State Senator Efrain Gonzalez’s bid to have his indictment dismissed has been denied by U.S. District Court Judge William H. Pauley III. Gonzalez’s co-defendant, Neil Berger, also failed in his effort to have his trial separated from that of Gonzalez and two other co-defendants, according to the U.S. attorney’s office. The trial will proceed as scheduled on Oct. 6.

•    Community Board 7 will have its general board meeting on Tuesday, Sept. 16 at 6:30 p.m. The location is to be determined. For more information, call (718) 933-5650. •    The Croton Facility Monitoring Committee will meet on Thursday, Sept. 18 at 7 p.m. The location is to be determined. For more information, call (718) 231-8470. •    The 52nd Precinct Community Council will meet on Thursday, Sept. 25 at 7:30 p.m. at the precinct, 3016 Webster Ave. For more information, call (718) 220-5824. •    The Northwest Bronx Community & Clergy Coalition will hold its monthly meeting Thursday, Sept. 4 at

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A pizza place that’s been a fixture on East 194th Street for almost three decades is closing on Sunday. Silvio and Maria DiMeglio, owners of the aptly named Silvio and Maria’s Pizza, say that they would have stayed longer, but their landlord decided to sell the property to a developer.

I read your report on Select Bus Service with great distress. When I learned about this new service, on June 23rd, and when I started experiencing this “select” service (does not “select” imply a choice?), I started a petition to the MTA to reinstate the stops on Fordham/Sedgwick. This is where Fordham Hill Oval Co-op is located, and where I have an apartment. Eventually, we the residents had a meeting at which representatives from Community Board 7 and the MTA, as well as local politicians were present.

In an otherwise informative news story about the Academy of Mount St. Ursula in your July 10-23 issue, the reporter seems a bit confused concerning the use of geographical terms in past centuries. He writes that in 1892, the Ursuline Sisters "acquired a plot of farmland in northwest Bronx County, an area now known as Bedford Park," on which they built the Academy. Actually, the name Bedford Park has been in continuous use since the 1870s. On the other hand, in 1892 there was no geographical area called "the Bronx" or "Bronx County"; the site of Mt St Ursula was in the City and County of New York. Between 1874 and 1898, the section of New York City lying north and east of the Harlem River was known as the "North Side" or the "Annexed District." Before 1874, all of this area was part of Westchester County.

Free GED and Business Courses The State University of New York’s North Bronx Career Center located at 3950 Laconia Ave., at East 224th Street, is now accepting applications for the fall semester. Classes offered are GED Prep and basic to advanced MOS Certification Computer classes. Free training in Business Office Technology (Word, Excel, PowerPoint), Job Readiness (Resume, Cover Letter, Interview Skills) and Pre-Certification Training in various careers (Child Care, Security, CNA and more). Students wishing to apply must meet state income and academic guidelines. This is an HRA approved program. Classes begin in September. To begin the application process or

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In a new administrative system, Maria Quail is still a familiar face. Quail, former principal of PS 8 Bedford Park, became a Network Leader last year as part of the Bloomberg administration’s new empowerment support system for New York City public schools. Every day, she arrives at the Learning Support Center on Zerega Avenue by 6:30 a.m. She answers her e-mail, and is out the door after 8 a.m., headed to one of the 28 schools under her direction.

When Mayor Bloomberg took control of the schools and did away with the Board of Education and local school boards in 2002, the newly-formed Department of Education created 10 large regions and implemented a series of changes, including parent coordinators, regional superintendents and the establishment of Community Education Councils. Two years ago, the schools went through another big restructuring. The 10 regions have been dissolved, and the system is again divided into 32 local district offices, with a community superintendent in charge of each.

The friendly cackles of the Vietnamese women in the open kitchen belie the utilitarian setup of World of Taste Seafood Deli and Vietnamese Food, a restaurant just north of St. James Park, right underneath the 4 train. Bright, airy and straightforward (the shiny steel kitchen and closed buffet of daily lunch specials are immediately to the left), there are definite touches of love and whimsy: the bright fuchsia orchid on top of the buffet, the swordfish hanging on display on the back wall and the dark leafy plants in the front window soaking up plenty of sun.