Winner of Vol. 72, No. 10
What’s inside?
Thursday, April 15, 2021
n Assemblyman’s son will fill remainder of Andrew Cohen’s final council term estarkmiller@riverdalepress.com
A new club at DeWitt Clinton not only turns students into broadcasters, but creates a way to share story of COVID-19. Page A3
$1.00
It’s finally over: Dinowitz heads to City Hall By ETHAN STARK-MILLER
Making it history
the Pulitzer Prize
After nearly three years of running, former teacher Eric Dinowitz will succeed Andrew Cohen on the city council. At least until the end of this year. Dinowitz won the March 23 special election with 58 percent of the vote once all of the ranked-choice counting and elimination was completed Tuesday. Spuyten Duyvil non-profit executive Mino Lora finished second with 33 percent.
Dinowitz takes office immediately, serving out the remainder of the term for Cohen, who was elected to the Bronx Supreme Court last year. Soon after the final results were revealed, the Bronx’s newest councilman says he’s feeling good about the erIC election results. DInOWItZ “We ran a very positive, future-facing campaign,” Dinowitz said. “We talked about the recovery of the Bronx and (the) needs of the people of our community, and I think that spoke to people.” U.S. Rep. Ritchie Torres — one of Dinowitz’s most prominent backers —
Mazel tov ... from home
By ETHAN STARK-MILLER estarkmiller@riverdalepress.com
Courtesy of hedvAnDan Photography
Maddie Dickstein’s parents held a family heirloom Jewish prayer shawl — called a tallit — over her during her virtual bat mitzvah. this was one of many virtual ceremonies called ‘beit mitzvahs’ held by the Conservative Synagogue Adath Israel of riverdale during the coronavirus pandemic.
COVID creates new rite of passage n Bar and bat mitzvahs continued on through pandemic — just online By ETHAN STARK-MILLER estarkmiller@riverdalepress.com
Making it a day It’s not just about food anymore. Y’s Sunday Market now offers new activities, and fresh ways to buy something quite tasty. Page A8
State budget aims to tax rich n Governor had far less to say than he has in past as scandal catches up to him
Out & about Pandemic has introduced the world to Zoom, but when is it just too much for politicians? Page A10
Lora was the only candidate with any real chance of overcoming Dinowitz’s seemingly insurmountable lead after live and early ballots were counted March 23. But even then, that chance was fleeting, as she would have to rank higher on a significantly large percentage of the remaining votes from candidates who were ultimately eliminated from the tally. But any chance of Lora going to City Hall became all but impossible once absentee votes were counted Sunday. Dinowitz picked up 1,400 — or 57 percent — of the 2,500 absentee ballots. Meanwhile, Lora only added 350 votes to her tally, giving her 22 percent of first round votes, which pales in comparison to Dinowitz’s 46 percent. At that point, the only way Lora could’ve CITY HALL, page A4
congratulated the new councilman on Twitter Monday night after The Riverdale Press called the election in his favor. “Congratulations,” tweeted Torres, whose elevation to Congress opened up a special election for his own city counMInO cil seat on the eastern lOrA side of the Bronx. “Looking forward to working with you in your new role.” Dinowitz crossed the 50 percent threshold while there were still three candidates in the race that included himself, Lora and Fieldston environmental activist Jessica Haller, the last to be eliminated.
T
he coronavirus pandemic has forced many to quickly figure out how long-planned life events like weddings could work in a time of forced social distancing. Many simply postponed these events indefinitely, but not everything can be pushed back. The show must go on for bar and bat mitzvahs, the rite of passage tied to when a Jewish boy or girl turns 13 and reaches religious maturity. Although ceremonies can happen months from a young teenager’s actual birthday, there’s only so long one can delay.
But as COVID-19 shut down any chance of bringing even the smallest groups together, Rabbi Barry Dov Katz took on a grim task of telling families at Conservative Synagogue Adath Israel of Riverdale these milestone events weren’t going to go as planned. “People spend their whole lives — over 13 years — thinking about these events,” Katz said. “Thinking about who’s going to be there and planning every little detail of the synagogue service, and the party, and all of that. And, I had to call people and tell them, ‘Sorry, this weekend isn’t going to look like what you wanted it to look like.’” But Katz and his team quickly came up with a solution: Move these ceremonies onto the Zoom online videoconferencing app. There was some skepticism at first, but early on in the pandemic, CSAIR hosted the first of these virtual
ceremonies, which Katz called “beit mitzvahs.” “Beit” is the Hebrew word for “house,” which made sense since these ceremonies would indeed take place in the family home.
Finding a way to bring it together
Many of these beit mitzvah events were Saturday night affairs, Katz said, open virtually to invited family and congregation members. They also sometimes took place on Sunday and Thursday mornings. None of these could be full religious services, Katz said, because that would require a minyan — a quorum of 10 Jewish men in a room to lead the prayers. Instead, a typical beit mitzvah focused on the teen reading from the Torah — the Jewish prayer scroll — MAZEL TOV, page A4
It may have come in a week late, but the $212 billion state budget is packed to the gills. And some state lawmakers say the extra deliberation was worth it. This budget is geared toward raising revenue and spending massively to help people across the state recover from the coronavirus pandemic. In previous years, state Sen. Alessandra Biaggi said she felt disheartened by the budget process. Gov. Andrew Cuomo almost completely controlled the process, according to law, and rarely would he yield to some of the more liberal big-ticket items she and other newer lawmakers craved. But this year felt entirely different. “I think this is a historic budget that’s going to provide relief for communities that are progressive wins in a way that we have really not seen,” Biaggi said. “We didn’t get everything we fought for, but we got a lot.” Those wins include a tax increase on wealthy individuals, $2.4 billion in rent relief, and a spending package the senator says fully funds public schools statewide. The budget deal also legalized mobile sports betting, which proponents claim will raise hundreds of millions in revenue. Also included in the deal was a bill pushed by Biaggi and Queens Assemblyman Ron Kim repealing Cuomo’s blanket BUDGET, page A4
Relaxed coronavirus rules could mean fewer closures n Four positive cases now required to shutter buildings instead of just two in past By ROSE BRENNAN rbrennan@riverdalepress.com
At one time, neither rain nor sleet nor snow nor hail could halt the nation’s postal service — or the operation of its largest public school system. But last year, something beyond inclement weather upended the educational system’s reputation for never closing. And unlike snowstorms, the coronavirus pandemic didn’t have a forecasted end. When school campuses physically reopened last fall, the criteria to reverse course and shut down again at either the classroom or school building level remained fairly consistent. If there were one or two confirmed coronavirus cases confined to a specific classroom, that classroom would need to switch to fully remote learning for 14 days. The building itself would close for 24 hours if two or more “unrelated” coronavirus cases were found in the school. If contact tracing created more worries
HIrAM AleJAnDrO DUrÁn
Under the city’s new guidelines, classrooms will still need to quarantine if even one person tests positive for the virus that causes COVID-19. However, the building itself will now only close if there are four or more confirmed cases. of further community spread, the school would close up to 14 days, although that eventually relaxed to just 10 days. But as millions of vaccine doses are in-
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jected into arms — especially the arms of teachers — the time came for the criteria to close down a school building to change again. And that’s exactly what Mayor Bill
de Blasio did again last week. de Blasio did away with the so-called “two-case rule,” later unveiling a new program that appears to be less stringent. The guidelines for classroom closures are the same — even one confirmed case means the class will go fully remote for 10 days. But if there are multiple cases that are not confined to one classroom, the guidelines change. If there are two to three cases in a school building, its mandatory coronavirus testing procedures will expand to test more people. As of right now, mandatory weekly testing occurs randomly among 20 percent of the school population. If more testing is deemed necessary, that testing capacity can temporarily increase to 40 percent to gauge community spread. Finally, a school building will temporarily close if four or more people test positive for the virus that causes COVID-19. And even then, this will only occur if the cases aren’t isolated to a single classroom or family. These rules will allow schools to be more consistent in terms of keeping the doors open, de Blasio said. Schools closing less frequently means students will have more time in the classroom. But the city CLOSURES, page A4
A2 - THE RIVERDALE PRESS - Thursday, April 15, 2021
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HIRAM ALEJANDRO DURÁN
Not the car seat and scooter, too! Stealing a car is one thing. But taking someone’s scooter and car seat? Well, that’s going too far. Yet, that’s exactly what happened to one man who parked his car at the southeast corner of Reservoir and Webb avenues mid-morning on March 25. He returned at 3 p.m., the following day to find his 2019 Honda Pilot was stolen, police said, along with his child car seat and scooter. Authorities said they have few leads, but valued the victim’s car at $35,000, and the other items at a little over $100.
Slashing on Aisle 4
Things turned violent for a Stop & Shop employee after his face was slashed. It all happened after lunch on March 28, according to police. The employee had stopped to speak with his manager inside the 5716 Broadway store when someone snuck up on his left side, grabbed his shoulder, and cut him above his lip with an unknown object. The attacker immediately bolted out an emergency exit down West 234th Street. Good news for the employee — but bad news for the grocery store slasher — the manager witnessed the whole thing, and it was caught on camera. Even more, police believe surveillance footage followed the perp walking into the store with a woman. Authorities are on the lookout for a Black man, 5-foot-9, weighing 160 pounds. He was last seen wearing a black sweater and cap with white sneakers.
A late Christmas steal
Santa’s naughty or nice list traditionally comes out around Christmastime. But it took one unlucky victim until March 19 to find out which part of the list he made. Someone reportedly stole a $1,000 check from the 3100
block of Fairfield Avenue sometime between Nov. 25 and Dec. 25, according to police. That person then used that check to steal $2,980 from the victim’s bank account. The true owner of the cash didn’t report the theft until nearly three months later. But detectives from the 50th Precinct are now investigating.
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Leave TJ Maxx alone
Anyone who’s seen a TJ Maxx commercial knows the store sells itself on its bargain basement prices. Yet some are walking through the door of the store’s West 230th Street location hoping for deals so good, it’s like a robbery. Except it is a robbery. The latest instance of someone giving themselves a fivefinger discount took place just after 7:30 p.m., on March 29, police said, when someone walked into the store and started collecting merchandise off the shelves. When confronted the perp told TJ Maxx employees, “I have a needle, and if you try to touch me, I’ll stab you.” Police said she then went back to her shopping and eventually left. She made off with three handbags and one shirt, valued at a little more than $140 in total. Authorities describe the woman as around 30, white, about 5-foot-4 and weighing 120 pounds.
Cash on delivery?
Mailboxes just aren’t as secure as they used to be. That’s what one victim learned after trying to send out two money orders using the mailbox at 160 W. Kingsbridge Road last December only to find out two months later someone else had cashed them, keeping the $1,400. Authorities are looking into this suspected grand larceny, but they admit they don’t have many leads at this point.
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Quiet in class, but speaking up on the airwaves n Clinton students share experiences with COVID, college, everything else
Want to tune in?
By ROSE BRENNAN
Governor’s Radio, a podcast produced and hosted by Clinton High School students, is available on major audio streaming platforms, including Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts and Amazon Music. Just search for “Governor’s Radio.” You can also listen to the latest episode directly on the podcast’s website at GovernorsRadio.buzzsprout.com Students contributing to the podcast include Shakil Ahmed, Felichi Fernandez, Samantha Macintosh, Sky Milano, Viany Peralta, Karan Persaud, Hakeen Phillip, Carmen Rodriguez, Clementina Sarpong, Jenia Taylor, Sky Torres and Syleena Williams.
rbrennan@riverdalepress.com
T
he past year has felt like a history Regents question come to life for Sky Torres. But there could be a lot less guesswork for that inevitable test question thanks to the endeavors of her fellow classmates at DeWitt Clinton High School. Each Friday, Torres and her peers hop onto a videoconference through Google Meet. Sometimes there’s a planned topic. Sometimes they go off on tangents and talk about whatever they feel like. But there’s always the possibility it will end up online for the world to hear. Yet that’s just par for the course when CHRIStIAN you’re a podcaster. Clinton’s podcastAvILES ing club — Governor’s Radio — is a relatively new endeavor, born in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic. And for many of the students involved, it’s become a way to connect with their academic community — especially when they’ve spent the better part of the past year learning remotely. There are a lot of emotions that come with that experience — apathy, loneliness, even sadness. And while Governor’s Radio became a place to share those emotions, it also became a way for students to joke and laugh with each other in the same way they normally could in the lunchroom or schoolyard. And for Spanish teacher, club adviser and podcast editor Christian Aviles, that’s the beauty of having the platform. “We decided that we needed a space where kids could freely express themselves,” Aviles said. “And we
HIRAM ALEJANDRO DURÁN
Although students spent many months not learning in-person at DeWitt Clinton High School, some of them spent that time still making waves — or, more aptly, airwaves. Governor’s Podcast — the product of Clinton’s newest club — is available on most major podcast streaming platforms. knew that some kids would benefit from this sort of narrative thing where they could just talk about whatever they would like to.” Syleena Williams joined the podcast just to have something to do outside of her studies. The junior transferred to Clinton about six months before the pandemic closed the school buildings, meaning she didn’t really get a chance to know many of her classmates. Williams thinks she’s fairly social, but she likes to get to know people before she really opens up. And Governor’s Radio allows her to do just that. “This is an outlet for me,” Williams said. “I’ve always seen people do podcasts and talk about anything that they wanted to talk about. So I thought being able to do that may inspire me to do my own (podcast) someday,
because it’s been on my mind for a while.” For Sky Milano, there’s a very clear line between speaking at school and speaking with her friends. But the line gets blurred on the podcast, allowing the sophomore to be more open with her peers and her teachers. “In school, I can’t talk to other students like that — I can, but I don’t choose to talk to other students like that,” Milano said. “This is a place where I can talk to other students that I know … about different things about my week. I feel like it did help with relationships more.” The common narrative among the podcast’s contributors seemed to be giving the introverted a voice. Even if they don’t speak up in class very often, they still have complex and nuanced feelings about their high school
experiences — whether it’s missing out on a traditional homecoming weekend, or staring down the barrel of college applications. And for Clementina Sarpong, the podcast can be both a place to talk about those things and a place to forget about them for a while. “It was already hectic with all the extracurriculars I had before, and I had to do college applications,” the senior said. “Because this was at the end of the week, it felt like a nice cooldown to just either vent or just hang out with people virtually.” Aviles’ fellow faculty advisor, history teacher Rafael Erazo, might be used to document-based questions in the classroom, but noted how podcasting could be a new way of learning about a historical moment. And if future history students wanted
to know more about what it was like for their peers from the past to live through the coronavirus pandemic, they’d need to look no further than Governor’s Radio. “We’re documenting history,” Erazo said. “Thirty years from now, someone’s going to listen to this podcast, and you’re going to get firsthand knowledge — a primary source.” While she might not be thrilled about potentially becoming the subject of future standardized test questions when it comes to the pandemic, Torres is excited about the permanence of a project like Governor’s Radio. One day, the pandemic will end. And while it may not be a happy experience now, she’s excited to share it with someone who didn’t witness it firsthand years down the line. Because while other historical documents might get misplaced or damaged, the internet is forever. At least so it seems. “A paper can get lost in storage, it can fly away, it could be ruined from a cup of coffee,” Torres said. “This is on the internet for a while. And I think that’s super cool, because I could be like, ‘Hey, kids! I did this!’”
