Senator Klein to Address the Community on his trip to Cub

The Van Cortlandt Jewish Center, 3880 Sedgwick Ave, (next to the Van Cortlandt library) Bronx, is pleased to have Senator Jeff Klein address the community on Thursday, May 21, 2015 at 7:15 on his recent trip to Cuba. This trip is the start of talks to bring business to New York State and especially to the Bronx.

Senator Klein was among the first state delegation to travel to Cuba. The purpose of the visit was to try to improve business between New York State and Cuba.

This address is open to the public and all are invited.

Before leaving for his trip to Cuba, Independent Democratic Conference Leader Jeff Klein said: "I am pleased to be joining Governor Cuomo as part of the New York delegation to Cuba. This trip is a positive first step in exploring ways we can grow and expand economic opportunities that will build an even stronger New York. We've made great strides at getting people back to work in the Bronx and I'm always open to innovative and targeted approaches that offer us the possibility of creating even more good paying jobs in my borough as well as throughout the state."

In addition to the Governor and members of his administration, the delegation included Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie, Senate Minority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins, Independent Democratic Conference Leader Jeff Klein, and business leaders representing a number of important sectors and industries in New York’s economy.

For additional information call Van Cortlandt Jewish Center at 718-884-6105.

Dean Skelos, Sheldon Silver, et al, and the J51 and 421a Tax Break

What You Should Know 

By Senator Rev. Rubén Díaz 

32nd Senatorial District 

  

You should know that with all of the media focus on Senator Dean Skelos and Assemblyman Sheldon Silver, the J-51 tax break and the 421-a tax benefit have become hot topics, and they will get even hotter as their sunset date in June approaches. 

When Senate Bill 2320 – the bill that deals with J-51 and 421-a came to the Senate Floor on January 23, 2013 for a vote – I stood up to speak against it, starting my speech with a criticism of Senator Liz Krueger.  I criticized Liz Krueger because she took about an hour to expose all of the ills and bad things about this bill, but when she finished, she voted: yes.   

This confused me, especially knowing how smart and intelligent Liz Krueger is. It really threw me off. How could she have voted yes when she knew it was a bad bill?  As the Bible teaches: it is a sin for those who know the truth to purposely ignore it. 

Below is a copy verbatim of the transcript of my January 23, 2013 speech, along with the YouTube link to that speech, followed by the actual Senate vote tally for Senate Bill 2320. 

You should know that Senate Bill 2320 is filled with lavish benefits for luxury condo developers and tax giveaways, without any improvement to residential rent laws for everyday New Yorkers. 

You should also know that there were only 6 other Senators – aside from me – who voted against this bill.  The NO votes were cast by: Senators Rubén Díaz, Adriano Espaillat, Terry Gipson, Bill Perkins, Gustavo Rivera, Jose Marcos Serrano, and Cecilia Tkaczyk.  All of the other 56 Senators voted YES, hurting New York families who desperately need affordable housing. 

Ladies and gentlemen, the allegations involving the real estate companies that stem from Senate Bill 2320 that give capital improvement benefits to wealthy developers while increasing tenant’s rent need further investigation. If not, affordable housing in New York will be a thing of the past. 

I am State Senator Rubén Díaz and this is what you should know. 

This is the transcript of my speech from January 23, 2013 

“Senator Krueger, I just love you. I love you so much. You know, I love you for keeping me one hour listening to you talking bad about a bill and at the end saying "I'm voting yes." I love you. I love you. Mr. President and ladies and gentlemen, once in a while I write a column called "What You Should Know," It’s my way to inform my constituents and the voters of New York of what's going on.  Today, I wrote one. And I call it, based on the Roman Empire old saying, I entitled it "Caesar's wife should not only be pure but should also have the appearance of purity." And by voting for this bill, we might be sending an appearance of impurity, because this bill only benefits the rich. It is a multi-million program of rent exemption and abatement for landlords who renovate their buildings.  This piece of legislation, ladies and gentlemen, does nothing to protect and strengthen tenant protection. So tenants in the City of New York will not be protected with this bill. On the contrary, they might be put in danger. It is just a tax benefit to developers producing luxury buildings. 

This bill, ladies and gentlemen -- and I'm so sorry that Liz Krueger voted for it -- this bill does nothing to prevent landlords from double-dipping. That's a word that -- a nice word, double-dipping. Meaning that a lot of them are receiving a J-51 tax credit from the government and at the same time will be increasing the tenants' rent based on a major capital improvement. So this bill will allow landlords to get money from the government for the renovation based on J-51 and at the same time will allow landlords to increase tenants' rents based on something called major capital improvement for the same renovation. 

