, is out with its latest edition of the community newspaper, bringing you plenty of news you can use. We begin, of course, with page one, and a retrospective look at 2016, a year filled with plenty of tumult. We look back at some key stories that the Norwood News followed over the year, along with some departures and so longs. Moving ahead into 2017, we have a story on a proposal to revert Mosholu Parkway back to the days when six-story buildings were considered tall in the grassy neighborhood. Hear about one community

By DAVID CRUZ

Anthony Rivieccio, a community activist known to harangue developers chipping away at Bedford Park’s past and present, has a surefire way to stem development: restricting building size. That idea is already being examined by Community Board 7, which hired an urban planning consultant to gather testimonials on neighborhood needs, which appear to trend towards a more suburban-like setting. Her hiring was intended to follow up on a promise the New York City Department of City Planning made to the community in 2011, ensuring that it would revisit a proposal to downzone parts of Bedford Park, which include Mosholu Parkway, the

Toll attendants will be a thing of the past this year. The MTA is expected to roll out cashless tolls for the Bronx’s Whitestone and Throggs Neck bridges in Fall 2017, applying even for drivers who don’t use EZ-Pass to pay for a toll. Non-EZ-Pass drivers will have a bill mailed to them, a practice already in effect at the Henry Hudson Bridge. While non-EZ-Pass drivers pay the full rate, drivers with the tag get a reduced rate. Toll beaters will be subject to stiffer fines starting in February, according to Governor Andrew Cuomo’s Office.

Year in Review: A Retrospective Look Back at the Bronx in 2016

By DAVID CRUZ

Continuing a tradition established for at least five years, the Norwood News took a look back at its 25 editions it puts out every year to highlight stories that consistently stood in the main pages of the paper. These stories caused plenty of readers to pause and think. Among the recurring themes playing out in 2016 was development of Norwood, which continues to be a hot commodity for wary developers. The stories were among the three following categories: Armory The Norwood News opened 2016 with the front page headline, “Ice Project Thawing Out,” referring to the Kingsbridge National Ice Center

Public & Community Meetings

COMMUNITY BOARD 7 committee meetings are held on the following dates at the board office, 229 E. 204th St., at 6:30 p.m. unless otherwise noted: Executive Committee meets on Jan. 3; Public Safety & Quality of Life Committee meets on Jan. 5; and Education, Youth & Libraries Committee meets on Jan. 3 at 7:30 p.m. For more information, call (718) 933-5650. BEDFORD MOSHOLU COMMUNITY ASSOCIATION meets Wednesday, Jan. 4, at 8 p.m. at 400 E. Mosholu Pkwy. So. (Apt. B1). For more information, email the group at bedfordmosholu@verizon.net.

Bedford Park Tenants Fought the Good Fight, and Left Scattered

By DAVID CRUZ

For the four families who once lived at 267 E. 202nd St., the year of turmoil is over. After living through a year where they were nearly evicted from their home, battled their new landlord in court over repairs as a way to delay eviction proceedings, and ultimately forced out following a devastating three-alarm fire, the tenants have found new lodgings. They’ve also happened to settle their case against their landlord, Peter Fine. Fine, who was in the middle of being sued when the home broke out in flames over the summer, settled the cases with tenants for an undisclosed