Wave Hill Events April 6-April 13

 

What a wonderful time of the year—springtime at Wave Hill! Plan a visit and you’ll find a wealth of events to explore. This week, join us for Spring Birding and observe birds and their behaviors during spring migration. 

Curious to know how art and gardens come to life? Join gardener Sandra Schaller and artist Rebecca Allan on a special two-part Behind the Scenes Tour of the Alpine House and current art exhibition, Cultivating Eden. You'll get a unique look into the creative processes of both an artist and a gardener.

At the Family Art Project, spend some creative time with the family and create art inspired by the colors of the rainbow. You’ll get to go home with a one-of-a-kind artwork! 

 

Family Art Project: Rainbow Passage  

Sat, April 8, 2023, 10AM–1PM 

Sun, April 9, 2023, 10AM–1PM 

Free with admission to the grounds 

Meet at Wave Hill House 

Explore the colors of the rainbow! We'll use transparent materials to create bright window hangings that will unveil the incredible world of light.   

Registration not required. 

The program takes place indoors in the Kerlin Learning Center located on the lower level of Wave Hill House. Please note the following important COVID-related information to ensure everyone’s safety: 

• Approximately nine families will be able to participate at a time, based on the time each family arrives. 

• If capacity is full when you arrive, we will provide a “come back” card so you will have first entry for the next session. 

• Each family will receive its own set of materials and cleaning will happen in between seating participants. 

• Unvaccinated visitors are encouraged to wear a mask inside. 

Wave Hill House is located along a paved route with moderate changes in grade. The building is wheelchair-accessible. There is an accessible, ground-level entrance at the front of the building with a power-assist door. The restroom on the ground level is all-gender and ADA-compliant. Additional ADA-compliant restrooms are available on the lower level, which can be accessed by elevator. 

 

Spring Birding 

Sun, April 9, 2023, 9:30–11AM 

$15; including admission to the grounds 

Meet at Perkins Visitor Center  

Welcome migratory birds back to Wave Hill this spring! Explore the gardens and woodlands with birders Paul Keim, Kellye Rosenheim or Gabriel Willow to look for resident and rare birds as they pass through on their journey north or settle down for the season. Severe weather cancels. A limited number of binoculars, monoculars and walking sticks are available to borrow at the Perkins Visitor Center. Ages 10 and older welcome with an adult. 

 

Registration required, online or by calling 718.549.3200 x251.  

 

Questions? Please email us at information@wavehill.org or call the telephone number and extension above. 

 

One walk follows a route through woodland trails and mixed-material pathways with varying elevations; the other follows more accessible paved areas within the more central parts of the garden. 

 

Public Garden Highlights Walk 

Sun, April 9, 2023, 2–2:45PM                         

Free with admission to the grounds 

Meet at Perkins Visitor Center                                                                                                                                    

Join a knowledgeable Wave Hill Garden Guide for a leisurely stroll in the gardens. Topics vary by season and the expertise of the Guide-- — come back for an encore; each walk varies with the Guide leading it. This walk lasts a half-hour to 45 minutes. Severe weather cancels. 

Registration is not required for this drop-in event. Public Garden Walks are most appropriate for adults or young adults. Not intended for groups; groups should sign-up for Private Garden Tours. 

Questions? Please email us at information@wavehill.org or call 718.549.3200 x251.   

Garden Highlights Walks follow a variety of routes along mixed-material pathways and varying elevations. Accessible routes are available as requested; please indicate your need to Wave Hill staff at the Greeter Desk in the Perkins Visitor Center.   

Behind the Scenes Tour: Alpine House and Art Exhibition with Gardener Sandra Schaller and Artist Rebecca Allan 

Thu, April 13, 2023, 1–2:30PM 

$25, including admission to the grounds. Wave Hill Members save 10% 

Meet at Perkins Visitor Center

Rebecca Allan’s current exhibition, Cultivating Eden, explores Wave Hill as a site where art and horticulture are intertwined. Join Allan and Gardener Sandra Schaller for a special two-part tour that allows participants to get a glimpse of the creative practices of both the artist and the gardener. In the first half of the program, go behind the scenes of the Alpine House, which is typically only accessed from a frontal view, to see the diminutive plants up close and observe Schaller’s workspace and process. In the second part, go on an artist-led walk-through of the exhibition and hear from Allan about how her visits to Wave Hill inspired her to create a series of paintings that reference the labors of the gardeners and their spaces. 

