LITTLE ITALY NEWS FEBRUARY 2010

www.littleitalytroy.org troylittleitaly@gmail.com
Troy Neighborhoods Action
Council
Little Italy was host to the January 27, 2010 Troy
Neighborhoods Action Council meeting. The
most important item on the agenda was a long
discussion about what can be done to address the
complex citywide problem of vacant buildings.
Input came from the Mayor, members of the City
Council, and members of several city neighborhood groups. A workgroup was created to discuss
and research the issue in more depth with the goal
of ultimately developing some recommendations
for Troy. If you are interested in participating in
the workgroup, please contact nick@triponline.
org.
On the subject of vacant buildings, a list of the 300
registered vacant buildings in the City of Troy as
of 1/27/10, (with their owners name and address
listed) was recently sent to neighborhood groups.
Over ten percent of the buildings on the list are
located in South Central (Ferry to Ida and River
to Havermans/Hill). Owners of the 39 buildings
in our neighborhood live in various parts of the
country - from Malibu, California to West Roxbury, Massachusetts. Vacant buildings on the registry include six on Fourth Street, five on First,
Third and Hill Street, four each on Fifth and Ida,
two on Second, Ferry, and Washington, and one
on Franklin Place, Washington Place, Jefferson
and St. Marys Avenue.
Of the 22 City-owned properties recently announced that are proposed for demolition, one is
in our neighborhood 1488 Fifth Avenue. The
demolitions with a price tag of over $500,000 will
be paid for with federal stimulus funds.
If you notice that a vacant building is unsafe, is not
secured, or is not on the registry (after being unoccupied for more than three months), you should
call the Citys Department of Code Enforcement
at 270-4584. Little Italy neighbors have noticed
several (possibly as many as six) that are not on
the list. The locations will be reported to Code Enforcement. This is sure to be a topic of continued
interest to neighborhood groups throughout the
city.
The next T-NAC meeting is scheduled for April
14, 2010. The location is yet to be determined.

TROY LITTLE ITALY

ADDS A BINGO NIGHT

Little Italy has added a BINGO game every other Monday night. Troy Little
Italy and St. Anthonys Catholic Church agreed to alternately sponser the
event in order to raise much needed funds for their civic and charitable
activitries. Little Itlays first Monday night bingo was well attended
with over 100 people coming to play. Troy Little Italy also conducts the
Sunday afternoon Bingo game at the same location wth doors opeing at
12pm and the games starting at 2pm. Youre invited to stop in and play
or volunteer in support of our weekly
community fundraiser. Much thanks
to Memeber in Charge Marion Field
for her leadership in this endeavor as
well as all the volunteers who donate
their time and energy. Call 518 2723260 for information. Doors open at
5pm and the games start at 7pm at
Bingo Green, in the Troy Atrium,
49 4th St., Troy NY.

Bingo Volunteer Carolyn Nolan and

Member in Charge Marion Field
working hard at Little Italy Bingo

grant for bike racks at the

Marketplace
Troy Little Italy hopes to be awarded a grant
which will pay $1,000. towards the purchase
of bicycle racks. The Capital District Transportaiton Authority (CDTA) announced the
program that has a submission deadline of
early March. We will be submitting an application requesting racks to be placed in front of
the gate to the MarketPlace and by the side of
the bocci courts on Hill St. Well be choosing
the design we want at our next regular meeting
on Wed., Feb. 17, 233 4th St. 7pm.
farmers market
Plans are underway for the 2010 season
ofthe Little Italy Farmers Market held at the
MarketPlace between Washington and Liberty Streets. This is the third season for the
Market and it will be better than ever. If you
are a vendor of fresh produce, baked goods,
eggs, dairy producets, cheese, poultry or
other homegrown or hand made goods and
want to vend, contact Jean Krueger, troyneighborhoodmkt@gmail.com, 581 272 4972.
South Central Troy Neighborhood Watch February Update
The last Neighborhood Watch Meeting was
held on Wednesday, January 20th at the Freihofers Race Headquarters. A general review
of neighborhood code issues was given by Officer Chris McDonald. There were 8 arrests in
the South Central Troy area out of a total of 28
for the whole city.
As discussed in the meeting, it is everyones
responsibility to call in concerns to the proper
city department. A major topic of concern this
month was garbage. Concerns ranged from
garbage not being placed out in a responsible
manner, garbage not being picked up by the
city and the dumping of garbage. If you have
concerns about garbage, please call DPW at
270-4579. As a result of that conversation,
Bill Chamberlin will be attending our next
meeting in February.
Our group has been given the green light to
distribute the crime maps for our area via the
sctroywatch@gmail.com list. If you know of
anyone not on the list, please ask them to send
us an email and they will be added. Our plan
is to distribute the monthly crime maps with
the agenda for each meeting so questions and
concerns can be brought to the meeting for
discussion.
If you see any suspicious, drug related activity, it needs to be reported to the hotline at
270-5004. All calls are anonymous. If you
want to receive regular updates through email

