The Making of a Liberal Politician: Part I

Just 10 months into his new job as a state senator representing the northwest Bronx, Gustavo Rivera is a relative newcomer to elected office. But Rivera, a Puerto Rican native who moved to the Bronx 13 years ago, is not new to his party’s liberal ideology. He grew into it through years of study and an unexpected discovery during his early years in New York City.

Op-Ed: Looking Back on What Matters After 17 Years at Norwood News

In 1998, four years after I became editor of the Norwood News, I was staying at a bed-and-breakfast in Kingston, NY. After introducing myself to another guest at breakfast, l told him where I worked. He laughed and told me he previously worked at the School Construction Authority (SCA), which was then independent of the Board of Education. “We used to fear getting that paper in the mail every time it came out!” he said.

Huge Turnout for Muslim Holiday Event

Several hundred Norwood-area Muslims gathered in Williamsbridge Oval Park on Tuesday Aug. 30, to celebrate Eid al-Fitr, the holiday marking the end of Ramadan.

Cabrera Crusades for Prayer in 9/11 Memorial Service

Bronx City Councilman Fernando Cabrera is petitioning Mayor Bloomberg to include prayer in next week’s ceremony commemorating the 10th anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks — joining a chorus of the city’s religious leaders criticizing the mayor for excluding them from the memorial service.

DOE Announces 9/11 Curriculum

With the start of a new school year arriving just days before the 10th anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks, the Department of Education unveiled a new classroom curriculum last week to help students understand the history and emotional weight of the event.

Investment in Infrastructure Will Bring Jobs, Engel Says

As President Barack Obama prepares to deliver his much-hyped “jobs” speech this Thursday night, Bronx Congressman Eliot Engel says that investing in transportation construction is the key to creating more jobs.

Pedestrian Countdown Signals Installed On Concourse; Response to Injuries, Fatalities

A Concourse that is grand shouldn’t rack up nine fatalities and 411 pedestrian injuries in five years. But that’s the record of the borough’s most famous thoroughfare, which has prompted the city to identify a way to make Bronxites safer when crossing it.

Toxins Send PS 51 to Crotona

At a tense public hearing in late August, the Department of Education announced it will be moving Bedford Park elementary school PS 51, known as the Bronx New School, to a new building two miles south—the result of a discovery earlier this summer that its current site contains hazardous levels of a chemical toxin linked to cancer.

Corner Named for Fallen Traffic Agent

The northeast corner of East 188th Street and Webster Avenue will permanently be marked by tragedy. Earlier this month, the corner was conamed Donnette and Sean Sanz Place, in honor of a city traffic enforcement agent who was struck by a speeding van while seven months pregnant.