Welcome to another edition of the Bronx News Roundup. These are the Bronx stories we’re following today.

Update: NYPD Det. Kevin Spellman was convicted of manslaughter for killing a woman while driving drunk in Kingsbridge … Bus driver Orphadell Williams was found not guilty of any crimes for his role in a deadly Bronx bus crash last year.

We’ll start it off with some action from Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr.’s Puerto Rican Heritage Month celebration:

Speaking of Diaz, the Bronx BP showed up on City & State’s list of the top 100 most powerful players in New York City, at number 51. Other Bronx politicians on the list included Jeff Klein (62, probably would be lower if the list was done after this week), Council Majority Leader Joel Rivera (91), Council member Melissa Mark-Viverito (80), Assemblyman and Bronx Democratic County Committee Chairman Carl Heastie (46), Congressman Charlie Rangel (36, representing the northwest Bronx starting Jan. 1) and Congressman Jospeh Crowley (18, more Queens than Bronx, but still). Surprisingly, long-serving Bronx Congressmen Jose Serrano and Eliot Engel didn’t make the list.

Front page story in the Times today about how the new power-sharing deal in the state senate leaves minorities out of the picture. With Democrats poised to take control of the senate, at least numbers-wise, a minority representative had a good chance of being at the table for serious budget talks (the so-called “three men in a room”). Now, Bronx rep Jeff Klein makes it four white men in a room. Two minority senators from the Bronx spoke up about it. Ruben Diaz Sr. said, “There’s nothing for minorities. Of course it concerns me. What are we doing?We minorities, we’re not getting anywhere.” Gustavo Rivera added (more professorially): “One more reason that we should have a Democratic majority is we would have a more fair representation of what the state actually looks like in policy-making positions in the State Senate.”

The Bronx Times‘ Bob Kappstatter weighs in on Klein’s move, saying it will “likely bring funding, programs and legislative juice to the borough.” Also, per Kappy’s column, Happy Birthday this week to Assemblyman Jeff Dinowitz and Assemlbyman-elect Mark Gjonaj.

Some great reporting by the Bronx Times‘ David Cruz on the Kingsbridge Armory redevelopment. Cruz reports that “several” members of Community Board 7, which will vote on whether to endorse whatever project is picked by the EDC, are opposed to the plan to turn it into the country’s largest ice sports complex because they don’t think it’s economically viable. That case might be bolstered if a new ice center is approved in the Westchester town of Rye Brook. That ice complex would include four rinks and take away from potential business at the Armory ice center, which is counting on 85 percent of its business coming from outside of the Bronx.

Cruz also reports that two board members of the EDC, Marlene Cintron, the head of the Bronx Overall Economic Development Corporation (BOEDC), and Frank Randazzo, the Bronx Empowerment Zone Director for the BOEDC, will have a say in the Armory project being approved. Like Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr., Cintron is strongly behind the ice center project, but says she will not lobby other board members to back it and that she will vote for whichever project the EDC decides on. Randazzo, meanwhile, says he hasn’t been pressured to chose the ice center project over the competing Mercado Mirabo proposal, which would turn the Armory into a town hall-style market, recreation and entertainment space.

Good stuff, David.

Speaking of good local reporting, our friends at the Riverdale Press took home an honorable mention for Newspaper of the Year as voted on by the Local Media Association.

Some of that winning coverage this week, includes: more on the PS 340 transfer debacle (which we reported on last week), new life for teacher Stephen Ritz and his Bronx Green Machine program, and an in-depth look at DeWitt Clinton High School, the venerable institution on Mosholu Parkway that is facing considerable upheaval — and possible closure — after earning an “F” grade on it annual progress report for the second year in a row.

That’s it for today. Tune in again Monday for a recap of the weekend’s Bronx news. Send links and news tips to us at norwoodnews@norwoodnews.org.