Opinion

Op-Ed: Saw Something; Said Something

Many of us are familiar with the statement, “If you see something, say something.” It appears on signs in buses, subways, on TV, radio, and more. In light of the recent tragedy in Boston, this advice becomes even more urgent. Or so I thought…

Editorial: Armory Celebration Time!

The story of the “long vacant” Kingsbridge Armory stretches back into the early years of the Norwood News. We began publishing in 1988. The military left the main building in 1993. We’ve been writing about its emptiness and the efforts to fill that emptiness ever since. Now it’s time to celebrate what a new ice sports complex and free after-school youth program will do for an area badly in need of a shot in the armory.

Bronx News Roundup: Fire, Fatalities, and Fordham

by Will Speros Investigators are looking into what caused the massive five-alarm fire this morning at 226th Street and White Plains Road in Wakefield. The fire started in a shed a little after 6 am, and quickly spread to nearby businesses and a mosque. The 2 and 5 trains were suspended as firefighters spent nearly four hours getting the fire under control. An eleven-year-old was hospitalized for minor injuries from smoke inhalation and ten firefighters are being treated for minor injuries. The community is now facing the aftermath of the destruction to the whole business block, NY1 reports. Sherika Stewart


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Take Our Readership Survey, Help Us Serve You, Earn a Chance to Win Money!

The Norwood News, which has covered the northwest Bronx for nearly 25 years, is one of the city’s only nonprofit community newspapers. We continue to provide hyper-local news coverage, features and invaluable community information. This spring, we need your help. For the first time, we are conducting a quick readership survey to get a better idea of who you are and how we can serve you better. We will take this information and use it to take our reporting, coverage and presentation to the next level. Please take a few minutes to fill out the survey here and enter for a chance to win a $50 gift certificate to the Norwood News advertiser of your choice. Thanks for your help. We can’t do this without you.

Op-ed: Cluster-siting is a Community Killer

The New York Times recently featured an article on cluster-siting, a controversial city program aimed at housing the homeless that impacts the Bronx in a disproportionate manner. It’s time to rethink this old problem. And as one seeking to serve the public in City Council, it’s time to formulate a public policy solution … smartly and quickly.

Op-ed: Why NYPD Needs an Inspector General

In June of 2012, the City Council introduced a bill that would establish the office of Inspector General for the Police Department. The office would oversee the policies and practices of the NYPD and analyze the effect of those policies and practices on civil liberties, among other things. Mayor Bloomberg has expressed serious opposition to the bill, promising to veto the legislation and describing the creation of an Inspector General’s office as mere “politics” that tamper with public safety. The mayor could not be more wrong.

Op-ed: Stop School Closures and Co-Locations for Third Term

If something is broken – fix it. Sadly, Mayor Bloomberg adheres to a different philosophy when our city’s education system is concerned. The Administration’s default response to struggling schools has been to close them, without first investing enough time and resources into turning them around. And instead of laying out a thoughtful plan for some schools to share facilities in the same building – co-location – the Administration turns a cold shoulder to community input. We need a new approach for our city’s one million students.

Op-Ed: Helping the ‘Washeros’

Growing up in the Bronx, one of the most exciting portions of an otherwise unbearable day with my father running errands was our inevitable trip to the car wash. I would ask for us to stay in the car as the conveyor belt carried us through the huge wipers and brushes. I never gave much thought to the men who manually dried the car once we exited this fantastical vortex of water and soap however. But these men, in all likelihood were either undocumented immigrants, underpaid, overworked, or all of the above.