US Census Bureau is taking its show on the road

2010 is census year in America - and there is a lot riding on this drive to count everyone in the country. Some $400bn (£251bn) of federal money is allocated according to the population in each of the 50 states, and so are Congressional seats.

However, immigrant communities are often suspicious of the census, fearing the information could be used to deport those in the US illegally. Some Hispanic leaders are even calling for a boycott of the census, as I found out on a snowy morning in New York.

A troupe of dancers were braving the cold outside the Bronx Borough Hall, trying to drum up interest in the 2010 census.

Welcome to the Census Bureau road tour: census officials are criss-crossing the US with their signature blue trailers between now and April, targeting communities where traditionally people have been reluctant to be counted.

If you want better services, allow yourself to be counted, I am guaranteeing that nothing bad will happen to you

Ruben Diaz Jr,
Bronx Borough President

In the Bronx, just 56% of people returned the census in 2000, a “horrible” result, according to Bronx Borough president Ruben Diaz Jr.

He says the Bronx lost federal dollars and even seats in Congress because of undercounting.

Ligia Jaquez of the US Census Bureau is here to persuade people it is worth their while to fill out the form.

“It’s the benefits that you bring to your community,” she says.

“The government and the state use that data, for funding for new roads, new schools, for emergency services. When your community isn’t counted properly then the funding will be low.”

But not everyone wants to be counted. Read more..

(No Ratings Yet)
 Loading ...
 Email This Post

In an 8-4 vote, the New York City Planning Commission on Monday approved a plan that would turn the Bronx’s Kingsbridge Armory into a 575,000-square-foot mall that would now reportedly include a department store, shops and a movie theater. The proposal is now set to go before the City Council, which has 50 days to approve or reject it.

Diaz: The Kingsbridge Armory Development, which has seen community opposition and controversy over wages and another debate over grocery stores, would be a $310-million outside investment in the poorest urban county in the United States by the Related Cos.

Project opponents are asking that Related and future tenants provide living wage jobs and benefits. The hourly “living wage” for one adult in the Bronx is $11.86 per hour. However, for two adults with two children, a living wage is $30.30 per hour, according to the Living Wage Calculator developed by MIT’s Amy Glasmeier. Read more..

(No Ratings Yet)
 Loading ...
 Email This Post

Habitat for Humanity helps install a green roof on the Fox-Leggett Co-op Apartments in the South Bronx.

Habitat for Humanity is breaking new ground - unveiling its first-ever “green roof” in the South Bronx on Wednesday.

The 2,400-square-foot carpet of flowering sedum plants atop the Fox-Leggett Co-op Apartments will insulate the building from the summer sun and absorb an inch of rainfall.

“Green roofs save money and are healthier,” said Josh Lockwood, executive director of Habitat for Humanity/New York City.

“These are such critical elements for low-income families, especially in the Bronx, which has the highest incidence of childhood asthma in the five boroughs.”

Barbara Vargas, who is buying a three-bedroom Habitat apartment for herself and her two kids, spent the morning placing sedums in 4 inches of shale on top of asphalt and a root barrier made of rigid board.

“You can hang out with friends up here,” said Vargas, 41, who now lives in the West Farms section of the Bronx. “It will give them something to talk about.”

Eleven volunteers from Delta Air Lines helped on the green roof installation, and the airline is kicking in $120,000 to sponsor one Habitat apartment. Read more..

(No Ratings Yet)
 Loading ...
 Email This Post

After months of weighing the issue, Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz gave a thumbs down Friday to the Related Cos.’ proposed redevelopment of the 600,000-plus-square-foot Kingsbridge Armory.

His decision came to light when he submitted his recommendations to the City Planning Commission as part of the city’s drawn-out Uniform Land Use Review Process. The borough president’s main objections were the lack of a community benefits agreement outlining a living wage policy, provisions that would allow workers to unionize and guarantees of expanded community space.

Mr. Diaz also objected to the developer’s plans to put a massive grocery store in the retail center, a step that he said would severely impact smaller grocers in the neighborhood. Far from condemning the project outright, he simply made it clear that his approval was merely contingent upon a community benefits agreement. Read more..

(No Ratings Yet)
 Loading ...
 Email This Post

Former Bronx Borough President

Former Bronx Borough President Fernando Ferrer will endorse Brooklyn City Councilman Bill de Blasio for public advocate on Tuesday, passing over the man who beat him in the bruising 2001 mayoral primary.

“Looking over the field of candidates in this race, to me there is no question that Bill is the only one who will make sure the people’s voice is heard in City Hall,” Ferrer said.

Ferrer passed over former Public Advocate Mark Green, one of four Democrats in a primary skirmish to replace the departing Betsy Gotbaum.

Ferrer and Green tangled bitterly when both ran for mayor eight years ago.

Green’s campaign was accused of distributing a cartoon depicting a fawning Ferrer kissing the backside of an obese Rev. Al Sharpton.

Green won the 2001 primary against Ferrer - only to lose the race to Mike Bloomberg in a squeaker following the terror attacks of Sept. 11.The following year, Brooklyn District Attorney Charles Hynes officially cleared Green of any wrongdoing in the flyer flap. Read more..

(No Ratings Yet)
 Loading ...
 Email This Post