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Volume XIX • Number 7 • February 23 - 29, 2012 •
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Riverdale streets: Like the surface of the moon By MIAWLING LAM Community members have slammed the city for neglecting the pothole-ridden streets of Riverdale, arguing local roads resemble a patchwork normally seen in third-world countries. CB8 land use chairman Charles Moerdler urged residents at last Tuesday’s general board meeting to kick up a stink about the area’s pockmarked pavements. He said locals needed to remind officials “these are the streets of The Bronx, not of Bangladesh or any other place. “These streets are in terrible shape,” Moerdler said, adding that West 254th Street toward the Riverdale Metro-North station was particularly horrendous. “You’ll get a flat tire once a day from the potholes.
I’m not exaggerating. The reason I make the point to you is the following: They’re not paying attention because they’re not getting yelled at. “We have to get them [to listen]. I jocularly refer to them as the Department of Bicycle Transportation only because if we were to advocate for a bicycle lane, then you’ll have the whole job done in 24 hours.” Moerdler said the high proportion of privately owned streets in Riverdale also compounded the issue. City crews do not repair the privately owned streets of Fieldston, even though all motorists drive on them. Potholes form when snow and rain seep into cracks in the road, then expand as temperatures drop and water freezes. Chunks of asphalt are then dislodged when vehicles drive over the spot.
Last year’s particularly harsh winter and near-record snowfall meant hundreds of potholes formed on many of the neighborhood’s streets. Many still remain filled potholes. CB8 board member Michael Heller said although the board submitted a lengthy list of resurfacing requests, city crews repaired a total of only eight lane miles across the entire board last year. This was comparable to the length of roads repaved in other community boards in the city. “It’s just the entire resurfacing program is a tiny fraction of what’s necessary, so every year the streets get worse and inferior,” he said. “The city’s resurfacing program is a farce. That’s the basic problem.” As of press time, the Department of Transportation did not respond to repeated calls and emails.
Diaz speech to highlight impressive gains in boro’s economic picture By MIAWLING LAM Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr. is expected to highlight The Bronx’s dramatic rejuvenation at his annual State of the Borough address later this week. Right on the heels of the announcement that online grocer FreshDirect will relocate to the South Bronx by 2015, it can be revealed Diaz will tout his administration’s economic-development prowess and job-creation credentials. “We have executed a holistic vision for the current and future development of our borough, one focused on intelligent investments that make sense not only for individual neighborhoods, but for the entire borough,” Diaz plans to say, according to a draft of the speech obtained by the Riverdale Review. “Through comprehensive planning and community collaboration, we are reshaping The Bronx and advancing a strong agenda for its future.” Within the past year, The Bronx has lured an array of multimillion-dollar companies to set up shop or relocate in its backyard. Just this month, Mayor Michael Bloomberg and Governor Andrew Cuomo announced FreshDirect would build a new 500,000- square-foot state-of-the-art building at the Harlem River Yards. The decision was hailed as a major victory for the borough as New Jersey made a pitch to tempt the grocer with $100 million worth of tax breaks. And in November, Smith Electric, an all-electric truck manufacturer, revealed it would move its facilities from Missouri to Port Morris, creating more than 100 green jobs for locals. The current request for proposals for the Kingsbridge Armory, the $270 million expansion of Bay Plaza shopping center in Eastchester—the first such construction
in the city in nearly 40 years—and the redevelopment of the former Stella D’oro cookie factory in the northwest Bronx are also expected to fuel the borough’s revitalization. Those projects are real signs that The
Bronx is moving forward, Diaz will suggest. “We have changed the way business is done in The Bronx, and it shows,” he will say. “Major companies are making their way to our borders to take advantage of
our able workers. In the past three years, we have seen unprecedented interest in The Bronx and a major influx of private development dollars into our borough.” Mayor Michael Bloomberg even acContinued on Page 2
Councilman G. Oliver Koppell visited P.S. 24 last Friday during Respect For All Week to discuss the harmful effects of bullying and the importance of resolving disputes peacefully. During his visit, he spoke with students about the “random acts of kindness” posted on bulletin boards throughout the school, and sat in on a fourth-grade class during a conflict resolution lesson. The Department of Education designated February 13th–17th as Respect For All Week promote harmony and cooperation and discourage bullying and harassment.