and get crime alerts, please send an email to

sctroywatch@gmail.com. The next Neighborhood Watch Meeting will be on February 17th
at 6:00 at the Freihofers Race Headquarters
at the corner of 4th and Washington. Bring
a friend

Fernanda Corina
Fernanda M. Corina, 91, passed away Thursday, January 14, 2010, at St. Marys Hospital
after a long illness. Born in Salida, Colorado,
she was the daughter of the late Carmine and
Assunta Lauretti Capua and wife of Settinio
Corina. Mrs. Corina was a homemaker and a
communicant of St. Marys Church in Troy.
Survivors, in addition to her husband Settinio, include her son, Angelo Corina of Troy;
two daughters, Gina Corina, active member
of Troy Little Italy, and Anna (Raymond)
Gardner of Poestenkill; five grandchildren;
two great-grandchildren, and a brother, Gaio
Capua of Italy. Fernanda was the mother of
the late Rocco Corina. The family requested
memorials for Fernanda be contributed to the
American Diabetes Association, 2 Pine West
Plaza, Albany N.Y. 12205.
Free Income Tax Preparation in
Little Italy
Free income tax preparation will be available
to families and individuals with a total income
less than $49,000 at the Italian Community
Center, starting on Wednesday, February 3 and
continuing through Thursday April 1. Income
tax preparers will be available by appointment
on the second floor of the ICC on Wednesday
afternoon from 12 to 5 PM, on Thursday evening from 6 to 8:30 PM, and on Saturday from
10 AM to 2 PM. There is an elevator to the
second floor making the service handicapped
accessible. Call 270-4689 for an appointment.
Federal and State Income Taxes will be prepared and filed electronically by our volunteers. This service is provided through the Volunteers for Income Tax Assistance program
(VITA) of the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).
It is sponsored by Troys Westside Waterfront
Weed & Seed program. All volunteers have
passed IRS examinations that certify them
as tax preparers. Since the returns are filed

electronically, refunds can be available within about a week using direct deposit to ones
bank account. Information will be available
about banking services, health care, and other
issues. Generally speaking, returns involving
business income that cannot be filed using
Schedule C-EZ, complex investments, or real
estate transactions cannot be handled because
they are beyond the scope of volunteer certification.
South Central/Little Italy in
the News
The Record, January 31, 2010, p1,4. Pfeils,
Flavour flourish downtown by Danielle Sanzone. Co-owners Charlie Staats and Joe Mancino recently celebrated the fifth anniversary of
business at their popular 228 Fourth Street cafe.
They and the Pfeils, owners of the Conservatory and recently opened hardware store are
among the successful downtown businesses.
The Evangelist, January 28, 2010, p17. CYO
basketball thrives in Diocese by Maureen
McGuinness. Currently there are 182 CYO
basketball teams in thee Albany Catholic
Diocese, under the direction of Ray Piscitelli, Executive Director of the CYO Center on
Fourth Street. Approximately 3,500 to 4,000
young people play on these teams. They learn
about respecting others, helping each other
and reinforces self-control and social skills.
The Record, January 24, 2010, p9, Drug bust
on First Street by Tom Caprood. Though the
site of the incident was just outside our neighborhood, the arrest of a drug dealer armed or
not is good news and was the result of good
police work. Particularly with the recent spate
of gun incidents, we are committed to making
it increasingly difficult for armed drug dealers
to function here, said Sgt. Buchanan. Our effort here is an illustration of that commitment.
The Record, January 24, 2010, p15, Supporting a Better Troy by Mike Esposito. Troy Trea-

