Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie Holds Christmas Celebration in Williamsbridge

By SÍLE MOLONEY & MIRIAM QUIÑONES

New York State Assembly Speaker Carl E. Heastie, in conjunction with Bridgefield Civic League Inc., hosted a Christmas Celebration at the league’s center at 3551 Laconia Avenue in Williamsbridge on Thursday, Dec. 16, 2021. The event featured a toy giveaway, food & drinks, games, story time and general entertainment for the local community. It was supported by NYC Health & Hospitals Test & Trace Corps, Metro Plus Health Plan, Gloria Bent, registered dietician and nutritionist, and author, Harlem Holiday, among other volunteers. Speaking to Norwood News at the event, Bent said, “The holiday season is a season for giving,

By SÍLE MOLONEY & MIRIAM QUIÑONES

The folks at Transportation Alternatives Bronx Activist Committee, headed up by Kevin Daloia, held their annual, novel, festive bike ride around the borough on Thursday, Dec. 16, in the lead up to the year-end holidays, all in an effort to spread some much-needed holiday cheer and spirit, amid the then-latest wave of coronavirus infections caused by the omicron variant. Volunteers saddled up, dressed in festive outfits and took a late bike ride around some of the various tree-lighting displays in Belmont and Morris Park, before finishing up at Metropolitan Circle in Parkchester. The event kicked off at Poe Park, at

By SÍLE MOLONEY

Bronx Assembly Member Nathalia Fernández (A.D. 80) and her team held one of several toy giveaways which were organized by various elected officials, local community groups and police precincts, in the lead up to the holidays. The event which was held on Friday, Dec. 17, 2021, was for children in the local Norwood and Bedford Park areas, and included special guest, Santa Clause. The event was held outside Lexa Express, located at 347 East 204th Street in Norwood, and the assemblywoman said she and her team of volunteers rushed to start the giveaway early, such was the line of

By SÍLE MOLONEY

Lionsgate Studios has officially opened a 500,000 sq ft film and television, production studio in downtown Yonkers, located just 5.8 miles from Norwood, The Bronx, as reported by YIMBY. The property is located on the shores of the Hudson River and is the latest component of an expanding production campus that will soon be the largest of its kind in the Northeast region, according to YIMBY. The builder and manager of the $500 million campus is Great Point Studios, an investment and development group led by Hallmark Channel founder, Robert Halmi, and media investment banker, Fehmi Zeko. Today,

EDITOR’S PICK Ballet Folklórico de México de Amalia Hernandez, which is celebrating its 70th anniversary this year, will perform at The Lehman Center for the Performing Arts on Sunday, Feb. 20, at 4 p.m. The company’s US tour in Fall 2018 was a coast-to-coast success, packing out houses across the country and receiving an enthusiastic response from audience members new and old. Founded in 1952 by dancer and choreographer Amalia Hernández, Ballet Folklórico brings together the music, dance and costume of Mexican folklore from pre-Colombian civilizations through the modern era. For tickets, go to: https://mpv.tickets.com/?agency=LEHV_PL_MPV&orgid=54429&pid=8975819#/event/8975819. EVENTS Discover NYBG GLOW

By SÍLE MOLONEY

The New York City Police Department announced on Dec. 30, a number of street closures, outlined further below, related to the New Year’s Eve celebration in Times Square. Street closures and parking restrictions are expected to cause traffic delays, and NYPD officials said the use of public transportation is highly recommended. Beginning at 4 a.m. on Friday, Dec. 31, Times Square will be closed to vehicular traffic. At approximately 3 p.m. attendees will be directed by police officers to gather in separate viewing sections. When one section reaches capacity, people will be directed to the next viewing section. As

By SÍLE MOLONEY

It was an extra happy Christmas Day for someone. The New York Lottery announced on Saturday, Dec. 25, that one second-prize ticket was sold in the Bronx for the Dec. 24, Cash4Life drawing. The ticket is worth a guaranteed $1,000 a week, for life. The lucky ticket was purchased at Throgs Neck Petro LLC, located at 4147 Throggs Neck Expressway in the Throggs Neck section of the borough. The winning numbers for the Cash4Life game are drawn from a field of one to 60. The Cash ball is drawn from a separate field of one to four. The

By SÍLE MOLONEY

The New York Lottery announced on Friday, Dec. 17, that there were multiple, top-prize winning tickets sold for the Dec. 16, TAKE 5 drawing. The tickets were sold in The Bronx, East Aurora, and Manhattan, at the following locations: Layton Avenue Food Corp, located at 3201 Layton Avenue in Country Club section of the Bronx, which sold one prize-winning ticket, worth $14,004.50 Tops Markets #118 located at 65 Grey Street in East Aurora which sold one prize-winning ticket, worth $14,004.50 163 Liquors Store Inc located at 2001 Amsterdam Avenue in Manhattan, which sold one prize-winning ticket, worth $14,004.50 TAKE

By SÍLE MOLONEY

There was plenty of holiday cheer to be had on Mosholu Parkway and Bainbridge Avenue on Tuesday, Dec. 7, as the annual, holiday, tree-lighting event, organized by Bronx Community Board 7 (CB7) and Friends of Mosholu Parkland (FOMP), made a welcome return. Amid the ongoing pandemic, and prior to the COVID-19 vaccination roll-out, last year’s tree-lighting event was carried out discreetly, with no formal gathering. This year, the event which took place on the Bedford Park/Norwood border, where masks were required, saw about 200 people gather in front of a large stage set-up specifically for the occasion. They