As New York City grapples with a spike in major crimes, New York State Assembly Member Michael R. Benedetto announced today that he was able to secure a sizeable $320,000 grant to secure NYPD Argus cameras for the Throggs Neck Commercial Corridor. The monies came at the request of the Throggs Neck Business Improvement District as local merchants seek to safeguard their community and provide a pleasant shopping experience in a safe environment. This funding builds on Benedetto’s past safety efforts, funding cameras for both Westchester Square in 2009 and Co-op City in 2021.
The funding will provide for a number of cameras to be installed along East Tremont Avenue, between Bruckner Boulevard and Harding Avenue, where the Throggs Neck Business Improvement District operates. The cameras, called “Argus” from Greek mythology, referring to a giant with a hundred eyes. The technology will be installed and monitored by the New York City Police Department (NYPD). The police will select locations based on crime patterns and statistics for the area. Due to the sensitive nature of the locations, they will not be publicly identified.
“I live off the Throggs Neck commercial strip and, of course, my district office where I do most of my work is on East Tremont Avenue,” said Assembly Member Benedetto. “Over the past few years, we’ve seen tremendous growth of our small businesses here, becoming the ‘Restaurant Row’ of the Bronx. Customers and business owners have a shared interest in public safety and I hope these cameras can provide peace of mind to patrons as they spend their money right here in our local economy,”
“One of New York’s, and our community’s, greatest concerns is public safety. Both Assembly Member Michael Benedetto and the Throggs Neck BID have acted vigorously to address this exceptional need. The BID identified anti-crime cameras as an effective means to improve the safety of the neighborhood. Assembly Member Benedetto responded rapidly to provide the full funding needed to accomplish this extraordinary project. Working together, we will make this area of NYC the safest place to live, shop, and do business,” said Bob Jaen, Executive Director, Throggs Neck Business Improvement District.
For Assembly Member Benedetto, this funding helps to address some of his constituents' longstanding concerns about public safety. He has long fought for a holistic criminal justice approach, funding CureViolence programs to tougher gun control laws to behavioral health and diversion programs giving young adults a second chance at life if they falter early on. He believes the cameras will go a long way to address safety in the area.
“I appreciate the job our 45th Precinct police officers do for us but they are historically under-resourced. We have a handful of police cars out patrolling the second-largest precinct in the entire City. That’s where these cameras will come in, they’ll provide another set of eyes on our well-trafficked areas and free up some of our police officers to address other outstanding community issues,” said Benedetto.
The Business Improvement District hopes that construction of the cameras will begin within the next year.
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