Senator Klein's Veteran Day Breakfast

    Here is yet another reason that people in the Bronx love State Senator Jeff Klein. Sunday was his annual Bronx Veterans Day Parade Breakfast, and vets from wars back to World War II were on hand. I found two WWII vets Joe Garofalo (age 92) and Albert Mazza (age 89) on hand as you will see in one of the photos below. I also found out that one of the honorees Ms. Hattie Harris served during WWII and she was not afraid to say that she was 91 years old. This year all the honorees were women, and Senator Klein posed for a photo with a group of proud Korean War Veterans.  

 

 Left- The Color Guard enters the room.

Right - The SUNY Maritime College Chorale perform.

Left - The invocation with a moment of silence for those who have fallen in the line of duty.

Right - Taps is played by bugler Albert Nicotina. 

Left - With the exception of Mr. Joe McManus no cap who did not serve in WWII are Joe Garofalo (age 92) and Albert Mazza (age 89) who are wearing WWII vets with their American Legion caps on. Right - Ms. Hattie Harris (age 91) also a WWII vet was one of the honorees. 

Left - Senator Klein with all of the honorees that were present,

Tight - Senator Klein with a group of Korea War Veterans.

Howard Padernacht Way

   On Saturday November 17th the corner of Sedwick Avenue and Giles Place became "Howard Padernacht Way". Sons Michael, Daniel, and Steve joined with their mother Pam, Uncle Elliot, cousins, and over 100 other people to see the dedication of Howard Padernacht Way by Councilman G. Oliver Koppell. Mr. Howard Padernacht was the manager of the Shalom Aleichem Houses on Sedwick Avenue, and everyone said what a wonderful man Mr. Padernact was. I was told that it was Howard Padernachts dream that his three sons graduate from college which all three have done. Also on hand was former Councilman Larry Warden (another friend of Howard Padernacht) who helped get the street naming passed in the city council. Below are a few photos of the event.

 

 Sons Michael, Daniel, and Steve hold street sign in memory of their father. They are standing across the street from the apartment that their father grew up in.

 The family stands with Councilman Koppel after the sign Howard Padernacht Way is revealed. Howard Padernachts sons Steve and Michael (holding his child), wife Pam, and brother Elliot are in the front row, as third son Daniel who is partly blocked stands next to Councilman Koppell in the back row. 

The family thanked all those who came out to the street naming. 

 

Excelling at Work: Learning Excel for Business Workshop!!!

Food Drive in Riverdale

   The North Riverdale Merchants association headed by Mr. Gary Wartel (of Skyview Liquors), State Senator Jeff Klein, and Assemblyman Jeffrey Dinowitz teamed up to gather over 200 pounds of canned food for the local food panty that was running low. Also a part of the amount of food will be sent to victims of Hurricane Sandy in other parts of the city.

Here you see some of the canned food collected as Senator Klein talks with North Riverdale Merchants Association Vice President Anthony Fellia.

Here Community Board # 8 member Mr. Andrew Cohen talks with Mr. Wartel as Senator Klein and Assemblyman Dinowitz look on.

LIU: CITY SHOULD CLAW BACK $6.6 MILLION IN COSTS FROM CONSULTANT’S DESIGN FLAWS

Audit finds DEP Failed To Monitor and Recoup $6.6 Million in Errors and Omissions on Bowery Bay Water Pollution Control Project in Queens

   City Comptroller John C. Liu today announced that an audit of the Department of Environmental Protection’s (DEP) Bowery Bay Water Pollution Control project in Queens determined that a consultant’s design errors and omissions had cost the City an extra $6,591,192, but the agency made little or no effort to recoup the money for the City.

 

“A great deal of taxpayer money was wasted on this waste-treatment project, money that the City can and should recoup,” Comptroller Liu said. “Consultants may sometimes make mistakes but the City must not pay for those mistakes. We must recoup the money for taxpayers — now more than ever, in order to help rebuild and restore New Yorkers’ livelihoods, businesses, and neighborhoods in the wake of Superstorm Sandy.” 

 

When construction plans need revisions, they incur what are called “change-order costs.” When these revisions are the result of the hired consultant’s errors or omissions, the City has the power to recoup the added costs. The Comptroller’s audit found that the $213 million Bowery Bay project included $6,591,192 in costs caused by the designer’s errors and omissions.

 

DEP officials stated during the course of Comptroller Liu’s latest audit that they had created a review panel to oversee the collection of change order costs that resulted from errors and omissions.