SCHOOL DESK Bowman to deliver commencement Much of his congressional district might be concentrated in the Bronx, but U.S. Rep. Jamaal Bowman represents a slice of Westchester as well. And one of its colleges will welcome
By ROSE BRENNAN him — virtually — for its commencement exercises this May. Sarah Lawrence College is a small liberal arts college in Bronxville, a village within Bowman’s hometown of Yonkers. Originally a women’s college, it became co-ed in 1968. And Bowman says he’s thrilled to
speak to the Class of 2021. “Our students are graduating in an unprecedented time, in a world that faces incredible challenges,” Bowman said, in a release. “The next generation of leaders has immense potential to create a more just society for all of us. As an educator and
former principal, I’m humbled to be sending Sarah Lawrence’s graduates off on the next phase of their journeys.” Bowman has certainly used his teaching background to his advantage in his congressional career thus far. He’s now the vice chair of the House Educa-
tion and Labor Committee, a title Sarah Lawrence president Cristle Collins Judd hopes he will wear with pride when addressing the college’s graduates. “I am delighted that Congressman Bowman has accepted our invitation,” Judd said,
in a release. “We look forward to welcoming him to address our graduates, recognizing the priority he places on issues of justice and education allied with his intimate knowledge of and desire to strengthen the area that Sarah Lawrence calls home.”
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A4 - THE RIVERDALE PRESS - Thursday, April 15, 2021
Nursing homes no longer get free pass over COVID BUDGET from page A1 immunity to nursing home administrators and their shareholders last year. Biaggi said this immunity prevented families whose loved ones died from COVID-19 in nursing homes from seeking legal redress. “It’s something that myself and Assemblymember Ron Kim had been fighting for, for over a year,” Biaggi said. “In my knowledge, it has never been done before where the governor and the special interests that support him have decided to take an action as egregious as this … and then have it be repealed fully, without compromise. So, families will be able to have justice.” This was one of many concessions the state legislature received from Cuomo — who ruled over the budget process with an iron fist in years past. But the governor is currently embroiled in scandals over alleged sexual misconduct as well as what critics say was his mishandling of the coronavirus in nursing homes. These controversies reportedly weakened his politi-
cal position, forcing him to acquiesce to many lawmaker demands. The tax increase on the wealthy alone is projected to raise an additional $4 billion. It starts with a personal income tax hike of about 1 percent for single earners making more than $1 million annually, and joint earners earning more than $2 million. It also establishes new tax brackets affecting those making more than $5 million. Corporate franchise taxes — a “privilege tax” of sorts that allows those businesses to operate in New York — also nudged up by around 1 percent. Still, there are exemptions for coops, manufacturers and small businesses, Biaggi added. However, several other proposed tax hikes from the Invest in Our New York Act package of bills — like raising taxes on inheritance and capital gains— didn’t make it to the budget. But then again, some who were pushing those measures — like Northwest Bronx Indivisible steering committee member Kathy Solomon — didn’t ex-
pect it to. “Raising revenue is a critical investment in New York state,” Solomon said. “We need to invest in clean energy. We need to invest in schools and our human resources. We need to get out of this thinking that there’s a race to the bottom of saving every last nickel on our taxes.” Those taxes, in addition to the aid from President Joe Biden’s American Rescue Plan, will pay for many of the budget’s ambitious spending items. Like rent relief for tenants who’ve struggled to pay during the pandemic. The program provides up to 12 months of back rent for low-income tenants who qualify, as well as an additional three months to use toward future rent. “This is to help anybody who has any kind of housing instability,” Biaggi said. “And the goal is to reduce homelessness.” But Juan Nuñez — head of the Kingsbridge Terrace Tenants’ Association in Kingsbridge Heights — thinks this housing assistance didn’t go far
enough. He believes the state should have waived rent from the past year altogether. “What we wanted from the beginning was just a blanket cancellation,” Nuñez said. “Where you don’t put it on the tenants to constantly apply and prove that they’ve been struggling.” The drawn-out application process, Nuñez said, is one of the big flaws in rent assistance. The requirement to provide a lot of documentation, he said, can be difficult and time consuming for those who need the aid most. Another problem, Nuñez said, is that the rent relief goes directly to landlords. This is an issue because there’s a chance landlords could claim they never received the money, when they actually did. “In my building, we have tenants who send in their money orders and it never gets to the landlord’s office and things like that,” he said. Another big budget accomplishment for progressive lawmakers, Biaggi said, is the $1.4 billion increase in
funding for the state’s public schools. This fully funds Foundation Aid — which gives money to high-need school districts like — for the first time since its inception in 2007. The program has a three-year phase-in, Biaggi said, so every school will have the money they’ve been owed by 2024. City officials claim lawmakers’ neglecting Foundation Aid is a major reason why its school districts have gone underfunded for many years. “With this budget, students in the Bronx and across the city will see additional resources in their schools and classrooms,” said Michael Mulgrew, president of the United Federation of Teachers, in a statement. Biaggi ran on increasing this fund in 2018, she said, and was especially proud to see it finally reflected in the budget. “Many of us came to Albany to fully fund our public schools,” Biaggi said. “The full funding of the Foundation Aid is one of the biggest wins we’ve ever seen in the history of our state.”
A new way to celebrate adulthood? The beit mitzvah MAZEL TOV from page A1 which is usually the main event of the in-person ceremony. There also was time devoted for the parents to talk about their child, and even for Katz to fit in a sermon. Of course, there was a bit of a learning curve when it came to shifting these traditionally inperson ceremonies online, the rabbi said. One of the big challenges was staying coordinated with a number of different people, all in separate individual locations. “We were really nervous about it,” Katz said. “The family was in their house. I was in my house. The cantor was in her house. Relatives were wherever they were. “ Additionally, many relatives didn’t know how to use Zoom. So Katz would have to spend the first 10 minutes or so of the ceremony explaining specific features of the app, like how to chat with others. With a bar mitzvah planned for mid-March last year, Zohar Cabo was one of the first to try a beit mitzvah. “We just went into lockdown, and I remember we were like, ‘OK, we’re probably not going to have the party, but we’ll have the ceremony,’” said Zohar’s mother, Hadaassa Rosenkrantz. Then, “’OK, we’ll have the ceremony, but it’s probably going to be broadcasted.’ Then it went to like, ‘The synagogue is closed, we’ll have to do everything on Zoom.’” The sudden shift to a virtual ceremony was disappointing in many ways, Rosenkrantz said. But at the same time, it allowed them to include family from distant places like Israel who would have never had the opportunity to participate in Zohar’s bar mitzvah in first place. Such ceremonies can already fray nerves for its young celebrants, but Zohar was even more nervous about all the sudden changes because of the pandemic. In the end, however, he said he felt more comfortable reading from the Torah in his living room than at the bimah in front of a live audience at the synagogue. “There was a sense of peace being able to do it in my own house,” Zohar said. His favorite part of the service? When a video played of Zohar singing “Somewhere Over the
‘People spend their whole lives — over 13 years — thinking about these events. And I had to call people and tell them, ‘Sorry, this weekend isn’t going to look like what you wanted it to look like.’
— Rabbi Barry Dov Katz CSAIR
Courtesy of hedvANDan Photography
For her virtual bat mitzvah, Maddie Dickstein used a sophisticated production setup involving an iPhone camera, a projector and a couple of computer laptops. Dickstein’s virtual ceremony, called a ‘beit mitzvah,’ was one of several such events held by the Conservative Synagogue Adath Israel of Riverdale during the coronavirus pandemic. Rainbow” when he was 4. That was immediately followed by his siblings leading a live rendition of the “Wizard of Oz” classic.
When an idea is just too good
The beit mitzvahs got increasingly popular as the days went on, Katz said — to the point where ceremonies were happening almost every weekend. While they weren’t quite the ceremonies these families had dreamed about, there was still something very special about them. “It was really amazing, because once we started and the kid started chanting and speaking and all of that, it felt holy,” Katz said. “It felt like a bar mitzvah.”
Making these beit mitzvahs holy, however, required creating a holy space, Katz said. Normally, synagogues are the designated holy space for Jewish prayer. But even this can ultimately be recreated at home, Katz said. One way could be by draping the table in a cloth passed down through the generations, or placing pictures of relatives who had passed away behind the teen. “They would create a set for the bar and bat mitzvah ceremony that was really very meaningful to people,” the rabbi said. “Then when the relatives Zoomed in from wherever they were, they could see it, and it was a connection across the miles.” Maddie Dickstein wanted to create a set that
would make her beit mitzvah feel more like the real thing. So, her mother Nadine Cohen borrowed a Torah scroll from the synagogue and they draped their table with an embroidered cloth. They also used a wooden podium personalized with a logo Maddie designed on the front. “We worked together to basically convert the dining room of the house that Maddie’s grown up in into a synagogue,” Cohen said. They also had a sophisticated production set up, Cohen said, with an iPhone to record, a Yeti microphone for sound, and a couple of computers for following and projecting the Zoom. The beit mitzvahs mostly gave way to small in-person ceremonies last summer, Katz said, once the state allowed small crowds to gather in houses of worship again. Still, the beit mitzvahs helped CSAIR break out of some of their old traditions, the rabbi’s intern, Ben Freed, said. “I think one of the things about bar and bat mitzvah … is sometimes we just do it the same way because that’s the way we’ve always done it,” Freed said. “So, when all of a sudden we had to really start from scratch, it allowed people to express individuality through beautiful ritual, and the set, and the production in ways that I don’t think was necessarily available to them when everyone was doing the same thing in shul.”
Dinowitz wins council seat for now, but what about June? CITY HALL from page A1 overtaken Dinowitz was by outranking him on more than 2,600 of the remaining ballots to be counted through ranked-choice, while Dinowitz needed only 375. The ranked-choice voting process eliminates the lowest vote-getter and redistributes their votes to the candidates ranked lower on their ballots. This process continues until there are two candidates left and one of them has more than 50 percent of the vote. Lora is now focused on the June 22 Democratic primary, which will ultimately decide who fills the council seat for the next two years starting in January. Many expect the primary to have a higher turnout than the barely 10 percent of registered district voters who came out for the special, and if that does happen, Lora likes her chances. “A lot more people will vote in the primary,” Lora told The Press after election night. “And that’s great news because we felt, we saw, that night in
the results that people are excited for an actual progressive candidate. For a grassroots candidate that represents the working families of our district. “More people will get to see that, and more people will get out to vote for that.” A news release from the Dinowitz campaign Tuesday claimed the March 23 turnout was higher than in any other special election across the city over the past decade, and also higher than the 2014, 2017 and 2019 Democratic primaries. The campaign cited those figures claiming Dinowitz built a “broad and diverse majority” despite the fact that only 1-in-10 voters actually cast a ballot. What the Dinowitz campaign didn’t compare these numbers to was the last time this seat was contested — in 2013 when the battle between Cohen and environmental activist Cliff Stanton turned out more than 20 percent of the council district’s Democrats — a rate more than double this particular special election.
Disappointed in her third-place showing, Haller is not convinced Dinowitz is the right person for the job. “I hope that he represents the northwest Bronx fairly,” Haller said. “I also hope that he takes equity, resilience and sustainability into account in everything he does. I’m not quite certain if he’ll be able to do that.” Dinowitz — son of Assemblyman Jeffrey Dinowitz — was backed by the Benjamin Franklin Reform Democratic Club, which many say has strong ties to the Bronx Democratic Party machine. Haller said Dinowitz’s win is a setback in the movement to oust office holders backed by the machine, which started gaining real momentum when Alessandra Biaggi ousted Jeffrey Klein from the state senate in 2018, and continued last year with Jamaal Bowman’s upset win over longtime congressman Eliot Engel. However, Haller said, the outcome of those races was more about the candidates themselves than the diminishing power of the machine.
