At Jerome Avenue Rezoning, Many Locals Blast Plan

By DAVID CRUZ

Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr. got an earful from scores of residents, merchants and even doctors largely opposed to the Jerome Avenue Rezoning plan, a complex and sweeping proposal intended to create more affordable housing across the west and southwest sections of the Bronx. The plan, now in the middle of a public review, is in the hands of Diaz who held a hearing Nov. 2 on the issue. The lofty proposal looks to rezone 92 blocks of Jerome Avenue between 184th and 167th streets. The plan covers a two-mile stretch along its commercial and major transit corridors within

City Steps in to Aid Troubled Kingsbridge Hts. Building

By YARA PALIN

The city has aggressively stepped in to help tenants of a troubled Kingsbridge Heights apartment building who were reportedly forced to share a single bathroom for weeks. The superintendent for 60 E. 196th St., Cristian Rico, says that conditions first reported by the New York Post were exaggerated. He insists that The Morgan Group, which own the building, has only been renovating after the city ordered them to fix faulty. There are still two official stop work orders posted on the front door, however. He also says that the stop work order was given because “tenants were using one bathroom

Fordham Landing Shelter/Affordable Housing Site Here to Stay

By REGGIE FRANCOIS

Despite numerous attempts to rid a homeless shelter/affordable housing site in Fordham, hundreds of residents at a nearby cooperative will have to get used to the site and its occupants, whether they like it or not. Still, residents at Fordham Hill Owners Corporation expressed continued outraged for Fordham Landing, the homeless shelter and affordable housing site slated to open in December. An Oct. 25 town hall meeting took place between the corporation’s community engagement community and representatives from the New York City Department of Homeless Services and Bowery Residents Committee (BRC), with executive director Muzzy Rosenblatt on hand. “We’re here

Savor the Bronx Aims to Satisfy Taste Buds

By DIEGO BARCACEL PENA

A full serving of the borough’s diversity will be dished out by local eateries during Savor the Bronx Restaurant Week, which runs from Nov. 6 to 17. The eleven-day event will give local restaurants the chance to showcase assorted Bronx flavors while continuing its decades long quest to extinguish the “Bronx is burning,” stereotype of the 1970s. The term was coined exactly 40 years ago when the Yankees played the Dodgers in the World Series in the Bronx. “Unfortunately, that was when the world saw the Bronx burning, in fact some of the fires were just around the corner,” said

By ANTHONY RIVIECCIO, MBA, PFA

Let me first get my conflict of interest out of the way. As a former U.S. Navy man, I was honored to take part in “reserve duty” in the Kingsbridge Armory in the late 1970s and even more excited, taking part in spending my money at the Armory watching many closed circuit boxing fights in the 1980s back before pay-per-view was in vogue. I also protested for the city to bring “schools to the Armory” after it closed in 1997, after it was re-purposed into a women’s homeless shelter that was so bad it had closed. And 20 years later,

Neighborhood Notes: Free Immigration Service

By DAVID GREENE

This week we asked readers the best locations to enjoy the fall foliage in the Bronx and beyond. I would say by the Bronx Zoo. I also know they have a spot in Yonkers, but I’m not sure of the exact location. Also going towards Throggs Neck in some spots; there are some really nice spots along Pelham Parkway; going towards City Island is really nice. This time last year there was ice on the ground, so we get to embrace the surroundings and get to smell the trees a little bit longer and enjoy Mother Nature. Ronald McDaniel, Throggs Neck

Free WiFi for Students The New York Public Library offers free WiFi for eligible students in kindergarten through 12th grade who don’t have WiFi at home. A lending event, where hotspot devices can be checked out for free, takes place Nov. 2 at 6 p.m. at The Bronx Library Center, 310 E. Kingsbridge Rd. A valid library card and pre-registration are required. For more information, call (718) 579-4244 or visit http://hotspot.nypl.org/. Library Fines Waived The New York Public Library has waived all library fines for children 17 and younger. High school students age 18 and over can stop by their

Editor’s Pick Happy Halloween The Jerome-Gun Hill BID invites the public to its Halloween Dance Party and Parade, Oct. 31 from 4:30 to 7:30 p.m. Meet at Mosholu Parkway and Jerome Avenue. There will be free candy, music and pumpkins. For more information, call (718) 324-4646. (See “Holiday Events” below for more.) Onstage The Williamsbridge Oval presents Shakespeare’s The Winter’s Tale, Nov. 4 at 1 p.m. in the Rec Center. For more information and to RSVP, call (718) 543-8672. Events The Williamsbridge Oval offers a variety of free classes for youth ages 6 to 12, after school and Saturdays, including

Latest Edition of the Norwood News Is Out!

Dear Fellow Readers, The latest edition of the Norwood News, covering the northwest portion of the Bronx, is out with plenty of community news you can use. For the sake of consistency, we begin with page one as usual and a story that keeps on giving–the Kingsbridge Armory. This time, in a move aimed at advancing the reconfiguration of the building to a massive ice center, state officials heard from the community on whether to fund give the beleaguered project a $138 million state loan to begin phase one. The findings were near unanimous. Reporter Aaron Mayorga chronicles reaction from