ASSEMBLYMAN DINOWITZ ENDS HENRY HUDSON BRIDGE TOLL (FOR BRONX RESIDENTS)

  The Henry Hudson Bridge, long a costly charge for Bronx residents who wished to cross the Harlem River, will soon be free for anyone with a car registered in Bronx County who has an EZ Pass. Assemblyman Jeffrey Dinowitz, who secured the commitment for a Henry Hudson Bridge rebate, recently voted in favor of one of the largest investments in mass transit in New York’s history and the first congestion pricing program in the North America. An ardent opponent to congestion pricing when it was last seriously discussed in 2008, Dinowitz softened his opposition in 2019 due to an overwhelming need for significant revenue to fund the proposed Fast Forward plan put forward by NYCT President Andy Byford.

Assemblyman Dinowitz frequently said publicly and internally among colleagues and leadership that if his constituents were to be expected to pay more from their own pockets to fund mass transit improvements then there must be firm commitments to make tangible improvements to transit in the Northwest Bronx. In addition to the Henry Hudson Bridge rebate for Bronx residents, Dinowitz also secured two major commitments that he has championed for many years: accelerated subway accessibility and improved bus service in the Bronx.

The Henry Hudson bridge rebate would start in approximately one year. Residents would have to register with E-Z Pass to be eligible and their cars would have to be registered in Bronx County. When a participating car crosses the bridge, the toll would be charged to their account and then immediately credited back. The toll, which used to be only ten cents, is currently $2.80 for New York E-Z Pass users and $7.00 for those without E-Z Pass.

Assemblyman Jeffrey Dinowitz (D - Bronx) said: “The Henry Hudson Bridge used to be known colloquially as the ten-cent bridge, but in recent years the toll has continued to rise. Many of my constituents have long complained that this leads to bridge shopping which causes increased congestion and pollution in Kingsbridge and Marble Hill. I made the elimination of this toll a top priority in budget negotiations, along with firm commitments to ADA accessibility and better bus service, and I am very pleased with this outcome. I thank Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie for his support and Governor Andrew Cuomo for his agreement on this important issue for residents of the Northwest Bronx.

“I understand that there are some transit advocates who may be disappointed with what they perceive as a congestion pricing carveout or a furtherance of incentivizing individual car usage, however I disagree with that characterization. People driving into the CBD will still have to pay the full toll and the best way to get people to stop driving is by making mass transit the clearly superior option. I believe that the commitments I got from the MTA on accessibility and bus service improvements will go a long way towards accomplishing this goal.”

Croton Facility Monitoring Committee Meeting Thursday, May 2, Agenda

Croton Facility Monitoring Committee Meeting

Thursday, May 2, 2019 – 6:30 PM

Mosholu Montefiore Community Center – 

3450 DeKalb Avenue

Agenda

I Welcome and; Call Meeting to Order 

Dr William Hall, Chair

II Consider, Adopt May 2, 2019 

Agenda CFMC Representatives

III Consider, Adopt Minutes from CFMC 

Representatives January 28, 2019 CFMC Meeting

IV Presentation by NYC Parks 

Andrew Penzi, NYC Parks Department

V Update on Van Cortlandt Park Pedestrian Bridge 

Department of Design and; Construction

VI Update on Golf Clubhouse 

Department of Design and; Construction

VII Croton Costs and Construction Update 

Bernard Daly, DEP

VIII Old Business 

CFMC Representatives and; Public

IX New Business 

CFMC Representatives and; Public

MAYOR DE BLASIO APPOINTS JACKIE BRAY AS DIRECTOR OF THE MAYOR’S OFFICE TO PROTECT TENANTS

  Today, Mayor Bill de Blasio appointed Jackie Bray as Director of The Mayor’s Office to Protect Tenants. Bray currently serves as the First Deputy Commissioner at the New York City Department of Homeless Services. In this role, Bray helped develop and implement the Mayor’s “Turning the Tide on Homelessness in New York City” plan to transform the City’s haphazard shelter system and improve homeless services citywide. The Mayor’s Office to Protect Tenants will spearhead the City’s anti-harassment initiatives, enhance interagency enforcement and closely engage with tenants and advocates.

“Bad landlords – you’re on notice,” said Mayor de Blasio. “As Director of the Mayor’s Office to Protect Tenants, Jackie will be the fighter in the corner of every New Yorker experiencing harassment. She will make existing programs better, and create new strategies to root out abuse.”

