Norwood Sounds Off on Congestion Pricing

By EMILY SUZANNE LEVER

Only five percent of Norwood residents commute by car into Manhattan below 60th Street and so would be affected by an impending congestion pricing toll, according to an analysis of census data by the Tri-State Transportation Commission (TSTC), a nonprofit focused on public transit. In other parts of the northwest Bronx, that number is closer to three percent, the report said. But some residents told the Norwood News they were against the measure even if it would not affect them personally, saying it amounted to squeezing poor people. “It’s an abuse. They need to stop raising the prices on everything,”

Norwood Okays Projects With a Stroke of a Pen Thanks to PB

By DAVID CRUZ

Inside tower one at Tracey Towers, volunteers man a small table inside the lobby. It’s the day before Participatory Budgeting—an initiative that allows residents within a Council District to decide how $1 million in capital funds should be used—and some tenants stop to make their voices heard on paper. It’s the afternoon of April 4, and Delores Edwards and Evelyn McDonald, lure some familiar faces to complete ballots featuring the list of Participatory Budget projects residents spent months hammering out. The projects would impact the neighborhood, part of the 11th Council District that’s represented by Councilman Andrew Cohen. For the

Free Bird Walk Tours Free bird walks are offered every Saturday beginning at 9 a.m. from April 27 through July 20 at the Van Cortlandt Nature Center. Bird watchers can look for various species of residents and migrants and discuss a wide range of avian topics. For more information, email Joseph McManus at mcmnaus638@aol.com. No registration necessary. No limit. Free thanks to grant by Councilman Andrew Cohen. Summer Youth Police Academy Young people between the ages of 10 and 15 can sign up to train with police officers at the Summer Youth Police Academy. The program is free, runs five

DON’T MISS THE Spring Egg Hunt at Williamsbridge Oval, the highly-anticipated yearly event, on April 20 (see Editor’s Pick for more details). File Photo Editor’s Pick Egg Hunt at the Oval The public is invited to a free spring egg hunt at the Williamsbridge Oval on April 20 from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Activities include the egg hunt, sack races, arts and crafts, carnival games, visit from the bunny, and more. Please bring a can of food for donation to local pantry. For more information, visit nyc.gov/parks. Onstage Williamsbridge Oval presents free theatre, Shakespeare’s “The Tempest,” in the Rec

Bronx BP Blasts NYCHA for Evicting Newly Elderly Tenant

By DAVID CRUZ

In a continued rebuke against the New York City Housing Authority, Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr. lashed out at the beleaguered agency for kicking out a senior citizen tenant from his apartment for not paying his rent while he was recuperating from a leg amputation elsewhere. But hours after Diaz’s news conference, NYCHA is slated to reinstate the tenant. “He’s a good tenant,” said Diaz at a news conference April 11, calling NYCHA out for evicting Bienvenido Martinez, a 72-year-old resident at NYCHA’s Union Avenue Consolidation, a nine-story residential building, in Longwood for the last 14 years. Martinez was

Latest Edition of the Norwood News is Out!

By DAVID CRUZ

Dear Fellow Readers, The year’s eighth edition of the Norwood News with plenty of community news you can use. We’ve packed 20 pages full of great stories impacting the Bronx. And as usual, we’ll begin with page one! Our front-page story looks at the contentious issue of bringing another high school into the DeWitt Clinton Campus. Students and staffers of DeWitt Clinton High School oppose the decision by the New York City Department of Education. Jose A. Giralt was there for a hearing where there was more opposition than support. Find out why this is happen at a critical point in

Neighborhood Notes: Free Immigration Service

By ALONDRA VASQUEZ

Bronx Parks Preservation Grant The Bronx River Alliance, along with the New York Botanical Garden and the Bronx Zoo, is getting extra help preserving the woodsy Bronx Parks forest through an in-kind grant by the Natural Areas Conservancy (NAC) nonprofit. NAC will offer consulting on forest management, expert knowledge, materials, training and long-term planning. Maggie Scott Greenfield, executive director of the Bronx River Alliance said the group will work in “harmonious partnership to protect, improve and restore the Bronx River corridor.” An NAC report found that the city’s forests are exposed to many threats including invasive plants, dumping, and unauthorized

SEE IT: Suspects Wanted in Beating of 17-Year-Old in Norwood

By DAVID CRUZ

It’s been nearly a month since police got a report of a 17-year-old boy beaten with the very same bat two suspects wanted for the attack stole, and now they need the public’s help. Police say it happened at the Montefiore Medical Center visitor parking garage at 3325 Rochambeau Ave. by East 210th Street on March 12. Police released video of the incident on April 9, showing an image of the two suspects. Police say the victim got into an argument with the two suspects before he was attacked. The victim was taken to Jacobi Medical Center and was listed

Parking. Rent. Congestion Pricing. Topics Explored at Norwood Town Hall

By JOSEPH KONIG

Fresh off passing the state budget in Albany this week, legislators returned to their districts to laud their successes and discuss their next moves at a town hall specifically geared for Norwood residents. State Sen. Jamaal Bailey, Assembly Members Nathalia Fernandez and Jeffrey Dinowitz, joined Councilman Andrew Cohen in getting those ideas out. Guests in the Cherkasky Auditorium submitted questions covering everything from the plastic bag ban (Dinowitz: “We didn’t need them 35 years ago, we don’t need them today.”), to parking, congestion pricing and marijuana legalization (Bailey: “Conversations continue to be ongoing… my main concern with legalization is impacted