 

Advance registration encouraged, online or at 718.549.3200 x251. Program size is limited. Day-of registration based on availability and not guaranteed. 

 

Questions? Please email us at information@wavehill.org or call the telephone number and extension above. 

 

Program size is extremely limited. The route to the Alpine House follows a mixed-material pathway with varying elevations, and the Alpine House itself is not wheelchair-accessible. The ground floor and lower level of Wave Hill House are wheelchair-accessible. There is an accessible, ground-level entrance at the front of the building with a power-assist door. The restroom on the ground level is all-gender and ADA-compliant. Additional ADA-compliant restrooms are available on the lower level, which can be accessed by an elevator. 

 

HOURS: 10AM–5:30PM, Tuesday–Sunday.

Information at 718.549.3200. On the web at wavehill.org.

Kingsbridge Armory Public Workshop #3

 

Saturday March 18th was the third of four Public Workshops to determine what the Kingsbridge Armory would look like. It was a moment of Deja vu for me however having been at this point with the shops at the Armory in 2008 proposed by then Mayor Michael Bloomberg. That proposed use of the Kingsbridge Armory would be shot down by new Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr. who reopened the process finally to come up with the Kingsbridge National Ice Center at the Kingsbridge Armory in 2013. 

Unfortunately after eight years of waiting with only less than one-half of the funding needed, and feuding partners, the KNIC proposal was killed by former Mayor Bill de Blasio before he left office. Thus a once empty Kingsbridge Armory was thrust upon all but one of its original elected officials who was redistricted to the street East of the armory. A new Mayor, Bronx Borough President, Congressman, State Senator, Assemblyman, and Councilwoman have started from square one to decide what will be going into a thirty year vacant Kingsbridge Armory. Only State Senator Gustavo Rivera remained who was able to secure one-hundred million dollars in state funding for the armory remained, and he said "This is not going to be a simple process, it is going to be difficult.  

This time there were union members mostly in the two rooms at Lehman College rather than residents who lived in the area in the audience. The same chant was heard this time that was heard other times, 'Whose Armory, Our Armory'. Councilwoman Pierina Sanchez along with Deputy Bronx Borough President Janet Peguero, State Senator Robert Jackson, State Senator Gustavo Rivera, and Dave Greg of the NYCEDC spoke to the crowd first then went into the overflow room to repeat what they said in room one. 

A large drawing of the Kingsbridge Armory was on the wall for all to see the different levels.

Before the workshop began State Senator Gustavo Rivera speaks to one union representative.

Deputy Borough President Peguero speaks as one of the Deputy Directors of the NYCEDC stands near her.

The elected officials would go into the overflow room to talk to the people there as State Senator Robert Jackson is speaking that there is only one-hundred Million dollars of the 1.5 Billion dollars needed now.

Michael Piccirillo of the Carpenters Union speaks to the crowd of union members at the Armory Workshop asking what boroughs the union members were from.

Various union members from all five boroughs made up most of the audience at the Kingsbridge Armory Workshop in Lehman College. 

Attorney General James Secures More Than $860,000 from Capital Region Medical Transportation Company for Medicaid Provider Fraud

 

Ismat Farhan and USA Medical Transport Falsely Billed Medicaid for Services His Company Did Not Provide  

 New York Attorney General Letitia James today announced a settlement with Ismat Farhan and his company, USA Medical Transport, which provides transportation to and from medical appointments for Medicaid recipients, for defrauding Medicaid. The settlement resolves the Office of the Attorney General’s (OAG) findings that Farhan submitted over 2,500 false claims and billed Medicaid for approximately $400,000 for transportation services that either did not occur as described, lacked required documentation, or never took place at all, in violation of New York False Claims Act. As a result of the settlement announced today, Farhan will pay $862,500 to the New York State Medicaid Program.  