And this bill will extend 421-a tax benefits to the owners of 15 specific plots in 22 Midtown and downtown Manhattan which are now being developed as luxury condominiums and office buildings. Fifteen of them. And according to the New York Tenants and Neighbors Coalition, it seems that only five specific developer companies will benefit from this piece of legislation. 

They are number one, Extell Development Company, Extell Development Company, for their billionaire tower, One57, Silverstein Properties, the owner of the World Trade Center. Thor Equities, the company behind the controversial Coney Island redevelopment for 516-520 Fifth Avenue. Number four, Steinhardt Management, who wants to develop two former Stock Exchange buildings in Lower Manhattan. Number five, Shoreham {ph} Association, Incorporated, who plans to build a 30-story glass tower over the site of the original New York Times building. 

Ladies and gentlemen, these developments do nothing to address the New York City ongoing affordable housing crisis. Therefore, to vote for this bill we might be sending a message, an impure message, that we're only working for the landlords and against the tenants and the regular people in New York City. 

So again, you can read my "What You Should Know" on my website.  It's free, you don't have to pay anything.  And today, I'm quoting, Liz Krueger, Caesar's wife not only shall be pure but should have the appearance of purity. I'm voting no with all my heart, with all my strength.  And I ask all my colleagues to reject this piece of legislation, especially an irony, and guided to the rich, not to the poor.  Thank you.” 

This is the YouTube link to my January 23, 2013 Session Comments www.youtube.com/watch?v=7TrDsGbXUaE

Pedestrian Bridge over the Major Deegan Connecting Both Sides of Van Cortlandt Park to Become a Reality

Above - Elected Officials Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr., State Senator Jeff Klein, Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie, Assemblyman Jeffrey Dinowitz, Congressman Eliot Engel, Councilman Andrew Cohen, stand with DEP Commissioner Emily LLoyd, Parks Commissioner Mitchel Silver, and DDC Commissioner Dr. Feniosky Pena-Mora around the drawing of a new $12 million dollar pedestrian bridge to span the Major Deegan Highway to connect both sides of the Croton Aqueduct Trail that has been divided by the highway ever since it was built.

Below - A close up of the proposed $12 million dollar pedestrian bridge being paid by the DEP ($4 million dollars), Parks Department ($4 million dollars), and $4 million dollars in New York State funds secured by State Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie, Assembly Member Jeffrey Dinowitz, and State Senator Jeff Klein. The pedestrian bridge is projected to be completed sometime in 2019.  

Left - DEP Commissioner Lloyd speaks of the DEP's role in the process of getting the funding.

Right - Bronx BP Ruben Diaz Jr. is happy that he now can allocate any monies that he might of had to put into this project for other similarly important projects. Diaz gave a shot out to the two activists on hand (and both media people) that have been involved with the Croton Water Filtration Plant from the beginning, Mr. Gary Axelbank of Bronxnet T.V., and yours truly of the newspaper the Bronx News. 

Left - Assembly Speaker Heastie tells how as Speaker he was able to help on this project wanted by all.

Right - State Senator Jeff Klein (the only elected official who came to the hot area in just shirt sleeves) thanks all who were involved, including the DEP and Parks Department.  

Left - Assemblyman Jeffrey Dinowitz who has been on the project all along gets to say a few words about connecting two parts of his district that were divided by the highway.

Right - Congressman Eliot Engel states the importance of what this pedestrian bridge means.

Left - Councilman Cohen who was a member of the Friends of Van Cortlandt Park stated that this was one of the first orders of business he delved into when he took office less than 18 months ago. 

Right - Is the signpost for the Old Croton Aqueduct Trail South which just happens to be next to where this announcement was made. 

Ben Franklin Democratic Club 55th Annual Dinner

  Last night there was a packed room of over 200 people, with many others dropping in to the 55th Annual Ben Franklin Democratic Club Dinner and then hopping to another event that was going on at the same time. There was no shortage of elected officials with both local 81st Assembly district Congressmen Eliot Engel and Charlie Rangel in attendance. Also on hand was new Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie, New Bronx Democratic County Leader Assemblyman Marcos Crespo. Of course local 81st A.D. Assemblyman Jeffrey Dinowitz, State Senator Jeff Klein, and Councilman Andrew Cohen were on hand, as well as several other elected officials. It was nice to see former Bronx Democratic County leader Assemblyman Jose Rivera, State Senator Adriano Espiallat, and of course Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr. There was almost a quorum of Community Board 8 members led by CB 8's Chair Dan Padernacht. The photos below will tell the rest of the story.

