BRONX TIMES REPORTER, A 6 PRIL 12-18, 2019 BTR
No New Jails NYC held a community speak out to call for the closure of Rikers Island without
the construction of replacement jails, including one planned for the Bronx.
Photo by Aracelis Batista
HP sit-down discussion
held over Mott Haven jail
BY ALEX MITCHELL
A new front has opened in the war
against the city’s attempt to build a
26-story jail atop an NYPD tow pound
at 320 Concord Avenue in Mott Haven.
No New Jails, a citywide opponent
to Mayor de Blasio’s community
based jail initiative hosted an openair
discussion at Hunts Point’s community
center, The Point of 940 Garrison
Avenue on Sunday, April 7.
Except for a few city-executed
scoping sessions and meetings by
Community Board 1, this is one of
the fi rst public sit down discussions
about the jail, rather than previously
held protests.
The discussion focused around
the question, “What does safety mean
to you?,” regarding the south Bronx
community and its needs.
A spokesperson for No New Jails
said that the purpose of the meeting
and listening session was to raise
local awareness of what’s going on
with the city’s jail plan, criticizing
the city for a lack of information on
its proceedings.
Some residents called on the city
to do more to meet the ‘safety’ needs
of education, clean air and affordable
housing rather than investing $11 billion
into a jail facility that would end
up being an obtrusive skyscraper in
the south Bronx.
A panel of community speakers assembled
for the meeting, many sharing
experiences of what it was like to
have family members incarcerated.
The group has publicly supported
the closure of Rikers Island, but like
some Bronx elected offi cials and community
leaders No New Jails believes
that the Mott Haven jail is an inappropriate
alternative.
That same spokesperson explained
that 80 percent of Rikers inmates are
there pre-trail, noting that the group
focuses on bail reform as well.
“We need to do away with Rikers
but don’t stop there,” said Mott Haven
resident Myra Hernández,
She reiterated the organization’s
Marlene Nava Ramos led the community discussion.
Photo by Aracelis Batista
key talking points that the Bronx
should be focusing on living-wage
jobs, clean air, mental health, and
public health care over a new jail facility.
The group is also pushing to have
Rikers depopulated as an alternative
to adding new jails around the city.
Currently, the tow yard jail is in
the midst of a Uniform Land Use Review
Procedure along with three
other facilities citywide.
No New Jails is also pushing the
city to show more open transparency
and to encourage community voices
in opposition to be heard, the spokesperson
said.
Borough President Ruben Diaz, Jr.
has committed to doing everything
in his power to prevent the jail from
being built at that site while Arline
Parks, the CEO of Diego Beekman
Mutual Housing has threatened legal
action to block the city’s plan.