The following is an extended version of the story which appears in our latest print edition.

 

Bronx Borough President Vanessa L. Gibson, the borough’s 14th president, delivered her first State of the Borough address in sparkling attire at Manhattan College on Wednesday, March 1, outlining the accomplishments of her administration during 2022 and unveiling her strategic agenda for 2023.

 

With the college celebrating its 100^th year this year, its president, Brother Daniel Gardner, FSC, said college officials were honored to host the event. “We recognize that The Bronx is a special place and look forward to partnering with the borough president’s office in the future as she continues to improve the lives of Bronxites and help make the borough a better, more equitable place to live,” he said.

 

Seated in the front row were members of Gibson’s family, close friends and colleagues, all of whom she welcomed and thanked during her address. On stage with Gibson were portraits of two of her political mentors who she said she was sure were with her in spirit on the night. The first was the Hon. Aurelia Greene, former deputy Bronx borough president, who Gibson described as her “political mother.”

 

“As she climbed the ladder in public service, she lifted me up with her,” Gibson said. “I am forever grateful that she believed in me and she supported me throughout my entire career.” The second, described by the borough president as her “political advisor, campaign manager, strategist, and big brother,” was Venancio “Benny” Catala. “Both of them were generous with their love and their time,” she said. “They planted seeds throughout the borough, and today, we see the fruits of their labor all over this political landscape.”

 

The packed-out event was attended by former and current elected officials, various religious leaders, including Rabbi Bob Kaplan, Iman Musa Kabba, Bishop Nancy Rosario, Rev. Dr. Helen C. Wingate, and Pastor Jay Gooding, along with other dignitaries like Paula Martinez of Catholic Charities.

The borough president used her address to announce new initiatives in education, health, public safety and tourism. “From turning The Bronx into a global destination for tourism to increasing transportation options in the East Bronx through the Penn Station Access Project, to protecting and restoring our environment through the One Million More Trees Initiative, and plans to cap the Cross Bronx Expressway, I am delighted to share that The Bronx is poised to become a ‘Borough of Opportunities’,” Gibson said.

 

Among a long list of elected officials in attendance for the address were New York City Mayor Eric Adams, New York Attorney General Letitia James, New York City Public Advocate Jumanne Williams, New York State Comptroller Tom DiNapoli, NYC Comptroller Brad Lander, Bronx District Attorney Darcel Clark, Deputy Bronx Borough President Janet Peguero, Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso, Manhattan Borough President Mark Levine, Queens Borough President Donavan Richards, Staten Island Borough President Vito Fossella, State Sen. Nathalia Fernandez (S.D. 34) Assemblyman Jeffrey Dinowitz (A.D. 81), City Council Member Eric Dinowitz (C.D. 11), and City Council Member Oswald Feliz (C.D. 15).

 

Of her fellow borough presidents, Gibson said, “We are all great partners and we actually get along very well! We show up to support each other. You know it’s really BP love when I’m crossing the Verrazano Bridge, paying a toll to go to Staten Island, or I’m crossing the bridge to head to Brooklyn, Manhattan or Queens.”

 

Gibson went on to thank all federal, State and other City elected officials for their commitment and partnership in working to advance conditions in The Bronx. “Alcalde [Mayor] Eric Adams is a friend to The Bronx, and he works hard every day to ensure that our borough is always included and not excluded from important conversations,” she said, highlighting the mayor’s recent visit to Hunts Point and the allocation of $140 million for the Hunts Point Produce Market.

 

“He has truly demonstrated his willingness to be a 5-borough mayor and we look forward to our continued partnership, Mr. Mayor, to Get Stuff Done!’,” she added, in a nod to the mayor’s catchphrase. As reported, some local Bronxites recently weighed in on the mayor’s record in office after one year.

 

Gibson said she was working to reinstate the Bronx Overall Economic Development Corporation’s community development financial institutions fund, to help bring economic opportunities to underserved and underbanked areas of the borough, while the nearly finalized U.S. Small Business Administration’s community advantage loan program, she said, will allow the Bronx Business Initiative Corporation of New York to approve loans from $25,000 to $350,000 for small businesses.

 

In terms of health, with Black women in New York City 9.2 times more likely than white women to die from maternal complications, as previously reported, Gibson said her office will soon release a borough-wide birthing center report with a focus on expanding access to doula and midwifery services for women of color and establish a culturally competent care model to support Bronx mothers. She later applauded ongoing work by the council and the public advocate in expanding crisis pregnancy centers across the City.