 Assemblyman Jeffrey Dinowitz is telling the packed audience that the only races this year are for Bronx DA, Judges, and Judicial Delegates and Alternates.

Assemblyman Dinowitz gives his new Speaker a gavel for use in the assembly chamber, before allowing Speaker Heastie to speak to the packed house.

 

New Bronx Democratic County Leader Assemblyman Marcos Crespo gets to see the support that the Ben Franklin Club has as he says a few words to the audience.

Above - Bronx Chamber of Commerce President Lenny Caro (and BFRDC honoree) sits with the BCC Executive Director Michelle Dolgow Cristofaro as they wait for him to be called up.

Below - BCC President and Bronx Goodwill Ambassador Caro receives the BFRDC Timothy Sullivan Award from State Senator Jeff Klein. 

Above - Mr. Mario Cilento President N.Y.State AFL-CIO receives the BFRDC Jonathan B. Bingham Award from Congressman Eliot Engel.

Below Mr. Mario Curanaj Owner of Salvatore's of Soho and Yo Burger Restaurants receives the Lee Heimlich Community Service Award from Councilman Andrew Cohen.

Above - A group photo of elected officials BFRDC Club Officers, and Honorees to numerous to list. 

Below 81st Assemblyman Jeffrey Dinowitz stands with the 81st A.D. Male District Leader Eric Dinowitz, and yes the two are related, as Eric Dinowitz is the son of Assemblyman Jeffrey Dinowitz. 

Bronx Week 2015 Business Day Breakfast

Please Note --
This is by Invitation only -- 
Please call Angie Teran -- 718-590-5623
or e-mail ateran@boedc.org 
to register for this event.

DISTRICT 12’S ‘OPERATION CLEANER STREETS’ TAKES PLACE TUESDAY, MAY 12, AT LEARNING TREE CULTURAL PREPARATORY SCHOOL

 Youngsters and residents of the Northeast Bronx will join NYC Council  Member Andy King on Tuesday,  May 12th, for Operation Cleaner Streets, a program headed up by Council Member King, which strives to encourage community residents in the 12th District to pick up trash in front of their homes, bus stops and subway stations and heavily trafficked streets.

Council Member King and students from the Learning Tree Cultural Preparatory School will be cleaning in the area of Magenta Street and Capuchin Way, Bronx, from 10a.m. to Noon.

In the past, Operation Cleaner Street has tackled business corridors along Gun Hill Road, White Plains Road, Boston Road, East 233rd Street and Dyre Avenue.

WHAT: OPERATIONS CLEANER STREETS

WHEN: TUESDAY May 12, 10 a.m. to Noon

WHO: COUNCIL MEMBER ANDY KING, STUDENTS AND STAFF AT LEARNING TREE CULTURAL PREPARATORY SCHOOL

WHERE: MAGENTA STREET & CAPUCHIN WAY WAY

Centenarian Celebration By Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr.

   Today Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr. was joined by over 40 Bronx Centenarians came together for a party to celebrate their golden years. They included Bronxites as old as 107, and 105 year old Joe Binder the Centenarian Comic who told a few of his favorite jokes. 

   The master of Ceremony was Dr. Bob Lee of WBLS Radio fame. BP Diaz was introduced by his lovely Youthful Deputy BP Aurela Greene, who admitted that she had just celebrated her 80th birthday. BP Diaz (the baby in the room) admitted that he had recently celebrated his 42nd birthday. The rest of the story will be told by the photos below.

  

Before the event began Master of Ceremony Dr. Bob Lee, BP Diaz, and Deputy BP Greene go over the final details

Left - BP Diaz does his David Letterman impression as he fixes his jacket.
Right - The BP's favorite Joke teller 105 year old Joe Binder told a few jokes.

Above and Below - The P.S. 72 Ballroom Dancers provided some entertainment as the event continued.

Left and Right - The children inspired the adults to dance, and BP Diaz dances with a few audience members.

 Diaz also led the conga line.

Above - 107 year old Charlotte Lockartt poses with B Diaz and Councilman Andy King as her grand daughter stands beside her.

Below - Councilman King reads from a city council proclamation to Ms. Lockartt. 

