On July 22, Yonkers resident James Nolan, whose brother Michael Nolan was shot and killed by gun violence, posted the following on Facebook: “Earlier today 10-15 gunshots let out on McLean Ave and NOT one Westchester County Legislator mentioned anything about it. Violence will continue to rise…Even though it wasn’t my district it’s literally a couple of miles away.”
The shots were heard by others in Yonkers on the same day, at the corner of McLean Avenue and Sterling Avenue. Nolan, who is running for County Legislator in the 15th District, is highlighting public safety issues, and gun violence is one of the bigger issues in Yonkers.
On July 21, before a visit to Yonkers by Lt. Governor Kathy Hochul to discuss the issue of gun violence, Yonkers Mayor Mike Spano tweeted out that Lt. Gov Hochul “comes to Yonkes with little to offer.”
Mayor Spano later deleted the tweet, but the message was clear: The people of Yonkers are looking for help to deal with the ever escalating problem of gun violence, especially among younger teenagers. While the Spano’s are usually more politically calm and calculating, the Yonkers residents we spoke to applauded the Mayor for speaking out.
Lt. Governor Kathy Hochul visited the Yonkers Riverfront Library, where she met with City Councilmembers John Rubbo and Tasha Diaz, and with community leaders including Dr. Jim Bostic from the Nepperhan Community Center.
Lt. Governor Hochul was in Yonkers, during a tour of areas in New York that have been negatively impacted by gun violence. On July 6, Governor Andrew Cuomo declared a State Wide Disaster Emergency due to gun violence.
The declaration includes the statistics that since January 2021, gun violence is up 48% in New York City, 22% in Albany, 88% in Buffalo and 95% in Rochester; and at least 50% of homicides and 55% of nonfatal shootings involve people associated with gangs or more loosely-affiliated “street groups.”
“What we need to do, and the governor mentioned that, is treat this like our response to the pandemic with intensity, with strong sense of purpose,” said Hochul while in Yonkers.
The state is tackling gun violence by pinpointing cluster zones, and identified zip codes in Yonkers and Mt. Vernon that have been hardest hit by gun violence, and providing jobs for young adults age 15-24, and also to fund summer programs and violence interveners to work in these communities.
“We believe if we have a targeted approach to let them know there are jobs available or healthy summer recreation sporting activities to give them an alternative to the streets and give them an alternative to violence,” says Hochul.
Yonkers will receive $130,000 for zip codes- 10701, 10703, 10704, 10705 and 10710. Mt. Vernon received $50,000 for 10550 and 10552.
Yonkers Councilwoman Tasha Diaz, echoing some of Mayor Spano’s concerns said “The lieutenant governor has assured us that we will come back and meet here at another roundtable to make sure the initiative that we are putting into place are going to be effective.”
Mayor Spano’s Communications Director Christina Gilmartin emailed the Journal News about the Mayor’s deleted tweet. “The rise in gun violence has been a concern of ours for over a year. Yonkers is on the front lines and looks for immediate resources to tackle the problem. The City has been reassured by the State that it will work collaboratively with us to combat the violence that is plaguing urban centers throughout New York.”