“I’ve spent the past three years working with New Yorkers experiencing homelessness. The more I did this work the more it became clear that securing stable, affordable housing has to be the highest priority for all of us. Rooting out bad landlords and supporting the right of tenants to live free from harassment and displacement cannot be the work of any single individual program or agency. As Director of the Mayor’s Office to Protect Tenants, I will ensure the entire force of City government is coordinated and laser focused on helping New Yorkers stay in their homes and holding bad landlords accountable for abuse,” said Jackie Bray, Director of the Mayor’s Office to Protect Tenants.

Protecting tenants is a core part of the City’s strategy to confront the affordable housing crisis. On January 10^th at the State of the City, Mayor de Blasio signed an executive order establishing the Mayor’s Office to Protect Tenants to lead comprehensive outreach on anti-harassment initiatives and be the central point of contact for tenant advocates.

The office will:

Serve as central point of contact for advocacy groups and tenants to raise issues and get results from agencies

Lead policy development to strengthen tenant protections and better target problematic buildings and owners

Bring government and advocate task forces together to address challenges

Convene and coordinate activities of key city agencies including Department of Housing Preservation and Development, Department of Buildings, Human Resources Administration, Department of Consumer and Worker Protection, Law Department, Department of Finance, Mayor's Office of Special Enforcement, the Commission on Human Rights, and the Mayor's Office of Data Analytics

Strengthen the Tenant Harassment Prevention Task Force

Track outreach efforts across agencies and metrics at a building and neighborhood level

Attorney General James Announces Court Decision Allowing Continuation Of Multistate Fraud Case Against Harris Jewelry

  Attorney General Letitia James announced the court decision to allow the multistate, multi-year lawsuit against Harris Jewelry to proceed. The lawsuit, filed in October 2018, alleges that the retailer/financier specifically targeted servicemembers with their illegal and fraudulent business practices.   

The Court declined Harris Jewelry’s motion to dismiss the case in its entirety, and ruled that claims against Harris Jewelry for statutory and common law fraud and violations of the State’s charitable co-venturing laws may proceed. The court additionally dismissed claims related to interest rates and general business law, and preserved the Attorney General’s claims of wrongdoing against the individual business principals, board members, Consumer Adjustment Corp., and the company’s out-of-state related corporations.  

“The Court’s decision to move forward with this lawsuit allows my office to continue in our commitment to protect the financial welfare of servicemembers and hold those seeking to defraud them accountable,” said Attorney General Letitia James. “My office will not back down from its efforts to vigorously protect our military.” 

Owners Susan Harris, Beverly Harris, and Sandi Harris-Pleeter were sued individually along with board members/executives John Zimmermann, David Malane, and Richard Baum, in addition to Consumer Growth Partners, a private equity and investment firm led by Baum. 

Harris Jewelry, which is headquartered in Hauppauge, New York, has a retail store in Watertown, New York along with several other locations across the country, all strategically situated next to military bases for the express purpose of selling over-priced jewelry to servicemembers with in-house credit, as alleged by the Attorney General. The complaint includes allegations, for example, that the oft-sold Mother’s Medal of Honor is purchased at wholesale by Harris for under $78, but is sold as “quality” jewelry with store financing for $799 plus interest, over 10-times the wholesale amount. The lawsuit further alleges that servicemembers are defrauded by false representations about the benefits of Harris Jewelry’s proprietary financing and jewelry quality while force-placing warranty add-ons and failing to properly administer a charitable co-venture.

The lawsuit seeks a permanent injunction, restitution for defrauded consumers, and financial penalties.  

BAFA Parkchester Parade

Sunday BAFA the Bangladesh Academy of Fine Arts celebrated the Bengali New Year with a parade through the streets of Parkchester Sunday afternoon. 

The parade started outside PS 106 on Olmsted Avenue with a police escort from the 43rd. Precinct. The marchers turned right on Starling Avenue to Unionport Road where they moved north for two blocks before turning South on Unionport Road heading back to Starling Avenue. The marchers then went two blocks past Olmsted Avenue to Odell Avenue where the dancing began. 

After celebrating on Odell Avenue the almost 200 marchers asked the police officers who escorted the marchers to join in to take a few photos. 

Above - The BAFA Parade proceeded through Parkchester up Unionport Road.

Below - There was Dancing in the Street on Starling Avenue in Parkchester.

After the parade members of BAFA invited the police officers who guided the parade to join in on a group photo.

