Fundraiser for Hector Ramirez

Please join

Bronx Democratic Party Chairman, Assemblyman Carl Heastie

Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz, Jr.

City Councilmember Fernando Cabrera

&

Friends of Ramirez

in honoring District Leader

HECTOR RAMIREZ

Democratic Candidate for NYS 86th Assembly District

ENDORSED BY THE  BRONX DEMOCRATIC PARTY

Thursday, July 15, 2010 - 630 - 9:00 p.m.

THE MONTECARLO ROOM

2700 Jerome Avenue

(Between Kingsbridge Road & West 195st.) 

To RSVP, please call 646.208.3874, e-mail friendsoframirez@gmail.com
Please note that this event is a fundraiser for candidate Hector Ramirez.

Senator Espada Visits Tolentine-Zeiser Senior Center

On Friday Jule 2^nd Senate Majority Leader Pedro Espada Jr. was greeted by seniors at the Tolentine-Zeiser Food Pantry as monies set aside by Senators Espada and Ruben Diaz Sr. once again saved the nine slated to be closed senior centers in the Bronx. Senator Espada joined in the singing and shook the maracas as he and the seniors celebrated. Senator Espada warned however that Governor Paterson is vetoing over 6,000 lines in the budget, as he held up an issue of the New York Post calling the budget full of pork. Espada added “do you call what you see here pork, or do you call it people”. The Tolentine-Zeiser senior center was founded by Sister Margret McDermott who is still the executive director 30 years later. 

Above are pictures of Senator Espada and Seniors from Tolentine-Zeiser senior center celebrating the center staying open.

Marble Hill Youthmarket 2010

OPENING July 8^th at 2:00 PM, Bronx Community Board No. 8 (BXCB8) announces the much anticipated re-opening of the Marble Hill Youthmarket, an innovative program of GrowNYC which brings fresh food into underserved areas.   The market, located on West 225^th Street between Broadway and Exterior Street, will operate on Thursdays from 2:00 PM to 6:00 PM through October 28^th.  See info on our website: www.nyc.gov/bronxcb8. 

Opening day will have free giveaways including Free DOT bike helmets.
Bronx Community Board No. 8
5676 Riverdale Avenue, Suite 100
Bronx, New York 10471-2194
Tel: 718-884-3959   Fax: 718-796-2763
Email: brxcb8@optonline.net   
 

#1 Subway line to undergo major repair 6-2010 thru 6-2012

The Dyckman Street station on the #1 subway line will undergo major renovations that will close the station for ten months northbound and 10 months southbound. In addition for 14 weekends (to be announced) from 11:30 PM Friday night to 5AM Monday morning the #1 line will be shut down from 168th Street to 242nd Street. Northbound #1 riders will have to transfer at 168th Street to the A train to 207th Street, then board shuttle buses for stops to 242nd Street. Southbound #1 riders will have to board shuttle buses to the 207th Street A line stop and take the A train to 168th Street to catch the #1 train southbound. 

Regular weekday #1 service will bypass Dyckman street the side of construction in progress. Additional repair work consisting of no more than one months duration will occur at the W.207th Street, W.215th Street, W.225th Street, W.238th Street, and W. 242th Street stations. These stations will also be bypassed during construction as riders will have to come back on the other side to exit at the stations under construction with the exception of W.242thStreet.    

Work at the Dyckman Street station northbound will begin in September 2010 and continue through June 2011. Work southbound will begin July 2011 and continue thru June 2012. It was not announced as to when construction work will begin on the other five #1 stations. 

There was a meeting in Manhattan near the Dyckman Street station to inform local residents, and Councilman G. Oliver Koppell is seeking a meeting from the MTA to inform Bronx residents who use the #1 train of the construction work and service interruptions.

NYOFCO Sludge Fertilizer Plant Closes After 18 Years in Hunts Point

Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr. is hailing the closure of the New York Organic Fertilizer Company (NYOFCO) plant in Hunts Point. Thanks to the closure, this will mark the first summer since 1992 that neighborhood residents will be able to spend time outdoors without being forced to deal with the noxious odors emanating from the sludge processing plant.

The plant, which has been processing human waste from New York City Department of Environmental Protection’s (DEP) wastewater treatment plants into fertilizer pellets for the past 18 years, will begin to wind down operations this week.

“The closing of this plant has been a major priority of mine from the day I entered elected office,” said Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr. “Finally, we are able to declare victory in the fight against this environmental nuisance, and the residents of Hunts Point will be able to breathe easier at long last. This has been a long fight, but it was a fight worth having. A healthier Bronx is a top priority of my administration, and this is a major step towards that goal.”

The closing of the NYOFCO plant in Hunts Point heralds the era of a cleaner, greener Bronx, where the health and well-being of Bronxites is no longer compromised by incompetent industrial operations. However, while the exit of NYOFCO from the Hunts Point neighborhood is a cause for celebration, many are cautious about the fact that this turn of events will add truck traffic to the streets of Hunts Point, which are already overburdened with trucks traveling to and from this industrial neighborhood.