“Medicaid is meant to help support the medical needs of vulnerable New Yorkers, not to pad a company’s profits,” said Attorney General James. “Farhan and USA Medical Transport took advantage of their patients and taxpayers by billing Medicaid for thousands of services that were never provided. My office will keep ensuring that our state’s laws are followed and that Medicaid dollars are spent helping New Yorkers in need.”  

Medicaid recipients are eligible to receive transportation to and from medical appointments with doctors or healthcare providers who are enrolled with Medicaid. Additionally, Medicaid will reimburse all enrolled transportation companies for these services. To operate as a Medicaid transportation provider, a transportation company must enroll and certify that it will follow the Medicaid program’s rules and regulations, including submitting claims only for services that actually took place and maintaining thorough records documenting those claims.   

The OAG found that between June 2015 and February 2020, Farhan, through USA Medical Transport, submitted fraudulent claims to Medicaid, including claims for:  

•   Rides that were not provided;  
•   Mileage amounts significantly greater than the actual ride;  
•   Single rides that should have been bundled as a group ride;  
•   Rides provided by drivers with suspended licenses, including Farhan himself; 
•   Rides that lacked supporting documentation; and  
•   Reimbursements for tolls that USA Medical Transport did not actually incur.  

The investigation was conducted by the Albany Regional Office of OAG's Medicaid Fraud Control Unit (MFCU) under the supervision of Detective Supervisor John Benshoff and Deputy Chief, Commanding Officer William Falk; and Senior Auditor-Investigator Nathaniel J. Wood, under the supervision of Regional Chief Auditor Sarah Finning. 

The settlement was handled by Special Assistant Attorneys General Emily Auletta of the MFCU Albany Regional Office and Jill D. Brennerof the MFCU Civil Enforcement Division, with the assistance of Konrad Payne, Deputy Chief of the Civil Enforcement Division. The Albany Regional Office is led by Albany Regional Director Kathleen Boland and the Civil Enforcement Division is led by Civil Enforcement Division Chief Alee N. Scott. MFCU is led by Director Amy Held and Assistant Deputy Attorney General Paul J. Mahoney and is a part of the Division for Criminal Justice. The Division for Criminal Justice is led by Chief Deputy Attorney General José Maldonado and overseen by First Deputy Attorney General Jennifer Levy. 

Reporting Medicaid Provider Fraud: MFCU defends the public by addressing Medicaid provider fraud and protecting nursing home residents from abuse and neglect. If an individual believes they have information about Medicaid provider fraud or about an incident of abuse or neglect of a nursing home resident, they can file a confidential complaint online or call the MFCU hotline at (800) 771-7755. If the situation is an emergency, please call 911.  

New York MFCU’s total funding for federal fiscal year (FY) 2023 is $65,717,936. Of that total, 75 percent, or $49,288,452, is awarded under a grant from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The remaining 25 percent, totaling $16,429,484 for FY 2023, is funded by New York state. Through MFCU’s recoveries in law enforcement actions, it regularly returns more to the state than it receives in state funding. 

City Parks Foundation - Sign up now for FREE programs in parks this spring!

 