Above - Active Community Board 8 member 99 year old Irving Ladimer is joined by CB 8 Aging Committee Chair Karen Pesche, CB 8 Vice Chair Rose Mary Ginty, and standing behind the ladies is CB 8 Library Committee Chair Marvin Goodman.
Below - BP Diaz congratulates Mr. Ladimer, and says that next year will be the big 100 for Irving.

A couple more of the 40 other honorees.

It must be noted that there was a moment of silence for Deceased Bronx Centenarians Miriam Henson, Claude Jeffreys, and Rose Goggin who passed away since last years Centenarian Celebration. 

To A Man Who Stands for Principle

What You Should Know 
By Senator Rev. Rubén Díaz 
32nd Senatorial District 

You should know that this past Wednesday, April 29, 2015, I was invited by New York State Governor Andrew Cuomo to join other Senate colleagues for a breakfast at the Governor’s Mansion in Albany, New York.  Along with Governor Andrew Cuomo, his Chief of Staff, Joe Percoco, his Counsel Alfonso Davis, and his Budget Director Mary Beth Labate, there were Senators Andrea Stewart-Cousins, Ruth Hassell-Thompson, Liz Krueger, Marcos Serrano, Gustavo Rivera, Adriano Espaillat, Brad Holyman, and Daniel Squadron. 

It is important for you to know that I took the opportunity to have Governor Cuomo sign for me a copy of his book titled “All Things Possible” which he gladly agreed by inscribing the following: “To a man who stands for principle.” 

You should also know that this book "All Things Possible" is important to me personally because in it Governor Cuomo made reference to my name several times. 

Chapter 10 of his book, titled "33" is devoted to the fight and the struggle that took place in order to get 33 Senators to vote in favor of same-sex marriage.  In Chapter 10, the Governor gave me the honor of mentioning me by name on pages 382, 389, 400 and 402. 

On page 382 the Governor mentioned me by name by stating: "We needed thirty-two votes. We knew that one Democrat, Ruben Diaz, a senator from the Bronx, was a no-go. A Pentecostal minister, he could not be moved to change his mind. That meant we had to lock in the remaining twenty-nine Democrats and sway three Republicans. Difficult? Yes." 

On page 389, recounting his wheeling and dealing with Republican Leader Senator Dean Skelos, the Governor wrote:  "In June, Majority Leader Skelos made a clever move that transferred all of the pressure from his team to ours. A skillful tactician, he announced that he wouldn't let the bill go to the floor unless we had all the Democrats with us except Ruben Diaz, the Pentecostal minister who we both knew was unshakable." 

You should know that as the chapter continues, the Governor explains all of the roadblocks and troubles he had to bypass, and the negotiations he went through to get the same-sex marriage bill approved. He wrote about the chaos that ensued on the night of the vote, and how they prevented me and stopped me from speaking on the bill.  On pages 399-400, he mentioned an important negotiation he had with Senator John Sampson: 

"Republicans had asked for one concession.  "We don't want long speeches," Skelos told us. They didn't want political rhetoric to inflame the already nervous senators. The Senate Minority Leader, a Democrat, John Sampson, who represented parts of Brooklyn including Crown Heights and East Flatbush, assured us he will keep the Democrats' comments to a minimum. The plan was: Get the legislation on the floor.  Do a rolling voice vote. Go home. 

... Sampson had previewed with both Skelos and Steve that the only speech from one of their members will be from Senator Diaz, the sole opponent on the Democrats’ side, who would speak for two minutes. Diaz, used to speeches from the pulpit, led with, "God, not Albany, has settled the definition of marriage a long time ago." And he kept going. When Lieutenant Governor Bob Duffy cut him off he said, "Senator, Senator, I know you want to go on but we have twenty-three people who want to speak on the bill." 

Twenty-three people?  The proceedings ground to a halt as Diaz and his allies complained that he had been cut off, and the Republicans approached Steve and Myland warning them that is exactly what was not supposed to happen." 

The Governor continues explaining on page 402 how he managed to get things under control - and after the vote was taken and the gay marriage legislation was approved - how he decided to come to the Senate Floor to thank the senators.  He stated that when he got to the Senate Floor:  "Almost all of the Republicans and Ruben Diaz, who'd voted against marriage equality were all gone." 

On my behalf, I am honored that the Governor not only mentioned me by name in his book  to let the whole world know about my principled stand against his gay marriage legislation, now I am even more honored that he signed my copy by stating “To A Man Who Stands for Principle.” 

This is Senator Reverend Rubén Díaz, and this is what you should know.