City Issues Clarification on Open Storefronts Program

By SÍLE MOLONEY

As reported by Norwood News, New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio signed Emergency Executive Order 157, which created the Open Storefronts program on October 28, 2020. Open Storefronts is a free program that allows existing ground-floor storefront businesses to use a portion of the sidewalk and roadways to display merchandise, sell goods, and more from October 30 to December 31, 2020. On Nov. 12, the City issued some further guidance to clarify the situation regarding the program for existing Stoop Line Stand licensees. Stoop Line Stand licensee businesses can continue to operate under existing regulations, without participating in

By SÍLE MOLONEY

New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) Commissioner Basil Seggos announced on Nov. 13 the start of DEC’s annual Arbor Day Original Artwork poster contest. Arbor Day is a holiday in which individuals and groups are encouraged to plant trees. Each year, DEC’s Urban and Community Forestry Program commemorates Arbor Day with a poster contest that invites the public to submit original photos and artwork that celebrate the immeasurable value of trees—ecologically, environmentally, aesthetically, and socially. “Trees are a renewable resource that provide food, shelter, scenic beauty, and countless other benefits that enhance our quality of life,” Seggos

Councilman Fernando Cabrera Looks to Unseat AOC

By SÍLE MOLONEY

Councilman Fernando Cabrera is organizing a relief drive for victims of Hurricane Eta, which hit Honduras last week. The drive will take place on Monday, Nov. 16, 2020 at 9.30 a.m., at Bronx Community College, Hall of Fame Terrace. He will be joined by Bronx Community College leadership, Sociedad Hondurena Activa De New York, and the Sergeants Benevolent Association. “Our Honduran neighbors are many of the essential workers that kept New York and the Bronx going in the darkest days of COVID-19, taking risks that allowed others to continue going about their daily lives,” Cabrera said in

By SÍLE MOLONEY

Art students from Young Urban Christians & Artists Inc. (YUCA) will paint a mural on the winterization shack and pantry for the Mott Haven Community Refrigerator on Saturday, Nov. 14, 2020, at 11 a.m. at the intersection of 141st Street and Saint Ann’s Avenue in the Bronx. A rain date is scheduled for Saturday, Nov. 21. Created by two local sixth grade teachers, Daniel Zauderer and Charlotte Alvarez, in response to witnessing hunger among their students’ families, the Mott Haven Community Refrigerator is a freestanding outdoor refrigerator providing all community members with 24/7, no-questions-asked access to fresh food and other

By SÍLE MOLONEY

The FDNY confirm that a fire in a multiple dwelling was reported on Saturday, Nov. 7 at 1.21 p.m. at 3318 Bainbridge Avenue in the Norwood section of the Bronx. Three fire units responded and the fire was placed under control at 1.42 p.m. No injuries were reported. The cause of the fire is under investigation. Norwood News is following up with the FDNY on the cause of the fire.

Police Athletic League Hosts Bronx Fall “Street Games” Event on Nov. 7

By SÍLE MOLONEY

New York City kids aged ten to seventeen years of age are invited to join in some outdoor sports as part of a new “Street Games” program organized by the Police Athletic League (PAL), which will be visiting each borough throughout the fall. PAL is the first civilian-run police athletic league in the country. Founded in 1914, it has served the city’s young people for over 100 years. It provides recreational, educational, cultural and social activities to 20,000 boys and girls annually. The league’s representatives hope that by participating in basketball skills and drills, old-fashioned dodgeball, double-dutch jump

By JOSÉ A. GIRALT

A typical work schedule for Emelia Dokyi Negron consists of leaving her home in Fordham Heights for three weeks and working as a caregiver in Hamden, CT. She returns to her home in the Bronx for a week before starting the cycle again. That was before the pandemic and travel restrictions were implemented. Now, Negron, 52, has spent months working in Hamden with only a single four-day break in August to visit her family in the Bronx. For her work as a live-in caregiver during the pandemic, that has been described as “above and beyond” the call of

By David Greene

Residents of Pelham Parkway say a man visiting “the old neighborhood” was shot and killed as he exited a Halloween party on Barnes Avenue in the Pelham Parkway section of the Bronx on Sunday morning. According to police, the as-yet-unidentified, 36-year-old man was shot in the neck and chest outside of 2143 Barnes Avenue at 1:43 a.m. in the 49th precinct on Sunday, Nov. 1. He was found unconscious and unresponsive when police arrived at the scene. EMS also responded to the incident and the victim was rushed to Jacobi Medical Center where he was pronounced deceased. Police said

By SÍLE MOLONEY

The New York Urban League and its partners invite community-based organizations (CBOs) to apply for a NYC Council Communities of Color Nonprofit Stabilization Fund (CCNSF) grant by the new extended deadline of Nov. 6, 2020 at 5 p.m. The New York City Council established the Communities of Color Nonprofit Stabilization Fund (CCNSF) in recent years and has allocated $2.5 million to award grants to support Black, Latino, and Asian-led community-based organizations throughout New York City’s five boroughs. The first New York City Council fund of its kind, CCNSF aims to build the capacity of New York City nonprofits