The 25th Precinct has a new commanding officer, C.O. Maisonet:
On Wednesday, February 15th you have your opportunity to meet the new commander, and to get a sense of where he will be taking the precinct. This is also your opportunity to voice your thoughts on what the priorities should be.
Come to the 6 PM, Wednesday, February 15th meeting at the 25th Precinct – East 119th Street, between Lexington and Park. All are welcome.
Yesterday it was announced that the commanding officer of the 25th Precinct (northern East Harlem) is leaving:
Hello all,
It looks like the winds of change have blown through the 25 Precinct. I found out last night I will be transferred as of tomorrow. I will be moving on, and you’ll have a new commanding officer shortly. It will be physically impossible to personally thank each and every one of you. For those I have not talked with, I would just like to say thank you for your hard work, commitment, and passion in helping us serve the upper east harlem community.
In my tenure here, we certainly have had to deal with quite tumultuous times. From the protests and demonstrations, right into an unprecedented global wide epidemic that our society has never seen before that had an untold amount of stress on both our professional and personal lives. We had the first patrol related covid fatality in the passing of PO Eric Murray. Then we had to experience one of our own getting shot by a stray bullet on new year’s day of 2022. While these times certainly were not easy, through it all, with your help in bridging the gap between police and community, we have persevered.
It has been an honor and pleasure being the commanding officer of the 25 pct. What made it an honor and pleasure wasn’t the position, rank, or title. It was the privilege of working with you, and for you. There were some good times and certainly some tough times, but through it all, we prevailed. I am confident the individual stepping in my shoes will do an outstanding job and I will do everything possible to ease the transition.
Thank you for all you do for upper east harlem, and thank you for forging and strengthening our relationships.
I recently saw this quote somewhere, and it resonated with me profoundly.
“There are four things in life you can never get back…a word after it is said…trust after it is lost…time after it’s gone…and an opportunity after it’s missed”
There is nothing more valuable in life than relationships and experiences, and you have all been a fundamental part of mine for the past three years.
Thank you for everything
-Chris
Deputy Inspector Christopher Henning
Commanding Officer, 25th Precinct
120 East 119th street, NY NY 10035
(O) 212-860-6549
(M) 917-846-7194
An HNBA member sent this:
This is a video of my friend’s home being broken into today in broad daylight She lives on West 126th across the street from the women’s shelter. Please pass this info to members of our neighborhood association.
Thanks and be careful!
At our January HNBA meeting, the issue of increased street trash on our streets was raised. That week, we reached out to DSNY’s Community Affairs Liason, and asked if a DSNY representative could attend our March HNBA meeting. No answer came.
Today we sent a 2nd email, and received this message back:
Good afternoon,
I apologize for the delay.
Unfortunately, DSNY will be unable to attend your meeting.
Please send me the businesses and locations to flag for enforcement and I will do so.
Thank you
Marissa Yanni
Community Affairs Liaison
Bureau of Community Affairs
NYC Department of Sanitation
Office: 646-885-4575
Mobile: 646-841-4250
[email protected]
A new 99-person supportive housing building is slated to be built on the parking lot next to the 25th Precinct. Workers were seen cleaning the asphalt and cars were banned from the parking lot:
Ebay has a number of great images from Harlem’s past for sale as reprints
Kioka Jackson put together an amazing National Night Out earlier this month but wanted to thank all of the great community members and officers who helped make this happen. She also wanted to encourage us all to shop locally at the businesses that are helping to build a community that thrives:
Hello everyone,
First and foremost Happy New Year to you all. I hope everyone enjoyed their holiday and enjoyed the time with their family and loved ones. For those of you who are not aware, we had a shooting incident regarding an off duty officer here in the 25 precinct. Around 0730 hours, Police Officer Keith Wagenhauser was off duty in his private vehicle in the parking lot of the 25 PCT when his driver side rear window was struck by a stray bullet causing it to shatter. Keith just completed working an overtime midnight detail in central parking after working his regular scheduled tour and because the department mandated every member of service to work on both January 1, 2022 and January 2, 2022 for coverage, Keith had to work another tour in a few hours. He planned to take a nap in the dorm rooms but due to the lack of space and size of the doom rooms in the command there were no more beds available, so he went to take a nap in his car instead. Keith suffered multiple lacerations from broken glass fragments and a fractured skull. He was removed to Cornell Hospital. Surgery was successful and they inserted a titanium plate in his skull. He is resting well with his wife and children at his bedside.
