100 PERCENT
By Robert Press
State of The City
Before I get into the State of The City speech by Mayor Bill de Blasio, we should find out just who will be running in the 17th City Council Special Election on Tuesday morning starting at 10 AM. That is when the Board of Elections will begin hearing arguments as to why or why not any of the 10 candidates that were challenged will remain on the ballot. As I said last week I expect no more than five candidates to remain on the ballot. It seems that unlike in past elections (the 2009 14th City Council race to be specific) the campaign manager of candidate Fernando Cabrera keep on the ballot candidate Yudelka Tapia who then took enough votes away from the incumbent Councilwoman Maria Baez to give candidate Fernando Cabrera the victory. In the 17th City Council Special Election it seems that the same Campaign Manager in this race for the Bronx Democratic County organization candidate Rafael Salamanca wants to knock off the ballot a certain candidate who could be the Yudelka Tapia in this race in 2016. Then again the campaign manager has gotten older, and lost a few elections since 2009. That was the reason I have called candidate Julio Pabon and not the Bronx Democratic County organization candidate the favorite to win the 17th City Council Special Election.
Speaking of the City Council they voted themselves a 38 percent pay raise yesterday, and while you may say that is to big a pay raise it has been ten years since the last pay raise for the council members. It is to bad that every other city employee did not get the same 38 percent pay raise over the last ten years, just ask any police officer.
As for the State of The City Speech by Mayor Bill deBlasio, was it just the luck of the Bronx that the mayor gave it at Lehman College, or was the mayor trying to send a message to Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr. who has been named as a potential primary challenger to the mayor in 2017. I did not attend Mayor deBlasio's State of The City Speech, as I was doing my duty as a member of Bronx Community Board #8 by attending a very important Land Use Committee meeting. By the way the Land Use Committee of CB 8 voted to reiterate its rejection of both the MIH and ZQA proposals submitted to the City Council, and urged the members of the city council to also reject both. There was discussion that the public and community boards do not have enough time to hold public hearing (such as before), and why the City Council which has fifty days to hold hearings is rushing the process in just one week.
As a member of Bronx Community Board #8 I am up for reappointment this year (my sixth year on BXCB 8), and have been told by two different supporters of 17th City Council candidate Rafael Salamanca who are members of the Bronx Democratic County organization that I had better watch what I write about the Bronx Democratic County organization candidate in the 17th City Council Special Election since I am up for reappointment to BXCB 8.
Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr. will be giving his State of The Borough Address on Thursday Feb. 18, 2016 starting at 11:30 AM, at Cardinal Hayes High School located at 650 Grand Concourse. You can call 718-590-6116 to reserve your seat as space is very limited.
Lastly I dusted off my crystal ball for a Super Bowl prediction. My crystal ball had a victory by Carolina 27 - 13 over Denver.
If you have any political information (especially about the 17th City Council special election) that you want to share or have checked out, any comments about this column or would like to have an event listed or covered in this column or on this blog, you can e-mail us at 100percentbronxnews@gmail.com or call 718-644-4199 Mr. Robert Press.
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