“We got rid of the guy who was the head of the Independent Democratic Conference, right?” Haller said. The congressional race “was particularly about Engel and about Bowman themselves. We have moved into a moment where it’s like the tentacles of the machine. It’s not the heart of the machine itself.” It was real estate attorney Dan Padernacht’s votes that put Dinowitz over the finish line, ironically Padernacht was the first candidate to jump into the primary race in 2018 a few days ahead of Dinowitz. The former teacher got more than 400 of Padernacht’s votes, while he only needed 280 to overtake Lora and Haller. The rest of Padernacht’s votes were split between Lora and Haller, while a remaining quarter ranked no other candidates below him that were still running. Coming out of the special, Padernacht says he sees areas his election efforts can improve for the primary. “Our campaign held back a little too
much, particularly in challenging other candidates on issues,” Padernacht said, in a statement. “Our team is shifting strategies, and we are confident that the Democratic primary will have a different result.” Padernacht and all of the other candidates with the exception of Haller and retired New York Police Department detective Carlton Berkley have confirmed they’re running in the primary. They’ll be joined by social worker Abigail Martin and community activist Marcos Sierra. Dinowitz’s campaign strategy for the primary will be very similar to the special, he said. Plus, he will be the incumbent. “As a councilmember, I’m going to work as hard for those who voted for me as those who voted against me,” Dinowitz said. “I’m going to be a councilmember for every single person in the district.” Additional reporting by Michael Hinman
Time may come again when kids go to school uninterrupted CLOSURES from page A1 can afford to expand this risk primarily because more people are vaccinated, and health experts don’t see relaxing school closure guidelines much of a risk at all. “This will help us have more consistency in school attendance and schedules (and) keep strong health and safety standards,” de Blasio told reporters last week. “Thank God we now have over 65,000 adults that have been vaccinated in our schools. That’s a great step, but we’ve really worked with the unions to figure out the right approach going forward.” While the United Federation of Teachers ultimately agreed to the new building closure guidelines, that wasn’t always the case. When de Blasio initially announced the city would do away with the two-case rule — before he shared the specifics of the new guidelines — the teachers’ union was hesitant.
“A proclamation is not a plan,” union president Michael Mulgrew said, in a release. “Thanks to the effectiveness and availability of vaccines, the percentage of adults testing positive for COVID has declined. But students now account for two-thirds of the new infections.” However, Mulgrew and the UFT ultimately changed their tune after more specific closure guidelines were released. “With our increased knowledge about the spread of the virus — and as more teachers and other school staff have been vaccinated — our medical experts are convinced that the rule can be changed and still maintain safety,” Mulgrew said later that week. “While this is a step forward, the most important fact in the public school-opening debate is that the overwhelming majority — some 700,000 public school families — continue to opt for remote instruction.
“If we are going to have anything like a normal opening in September, the mayor needs to find ways to assure them that our COVID precautions remain strong and that schools are safe for their children.” Some union leadership, however, still isn’t fully convinced the building closure guidelines are safe. Lydia Howrilka, leader of the UFT’s Solidarity caucus, wasn’t too keen about what she saw as the union flip-flop on the new guidelines. “UFT Solidarity is greatly troubled by the inconsistency of our union leadership,” Howrilka said in a statement to The Riverdale Press. “There was never any rank-and-file vote or conversation about any of these changes. We have questions on whether this is legal in terms of what the state has decreed about school closures.” Some are also concerned about virus mutations and the dangers they might pose to students back in the
classroom. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the United Kingdom variant — also known as B.117 — is now the predominant strain of the coronavirus in the United States. And not only is it more contagious and deadly in general, but it does seem to be infecting children and young adults at higher rates in the United Kingdom, according to NBC. That’s still a concern, said UFT spokeswoman Alison Gendar. While the number of coronavirus cases in schools hasn’t changed significantly, the proportion of who’s testing positive has. More teachers and school personnel are vaccinated, and that means when the cases arise, more students are testing positive. But the UFT hopes additional safeguards — like expanded coronavirus testing if and when there’s a positive case in the school — will help circumvent those risks. “It’s … attempting to find a balance
— to keep the safety, to keep the low rates within the school community, and then to really monitor when cases do arrive in the school, to contain whatever spread there might be,” Gendar said. “Aggressively contain it, and then monitor it, because there are a lot of unknowns on this.” But Gendar noted that, throughout the pandemic, schools have had much lower positive test rates than their surrounding neighborhoods. And that’s something de Blasio also has touted — and he hopes the changing protocol reflects that. “We set a gold standard from the beginning,” de Blasio said. “We said we would take the best health care practices from around the world (and) apply all of them in the New York City public schools. It has worked. They’re the safest places to be in New York City, literally. “And we want to keep getting more and more kids back.”
THE RIVERDALE PRESS - Thursday, April 15, 2021 - A5
Camps & Kids S
5 reasons why camp is Chores adolescents can a good choice for kids tackle to help busy moms
ummer vacation offers students a respite from lessons and the routine of school. Children might once have eagerly awaited those final days of classes so they could lounge pool side, skip rocks across ponds and spend the long days of the season playing with friends. But many of today’s youngsters spend much of their summer vacations indoors playing with their digital devices. Perhaps that’s why one of the last vestiges of the classic summer vacation escape - summer camp - remains such a viable option for parents who want their children to get outdoors once the school year ends. Although kids needn’t be in camp all summer long, a week or two can benefit campers of all ages. The following are five reasons why summer camp might be the right fit this year. 1. Explore talents. Summer camps help young people explore their unique interests and talents. Under an organized, yet often easygoing, camp schedule, kids can dabble in sports, arts and crafts, leadership, community support,
and so many other activities that may not be fully available to them elsewhere. 2. Physical activity: Lots of camps build their itineraries around physical activities that takes place outdoors. Campers may spend their time swimming, running, hiking, playing sports, climbing, and so much more. This can be a welcome change for kids accustomed to living sedentary lifestyles. Regular physical activity has many health benefits and can set a foundation for healthy habits as an adult. 3. Gain confidence. Day and sleepaway camps offer campers the opportunity to get comfortable in their own skin. Camps can foster activities in self-esteem by removing the academic measures of success and fill in with noncompetitive opportunities to succeed. Campers learn independence, decision-making skills and the ability to thrive outside of the shadow of their parents, siblings or other students. 4. Try new things. Camp gives children the chance to try new things, whether that’s learning to cook, exploring new environments or em-
W
Courtesy of Metro
bracing a new sport or leisure activity. Opening oneself up to new opportunities can build character and prove enlightening for children. 5. Make new friends. Camp is a great place to meet new people and make lifelong friends. Campers flood in from areas near and far. This provides kids with a chance to expand their social circles beyond their immediate neighborhoods and schools. Camps benefit children in a variety of ways. Lessons learned in camp can strengthen values, build confidence, develop coping mechanisms when adversity strikes, and enable campers to make lifelong friends. — Metro
orking mothers are as busy as ever. A recent survey from the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics found that women spend an average of more than two hours per day on household activities like interior cleaning and preparing meals. That additional work can feel especially tiring after a full day’s work at the office. But mothers may have some help right under their noses. According to the American Academy of Pediatrics, adolescents can benefit from participating in various chores around the house. The AAP notes that helping out at home teaches kids the importance of contributing to a team while boosting their self-esteem by helping them feel valued and competent. Kids might not jump at the chance to do chores, and some tasks may still be best performed by parents. However, the AAP notes that the following are some age-appropriate tasks for adolescents, the completion of which can help busy moms feel a less overextended. • Put away their belongings.
• Do the laundry: Moms may want to teach kids the ins and outs of mixing light-colored clothes with dark clothes to avoid ending up with some accidentally pink attire. • Folding and putting away clean clothes. • Vacuuming, sweeping and dusting: Emphasize safety when dusting so young adolescents don’t feel compelled to clean areas that might be beyond their reach. • Set and clear the table. • Wash and put away the dishes. • Feed and walk family pets: Adolescents also can be responsible for cleaning birdcages, fish tanks and litter boxes. • Mop the floors. • Scrub the sink, toilet, bathtub, and shower stall. • Prepare their own lunches for school: Adolescents can make their own lunches, but moms may want to check to make sure lunches include some nutritious fare. • Cook dinner one night a week: Cooking dinner should never take precedence over academics, but adolescents should be able to manage
Courtesy of Metro
making meals once per week, even if it’s on weekends. • Yard work: Teach adolescents the proper ways to use lawn and garden tools before assigning them any tasks in the yard. In addition, only assign more taxing tasks like mowing the lawn when kids are physically capable of safely operating the machine. Moms can use a little help around the house, and that help may already be living under their roofs. — Metro
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3/31/21 1:40 PM
A6 - THE RIVERDALE PRESS - Thursday, April 15, 2021
Camps & Kids
Healthy activities for kids of all ages Enjoy a stress-free summer C
hildren have a seemingly endless supply of energy. Channeling that energy into something positive can benefit kids’ minds and bodies. The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends various amounts of daily physical activity for children depending on their ages and abilities. Adhering to these recommendations is especially important in the wake of what many public health officials fear has become an epidemic of childhood obesity in many nations. For example, the United States-based Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that roughly 13.7 million children between the ages of two and 19 are presently obese. In Canada, the Childhood Obesity Foundation reports that childhood obesity rates have hovered around 12 percent for years. Routine physical activity can help children maintain healthy weights, and it also pays dividends for youngsters’ mental health. According to the American Psychological Association, children between the ages of six and 18 who exercise regularly tend to have lower levels of depression, stress and psychological distress. Those findings, part of a 2019 study published in the journal Sports
Courtesy of Metro
Medicine, reflect the ways exercise affects the mind. And the mental benefits don’t stop there, as the study also found that youngsters who are physically active also have higher levels of positive self-image, life satisfaction and psychological well-being. The amount of physical activity children need each month depends on their age, and the AAP recommends the following age-based guidelines. • Infants: The AAP recommends infants get at least 30 minutes of tummy time and other interactive play throughout the day. • Toddlers: Toddlers can be tough to keep up with, and parents can channel that en-
ergy into something positive by ensuring their kids get at least three hours of physical activity every day. Free play outside and daily neighborhood walks are some examples of appropriate physical activities for children in this age group. • Preschoolers: Threeplus hours of physical activity, including one hour of moderate to vigorous exercise, is recommended for preschool-aged youngsters. Tumbling, throwing and catching are some of the activities recommended by the AAP. • Elementar y school students: School-aged children need at least 60 minutes of physical activity on most days of the week. The AAP
recommends giving children in this age group ample opportunities for free play but also notes that organized sports focused on fun can be great outlets for kids in elementary school. Parents can speak with their children’s pediatricians about appropriate muscle/ bone strengthening activities, which the AAP recommends three days a week for kids in this age group. • Middle school students: Students in this age group need the same amount and types of exercise that elementary school students need. But the AAP advises parents to guide children toward physical activities that encourage socialization and to avoid having kids this age specialize in a single sport. • Teenagers: Teenagers need an hour or more of physical activity most days of the week. Muscle/bone strengthening activities should be included three days per week. Activities that encourage socialization and competition are beneficial to teenagers’ development. Physical activity can benefit kids in myriad ways and should be a vital component of their daily lives. — Metro
B
etween camp, going on holidays and playdates, summer vacation can feel like endless planning and shuffling from activity to activity. Fortunately, you can use these tips and tricks to cut down on your stress and enjoy quality family time together. Create a schedule. Jot down family activities and commitments on a large calendar and keep it on the fridge so everyone can see what’s coming up. This will help give the kids a sense of security and routine that’s missing during the summer months. Just be flexible, and make sure to schedule plenty of free time to relax and enjoy quiet time with a book. Cut down kitchen time. Don’t like having to choose between healthy and quick, easy meals? Look for simple, nutritious meal options that take much of the work out of cooking. For easy lunches and dinners you’ll feel good about serving the kids, try Mann’s Nourish Bowls. Ready in just a couple of minutes in your microwave, the bowls were developed by chefs and feature superfood veggies like broccoli, sweet potato and kale.
They work as great side dishes to complete a fast and healthy meal. Plan special dates. Getting out of the house regularly doesn’t mean having to use up the family travel budget. Give the kids an excuse to use up their energy and get some fresh air by scheduling some fun, free activities. Go to the park, spend time in the library and visit your local community swimming pool. Keep the kids on top of chores and other duties by presenting these activities as rewards for a job well done. — Metro
Courtesy of Metro
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THE RIVERDALE PRESS - Thursday, April 15, 2021 - A7
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A8 - THE RIVERDALE PRESS - Thursday, April 15, 2021
Sunday Market kicks off new season with big changes n Farmers gathering will now be yearround, accepting EBT By MICHAEL HINMAN mhinman@riverdalepress.com
There was a lot for Shira Silverman to ponder as she kicked off a new season of The Riverdale Y’s Sunday Market last year. Because of ongoing construction at Riverdale/Kingsbridge Academy, the farmers market decided to make a bit of a move down to the road to the Riverdale Temple parking lot. New venues always come with unique issues, and Silverman had spent months planning how to make this move as seamless as possible. She anticipated everything she could. But there ended up being one variable she missed completely: the coronavirus pandemic. “At the very beginning, we didn’t know anything about COVID,” Silverman said. “All these different farmers markets were trying to figure this all out. There were even some in other parts of the country that actually did drive-thru pre-order pickups. You could pre-order, drive up, and they would actually pack it in the trunk of your car so that you didn’t have to come into contact with them.” With the Sunday Market moving to a parking lot, a drivethru wasn’t out of the question. But even with virus spread at its initial peak, Silverman knew there were many longing to get out of the house. To be around some people, even if it was at distances of more than six feet.
So the Sunday Market decided to open up. If the number of people allowed in at a time was limited. If people wore masks and kept their distance, and all of it took place out in the open air, it should be at least safe enough to pick up some of the products vendors were offering for sale and get back home. Shoppers made a reservation to come at a certain time, and then they did their shopping. When they were done, they would leave, and someone else would come in and do theirs. And somehow, it worked. “I was really strict about things like pre-orders,” Silverman said. “We required all the vendors to accept pre-orders, and they all did. In fact, I think they were happy to do pre-orders. All of that gave us some wiggle room for anything that came up unexpected. Like storms.” It’s a year later, COVID-19 is still an issue, but there is plenty of light at the end of this long pandemic tunnel. The reservation system is gone, but capacity remains limited, so shoppers may find a little bit of a line when they arrive at the Riverdale Temple on Sunday afternoons. But even if they can’t shop, Silverman is putting together other things that will not only keep hungry shoppers busy, but give them even more reason to make the journey down Independence Avenue. One of the first weekly events, for example, comes this week with a kids-focused art creative workshop beginning at 12:30 p.m., right after the weekly food scrap collection ends. And that’s not the only new thing Silverman has planned.