 

In reference to Women’s History Month, the borough president acknowledged the various female elected officials who are making history in their respective capacities in office, adding that The Bronx is the only City borough led by two women, Gibson and Peguero, an intentional strategy, according to Gibson. She also highlighted the first African American woman to hold the title of New York City council speaker, Adrienne Adams. “Times are truly changing and women, women of color, are stepping into roles never designed for us and we are showing the world what female leadership is all about,” Gibson said.

 

She also paid tribute to those who played a significant part in making those changes a reality, including 21 in ’21, an organization which was founded to elect 21 women to the New York City Council by 2021. As reported, women now make up the majority in the city council and that organization is now known as the New Majority NYC. As reported, Riverdale’s Jessica Haller joined the organization after running unsuccessfully for City Council in the northwest Bronx’s District 11 in 2021. “As women, we know we get things done and that is exactly what this female-led body is truly doing,” Gibson said.

As reported, District 14 Bronx Councilwoman Pierina Sanchez gave birth during her first year in office after being elected in 2021, and is sometimes seen with her baby in her arms while attending various work-related events, such as one in Kingsbridge on Sunday, Feb. 26, hosted by Congressman Adriano Espaillat (NY-13) to encourage residents to get more involved in discussions on the future use of the Kingsbridge Armory.

 

In relation to health, the borough president went on to say her office is building a coalition to establish a borough-wide diabetes task force to address the high rates of diabetes in The Bronx. It will include Chris Norwood from Health People and C. Virginia Fields of the National Black Leadership Commission on Health (Black Health), hospitals, federally qualified health centers (FQHCs), food policy activists, CBOs, FBOs, and health educators.

 

Later, referencing a $14.5 million allocation in the Financial Year`2023 budget for technology upgrades and capital upgrades to Bronx schools, the borough president also voiced her support for the “Link NYC” kiosks, located on the City’s streets which provide free, digital information to residents on various city services, as well as the need for greater public/private partnerships to eliminate digital deserts.

 

Gibson also announced the extension of the Community Board application deadline to Wednesday, March 15, to give interested candidates additional time to apply. As reported, this can be done manually or digitally at https://bronxboropres.nyc.gov/community-boards/.

 

On the topic of safety, the borough president recalled her collaboration with District 15 Council Member Oswald Feliz in drafting legislation to ensure the safety of tenants, and to hold landlords accountable after the Fordham Heights’ Twin Parks North West fire tragedy on Jan. 9, 2022, which cost 17 Bronxites their lives. This included establishing the definition of a “self-closing” door, stating that doors must return to the closed position and latch shut when opened and released.

 

It also requires that doors providing access to interior corridors or stairs be self-closing or equipped with devices that ensure closing after opening, and reduces the amount of time for a landlord to correct a violation to keep or maintain self-closing doors from 21 days to 14 days. As reported, since the State of the Borough address took place, Gibson visited the scene of a subsequent 5-alarm, Bronx fire on Sunday, March 5, which also occurred in Fordham Heights. FDNY officials said it was caused by an explosion from a lithium-ion battery which was being used to charge an e-bike, prompting the drafting of more new federal, State and City safety bills by various elected officials around the sale and use of lithium-ion batteries.

Mom at Work! – Part 4
To top off the action packed day with bebé in tow, I had a surprise visit from my district office team en route to the @NYCCouncilUnion happy hour! #1U pic.twitter.com/QhNsidb3I4

— Pierina Sanchez NYC (@PiSanchezNYC) December 8, 2022

 

The borough president later spoke about a recent partnership with the American Red Cross to “sound the alarm” on fire safety by coordinating smoke detector installations and fire safety workshops in conjunction with the FDNY. She also announced the creation of an Office of Public Safety with a focus on collaboration with the NYPD, clergy, violence interrupters, and other pertinent stakeholders “to holistically address crime in the borough.”

 

Additionally, she committed to supporting the “My Brother’s Keeper” initiative, and to the launch of a “My Sister’s Keeper” counterpart, both of which focus on empowering and uplifting Bronx youth of color. Other uplifting initiatives include the introduction of the “People`s Choice Award.” For the first time, Bronxites will have the chance to nominate an educator to be inducted into the “Bronx Walk of Fame” alongside previous inductees.