SIGN UP NOW FOR SPRING SPORTS Let’s get moving this spring!  Our FREE spring Youth Track & Field program begins on April 8 in parks in the Bronx, Brooklyn, and Manhattan. Whether you want to hone skills or discover a new sport, our youth program for ages 6-17 is perfect for all levels looking to learn and have fun. Participants will practice proper technique, learn new skills and develop healthy habits all while meeting new friends in their neighborhood park. For New Yorkers 60 years old and up, our Seniors Fitness program offers free twice-weekly pickleball, tennis, yoga, and fitness walking classes across all five boroughs starting in April. Participants of all levels are welcome to come out, have fun, and socialize. Visit our website to sign up and get more information. LEARN MORE / SIGN UP NOW AFTER SCHOOL SCIENCE FUN FOR KIDS Looking to have a fun and FREE after school activity for your middle schooler? Register now for our after school STEM programs. Are you a parent looking for a fun and free after school activity for your middle schooler? Our Green Girls program takes middle school girls on fun-filled adventures across our city’s parks, highlighting the natural wonders right in their backyards..  Our Coastal Classroom program turns waterways into hands-on labs focusing on coastal ecology water quality, and other STEM-based topics. Check our website for more information and stay tuned for announcements about our free city-wide summer programs. Are you an educator in the Bronx looking for this kind of hands-on STEM-based activity for your class or after school program? Find our more here about how to host a free CityParks Green Girls program in your neighborhood this fall. LEARN MORE / REGISTER NOW SEE WAKE UP, DAISY! AT THE SWEDISH COTTAGE MARIONETTE THEATER Don’t miss your chance to see an original puppet show that’s fun for the whole family. Set on the Upper West Side, Wake Up Daisy! is our modern take on Sleeping Beauty, celebrating friendship, courage and female empowerment. Perfect for families with young children (ages 3 - 8), Wake Up, Daisy! is playing now at the Swedish Cottage Marionette Theatre every Friday, Saturday, and Sunday at 11am and 1pm. GET TICKETS SUPPORT FUNDING FOR PARKS AND JOIN US AT CITY HALL Rally this week with the Play Fair Coalition and New Yorkers for Parks to oppose the millions in proposed cuts to the NYC Parks budget.  Ask the Mayor and the City Council to allocate 1% of the budget to maintain and care for our public green spaces. The event will run from 9-10AM on Wednesday, March 22, at City Hall in Manhattan. If your group is unable to attend the rally or to testify at the hearing, we encourage you to submit written testimony. REGISTER NOW PLANNING EVENTS IN YOUR LOCAL PARK Want to create an event in your local park? Partnerships for Parks welcomes expert outdoor presenter Mov!ng Culture Projects to this webinar on Tuesday, March 28 at 6PM to talk planning. Join us to learn the logistics of outdoor events and walk away feeling empowered to host one on your own. REGISTER NOW WORK AT SUMMERSTAGE We are now accepting applications for seasonal positions at SummerStage to produce concerts in Central Park and in 15 neighborhood parks across the five boroughs. We’re looking for candidates to fill a variety of positions, including Ushers, Merch Sellers, and Production Assistants. You can help make the magic happen while working with a great group of fellow music-lovers. APPLY NOW

Bronx Chamber of Commerce - Tomorrow! Irish Heritage Celebration & Networking Reception

Reserve Your Spot - Click Here

Robert Walsh is the interim President of the Bronx Overall Economic Development Corporation (BOEDC) and serves on the Board of Directors for The Bronx Chamber of Commerce. Walsh currently teaches at Columbia University, School of Public and International Affairs. His segment “The Bottom Line for Small Business” airs on 1010 WINS Radio where he is also the moderator of the Small Business Challenge which recognizes the work of entrepreneurs in the New York metropolitan area. From 2014-18, he has served on the faculty at Baruch College’s School of Public and International Affairs, where he has also served as the faculty director of the executive master’s degree in public administration program. In January 2002, Mayor Michael Bloomberg appointed Walsh the commissioner of the Department of Small Business Services (SBS). During his 12 years there, SBS became one of the city's most innovative agencies in serving the needs of its 200,000 small businesses. Walsh re-energized the city's business improvement districts and created an award-winning neighborhood leadership program in partnership with the Coro Foundation. Under his leadership, seven NYC Business Solutions Centers were established that secured more than $200 million for small businesses in the last six years of his tenure. He created a wide array of entrepreneurial courses and forged new partnerships with groups, including the Initiative for a Competitive Inner City, Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Business Program, Interise, and the Kauffman Foundation. Prior to serving in the Bloomberg administration, Walsh served as president of Charlotte (N.C.) Center City Partners. He led the Center City master plan initiative that led to significant private and public investments. He also attracted Johnson & Wales University to the Center City. From 1989 to April 1997, he played an instrumental role in the revitalization of one of New York’s great neighborhoods, as executive director of the Union Square Partnership. During the 1980s, he worked in the administration of Mayor Edward I. Koch. He began his career in public service as a New York City Urban Fellow, a program he later directed.  Walsh holds a bachelor’s degree in political science and master’s degree in public affairs from Fordham University. He also participated in the senior executives in state and local government program at the Harvard Kennedy School.