We do not believe he was an intended target. We had another officer in the parking lot at the time of the incident, and he did not hear any gun shots. We also did not have any shot spotter activations in the immediate area. These investigative leads, as well as others, is leading us at this time to believe it was a bullet that was fired from several blocks away, and as it came back down, it just happened to strike him in his skull. He is the unluckiest, and at the same time, the luckiest person in the world.
I want to personally thank each and every one of you for the tremendous outpouring of support. It really makes a significant difference on the moral of the officers involved, as well as to Keith and his family.
Thank you again, chris
Deputy Inspector Christopher Henning
Commanding Officer, 25th Precinct
120 East 119th street, NY NY 10035
(O) 212-860-6549
(M) 917-846-7194
The last 25th Precinct’s Community Council for the year will be held on:
Wednesday, December 15, 2021 at 6:00 PM
Located at the 25th Precinct 120 East 119th Street, New York, NY 10035
This meeting maybe a little longer than usual as we will have a special guest presenter. We will also have treats again for you so please RSVP to let us know your intentions for attendance. If you would be so kind to fill out the link below to help us manage attendance.
https://forms.gle/iknNp8qF4ZLM5Ziq9
It is the Christmas Holiday so if you would like to donate new, unwrapped toys for ages 0-13 we would greatly appreciate it.
We look forward to seeing you soon.
Best,
Kioka Jackson
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On June 6, 2021, New York City launched a pilot program in which both mental and physical health professionals are responding to 911 mental health emergency calls. This new approach, called B-HEARD – the Behavioral Health Emergency Assistance Response Division attempts to treat mental health crises as public health problems, not public safety issues
B-HEARD teams include emergency medical technicians/paramedics from the Fire Department’s Emergency Medical Services and social workers from NYC Health + Hospitals. Teams operate seven days a week, 16 hours a day in the 25, 28, and 32 police precincts in East Harlem and parts of central and north Harlem.
In 2020, there were approximately 8,400 mental health 911 calls in this area (Zone 7), the highest volume of any dispatch zone in the city.
The goals of the B-HEARD pilot are to:
Route 911 mental health calls to a health-centered B-HEARD response whenever it is appropriate to do so. Calls that involve a weapon, an imminent risk of harm, or where NYPD or EMS call-takers know that an individual has an immediate need for a transport to a medical facility will continue to receive a traditional 911 response—an ambulance and police officers.
Increase connection to community-based care, reduce unnecessary transports to hospitals, and reduce unnecessary use of police resources. Before B-HEARD, mental healthcare was not delivered in communities during an emergency. Instead, emergency medical technicians/paramedics provided basic medical assistance in the field and transported those who needed mental healthcare to a hospital. Now, with B-HEARD social workers delivering care on site, emergency mental healthcare is reaching people in their homes or in public spaces for the first time in New York City’s history.
The text above is cribbed from the promotional material of BHeard that you can read (in full) here:
What is interesting is that the rosy picture in the 2nd half of the press release on how successful BHeard has been, is sharply contrasted with the careful analysis found in the Gothamist where they note that the data indicates that:
During the first three months of its operation between early June and late August, 1,478 emergency mental health calls were made to 911 operators in the areas serviced by the program. Only 23% of those calls — 342 incidents — were routed to B-HEARD teams. The rest of the mental health crises were initially shared with traditional response teams involving the cops. In both cases, emergency medical technicians or paramedics were dispatched as well.
On top of that, B-HEARD was often under-resourced and didn’t have enough personnel to handle all of the emergencies shared by 911 operators. The program had to redirect 17% of calls back to the police.