 

Meanwhile, Gibson said the ilovethebronx.com website has been revamped to facilitate access for Bronxites and those interested in visiting the Bronx to experience its cultural institutions, restaurants, small businesses, and other gems.

 

Norwood News raised several long-term issues affecting The Bronx with City Hall last December, such as whether the City’s approach to mental health should begin with intervention by actual mental health professionals rather than with law enforcement, while acknowledging there will, of course, always be instances where law enforcement is needed to protect people who may cause harm to themselves or others.

 

We asked about shelters and nonprofits operating in The Bronx, many of which have their bases located in other boroughs, and which are contracted to provide supportive housing and ancillary services in The Bronx, the cheapest borough in terms of real estate in the City. We asked if the City could speak on its oversight of such nonprofits, since there is clearly skepticism among some Bronxites as to how these are being run. Click here and here for some other examples.

 

We highlighted how there is also skepticism among some Bronxites regarding the expansion of health services by some nonprofits to the general Bronx public, in addition to the services provided to residents of supportive housing. Article 28 of New York State public health law recognizes and regulates the accreditation of public health care facilities, and Article 28-certified facilities participate in Medicare, Medicaid, and private health insurance plans with a higher rate of reimbursement than that of non-certified facilities. It can therefore be lucrative for nonprofits to expand their healthcare service provision beyond their original remit to avail of these higher rebates.

We also raised the matter of the successful lawsuit by the Campaign for Fiscal Equity which found the State had been historically underfunding public schools, and how after that lawsuit, as stated by Sen. Gustavo Rivera (S.D. 33), the State legislature secured a reimbursement of lost funds into the 2021 and 2022 State budgets. We asked why, when this additional money flowed back to the City from the State Budget, the City’s education budget was cut last year.

 

We also raised the need for funding [and protection] for Bronx-based nonprofits like Freedom Youth NYC to carry out their educational and other intervention work on preventing human trafficking in the borough. Since then, Monique Riley, executive director of that nonprofit, has confirmed the organization has opened a respite house in Mount Vernon NY to continue their essential work.

 

With all the discussion over the NYC schools budget, we highlighted with the City how some educators say there is not enough transparency when it comes to how school budgets are spent. Given mayoral control of school policy, we asked if there were plans to fund schools to educate youth on human trafficking and the dangers of online grooming as part of its curriculum to help prevent a generation of potential victims from a host of social problems arising from human trafficking further down the road.

 

On transportation, with The Bronx having the second-lowest car ownership rate in the City, after Manhattan, according to the EDC, and possibly the worst subway connectivity of all five boroughs, we highlighted how it can take an hour and a quarter, on three buses, to get, for example, from Throggs Neck in the southeast of The Bronx to Norwood in the north center, by public transportation (during off-peak hours, and since the Bronx bus redesign took effect) and how this is a mere 12-minute drive, off-peak, by car.

 

Given east-west subway connectivity in the borough is non-existent, we highlighted how this is driving up rents along the two central north/south subway lines (4 and D), and is adding to potentially unnecessary pollution where there is car ownership in the borough, a borough which has the highest rates of asthma in the City, and where the average rent for a one-bedroom apartment is around $1,500. We asked if the administration would push the MTA to commit to an east-west subway line to reduce the cost of housing, and if so, by what deadline.

 

We will share any updates we receive from the administration on these topics.

The event was preceded by a presentation of colors by the FDNY Color Guard, and musical and dance performances by the Celia Cruz Choir, directed by Jacqueline Bergland, and the Academy for Scholarship & Entrepreneurship Dance Troupe. To view a short clip from the choir’s performance, click here. Violinist, Priya DeBerry, and saxophonist, Tony Smith, also entertained guests on the night.

 

At one point during the address, some attendees stood to applaud the borough’s NYPD officers and other first responders in attendance, on Gibson’s direction. After her address, the borough president posed for pictures on stage with some attendees, including a number of young children.

 

Of her ambitious new agenda, Gibson concluded, “This will not be easy.” She added, “But together, we will ensure our future generations have access to state-of-the-art technology, that our small businesses have the resources to operate, that our residents can continue to afford to live and grow their families here, that your race and/or gender does not affect your quality of care, that we will increase tourism in the borough to highlight the culture and diversity of the Bronx and that the narrative of the Bronx is not one to be ashamed of but instead to be proud of.”