Despite Hype Ice Rink Sits Unused

Despite Hype Ice Rink Sits Unused

What to Do With An Empty Ice Rink?

Riverdale Report

By Robert Press

BRONX, NEW YORK (BRONX NEWS)- It seems that after Mayor Bloomberg had to have an ice skating rink in Van Cortlandt Park, the space is now empty, and becoming an eyesore to the community. 

I am talking about the old unused tennis court that sits on Broadway just south of the end of the # 1 Subway line. Over 3 years ago Mayor Bloomberg had the Parks Department put out a Request For Proposal to have an Ice Skating Rink be put in the unused tennis court on Broadway. The RFP was sent out, and a contract was drawn up with the vendor and the city. It was for 15 years with an increasing scale of fees to be paid to the city after the first two free years of the contract.

Ice Rinks Inc. which has other ice skating rinks in city parks was the vendor, and for the first year of operation of the Van Cortlandt Park Ice Skating Rink everything seemed to be going well. In the second year of operation was where things seemed to fall apart. It was a rather warmer winter, and the equipment that Ice Rinks Inc. had put in seemed to be having problems. The ice was soft at times, and the rink could not be used. This led to a decline in attendance and in revenue for Ice Rinks Inc. The rink was shut down more than two weeks before its scheduled closing as the chillers were no longer effectively making the ice hard. Ice Rinks Inc. was unsure if they could return the next year as new chillers would have to be installed, and that was going to cost to much money to be profitable. It seemed that the vendor wanted to redo the contract that gave them two free years of operation, so they could continue rent free.

The result was that Ice Rink Inc. pulled out of the contract with the city, and the city and community were back to having an eyesore of an empty area that now had permanent electrical equipment, and other permanent large metal casings so tennis was no longer an option for this space in Van Cortlandt Park. That was over a year ago, and looks like it will be permanent since the Kingsbridge National Ice Center in the nearby Kingsbridge Armory will become a reality.

Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr., State Senator Jeff Klein, Assemblyman Jeffrey Dinowitz, and Councilman Andrew Cohen have come up with an idea for the unusable tennis area on Broadway. The four elected officials want to have a weekend market similar to the one that is currently in Bryant Park, which by the way Bryant park also has an ice skating rink that is very successful. You can go to my blog at www.100percentbronx.blogspot.com to see the letter that the four elected officials have sent to NYC Parks Commissioner Michael Silver requesting that this eyesore of an area in Van Cortlandt park be transformed into a marketplace such as is in Bryant Park in Manhattan.

This Sunday is the North Riverdale Block Festival sponsored by the North Riverdale Merchants Association and KRVC. Riverdale Avenue between West 258^th and West 259^th Street will be closed to traffic with the exception of a lane for emergency vehicles and regularly scheduled buses that will be running on a Sunday schedule. The event will run from 12 – 4 PM -, and will feature live music all day, clowns, face painting, many more children s activities, and also pony rides.

If you have any comments about this column or would like to have an event listed or covered in this column or on my blog you can e-mail us at 100percentbronxnews@gmail.com or call 718-644-4199 Mr. Robert Press.  

BRONX NEWS: New Police Capt. Leans Towards Body Cameras,

BRONX NEWS: New Police Capt. Leans Towards Body Cameras,: New Police Capt. Leans Towards Body Cameras, Backs Putting Cops Back on the Beat By Michael Horowitz BRONX, NEW YORK, (BRONX NEWS)- The ne...

New Police Capt. Leans Towards Body Cameras,

New Police Capt. Leans Towards Body Cameras,

Backs Putting Cops Back on the Beat

By Michael Horowitz

BRONX, NEW YORK, (BRONX NEWS)- The new captain of the 45th Police Precinct said that she is leaning toward supporting body cameras for the city’s police officers.

Capt. Danielle Raia said that her inclination is to support having police officers videotape their encounters with potential criminals, but that the idea needs further study before it is implemented in New York City.

