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New York City's Urban Affairs News Source City Limits
Monday, September 06, 2010
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Kelly Virella

City Limits Articles


Image of Kelly Virella Bio: Kelly Virella is deputy editor at City Limits. Prior to that, she was a staff reporter at The Chicago Reporter, a freelance writer and editor, and a member of Northwestern University's Academy for Alternative Journalism in 2007. Her work has appeared in the Chicago Reader, theSt. Petersburg Times, Urban Ecology, City Limits and AlterNet. She also authored a chapter in the book Prison Nation: The Warehousing of America's Poor.
Email: kelly@citylimits.org



Reading The Political Tea Leaves Of Harlem's State Senate Race

Will charter schools, the age difference between the candidates and Harlem's changing racial and income demographics determine the outcome of the race between Bill Perkins and Basil Smikle?

"Enemies" of Reform Question Koch's Agenda, Style

Some legislators labeled enemies of reform by the newly formed advocacy group New York Uprising are bristling over the categorization and writing letters or making phone calls to protest it.

HUD Listens To Housing Activists' PETRA Worries

Public housing advocates aiming to influence the direction of a seismic policy shift HUD proposed in May say they see some signs that the department is receptive to their recommendations.

Did Environmentalist Back Arizona's SB1070?

New York-based community groups have taken up a national campaign to fight Arizona's controversial anti-illegal immigration law by targeting a local foundation supporting environmental causes.

State Education Test Scores Take Nosedive

Elementary and middle school students statewide scored far worse this year on their annual state math and English exams. For New York City, it was the first year-to-year decline in at least four years.

City Begins Gowanus Canal Cleanup

The New York City Department of Environmental Protection reached its first milestone in its efforts to clean up the Gowanus Canal Monday, when it shut down for repairs the 100-year-old tunnel designed to aerate and deodorize the smelly, polluted waterway.

Schools Across State Face New Testing Hurdle

Schools and students struggling to meet New York State and federal educational standards will find the task more daunting this fall, when passing the state's annual math and reading tests will be more difficult.

Taking Attendance In Bloomberg Bid To Cut Truancy

The mayor's new task force enlists a battery of city agencies to combat chronic absenteeism. Some parents say they also want a seat at the table.

Some Bad Schools Get Good Grades

Armed with more authority, New York City's school principals are producing a mixed bag of results that a new report says the city isn't accurately assessing.

Vandals Deface LGBT Homeless Shelter For Youth

The attack came two days after a New York State Senate bill that would have outlawed discrimination against transgender and gender-bending people was defeated.

Homelessness Strikes More NYC Children

The recession pushed an alarming number of New York City families into homelessness in 2009, according to a new report.

Emergency Preparedness Goes Grassroots

Doctors, churches, businesses and other institutions in some community districts are working together to get prepared.

City Tightens Screws On Debt Collectors

Two new policies stand to help residents counter unlawful debt collection practices, but agencies that broke pre-existing laws rarely faced criminal charges.

New Path To Foreclosure -- Delinquent Water Bills

The City Council ponders how DEP can collect payments without leading homeowners to foreclosure.

After Arizona Immigration Law, Activists See Local Problem

Civil liberties groups are suing the federal government to get information on a program that makes local jails—including New York—part of the immigration enforcement network.

1,500 Protest Plans To Eliminate 16 NYC Public Day Care Centers

If enacted, the cuts would slash about 2,000 of New York's public day care slots. The city claims less families are using the service.

3 Reasons New Yorkers Ignore The Census

Many New Yorkers who haven't returned their census forms fear that doing so could cost them their apartments

Memo: City Hall Backs Charging Homeless

The Bloomberg administration has blamed state regulations for its move to charge rent in homeless shelters. But City Hall opposes efforts to overturn those rules.

Survey Says: You Trust Us

City Limits named one of New York's most trusted news sources

NYC Web World Regroups After FCC Defeat

A court ruling barring the FCC from regulating broadband has local organizations plotting how to give the agency new teeth.
New York Communities Take on Foreclosures

A commentary from Nation Magazine editor Katrina vanden Heuvel highlights the foreclosure problem in New York City.