Ready to shop?
Courtesy of Shira Silverman
Life moves forward at The Riverdale Y’s Sunday Market at Riverdale Temple with fresh produce from Upstate farms, and now a whole array of activities. In fact, market manager Shira Silverman says there’s some big plans to make the weekly shopping experience even bigger — including plans to go year-round. The Sunday Market will no longer just be something seasonal. It’s now going to stretch all year long — even into some of the colder months. “The whole point is that this market has to grow,” she said. “It’s got to grow. It needs to be a business. And there’s just no reason for the market not to grow. It’s already expanded, and it’s something the neighborhood wants. And we’re ready to give it to them.” Winter markets will, of course, be a lot different than what shoppers are used to in the spring and summer. Hours will be shorter, and there may be snow. But it will meet what
Silverman describes as a demand that simply doesn’t end when warmer temperatures go away. “People really like their fresh food,” she said. “No matter what time of year it is.” Many of her vendors already have committed to an expanded schedule, and even more are looking forward to the market expanding to a wider customer base as it soon will start accepting EBT payments for those requiring financial assistance to purchase food. Making fresh food accessible to everyone should be the goal of every farmers market, Silverman said. And for the
most part, it is. And the more options you give shoppers, the more will turn out. That’s something Silverman learned firsthand last year when the Sunday Market joined the Senior Farmers Market Nutrition Program, giving lowincome senior citizens vouchers to buy fruits, vegetables and herbs at these types of outdoor markets. “Through that, we were able to accept coupons through this program, and people really discovered we were here,” Silverman said. “We actually had one day where a half-dozen folks came up from the other side of the Bronx. I don’t remember
WHAT’S IN / WHAT’S ON Exploring the memorials of a very difficult past In honor of the third anniversary of the opening of The National Memorial for Peace and Justice in Montgomery, Alabama, the Northwest Bronx Racial Justice Book Group welcome “The Montgomery Four” to talk about learning from memorials to slavery, lynching and the Holocaust on Wednesday, April 21 at 7 p.m. Presenters include Robert Dottin, a biology professor at Hunter College,
and Adine Usher, consultant and advocate for students with physical disabilities — both descendants of enslaved people. Also presenting is Tosia McCormick, a mental health counselor and descendant of the only Jewish family known to have escaped intact from Poland’s Krakow Ghetto, and Linda Rousseau, a retired educator and prison reform advocate who descends from a family that owned enslaved people for 150 years in Santo Domingo. Visit RYSEC.org.
The Riverdale Y’s Sunday Market is open every Sunday from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m., in the parking lot of the Riverdale Temple, 4545 Independence Ave. There are no requirements to make reservations this year, but social distancing remains in force. That means there could be lines to get in, and face masks are required. To get more details on what’s happening at the Sunday Market, visit RiverdaleY.org/community/ Sunday-market. Vendors include “The Cheese Guy,” Do Re Me Farms, EcoBronx, the Copper Faucet Soap Co., and others. — Michael Hinman exactly where, but I do know they were all members of the same church. They saw us on a list of places that accepted these coupons, and decided this was a place they wanted to visit after church.” There’s even more to come, Silverman teases, the kind of news that customers will just have to wait until the season really gets going. But one thing that will never change? The food. The people. The community. “There’s just no comparison to a farmers market,” Silverman said. “I love knowing where my food comes from. I like meeting the people who actually grew that food. And I just wouldn’t have it any other way.”
whatson@riverdalepress.com Get your spring on at Van Cortlandt Park Van Cortlandt Park Alliance has a number of events scheduled for April. Advanced registration is required by visiting VanCortlandt.org. • Kick off Earth Week with a spring planting of shrubs and trees along the Putnam Greenway on Saturday, April 17, beginning at 10 a.m. • Family fun hike for children between 2 and 6 led by their parents and a Van Cortlandt Park Alliance educator
New Yorkers:
Double Masking Offers Even More Protection Against COVID-19
nyc.gov/health/coronavirus
on Saturday, April 24. • Urban Junior Naturalists runs its after-school program for middle school students on Tuesdays between April 27 and June 8, exploring how nature and humans interact with the park.
Art ‘Moving Forward,’ ‘Entering Animal Kingdom’ The Riverdale Art Association hosts a pair of shows available online: “Moving Forward” and “Entering the Animal Kingdom.”
Both are curated by Diana Catz and produced by Myra Joyce, while Anne Price is an additional curator. “Moving Forward” features artist work reflecting what are hopefully better times ahead with light at the end of a dark year. “Animal Kingdom” includes artist work focused on, well, animals — not just in Riverdale, but around the world. Works include watercolor, collage, photography and mixed media, among others. To learn more, visit RiverdaleArtAssociation.org.
THE RIVERDALE PRESS - Thursday, April 15, 2021 - A9
Long road still ahead for specialized high school reform n If next mayor wants to strike down SHSATs, she’ll need to go to Albany By ROSE BRENNAN rbrennan@riverdalepress.com
In addition to all of the other responsibilities that come with the job, New York City’s next mayor will take the reins of the nation’s largest public school system. And that’s nothing to sneeze at, as 1.1 million students depend on the education they get there. Although a chancellor essentially leads the public schools, it’s the mayor who has final say over all educational policies and procedures. Except for one aspect that is mysteriously not in control of the mayor, but instead state lawmakers in Albany. It was those very legislators who passed the Hecht-Calandra Act in 1971, mandating the Specialized High School Admissions Test — more commonly known as the SHSAT — be the sole factor determining whether a student can join eight of the city’s nine specialized high schools, like the Bronx High School of Science and the High School of American Studies. It’s a law that has become quite controversial over the years, with many blaming it for the racial disparities in these specialized schools. Because Hecht-Calandra is a state law, there isn’t much a prospective mayor can do to repeal it on their own. But one thing they can do is make their position on its repeal clear to today’s state lawmakers. Still, it’s no easy task for a law to be repealed by both the state senate and Assembly. And if there’s no support among those lawmakers, any effort to repeal Hecht-Calandra could be dead in the water regardless of who the new
HIRAM ALEJANDRO DURÁN / File
Depending on who the next mayor is, they might call for the repeal of state laws like the Hecht-Calandra Act, which established the specialized high school admissions test. And Assembly education chair Michael Benedetto intends to support them in that endeavor, believing there shouldn’t be state involvement on a policy that only affects the city. mayor is. One of those legislators not budging is Assemblyman Jeffrey Dinowitz. Although he attended and graduated from Bronx Science before Hecht-Calandra was put into place, he nevertheless still took the SHSAT to be admitted into the school’s 10th grade. And Dinowitz thinks students who want to attend specialized high schools should still need to take the same test he did so many years before. However, Dinowitz admits there are racial disparities in the specialized high school admissions process. Black and Latino students account for some 70 percent of students in the city’s public school system, but only 4.5 percent of Blacks and 6.6 percent of Latinos
were offered specialized high school admissions last year. “It is extremely troubling, the skewed demographics in the specialized high schools,” Dinowitz said. “That is a problem. I think we all recognize that is something that should not be. But I don’t think that’s the fault of the test.” But repealing Hecht-Calandra isn’t the way to remedy the situation, Dinowitz said, as the test is the only way to make admission into specialized high schools truly objective. To him, other factors like middle school grades and recommendation letters could potentially be falsified, while it’s not particularly as easy to falsify a test score.
“The reason why I think that’s problematic is because once the admission criteria (are) no longer objective, then it’s subject to political influence and other kinds of pressures that shouldn’t be,” Dinowitz said. “It’s true that there’s more to a student than a test — there’s no question about that. But anybody can write a letter and get a letter of recommendation from somebody. So what does that really mean?” But some in the Assembly think differently. Like Michael Benedetto. Before he took over as chair of the Assembly’s education committee, Benedetto spent more than 30 years as a teacher. And he believes HechtCalandra must go. It’s a sentiment, Benedetto added,
shared by many not just in the city, but in Albany as well. “A lot of people would just like to do away with these tests and have the admissions to these high schools be based on whatever criteria the city of New York and the educational leaders say they should be,” Benedetto said. “And then, doing it this way, you might have a better composition of the members of the school, as it’s the problem that we have here in the city of New York.” A law like Hecht-Calandra still being on the books doesn’t make sense, Benedetto said, because it’s a state law that targets the school admissions policy in just a single city. Instead, decisions as important as this one should be made at the city level. “To the best of my knowledge, at least, there is no other city municipality in the state of New York that looks to the state government to say what their admissions policies should be,” Benedetto said. “Why should the city of New York have this one provision? These qualified educators that we have running our system … they are fully qualified to come up with a means of admittance to these high schools that will keep the quality of the high schools and (get) the reputation of fine, quality education to continue.” Repealing Hecht-Calandra is no easy feat, Benedetto admits, however. But to him, it’s worth it if it means giving more students a chance to attend some of the city’s more prestigious public high schools. “To repeal Hecht-Calandra, there’s a lot of political forces at play here within the city of New York,” Benedetto said. “That’s not the easiest thing to do. I understand that. And we will just endeavor to … advance that type of bill and get people who will favor it. “It’s a very complicated situation, but we will try.”
Press wins 8 statewide awards, including general excellence n Stories focused on number of topics like COVID-19, elections STAFF REPORT It’s always a great day for community journalism, but Friday was even more special for The Riverdale Press team after winning eight statewide awards at the New York Press Association’s Better Newspaper Contest, including one of the organization’s most prestigious: the Past Presidents’ Award for General Excellence. “This newspaper showed a strong combination of good writing and reporting on community issues, robust editorial pages, great diversity in voices, and (an) attractive, readerfriendly layout,” judges from the Pennsylvania Newspaper Publishers Association said about The Press. Two stories really stood out for the judges as they looked through 2020 editions of The Press — an Oct. 22 story by former reporter Kirstyn Brendlen and editor Michael Hinman about how businesses in Kingsbridge were recovering postcoronavirus pandemic lockdown, and a July 23 story by Brendlen exploring alternative
MICHAEL HINMAN / File
The Riverdale Press celebrated its 70th anniversary in December with a special throwback issue harkening back to old-style design, and topped the front page with its ‘Henry Hudson Bridge’ flag for the first time since January 1971. The section was one of three first-place wins The Press had with this year’s New York Press Association Better Newspaper Contest. newspaper the top slot for coverage of the arts. Lassauze previewed a gallery of Thomas Cole works at the Hudson River Museum. Brennan profiled photographer Joshua Abraham on an exhibit focused on New York City architecture. Hinman shared details of a virtual gallery last winter hosted by Hostos Center for the Arts and
ways for mothers to give birth. The stories “examined important issues through real people, as well as official and expert sources,” according to the judges. The Press earned two other first-place wins as well. A group of stories by Rose Brennan, Hinman and former reporter Raphael Lassauze earned the
Culture, as well as the Bronx Council on the Arts. “These reporters demonstrate sensitivity in their writing, as well as insight into the artistic culture,” judges said. “The articles provide insight into the arts, while not talking down to the reader, and still offering a fresh perspective.” The other first place award went to Hinman for last year’s “throwback” issue celebrating the 70th anniversary of The Press. Using a different flag at the top of the paper for the first time since 1971, Hinman tried to recreate old-style newspaper layout all while celebrating some of the stories from the community’s past. “I love this,” one judge said about the throwback issue. “What a creative idea. I feel like I’m back in the 1950s. The front-page photo (of inside Ehring’s Tavern) sets the tone for the entire issue. What a great way to celebrate the newspaper’s 70th anniversary.” Hinman also earned second place for news story on his coverage of nursing home deaths during the height of the coronavirus pandemic. He picked up an honorable mention in the feature story category for his look into the impending demolition of the Moller Mansion in Kingsbridge, as well as an hon-
orable mention for his column writing, including one where he detailed his own fight with COVID-19. “In a year when trusted local news provide to be more important than ever, The Riverdale Press team once again rose to the occasion, providing the residents of Riverdale and Kingsbridge with information they most needed,” publisher Stuart Richner said. “In light of the many challenges we faced, to win the coveted statewide award for general excellence is particularly rewarding. “Congratulations to our editorial team, led by Michael Hinman, as well as our account executives, pressroom staff and business leaders.” The team of Hinman, Brendlen and former reporter Anthony Capote won third place in coverage of local government for stories addressing how elected officials were dealing with the homelessness problem during the pandemic, a deep dive into the new ways to search for complaints against New York Police Department officers, and that time when several city council candidates spoke out against the Benjamin Franklin Reform Democratic Club, among others. And finally, The Press earned one more honorable mention in
NYPA’s best news or feature series category for the tale — and its follow-up — of Josh Pizarro’s efforts to clear out his building at 215 W. 242nd St., while there was a fire, before getting injured himself. Those stories were written by Brendlen and former photo editor Julius Constantine Motal. “I’m so proud of our entire team here as winning these awards were certainly a group effort,” Hinman said. “Of course, a community newspaper is only as excellent as the community it serves. These are awards we share with every single reader, who each week support local journalism by picking up the newspaper.” Winners for this year’s Better Newspaper Contest were chosen among 2,440 entries submitted by more than 150 publications. The eight awards won by The Press contributed to a record 34 total awards won by all of the Richner Communications newspapers, including its Herald community group on Long Island. The Riverdale Press has now won 29 state awards since 2017, including top honors for design and for news coverage. This is its first general excellence win since 2015.
