Month: February 2012

Tempers flare at Community Board 1

A heated war of words erupted at Community Board 1′s February meeting as protesters shouted down a developer and a city housing official’s efforts to explain the city’s plans to construct Crossroads Plaza.

The board voted to approve the city’s request for a zoning change that would allow the three-building complex to be built at the corner of 149th Street and Southern Boulevard, but had to do so over the catcalls, jeers and sometimes profane objections of some 30 protesters who had cleared the lot of debris and turned it into the Morning Glory Garden.

Schools struggle with language barriers

The “No Child Left Behind” Act, established by the Bush administration in 2002, stated that all students should have equal access to a high quality education. But in the Bronx, where the number of residents who speak English “not well” or “not at all” has risen by about 15 percent to over 312,000 since 1990, language is a significant barrier to achieving that goal.

City approves FreshDirect subsidies

The city’s Industrial Development Agency voted overwhelmingly on Feb. 14 in favor of subsidies that will bring the food delivery company FreshDirect to Port Morris, as about a dozen South Bronx residents sat and fumed that the agreement was rammed through without sufficient public input.

FreshDirect makes new promises to Bronx

Responding to intense criticism from South Bronx residents and organizations over the deal to subsidize a new facility in Port Morris for FreshDirect, the online grocer has promised to seek out Bronx residents for new jobs, to expand its service to the Bronx and to build a non-polluting fleet of delivery trucks.