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Co-op City Times 10/26/24

Page 1

Vol. 59 No. 43

Saturday, October 26, 2024

Board President Saunders Focused on Quality-of-Life Issues at Bronx Town Hall On Tuesday, Oct. 22, Bronx Borough President Vanessa Gibson, other Bronx elected officials and agency representatives held a town hall in the Dreiser Auditorium to discuss a number of issues with Bronx residents. In attendance from Co-op City were Riverbay Board members, executive management personnel, and shareholders. Individuals were given the opportunity to ask questions as facilitators of the town hall circulated to tables set up around the room. Among the elected officials in attendance were Bronx District Attorney Darcel Clark, Department of Transportation Bronx Borough Commissioner Anthony Perez, Department of Sanitation Citywide Community Affairs Officer Steve Caruso, State Assemblyman Mike Benedetto, NYPD Deputy Inspector Johnny Orellana of the 45th Precinct, DEP Bronx Borough Commissioner Eleftheria (Effie) Ardizzone and CB 10 District Manager Matt Cruz. Among the issues raised by Co-op City shareholders were clean-up of litter and overgrown grass in the community and at Edson Avenue along the I-95 and Tillotson Avenue, bus scheduling for Bx28 and other bus lines, funding of a recreational center for youth, job training, building an overpass across Baychester Avenue to Education Park by the foot-

Rod Saunders

Bronx Borough President Vanessa Gibson opens the town hall with Bronx residents held in Co-op City on Oct. 22 by introducing the officials seated on the dais. Photo credit: Bronx BP Office

bridge, dedicated bus service from Co-op City to LaGuardia Airport, and MTA warnings for double parked vehicles in bus lanes, among other topics. When it was his turn, Riverbay Board President Rod Saunders addressed eScooters and eBikes operating in the community, now that the program is permanent and no longer a pilot. He also spoke

Gov. Hochul Announces Free CUNY and SUNY Applications for HS Seniors BY BRANDON ORTIZ

New York City high school seniors applying to college should consider taking advantage of a new initiative that waives their application fee when applying to a CUNY or SUNY school. Governor Hochul made the announcement on October 18, confirming that in addition to SUNY and CUNY schools, 50 additional private colleges and universities have agreed to waive their application fee for public school seniors, too. From October 21 to November 3, all SUNY schools are waiving up to five application fees per (Continued on page 9)

Early voting begins this weekend, and I cannot begin to express how important it is that every eligible cooperator participates in this year’s voting process. This year, it is imperative that we all vote for every one of the candidates of our choice for office. It is equally important that we vote for those running for elected office for positions of legislative power to best serve our community. Please step up to vote for those who will best serve Co-op City’s interest as our representatives in the U.S. Senate, our next U.S. Congressman, NY State Senator and NY State Assemblyman. Also on the ballot, you will have the oppor(Continued on page 2)

MTA Expands Automated Bus Lane Enforcement BY BRANDON ORTIZ

Riverbay Mold Assessment & Remediation Team: Ricardo Ortiz (L) and Anthony Olivieri (R). The team is overseen by the Riverbay Safety Department. (See page 5 for more information on the program.) Photo by Danielle Cruz

Raising Our Level of Political Sophistication President’s Report

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Mold Inspection Crew

$1.25

More than 1,000 buses and over 20 bus routes have been equipped with automated cameras, after the MTA announced in September that they are expanding their automated bus lane enforcement system. A 60-day warning period officially began on Monday, September 16, for 10 new bus routes that will begin using the Automated Camera Enforcement (ACE) system. During the warning period, the MTA is not issuing summonses for drivers caught on camera blocking or obstructing a bus lane. Instead, the agency will mail warnings. Once the warning period concludes, somewhere in the middle of November, the MTA will issue $50 summonses for first-time offenders and up to $250 summonses for repeat offenders.

Of the 10 new bus routes that will be equipped with automated camera enforcement, two are routes that directly serve the Co-op City community. The 10 new routes are: Bx28, Bx35, Bx38, M101, Q43, B35, S46, B41, B42 and S-79 SBS. Ten additional bus routes will be equipped with the ACE system and begin a warning period later in the month on September 30: B82 SBS, Q53 SBS, M86 SBS, M79 SBS, M60 SBS, B25, Q5, Q69, Bx6 SBS and B26. The MTA began issuing summonses for drivers who obstruct bus stops and bus lanes on August 19 after first introducing the ACE system in June. ACE builds on the Automated Bus Lane Enforcement (ABLE) camera system, a system announced in November of 2022 designed to catch drivers who (Continued on page 8


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