Kingsbridge Armory Set to Open as KNIC in 2022 Currently Serves as Food Supplier
The armory’s back door open on April 4, 2020. (Photo credit: Perla Tolentino)
By Perla Tolentino
Though temporarily on hold due to the Coronavirus crisis, construction of the Kingsbridge National Ice Center (KNIC) is set to start this year and open to the public in 2022. In the meantime, its immediate role in the community is to serve as a food distribution center.
Using the action network website and the hashtag #OpenPeoplesArmory, the North Bronx Collective petitioned for the armory to serve as a food garden, emergency and mental health hospital with universal healthcare that prioritizes homeless, disabled, elders, trans, incarcerated, and mentally ill people on March 31.
By April 4, NYC Economic Development Corporation and Emergency Management authorized the armory to provide food packaging and delivery for families who can’t afford groceries and meals and do not receive assistance from other providers. This is The Bronx reported that as of April 21, 2020, the armory food center had distributed 14,000 meals in the Bronx, with that amount set to increase.
Mayor Bill De Blasio visited the now free-groceries site on April 18, 2020 and told the New York Post, “We will not let any New Yorker go hungry. Period.” Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr. also visited the armory to monitor supplies and workers, and shared pictures of it on his official Facebook account.
Despite emergency repurposing, KNIC officials remain confident that this year’s construction will proceed according to plan.
“We do not expect to be delayed due to the lockdown; however, it is uncertain at this time,” Kevin Parker, founder and managing member of KNIC told the Meridian.
A week before Chinese authorities confirmed the first Coronavirus death on Jan. 11, 2020, the armory’s opening date was announced on the project’s official Facebook page, which also included a link to the new website featuring the logo used by Rangers star, Mark Messier in his foundation’s Inline-2-Ice (i2i).
Steel crow safety barriers seen across the armory’s near entrance on April 4, 2020. (Photo credit: Perla Tolentino)
The site allows people to reserve ice time, register adult hockey leagues, sign up for locker storage, and submit contact information for open and speed skating.
On Jan. 22, 2020, Brisbin Brook Beynon (BBB) Architects, design leaders of the Madison Square Garden renovations in 2008, shared a rendering video of KNIC’s final design. It briefly shows an athletic shoe store seen through glass doors at the corner of 2 West Kingsbridge Rd., currently home of the New Capitol Diner, at risk of being pushed out according to Norwood News in 2019.
Some landlords around the area have been using the $350 million development to attract potential businesses to buy their commercial lease.
L+M Development partners who own the commercial spot inside the Affordable Housing 2700 Jerome Ave. building across the armory, used a picture rendering of KNIC in their commercial flier and a map that displays the business space right across.
In the long run, many Lehmanites believe the project will attract more attention to the Bronx.
“This is a positive economic development for this area and the Bronx, in terms of bringing more jobs and related businesses,” said professor and chair of Economics and Business Department Dene Hurley. “This ice rink will probably attract families from surrounding areas like Westchester and Manhattan, since the only other ice rink is in Rye; it will become a landmark and related businesses could move into the area.”
“I think it’s going to make the Bronx an exciting place to be in; a lot of people are going to move from their state to the Bronx to watch American Hockey league games,” said Abban Emmanuel, a 17-year-old freshman majoring in biology.
However, some Lehman students think the project will not benefit low-income residents.
“It’s private interest only, I guess; it might create jobs for some people, but sustainability wise, it will be bad for those who pay through taxes and are not in a good financial position to sustain themselves,” said Marvin King, a senior mathematics major.
Lehman President Daniel Lemons offered a balanced view. “It’s great news that the Kingsbridge National Ice Center is finally slated to open,” he said. “The center will further boost the borough’s economy and bring a new outlet for physical activity to the area. I know some store owners in the area have concerns about rising rent in the face of this development. It will be crucial for community leaders to ensure that the businesses that have anchored the neighborhood for so many years be able to remain in place.”
