Bronx Borough President Vanessa L. Gibson - Community Resources & Updates

 

Dear Neighbor,

We want to thank everyone who participated in this year`s Bronx Week festivities! Many of you joined us last year as we celebrated the 51st anniversary of Bronx Week, and each year, we set out to make it bigger and better than the last.

From our Bronx Week Press Conference launch at the new Chase Community Center to our Labor Leaders Breakfast, Bankers Breakfast, Silent Disco, Health Day, Veterans Appreciation Luncheon, Centenarian Celebration, BX Factor Competition, and our Grand Finale Concert, Food and Arts Festival, and Parade - we are showing the rest of the city why we are exceptional, and why our borough is the best place to live, work, visit, and raise your family. However, our team could not do this work without you and without our amazing sponsors!

We hope you will also join us on Thursday, May 23rd, for our CCNY Studio Award Ceremony at Bronx Borough Hall and our 2nd Annual Prom Dress Giveaway Event on Friday, May 24th, at 730 Concourse Village West. Additional information on these events can be found in this week`s newsletter.

Thank you for all of your support, and we look forward to seeing you as we celebrate Bronx Week 2025!

In partnership,

Bronx Borough President Vanessa L. Gibson

IN THE COMMUNITY

Thank you to everyone who came out for our Annual Bronx Week Centenarian Event recognizing our older adults (90+) for their contributions to our communities.

Their wisdom has guided us for over 90 years as a borough, and we are eternally grateful.

Congratulations to the winners of the first-ever BX Factor competition during Bronx Week!

The inaugural winner is Gomez Design Studio and the two runner-up businesses were Bronx Native and Green Canvas Productions.

In the Bronx, our small businesses are essential to our communities and our continued economic growth. Thank you to the Bronx Economic Development Corporation, the New York Yankees, Santander Bank, and all of our other community partners for their support of this important event.

Bronx Week 2024 was a hit! Thank you for joining us on this journey.

Congratulations to this year’s Bronx Week 2024 Walk of Fame honorees:

Andrea Navedo (Actress and Entertainer)

Ozzie Virgil, Sr. (Baseball Legend)

Amadeus (Music Producer)

Paloma Izquierdo-Hernandez (Urban Health Plan CEO)

What an incredible Sunday in The Bronx! We danced, sang, laughed, and celebrated together. A thank you to all of our sponsors and everyone who joined us for our Annual Bronx Week Grand Finale Parade, Food & Arts Festival, and Concert!

UPCOMING EVENTS

Governor Hochul Announces $10 Million Grant Funding to Support Efforts to Reduce Domestic Terrorism and Targeted Violence

Grant Applications Now Available for New York State Counties

Every County in the State Now Has a Domestic Terrorism Prevention Plan

Governor Kathy Hochul announced $10 million in additional grant funding for state efforts to reduce domestic terrorism and targeted violence in the aftermath of the racist mass shooting that killed 10 people at a Tops Friendly Markets store in Buffalo on May 14, 2022. In the days after the attack, Governor Kathy Hochul issued Executive Order 18 establishing New York’s first-ever Domestic Terrorism Prevention Unit at DHSES and requiring each county in the state and New York City to develop plans to confront domestic terrorism. This included $10 million to support the development of local multi-disciplinary Threat Assessment and Management (TAM) teams in all 57 counties and New York City. The $10 million in grants secured by the Governor in this year’s budget has been made available to counties to further develop their TAM teams and update their prevention plans. Every county in New York now has an actionable Domestic Terrorism Prevention Plan. To date, New York City and 43 of the 57 counties outside of New York City have TAM teams, and the remaining 14 counties are taking steps to create theirs. Grant applications and information can be found here.

“My home city has been deeply impacted by domestic terrorism and my administration and I have been working continuously to reduce targeted violence in the aftermath of it,” Governor Hochul said. “It is time we provide communities with the resources needed to confront threats and attacks and keep their constituents safe.”

Each county and the City of New York are eligible to receive up to $172,413 to support these efforts. The TAM teams bring together law enforcement, mental health professionals, school officials, and other community stakeholders to identify, assess, and manage threats of targeted violence, which includes terrorism. Funding can be used to cover local planning, training and personnel costs related to TAM efforts, and to support the development and delivery of exercises to determine the viability of local Domestic Terrorism Prevention Plans.

More than half of the new TAM teams are already meeting and collaborating. These teams have collectively intervened in over 1,200 cases. In one case, after a young person made a threat of violence towards their school, the local TAM team coordinated transportation, counseling, addiction, and employment services for the individual and their family. Prior to Executive Order 18, there were only three county-based TAM teams statewide, which were supported through grants from DHSES.

Existing teams have a strong level of multi-disciplinary representation. All teams have law enforcement representation, 98 percent of teams include mental health professionals, 89 percent have education representatives, and 75 percent have public health representatives. Other representatives on teams include social service organizations, religious and cultural institutions, and community businesses.

In November 2023, Governor Hochul announced $3 million to expand the Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Services’ Domestic Terrorism Prevention Unit’s (DTPU) Threat Assessment and Management training to all colleges and universities in New York State to continue combating the ongoing rise in hate speech across New York.

The DTPU will conduct training for New York State colleges and universities; educate school administrators, professors, and staff on how to develop and maintain TAM teams; and provide constant training to supported entities. DHSES will also help connect existing networks that are currently operational within the SUNY and CUNY systems and ensure information sharing between college and university TAM efforts and the county-led multidisciplinary TAM teams being established across the state.  

Statement from Comptroller Brad Lander on Appellate Division’s Decision to Uphold Supreme Court Decision on Medicare Advantage

 

New York City Comptroller Brad Lander released the following statement in response to the Appellate Division’s affirmation of the New York Supreme Court decision blocking the City from shifting retirees to a Medicare Advantage plan:

“This is yet another win for the many retirees fighting to keep the health care they worked for and were promised. When the Medicare Advantage contract was submitted to my office last year, we declined to register it knowing that litigation raised doubts about the City’s authority to enter into the contract. Multiple decisions by the courts show we were right to do so.

“As a matter of public policy, beyond the scope of our office’s specific Charter responsibility for contract registration, I was and remain seriously concerned about the privatization of Medicare plans, overbilling by insurance companies, and barriers to care under Medicare Advantage. It is vital that all seniors—and all New Yorkers—get quality health coverage as a basic human right.

“At the same time, given the growing costs of health care for both retirees and active employees we cannot ignore that there are real cost questions facing the City when it comes to health care. It is time for all parties to come to the table to identify creative and effective solutions.”