IDC to AQE, WFP: Let’s Call the Roll to See Where Every Dem Stands

  Members of the Independent Democratic Conference challenged Alliance for a Quality Education and the Working Families Party to get all Democrats to sign on to the IDC’s “Call the Roll” pledge which lays out seven key progressive policy issues.

“Above all the IDC prides itself on policy, and we are asking all duly elected Democrats to tell New Yorkers where they stand on key progressive issues. AQE and the WFP should work to make sure every Democrat supports the progressive values they claim to cherish, instead of grandstanding,” said IDC Leader Jeff Klein.

The “Call the Roll,” is scheduled to kick off officially on Wednesday, and has the added goal of  setting the record straight on where all Democratic Senators stand on key progressive issues which include: the Reproductive Health Act, the DREAM Act, GENDA, protecting Title X funding, public campaign finance, single-payer health care and the Contraceptive Care Act.

As part of the "Call the Roll"  media campaign,  pledge letters will be sent to the offices of each Democrat in the house, asking for a pledge from each Democrat in the Senate of support on all seven issues, without exception.  In addition a three-and-half minute video was released on Monday, outlining the IDC's call to arms to all Democrats.

The Bronx: Accomplishments and Investments - MAYOR BILL de BLASIO

Promoting Public Safety

·    Safest Big City in America: Crime down 5% in the Bronx, and NYC just celebrated the safest April in modern recorded history

·   Neighborhood policing: More than half of Bronx’s police precincts – the 40, 44, 43, 46, 42, 48, and 41 commands – benefit from neighborhood policing through the Neighborhood Coordination Officer (NCO) program

·  NYCHA safety: 3,163 CCTV cameras across 43 NYCHA developments throughout the borough

Creating Jobs, Raising Wages

 
· Largest unemployment drop in the City:Unemployment down 5.5% in the Bronx since the start of the de Blasio Administration –largest drop in any borough

·      Job growth: 4.7% job growth rate

· M/WBEs: Minority and Women-Owned Businesses (M/WBEs) up more than a quarter in the Bronx under the de Blasio administration

·   Small business: Department of Small Business Services has served over 3,800 small businesses in the Bronx under de Blasio administration

Providing a High-Quality Education to All Bronx Students

·   Highest graduation rate increase of any borough:Graduation rates up nearly six percentage points, from 59.1 % to 64.8%

·     3-K for All: 3-K for All launching in School District 7 to provide free, full-day, high-quality early childhood education for every three-year-old. Parents with children born in 2014 can apply at nyc.gov/3K

·    Pre-K for All: 14,280 students enrolled in full-day, high-quality pre-k, up from 4,247 students during the 2013-14 academic year

·    Equity & Excellence for All:

o   Universal Literacy – By next fall, every Bronx district will have reading coaches to ensure all students read on grade level by the end of 2nd grade

o   College Access for All – Every Bronx middle school student will have the opportunity to visit a college campus. 31 high schools in the Bronx are getting new funding, training, and support from a college planning coach to put their students on the path to college

o   AP for All – Dozens of high schools in the Bronx offering new Advanced Placement courses as a part of the administration’s commitment to ensure every high school student has access to at least five AP courses by fall 2021

Expanding Affordable Housing, Supporting 

Public Housing

·   Affordable housing: The administration preserving 10,858 units of affordable housing and constructing 7,583 new affordable units, for a total of 18,441 units across the Bronx

o   169 affordable housing units for low-income and formerly homeless seniors on Boston Road

o   237 new affordable apartments in Crotona Park East/West Farms

o   300 new affordable homes as part of the St. Barnabas Wellness Care Project 

·   NYCHA improvements: $36 million for roof replacements at Parkside Houses and new LED lighting at Castle Hill, Butler, and Patterson Houses

Increasing Quality of Life

·      Street improvements: 240,000 potholes filled and nearly 500 lane miles of roadways repaved in the Bronx

·    Recycling: Bronx residents recycled 248 tons per day of recyclables in 2016, compared to 200 tons per day in 2013.

·    Parks: Investing $285 million through 2019 to renovate to more than 60 community parks

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

Our Point of View About the National Puerto Rican Day Parade Controversies 

 

You should know that in response to the controversy created by the National Puerto Rican Day Parade Board of Directors about Oscar López Rivera’s participation in this year’s Parade, and their decision to honor him with the title of “National Freedom Hero,” the New York Hispanic Clergy Organization met and voted unanimously on the following three points: 

  

(1)  As a compassionate and humanitarian gesture toward Oscar López Rivera, after   serving for 35 years in prison, do we think he should he be allowed to participate in the 2017 National Puerto Rican Day Parade? 

The New York Hispanic Clergy Organization voted: YES. 

(2)  Did the Board of Directors of the National Puerto Rican Day Parade go too far by creating and giving the title of “National Freedom Hero” to Oscar López Rivera, causing great controversy and division in the Puerto Rican community not only in Puerto Rico but also here in New York? 

The New York Hispanic Clergy Organization voted: YES. 