Lehman Goes Remote Amid COVID-19 Crisis
Lehman campus seen empty. (Photo Credit: Perla Tolentino)
By Deanna Garcia
“We’re careful not to say that Lehman is ‘closed’ because we are still an active community – we’re still Lehman and we’re still here for our students even though most of us are not physically on campus,” said Dean of Students Stanley Bazile.
Lehman’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic was followed by New York Governor Andrew Cuomo’s decision to close all CUNY and SUNY campuses on March 11.
Prior to the closure, only one case of a Lehman student feeling ill was reported on March 5, but the student assumed it was allergies. The student, whose identity was kept confidential, attended classes in Lehman’s Carman and Davis Halls on March 5, 7, 9 and 11. President Daniel Lemons informed the community on March 16 via email: “The areas visited by the student on those dates have been thoroughly cleaned by our custodial staff as part of their ongoing proactive cleaning measures.” Classmates and professors of the student were told to go into a “precautionary quarantine” for 14 days after attending the class.
On March 22, Cuomo ordered the entire state to go on “PAUSE”, or “Policies Assure Uniform Safety for Everyone,” which forces all nonessential workers to remain home, maintain a 6-foot distance from others and wear masks while in public. According to MSNBC, PAUSE will be extended until May 15.
Some Lehmanites felt the closure should have happened sooner.
COVID-19 drive-thru testing site at Lehman's parking lot. (Photo Credit: Perla Tolentino)
“The wait could have jeopardized more students if the person had gotten sick earlier,” said Amman Ahmad, a junior journalism major. “The virus is reaching people at a great amount, so it wouldn’t surprise me if others contracted it as well.”
Others were worried about succeeding at distance learning for the remainder of the semester.
Joseph Flaz, freshman biomedical engineering major, mentioned that learning for his math and science classes online will be a challenge for him. “Having to learn all of this from home will be difficult, but it’s better than prolonging the spread of the virus around campus.”
“I’ve maintained my high GPA and I would like to keep it that way, but I have a fear that this new experience with remote learning could jeopardize it,” said Katerina Sopilidis, senior English literature major with a minor in childhood education. She wants Lehman to make it clear to professors to remain patient with their students during this pandemic.
Music department Chair Diana Mittler-Battiapaglia, told the Meridian that some courses such as music history and music theory, were able to convert to online learning. However, ensemble courses are seeing some difficulty.
“You can’t coordinate sounds coming from various sources even if we call a Zoom meeting; it’s not like everyone is in the same place,” she explained. “If I were to accompany them, it’s almost impossible to synchronize sounds.” This resulted in students in courses with vocals and instruments individually video chatting with their professors.
To address increased student precarity, on April 2 the CUNY Board of Trustees approved a flexible grading policy for spring 2020. All students have the option of converting all of their (A-F) letter grades to Credit/No Credit for their courses.
Road sign let drivers know Lehman's testing site is appointments-only. (Photo Credit: Perla Tolentino)
“I have a fear that this new experience with remote learning could jeopardize [my GPA].”
Lehman is also trying to provide adequate tech support for students who lack necessary resources. The college has received over 500 loan laptop applications for devices towards the beginning of April, according to Bazile. CUNY sent out 30,000 laptops for students in need to continue the semester. So far 200 new Lehman-purchased Chromebooks and about 23 iPads, loaned from Lehman’s Leonard Lief Library, have been sent out through UPS. An additional 200 new Chromebooks were expected to ship by April 4.
Bazile told the Meridian that essential staff from the IT, Student Affairs and Administration and Finance Departments gather in a large room, while practicing social distancing and wearing protective gear, to prepare each device before sending them to students.
Although students and faculty are not on campus for classes, an appointment-only drive through testing site was put in Lehman’s parking lot on March 23, which is still open for residents, and is providing 500 tests daily. The site is only accommodating appointments for people in their 50s, immunocompromised and displaying symptoms.
“As humans, we need to unite, help each other out and make sure we are all staying inside,” said Ahmad. “The best way to battle a virus without a current cure is to fight from home.”