NYC PUBLIC ADVOCATE CALLS FOR RENEWED ACCOUNTABILITY, REALLOCATED SPENDING IN CITY’S PUBLIC SAFETY BUDGETING

 

 New York City Public Advocate Jumaane D. Williams today called for a city budget that invests in public safety services and infrastructure beyond simply law enforcement, and emphasized the need to strengthen accountability and oversight through the Civilian Complaint Review Board (CCRB) and other efforts. In a statement prepared and submitted to the City Council Committee on Public Safety, he urged a holistic approach to protecting and producing public safety.

“Typically, I would be asking the City Council for more funds to bolster and expand the vital services that our city’s agencies provide to millions of New Yorkers every day,” opened Public Advocate Williams. “In the case of the NYPD, however, it is more appropriate to pinpoint where portions of their budget are better served being reallocated to other agencies. The NYPD is by far the biggest and most expensive police department in the country, and serves social service functions that are not appropriate and should be reassigned to other agencies.” He opposed the proposed reduction in CCRB headcount and highlighted actions the City Council can take to strengthen accountability. 

The Public Advocate further pushed for non-police responses to people experiencing homelessness and mental health crises, and called for reallocation of funding spent on a surge of law enforcement into the subway system, particularly for officer overtime. 

Public Advocate Williams commended the administration’s focus on strengthening the Crisis Management System, saying that “This is what public safety should look like: an investment in communities, robust support services, and allowing those closest to the problem to lead the solution.” He further argued for expanded funding of public defender services, noting “ It is low-income New Yorkers who ultimately face the consequences of a budget that favors district attorneys’ offices, deprived of the robust legal representation that they need and deserve. The city budget must ensure a high standard of quality legal representation for low-income New Yorkers.”

Read the full statement as submitted by the Public Advocate below.

STATEMENT OF PUBLIC ADVOCATE JUMAANE D. WILLIAMS

TO THE NEW YORK CITY COUNCIL COMMITTEE ON PUBLIC SAFETY

MARCH 20, 2023

Good morning,

My name is Jumaane D. Williams, and I am the Public Advocate for the City of New York. I would like to thank Chair Hanks and the members of the Committee on Public Safety for holding this important hearing.

Typically, I would be asking the City Council for more funds to bolster and expand the vital services that our city’s agencies provide to millions of New Yorkers every day. In the case of the NYPD, however, it is more appropriate to pinpoint where portions of their budget are better served being reallocated to other agencies. The NYPD is by far the biggest and most expensive

police department in the country, and serves social service functions that are not appropriate and should be reassigned to other agencies.

One of the major problems with the NYPD is our city’s lack of effective oversight. The CCRB has the ability to investigate complaints of police misconduct and abuse, but they are understaffed, underfunded, and without the legal power to carry out their recommendations for discipline. The proposed budget reduced the CCRB’s headcount by 22 positions; as this reduction must come from vacant positions, it will result in a racial profiling unit of only 13, when the CCRB recently testified that their headcount goal is 50. Further, since the implementation of the NYPD’s disciplinary matrix, the number of cases being sent to the CCRB’s Administrative Prosecution Unit increased 40 percent between 2020 and 2021. While OMB allowed the APU to hire four more prosecutors, they still need more staff.

Although the CCRB cannot enforce their disciplinary recommendations, there are budgetary ways for the City Council to make cuts related to abusive policing by:

Removing the use of paid administrative leave for officers under investigation

Withholding pensions and halting all rehirings of officers involved in excessive force

Requiring NYPD to be liable for misconduct settlements

The NYPD should not be involved in providing assistance and services to people experiencing homelessness or mental health crises. Dispatching police to remove people perceived as being homelessness or experiencing symptoms of mental illness to a hospital is not helpful and only wastes city resources. The city instead must invest in non-police responses to people in mental health crisis; affordable, community-based mental health services; subsidized housing; and respite and drop-in centers. 

