Ocasio-Cortes discusses homelessness, census at CB 11
BY KYLE VUILLE
Congresswoman Alexandria
Ocasio-Cortez paid an unexpected
visit to Community Board 11 on
Thursday, January 23, where she
discussed the 2020 Census, partisan
politics and homelessness.
As the 2020 Census rapidly approaches,
she strongly urged the
board to reach out to the community
to participate in the count so
the Bronx can get the appropriate
funding it needs.
“The problem is our district is
one of the least counted communities
in the country, and the problem
with that is when our families
do not answer the census, the
federal government thinks less
people live here than they do,” Ocasio
Cortez said. “Which means
our schools get less money than
they need, which means our infrastructure,
our roads and bridges
don’t get prepared for the population.”
The congresswoman assured
the public there will not be an immigration
status question on the
census like previous years, which
some believe resulted in the lack
of participation.
“There are some neighborhoods
in our community that are
counted at 60 to 68 percent of the
actual reality, which means we’re
only getting 60 percent of the funding
that we need,” Ocasio-Cortez
said. “So, as local leaders, we need
to make sure to get the word out
about that.”
CB 11 chairman Al D’Angelo
told Ocasio-Cortez to send a message
back to Washington saying
the people are sick of the bipartisan
politics because nothing is
getting done and it is ultimately
hurting the people.
This sparked Ocasio-Cortez to
speak on a recent agreement between
the two parties regarding
civil liberties and more specifi -
cally, face recognition technology.
“One in every two Americans
has their facial recognition information
in a database and most
people don’t know it,” Ocasio-Cortez
said. “So half the people in this
room have their information in a
facial recognition database.”
When Delta Airlines asks to
scan your face in order to board
the board a fl ight, no one is legally
obligated to consent to the scan,
she advised.
Rabbi Moshe Fuchs’ question
on homelessness in the city
rounded out the congresswoman’s
night.
“It seems to me just from my
own observation,” Fuchs said.
“Homelessness is all over the
place.”
Ocasio-Cortez said it’s a question
everybody should be asking
themselves, since it really concerns
human empathy.
“Rates of homelessness are skyrocketing
in the city, we have the
highest rate of homelessness in
NYC since the Great Depression,”
Ocasio-Cortez said. “But to contrast
that, even with the highest
rate, there are three empty apartments
for every person experiencing
homeless in the city.”
She also pointed out that affordable
housing is not actually
affordable for most middle class
families.
“As many of us know, what
gets called affordable housing in
New York City is not affordable at
all,” Ocasio-Cortez said. “I’m seeing
affordable housing units go up
for people and families making a
$150,000 a year, that’s not affordable.”
Ocasio-Cortez said she would
be taking all the evening’s concerns
back with her to D.C.
11 BRONX WEEKLY February 2, 2020 www.BXTimes.com
BY JASON COHEN
The Bronx has come a long way
since the 70s when it was the poster
child of urban decay.
Today, it is the fastest growing
borough in the ‘big apple’ and if it
were a city it would be in the top 10
of largest cities in America.
On Tuesday, January 14, the
Bronx Chamber of Commerce, held
its fi rst event of 2020, ‘The Network
for Business Success,’ where City
Planning Bronx Borough director
Carol Samol spoke about the importance
of planning in the Bronx,
supporting local neighborhoods and
capitalizing on transit investments
to improve quality of life and grow
housing and jobs in the fastest growing
county.
Samol told attendees that the
Bronx is back to its all-time population
high of 1,472,000 residents
achieved in the early 1970s. Furthermore,
with a projected growth
rate of 14 percent, the Bronx is will
outpace the city’s growth rate of 9.5
percent.
The borough is projected to
house 1,579,000 residents by 2040.
“More people are being born in
the Bronx than are dying, that’s an
important fact,” Samol said.
The Bronx grew by 86,000 people,
which accounts for nearly 20 percent
of New York City’s growth and 11%
of the region’s growth in 2019.
Diversity is also a key to the borough’s
growth. More than half of the
Bronx is Latino or Hispanic, 28 percent
is black, and the remainder is
white, Asian and Native American.
In fact, 544,000 current Bronxites
have emigrated from other countries,
accounting for more than one
third of the Bronx’s population.
Job growth is also on the rise.
The primary drivers of job growth
are health care and social assistance,
retail trade, accommodation
and food services, and educational
services arts, entertainment and
recreation and professional and
technical services.
Even with increased job security,
many people are still struggling fi -
nancially, Samol said. The Bronx
median income is $37,000, which is
between 40 to 50 percent of the Area
Median Income.
“Our median income still needs
to increase, it is still suffering,” she
said.
She also delved into future projects
slated for the borough. She
stressed how excited people are
about the new regional rail service
coming to East Bronx for fi rst time
in over 100 years, in 2023.
The new MetroNorth rail line
will include new stations at Co-op
City, Morris Park, Parkchester/Van
Nest and Hunts Point and offer access
to Penn Station, Westchester
County and Connecticut.
This will dramatically improve
commute times and connections for
Bronx residents and new regional
access for New Yorkers.
Furthermore, it will provide up
to 90 minutes in time savings and
offer access to more job opportunities.
Samol stressed how this new line
will benefi t people in and out of the
work place.
Lisa Sorin, president of the
Bronx Chamber of Commerce
called the seminar incredible.
“The attendees were stunned at
the level of success that the Bronx
has achieved today,” she said.
“They now have a better understanding
of the borough’s upcoming
projects, job growth, and potential
for business opportunities. Carol
did an amazing job of bringing clarity
to the growth of our borough and
plans that support that growth,”
Sorin concluded.
City Planning to chamber:
Bronx fastest growing borough
City Planning Bronx Borough Director Carol Samol spoke about the importance of
planning in the Bronx, and supporting local neighborhoods through planning at a
planning seminar on Jan. 14. Schneps Media Jason Cohen
Ocasio-Cortez speaks at the monthly Community Board 11 meeting at Einstein College of Medicine.
Schneps Media / Kyle Vuille
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