At Public Hearing, Bronx Housing Groups Blast Officials Over Housing Plan

An overwhelming number of Bronx residents vented frustrations over Mayor Bill de Blasio’s Housing New York initiative at a hearing over the plan, tying it to gentrification and framing their plight as a struggle between haves and have-nots. Hundreds packed the pews at the hearing, an optional public forum organized by the Bronx Borough President’s Office, and separate of the city’s Uniform Land Use Review Procedure (ULURP) on Housing New York. The plan, touted by Mayor Bill de Blasio since May 2014, seeks to build 80,000 affordable units while preserving 120,000 already built apartments across the city. That will happen

To our faithful readers, The latest edition of the Norwood News is out and hitting the stands as we write, with plenty (and we do mean plenty) of community news you can use. We go to the epicenter of Norwood, Williamsbridge Oval Park, where football practice has to be cut short for one club that’s working on its plays without any adequate lights. Requests from club organizers have gone unchecked. Read how no lights is impacting their game. We also delve into a growing trend that’s happening across the Bronx: priced out commercial tenants. For rent signs are popping up

By DAVID CRUZ

In the decades since Tom opened his Kingsbridge business, things had always been profitable and quiet. That was until last year when his landlord denied him his regularly five-year lease extension. Tom asked his last name be kept confidential for fear of retribution from his landlord who’s dangled month-to-month lease over his head. “My future’s uncertain there,” said Tom. He’s since refocused his attention on kick starting his restaurant business in nearby Westchester County, where small businesses are welcomed, he noted. Along Kingsbridge Road, a commercial area home to small businesses, many stores have maintained a holding pattern as the

By DAVID CRUZ

Businesses lining the commercial corridor on Bainbridge Avenue between East 205th and East 208th streets will receive cleaning services through a nonprofit agency that helps to beautify the neighborhoods. “When I got elected, the number one issue people in this district complained about are the quality of life issues,” said Councilman Andrew Cohen, who represents the 11th Council District, which covers Norwood. His support to improve the Norwood strip came in the form of a $65,000 council grant for Fedcap, a Bronx based workforce agency. Under Fedcap is the WildCat Service Corp., which runs the Neighborhood Improvement Program. The service

Editor’s Pick: Tour de Bronx The Bronx Tourism Council and the Office of the Bronx Borough President invite the public to the 21st Annual Tour de Bronx, to bike ride 25 or 40 miles and explore Bronx neighborhoods, historic districts, and beautiful waterfronts, Oct. 25, ending at the New York Botanical Garden, with live music and light snacks. Check in at 9 a.m. at the Bronx County Building, 851 Grand Concourse (161st Street). The Department of Transportation will fit and distribute free bicycle helmets from 8 a.m. to noon while supplies last. Riders must sign a waiver. Participants 17 or younger

By DAVID CRUZ

Community news is alive and well here at the Norwood News, serving up another edition filled with plenty of community news you can use. We take you to Bedford Park first and speculation surrounding investment speculation on Webster Avenue that’s revolving around a tiny piece of property currently occupied by the US Postal Service. Reporter William Mathis digs up what is happening at the post office that’s making residents worry. Going inside the award-winning newspaper, and a story on the Norwood News crunching some numbers on the number of 311 complaints Community Board 7 has logged. The results surprised us. And this

By WILLIAM MATHIS

The future of the post office at 2963 Webster Ave. remains uncertain, thanks to a recent new buyer who’s been in the business of developing luxury housing. Questions still languish over whether the post office will stay open despite assurance from high-ranking officials at the United States Postal Service (USPS) over its intention to stay. Back in 2009 the branch was put on a potential closure list due to USPS budget cuts. However, the community rallied behind the branch to successfully keep it open. Now, the post office is threatened by potential development plans from the property’s new owner. The

By DAVID CRUZ

Greetings, loyal readers! As expected, the digital edition of the Norwood News is out with, as you guessed it: Plenty of Community News You Can Use! We begin with a story that’s 25 years in the making: pilot access to the Jerome Park Reservoir, long a source of majesty for the Bronx, yet only experienced by a handful. Advocates are pushing, step by step, to grant access to parkgoers who have yearned to take a stroll around the man-made reservoir. Worth a read from our own Adedamola Agboola. Inside, you’ll find a story 76 years in the making: the closing of Freilich

This week we asked readers their thoughts on a proposal to raise the New York State minimum wage to $15 per hour for all hourly workers by 2021 (in the city, the $15 wage would take effect in 2018). It should be $15 an hour, but they’re talking about raising it to $10 [by Dec. 31 of this year]. People can’t live on that. So they really should get off their butts and try and help us out a little bit more. Chris Gardella Bedford Park I like it; they should do it all at once. It shouldn’t