oped letters & comments
BRONX TIMES R BTR EPORTER,MAY 1-7, 2020 13
BY COUNCILMAN
MARK GJONAJ
I would like to once again
thank you, citizens of the
Bronx and New York City
Council District 13 for continuing
to quarantine and
practice social distancing.
The effect of these practices
has been demonstrable
in mitigating the spread of
COVID-19. It is essential that
this be behavior we continue
to choose until this crisis has
reached a conclusion. I would
also like to briefl y thank,
once again, our essential
workers in healthcare and
other service industries for
fulfi lling their duties to our
community.
There are things, we, you
and I can do to benefi t our
community from the safety
and comfort of our homes.
Amongst these things is
comprehensive and accurate
completion of the 2020
Census. The more of us who
fi ll out the census, the more
money our neighborhoods
will get from the federal government
for healthcare, education,
housing and other
areas of concern for the next
decade. It is absolutely imperative
that we maximize
the number of people in our
district that complete the
census. The consequences of
inadequate completion of the
census is a reduction in funding
that will have severe implications
for all of the public
services and institutions in
our district. I cannot stress
enough how important this
is to the continued prosperity
of our district.
You can complete the
census online at www.my-
2020census.gov. There are no
questions about immigration,
citizenship or any fi nancial
information. All responses
are 100 percent confi dential,
and if you have any further
questions about the census,
please contact my offi ce by
phone or email at 718-931-1721
and MGjonaj@council.nyc.
gov. Our offi ce and constituent
services department remains
here for you, for questions
related to the census or
any other concern.
Last week our offi ce had a
text-a-thon to notify district
members of their option to
complete the census online,
proudly reaching over 22,000
people and recruiting over 20
community volunteers in the
process.
As always, continue to
take the proper steps to ensure
that you and your families
remain safe and healthy
during these troubling
times.
LET US HEAR FROM YOU
Letters to the editor are welcome from all readers. They should be addressed
care of this newspaper to Laura Guerriero, Publisher, the Bronx Times Reporter,
3604 E. Tremont Ave., Bronx, NY 10465, or e-mail to bronxtimes@cnglocal.com.
All letters, including those submitted via e-mail, MUST be signed and with a
verifi able address and telephone number included.
Note that the address and telephone number will NOT be published and the
name will be published or withheld upon request.
No unsigned letters can be accepted for publication. The editor reserves the
right to edit all submissions.
Dear Letters Editor,
Let us celebrate Earth Day,
April 22, all year long. Besides
recycling newspapers, magazines,
glass, plastics, old medicines,
paints and cleaning materials,
there are other actions
you can take which will also
contribute to a cleaner environment.
Leave your car at home.
For local trips in the neighborhood,
walk or ride a bike. For
longer travels, consider many
public transportation alternatives
already available. Metropolitan
Transportation Authority,
New York City Transit
subway, bus, MTA Bus, Metro
North Railroad, Westchester
Bee Line Bus along with other
private transportation owners
offer various options, such as
local and express bus, ferry,
jitney, subway and commuter
rail services.
Most of these systems are
funded with your tax dollars.
They use less fuel and move
far more people than cars. In
many cases, your employer
can offer transit checks to
help subsidize a portion of
the costs. Utilize your investments
and reap the benefi
ts. You’ll be supporting a
cleaner environment and be
less stressed upon arrival at
your fi nal destination.
Many employers now allow
employees to telecommute
and work from home.
Others use alternative work
schedules, which afford staff
the ability to avoid rush hour
gridlock. This saves travel
time and can improve mileage
per gallon. You could join
a car or van pool to share the
costs of commuting.
Use a hand powered lawn
mower instead of a gasoline
or electric one. Rake your
leaves instead of using gasoline
powered leaf blowers.
The amount of pollution created
by gasoline powered
lawn mowers or leaf blowers
will surprise you.
A cleaner environment
starts with everyone.
Sincerely,
Larry Penner
Larry Penner is a transportation
historian and advocate
who previously worked
31 years for the United States
Department of Transportation
Federal Transit Administration
Region 2 New York
Offi ce.
Question: Should Governor
Cuomo be reelected?
No,
If we had Marc Molinaro
we would have had a man of
dignity and caring for the people.
the actor we have sitting
in the governor seat is only out
for HIMSELF ! He goes on and
on repeating the same thing
and scaring the people. Ten
minutes is enough not one or
two hours. Yes, he had started
out being calm and doing a few
things to be put in order, feeling
his way through, then the
POWER over took him and at
times he is very nasty.
Let’s not forget how he
wasted our tax dollars with
the BRIDGE, he had to name
it after his father — what
about his mother? No respect
for her. Why waste our money
on all those new signs and
then over again because they
left out his middle initial? Go
back and look at all the nonsense
he caused. God will
handle it.
I am retired from Parks
and Recreation after 26 years,
that was on 08/08/08. I will
78 in three weeks, God Willing.
We need politicians who
are honest, not the bunch
of crooks we have now. God
knew what he was doing giving
us this President who is
the only one who loves our
country — the rest only care
about their pocket. He is a
business man and that is what
we need now. Open your eyes
and your heart because the
next two generations are going
to depend on what is being
done now.
May God continue to bless
our country and give us the
right leaders, Mr. Trump
again.
Sincerely,
Catherine Praino.
Op-Ed: Completing
the 2020 Census
Call 718.260.2555
..to sell your car in our
CLASSIFIED SECTIONS
& get...Real Results!
/www.my-
/www.my-2020census.gov
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/www.my-2020census.gov
/2020census.gov
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