To read the full, Gothamist analysis, see:
How Calculated:
Rate of executed evictions ordered by the New York City Housing Court, including those pending and scheduled as of December 31, per 10,000 housing units.
Eviction data are reported by New York City Marshals and gathered from NYC Open Data. For more information, see: https://data.cityofnewyork.us/City-Government/Evictions/6z8x-wfk4
Source: New York City Department of Investigation
Odyssey House – a major social services provider in East Harlem (one of their buildings is shown below from the Metro-North platform) – is advancing its project on East 126th Street.
Concrete is being poured. Pump trucks are engaged:
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1Q3BECVQNeZbr_z07TX0x768yYh9llQOA-z3N9lAk54g/edit
Please use the above link to register for the 25th Precinct’s Community Council meeting – October 20th at 6:00 PM. They need a count of how many plan on attending in person.
Thank you all so much
Real Estate News reports that the parking lot behind the 25th Precinct (between 119/118th Street, on Park Avenue) will be developed for supportive housing for homeless individuals:
The city has unveiled a plan for 600 new apartments along with an Afro-Latin Music and Arts Center and an upgraded community center in East Harlem.
The project is one of the first major developments since the rezoning of East Harlem rezoning and, according to HPD Commissioner Louise Carroll, delivers on significant commitments in the East Harlem Neighborhood Plan for affordable housing, education, and workforce training investments.
“These incredible projects are delivering on the City’s commitment to invest in job training, youth, education, and more affordable housing for East Harlem. They are also proving that affordable housing can be an anchor for the arts and the entire community’s well-being,” said Carroll.
“I am so proud to announce plans for both the new Afro-Latin Music and Arts Center and renovated multi-service facility that will enhance the community’s quality of life. I want to thank our partners, The Community Builders, Ascendant Neighborhood Development, Mega Contracting, Lantern Organization, and the Afro Latin Jazz Alliance for their creative and thoughtful leadership.”
Mega Contracting, Lantern Organization, The Community Builders and Ascendant Neighborhood Development were selected to build the properties following the East Harlem RFP released in 2019, which sought plans to redevelop two sites that include affordable housing alongside retail and community services.
Located on the east side of Park Avenue between East 118th Street and East 119th Street, the former New York Police Department 25th precinct parking site (pictured top) will be transformed into a residential building with 330 affordable homes, of which 99 homes will be set aside for formerly homeless households.
Mega Contracting and Lantern Organization will build the development, called Timbale Terrace, which will also house a 16,000 s/f Afro-Latin Music and Arts (ALMA) Center, operated by the Afro Latin Jazz Alliance (ALJA). The facility will include practice rooms, community performance and art gallery spaces, recording studios, and street-facing retail.
In addition to hosting professional musical performances, the community partner ALJA will offer free or affordable music education programming for all ages, job training in the arts, and run an anti-gun initiative through the new center.
The Community Builders and Ascendant Neighborhood Development will develop the second site located at 413 East 120th Street, to be known as The Beacon.
The East Harlem Multi-Service Center site will give rise to an affordable 250-home residential building, of which 75 homes, or 30 percent, will be set aside for formerly homeless households. The new residential building will be constructed at the back of the existing East Harlem Multi-Service Center, which will be rehabilitated and expanded.
The original architecture of the multi-service center will be preserved and include additional space for after-school programming, a new atrium, green space, and the Wagner Walk walk path connecting the residential building to the multi-service facility. The renovated facility will continue to host the nonprofit organizations serving East Harlem.
“East Harlem is the community that best represents the mission of the Afro Latin Jazz Alliance, to use music as an entry point for service to the community and to reflect back to that community the beauty and ingenuity of its citizens,” said Arturo O’Farrill, Founder, Artistic Director, Afro Latin Jazz Alliance. “Partnering with the City of New York, the Lantern Organization and Mega development is an opportunity to put theory into daily practice. We are honored to lock arms with these partners and serve the people of East Harlem in a manner designed by their needs. Timbale Terrace will be a place that welcomes all!”
