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Thursday, July 7, 2011

Bronx BP Threatens Lawsuit Over Miltary Base



Dan Beekman at the Daily News reports that Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz, Jr. is threatening to sue the Bloomberg administration over the fate of the Muller Army Reserve Center in the Wakefield section of the Bronx. The Bloomberg administration is proposing a homeless shelter for the site against strong community opposition. The Borough President is opposed to using the site for a homeless shelter and has proposed that the National Guard current located at the Kingsbridge Armory be moved to the site.

26 comments:

  1. Why threaten? If he thinks he has a real case, just bring the lawsuit.

    Either way, it's not going to match the mall project he helped kill. Shame on Diaz.

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  2. I can't believe the Daily News quotes someone like Richard Gorman! How long can someone be a community board chairman?

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  3. Isn't it an odd thing for The Reverend Father Richard Gorman to have TWO LIFETIME POSTS: clergyman and community board chair?

    How can you reconcile the two? The priesthood is sacred and devotional while the board chairmanship is more vulgar and grubby.

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  4. Is it true that Baby Diaz loves butterscotch pot de crème?

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  5. Why not quote Gorman, he knows the area and the problems with DHS better than anyone. I'd be pissed too if they city tried to dump this on my community.

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  6. Poor judgment lies at the heart of Ruben Diaz, Jr.'s Kingsbridge Armory crises.

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  7. Father Gorman has been chairman of Bronx Community Board No. 12 for over TWENTY YEARS! I certainly don't think that a chairmanship spanning decades is what was envisioned when community boards were first created.

    Obviously there are no term limits for community boards, but it's only fair to give other people a chance . . . CHANGE CAN BE A GOOD THING.

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  8. So it's a problem for Richard Gorman to chair Bronx Community Board 12 for more than 20 years??? BUT it's OK for Mark Friedlander to chair Bronx Community Board 8 from 1982 to 1984, then from 1987 to 1990, and AGAIN for 7 months in 2003 (during which time Tony got his pals to nominate Friedlander to be a judge)???

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  9. Community board chairperson is basically a political post. So even at such a low level, it's probably best to keep church and state separate.

    As James Madison, the father of the US Constitution, once observed: "the [religious] devotion of the people has been manifestly increased by the total separation of the church from the state."

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  10. J.R.Dobbs is BishopJuly 11, 2011 at 11:41 AM

    I am tired of these fake nuns and priests forever appointed to CB's so that they get the land for their non-profit housing. I get irritated when the only participant in their orders, are themselves. I remember the fake nun in my CB starting the meeting with a prayer that "Giuliani's mental illness gets better". It stopped when I quietly told her I pray for the IRS to review her 501C. They get away with it because legitimate constituents (with residency) are easily removed from service to the Boards by the Borough Presidents,Oh..No...it's really the City Council person Oh..No....No...not them, Oh! it must be by the District Managers. No appeal process. It is time for CB's to be revamped and the electoral process will easily be reformed.

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  11. Gorman can be voted out if his fellow Board members so choose. His chosen profession has nothing to do with is ability to serve as chair of a CB.

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  12. Under canon law of the Roman Catholic Church, I don’t think that a priest should be the Chairman of a New York City Community Board because that is a public office and a political position.

    Elected by their fellow Board Members, the Chairman of each Community Board presides over a municipal body that was created under the City Charter to have an important advisory role in dealing with land use and zoning matters, the City budget, municipal service delivery, and many other matters relating to their communities' welfare.

    The Board Chairman and all Board Members are political appointees. They are recommended and appointed to the Community Board by politicians. Each of the City's 59 Community Boards consists of up to 50 unsalaried members appointed by the Borough President, with half nominated by the City Council Members who represent the Community District.

    I recall the story of Congressman Bob Drinan of Massachusetts (also known as the Reverend Robert F. Drinan, S.J.), a Jesuit who was the first Roman Catholic priest elected to Congress. It was 31 years ago that Father Drinan as forced to withdraw his candidacy for a sixth term in the US House of Representatives after a worldwide directive from Pope John Paul II barring priests from holding public office.

    John Paul II had often warned against political involvement by clergymen. For example, on May 4, 1980, the Pope said to priests, "Leave political responsibility to those who are entrusted with it: the role that is expected of you is another, a magnificent one: You are leaders in another jurisdiction as priests of Christ."

    So it seems clear to me that a priest’s duty is to evangelize, not preside over meetings about granting zoning variances or liquor and café licenses.

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  13. So if I understand Anonymous @ July 10, 2:07 PM correctly, TONY CASSINO would be the REAL REASON why MARK FRIEDLANDER was put up to be a JUDGE at the judicial nominating convention in the Bronx that year?

    It sounds plausible because the Bronx BP wanted Cassino to be chairman of Community Board #8, but Friedlander won the chairmanship by one vote and Cassino was offered the post of 1st vice chairman. But with Friedlander pushed up to become a judge, Cassino was then free to become board chairman, which he did.

    So is there any proof of this, or is it just somebody's imagination working overtime?

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  14. Backroom political deals don't usually come with proof.

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  15. It was more than coincidental that the Judge suddenly found favor with the Ramirez crowd upon blocking Cassino's rise to CB chair. Rarely does anything happen by chance in Bronx politics. Just saying.

    And I am so glad we have expert in canonical law here. Certainly election to the house of representatives is on par with a CB chair.

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  16. The community board chairmanship is a political post. If Fr. Gorman ever asked his church superiors for permission to hold such an office, maybe he neglected to mention to them that community board members hold public positions and are appointed by politicians for political reason????

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  17. Wow ... Gorman seems to be at odds with James Madison and Pope John Paul II.

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  18. Hey Anonymous @ July 12, 2011 5:39 AM:

    So do you disagree with Pope John Paul II about the proper role of a Roman Catholic priest?

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  19. Is this blog "Bronx Political Chatter" or "Bronx Ecclesiastical Chatter"?

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  20. This Father Gorman thing is a matter for the Archdiocese of New York, not the city authorities.

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  21. Maybe we should have priests chair all 59 community boards?

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  22. Should we have priests in all 51 City Council seats as well?

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  23. Priests are required by canon law to obtain permission from the Vatican to hold public office.

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  24. When it comes to citywide press coverage of Bronx politics, the secret is well and truly out:

    Ruben Diaz (Jr. & Sr.) = Bad

    James Vacca = Good

    All The Rest = Nobodies!

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  25. As previously noted, there is no reason to have borough presidents in first place. The City Charter should be revised to eliminate the borough presidents, just like the Board of Estimate was abolished.

    I don't see any other major U.S. city with such silly and wasteful positions. Just imagine if Chicago, which has four main sections, had a Downtown President, a North Side President, a South Side President, and a West Side President!

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  26. Another useless pol who couldn't sweep floors for a living.

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