Agencies Almost Always Have The Last Word

Courts have little power to overturn decisions by agency hearing officers — as two evicted public housing tenants recently learned.

New York's Recovery Is Stronger Than Nation's, But Still Uneven

New York City has weathered the recession far better than was feared during the financial crisis, but outside of Manhattan the view is often bleaker.

One Simple Path To A Degree

This article examines a proposal by a California state legislator that would require community colleges to provide students with a clear path on how to acquire their degree.

New Bronx Resource Guide for Family Caregivers

The Office of Community Health at Montefiore Medical Center has just released "Caring for Yourself While Caregiving," a new resource guide for Bronx-based family caregivers. Available in English and Spanish, the guide provides 32 pages of helpful, low-cost resources in six unique categories for people caring for an aging parent, spouse, partner, elderly relative, child with an illness or disability, or another person close to them. To order a copy, call (718) 920-6576 or email PCareSupport@montefiore.org.

100,000 Homes for 100,000 Vulnerable Americans

Invisiblepeople.tv's Mark Horvath posts the following article on the launch of the "100,000 Homes Campaign", organized by Common Ground.

Will The Gowanus Ever Be Cleaned Up

For nearly a year, residents, politicians, businesspeople and others battled over the EPA’s consideration of the 1.8-mile waterway for a Superfund listing.

Bronx Economic Czar Marlene Cintron Hits the Pavement To Encourage Investing In The Bronx

Marlene Cintron, President of the BOEDC, Helps Promote Owner Occupied Communities in The Bronx by Participating in Grand Concourse/Mosholu Art-Deco Co-op Trolley Tour and Sees a Bright Future For the Borough

Court Upholds Columbia Campus Expansion

Columbia University's use of eminent domain to build an additional campus in West Harlem is upheld by The New York State Court of Appeals

New York Looks to Board High Speed Rail

This article from the Gotham Gazette takes a look at the possibility for federal funding of high-speed rail initiatives that could connect New York City to other cities throughout the state.

Crown Heights Community Mediation Center

The Mediation Center is a unique neighborhood institution that works to improve community problem-solving, collaboration, and inter-group relations in Crown Heights, Brooklyn. Operating out of our storefront offices since 1998, the Mediation Center seeks innovative ways to promote community cohesion in our neighborhood, known for fragmentation. This includes providing residents with links to resources on issues like education, parenting, housing, and immigration; providing support to young people navigating the challenges of a community tainted by violence, drugs, and poverty; and galvanizing neighborhood, borough, and city stakeholders in order to improve the quality of life for all residents.

NY Convergence

NY Convergence, the only online news site exclusively covering digital media and tech industry developments throughout New York is now in beta. Content, updated throughout each day, is available via daily e-newsletter, Twitter, iPhone, Facebook, RSS and widget. Queries and feedback welcome:tips@nyconvergence.com.

The Bronx is Kickin'

A blog on soccer in New York City, and my time as a volunteer with South Bronx United.

nybefore6.com

A guide to daytime, weekday jazz and classical concerts and other cultural events in Manhattan.

Kenmore Hall Courier

A tenant blog for a Chelsea, NY S.R.O. This S.R.O. had a terrible reputation before new management took over; despite improvements, conditions are still far from ideal.

NYC You Are Here

Concert, Movie, and Book Reviews. Music and art Happenings around NYC.

Ditmas Park Blog

A blog about the neighborhood of Ditmas Park.

Hawthorne Street Blog

A blog about the neighborhood of Prospect Lefferts Gardens

Brooklynology

Brooklynology is one of the ways Brooklyn public Library's Brooklyn Collection shares the wealth of its collections with the public. It's a great place to announce new acquisitions and programs, follow up on an enthusiasm, or point out something we think is hilariously funny.

New York Herald

Arts, Culture, Dining, Neighborhood News centering around Williamsburg/Greenpoint.