www.BXTimes.com BRONX WEEKLY March 1, 2020 6
Councilwoman Vanessa Gibson speaks about the newly restored public plaza at the Bronx Hall of
Justice. Photo courtesy of Councilwoman Vanessa Gibson’s offi ce
First phase of Bronx
Hall of Justice
renovations completed
BY STEVEN GOODSTEIN
The partial reopening
of a public space was announced
this month.
On Monday, February
10, Councilwoman Vanessa
Gibson, along with the NYC
Department of Design and
Construction deputy commissioner
Tom Foley, announced
that it would reopen
a portion of the Bronx
Hall of Justice’s public plaza
to the community.
Located at 265 E. 161st
Street, the Bronx Hall of
Justice project is nearing
completion of a $40 million
renovation. The two capital
projects are being overseen
by the DDC and the NYC
Department of Citywide Administrative
Services.
Improvements for phase
one of the plaza’s renovations
include new waterproofi
ng to prevent leaks
into a parking garage under
the plaza, as well as new concrete
pavers, stairs, ramps,
railings, lighting and tree
planters at the site.
The reopening of the
plaza will provide additional,
much-needed pedestrian
space in the neighborhood,
as well as a new
mid-block shortcut for people
to travel between East
161st and East 162nd streets.
“I am proud to see DDC
taking action to bring this
public space back to the residents
of the Bronx,” said
Councilwoman Gibson. “Although
more work needs to
be done, this is the fi rst step
in restoring much-needed
open space to the neighborhood.”
“In a city as dense and as
busy as ours, public spaces
provide a lifeline for openness,
relief and community,”
said Senator Luis Sepulveda.
“We look forward to the continued
repairs to make this
space fully functional again,
as well as to continue the
momentum for many other
public spaces in the Bronx
that are full of potential for
our communities.”
“This renovation exemplifi
es the continuous efforts
of our city offi cials and agencies
to increase accessibility
and cohesion in our community,”
said Assemblyman
Michael Blake. “I’m excited
to see the remainder of the
upgrades so that our fellow
Bronxites can take full advantage
of the improved and
beautifi ed features.”
“The reopening of the
plaza will make a unique
open space available in our
community,” said Assemblywoman
Latoya Joyner.
“With the offi cial start of
spring less than two months
away, having this open
space available will be particularly
important and benefi
t the community in many
ways.”
The Bronx Hall of Justice
courthouse opened in
2007 but was closed to the
public in 2016, after it was
discovered that there was
water seeping into the lowelevels
of the building, as a
result of the faulty construction
when the courthouse
was originally built.
Approximately 28,335
square feet, which makes up
about 58 percent of the plaza,
has now been reopened. The
remaining 20,005 square feet
of the plaza is anticipated to
open after 16 new trees are
planted in the spring.
The Hall of Justice is also
expected undergo repairs
to its HVAC and climate
control systems, as well as
waterproofi ng, plumbing,
sewer lines, fi re dampers,
ductwork and interior glass
and paint work.
“We are very pleased to
be able to repair this public
space and once again make
it available to the people of
the Bronx,” said Lorraine
Grillo, commissioner of the
DDC.
“In a few months, after
the remaining trees are
planted and the work in the
plaza is complete, more than
one full acre of public space
will have been restored for
this community,” Grillo
added.
Residents, electeds
not satisfi ed with bus
route redesign
Assemblyman Jeffrey Dinowitzx speaks at the MTA fi nal public hearing on the Bronx Network Bus
Redesign. Photo by Jason Cohen
BY JASON COHEN
On Thursday, Feb. 20,
the MTA held its fi nal public
hearing for the Bronx
Bus Network plan at the
Bronx Museum of the Arts,
where it said it had added
restored an additional $2
million of service improvements
to the plan.
Senator Alessandra
Biaggi expressed her concerns
with the unveiled
plan. With so many seniors
in the borough, buses like
the Bx7 and Bx10 need
more stops, not less, she
stressed. Those buses are
often so jam packed that
people can’t even get on
them, Biaggi pointed out.
“The redesign is a critical
opportunity to imagine
public transportation here
in the Bronx,” Biaggi exclaimed.
“It’s imperative
that the bus plan refl ect
the (residents’) needs. The
Bronx deserves better.”
The public hearing precedes
a vote by the MTA
Board to implement the local
bus service proposals
in the redesign’s Proposed
Final Plan for implementation
in fall 2020.
Before the Bronx Bus
Network plan was created,
Bronx bus routes had not
substantially changed in
decades, despite tremendous
growth in the borough
since 2010. Increased
traffi c congestion, among
other things, has slowed
the buses and degraded
service reliability for the
borough’s bus customers.
Concerns
Norwood resident Lowell
Green is not in favor of
the redesign. She uses the
Bx34 and Bx28 buses often
and wonders why the MTA
would reduce service to
these buses.
“My question to the
MTA is do you hate seniors,”
she said. “If you
cannot get anywhere but
with a car, what’s the purpose
of using a bus or subway?”
Co-op City resident Raymond
Martinez feels the
redesign is slamming his
neighborhood. He takes the
Bx26 regularly to college
and said the changes in frequencies
will hurt him.
“I feel like parts of this
plan are disastrous for Coop
City residents,” he said.
“If you’re truly serious
about getting cars off the
road you should really improve
the bus service.”
Paula, a resident of Riverdale,
who relies heavily
on the Bx10 and Bx20, said
if changes are made to the
service it will negatively affect
many people.
“I think reducing the
service in and out of Manhattan
will only increase
traffi c and congestion and
further serve to isolate
seniors who live in the
Bronx,” she said. “If service
must be limited, at
least run buses into the city
until 6 p.m.”
Riders Alliance Campaign
manager Stephanie
Burgos-Veras, who
spoke on behalf of the Bus
Turnaround Coalition, explained
that a few years
ago riders asked the MTA
to look at fi xing the bus
network. Burgos-Veras
stressed that reducing frequency
on buses in the borough
won’t help Bronxites
who are transit-dependent;
three out of fi ve households
lack access to a car.
“The changes in the
Bronx bus redesign are
important to over 600,000
daily riders who have suffered
too long with slow
and unreliable service,”
Burgos-Veras said. “But
riders wish the MTA would
be more ambitious in their
articulation of principles
and creation of new routes
to major destinations. Further,
Governor Cuomo
should recognize how important
buses are to lowincome
New Yorkers by
investing in more frequent
service.”
/www.BXTimes.com
/www.BXTimes.com
/www.BXTimes.com
/www.BXTimes.com