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A10 - THE RIVERDALE PRESS - Thursday, April 15, 2021
Zoom becomes big election player n Dianne Morales says online forums exclude those who are already marginalized
Brian Lavin, former 50th Precinct chief
Brian F. Lavin, a retired New York Police Department deputy chief, died April 6, 2021. He was a resident of more than 35 years of Fieldston Road, and a past commander of the 50th Precinct when it was awarded the Unit Citation-Precinct of the Year in 1980. He sometimes was a lunch companion to Dave Stein, founder of The Riverdale Press. He is survived by daughter Kathleen and son Timothy, and longtime companion of 31 years Nancy McCabe. He was a loving “Pop Pop” to Tristan Negron. Funeral arrangements were handled by Riverdale-on-Hudson Funeral Home.
By ETHAN STARK-MILLER estarkmiller@riverdalepress.com
Shaking hands and kissing babies were once the way to winning elected office, but not when election season is in full swing in the middle of a pandemic. Still, the vote must go on with competitive races for mayor, comptroller and all 51 seats on the city council. That’s not to mention special elections already held for city council seats vacated at the end of last year, including the one March 23 won by former school teacher Eric Dinowitz. If voters aren’t coming out to see candidates, then there seems to be just one solution — the candidates come to the voters. And they’ve been doing that through a large number of live events hosted by political and activist organizations as well as news outlets. However, like many things, these forums have moved online. And the many squares with faces that populate the screen of the Zoom videoconferencing app have become synonymous with this election season. But Dianne Morales has had enough. The mayoral candidate posted a blog entry on her campaign website declaring she won’t attend any more online forums until after the June 22 primary. Instead, Morales will direct her campaign’s time and resources toward reaching voters on the ground. Why is she doing this? Because she already has attended more than 50 online forums, and more often than not, these gatherings are completely inaccessible to lower-income communities of color. “Moving forward, we will meet New Yorkers ‘where they are at,’ prioritizing community-centered, on-the-ground organizing strategies to connect with those who have been underserved by this city,” Morales wrote. “The reality is this race will not be won on Zoom.” But Zoom isn’t just the bane of mayoral candidates. From the beginning of 2021 all the way up to special election day on March 23, city council candidates seeking to replace Andrew Cohen attended at least a dozen online candidate forums. Sometimes there were multiple forums on a single night, with the six candidates shuffling from one Zoom to the next. Hosts for these forums ranged from news organizations — like The Riverdale Press — to more community-based activist groups like the Coalition to Save Brust Park. While the special election itself is over, nearly all of those candidates and even a couple more are already back at it for the June 22 primary to decide if Dinowitz will continue in that council seat past the end of the year, or if someone else will be poised
OBITUARIES
courtesy of dianne Morales for nyc 2021
Mayoral candidate dianne Morales says she’s done attending virtual candidate forums until the june primary. Morales says she’s already attended 50 of these forums, and wants to reach working voters who don’t have the time to watch long events on a computer screen. to take over for the two-year term. One local political activist, Rebecca Lish, applauds Morales’ decision, and agrees these forums are not as accessible as one might think. The biggest barrier to entry, Lish said, is the need for a good broadband internet connection, which is a luxury many low-income households just don’t have. “They also take time — sometimes quite a bit,” Lish said, “which makes attendance a challenge for single parents, people working multiple jobs, and others whose time is tightly budgeted.” Then these forums can become even more exclusive because hosts often advertise them online on their own social media channels, with little or no effort to reach a broader audience. “This is a weakness of club atmospheres and the algorithms that distribute information,” Lish said. “Clubs grow by members bringing in people they know, so homogeneity is difficult to avoid. Correcting for bias only happens when the effort is personal and persistent. Putting out an open call is a wellmeaning but often ineffective way to welcome people with whom you have no prior relationship.” However, Lish said, there have been some candidate forums — in both the citywide races and the local special election — that made efforts to draw a more racially and socio-economically diverse crowd. Like, for example, a forum held by the Northwest Bronx Community and Clergy Coalition with its Bronx People’s Platform — a “collective vision” developed by a number of community leaders and activists in the borough. Shira Silverman, who helps run a Facebook discussion group focused on the elections for Cohen’s seat, says it’s still important for candidates to attend forums, even if
they can have better audience draws. “It’s always the same group of people,” Silverman said. “But if you don’t have the support of those people, then you’re in trouble.” Still, she added, candidates need to do more than just attend online events, especially if they want any chance of reaching more under-represented people. Special election turnout was low with a little more than 9,500 of the district’s 102,600 registered voters casting a ballot. That’s fewer than one out of every 10 registered voters even participating, and practically none of those coming from lowerincome neighborhoods of color, Silverman said. “I think (the forums) are more effective in conjunction with other ways of getting out the vote,” she said. “And I think we really need to work on that. Because Wakefield, Norwood, Bedford Park and Woodlawn just basically don’t have any say in the district.” Another reason online forums are useful is that they continue to provide a safe and reliable way for candidates to communicate with voters while the pandemic is still raging, Silverman added. Jessica Haller, who ultimately finished third in the special election behind Dinowitz and Mino Lora, said that while she agrees Morales made the right decision, candidates like her don’t have the luxury to bow out of such forums like Morales, especially when their means of physically reaching voters is so limited as the coronavirus pandemic rages on. “Making that statement on March 25, or whatever date, is a lot easier,” Haller said. “So, my enthusiasm for her statement is less about what we should have done — because I think that we were just doing the best that we could — and more about moving forward.”
deputy chief brian lavin
One of Chase Bank’s best, Jerry Sullivan, 80 Gerard “Jerry” Sullivan, 80, of Passaic, New Jersey, died in his home Dec. 9, 2020. Born June 21, 1940, in Chicago, he grew up in Kingsbridge. After graduating from St. John’s School and Manhattan Prep, he earned his bachelor’s of business administration from Manhattan College, and completed master’s-level courses at Baruch College. jerry He worked sullivan evenings for 12 years, overseeing P.S. 7’s after-school programs, and served five years in the Army National Guard. He enjoyed a successful professional career with Chase Manhattan Bank. Awarded Manhattan region bank manager of the year in 1986, he consistently ranked in the top 10 percent of more than 200 branch leaders. As second vice president, he managed Chase’s prestigious 1 New York Plaza branch in the Financial District. Before retiring, he managed branches with several regional banks in New Jersey. He loved the fun and competition of track and field events, road races and triathlons. An avid walker, he logged count-
less miles on Van Cortlandt Park trails with this dad, in between mid-Manhattan destinations, and around his neighborhood. His home away from home was the Tick Tock Diner in Clifton, New Jersey. His family is grateful for the years of friendships, camaraderie and food he enjoyed there. He always looked forward to reuniting with his childhood friends from the Bronx at Billy Weaver’s annual Christmas parties. A great storyteller, several of his articles reminiscing about Kingsbridge were published in Bronx periodicals. He was a devoted husband and father, and faithful parishioner of Saint Clare Catholic Church in Clifton for more than 40 years. He was preceded in death by his parents, Gerard “Sully” and Regina “Genie” (Hopkins) Sullivan; his brother Tommy; and his wife of 46 years, Kathryn. He is survived by his three children, Vincent, Carol and Irene; his sister Susan (John) D’Adamo; and several nieces and nephews. His cremated remains will be interred at Ascension Cemetery, 650 Saddle River Road in Airmont, on Saturday, April 17, with a chapel Mass at 11 a.m. In lieu of flowers, donations in memory of Jerry Sullivan may be made to charities of choice.
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PoDiAtrists Michael L. Merenstein, dpm Board Certified - American Board of Podiatric Orthopedics. Surgical, geriatric, diabetic shoes. Pediatric, whirlpool & orthotic treatments. Medicare, Oxford, HIP & most insurance. Day & evening appts. HOuSE CALLS AVAILABLE 3636 Fieldston Rd. (W. 236 St.) 718.548.6732
Cambridge Podiatry Center Dr. Donald Spector Board Certified, Diplomate in ABPOPPM Practicing over 30 years Podiatric Medicine & Surgery Laser treatments available Medicare/Most Insurances Accepted 259 W. 231st Street, Bronx, NY 10463 718.548.3080
Advanced Care Audiology Meagan Ruth aud, ccc-a
Hearing Evaluations, Treatment of Hearing Loss, Wax Removal, Treatment of Tinnitus, Hearing Aids. 3533 Riverdale Ave., Bronx, NY 10463 718.980.7700 www.advancedcareaudiology.com
Dentists TALLER DENTAL
PhysicAl therAPists Judith Kahn, md, pc Board Certified Physiatrist • Pain Management • Sports Injuries • EMG’s Holistic Management of Musculuskeletal Conditions 545 West 236th Street, Suite C, 718.884.8115 30 W. 60 Street Suite 1C, between Broadway & Columbus Ave. Website: www.judithkahn.com
Samuel H. Taller, ms, dmd, fagd
ExpEriEncE and innovation ALL SAFETY PROTOCOLS FOLLOWED • ModErn FacilitiEs • cosMEtic dEntistry • iMplants • lasEr trEatMEnts • tooth WhitEning • nitrous oxidE Emergencies Welcome 3601 Waldo Avenue 718.543.3704 www.DrTallerDental.com
Riverdale Dental
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PM&R, Physical Medicine & Rehab Center
Comprehensive Spine, Sports & Occupational Center JOE LEIBOWITz, MSPT MADELEINE LAxAMANA, PT, DPT BRYAN DAGARAGA, PT, DPT LALAINE YAP, PTA MONIkA DWORAkOWSkI, M.S. OTR/L Pain Management • Physical Therapy Occupational & Certified Hand Therapy 6132 Riverdale Avenue (718) 884-1200 www.Rehabmed.net
PLACE YOuR AD HERE
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tutoring Professional Home Tutor Tutoring available in all general subject areas. Grade Levels k-12 VIRTUAL TUTORING AVAILABLE
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(General Education and Special Education, 1-6) • MS in Childhood Education (1-6) • Dual Certification in General Education and students with Disabilities Call zach 917.667.7185 zNilva1@gmail.com
THE RIVERDALE PRESS - Thursday, April 15, 2021 - A11
Celebrate Eid at Home to Stop the Spread of COVID-19 • Keep your gathering small and celebrate Eid al-Fitr with household members only. • If gathering in a group, wear a snug fitting face covering to protect the elderly and vulnerable. • Learn more about COVID-19 vaccines, including which groups are currently eligible to receive one.
Eid Mubarak! For more information, visit nyc.gov/health/coronavirus. If you are eligible to receive a COVID-19 vaccine, book your appointment by calling 877-829-4692 (877-VAX-4NYC) or visiting nyc.gov/vaccinefinder. Bill de Blasio Mayor Dave A. Chokshi, MD, MSc Commissioner
Physicians Ser vices Director y indEx Cardiology ENT - Adult & Pediatric Endocrinology Gastroenterology Geriatric Medicine Internal Medicine Obstetrics & Gynecology
Ophthalmologists Pediatricians Pediatric Subspecialty Care Pulmonary Medicine Psychiatry Rheumatology
CaRdiOlOgy ColumbiaDoctors gerald neuberg, md, fAcc
For appointments, please call: 646.317.0130
Kung-Ming Jan, md
For appointments, please call: 718.601.4800
EndOCRinOlOgy ColumbiaDoctors Sophia hu, md Sees general endocrinology; specializes in thyroid disease including thyroid cancer, diabetes, weight management, women’s health, osteoporosis, adrenal disease, and pituitary disease/tumors. Speaks conversational Spanish and fluent in Mandarin Chinese. 3050 Corlear Avenue, Suite 204 Bronx, NY 10463 Now accepting new patients For appointments, please call: 646.317.0129 Affiliated with NewYork-Presbyterian Allen Hospital and NewYork-Presbyterian/Columbia University Irving Medical Center
david i. Sahar, md
For appointments, please call: 718.601.3700 3050 Corlear Avenue, Suite 204 Bronx, NY 10463 Affiliated with NewYork-Presbyterian Allen Hospital
EaR, nOSE and thROat adult & PEdiatRiC ColumbiaDoctors Justin golub, md
• Otology, Neurotology, Skull base Surgery • Adult and Pediatric
gaStROEntEROlOgy ColumbiaDoctors ava B. anklesaria, mbbs Jennifer Caceres, md david S. lee, md
3050 Corlear Avenue, Suite 204 Bronx, NY 10463 For appointments, please call: 212.932.4534 Affiliated with NewYork-Presbyterian Allen Hospital
Susannah hills, md
• Adult and Pediatric Otolaryngology
Carolina Mora, np
• Adult and Pediatric Otolaryngology
Flora holderbaum, Aud
• Audiology (hearing aids, hearing testing, evaluation and rehabilitation) • Adult and Pediatric 3050 Corlear Avenue, Suite 202 Bronx, NY 10463 For appointments, please call: 212.305.8555 Affiliated with NewYork-Presbyterian/Columbia University Irving Medical Center
The deadline for any additions, changes or cancellations for the May Directory is Wednesday, April 28th at 2pm.
