A contentious community Harm Reduction Forum was recently held to address drug use in and around Poe Park. Some complaints were vehemently expressed in raised voices, and the level of frustration was palpable among Fordham Manor residents at the increasing levels of drug use and criminal activity observed in and around the park. A flyer announcing the Aug. 8th community meeting was billed as a forum “to discuss solutions and resources to address neighborhood concerns about syringe litter and people gathering near the Kingsbridge overpass and Poe Park.”

 

Held inside Monroe College’s Mintz Auditorium, the well-attended event was moderated by State Sen. Gustavo Rivera (S.D. 33), who has since declared victory in the Aug. 23 Democratic Primary for redrawn senate district 33, as reported. The senator made a noble effort at keeping tempers subdued and comments respectful, though attendees were forceful in letting the panel know just how fed up they were with the neighborhood’s drug use situation.

 

Joining Rivera on the panel were Nelson Gonzalez, an outreach leader at Bronx Móvil, located in Manhattan, Pedro J. Briones, assistant director of Harm Reduction Services at Boom!Health, located in the South Bronx, and Krystal Montalvo, co-director of programming at St. Ann’s Corner of Harm Reduction, also located in the South Bronx, the latter two also working in the area of outreach.

 

Also on the panel were Brenda Caldwell-Paris, president of the 52nd Precinct Community Council, and Deputy Inspector Jeremy Scheublin, commanding officer of the 52nd Precinct, which covers Bedford Park, Fordham, Kingsbridge, Norwood, Bronx Park, and University Heights. Polite applause welcomed the panel. However, as Rivera read questions submitted by attendees prior to the event, it was apparent residents were unhappy with some of the approaches taken by various harm reduction groups working in the area.

 

Some residents, for example, highlighted that Boom!Health had been providing syringe kits in Poe Park, and the group was specifically asked why they chose to drop off such kits at the Park, across from a church and public school, and right next to one of the neighborhood’s most active drug dealing corners. The group was also asked if they helped drug-users not to use drugs.

 

“We do not target schools, we don’t target public areas,” Briones responded.  “We target where they [drug users] convene, and if they happen to convene in that area…”  He went on to explain that the distribution of clean syringes was a way to reduce the spread of infectious diseases like hepatitis C and HIV. “That’s the goal. We do not want the spread of those diseases,” he said.

As for the group’s efforts at helping those with drug addiction to get clean, Briones said, “We provide resources at detox and rehabilitation centers as we encounter and provide individual counseling to these individuals.” He also acknowledged they had challenges with their work, saying, “Is it easier said than done? Yes. Many of the individuals that we speak to are dealing with a lot of underlying trauma.”

 

In the short-term, Briones implored the community to see those affected by addiction as fellow human beings, worthy of respect and consideration. “[The community needs to avoid] vilifying these individuals,” he said. “They are also part of the community. They are somebody’s father, they are somebody’s son, somebody’s daughter, somebody’s mother. It takes time [to stop using drugs]..it’s a very long process.”

 

His sentiments were echoed by the other two outreach panelists working in harm reduction. However, the non-drug-using residents living around Poe Park appeared to be more concerned with making the area safer for themselves and their families, and as quickly as possible. One attendee spoke with Norwood News after the event and requested anonymity for fear of being identified [and targeted] by neighborhood drug dealers.

 

Self-described as “a long-time Bronx resident,” the person lives on Grand Concourse near Poe Park, and noted the forum was not the first time the open drug use issue had been brought up locally. Indeed, similar discussions have taken place at prior 52^nd Precinct Community Council meetings.

 

“What we started here in terms of the conversation was a continuation of previous conversations,” the resident said. “I hope to continue the conversation, especially with Gustavo [Rivera] because there seems to be some fundamental disagreement.” The resident was referring to a disagreement which stemmed from the senator’s remarks, expressed during the forum, on being potentially open to the possibility of decriminalizing other drugs beyond cannabis.

Rivera’s comments were in response to a very direct question raised during the forum as to whether his ultimate legislative goal was to decriminalize heroin. Rivera answered indirectly, saying, “We want to get away from the idea of drug use as a moral failing.” He added that the goal, in the immediate term, was to open up more harm reduction centers and to meet people where they were.