Healthcare Workers Overwhelmed with COVID-19 Crisis
(Photo Credit: Pixabay)
By Denise Phillip
“The hysteria nurses are feeling stems from the guidelines constantly being changed by the CDC about the way COVID-19 is transmitted; we feel exposed,” said Vinessa Lee, a 5-year veteran Registered Nurse at NY Presbyterian Hospital who also tested positive for the virus. “First, they thought the virus was airborne and we needed the N95 respiratory mask. Then, they told us we didn’t need them. Now, they have us reusing our equipment because of shortages.”
(Photo Credit: Airman 1st class Taylor D. Slator)
New York City has become the epicenter of the pandemic, with 136,806 confirmed cases, 18,569 hospitalized, 3,120 in the ICU, and about 10,344 deaths, which represents 43 percent of confirmed cases in the United States as of April 20, according to the New York Times. NYC Mayor Bill de Blasio reiterated hispleas for the city’s need for more equipment, and medical workers echoed this demand.
“I’m stressed because we don’t have enough PPE (personal prevention equipment) to work with. Also, my unit is designated for all COVID-19 positive patients in the hospital. It’s a little scary,” said Lee.
“I have moments where I feel overwhelmed and felt myself getting emotional because of the people being admitted with COVID-19 and the feeling of being helpless,” said a Lehman student and Infection Prevention Liaison at New York Presbyterian Hospital who asked to remain anonymous about the stress of working on the front line during this pandemic.
The need is especially severe in the Bronx, which is home to more than 60 percent of New York City's very low-income residents and also leads in hospitalizations with 27,014, and 2,245 deaths, the New York Times reported. It noted that Bronx residents are twice as likely to succumb to COVID-19 and are dying at double the rate because of pre-existing health conditions linked to coronavirus complications, and a lack of access to healthcare.
Bronx’s Lincoln Medical and Mental Health reported having very few remaining ventilators for patients, while in Brooklyn, doctors at Kings County Hospital Center said supplies have gotten so scarce that they are reusing masks. Workers were setting up separate areas to manage COVID-19 patients, because of the overcrowded E.R. waiting rooms, according to CNN.
Nurses and doctors are not the only healthcare workers on the frontlines. Emergency Medical Technicians (EMT) and first responders are also the first line of defense during this pandemic, and also find themselves struggling for adequate protection.
(Photo Credit: Pixabay)
“We are being asked to sanitize and reuse our N95 masks that are meant to be used once,” Ashley DeJesus, a 3-year FDNY EMS worker, told the Meridian “We are running out of PPEs and are running into dire situations with less protection on. It’s honestly no secret that the entire healthcare system is currently in crisis mode, but we need more protective equipment.”
She also stated that during the month of March, 6,406 calls were made daily to 911 citywide, by people with COVID-19 related illnesses. “We are overwhelmed by the volume of people calling 911,” she said. “We want people to be mindful and only call us in life-threatening emergencies only because there are people that are severely ill and need our attention.”
The Fire Department of New York confirmed that more than 20 percent of the EMS workforce were out sick, according to CNN.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is sending 250 ambulances and 500 EMTs and paramedics to help the city contend the crush of calls to 911 during the pandemic, Mayor de Blasio’s office said in a press conference.
“It’s honestly no secret that the entire healthcare system is currently in crisis mode, but we need more protective equipment.”
To help with the demand for medical supplies, Lehman’s Biology and Chemistry Departments donated 165 N95 respirator masks, 50 pairs of slip-on medical shoe covers and boxes of latex gloves to Montefiore Medical Center, the University Hospital for Albert Einstein College of Medicine. Lehman’s high-quality nursing education programs are designed to train aspiring nurses to take the lead in health issues that impact both the local community and the world.
The school isn’t unscathed in the pandemic as they mourn the loss of Lehman alumni Freda Ocran, former head nurse of Jacobi Medical Center who worked on the front lines, and the stepfather of former nursing student Walkiris Cruz-Perez.
“We can take precautions to protect ourselves and healthcare officials by washing our hands and practicing social distancing, along with wearing a face covering when possible,” says Giovanni Rodriguez, a Lehman Nursing student.