On January 21st I attended a meeting of my old political club the Independent Neighborhood Democrats. The draw for that meeting was an opportunity to hear from our sitting Congresswomen Nydia Velazquez and Yvette Clarke. We thought we would hear from Nydia’s primary challenger the banker and former deputy superintendent of the NYS Banking Department Mr. Yungman Lee, but he […]
Tag: Nydia Velazquez
Menchaca for Zuniga – Velazquez for Ortiz
Campaigning for State Assembly in the 51st District ramped up yesterday as both Felix Ortiz and challenger Ceasar Zuniga received help from other local elected officials. The 51st AD includes Red Hook and Sunset Park, roughly approximating the City Council district represented by Carlos Menchaca. Menchaca, who unseated long term incumbent Sara Gonzalez with a surprising victory in last year’s […]
Red Hook Coalition Finalizes Long-Term Community Recovery Plan, by Harrison Neuhaus
On the evening of Monday, June 23, roughly 30 Red Hook residents, community organizers, and politicians met at the Miccio Center to discuss progress on the Long-Term Community Recovery Plan. This project, funded by the Red Hook Coalition, has the goal of of producing a localized strategy to be put into place for the first 72 hours of a disaster. […]
New Brown Baptist celebrates Sister Ingram’s Centennial, by George Fiala
Virginia Ingram’s 100th birthday was celebrated on June 28th at the Red Hook church she helped found over fifty years ago. The New Brown Memorial Baptist Church, a block from the Clinton Street post office, was filled with family members from all over the country, and well wishers including Congresswoman Nydia Velazquez and Assemblyman Felix Ortiz. Deaconess Ingram was born […]
It’s NYC vs. EPA at monthly CAG meeting, by George Fiala
From day one, NYC has been against the Gowanus Canal’s Superfund designation, finally granted in 2010. It was opposed not only by the Bloomberg administration, but also the local City Councilman at the time. The Daily News reported, in an April 2009 article, “City Councilman Bill de Blasio (D-Park Slope) said he didn’t believe the cash-strapped federal program would be able to […]
Carlos Menchaca’s sophisticated sweep to power, by George Fiala
Carlos Menchaca accomplished a rare political feat on September 10 – he defeated an incumbent, Sara Gonzalez. He won by over 1200 votes out of a total of a bit more than 7,000. He won not only Red Hook and Windsor Terrace, two neighborhoods with which he has close ties, but Sunset Park, Gonzalez’s home turf. Menchaca’s resounding victory surprised […]