The Week in Rewind spotlights some of the editorial work of the Bronx Times for the week of Sept. 1- Sept. 8. Compiled by Camille Botello.
Bronx community boards swear in 145 new members
On Tuesday, the Bronx officially gained 145 new community board members with an energetic swearing-in ceremony and orientation at Lehman College.
“You are the first line to the people that we serve, and you are the change agents,” said Janet Peguero, deputy borough president, to the new members.
According to Borough President Vanessa Gibson’s office, which oversees the boards, 548 residents from a diverse array of races, ages and backgrounds applied or reapplied for membership.
The city’s 59 community boards — 12 of which are in the Bronx — are staffed by a volunteer chairperson and members, as well as a salaried district manager.
They vote on hyperlocal issues such as construction projects, public safety and neighborhood programming, and they act as liaison between agencies and residents. While boards cannot force the hand of elected officials or agencies, their votes of support or disapproval hold sway amongst those in power.
Community boards can have up to 50 members, but 2022 data shows that vacancies remain, with the average size of a Bronx board at 43 people.
Linda Collins — a new member of Bronx Community Board 10 covering Co-Op City, Throggs Neck, City Island and other nearby neighborhoods — told the Bronx Times she’s on a mission to make sure her neighbors know how the boards can help, and that they exist at all.
“The problem is that most people don’t know where (community boards) are, what they do, or how to get involved,” she said. “By the time people figure out that there’s something happening in their communities, it’s already happening.”
Road redesign along Sheridan aims to improve safety and access
On Wednesday, the New York City Department of Transportation (DOT) unveiled changes along Sheridan Boulevard to improve safety and local access to the road.
The project is part of the $1.7 billion Hunts Points Access Improvement Project, a state effort that aims to improve access between the Hunts Point Peninsula and the Sheridan and Bruckner expressways, combatting a lack of access to the economic engine of The Hunts Point Terminal and reducing congestion that has riddled South Bronx residents with unhealthy environmental harms.
While the former Sheridan Expressway was physically transformed into a boulevard in 2019 — and the street sign even reads Sheridan Boulevard — the road still needs to undergo a formal renaming process, according to DOT.
“Opening up the Sheridan to local streets will help alleviate all of the existing traffic and congestion that Bronxites have been experiencing at the Whitlock exit,” said Councilmember Rafael Salamanca Jr. “This opening we are celebrating is of course all part of the $1.7 billion set aside for the conversion of the Hunts Point Expressway to the Hunts Point Boulevard. And while this is a great first start towards addressing the transportation issues that have long plagued the South Bronx, more work needs to be done, and I look forward to continued work with DOT and with (DOT) Commissioner Ydanis (Rodriguez) to accomplish just that.”
Prior to this redesign, vehicles traveling east from East 173rd Street could not access the Sheridan roadway and vehicles traveling north on Edgewater Road (a Sheridan service road) could not get to Crotona Park East by way of East 172nd Street.
Castle Hill BID appoints Sasha Ortiz as first executive director
The newest business improvement district in the Bronx is up and running after appointing an executive director this summer.
After filling that position in June with the appointment of Sasha Ortiz, the newly established Castle Hill Business Improvement District (BID) has been officially active since July 1 — and ready to help provide support to local businesses.
The BID, which encompasses many businesses, merchants and property owners on the thoroughfares of the intersecting Castle Hill and Westchester avenues, was created to enhance the local business community as well as neighboring areas in the Bronx.
The commercial corridor in Castle Hill includes nearly 200 businesses consisting of restaurants, personal care services, retail stores, fitness centers and more.
The borough’s 12th business improvement district, theCastle Hill BID was established in May 2022 after it was signed into law by Mayor Eric Adams.
However, the creation of the Castle Hill BID had been in the works for years. Councilmember Annabel Palma, who represented the 18th Council District for nearly 15 years, initiated the process of a business improvement district in Castle Hill in the mid-to-late 2010s.
The 18th District, which represents the Castle Hill, Clason Point, Harding Park, Parkchester, Unionport, Shorehaven and Soundview neighborhoods, is now represented by Councilmember Amanda Farías, who took office at the beginning of 2022 and sponsored the legislation establishing the new BID.
Bronx District Attorney Darcel Clark appoints 40 new lawyers to her office
The Bronx District Attorney’s office, which has been riddled with turnover, now has 40 new assistant district attorneys (ADAs).
Their Tuesday appointments now make 381 attorneys on staff, according to Patrice O’Shaughnessy, a spokesperson for Bronx District Attorney (DA) Darcel Clark.
“This diverse class of Assistant District Attorneys will undergo vigorous training to ensure that they serve the Bronx community in the most professional, compassionate way,” Clark said. “Alongside our experienced and dedicated staff, these new prosecutors will help us bring justice for victims and fairness to defendants while preserving public safety.”
The attorneys come from law schools around NYC — like Cardozo, New York Law School, Brooklyn Law and the City College of New York — as well as across the country. About half are women, according to the DA’s office.
During Clark’s successful primary election earlier this year, her challenger Tess Cohen described the DA’s office as “in crisis” with turnover rates higher than any of the other borough’s DA offices.
In Fiscal Year (FY) 2022, 305 staffers — including 152 attorneys — left the office with an astounding overall attrition rate of about 30%, and 37% for legal staffers, according to Clark’s testimony from March. From July 2022 to March 2023, the office lost another 79 ADAs, or 22% of the office’s attorneys.
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