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Bronx Community Board 11

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Bronx Community Board 11 (CB11) is a local government unit of the City of New York (NYC), which encompasses the neighborhoods of Allerton, Bronx Park East, Indian Village, Morris Park, Olinville, Pelham Gardens, Pelham Parkway, Van Nest and Westchester Heights in the borough of the Bronx. Coterminous with the 49th NYPD Precinct, it is delimited by Bronx Park East and the Bronx River Parkway to the west, Adee Avenue, Boston Road and East Gun Hill Road to the north, the Hutchinson River Parkway to the east, and East Tremont Avenue to the south.

Board role and structure

As with all community boards in NYC, CB11 consists of 50 volunteers who are appointed by the respective Borough President, although at least one half of the board’s members are selected from nominees of the district's respective Council Members. Comprising several committees, CB11 is headed by an executive committee, which consists of a Chair, First Vice Chair, Second Vice Chair, Treasurer, and Secretary. The board’s current and longstanding Chair is Dominic Castore. The other committees consist of geographical committees, a Youth and Education committee, and a Land Use/Zoning committee. The geographical committees are as follows: Bronx Park East/Olinville, Indian Village/Westchester Heights, Morris Park/Pelham Parkway/Van Nest, and Pelham Gardens. All committees are headed by a Chair and, in some cases, a Co-Chair.

The Board plays an important advisory role in land use and rezoning matters. It is responsible for identifying community needs as part of the City's budget process and working with government agencies to coordinate and improve the delivery of municipal services. The Board also handles special projects, including organizing and working with tenants', homeowners' and merchants' associations, developing graffiti removal, other cleanup projects, and other matters relating to the community's general welfare. Full board meetings, which are open to the public, are usually held on the fourth Thursday of the month.[1]

District Manager

The Board's third District Manager John Fratta retired from CB11 after 15 years of service to the Board. Prior to this, Mr. Fratta was a youth coordinator for Bronx CB7 and a clerk at the City Comptroller's Office. Notable achievements during his tenure include the Pelham Parkway reconstruction project, the opening of a New York Public Library branch on Morris Park Ave, the revamping of zoning regulations to maintain the low-density character of the neighborhood, and establishing community groups to fight crime in Pelham Parkway and Van Nest.[2]

Additionally, Mr. Fratta was successful at making the Board Office more accessible to the public and surrounding neighborhood. Prior to November 1997, CB11 was located on the eleventh floor of Jacobi Medical Center, which was perceived as an inconvenience to the community. At the time, Fratta cited State Senator Guy Velella as instrumental in moving the community board to its present location.[3]

Jeremy Warneke, an Iraq War veteran from Illinois, succeeded Mr. Fratta as District Manager on January 31, 2011 after having worked for NYC Councilman James Vacca.[4]

Civic groups

Operating within the purview of the Board are many civic groups, which hold public evening meetings once a month or week throughout the year, excluding some summer or winter months. Their meetings usually feature one or more guests from City, State or Federal government offices. Groups currently active within the Board include but are not limited to the 49th Precinct Community Council, Allerton Avenue Home Owners and Tenants Association, Chester Civic Association, Morris Park Community Association, Morris Park (Merchants) Alliance, Northeast Bronx Association, Pelham Parkway Preservation Alliance, Pelham Parkway South Neighborhood Association, Van Nest Community Association and Van Nest Neighborhood Alliance.

Demographics

Community Board 11 had a population of 110,706 in the year 2000, up from 97,842 in 1990 and 99,079 in 1980. Of the year 2000 number, 41,839 (37.8%) were White Nonhispanic; 37,919 (34.63%) were of Hispanic origin; 20,057 (18.1%) were Black/African American Nonhispanic; 6,728 (6.1%) were Asian or Pacific Islander Nonhispanic; 3,213 (2.9%) were of Two or More Races Nonhispanic; 709 (0.6%) were Some Other Race Nonhispanic; and 241 (0.2%) were American Indian or Alaska Native Nonhispanic.[5]

Elected officials

Legislative offices which make their presence known in the district include City Council Districts 12, 13 and 15, the 80th and 82nd State Assembly Districts, State Senatorial Districts 32, 34 and 36, and Congressional District 7 and 13.

Housing stock

The housing stock throughout the community board is quite varied. The area around Pelham Parkway for example has a large number of multi-family buildings or apartments in comparison to the number of one and two family homes. Many of the buildings on Bronx Park East both north and south of Pelham Parkway are designed in the Art Deco/Art Moderne style.[6]

Housing in areas such as Van Nest and Morris Park, generally tend to have more one and two family homes with high concentrations of apartment or multi-family buildings on White Plains and Williamsbridge Roads, respectively.

References

  1. ^ "Mayor's Community Affairs Unit". Community Affairs Unit. Retrieved 2011-02-26.
  2. ^ Mitchell, Max (February 13, 2011). "CB 11 district manager John Fratta steps down". Bronx Times Reporter. Retrieved 2011-02-13.
  3. ^ Marinaccio, J (November 13, 1997). "CB 11 moves to new district office". The Bronx Times Reporter.
  4. ^ Beekman, Daniel (December 30, 2010). "Community board 11 gains fresh face Jeremy Warneke to solve problems for residents". The New York Daily News. Retrieved 2011-01-27.
  5. ^ "BRONX COMMUNITY DISTRICT 11" (SHTML). New York City Department of City Planning. Retrieved 2011-02-11.
  6. ^ "Moderne and Art DecoArchitecture of the 20th Century". Architectural Styles. Retrieved 2011-03-21.