 

In the short-term, the Fordham Manor resident requested those working in outreach to at least move the needle distribution location to some place beyond Poe Park. The resident said they felt this was one improvement that could be implemented immediately. The person added, in part, “Move the needle program away from the park because the needles are given out right at the park entrance. It’s not the way to do things, in my opinion. I have school-age kids. The kids play at that park [and they’re] handing out needles at that park. Please do not hand out those needles at the park.”

 

Though Rivera’s apparent openness to further reforming State drug laws may put him at odds with some of the views shared by law enforcement unions, Scheublin shared his respect for the senator’s work in the area of addiction. “I respect the senator because he’s somebody who sticks by what he believes, and he comes and he’s willing to have an open conversation,” the deputy inspector said. “Whether or not every one of us agrees with everything said, you have to respect somebody who’s upfront and honest about their opinions.”

 

Scheublin also sought to reassure attendees that his interest in improving public safety went beyond his role as commanding officer of the 5-2. “I just made 20 years as a uniformed member of the NYPD a couple of weeks ago,” he said, adding that part of his career was spent as an undercover officer in the narcotics division of the agency. He said he wanted people to know that he was also concerned about the neighborhoods under his command, from a personal standpoint.

“My entire career here in The Bronx, the only borough I wanted to work in, it’s also the borough I reside in, just outside of this community,” he said. “My children also attended school actually within this community. I share that with you to let you know that I’m just as invested as each and every one of you.”

 

In July 2020, Norwood News reported how overdose deaths in The Bronx exceeded those of any other county, and in 2019, we reported how the neighborhoods within the 52nd Precinct led in overdose deaths at the time. Back in 2017, we reported how the 52nd Precinct was tackling heroin-related deaths amid a rise in the mixing of fentanyl with heroin in local neighborhoods. In October 2021, New York Attorney General Letitia James announced the State had secured $256M from various drug companies to combat the opioid crisis, following a successful legal challenge.

 

In March of this year, law enforcement officials announced that a Bronx man had been charged as a major drug trafficker, following the seizure of 110 pounds of cocaine in Virginia. On June 28, , New York City’s special narcotics prosecutor, Bridget G. Brennan, and other officials, announced a court-authorized search of an apartment in the Mount Hope neighborhood of The Bronx resulted in the seizure of approximately 110 kilograms of heroin, fentanyl and cocaine, plus 50 pounds of a substance believed to be crystal meth, and up to 75,000 counterfeit pills believed to contain fentanyl.

 

The drugs, which law enforcement officials said were intended for citywide distribution, carried an estimated street value of approximately $24 million. Julio Mota Plasencia was arrested in the stash apartment in which the drug consignment was allegedly located on Monday, June 27, and is charged with operating as a major trafficker.

 

On Aug. 4, law enforcement officials announced that over 13 pounds of heroin and fentanyl were seized at a drug packaging mill in Bedford Park. A few days later, on Aug. 8, six people were arrested in connection with a large-scale heroin/fentanyl packaging mill, carrying a street value of more than $5 million, in the Crotona neighborhood, according to the City Office of the Special Narcotics Prosecutor (SNP) said on Monday, Aug. 8. The packaging mill was located inside an apartment across the street from a public elementary school, near the Bronx Zoo.

As reported, the City recently announced new measures that aim to reduce overdose deaths, including rates of 75.3 percent in the Hunts-Mott Haven section of The Bronx, by expanding access to technology that tests pre-obtained drugs for fentanyl and other possibly lethal substances. The City plans to do this at sites running syringe service programs (SSP), co-located at overdose prevention centers (OPC).

 

On Aug. 31, the nonprofit, simpleandsafe.org will be hosting an overdose awareness training session, in St. James Park in Fordham Manor, during which free NARCAN® kits will be distributed. Narcan, a naloxone HCI, is a potentially lifesaving medication designed to help reverse the effects of an opioid overdose in minutes. Since most opioid overdoses occur in the home, and are most often witnessed, having a rescue kit nearby and someone who knows how to use it, can make all the difference.

 

Meanwhile, for any residents who may wish to work with the 52^nd Precinct to improve the quality-of-life of the neighborhood, Scheublin issued a clear invitation. “I hope that we continue these conversations,” he said. “We’re open to suggestions. I think this [was] a very productive meeting. We’ll work with anyone and everyone who shares our mission to decrease crime and increase quality of life in this neighborhood.”

 

A person arrested and charged with a crime is deemed innocent unless and until convicted in a court of law.

 

*Síle Moloney contributed to this story.