Taste of The Bronx Pop Up

  Taste of the Bronx held their third Pop Up vendor event Sunday at 50 East 168th the Urban Horizons Center. The location is an incubator for small entrepreneurs just starting out to use the various community space as they begin to enter the business world. Be it any type of business the kitchen area is available for those who cater parties or events, and other spaces are available to showcase products for sale that are handmade. Pictured above is Anthony Ramirez ll who is the mastermind behind the idea of bringing small vendors together for Pop Up events such as this third Taste of the Bronx. Taste of the Bronx Pops Up in various locations throughout the Bronx once a month.

Above is the Sustainable Snacks team which has just about outgrown its current space in Urban Horizons, and is looking for a larger production site for its delicious chocolate snacks as the company expands its business.

Below - Two part time entrepreneurs Kasey Rodriguez (Left, a photographer by trade) shows off her various items she makes herself from Jewelry to ceramic dishes. Carlita Lopez (Right) shows off her artwork. 

Laura Blackwood shows off her homemade soaps and other Vegan organic products she makes.

Governor Cuomo Vetoes 123 Legislative Additions to the FY 2020 Enacted Budget

Governor Andrew M. Cuomo announced the submission of 123 vetoes in accordance with Article VII of the State Constitution, eliminating pages of unnecessary language from the FY 2020 Enacted Budget.  

  The vetoes include 51 appropriations pertaining to state agency operations. Twenty-six appropriations are more than seven years old and have had no disbursements over the most recent seven-year period. Twenty-five appropriations are fully expended and one due to fiscal impacts. Six appropriations are vetoed on constitutional grounds, six appropriations are duplicative of other reappropriations for the same purpose, and eight were previously vetoed.

  The full list of vetoes is available here.

Former Venezuelan Official Hugo Armando Carvajal Barrios Arrested In Spain In Connection With Drug-Trafficking Charge

Carvajal Barrios Allegedly Participated in Large-Scale Drug-Trafficking Activities as a Venezuelan Government Official, Including a 5.6-Ton Cocaine Shipment

  Geoffrey S. Berman, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, and Christopher T. Tersigni, the Special Agent in Charge of the Special Operations Division of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (“DEA”), today announced that former Venezuelan official Hugo Armando Carvajal Barrios, a/k/a “El Pollo,” was arrested today in Madrid, Spain, based on an Interpol Notice related to the charge filed in Indictment 11 Cr. 205 in the Southern District of New York.  The Indictment charges Carvajal with participating in a conspiracy to import cocaine into the United States, including a 5.6-ton shipment of cocaine transported from Venezuela to Mexico in April 2006.[1]  The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York plans to seek the extradition of Carvajal Barrios from Spain. 

Manhattan U.S. Attorney Geoffrey S. Berman said:  “Hugo Armando Carvajal Barrios, a former high-ranking official of Venezuelan military intelligence, allegedly conspired with others to traffic more than five tons of cocaine into the United States since at least 2006. Barrios’s arrest exemplifies this Office’s resolve to bring those who contribute to the illicit global drug trade to justice. No matter the rank or level of influence of an individual, we will continue to pursue and prosecute those who bring deadly drugs into this country in a U.S. court of law.”

Special Agent in Charge Christopher T. Tersigni said:  “Today’s arrest of Hugo Armando Carvajal Barrios is yet another example of DEA’s commitment to stemming the flow of dangerous illicit drugs into our country.  Despite his status as a former government official in Venezuela, Carvajal Barrios is not above the law.  The DEA is grateful to our international partners for their efforts in helping to bring this drug-trafficker to justice.

Carvajal Barrios, 56, a Venezuelan national residing in Venezuela, among other places, is charged with conspiring to import cocaine into the United States.  If convicted, Carvajal Barrios faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years in prison and a maximum sentence of life in prison.  The mandatory minimum and maximum potential sentences in this case are prescribed by Congress and provided here for informational purposes only, as any sentencing of the defendant will be determined by a judge.

Mr. Berman praised the outstanding efforts of the DEA’s Special Operations Division Bilateral Investigations Unit and Miami Field Division, Homeland Security Investigations, the U.S. Treasury Department Office of Foreign Assets Control, and the U.S. Department of Justice’s Office of International Affairs.

This prosecution is being handled by the Office’s Terrorism and International Narcotics Unit.  Assistant U.S. Attorneys Emil J. Bove III, Amanda L. Houle, and Matthew J. Laroche, with assistance from Adam Fels of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida.

[1] As the introductory phrase signifies, the entirety of the text of the Indictment and the description of the Indictment set forth herein constitute only allegations, and every fact described should be treated as an allegation.