(3)  Should GOYA Foods reconsider their decision to not participate in this year’s National Puerto Rican Day Parade because of how detrimental it will be for the Parade and to the Puerto Rican community as a whole, affecting scholarships for our children and giving reason for other companies to abandon the Parade, creating an uncertain future for the Parade and what it means to Puerto Ricans throughout the world? 

The New York Hispanic Clergy Organization voted: YES. 

  

The New York Hispanic Clergy Organization represents thousands and thousands of Evangelical Christians not only here in New York, but also in the tri-state area. Many of these ministers and clergy not only serve as pastors for their own congregations, but they also sit on Boards and serve as members of various religious, private and not-for-profit organizations. 

The New York Hispanic Clergy Organization hopes that Goya Foods and the other corporate sponsors of the National Puerto Rican Day Parade will take our point of view under consideration. 

  

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

CITY HALL IN YOUR BOROUGH: MAYOR DE BLASIO KICKS OFF WEEK IN BRONX WITH TOUR OF HUNTS POINT TERMINAL PRODUCE MARKET

City investing $150 million to expand capacity, improve resiliency and create new jobs at the Hunts Point Food Distribution Center

  Mayor Bill de Blasio toured the Hunts Point Terminal Produce Market this morning to meet with business owners and union leadership and preview progress on the City’s $150 million investment into the Hunts Point Food Distribution Center, one of the largest food distribution hubs in the world.

The de Blasio’s administration’s investment will support the 8,500 jobs already at the hub, and create another 500 permanent and 900 unionized construction jobs. The City is expanding rail capacity, remediating underutilized properties for new buildings to house food-related businesses, expanding and modernizing existing buildings, and fortifying the center’s systems against flooding and disruption.

“We’re expanding and strengthening the hub at Hunts Point to bring even more jobs to the Bronx. This is a crucial link in the city’s economy and for our food security. This investment in more modern buildings, transportation and resiliency will protect it for decades to come,” said Mayor Bill de Blasio.

A majority of the City’s food supply comes from the Center, including 25% of produce, 35% of meat and 45% of fish. The Center is home to the world-renowned Hunts Point Terminal Produce, Cooperative Meat, and New Fulton Fish Markets, which generate approximately $3 billion in sales annually.

“With over 155 public and private businesses and 8,500 workers, the Hunts Point Food Distribution Center is a major economic engine in the South Bronx. Every day the Center feeds nearly 21 million people across the five boroughs and the larger northeastern region, making it the most critical link in our City's food supply chain,” said New York City Economic Development Corporation President and CEO James Patchett. “The City's investment will support quality, middle-class jobs, modernize infrastructure, and transform the Center into a world-class food distribution hub.”

“We at DOT are proud of our work in ‪Hunts Point, the perfect neighborhood to kick off Bronx Week,” said Department of Transportation Commissioner Polly Trottenberg.  “Under Mayor de Blasio, the neighborhood has been a Vision Zero priority as we have brought dramatic street redesigns to streets like Bruckner Boulevard and new greenways to our growing bicycle network.  Meanwhile, our award-winning ‪Hunts Point Clean Trucks Program has tackled the many problems created by the old diesel trucks that served the market every day.  Working with us over the last few years, trucking companies upgraded hundreds of vehicles, which are now releasing fewer dangerous emissions into local communities and are fitted with safer equipment that help us meet Vision Zero goals.”

“The City's investment in the Hunts Point Food Distribution Center is creating jobs in the Bronx and keeping our food supply safe,” said Gregg Bishop, Commissioner of the NYC Department of Small Business Services. “More than half of our city's food supply comes through this hub, and it's a vital pipeline for grocers and restaurants across the five boroughs.”

“The Hunts Point Terminal Market is responsible for feeding our entire region, and is one of the most significant economic engines not just in The Bronx but in the entire City. Mayor de Blasio's commitment of considerable financial resources to the market’fds ongoing success is greatly appreciated, especially as we plan for the long-term vitality and continued positive growth of this important commercial hub,” said Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr.

“It's going to be an exciting week in the Bronx as Mayor de Blasio will be in town for his office's second installment of City Hall in Your Borough. I can’t think of a better way for the mayor to kick off his Bronx tour than a visit to one of the city's top economic engines, the Hunts Point Food Distribution Center. This widely acclaimed facility distributes high quality food to not just the five boroughs, but our whole region, and I applaud Mayor de Blasio and the city for their recent $150 million investment in the cooperative market,” said Senator Jeff Klein. 

The $150 million investment furthers the New York City Economic Development Corporation’s Hunts Point Vision Plan, a four-prong strategy to optimize land use, improve traffic safety, develop workforce solutions and enhance connectivity in and around the Hunts Point Peninsula. Included in the Vision Plan is the South Bronx Greenway program, an initiative that seeks to facilitate waterfront access, provide recreational opportunities, improve transportation safety, and enhance the network of bike and pedestrian paths on the Hunts Point Peninsula while boosting economic development opportunities.

Completed South Bronx Greenway projects include:

·         Enhanced streetscapes along Hunts Point and Spofford Avenues that includes a brand new bike lane.

