County Committee Member Sara George The West Harlem Progressive Democratic Club is sad to announce the passing of one of our longtime members, the former County Committee Member Ms. Sara George. Ms. George's indomitable spirit, no-nonsense attitude, and and love of a good party will be sorely missed by the Club. Her contributions to our community and her involvement in the civic life of the neighborhood were a testament to her spirit. She was a cooperator and fixture of the community of 626 Riverside Drive, her home of many years, and she will be missed. We will have more information on a memorial if and when it becomes available. Funeral Arrangements The funeral will be at Bentas Funeral Parlor, 141 Street on St.Nicholas Avenue; Monday, Oct. 19, 2020. The viewing is between 10-11am, funeral service is between 11-12pm and the driving to the Evergreen Cemetery is between 12-2pm. There will be no Repast due to the virus.  Continue reading

**If you need help registering to vote, getting an absentee ballot, voting early, or would like to be a paid poll worker, email [email protected]** Thank you everyone who came out yesterday to our Voter registration/Census Tabling with Senator Robert Jackson! We had an incredible turn out of community members. It was great to have Gale A. Brewer, our Manhattan Borough President come out and support!  WHPDC County Committee Members and the ABC2Vote (Absentee Ballot Committee to Vote), helps our neighbors fill out the Census, Register to Vote, Apply for Absentee Ballots, ad make plans for Early Voting, all while avoiding the U.S. Postal Service. Please tell your friends, family, and neighbors to register to vote by October 9th and complete the Census by October 31st! You can fill out the Census at my2020census.gov or by calling 1-844-330-2020 or in Spanish 1-844-463-2020

If you've strolled along West 134th street in the past week, you probably noticed some beautiful artwork -- along with flowers and clean streets, part of a beautification effort that the West Harlem Progressive Democratic Club is proud to have taken part in. Continue reading

Here in New York City, we have an elected official called the Public Advocate, whose job is to act as ombudsperson for New Yorkers. Their goal is to represent the needs of everyday New Yorkers and ensure the city government within the city government. Our previous Public Advocate, Leticia James, was elected as the state's Attorney General in late 2018, so there will be special election to fill the role in February. (You can read more about the Public Advocate's office on the NYC.gov website.) Continue reading

Every holiday season, the West Harlem Dems are proud to help spread joy by teaming up with local organizations to sponsor toy drives. This year, we gathered toys along with Uptown Inner City League and Columbia University (not to mention collecting toys at our own holiday party). Today, District Leader Corey Ortega, joined by Senator Brian A. Benjamin and Assemblywoman Inez Dickens, as well as other club members, handed out toys to West Harlem families at Antioch Church. All told, we were able to help gather almost 550 toys to donate to children in West Harlem! Continue reading

BY: THE EXECUTIVE BOARD Through generous donations from the offices of Governor Cuomo, Lieutenant Governor Kathy Hochul, State Senator Brian Benjamin, and Assembly Woman Inez Dickens, the West Harlem Dems were able to spread thanksgiving cheer throughout their district. District Leader Corey Ortega and West Harlem Dems VP Gricel Ortiz-Thompson distributed delicious turkeys to residents from NYCHA buildings, rehab buildings, mixed income buildings, nearby churches and community centers, in addition to the St. Nicholas/Convent Ave area (Scrilla Hill). Continue reading

BY: THE EXECUTIVE BOARD This year WHPDC Vice President Gricel Ortiz-Thompson, dedicated many hours to attend City Council Member Mark Levine’s annual Neighborhood Assemblies and subsequently serve as a Budget Delegate for Participatory Budgeting in Council District 7. In total approximately 92 project proposal ideas affecting a wide range of community resources including parks/recreation, schools, playgrounds, sanitation, libraries, transportation, and housing were collected. Continue reading

BY: THE EXECUTIVE BOARD This past year West Harlem’s very own 509 W 134th St was cited as the building with the most heating related violations in NYC. On May 21, 2018, District Leader Corey Ortega and 500-527 W 134th St Block Association President Maria Velez joined Councilmembers Mark Levine, Ritchie Torres, Robert E. Cornegy Jr, and Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams at a press conference in front of this building. The purpose of the press conference was to announce new legislation spearheaded by Council Member Torres that would require HPD to identify the 150 buildings in the city with the highest ratio of hazardous heat violations to units and require landlords in these buildings to install heat sensors in each apartment free of cost to the tenant. Continue reading

BY: MATTHEW LEVY Before petitioning season begins, Civil Court Judge hopefuls undergo a rigorous screening process with their respective political parties in order to ensure the most qualified candidate is put forth for petitioning and potential election. In anticipation of the County-wide Civil Court Judge endorsement vote by the New York County Democratic Party Executive Board, I, WHPDC Judiciary Chair Matthew Levy, met with candidates to discuss their legal experiences.   Continue reading

BY: DIVYA NAIR In January we, County Committee Members Joyce McMillan, Leah Deleon, and Divya Nair, and DL Ortega held a Town Hall meeting to bring community members of the 500-527 block of W 134th St together and hear the attendee’s concerns and wishes. Today, Saturday, April 28, 2018, we reconvened with the community members and DL Ortega to appoint block association leadership and prioritize the issues raised at the Town Hall in order to work systematically towards achieving solutions. In the coming months, the executive board of the 500-527 W 134th St Block Association will be organizing a block clean-up party, instituting a noise curfew to ensure community members can relax at home and get a good night’s sleep, as well as putting up signs reminding dog owners to clean up after their pets in order to keep the block clean. Continue reading