Call 718.543.6065 ext. 3 or email advertising@riverdalepress.com to get in touch with our marketing team who can help you reach out to your clients.
gERiatRiC MEdiCinE ColumbiaDoctors Bindhu thomas, md xiaoshuang yin, md nana Makalatia, md deborah Smyth, gnp NewYork-Presbyterian Allen Hospital 5141 Broadway @ 220th Street Suite 3-159 New York, NY 10034 For appointments, please call: 212.932.6036 or 212.932.4080
nana Makalatia, md
Now also at a convenient Riverdale Location The Century, 2600 Netherland Avenue, Suite 125 Bronx, NY 10463 For appointments, please call: 718.543.3031 Now accepting new patients. All clinical staff are Board Certified in Geriatric Medicine Medicare and most major insurance plans accepted. Affiliated with NewYork-Presbyterian Allen Hospital
PEdiatRiCianS
ColumbiaDoctors nydia E. Providence, md
Riverdale Pediatrics
NewYork-Presbyterian Allen Hospital 5141 Broadway @ 220th Street Suite 3-152 New York, NY 10034 For appointments, please call: 212.932.4564 Affiliated with NewYork-Presbyterian Allen Hospital
Affiliated with NewYork-Presbyterian Morgan Stanley Children’s Hospital. The Century, 2600 Netherland Ave., Suite 120 By App’t, 718.796.3580
The Century, 2600 Netherland Avenue, Suite 125 Bronx, NY 10463 For appointments, please call: 718.601.7505
Stuart R. Framm, md
• Travel Vaccines NewYork-Presbyterian Allen Hospital 5141 Broadway @ 220th Street Suite 3-152 New York, NY 10034 For appointments, please call: 212.932.5190 Affiliated with NewYork-Presbyterian Allen Hospital
Sherry R. Kohn, np NewYork-Presbyterian Allen Hospital 5141 Broadway @ 220th Street Suite 3-152 New York, NY 10034 For appointments, please call: 212.932.5190 Affiliated with NewYork-Presbyterian Allen Hospital
aaron Manson, md The Century, 2600 Netherland Avenue, Suite 125 Bronx, NY 10463 For appointments, please call: 212.305.3804 Affiliated with NewYork-Presbyterian Allen Hospital
OBStEtRiCS & gynECOlOgy
• Pediatric Otolaryngology
Elliot Regenbogen, md
intERnal MEdiCinE
ColumbiaDoctors anita holman, md doreen Kramer, cnm Reyna E. Payero, md, fAcog tali Sarig-Meth, md • Board Certified Physicians • Comprehensive Gynecologic, prenatal and obstetric care 270 West 231st Street, 1st floor, Suite 101A Bronx, NY 10463 Now accepting new patients For appointments, please call: 212.305.9779 www.columbiaobgyn.org Affiliated with NewYork-Presbyterian Allen Hospital
OPhthalMOlOgiStS Jonathan d. Boniuk, md, pc Comprehensive Ophthalmology, Eye MD •Catering to all ages & eye problems including eye surgery, routine and preventive eye care. • Board Certified • El Medico Habla Español The Riverstone, 3220 Arlington Avenue, Suite 7 Call 718.432.2299 Fax 718.432.2069 Office Hours: Monday - Friday, including eves.
BaRBaRa E. StRaSSBERg, M.D., F.A.A.P. CaRlyn a. OPPEdiSanO, M.D., F.A.A.P. MaRtin ROdRiguEz-EMa, M.D., F.A.A.P. Pediatric & adolescent medicine.
PEdiatRiC SuBSPECialty CaRE ColumbiaDoctors andrei Constantinescu, md, phd Pulmonary Medicine
Catherine Kavanagh, md Nephrology
anu Mallapaty, md
Allergy and Immunology (through Adult)
Patricia M. Vuguin, md Camila Pereira-Eshraghi, md Endocrinology
ali Mencin, md Gastroenterology
270 West 231st Street Bronx, NY 10463 For appointments, please call: 855.550.KIDS Affiliated with NewYork-Presbyterian Morgan Stanley Children’s Hospital
PulMOnaRy MEdiCinE ColumbiaDoctors Manuel R. Cabrera, md
For appointments, please call: 646.317.0127 3050 Corlear Avenue, Suite 204 Bronx, NY 10463 Affiliated with NewYork-Presbyterian Allen Hospital
RhEuMatOlOgy ColumbiaDoctors teja M. Kapoor, md Specializing in Lupus, sees general rheumatology patients & performs musculoskeletal joint injections. 3050 Corlear Avenue, Suite 204 Bronx, NY 10463 Now accepting new patients For appointments, please call: 212.3054308 Affiliated with NewYork-Presbyterian Allen Hospital and NewYork-Presbyterian/Columbia University Irving Medical Center
A12 - THE RIVERDALE PRESS - Thursday, April 15, 2021
Opinion
The Riverdale Press maintains an open submission policy. Opinions expressed in this section do not necessarily represent those of this publication. Submissions can be made to letters@riverdalepress.com.
EDITORIAL
War on drugs, and peace
I
t was designed to reduce crime and corruption. It was the answer to social ills. It would make budgets for prisons more manageable. And it would make the country a better place to live. If that sounds a lot like the reasons behind the so-called “war on drugs” when it was established in 1971, you’re not far off-base since many of those claims were used by the Nixon administration at the time. But instead, this was the reasoning behind Prohibition in 1920 — the only time an amendment to the U.S. Constitution was used to take away something from its people rather than to guarantee something they needed. And, according to the Cato Institute (and probably any other historian worth their salt), it was a complete failure. Alcohol consumption didn’t go down. It went up. As did the cost, since its creation and distribution were now carrying that “black market premium.” And it became an industry loved by mobs and cartels. This amendment was such a massive failure that it’s still, to this day, the only one that was later repealed. We’d never make that mistake again, right? One thing we should know by now is that we, as a society, don’t learn a lot from history. If we did, we wouldn’t spend so much time repeating it. And that’s what we did in 1971. The “war on drugs” has done little to help society, and instead made cartels superrich, has cost taxpayers more than $1
trillion — and we’re not even counting incarceration costs — and is one of those “wars” we can never win, no matter how much we try. This year, the federal government expects to spend nearly $36 billion on its “war,” and another $3 billion annually to incarcerate those arrested simply for possession. Our leaders sometimes get confused on when to ban something, and when to regulate it. They are now correcting the mistake with marijuana, but maybe it’s time to address the rest of the “war”? Where has it gotten us anyway? Regulation may not necessarily be the answer, but for many, it’s not even on the table for discussion. And maybe it should be. How much more money can we throw at this problem? How many more people have to die? How much more petty crime can we take — many of which is so those who do have a problem with drugs can afford that “black market premium.” No one is looking to create a country filled with addicts. But then again, repealing Prohibition didn’t create a country full of alcoholics either. It did allow for us to know the alcohol we drink meets some sort of federal standard, and that we can get it without having to rob a bank to afford it. We must be ready to consider all possibilities. Even the unpopular ones. It’s the only way this “war” will ever find peace.
POINT OF VIEW
Muted ‘Me Too’ movement
By SARA TIRSCHWELL
W
hen the throngs of women began coming forward detailing outrageous instances of sexual harassment and assault at the hands of disgraced movie mogul Harvey Weinstein, it didn’t take long before they were lauded as brave, strong, and voices to be heard. The women were supported, and encouraged, and believed. Yet, here we are once again with a litany of young women describing, in horrific detail, the repeated acts of sexual harassment by a powerful political figure. And crickets. Where is the outrage? Where are the celebrities championing these women? Where is the Time cover encouraging even more women to come forward and share their stories? These young girls all alleging sexual harassment — and, in some cases, assault — by the sitting New York governor have not found the open arms of the Hollywood “Me Too” movement, and it’s a cold isolation I know all too well. After coming forward as the first public case of “Me Too” on Wall Street, my experience was anything but gestures of support, encouragement, and a welcome into the safe haven shared by fellow survivors. Instead, I was ostracized from the career in asset management that I had spent decades building, and the industry where I shattered glass ceilings was raining down on me with those same shards of glass. It is important to validate the sexual harassment and gender discriminatory experiences of women — because it not only happens on Wall Street, but on Main Street. Dozens of women have contacted me with their stories, and sadly, the harassment component isn’t the only battle they face. These women have dealt with inappropriate sexual advances along with challenges in getting promoted or fairly compensated. They are dealing with the hurdles of inequitable compensation, being judged — sometimes unconsciously — on the basis of unfair female stereotypes, and bosses who penalize them for having child care issues, or even cancer. Most of these women are terrified to come forward, and you need not look far to wonder why. They see what happened to my career after a New York Times article. Landon Thomas was the original reporter who penned an article about my situation — really an article about the culture of TCW Group being a Petri dish for all forms of harassment and discrimination. Sounded promising, but unfortunately, Thomas’ article was tossed, and his interview files deemed radioactive when he was fired due to his association with Jeffrey Epstein. Oh, the irony. The ultimate reporter, when I apologized for not being able to remember exact details about a breakup, nastily criticized my not being able
to remember details of “hookups” either. This is the same sort of doubt that those victims of Andrew Cuomo — with Catholic priests, Olympic coaches, Epstein, etc. — have encountered. The focus needs to be on that doubt. Does anyone realize just how difficult it is to come forward? Can you, for one second, imagine the mental gymnastics that takes place when weighing the scales of standing up for yourself and standing up for what you know to be right, versus keeping complicit, and therefore keeping your career intact and continuing to bring home the paycheck that pays your bills? Trust me when I say there is always a tiny voice whispering, “Keep quiet.” A tiny voice reminding you that there must have been some level of encouragement or complicity on your part for this unwanted attention to have occurred. A tiny voice asking if there was something you did to cause that person with power to treat you that way. Sexual harassment and assault are just other forms of abuse of power, and sadly our society has historically conferred power to men. Sexual harassment and gender discrimination are inevitable in finance, where men outnumber women 9-to-1 despite statistical evidence of outperformance by women. “Me Too” alone will not solve this problem. Wall Street is not going to change until women are able to garner a large share of the money and resultant power. And powerful men love to push the mute button in the form of arbitration clauses in employment contracts. These non-disclosure agreements only exacerbate the issue by keeping complaints confidential, eliminating the ability to influence and mobilize public opinion. What can women do? Hit them where it hurts: the pocketbook. The silent majority in this equation are the investors whose retirement and savings dollars are Wall Street’s lifeblood. They have the leverage over and deserve to benefit from gender fairness, ensuring the most qualified people — no matter their gender — will be in positions to perform best for investors. However, the pension boards with all their public talk of diversity and fairness, refuse to vote with their feet and pull money from firms who tolerate all-male investment teams, gender discrimination, and even sexual harassment. For women working in both politics and finance, success and the ability to provide for their families depend on ignoring and being complicit in the offensive behavior that can come with the territory. Ultimately, we all pay the price for the maintenance of the imbalance of power. It’s time to take the finger of power off the mute button. The author is a candidate for mayor.
