SPECIALS
WITH THIS AD EXPIRES 7/31/19
SPECIALS WITH THIS AD EXPIRES 7/31/19
SPECIALS WITH THIS AD EXPIRES 7/31/19
SPECIALS WITH THIS AD EXPIRES 7/31/19
BRONX TIMES REPORTER, J 14 ULY 12-18, 2019 BTR
Joseph Russo, longtime
member, selected
as CB 10 chairperson
BY PATRICK ROCCHIO
Community Board 10 selected a
seasoned veteran board member to
serve as its new chairperson.
Joseph Russo of Spencer Estate and
a member of the board for over two decades,
was elected the new chairman
of CB 10 by a wide margin in a threeperson
race at the general monthly
board meeting on Thursday, June 20.
Russo, who in 20 plus years on the
board headed up CB 10’s Youth Services
Municipal Services committees,
said he is focused on continuity rather
than large changes. He plans to follow
in the footsteps of previous effective
chairpeople that have categorized the
board, he said.
“You look at things, try to make
improvements and leave it in good
hands by being a good steward,” said
Russo when asked about his own leadership
philosophy. He compared the
task ahead to that of being a committee
chairman, but on a larger scale.
“It is always a fl uid situation,” said
Russo of the issues the board faces, adding
that there is never a point where
you have a total victory in terms of the
community board’s priorities.
Each success is followed by another
challenge or hurdle to overcome,
he said.
Russo said that CB 10’s board members
know a great deal about their
communities and are very passionate
in seeing them improve.
He said that he joined the community
board because he saw the volunteer
opportunity as a vital part of the
process that ensured that the community
remained strong, he said.
“I have always been involved in
what is going on in the community,”
said Russo. Early on in his tenure on
the community board he chaired the
youth committee in part because he
and his wife of 27 years, Lucia, were
raising three daughters.
He said that when he was chairman
of CB 10’s Youth Services committee,
he rotated the monthly meetings
to different locations throughout
the board.
Russo’s been active with the Spencer
Estate Civic Association and the
Our Lady of Assumption School Parent
Guild over the years
Joseph Russo, a Community Board 10 member
for over two decades, was elected by its
members at the chairman at a board meeting
on Thursday, June 20.
Photo courtesy of Joseph Russo
Russo originally lived on Edison
Avenue but spent a great deal of his
formative years living in Country
Club/Spencer Estate.
His parents still reside in the community
and one of the challenges,
which he believes CB 10 can address,
is its aging population.
Other challenges upcoming in the
board’s service area – which includes
Co-op City, City Island, Pelham Bay,
Country Club, Spencer Estate, Waterbury
LaSalle, Throggs Neck,
Westchester Square and Zerega – include
road projects slated for Shore
Road, Interstate 95, Westchester Avenue
and the Unionport Bridge.
The chairman acknowledged that
there will be pain during the construction
phase, and the board should
be there to alleviate that pain or serve
as a resource. He believes that when
the construction projects are done,
the fi nished products will be an asset
to the community.
A primary concern of the board is
the onslaught of substance abuse rehabilitation
facilities attempting to locate
in the community board, said Russo.
Russo, an insurance broker for
very large construction projects, said
he will use some of his business negotiating
skills – in terms of handling
competing interests, making compromises
and fi nding solutions – at the
community board.
Russo will serve an 18-month
term.
I have always been
involved in what is going
on in the community.
Joseph Russo