Croton Filtration Monitoring Committee Meeting June 17th

   Mr. Damian McShane chair of Community Board #8 and chair of the CFMC opened the meeting by saying that the chairs of CB7 and CB12 would not be in attendance. Mr. McShane also said that there would be no July meeting of the CFMC. In the construction update from DEP it was said that two miles of trolley tracks were found and would have to be removed from the Webster Avenue corridor before the force main from the water filtration plant to the waste water plant in Hunts Point could be built. Work on the main will start in Hunts Point and work up the local streets to the main corridor of Webster Avenue (from E.170th Street to E.204th Street) ending up on Bainbridge Avenue to the filtration plant.

   The discussion then moved to jobs where DEP Assistant Commissioner Mark Lanaghan said there is 1054 workers on site with 203 from the Bronx for 19 percent of the workforce. Councilman G. Oliver Koppell voiced his displeasure with such a low local percentage, and added that DEP had promised more Bronx jobs then they have provided. Mr. Lanaghan then announced that DEP would have 56 DEP employees running the water filtration plant, and that Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr. and BOEDC are working with DEP to get more Bronxites hired.

   There was some concern about fire house closings, as the closest fire house to the filtration plant is two blocks past White Plains Road on E.233rd Street. Councilman Koppell voiced concern  that Mayor Bloombergs closing of fire houses would not be known until the city budget is done by the end of June.

   The next CFMC meeting will be held on Thursday August 17th at the DEP community office on Jerome Avenue at 7PM.

Why I Refuse to Budge by New York State Senator Reverend Ruben Diaz

 Here is the statement in its entirety, from Senator Ruben Diaz Sr.

For some reason, my refusal to go along with budget extenders that include budget cuts is causing unusual concern about my responsibilities as a Democrat. As a Democrat, I am opposed to these deep cuts that will disproportionately impact the lives of my constituents and the lives of less fortunate New Yorkers.

I need to set the record straight about why I will not budge and why I will not vote for another budget extender that includes tax cuts. (I will vote for a budget extended that does not include tax cuts.) I want New Yorkers to know about the three solid legislative initiatives I support that would help balance the budget and fill the gaps. None of these proposed bills will hurt the needy, and all of them will help New York State.

1) Pass Senate Bill 1645 to create a New York State prescription medication cost containment program. This bill would allow institutions throughout New York State to make bulk purchases of prescription drugs from Canada for our seniors. Schenectady County serves as a model for this type of innovative program. In their first five years utilizing the Canadian drug program, Schenectady County’s savings in prescription drug costs have exceeded $9.4 million. This innovative program needs to be enacted throughout the State.

2) Pass Senate Bill S774 to force credit card companies to send taxes they have already collected directly to New York State instead of to the merchants. Presently, when people in New York make credit card purchases, the credit card companies send the collected taxes back to the merchants, instead of sending the money directly to the State. These merchants are then supposed to send these sales taxes to the State. For various reasons, many businesses only send an estimate or portion, others send nothing at all, and others declare bankruptcy - - as a result, New York State’s budget loses $500 - $600 million of tax revenue already … collected by credit card companies and owed to the State.

3) Enact legislation to collect taxes from cigarettes generated by American Indians sales to non-Native Americans. In the fiscal year 2008-2009, 40 million cartons of cigarettes sold by Native American were sold untaxed, translating to a loss of as much as $1.6 billion to New York State.

While much attention has been given to the push and shove match in Albany this year about our State’s budget, overlooked are fiscally responsible proposals I have made and continue to support that could save New Yorkers billions – yes, BILLIONS – of dollars to help fill these budget gaps.

There is no excuse that these three pieces of legislation remain in limbo. If and when they are enacted into law, weekly budget extenders will no longer be necessary. No matter what happens in Albany on Monday, I remain committed to representing my constituents and to defending against cuts to the poor and the needy.

Thursdays celebration of the National Puerto Rican Day Parade

   Thursday night at Maestros was billed as Abrazo Boricua in celebration of the National Puerto Rican Day Parade inc. This should have been up a day earlier, but I was still in shock from the love fest that went on between Governor Paterson and Senator Ruben Diaz Sr. The two who on Thursday morning were exchanging barbs and calling each other names while threatening to shut down New York State had nothing but praise and good words for each other. Also on hand were Bronx borough President Ruben Diaz Jr., New York State Comptroller Tom  Dinapoli, Assemblyman Marco Crespo, Ms. Madelyn Lugo President of the National Puerto Rican Day Parade, and Hon. Anibal Vega Borges the mayor of the Municipality of Toa Baja.

   Over 400 people were in attendance, including 76th Assembly candidate Luis Sepulveda who has lost 22 pounds in the past few weeks running all around the 76th Assembly District. State Senate Conference Leader John Sampson arrived after Governor Paterson had already left, but Sampson also had only kind words for the governor, while loving words for Senator Diaz.

   One person not able to attend was Senate Majority Leader Pedro Espada Jr., who's aide said that Espada was on his way from a late night in Albany and would not be able to make the event in time. The only thing missing then would have been Assembly Speaker Silver, and maybe the budget could have been hammered out that night.