Tag: Port Morris

New CDC Study Reveals Link To Increased Childhood Leukemia Incidences In High Traffic Urban Areas: Another Reason To Say No To FreshDirect Move To The Bronx

Dear Mayor De Blasio, Council Speaker Mark-Viverito, Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr, New York City Council members:

The Center for Disease Control has just published a study in the April 2014 issue of the American Journal of Preventative Medicine citing a deep connection between a rise in incidents of childhood leukemia and pollution in high traffic areas — traffic pollution which already exists in the South Bronx that contributes to children having 8 times the national rate of asthma.

Can we afford FreshDirect with thousands of more truck trips barreling through our roads in the South Bronx, worsening the traffic situation? Is the empty promise of jobs worth the risk of exposure to our children — a company with dubious labor practices where they are currently being sued by their own drivers? Do we sacrifice our future over corporate greed and over $130 million in tax breaks and subsidies?

FreshDirect Drivers File Class Action Lawsuit Against The Company Over Gratuities

On Wednesday, March 19th, delivery workers for FreshDirect have filed a class action lawsuit against the firm over gratuities they are losing due to misleading company policies.

It is not the first time FreshDirect is under fire for its dubious labor practices and once again solidifies even more why the majority of residents do not want FreshDirect to relocate to our waterfront.

Back in 2007 FreshDirect fired scores of immigrant workers because of a pending unionization vote.

FreshDirect, Operation Move Along, And The South Bronx Waterfront: Yes, They Are Related

This week, Mayor De Blasio’s ambitious plan to reduce pedestrian fatalities, Vision Zero, began in the Bronx with Operation Move Along on 138th Street (between Third and Jackson Avenues) by cracking down on double parking. Officers from the 40th precinct slapped educational flyers on double parked cars but on March 16th they will begin issuing summonses for illegally parked vehicles.

The East 138th Street corridor is one of the South Bronx’s busiest roads with trucks and traffic already roaring across it to get from one end of the borough to the other.

FreshDirect’s Bronx Move Hits Snag as Congressman Opposes $3.5M Subsidy – Port Morris – DNAinfo.com New York

Read an excellent write up by Alice Speri of DNAinfo on the major setback FreshDirect received.

In the article she writes,

Securing the funding would require the unanimous approval of the New York Empowerment Zone Board, which provides incentives for private investors revitalizing poor communities. FreshDirect removed its application for funding from the board’s agenda after Serrano made clear Wednesday that he would vote against it.

1st Annual Bronx Gentrification Conference This Saturday December 7th

Gentrification is a very controversial topic which brings out a lot of passionate opinions both in favor and against gentrification.

The question of whether the South Bronx, particularly Melrose, Mott Haven, Port Morris, and the Lower Concourse, will ever gentrify is no longer the correct one. The question is when.