University Heights: Street Renamed in Honor of Local Hero, Purple Heart Recipient

By DAVID GREENE

Almost two years after the death of Staff Sergeant Santiago Frias, a local hero and army veteran who was seriously wounded during the Iraq war, a street renaming ceremony was held in his honor in the University Heights section of the Bronx last month. Following his return to the U.S., the young man recovered from his wounds, helped raise a family, and devoted time to local children, teaching them the art of self defense. He was one semester shy of a degree in social work. Family and friends of Frias gathered at West 183rd Street and Grand Avenue,

By SÍLE MOLONEY

On Friday Sept. 18, a mural, located at 296 East 204th Street in the Norwood section of the Bronx, painted to support Black trans lives, was found defaced with hate speech against the LGBTQ+ community. The attached photo has been cropped to exclude expletives. This #BlackTransLivesMatter mural was created by us earlier this summer we made it with love + joy among all the hate so this all hurts we are mourning + surviving continued violence against our communities, we won't be erased, we keep us safe not the nypd #blacktransloveiswealth — BlackTransMedia (@BlackTransMedia) September 19, 2020 Assemblywoman

By SÍLE MOLONEY

On Sept. 18, Congress Member Adriano Espaillat, Senator Jamaal Bailey, Assembly Member Jeffrey Dinowitz and Council Member Andy Cohen joined Montefiore Health System for a community flu shot event at Mosholu Montefiore Community Center. Congressman Adriano Espaillat received his shot on-site. Montefiore, Duane Reade and Walgreens are working together to keep Bronxites healthy this flu season by offering low to no-cost flu shots where community members live, work, and play. According to Montefiore Heath System, the following are the top concerns Bronx residents have shared about getting a seasonal flu (influenza) vaccination, as well as the facts on

By SÍLE MOLONEY

New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio announced on Sept. 18 that reforms to Alternate Side Parking (ASP) would be in place until further notice. The City first unveiled the reform in June, announcing that non-metered side streets with multiple ASP days would be cleaned once per week, the most dramatic change to ASP in decades. Amended rules pertain to non-metered residential “side streets” and not to commercial areas. Streets with multiple ASP days would be cleaned on the last day of the week, as posted on each street’s currently posted sign. For example, a street with ASP regulations posted

By SÍLE MOLONEY

Indoor dining is to recommence in New York City on Sept. 30, at 25 percent capacity. On Monday, Sept. 14, New York Mayor Bill de Blasio held a virtual hearing with interested parties from the hospitality sector and signed the extension of two bills in support of New York City restaurants. The first bill extends an existing ban on charging for unconfirmed phone orders until 90 days after restaurants are allowed to operate at a hundred percent capacity. The second extends an existing cap on fees that delivery apps can charge restaurants until 90 days after restaurants are

By SÍLE MOLONEY & MIRIAM QUINONES

On Thursday Sept. 3, 2020, a commemorative “Care” mural was unveiled in the patio of the rotunda building (building 4) at Jacobi Medical Center in the Morris Park section of the Bronx. The idea behind the mural was to promote greater neighborhood wellness, and to help build trust and engagement between the community and the hospital. Designed by artists, Andrei Krautsou and Yulia Puhach, the project was an artistic collaboration with the staff of Jacobi Medical Center, in conjunction with the Laurie M. Tisch Illumination Fund. Since Friday, Aug. 21, the project participants had been painting, in stages,

By JOSÉ A. GIRALT

At first glance, the relationship between skydiving, a woman’s right to vote, and Woodlawn Cemetery might not seem obvious. On Aug. 26 though, four members of the Highlight Pro Skydiving Team parachuted from helicopters 4,500 feet in the sky onto the grounds of the cemetery and placed a yellow rose at the gravesite of suffragist, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, and other pioneering women. Other celebrations took place across the country on the same day to commemorate the ratification of the 19th Amendment to the Constitution which secured the right to vote for women. In Manhattan, a monument to women’s rights

By SÍLE MOLONEY

The New York State Museum, located in Albany, has begun programming to commemorate the 19th anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. On Friday, Sept. 11, 2020, the museum’s senior historian and curator of the World Trade Center Collections, Aaron Noble, provided a gallery tour of World Trade Center: Rescue, Recovery, Response to commemorate the anniversary. A video of the program is available on the museum’s web page, as well as on the museum’s YouTube page. Additionally, since Friday, Sept. 11, 2020, a display of World Trade Center artifacts has been added to the Windows on

By SÍLE MOLONEY

On Sunday morning, Sept. 6, 2020 at approximately 00:27 a.m., police were alerted to a vehicle accident involving a motorcyclist at Exit 21 on the southbound Henry Hudson Parkway at West 249th Street. Upon arrival, officers observed a 55-year-old, unconscious man on the roadway with severe head trauma. EMS responded and pronounced the man deceased at 00:33 a.m. The NYPD Highway Unit’s Collision Investigation Squad also responded and began their investigation. Preliminary results of the investigation indicate that the motorcyclist sideswiped a vehicle traveling in the same direction and lost control of the bike, causing him to strike