The new commanding officer for the 45th Precinct stressed that she was expressing her personal views on the issue of body camera for police officers, rather than an initiative that the NYPD is currently planning to implement.

“I can see the pros and cons on this issue,” Capt. Raia stressed. “What I’m really saying is that the issue needs further study, but that body camera have considerable merit even though there could be some problems with the use of the body cameras.”

Those in the NYPD who support body cameras for police officers have contended that they would help to eliminate confusion over whether an officer may have used excessive force or acted inappropriately while doing his or her job.

Those opposed to the body cameras have argued that photographing encounters with police could lead to misinterpretations and differing views in police encounters even though the cameras are supposed to lead to factually based recordings.

Those opposed to the body cameras have also contended that they would inhibit police work by appearing to tie the hands of patrol officers.

The commanding officer of the 45th Precinct counts herself as among NYPD Commissioner William Bratton’s biggest boosters. Raia said that she especially approved of Bratton’s efforts to open up lines of communication between NYPD officers and the people who live and work in the city’s neighborhoods.

Bratton has indicated, in recent weeks that he wants to bring back something like the Neighborhood Police Teams from the 1970s. The focus of this thrust was for officers to walk beats in the communities and get to know the people in the city’s neighborhoods and the crime­ related concerns that these neighborhoods confronted.

“As I understand it, the new community ­policing thrust will not focus on police officers walking beats, but it will focus on officers interacting with people in community in an effort to develop intelligence and gain a better understanding of the issues that are important to the people in communities who we serve,” Capt. Raia noted.

The commanding officer of the 45th Precinct stressed that pilot programs emphasizing community policing are being developed in anticipation of their rollout in the not­-too-­distant future.

“We, at the 45th Precinct, will not have one of the pilot programs, but I’m very interested in seeing how they work out,” Capt. Raia noted. “The whole idea of community policing is a good one, but it needs a bit more study within the context of today’s world.”

#Police #BodyCameras #NYPD #Bronx

BRONX NEWS: Baby Faced Wanna-Be Rapist Sought by NYPD

BRONX NEWS: Baby Faced Wanna-Be Rapist Sought by NYPD: CAUGHT ON CAMERA: Baby Faced Wanna-Be Rapist Sought by NYPD By Dan Gesslein BRONX, NEW YORK (BRONX NEWS)- Police released video of a bab...

Baby Faced Wanna-Be Rapist Sought by NYPD

CAUGHT ON CAMERA:

Baby Faced Wanna-Be Rapist Sought by NYPD

By Dan Gesslein

BRONX, NEW YORK (BRONX NEWS)- Police released video of a baby-faced suspect they said choked out and almost raped a woman in Morris Heights.

Cops say a 27-year-old woman was attacked at around 11:30 on September 16. The suspect followed behind the woman as she entered her apartment on Andrews Avenue. When they reached the fourth floor landing, the suspect pounced. He choked the woman to the ground and kissed her on the lips. He then began fondling the victim over her clothing and pulled her hair. The attacker then fled.

Police released video from a nearby super market and the image is unnerving. The suspect’s frame and demeanor makes him appear to be a young teenager. Cops say the would-be rapist is between the ages of 14 and 20. He is 5 foot 7 with a medium build and a Caesar haircut. He was last seen wearing a red t-shirt, black shorts with a white stripe, and black Nike sneakers with a white Nike symbol.

Anyone with information is urged to call CRIMESTOPPERS at (800) 577-TIPS. All calls are confidential.

#Rapist #NYPD #Morris Heights

BRONX NEWS: Drug Gang’s Facebook Rap Recruited Youngsters

BRONX NEWS: Drug Gang’s Facebook Rap Recruited Youngsters: Drug Gang’s Facebook Rap Recruited Youngsters BRONX, NEW YORK (BRONX NEWS)- District Attorney Robert Johnson announced the unsealing of a 9...

