Winner of Vol. 72, No. 36
the Pulitzer Prize
Thursday, October 14, 2021
$1.00
What’s SHOWDOWN OVER HOMELESS inside?
No shortages at schools yet over COVID vax mandate
Rent too high still
n de Blasio’s public health plan survives multiple legal challenges
Landlords still seem to have an upper hand when it comes to one legal challenge many renters don’t know about. Page A3
By ETHAN STARK-MILLER estarkmiller@riverdalepress.com
HIRAM ALEJANDRO DURÁN
What once used to be a storefront across from Van Cortlandt Park is now expected to become a shelter for more than 100 single men beginning in 2023 at 6661 Broadway. Community Board 8 will address the proposal for the first time Oct. 13 at its health, hospitals and social services committee.
CB8 questions shelter proposal n But could new mayor change plans to open a new single-male homeless facility at edge of North Riverdale?
Lehman arts back
After nearly two years of COVID-19 lockdown, it’s time to get back into some venues and watch live performances once again. Page A5 OBITUARY
By JOSEPH DE LA CRUZ jdelacruz@riverdalepress.com
There’s a new neighbor coming to Broadway in 2023 — and it’s not exactly who many in North Riverdale had hoped for. Community Board 8’s health, hospitals and social services committee is set to hear a proposal from the city’s homeless services department on Wednesday that would
open a shelter for 130 single men at 6661 Broadway. And if what happened a few years ago when DHS opened 5731 Broadway is any indicator — this is expected to be a long, hard battle that could fracture a community once again between those wanting to help the less fortunate, and those who want to do it, but just not so close to home. “We have a lot of concerns, and we have a lot of questions,” said Omar Murray, the committee’s chair. The proposed shelter would sit just a block south of the Westchester County line, across from Van Cortlandt Park. When opened, it will serve as an official bookend with the massive green space, complementing another shelter on Norwood’s Jerome Avenue. That shelter also HOMELESS, page A4
Bill de Blasio hasn’t been shy about his desire for the city’s public schools to go entirely back to inperson learning this year, after nearly 18 months of remote and hybrid classes. The mayor took a big step toward ensuring those plans weren’t ultimately derailed, issuing an expansive coronavirus vaccination mandate for nearly anyone receiving a paycheck from the city’s education department. Since then, it’s had to survive court challenges — including a stop at the U.S. Supreme Court — and potential staff shortages. But at least by some local accounts, schools are weathering the mandate well. In fact, de Blasio told reportMICHAEL ers last week he’s convinced his fLANAgAN mandate encouraged thousands of education department workers to get at least the first dose of the vaccine, leaving just a handful who still haven’t done it. Just in case, however, the education department brought in thousands of vaccinated substitute teachers and staff members, ready to fill in for anyone choosing not to take the vaccine. “As of today, all of the employees in our 1,600 schools are vaccinated,” de Blasio said. “And that is unprecedented. And that’s on top of all of the health and safety measures that make up that gold standard VAX MANDATE, page A4
DOT moves quickly to fix fatal intersection n Transit department adds safety measures at Kappock, Johnson after Mullen death
‘We want it to be safe for people to cross the street. I appreciate that (DOT) is moving quickly and coming up with different treatments and ideas to make that intersection safer.’
By ETHAN STARK-MILLER estarkmiller@riverdalepress.com
Favorite dentist Neighborhoods say good-bye to Dr. Albert Thompson, but celebrate a life so well lived. Page A7
INTERSEC
It seems rare city agencies quickly respond to community demands. But so far, changes like what’s happening where Kappock Street and Johnson Avenue intersect in Spuyten Duyvil are the rare exception to that rule. The city’s transportation department began initial upgrades to the perilous crossing earlier this month. Its work comes a few weeks after community activist Ruth Mullen was struck and killed by a Metropolitan Transportation Authority express bus driver while walking across Johnson, police said. She lived at the Winston Churchill, right next to the intersection. Mullen, 68, was known broadly for her decades of work in the publishing and film industries. She was also known more locally for her dedication to community issues — like installing a traffic light at the very intersection that ultimately took her life. Neighbors blame the area’s topography for why the intersection is especially dangerous. Kappock is on a hill, so any cars coming down that street into the intersec-
DEB TRAVIS
CB8 traffic committee chair
HIRAM ALEJANDRO DURÁN
The city’s transportation department recently added left-turn ‘calming measures’ resembling mini-speed bumps and repainted the crosswalks at the intersection of Kappock Street and Johnson Avenue. These changes came after a wave of outcry after an express bus driver struck and killed prominent neighborhood resident Ruth Mullen while she traversed the crosswalk. tion must hang a sharp left, virtually blocking any views of pedestrians until almost the last second. While Assemblyman Jeffrey Dinowitz pushed for more stop signs at the intersection some years ago, many
say cars tend to roll right through them. Sadly, it seems more extraordinary action to calm the intersection was going to take a tragedy — one that ultimately claimed Mullen from her family and
friends. But even if it is happening far later than it should have, Deb Travis — chair of Community Board 8’s traffic and transportation committee — says she’s impressed DOT has already started work. “We want it to be safe for people to cross the street,” Travis said. “So, I really appreciate that they’re moving quickly and coming up with different treatments and ideas to make the intersection safer.” The Assemblyman’s son, Councilman Eric Dinowitz, told the CB8 committee at INTERSECTION, page A4
Kids sell art, lending a helping hand to fight cancer n Proceeds will help purchase art supplies for young cancer patients looking for a pleasant distraction By ETHAN STARK-MILLER estarkmiller@riverdalepress.com
The past 19 months of on-and-off lockdowns and virtual school has made the coronavirus pandemic an especially difficult time for children, limiting their in-person interactions. But Mino Lora is trying to fill that void locally — and help a neighbor along the way — with a community art sale this weekend. “Especially during this time when kids have been so impacted by COVID, or by this year,” Lora said. “And seeing how, both as an educator and as a mother, coming back to social interactions and social places is a lot for kids. So, finding ways for young people to work with each other — even if it’s remote. And also, to know that, as a young person, you can still
make a change.” Besides being a good activity for pandemicfatigued children, the theatre non-profit executive director and former city council candidate says the art sale’s goal is to raise money for a 4-year-old girl in her building battling cancer. The kids will raise money from their art Sunday, Oct. 17 from 2 to 4 p.m., in front of the 3503 Johnson Ave., Starbucks. The girl, whose parents wished to keep anonymous, is good friends with Lora’s 8-year-old daughter, Emma Lucía. Wanting to help her friend through a tough time, Emma Lucía came up with the idea of doMINO ing something that would raise LORA money for Memorial Sloan Kettering Children’s Cancer Center — the hospital where her friend is undergoing treatment. “I decided that I could raise money and give it to her,” Emma Lucía said, “so that they could have CANCER ART, page A4
HIRAM ALEJANDRO DURÁN
Emma Lucía Lora-Braswell has helped organize an art sale to raise money for a friend undergoing cancer treatment at Memorial Sloan Kettering Children’s Cancer Center. Emma Lucía and some of her other friends have put together collages, paintings, drawings and other artwork to sell this Sunday.