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LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
Freedom is not free, or is it? To the editor: Freedom, broadly speaking, means having no boundaries, no attachments, and no strings. The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines freedom as the quality or state of being free: The absence of necessity, coercion or constraint in choice or action. Freedom here is limitless. The First Amendment states that “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech.” This would broadly mean that citizens are free to choose, speak and express themselves without hindrance or limits, right? A response of “right” or “wrong” might depend on who is answering. But this is where the conundrum lies. Since we have a moral obligation to “be our brother’s keeper,” it is incumbent upon us to have a collective understanding of the meaning of the “freedom” that is expressed in the Constitution. We must all agree that this “freedom” is not without limits. When my kids are told they are free to do things, they understand they have freedom to a point. They understand they should not throw caution to the wind. They understand there will be punishment when they do not exercise “reasonable” judgment. They understand “reasonable” as “sensible.” Most children understand, depending on their
Waiting for the library To the editor: As the people and businesses of New York City make valiant strides to safely reopen while we are still battling COVID-19, I am left with a nagging question for which I have not received a satisfactory answer: Why is the Riverdale branch of the New York Public Library still closed, especially when the Spuyten Duyvil and Kingsbridge branches are both open? I am sure I am not alone in my frustration and curiosity. While it is nice that these two other branches have reopened, it is dismaying that the New York Public Library has not seen fit to include Riverdale in its plan to reopen branches. Spuyten Duyvil and Kingsbridge are not easily accessible for some people in North Riverdale — especially senior citizens, the disabled, those who do not have an automobile, mothers with young children who formerly visited the branch after school, etc. The list of people marginal-
age of course, that freedom is not really “free.” I would therefore think that a reasonable expectation of limits, coupled with our basic sense of right from wrong, should serve as a guide for us adults to know when is too far. Freedom is not unfettered. People are free to inspire emotions in others, but are not free to instruct people to destroy property, hurt others, take what does not belong to them, etc. To think that any person — especially in political office — could incite a mob to assault our democracy, to cause destruction and resultant deaths without punition, is outrageous. Where is the outrage? The double-standards in politics must stop. The duality of accountability, or lack thereof — especially of our leaders — must stop. What is good for the goose must also be good for the gander as well. We are sending mixed messages to our young people, and we are subverting expectations of political participation in our young people because of this flagrant hypocrisy. American politicians need to remember who they are working for. Enough of the doublespeak. Our democracy should be a yardstick for others. It should be a system of forbearance and mutual respect. A system that works on behalf of the people — all people, not a circus where you perform for a select audience. Debbie boucher
ized by this sustained closure is extensive and dispiriting to contemplate. Additionally, I am deeply concerned about the welfare of the Riverdale branch’s staff. Have they been laid off? Furloughed? Reassigned to other branches in the library system? From numerous exchanges over many years, I know they are friendly and helpful, consummate professionals, and a credit to both our neighborhood and the public library itself. I know I am not alone in hoping to see the Riverdale Library’s black wrought-iron gates on Mosholu Avenue reopen soon. For decades, it has been a pillar of our community. It is needed now more than ever. Joseph smiTh
Theft is not that magical To the editor:
(re: “A very spooky steal,” March 25)
I was surprised to read in
the Police Beat recently that both the reporter for The Riverdale Press and the police were apparently mystified by the local theft of a car without access to the key. Although I have no knowledge of this specific incident, this type of theft is well-known, and may be accomplished by, for example, using an RFID repeater — a device that amplifies the signal of the car’s key fob when it is located close by (for example, in the home or store next to the car’s parking space). This enables a thief to simply open the car’s door, start the car, and drive it far enough to load it onto a trailer or the like. The easiest and cheapest way to defend against this type of theft is to keep one’s key fob rapped in aluminum foil when it is not being used. This is what we do in our household. I hope this helps the readers of The Press. But, more importantly, I very much hope that someone informs the police, and they start advising reporters and the public about the issue. benJamin Galynker
Leading the way to health justice To the editor: For the first time in history, the New York Health Act — a single-payer universal health care plan like Medicare, but more comprehensive, affordable and for every New Yorker — has majority support in both the state senate and Assembly. We are on our way to winning guaranteed health care in New York! In the richest nation in the history of the world, everyone should have health care. Instead, we have a corrupt, inequitable, unaffordable, privatized system where access to health care depends on one’s ability to pay. This enriches for-profit health insurance companies at the expense of patients. As a physician for 50 years — 36 of them in private practice in Mamaroneck — I saw up close and personal just how flawed our system is for patients and physicians. What’s more, the coronavirus pandemic has shown a bright light on its failures and its inequities. It showed us what a bad idea it is to link access to health care with employment. Physicians don’t want to spend time fighting with insurance companies to get the care their patients need. They want to know that what they think is best for their patients will not be affordable. The New York Health Act would change all
that by eliminating this expensive middleman that adds cost but no value. Insurance companies earn profits by avoiding sick people and denying care while collecting premiums. The New York Health Act would provide guaranteed, comprehensive care to all New Yorkers from birth to death, regardless of age, gender, sexual orientation, ethnic group, income, employment or immigration status. Everyone would have their choice of doctor and hospital. Even hearing, dental, drugs and long-term care would be covered. It sounds too good to be true, but it isn’t. It would be paid for by progressive taxes, and more than 85 percent of New Yorkers would be spending less on health care than they do now. Any increases in taxes would be off-set by the absence of all out-of-pocket payments: premiums, co-pays and deductibles. We know it can be done. In Canada, a single-payer health care program was first introduced in the province of Saskatchewan in 1962. It was so successful that it soon spread to the whole country, where it remains hugely popular. We New Yorkers can lead the entire United States by passing the New York Health Act. elizabeTh rosenThal
THE RIVERDALE PRESS - Thursday, April 15, 2021 - A13
! le a d r e iv R , s o b b a h S Good
POINT OF VIEW
(re: “Neighbors fight to shield their backyards,” April 8)
C
ity council Speaker Corey Johnson, together with 11 council members, recently introduced Intro 2186 that would establish — at a cost of hundreds of millions of dollars — a city planning structure that, in the Speaker’s words, would end the current inefficient “piecemeal and ad hoc approach” to planning. At the council’s public hearing on the bill, Planning Commission chair Marisa Lago — in opposing the proposal on behalf of the de Blasio administration — countered that Johnson’s proposal would, essentially, create a parallel and duplicative planning commission that would be unfeasible, expensive, and would “make it more difficult to build affordable housing, or to site essential city services.” Both Johnson and Lago suggested the other’s approach would foster inapt “topdown planning” that disregards communities and is harmful to the city, its businesses and residents. Both were right! One thing is clear: The city council measure and the debate it has engendered is one of the most significant and far-reaching in decades. One that gives hope for a materially changed process and structure for planning in New York City. The issue is not simply one of process, but whether communities should have a substantive role in the process and a place at the table in fashioning their future. Planning on a meaningful local level is, and for many years, has been moribund — especially in the Bronx, and other outer boroughs. Throughout this administration, top-down planning has been the order of the day, a centralized governmental approach having little to no regard for substantive community input, much less community efforts to plan for their own more livable neighborhoods. While the Johnson proposal is deeply flawed, it has achieved one vital objective. It has focused long-overdue attention upon the absence of meaningful planning by and for the city’s localities and their inhabitants, especially those who reside in the boroughs outside of Manhattan, and the watchful gaze of the media. When community boards were legislatively created by Mayors Ed Koch and John Lindsay, both bottom-up and top-down planning were mandated. Indeed, the boards — composed of unpaid volunteers from among community residents and businesses — were appointed for two-year terms by the borough presidents and city council members, and descriptively called “community planning boards.” All city agencies in the board planning districts were legislatively directed to regularly and fully coordinate with them. Cooperative coordination and resultant positive interaction eventuated. Times Square was revived, and Midtown decay was stemmed. Affordable housing in targeted areas — and on a livable scale — was initiated in every borough. For some years, the sense of cooperative coordination in planning for and executing on community-initiated proposals has eroded. True, under the able leadership of some — like Amanda Burden — varying efforts to revive sound planning were made, but the essential fully participatory role of communi-
W
ith a citywide primary and general election scheduled in a few short months, the planning process and planning issues should be in the forefront of the debate. A vital and vibrant city has many inexorably intertwined parts: residential neighborhoods with first-class parks, schools, shops and other facilities, especially decent and well-maintained affordable housing available to all New Yorkers, as well as viable and accessible commercial hubs and transit-friendly financial and office centers.
Few independent observers will deny that, at the very least, all this is in jeopardy, and that for some time, planning for a sound future has lacked vision and sound effort. The exclusionary forces of top-down, centralized planning bear considerable responsibility. Given the will and the election of truly committed individuals, important changes are readily possible to ensure at least the beginnings of bottom-up planning functioning in conjunction with top-down planning. Yet, to date, achievement of that goal has not been in the forefront of the political debate. The striking silence of candidates who seek local and citywide office on that critical issue tells us a great deal about them and their shallow perspective. Their time to commit to planning for a city fit for living and for people, as well to advance that cause, is now at hand. Those candidates who fail to take a reasoned and meaningful stand and articulate thoughtful positions — not just glib political jargon — simply do not merit nomination or election. Thomas Jefferson is said to have observed, “The government you elect is the government you deserve.” That says it all. Perhaps sadly.
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ties and their representative entities was not enabled. Community boards have increasingly been effectively deprived of any meaningful role in planning, but only in statutorily mandated review of and readily ignored advisory comment upon notions advanced by the citywide “Big Brother” commission. Even the word “planning” has disdainfully been expunged from the boards’ name. Indeed, when it has come to enforcement of existing local environmental constraints like the Special Natural Area District, only constant community pressure aided by the supportive demands of some local elected officials has bestirred begrudging action. In sum, community-oriented neighborhood-by-neighborhood planning is anathema to the bureaucrats now charged with planning for the future. And the results are immediate and obvious. Hard-working blue-collar workers — particularly minorities — have for decades found for themselves Community Board 8 neighborhoods in which they can afford the dream of home ownership, like in Kingsbridge. Yet those areas are choice targets for developers. Efforts to save them have lacked vital support, unaired by the planners. Planning for truly affordable housing — in fact, not just in name — which could, with sound planning, be constructed in vacant, under-developed and even mis-developed areas of the city is, at best, an unrealized dream. Planning for the revitalization of our neighborhoods is non-existent.
spaper ish New BEST Jew
/ Riverdale
By CHARLES MOERDLER
k’s New Yor
Marisol Diaz
We deserve a government that takes planning seriously
Friday April 16
fact: key Shoah itewashing they were Jews d s to stop wh World need were individuals … an Its victims
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If there’s anything we’ve learned from the de Blasio years, it’s that when upzoning is imposed on our communities, private developers get richer, and local residents are hurt in the process. Yet here we are, less than nine months from the next mayoral administration, debating whether to hand over all authority on land use decisions to an unelected city agency that will give private developers everything they’ve dreamed of, and sideline communities in the process. In December, city council Speaker and city comptroller candidate Corey Johnson unveiled proposed legislation that, if passed, would impose his version of comprehensive planning on the city. The centerpiece of Johnson’s plan is to put the Mayor’s Office of Long-Term Planning and Sustainability in a position where they — not local communities, and not even the city council — will have final say on development decisions across all five boroughs. Although Johnson’s plan calls for community input, this is mostly for show. Under the plan, the long-term planning office will present each community board with three land use scenarios for future development, including housing targets aimed at increasing local housing density. Each community board is free to vote on which plan they prefer, and members of the public are free to submit comments. But ultimately, the long-term planning office director decides which plan they want, regardless of what the community says. Worse yet, if the city council fails to adopt a preferred land use scenario under Johnson’s plan, the long-term planning office director will still choose whichever plan they wish.
The author is a candidate for city council.
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In short, the input of community members, civic organizations and elected officials could all be ignored, and there isn’t anything we would all be able to do about it. Three years ago, our neighbors just to our south in Inwood fought hard against a plan to upzone their community. This upzoning was part of the de Blasio administration’s efforts to cram more density into every corner of the city, no matter what effect it would have on the people currently living there. The local community board voted against it, and activist groups warned that it would displace thousands of residents — especially those of low incomes — all while enriching private developers. After a long fight, the Inwood upzoning is now moving forward despite the efforts of the local community to have their voices heard, and to help shape the future of their community. If Corey Johnson’s plan is passed, the same thing will happen here as is happening in Inwood. Residents of the northwest Bronx and neighborhoods throughout the city will wake up one day and realize that when it comes to deciding the future of their local community, they are now voiceless. Make no mistake — our city needs comprehensive planning. Decisions affecting transportation, sustainability, zoning, affordable housing, and an infinite number of other issues in any part of the five boroughs affects us all. But that does not mean a team of unelected city officials should be able to impose their vision of how our communities grow. Any effort to decide our future must start — and end — with us. AbigAil MArTin
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NEW YORK’S BEST NEWSPAPER What’s A call to end police bru inside? Winner of
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Includes the Participating (in GA: Designated) Providers and Preventive Benefits Rider. Product not available in all states. Acceptance guaranteed for one insurance policy/certificate of this type. Contact us for complete details about this insurance solicitation. This specific offer is not available in CO; call 1-800-969-4781 or respond for similar offer. Certificate C250A (ID: C250E; PA: C250Q); Insurance Policy P150 (GA: P150GA; NY: P150NY; OK: P150OK; TN: P150TN); Rider kinds B438/B439 (GA: B439B). 6255
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newshowerdeal.com/nypress | 844-222-6771
Legal Notices Legal Notice NOTICE OF FORMATION OF DJPHAZE LLC. Articles of Organization filed with the Secretary of State of NY (SSNY) on 1/5/21. Office location: Bronx County. SSNY has been designated as the agent upon whom the process against it may be served. The Post Office address to which the SSNY shall mail a copy of any process against the LLC served upon him/her is 1116 Jackson ave, Bronx, NY 10456. The principal business address of the LLC is Bronx, NY. Purpose: any lawful act or activity. Legal Notice NOTICE OF FORMATION OF LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY. NAME: AFRO- ED LLC. Articles of Organization were filed with the Secretary of State of New York (SSNY) on (1st of October 2020).
Office location: Bronx County. SSNY has been designated as agent of the LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail a copy of process to the LLC, (Registered Agents, Inc., 90 State Street, Suite 700, Office 40 Albany, NY 12207). Purpose: For any lawful purpose. Legal Notice NOTICE OF FORMATION OF Robin Williams Real Estate LLC. Articles of Organization filed with the Secretary of State of NY (SSNY) on January 8, 2021. Office location: Bronx County. SSNY has been designated as agent upon whom process against it may be served. The Post Office address to which the SSNY shall mail a copy of any process against the LLC, served upon him/her is 1026 East 180th St. 3F BX, NY
10460/Robin Williams. The principal business address of the LLC is 1026 East 180th ST. 3F, BX, NY 10460. Purpose: any lawful act or activity. Legal Notice NOTICE OF FORMATION OF Nurse Practitioner in Psychiatry, PLLC. Articles of Organization filed with the Secretary of State of NY (SSNY) on 3/16/2021. Office location: Bronx County. SSNY has been designated as agent upon whom process against it may be served. The Post Office address to which the SSNY shall mail a copy of any process against the PLLC served upon him/her is: 2400 Hunter Avenue, Apt 13C, Bronx, New York 10475. The principal business address of the PLLC is 2400 Hunter Avenue, Apt 13C, Bronx, New York 10475. Purpose: any lawful act or activity: (Virtual
Psychiatric Care, NYS Medical Marijuana Program Provider). Legal Notice NOTICE OF FORMATION OF LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY. NAME: DYCKMAN PALACE PIZZA, LLC. Articles of Organization were filed with the Secretary of State of New York (SSNY) on 02/03/2021; office location Bronx County. SSNY has been designated as agent of the LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail a copy of the process to the LLC, 549 Hollywood Avenue, Bronx, NY 10465. Purpose: For any lawful purpose. Legal Notice Notice is hereby given that an Order entered by the Civil Court, Bronx County on March 25, 2021, bearing Index Number NC-00001321/BX, a copy of which may
be examined at the Office of the Clerk, located at 851 Grand Concourse, Bronx, NY 10451, grants me the right to assume the name of (First) Jake (Middle) Manuel (Last) Hernandez. My present name is (First) Jake (Middle) Manuel (Last) Valdez (infant). The city and state of my present address are Bronx, NY. My place of birth is Bronx, NY. The month and year of my birth are March 2010. 3489 Legal Notice Notice is hereby given that an Order entered by the Civil Court, Bronx County on 4/1/2021, bearing Index Number NC-000033-21/ BX, a copy of which may be examined at the Office of the Clerk, located at 851 Grand Concourse, Bronx, NY 10451, grants me the right to assume the name of (First)
Jack (Middle) Hunter (Last) Gonzalez-Perez. My present name is (First) Jack (Middle) Hunter (Last) Perez AKA Jack Hunter Gonzalez (infant). The city and state of my present address are Bronx, NY. My place of birth is Bronx, NY. The month and year of my birth are July 2015. 3490 Legal Notice Notice is hereby given that an Order entered by the Civil Court, Bronx County on 2-102021, bearing Index Number NC-000326-20/BX, a copy of which may be examined at the Office of the Clerk, located at 851 Grand Concourse, Bronx, NY 10451, grants me the right to assume the name of (First) Zeinah (Last) Issah. My present name is (First) Zeinab (Last) Issah. The city and state of my present address are Bronx, NY. My
place of birth is Brooklyn, NY. The month and year of my birth are June 1992. 3491 Legal Notice Notice is hereby given that an Order entered by the Civil Court, Bronx County on 04/01/2021, bearing Index Number NC-000010-21/ BX, a copy of which may be examined at the Office of the Clerk, located at 851 Grand Concourse, Bronx, NY 10451, grants me the right to assume the name of (First) Anthony (Middle) Takari (Last) Sahara. My present name is (First) Tremaine (Middle) Anthony (Last) Robertson AKA Tremaine A Robertson, AKA Tremaine Robertson. The city and state of my present address are New York, NY. My place of birth is Manhattan, NY. The month and year of my birth
are October 1967.