“Lantern Organization is thrilled to partner with the City of New York, Mega Development, and the Afro Latin Jazz Alliance to create Timbale Terrace,” said Dan Kent, President/CEO, Lantern. “We are grateful to the East Harlem community members who inspired this project through their advocacy for mixed-income housing, housing for vulnerable populations, and an arts and cultural center dedicated to this incredible neighborhood. We look forward to working with our neighbors to ensure Timbale Terrace achieves these shared goals for East Harlem.”
“Crafting a vision for Timbale Terrace was a labor of love for our team,” said Mega principal Hercules Argyriou. “Throughout our process, we were dedicated to creating a new mixed-use project that would address the needs articulated by the East Harlem community — 100% affordable housing that prioritizes those most in need with an arts and cultural center that celebrates East Harlem’s history and activates the Park Avenue corridor. In partnership with Lantern Organization and the Afro Latin Jazz Alliance, we are honored to have the opportunity to realize our vision for this important location.”
“At TCB we pride ourselves on building and sustaining strong communities where all people can thrive,” said Desiree Andrepont, Senior Project Manager at The Community Builders. “It is a privilege to partner with Ascendant Neighborhood Development Corporation and bring together the East Harlem community with this exciting project. The transformation of the Multi Service Center will create a collaborative space to unite neighborhood leaders, local organizations and the greater community, and the development will provide much-needed affordable housing for generations to come.”
“For over thirty years, Ascendant has worked with our partners and allies to preserve, protect, and celebrate the unique history and heritage of East Harlem,” said Chris Cirillo, Executive Director at Ascendant Neighborhood Development Corporation. “We are profoundly grateful to have the opportunity to re-envision the Multi-Service Center as a sustainable, resilient, and inclusive 21st century community hub. We look forward to working with community members, Wagner Houses residents, Multi-Service Center tenants, Community Board 11, Council Member Ayala, and all of the other stakeholders who have helped to shape the vision for this site and the broader neighborhood.”
In 2017, the New York City Council approved the East Harlem rezoning to identify opportunities to create new mixed-income housing and preserve existing affordable housing. The East Harlem Rezoning builds on recommendations of the East Harlem Neighborhood Plan (EHNP), developed through a comprehensive community planning process and led by a committee of local stakeholders including former New York City Council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito, Manhattan Borough President Gale A. Brewer, Manhattan Community Board 11 and Community Voices Heard. After a series of community meetings, the EHNP was issued with 232 recommendations for addressing key neighborhood issues. In addition to authorizing the Mandatory Inclusionary Housing program for East Harlem, the rezoning creates opportunities for economic development while preserving the community’s existing commercial and manufacturing uses
The East Harlem rezoning also prioritizes creating more than 2,600 affordable homes, serving the lowest-earning families by leveraging city subsidies and the transformation of local public-owned sites. Other East Harlem affordable housing projects, include the 100 percent affordable Sendero Verde project, a mixed-use development primarily serving low-income households. Sendero Verde will become the nation’s largest Passive House development, providing more than 700 affordable homes. At least 20 percent of the homes will serve families earning less than $25,000, and 60 percent will serve households earning less than $49,000. In addition, 79 affordable apartments are for seniors. Once completed, Sendero Verde will also feature a community center, a Harlem Children’s Zone charter school, and a community art space.
Additionally, the City announced the East Harlem El Barrio Community Land Trust (EHEBCLT) alongside a $13.2 million project to convert four city-owned buildings into affordable housing under the CLT’s ownership. The EHEBCLT is the first CLT to receive public land, capital financing and startup support from the City in decades. Under the model, a board of tenants, community members, and nonprofit leaders will oversee and operate the development as an affordable rental mutual housing association.
Since the rezoning, the City has financed over 7,500 affordable homes in East Harlem. The zoning changes also support the construction of stations in the next phase of the Second Avenue Subway by planning for needed elevators, station access, and ventilation facilities.
