Merchants Honor City’s Finest, Bravest and Strongest

High honors went out to members of the NYPD, FDNY and Department of Sanitation for their efforts in improving the quality of life along Wakefield’s bustling commercial spur. They were honored Friday, Jan. 31 by the Mosholu Preservation Corporation and East 233rd Street/White Plains Road Merchants Association, thanking the agencies for promoting safety and cleanliness along the commercial spur while forging team efforts. Holding up awards are members of the NYPD, FDNY, DSNY and EMS. Photo courtesy Mosholu Preservation Corporation

Business Beat – The Brains Behind the Jerome-Gun Hill BID

by DAVID CRUZ Editor’s Note: The Norwood News has brought back Business Beat, a feature spotlighting business-related stories with the captain of the industry in mind. If you have a business-related story idea, please call (718) 324-4998 or email the Editor-in-Chief, David Cruz, at dcruz@norwoodnews.org. In the eclectic tailspin of Jerome Avenue and Gun Hill Road, where the rumble of the elevated 4 subway mixes with sounds of foot traffic, shopping bags and cash registers, an economic force has spent years fine-tuning the shopping strip. Behind it is a Jamaican-born businesswoman who sought the American dream. She’s Marcia Cameron, executive

by David Cruz Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr. pegged himself as a job creator and economic development booster in his first gathering with his new fellow heads of borough at a forum sponsored by Crain’s New York Business. Diaz Jr. arrived as the more experienced borough president in the city these days, as his fellow BP’s have just begun their tenure as their respective borough’s chief executive.

Endless Construction at Bedford Pk. Building

By MICHAEL BROWN JR. “Expected Occupancy Summer 2014,” reads the sign at a Bedford Park building.

Free After-School Journalism Program in the Bronx (Applications Due Friday!)

Above is a link to an interview with me, Bronx Youth Heard Director and Norwood News Editor Alex Kratz, and Lehman High School student Adonis Jimenez for a Bronx 2.0 segment that aired on Bronxnet in February. Everything I talk about in that segment remains true. Bronx Youth Heard is a fantastic program for students interested in journalism or who love to write or who want to have impact on their communities and think (like we do) that journalism is a way to make that happen.

Fordham Plaza Another Piece of BID’s Puzzle

The Bronx’s biggest Business Improvement District (BID) is about to get bigger. The Fordham Road BID is currently under negotiations to expand its territory to cover 1 Fordham Plaza, the giant building with eye-catching blue windows located on one end of Fordham Plaza.

Messier Becomes Face of Armory Ice Complex

In 1994, when Mark Messier helped lead the New York Rangers to the team’s first Stanley Cup title in 54 years, he was given the loftiest of nicknames: “The Messiah.” Now, after recently becoming the CEO of the Kingsbridge National Ice Center, which is poised to open inside the Kingsbridge Armory in 2017 as the largest ice sports complex in the world, he may need a new nickname: The Messenger.

Attention Aspiring Young Writers and Journalists, Bronx Youth Heard is Now Accepting Applications (Due: Sept. 23)

Bronx Youth Heard is a free, after-school journalism program for Bronx high schools students. It starts on Sept. 26 and runs for 12 weeks. Find out how to become a part of the program and download your application today.

Vacant Bainbridge Ave. Fire Lot Begins to Take Shape

As the structure on the corner of Bainbridge Avenue and East 204th Street slowly comes to life, more details are emerging about what will replace the retail strip that burned down in a horrific Halloween morning fire back in 2009.