3492
Legal Notice Notice is hereby given that an Order entered by the Civil Court, Bronx County on 02/11/2021, bearing Index Number NC-000322-20/ BX, a copy of which may be examined at the Office of the Clerk, located at 851 Grand Concourse, Bronx, NY 10451, grants me the right to assume the name of (First) Saphina (Middle) Nvayuh (Last) Jackson. My present name is (First) Saphina (Middle) Dahlia (Last) Ritchie (infant). The city and state of my present address are New York, NY. My place of birth is Manhattan, NY. The month and year of my birth are July 2018. 3493
THE RIVERDALE PRESS - Thursday, April 15, 2021 - A17
Home of the Week Vicki Green of Brown Harris Stevens
This is the co-op unit you know you deserve
W
elcome home! This is the special move-inready apartment in the heart of central Riverdale you’ve been waiting for. Located at 640 W. 239th St., west of the Henry Hudson Parkway, this attractive, inviting and immaculate two-bedroom, two-bathroom home invites you in with an updated and well-appointed kitchen with stainless steel appliances, beautiful and uniquely renovated baths, hardwood floors,
spacious rooms, generous closets, and wonderful natural light. This is a rare opportunity to purchase in this sought-after and well-maintained cooperative that’s close to schools, transportation, parks, shopping, and all the wonderful resources of this neighborhood. This is a pet-friendly building with a livein super, parking, storage and bicycle room. Welcome yourself home for $415,000, and a monthly maintenance cost of $908.
The homes of
VillanoVa heighTs* AvAilAble for 1 yeAr leAse 5030 Goodridge Avenue
10463
Note: Each week’s featured home is chosen at random from among houses and apartments offered by Riverdale Press advertisers. The opinions expressed are those of the advertiser and not The Riverdale Press news department. For further information, write to advertising@riverdalepress.com.
8 bedrooms/ 7 full baths/ 1 half bath/ Elevator/ Pool
5040 Goodridge Avenue
Too busy To clean? leT us do iT for you! Professional maid service with a difference: • Dusting • Vacuuming • Linen Change • Mopping • Waxing Floors • Bathrooms • Ironing • Towel Change • Laundry • Refrigerator Cleaning Also... • Home Health Aide, live-in/live-out • Interior Painting, Installing & Removing Floor & Wall Tiles, etc.
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HeAltH A ide A vAilAble foR HiRe
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9 bedrooms/ 8 full baths/ 1 half bath/ Elevator/ Pool
John e. fiTzgerald • 914.841.9206
(Brokers ProTecTed)
VisiT our weBsiTe for floor Plans and PhoTos of all homes
call us or your Broker for aVailaBiliTy of homes and renTal raTes
live in/live out Licensed, Professional, Reliable
718-670-3214
RefeRences AvAilAble
w w w .V i lla n oVa h ei g h t s . co m
*Villanova Heights is a rental community of fine homes on 25,000 Sq. Ft. lots. We periodically feature all of our homes in these ads, whether or not currently available.
Call for rental prices and dates of availability.
A18 - THE RIVERDALE PRESS - Thursday, April 15, 2021
TrebachRealty.com
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Family Owned & Operated Since 1972
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West of pArKWAy Web #895 Stylish and light filled 4-bdrm, 4.5 btah house with impressive grounds and private association pool. $2,595,000
nortH riVerdAle Web #911 Classic 3-bdrm, 3.5-bath house features living rm with WBFP, finished attic w/ 2 rms and landscaped yard. $1,200,000
soutH riVerdAle Web #910 Newly built 5-bdrm, 5.5-bath house with porch, dining patio & level grassy yard on private cul-de-sac. $1,890,000
soutH riVerdAle Web #901 5-bdrm, 5.5-bath, newly built house with stone accents along a quiet cul-desac with patio and yard. $1,790,000
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centrAl riVerdAle Web #909 3-bdrm, 2.5-bath ranch-style house. Split-level design features, entry foyer, living rm & dining area. $1,900,000
fieldston Web #898 Exceptional, elegant mansion overlooking Idyllic Pond. 8-bdrms, 8-full & 2-half bths, living rm with marble wood burning fireplace, formal dining rm with French doors to a side patio, spacious kitchen, breakfast room & expansive family room. $4,590,000
West of tHe pArKWAy Web #897 Renovated 5-bdrm, 5.5-bath Tudor-style house with spacious grounds on cul-desac. Living room with frplc. $2,495,000
fieldston Web #905 Bright 3-bdrm, 2.5-bath Tudor-Style house w/ sunken living room with ceiling beams, WBFP and patios.. $1,700,000
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exclusiVe fieldston Web #839 Bright 4-bdrm, 3-bath solar modern home with patio & garden. Living rm with WBFP & eat-in kitchen. $1,595,000
neW exclusiVe West of pArKWAy Web #893 Prime renovation opportunity: Completely gutted, sprawling 7,000-Sq. Ft. 5-bdrm, 6-bath stucco and stone house with pool, multi-level patios and spacious yard on double lot. Great room w/ 21-ft high ceilings, fireplace and oversized windows. $3,450,000
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fieldston Web #900 6-bdrm, 5.5-bath, stucco Tudor with gracious historic interior, fireplace, rear decks and level backyard. $2,295,000
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West of pArKWAy Web #882 Vacant site of approx 0.37 acres is a rare opportunity to build a home with commanding views of river. $1,495,000
fieldston Web #885 Stately, secluded georgian revival stone 6-bdrm, 6-full, 2-half bath residence situated on nearly three quarters of an acre. Completely renovated with wide front terrace, large living room with WBFP and french doors to four-season sunroom. $4,900,000
VAn cortlAndt crest Web #899 Spacious 6-bdrm, 3-full & 2-half baths, WBF in LR, dining rm & mstr bdrm. Eatin kitchen, porches & patio. $1,195,000
fieldston Web #904 Spacious 4-bdrm, 5.5-bath stucco house with patio and level grassy yard. Center hall, gas fireplace and FDR. $2,350,000
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nortH riVerdAle Web #908 Renovated and cozy 2-bdrm, 1.5-bath brick house with private patio & garden space. Renovated kitchen. $695,000
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West of pArKWAy Web #755 3-bdrm, 2.5-bath center hall colonial. WBFP in living rm, open plan kitchen & dining & finished basement. $1,420,000
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neW exclusiVe VAn cortlAndt crest Web #906 Spacious, handsome 5-bdrm, 4.5-bath tudor house with center hall, sunken living room, WBFP. & FDR. $980,000
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neW exclusiVe nortH riVerdAle Web #837 Legal 2-family semi-attached townhouse. Spacious side & rear yards. Two 3-bdrms, 2-baths plus 1-bdrm suite. $1,249,000
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centrAl riVerdAle Web #903 Lovely & spacious 2-bdrm, 1.5-bath brck charmer with porch, patio, backyard and WBFP on private Cul-de-Sac. $985,000
centrAl riVerdAle Web #896 Brand-new legal 3-family townhouse with stone accents has laundry in each apt and a 2-car driveway. $1,395,000
West of pArKWAy Web #880 Grand bucolic beauty 6-bdrm. 5.5-bath mansion with wraparound porch on over one acre with grassy lawns. $4,325,000
fieldston Web #894 Pristine, light filled 6-bdrm, 5.5-bath house with patios & grassy yard. Huge rm with wood oak flooring. $2,775,000
soutH riVerdAle Web #884 Renov 6-bdrm, 2-full and 2-half bath brick house. Tiled entry foyer, formal dining rm & renov kitchen. $1,395,000
exclusiVe soutH riVerdAle Web #871 Spacious 4-bdrm, 2.5-bath with foyer, living rm w/ brick WBFP, formal dining room and lrg eat-in kitchen. $1,595,000
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3935 blAcKstone AVe Web #cc652 Spacious and Bright 3-bdrm, 2-bath with sunset balcony, majestic river views and 24-hr doorman. $795,000
3800 blAcKstone AVe Web #cc630 Contemporary 2-bdrm, 2-bath duplex penthouse with private roof terraces, lndry and indoor parking. $675,000
2727 pAlisAde AVe Web #cc656 Bright 2-bdrm, 2-bath with balcony, 24-hr DM & parking avail. Master BR suite & remodeled kitchen. $539,000
3935 blAcKstone AVe Web #cc648 Spacious, light filled, low floor 3-bdrm w/ balcony & 24-hr D/M. Extra lrg foyer & dining rm with built-ins. $649,000
750 KAppocK street Web #cc659 Spacious and bright top-floor 2-bdrm, 2-bath with enclosed sunrise balcony, parking, & 24-hr doormen. $549,000
3800 blAcKstone AVe Web #cc651 Contemporary 3-bdrm, 2-bath condo w/ modern kitchen, balcony, laundry in unit and indoor parking. $659,000
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condo exclusiVe 3536 cAmbridge AVe cc660 Contemporary 3-bdrm, 2-bath condo w/bright open views & in unit lndry. $639K
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no boArd ApproVAl West of pArKWAy - 3-bdrm, 2-bath, w/ balcony, L-shaped LR/DR area, DM, fitness room, private playground and childrens recreation room. Dogs OK. Indoor parking available. $525K West of pArKWAy - 3-bdrm, 2-bath, w/ balcony, L-shaped LR/DR area, DM, fitness room, private playground and childrens recreation room. Dogs OK. Indoor parking available. $515K West of pArKWAy - Top floor Junior-4 with stunning river and sunset views, doorman, fitness room, private playground and childrens recreation room. Dogs OK. in contrAct $305K West of pArKWAy - 1-bdrm with L-shaped living/dining room area, doorman, fitness room, private playground $290K and childrens recreation room. Dogs OK.
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3614 JoHnson AVe cc646 2-bdrm, 2-bth with open plan living and dining area with glass sliding doors to balcony. $425K
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3600 fieldston rd cc855 2-bdrm, 2-bath conv 3, 2-bath w/ balcony, updated kitchen and DM. Parking avail. $375K
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290 West 232nd st cc626 2-bdrm with entry foyer, dining area and balcony. Storage area and bicycle rm in bldg. $305K
exclusiVe 3616 HH pArKWAy cc642 Spacious and bright 2-bdrm with balcony, and doorman. Indr parking avail. $398.5K
House for rent
fieldston Vic. rr642 6-bdrm, 3.5-bath, 7,500 sq. ft. house w/ Expansive wraparound porch & pool. $19,500/mo
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3001 HH pArKWAy cc853 Spacious 3-bdrm, 2-bth, PT DM. Entry foyer, large entral foyer & sunken LR. $625K
3935 blAcKstone cc646 Spacious 2-bdrm, 2-bath with open plan living, dining area and balcony. $415K
3601 JoHnson AVe. cc587 Walk-in level doctor’s office with seperate entrance and reception area. $295K
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no fee rentAls West of pArKWAy - Large and luxurious 2-bdrm conv. 3, 2-bth with great closet space, balcony, doorman, healthclub and pool. 3 months free rent $4,095/mo West of pArKWAy - Large and luxurious 2-bdrm convertible to 3, 2-bath with great closet space, balcony, doorman, healthclub and pool. 3 months free rent $3,895/mo centrAl riVerdAle - Contemporary 3-bdrm, 2-bath condo with balcony, laundry in unit and indoor parking. $3,700/mo West of pArKWAy - Large & bright 2-bdrm w/ balcony. D/M, fitness room, tennis couts & pool . 2 months free rent $3,495/mo West of pArKWAy - Large and luxurious Junior-4 with great closet space, balcony, doorman, healthclub and pool. 3 months free rent $2,695/mo
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House for rent
290 W 232nd st cc657 Updated 2-bdrm post war co-op with balcony. Entry foyer & eat-in kitch. $339K
4525 HH pArKWAy cc650 Bright & renov Jr-4 convt to 2 with open sunset views and 24-hr doorman. $329K
fieldston Vic. rr880 Spacious 6-bdrm, 4.5-bth center-hall Colonial w/ patio & yard on cul-de-sac. $7,900
professionAl & office spAce 3755 HH pKWAy - tHe imperiAl - Walk-in level doctor’s office with reception area and 2 exam rooms. $360K nortH riVerdAle - Office Space Available. $1,500/mo
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pet-friendly rentAls West of pArKWAy - Spac 3-bdrm, 2-bath, balcony, partial river views, DM & fitness rm. Dogs ok. rented $3,325/mo West of pArKWAy - 2-bdrm, 2-bath, balcony, partial river views, DM & fitness rm. Dogs ok. rented $2,550/mo West of pArKWAy - Rent stabilized 1-bdrm, parquet floors, balcony, DM & fitness rm. Dogs ok. rented $1,880/mo
exclusiVe 5715 mosHolu AVe cc635 Bright L-shaped 2-bdrm postwar co-op. Hrdwd flrs, South & West expos. $208K
exclusiVe 601 KAppocK st cc649 Mint condition, beautifully renovated 2-bdrm with doorman and pool. $284K
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3816 WAldo AVe cc643 Contemporary Condo with balcony, modern kitch, lndry in unit, DM & prkg. $640K
445 West 240tH st cc637 Postwar 2-bdrm condo with large entry foyer, living rm & windowed kitchen. $375K
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3515 HH pArKWAy cc638 Spacious & bright 3-bdrm, 2-bath corner unit. Entry foyer, living rm & renov kitch. $618K
Trebach Realty, Inc. • 3801 Greystone Avenue, Riverdale Open 7 Days • www.TrebachRealty.com
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611 West 239tH st cc645 Spacious split-design, 2-bdrm, 2-bath co-op w/ indoor parking, balcony and doorman. $425K