·         Major safety enhancements to Bruckner Boulevard, including the addition of a protected bike lane, creating connections to the South Bronx Greenway.

·         The Randall’s Island Connector.

·         Easing truck traffic congestion on Food Center Drive.

·         A new 1.5-acre waterfront park within the Peninsula

The Hunts Point Clean Truck Program, administered by DOT, has dramatically reduced dangerous emissions and particulates through an innovative rebate program.  Over the last three years, over 500 high-pollution diesel trucks – that were either based in Hunts Point or that served the markets there – have been replaced or retrofitted. The federally-funded program has awarded over $15 million dollars to 85 different trucking and delivery companies, financing the replacement of conventional vehicles with newer vehicles that operate on alternative fuels, including compressed natural gas, hybrid, or battery electric.  

The Hunts Point Clean Truck Program also required Vision Zero adjustments to new and retrofitted vehicles, including the addition of mirrors and side-guards.

Building upon these investments in the Hunts Point Peninsula, the City has also prioritized neighborhood development in the surrounding residential area. In October 2016, the New York City Economic Development Corporation announced that it will transform the former Spofford juvenile detention center into a five-acre, mixed-use development that will be anchored by several South Bronx-based businesses and will create a development with approximately 740 affordable apartments, much-needed community facilities, and 52,000 square feet of open space.

In 2014, Mayor de Blasio reallocated $25 million in HUD community block grant funding to support ongoing resiliency measures in Hunts Point, including the Rebuild by Design program, a $20 million HUD funded project to evaluate integrated coastal protection, energy, and storm water resiliency, and an emergency maritime supply chain. Additionally, the Hunts Point community was one of several New York City neighborhoods selected to implement and beta test resiliency technology under NYCEDC’s RISE-NYC initiative.

Abrazo Boricua In New York 2017

STATEMENT BY THE NATIONAL PUERTO RICAN DAY PARADE - RE: Parades' Decisions Cause Controversy

NATIONAL PUERTO RICAN DAY PARADE 2017

Statement   RE: Parades' Decisions Cause Controversy 5/22/2017 The NYPD Patrolmen's Benevolent Association's (PBA) issued a statement deciding not to participate in the largest celebration of Puerto Rican diversity in its 60th Anniversary because we are honoring Oscar López Rivera. This statement was confusing and incomprehensible, since they have not joined the Parade as a contingent ever. NYPD has and we urge them to do so this year.   Over the years, several New York City parades have honored leaders who elicit mixed reaction. We all remember the St. Patrick's Day Parade of 1983, when IRA leader, Michael Flannery of Queens, was chosen as Grand Marshal of the event.  Although public opinion was divided, New York went ahead and celebrated Irish heritage.  We all worked through the LGBT controversy of 1990, and the differences that arose with the Fire Department of New York in 2007.  During these crucial times, the Big Apple's Irish American community, organized advocacy groups, public figures, and parade organizers, addressed their differences.  In the end, unity prevailed and a great celebration of culture and pride took place each time.   This upcoming June 11, on New York's iconic Fifth Avenue, the National Puerto Rican Day Parade will display a celebration full of cultural diversity and pride.  The Parade will continue to serve as educational platform, as it works alongside the community in a productive and positive manner. It will celebrate 100 outstanding young people who will receive the Parade's scholarships.  And yes, it will create awareness on issues, even if controversial, that affect us as a Puerto Rican community like the commutation of Oscar López Rivera's sentence after 35 years in jail, a journey we began in 2014 with an awareness and solidarity campaign for his cause.   PBA's decision belongs to them; Goya's corporate decision belongs to them.  We understand that others may not be able to be with us. However, we will continue to represent all voices, with an aim to spark dialogue and find common ground, so that we can help advance our community and build cultural legacy.     The Board of Directors of the National Puerto Rican Day Parade Monday, May 22, 2017

BRONX WEEK PARADE ACROSS MOSHOLU PARKWAY

  Today was the 'GRAND FINALE OF BRONX WEEK' with the Volunteer Recognition Breakfast, Bronx Walk of Fame Induction Ceremony where this year's Honorees were Latin music superstar Prince Royce, Hip-Hop pioneer Funkmaster Flex, Orange is the New Black star Selenis Leyva and medical inventor Dr. Manny Villafaña. 

  A parade down Mosholu Parkway with hundreds of students from Bronx schools and youth organizations, and then on the other side of Mosholu Parkway was the Music and Food Festival where Hip-Hop legends Doug E. Fresh and Slick Rick, Latin Freestyle stars TKA and Salseros Los Adolescentes performed. Below are many photos of the Bronx Week Parade. Click on a photo to make it larger.

BJCC Breakfast for Champions 2017

This event serves as an important fundraiser for BJCC. It allows us to continue doing the work we do in our community. Tickets and journal ads can be purchased at our NY Charities Page. We look forward to seeing you on June 14!

Visit our Website: http://www.bjcconline.org/ and  Like us on Facebook

Bronx Jewish Community Council,  2930 Wallace Avenue, Bronx, NY 10467