Drug Gang’s Facebook Rap Recruited Youngsters

Drug Gang’s Facebook Rap Recruited Youngsters

BRONX, NEW YORK (BRONX NEWS)- District Attorney Robert Johnson announced the unsealing of a 97-count indictment against 27 alleged members of “6 Wild,” a subset of the Bloods gang, who are accused of committing murders, attempted murders, drug sales, and other crimes during a five year period ending August 20, 2015.  

Arrests overnight followed a six-month-long investigation conducted by the NYPD Gang Unit and the Bronx DA Gangs/Major Case Bureau.

The following defendants were charged in Bronx Supreme Court. Those who were present in the courtroom pled not guilty before Justice Steven Barrett [see attached chart of defendants and charges):

Luis “White Monkey” Perez

Luis “White Boy” Perez

Cesar “Ces” Rivera

Travis “Rav” Bloch^[1]

Jeremiah Thomas ¹

Jamarly Wiliams¹

Michael Jones¹

Raul “Ski Mo” Calvin

Paula “Romeo” Garcia

Julian “Jayy Voutton” Cepeda¹

Malik Williams

Tyschuller Harris

Wayne Evans

Keylan Amarilla

Jonathan “Casper” Smaine

Shaem Zaballa

Jordan Gulley

Felix Rodriguez

Glen McCoon

It is charged that members of the organization were responsible for Class A-1 felonies including murder in the second degree, operating as a major trafficker, and conspiracy in the first Degree.

Other felonies charged include manslaughter, tampering with a victim or witness, assault, attempted gang assault, and varied drug and weapons charges.

The homicides that defendants are alleged to have committed include the December 2014 shooting death of Timothy Hairston outside a pharmacy on 165^th Street and College Avenue, and the May, 2015 shooting death of Christopher Duran. They also stand charged with crimes for five non-fatal assaults, one of which was a stabbing.  The rest were shootings. 

It’s alleged that the accused conducted a reign of terror in and around the Melrose section of the Bronx, in the shadow of the courthouses, running their operations between 166^th and 167^th Street and College Avenue, and 164^th to 167^th Street between Grand Concourse and Clay Avenue. Older members of the gang are accused of recruiting young ones to do their bidding. Some of those charged, notably Julian Cepeda and Jeremiah Thomas, were barely into their teens when they allegedly joined up with 6 Wild.

The indictment charges that the leader, Cesar “Ces” Rivera, posted a hip-hop anthem to Facebook allegedly describing his alleged philosophy of letting the younger gangbangers do most of the action in regard to drugs, assaults and killings, because they, supposedly, would not face as much prison time:

               

                “Me n my wild nigkaz gunna stick to the script

                N if this rap shyt don’t work

                Then it’s bck 2 da strip

                Back 2 da hustle

                I got some yung nigkaz 2 hustle

                15 he get knocked

                He wont get into trouble

                So I could just sit bck n watch my money double

                Cuz I aint worried bout nigkaz

                I’ll send  ya’ll 2 God

                I got killaz that hang in da bck round

                Like dam ID get in Wizard of Oz

                So think of da odds

                B4 u try ya hands

                Cuz if u getting money

                N Ces aint apart of ya plans

                Im not gunna pardon ya mans           

District Attorney Johnson noted: “The leaders of this group are alleged to have not only participated in the worst of crimes in the Bronx, including killings, shootings, and spreading illegal drugs throughout the borough, they are charged with doing so in the worst way, by recruiting young teenagers to do their bidding.

“We remain dedicated to making the Bronx safe for all its residents and visitors.”

“As alleged, these members of 6 Wild participated in and promoted violent gang activity that eroded the quality of life for the people who live and work in the surrounding neighborhoods," said Police Commissioner William J. Bratton. "I commend the work of the investigators of the Bronx Gang Squad and the prosecutors of the Bronx District Attorney's Office for their work in keeping our Bronx communities safe."

#Gangs #Melrose  #Bronx #Facebook #Rap