Wakefield Taxpayers & Civic League, Inc.

Community Involvement

Feb 08, 2005

By: Mary V. Lauro

Every now and then someone calls wanting to know how to get involved in the community. The questions usually are: How does one get to know what is going on? How does one know about meetings? What can be done?

Generally the three most likely places to learn what is going on in the community are the local taxpayer organization, the community board and the precinct council.

Here in Wakefield, of course, there's us. Our League which was founded in 1913 and incorporated in 1931 meets at the Knights of Columbus Hall, 4395 Byron Avenue (between East 237th Street and Nereid Avenue) at 8 p.m. on the third Thursday of February, April, June, September, and November. The executive committee meets monthly and committees meet continuously as needed.

The general meetings feature a speaker, usually an elected official who reports on what he or she has been doing or what is going on at the city council or in Albany. Besides the speaker, other elected officials either come or send representatives. An officer from the 47th Precinct is also present.

At the meeting the concerns of the community are discussed generally in the form of reports of action taken and accomplishments, if any. Members are encouraged to voice their concerns and are guided in a course of action. When necessary, the League intervenes in members' problems.

All members are encouraged to join a committee of their choice. In particular, the League recommends joining the Wakefield Civilian Patrol or to become active in the Safe Way/Safe Home child safety program which the League administers in conjunction with the 47 Precinct.

Through active membership, one becomes familiar with the key players in the community and the city.

To be placed on the mailing list, or for more information, call (718) 324-8564. Leave a message. Your call will be returned.

The community board is the local town hall. It consists of people (between 30 and 50) who have been appointed by the Borough President. They are unpaid. However, they hire a District Manager and other staff who are available from 9-5 Monday through Friday. Any complaints on street repair, youth problems, crime - just about anything one would complain to the city about can be brought to the community board any day of the week.

Community boards hold general meetings once a month. The meetings are open to the public. They are very informative. Elected officials either attend themselves or send representatives. Most boards provide a time during their meeting for members in the audience to express their concerns. While boards have extremely limited authority to act, they do provide a forum in which community concerns are made public.

Wakefield is in Community Board District 12 which is located at 4101 White Plains Road (near East 229th Street). The general meeting is held at 7:30 p.m. on the fourth Thursday of the month except during July and August.

Community boards operate through a committee system. One does not have to be a board member in order to join a committee: public safety, sanitation, youth, housing, health, etc..

For further information Call CB 12 at (718) 881-4455.

The Precinct Community Council is the place to go to learn what is happening in regard to crime, police and related subjects. In our community, it is the 47th Precinct Community Council. It meets the second Wednesday of the month at 8 p.m. (except during July and August) at a different location around the community so that each neighborhood will have an opportunity to have a meeting close by.

The captain of the precinct is generally present at Council meetings as are Community Affairs and other key officers of the precinct. The captain and his staff take questions and complaints from the floor and address the issues presented.

The 47th Precinct Community Council presents an interesting speaker on some issue regarding crime or law. Elected officials or their representatives also attend these meetings.

For more information on the Council, call the Precinct's Community Affairs office (718) 920-1202.

Finally, we recommend that individuals interested in the community keep abreast of what is happening in the Bronx, city, state and nation because Wakefield is affected by the national deficit, by the state's spending patterns, by the city's fiscal crisis and by the Bronx's economic viability.