Talk Bronx New York

Court Rejects Suit Against Tenant Organizers

The owners of five buildings in the Bronx have failed to raise a triable issue of fact that tenant organizers interfered with their ability to get mortgages, a state judge has ruled in granting summary judgment dismissing the owners’ case. In New Line Realty V Corp. v. United Committees of University Heights, 1021/04, Supreme Court Justice Sally Manzanet-Daniels of the Bronx found that the owners had failed to submit “any evidence in admissible form” to prove that tenant organizers from the Northwest Bronx Community and Clergy Coalition had taken actions to frustrate their ability to get refinancing for their buildings.

The decision will be published Monday. The owners had claimed that as a result of picketing, circulating fliers and other activities aimed at Washington Mutual Bank, the bank had pulled a letter of intent to refinance a mortgage issued in 2000. The owners claimed damages of $1.8 million.

The organizers denied any intent to interfere with the owners’ prospects for refinancing, and contended that instead they were trying to enforce a provision in the existing mortgage that required the owners to keep the buildings in good repair. The owners’ claim for tortious interference with prospective economic advantage was the sole surviving claim of their lawsuit, filed in 2004, which also raised claims of trespass and libel against the Northwest Bronx group, a 30-year-old, clergy-based community organization.

The owners had withdrawn their trespass claim, and Justice Manzanet-Daniels had dismissed the libel claim in 2006. Under a law adopted in 1992 designed to protect tenants and others who are asserting a First Amendment right to petition government, Justice Manzanet-Daniels wrote, the owners were required to show that their claims against the Northwest Bronx group have “a substantial basis in law and fact.”

The 1992 law (Civil Rights Law §§70-a, 76-a) was designed to curb lawsuits aimed at deterring the exercise of free speech rights by both creating a higher standard to establish a claim’s viability and giving defendants the right to counterclaim for violations of their speech rights. Suits aimed at stifling efforts to petition the government for redress of grievances and to express views at public hearings have been dubbed “Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation,” or SLAPP, suits.

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NYSDEC To Meet with Community on Planned Actions Against Odor from Sewage Sludge Plant in the Bronx

On Thursday, July 24 at 6 p.m. the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYSDEC) will inform residents in the South Bronx about new, aggressive measures it is taking to combat odors from the sewage sludge pelletization plant located in the Hunts Point area of the Bronx. The public information meeting, hosted by Congressman Jose Serrano, will be held at The Point Community Development Corporation at 940 Garrison Avenue in the Bronx.

The New York Organic Fertilizer Company’s plant began operations in 1993. Over the years, repeated complaints have been made about odors emanating from the facility. It has been the subject of two major DEC enforcement actions during that period. In recent months, DEC has developed a new strategy to address the odor issues associated with the plant, and it is inviting public comments on its plans. This evening’s meeting will focus on:

• A proposed new solid waste permit with significantly tighter controls at key stages of facility operation to prevent odors before they start;
• A proposed new air permit with new requirements for stack testing of odorous compounds and strict standards for maintaining pollution control equipment; and
• A stepped-up monitoring plan for the summer months - when odor complaints tend to be more frequent; DEC will conduct three surprise odor inspections each week, one of which will be a weekly evening inspection.

The proposed permits will be available for public review and comment. Members of the public will have an opportunity to review them and make further suggestions to the DEC.

DATE: Thursday, July 24, 2008

TIME: 6 p.m.

PLACE: 940 Garrison Avenue (The Point Community Development Corporation), South Bronx

SPEAKERS: Congressman Jose Serrano (expected)

Suzanne Mattei, DEC Regional Director

Michelle Moore, DEC Environmental Analyst

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Bronx’ seaside: Affordability on the water in Throgs Neck

The Bridgeview Estates in the Throgs Neck section of the Bronx.

A view of the Whitestone Bridge from the pool.

Directly across the Long Island Sound from the multimillion-dollar Mediterranean villas in Whitestone Woods, the Throgs Neck neighborhood in the Bronx might offer the most affordable coastal living experience in the five boroughs.

At Bridgeview Estates, 21 two- and three- bedroom condominiums, some with direct waterfront access, are available starting at $475,000. Located at Schurz and Davis Aves. in a neighborhood known for families, water proximity and the shopping stretch of E. Tremont Ave., Bridgeview Estates is a newly built gated condominium complex with views of the Throgs Neck and Whitestone bridges.

“At night, these two bridges light up and make this area something magical,” says Robert Van Zandt, the longtime North Bronx real estate developer who built the property. “We tried to make this an alternative living option to what people are paying in and around Manhattan. They just have to come out here and their mind will be changed.”

With beach clubs and catering halls, bungalows, condominiums and small single-family brick and wood homes a block from the water, Throgs Neck bustles with entire families taking walks together while kids ride bikes and play sports on front lawns. Up the street, the community has asked the city for a long-planned public golf course on a former landfill cornering Ferry Point Park. Recent rumors suggest it might happen, making the neighborhood more attractive to homeowners.

“This side of the bridges is more laid-back than the Queens side, with lower price points and a less suburban feel,” says Maria Paleatsos, who owns MP Power Realty in nearby Pelham Bay. “I’m not sure you can find anything this price on the water where families can live so well.”

Completed and ready for move-in, Bridgeview Estates includes balconies for each apartment, two upscale homes for sale in the multimillion- dollar range with large decks and swimming pools and a development team that truly cares for the area. Van Zandt and colleague Richard Rodriguez funded and coach the baseball team for Villa Maria, a local Catholic grammar school. Their own children graduated, yet they still remain as coaches. Van Zandt also funds three scholarships for students from financially saddled families.

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