Tuesday, November 20, 2012

THIS IS NOT 385 Great Plains Road!


In case some of you may have missed it, yesterday the 'Ice Skating fans can now head over to the Bronx and glide through the brand new Van Cortlandt Park Ice Skating Rink." So we ask the Bronx Borough President, State Senator Gustavo Rivera and NYS Assemblyman Jose Rivera: WHY ARE YOU SUPPORTING THE PROJECT FOR ANOTHER ice skating rink at the Kingsbridge Armory? In case they have forgotten, Van Cortlandt Park is 1.9 miles away from the Armory. 

BP Diaz argues that the proposal - Kingsbridge National Ice Center (or KNIC) - to create NINE ice skating rinks is "the perfect project for the Bronx." Oh really? Which Borough do you represent Mr. BP? The Bronx has a median income of $34,264 and has New York's highest unemployment rates. How can our Borough President expect a sport which he knows Latinos and African-Americans youth DO NOT PLAY because IT IS  A VERY EXPENSIVE sport (skates alone range between $30 to over $200 a pair) and let's be honest, it is a not a sport that appeals to our community. Just look at the number of Latinos and African-Americans playing professional hockey. How many Mr. Borough President? Is the Borough President going to provide EACH CHILD with a FREE pair of skates for them to use? We did not think so. 

The Borough President stated that "one day we could see the next Mark Messier or Sarah Hughes coming from right here in the Bronx." This is great BUT can you ask ANYONE in our community if the know who is Mark Messier and/or Sarah Hughes? I can guarantee you that 10 out of 10 will have no idea who they are. 

The project BP Diaz supports is WRONG FOR THE COMMUNITY, plain and simple. And let us not forget who is the REALLY BEHIND the proposal Mr. Diaz is supporting. It's not Mark Messier or Sarah Hughes. The person behind the proposal is Kevin Parker, former Executive at Deutsche Bank, which by the way has not ONE woman serving on its Group Executive Committee. Parker, who has never, to our knowledge, invested a dime into our  borough, all of a sudden wants to 'invest' in the Bronx? This group, KNIC, are led by an all-white team and they want to 'invest' in our community? Has anyone seen how comfortable Mr. Parker lives in the Hamptons? Look at his 10-BEDROOM worth, oh just a mere $30 MILLION

Our Borough President has sold himself to the highest, or should we say, richest?) bidder. This is a shame given his potential as possibly the first Latino Mayor of New York City. CBP would have hoped to see the community up in arms with this proposal but unfortunately, Mr. Diaz and his team have done a great job at promoting the project as they see it best. He never really weighed the two projects as he should have done. He came out in support of KNIC even before community meetings took place. In other words, he did not care about what the community had to say. He did what HE wanted to do with no regard for the community's wishes. 

This is a perfect example of why Changing Bronx Politics (CBP) was founded: to call out those elected officials who think they are Gods and could run over the community however and whenever they feel like it. CBP hopes that other media outlets, specifically the major outlets like NY Daily News, NY Times, NY Post, and the television stations pick up on this and go out to the community so they can see that the community WILL NEVER SUPPORT KNIC. 

There is a little hope for the community: his name is FERNANDO CABRERA, the Councilman who represents the district where the Armory is located. Cabrera has yet to make his position public and we hope that he does not give in to the pressures of the Borough President and the two other elected officials who are supporting KNIC: Senator Gustavo Rivera and Assemblyman Jose Rivera (no relation). 

The Borough President must be reminded that the Armory 

CBP will continue to lead the effort AGAINST KNIC and we hope that others have the courage to fight as well. 



Thursday, November 1, 2012

So IF 'Rubencito' Goes (for citywide office), who's next?


It's no secret that our Borough President is considering a possible run for citywide office, specifically for Public Advocate in next year's elections. For the sake of argument, let's assume he FINALLY makes a decision and goes for it, who will be the anointed child of the Bronx Democratic County Committee and its Chairman, Carl "anything to keep the peace" Heastie? 

Let us explore a few possibilities:



One of the names is that of NW Bronx Councilman (and Pastor) Fernando Cabrera, who was elected in 2009, after narrowly defeating incumbent Maria Baez. While Councilman (or shall we say Pastor?) Cabrera is a possible ideal choice, some question his loyalty to the current leadership of the Party. His views, as a Pastor, are very conservative and this is not the view of the Bronx Democratic Party (machine) which creates a problem for Chairman Heastie and his leadership. As of this date, Cabrera only has $19,180 in the bank for a race that could very well go into the hundreds of thousands. He would need to step up his fundraising yesterday to stand a real shot at becoming our next Borough President.



Another name that has been rumored for some time now, is that of NW Bronx Assemblyman Nelson "whatever-it-takes-to-get-re-elected" Castro. We must admit that when this first came to our 'news-desk', we could not stop laughing. Assemblyman Castro for Borough President? A major milestone for Dominican community. And while it never hurts to throw your name in the hat, Castro has enough baggage, political and personal, to fill a container from the Sanitation Department. Yes, he might be pleasant, has charisma and loves hugging everyone but really, who does he think he is? Assemblyman Castro was hand-picked by former ousted Chair of the Bronx Democratic Party Jose Rivera in his efforts to look more, um, diverse. yes, he did win a candidate supported by the current leadership in 2010 but let's be honest, that candidate (Hector Ramirez) did not stand a real chance against Castro. Castro first must prove his leadership and as of this moment, no hugs or charisma will convince Chairman Heastie that he is their man to lead Borough Hall.



And the last, is NE Bronx Councilman Jimmy Vacca. Vacca is a prodigious fundraiser and has over $285,448 in the bank. This is no chump change folks. This week, it was rumored that the Diaz clan - Borough President and his dad, Senator (and also Pastor) Diaz - may have made a deal with to support Vacca for Borough President. This would be a Blessing for Vacca. Problem is, he would be running in a borough which is made up of mostly Latino. Read The Perez Notes for more details on this. How would a last name Vacca do vs. a Cabrera and/or Castro in the Bronx? That is the question!

Let us just say that there may be other possible candidates but these three are the ones we hear 'in the streets.'











A MUST READ: This week's 'BORO BEAT'


Councilwoman behind Dem Boss downfall slapped with 73G campaign tab

By Bob Kappstatter
October 25, 2012

The woman behind Assemblyman Jose Rivera’s downfall as Bronx Democratic county leader owes the city Campaign Finance Board some big bux.
It slapped former west Bronx Councilwoman Maria Baez last week with almost $73,000 in penalties and a bill for unspent matching funds from the 2009 race she lost to current Morris Heights Councilman Fernando Cabrera.
It also hit Yudelka Tapia, female district leader in the 86th Assembly District there, with a $107,704 bill for penalties and unspent funding from that same 2009 council race.

READ COMPLETE COLUMN HERE