The mayor’s harmful Subway Safety Plan has exacerbated a police overtime surge. The NYPD has a history of underestimating their overtime spending: for Fiscal Year 2023, the NYPD had budgeted $454.8 million, but as of December 31, 2022, they had spent nearly $412 million, making the overtime bill for FY 2023 on track to pass $820 million. It does not make New Yorkers safer to spend millions of dollars on overtime for police officers to remove people perceived as homeless or mentally ill from public spaces, or to stand around in subway stations looking at their phones. The bloated overtime budget is much better spent reallocated to agencies and programs that actually serve and protect New Yorkers.

Mayor Adams and I may often disagree on the most impactful ways to address crime and violence in our city, but I applaud his support of alternative solutions to violence, including violence interrupters and cure violence programs. The city’s Crisis Management System (CMS) is a network that deploys teams of credible messengers who mediate conflicts on the street and connect high-risk individuals to services that can reduce the long-term risk of violence. CMS provides non-punitive, wrap-around services including school conflict mediation, employment programs, mental health services, and legal services.

We have evidence that these alternatives to policing work to reduce violence: CMS data from 2010 to 2019 shows that the program has contributed to an average 40 percent reduction in shootings across program areas, compared to a 31 percent decline in shootings in the 17 precincts in New York City with the highest rates of violence.

Brownsville, Brooklyn’s 73rd Precinct exemplifies the success and necessity of cure violence programs. In December 2020, the police withdrew from their regular posts on Mother Gaston Boulevard for five days. Instead of a police presence, a cure violence group called Brownsville In, Violence Out watched over the two blocks between Pitkin and Sutter Avenues. No valid 911 or 311 calls were made during this pilot. A second round of this experiment a few months later saw the cure violence group and their community partners finding a missing 4-year-old and intervening in a fight brewing between groups of teenage girls, all without the help of police.

This is what public safety should look like: an investment in communities, robust support services, and allowing those closest to the problem to lead the solution.

It is also vital to adequately and robustly fund our public defender services. While free legal defender services for anyone who needs them are mandated by federal and local law, these organizations are consistently underfunded. It is low-income New Yorkers who ultimately face the consequences of a budget that favors district attorneys’ offices, deprived of the robust legal representation that they need and deserve. The city budget must ensure a high standard of quality legal representation for low-income New Yorkers.

Previously, in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Mayor’s Office of Criminal Justice (MOCJ) contracted with community-based organizations and hotels to provide housing to people just released from prison. While meant to be a short-term solution, the housing that this program provided to people who otherwise would have had to turn to the shelter system was critical for many people’s successful reentry into their communities. These hotels were staffed by security, case managers, and nurses, giving people in-home access to resources they would not have in a shelter. In January of last year, Mayor Adams awarded a new $40 million no-bid contract to the organization Exodus Transitional Communities; while Exodus ultimately shut down their program, the city should allocate new funding for a request for proposals to continue operating this service.

Lastly, in 2021, my office released a report on reimagining safety in our schools, including phasing out School Safety Agents and policing infrastructure. Prior to the pandemic, there were roughly 5,000 SSAs assigned to schools; as of late last month, according to a report released by the Independent Budget Office, that number had decreased to 3,900. The IBO also reported no indication the city plans to significantly expand the safety division to pre-pandemic levels over the next four years. The presence of SSAs and police more broadly serve only as a reaction to violence or criminal behavior and do not create safety. This natural attrition of SSAs provides an opportunity for the city to invest in creating safe school environments by hiring more guidance counselors and social workers, expanding restorative justice and violence interruption programming, implementing trauma-informed and healing-centered school environments, sustaining and creating new Student Success Centers, and increasing youth employment opportunities.

Thank you.