 

The audit of DEP’s Bowery Bay project is available for download at: http://www.comptroller.nyc.gov/bureaus/audit/yearlyview.asp?selaudyear=2012

 

BACKGROUND:

In the past, the City has missed opportunities to aggressively go after costs attributable to design errors and omissions made by its hired vendors.  A 2011 audit of the Department of Design and Construction found that the agency had failed recoup $3 million in costs due to the consultant’s design errors and omissions.  (Audit Report on the Recoupment of Change Order Costs by the Department of Design and Construction, 7E11-063A; www.comptroller.nyc.gov/bureaus/audit/audits_2011/06-20-11_7E11-063A.shtm)

Van Cortlandt Park Ice Skating Ring Opening

    The Van Cortlandt Park Ice Skating Rink is scheduled to open to the public on Monday afternoon November 19th. Work as of today Saturday November 17th is almost complete for the Ice Skating rink to open on Monday. The ice for the rink has been put inside the arena and just has to be smoothed down one or two more times until it is ready to be opened up to the public. As you can see in the photos below rink general manager Ron Kraut laced up his skates to test out the ice. That is Bronx Parks Commissioner Hector Aponte looking on to the left.

   













 Left - Mr. Kraut testing out the ice.  Right - He starts to do full laps around the rink.

 Left and Right - some fancy foot work by Mr. Kraut on the ice.

As he finishes his test run of the ice, Mr. Kraut smiles with pleasure as the Van Cortlandt Park Ice Skating Rink is less than 48 hours away from opening.

To Set the Record Straight

WHAT YOU SHOULD KNOW

By Senator Rev. Rubén Díaz
32nd Senatorial District, Bronx County, New York

To Set the Record Straight

You should know that I have been reading, here and there, different statements attributed to me, and some of them indicating my willingness to give my support for the State Senate to Dean Skelos and the Republican Conference.

You should also know that four years ago, in 2008, when the Four Amigos came into being, my mission at that time was to stop the gay marriage from becoming a law in New York State.  There were many different offers and wheelings and dealings from different people about who would become the leaders of the Senate.  Two of the Four Amigos, Hiram Monserrate and Pedro Espada, even got to the point where they jumped ship and crossed over to the Republicans making Skelos the Senate Leader.

With all of those pressures and with my mission to stop gay marriage, you should know that I never switched parties, never abandoned my Democratic Conference, and never gave my vote to the Republican Conference.

I have to make it very clear, taking a passage from my son's lectures to me, that it’s one thing to vote with the Republicans on legislation in order to benefit the community, and it is completely different thing to abandon the Democratic Conference and give the Republicans control the Senate. One thing is legislation, and the other is party politics.

Everyone knows that I have always been a Democrat, I am a Democrat, and I will be a Democrat.  The only difference is that I am a conservative Democrat.  I am a pro-life Democrat, meaning that I am against abortions.  I am a traditional marriage Democrat, meaning that I am against gay marriage, and that I believe marriage should be between a man and a woman as God created.

That said, you have to understand and I want to make it very clear that if four years ago, when my mission was to stop gay marriage and I did not jump ship and abandon my Democratic Conference, why should I abandon my Conference now that gay marriage has become law in the State – thanks to Dean Skelos and the Republican Party?

I don't think there is anything that the Republican Conference could offer me now that I could not get from my Democratic Conference. I am a Democrat elected by a Democratic community, I have always been a Democrat, and I will always be a Democrat fighting teeth and nail, to protect senior citizen benefits, better education for our communities, affordable housing, health services, immigration issues and those services that the Democratic party have always fought for.
 
My advice to my colleagues within my Democratic Conference is that nobody should take my vote for granted about who should become the Leader of my Democratic Conference, no matter if they are Black, White, Hispanic, Jewish, or Christian.

So let it be known, and let it be written, and let’s stop all of the rumors now and forever, because I am a Democrat and I will be voting with my Conference, and I will be voting for a Democrat as the Leader.

This is State Senator Rev. Rubén Díaz and this is what you should know.

SENATOR GUSTAVO RIVERA & ASSEMBLYMAN NELSON CASTRO HOSTED JOB FAIR Today

    NY- State Senator Gustavo Rivera  and Assemblyman Nelson Castro  hosted their  second annual job fair for Bronx residents on Friday, November 16, 2012 from 12 PM to 4 PM. Employers interviewed job seekers for a number of employment opportunities, ranging from opportunities in the healthcare industry to customer service and retail opportunities. 

"Assembly Member Castro and I meet local residents every day who are looking for employment opportunities," said Senator Rivera. "It is our responsibility as elected officials to connect our constituents with employment opportunities, many of which are right here in the Bronx like Fresh Direct and Montefiore Medical Center." 

"During challenging economic times, it is critical to provide job opportunities to the most needed members of our community," said Assemblyman Nelson L. Castro. "This Second Annual Job Fair will help mitigate the overwhelming unemployment situation that has been affecting our community. It is one of my main priorities to ensure that my constituents become productive members of society."

FreshDirect co-founder and CEO Jason Ackerman said, "We want to hire as many Bronxites as possible, so Senator Rivera's and Assembly Member Castro's efforts to put small businesses like FreshDirect in touch with Bronx residents who are looking for work is a terrific opportunity for everyone involved.  I applaud their leadership." 

Employers in attendance included  Fresh Direct, Children's Village, St. Barnabas Hospital, Montefiore Medical Center and the Metropolitan Transit Authority (MTA). Over 500 job seekers were interviewed for approximately 200 positions. This is Assembly Member Castro and Senator Rivera's second annual job fair.

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