Help Resources
Emergencies
911
Traffic Safety
270-5157
Non-Emergencies
270-4411
Downtown Station
270-4421
North Station
237-2398
South Station
273-1682
Community Police
270-4689
Special Operations
270-5854
Animal Control
270-4640
Tip Line, Anonymous 270-5004
Detective Unit
270-4426

sures column highlighting Troys neighborhood

associations and their combined achievements.
The Record, January 22, 2010, p2.
Five questions-Third Street resident Vince
Pellicano recently opened the River Street Pub
located on the corner of River and State Street
in the citys Antique District.
The BookCellar is getting a
make-over
The Friends of the Troy Public Library are
pleased to announce that our bookstore is included in the remodeling project planned for
the basement level of the main library which
begins in March. In addition to the construction of a much needed elevator for the building, staff offices and other areas on the lower
level are scheduled for rehabilitation. TheBookCellar will re-open once the project is
completed
Effective immediately, please note that the
BookCellar will not accept gifts or donations
of books or items older then one year until further notice. There will be no space available
for storage in the main building once the bookstore closes. In the meantime, The BookCellar
will remain open for the next two months, and
we will continue the very successful $2 A
BAG sale for all items books, videos, cassettes, records, and other items. We appreciate
your patronage and support and look forward
to the re-opening of the BookCellar this summer.
Supporting a Better Troy
By Mike Esposito
In an article entitled Why Neighborhoods?,
Kathy Madden, an official with the New York
City based non-profit organization, Project for
Public Spaces, reminds us that when it comes
to revitalizing communities, the importance of
the average citizen cannot be over-estimated.
Neighborhoods are the level where people interact most regularly and naturally and provide
a ready-made forum for tackling problems.
Neighbors with a sense of civic engagement
have a long history of organizing into groups
and being proactive in addressing quality of
life issues in our city. Several years ago while
doing research on neighborhood groups I
came across an interesting article in the July
22, 1920 Troy Times regarding the reestablishment of the Beman Park Association. The
groups first meeting was to have been held
in School 17, but due to the absence from
the city of the school janitor, the keys to the
building were unprocurable. Undaunted by
the situation, over 100 neighbors conducted
the meeting under the street arc light at Hutton and Sixteenth streets as organizers of the

group stood on the sewer cover with a table

borrowed from one of the neighbors. The
purpose of the organization was stated in the
first of nine planks: to conserve the physical
and moral interests of the section of the city
of Troy known as the Beman Park District
(defined at the time as Hoosick Street south to
Avenue B between 10th Street and Burdett).
Believing that which affects the welfare of
one in some degree affects the welfare of all
they united to make the district as nearly an
ideal neighborhood as possible and included
in their objectives a direct and sympathetic
interest to all community organizations in this
city, encouraging a spirit of fellowship to the
end that a Better Troy will result. The association, originally formed in 1905, was one
of the first of its kind established in the city.
Today, from the citys northern neighborhoods
in Lansingburgh and North Central to midcity and its adjacent downtown areas, into to
South Troy, on the East Side, and along the
Hill sections, our neighborhoods benefit directly from the important work that hundreds
of dedicated volunteers accomplish through
their participation as active members of several dozen neighborhood associations. The
combined achievements of the various groups
are impressive.
Troys neighborhood groups partner with city
government to improve parks and playgrounds,
assist with clean-ups in the alleys, at Burden
Pond, along the Poestenkill and Wynantskill
and at the gateways to the city. They organize
concerts, festivals, block parties, garage sales
and other events in public spaces from Powers Park in the Burgh to Little Italys MarketPlace. Several groups support Weed and
Seed and neighborhood watch programs, raise
funds for charitable organizations, support local businesses and help market their neighborhoods as great places to live, work and visit.
Some provide walking tours and home and
garden tours, represent their neighborhoods at
civic events, identify and promote local historic sites, sponsor voter registration drives and
organize Easter egg hunts, Halloween parties,
and Christmas celebrations. Their members
are more likely to provide input at public hearings on civic projects, engage in the dialogue
on civic matters or spark the revival of interest
in preservation of historic buildings. They are
often the catalyst for positive neighborhood
revitalization efforts, promote a sense of community and encourage and motivate residents
to get involved.
To create support for and synergies amongst
various neighborhood groups, the Troy Neighborhoods Action Council was organized in

February, 2007 by members of several Troy

neighborhood associations who agreed to
gather periodically to communicate with each
other, share ideas on how to improve their
neighborhoods, and cooperate on projects of
common concern. T-NAC members now number over two dozen neighborhood associations
and neighborhood watch groups representing
years of experience in organizing residents
and planning local events and activities to engage people in the life of their diverse neighborhoods. It successfully co-sponsors annual
events on the National Night Out Against
Crime, organizes a public information forum
which brings together candidates for public
office, and facilitates communication among
neighborhood groups through Troy Talk, an
online magazine issued by the Troy Rehabilitation and Improvement Project (TRIP) Inc.,
the organization which convenes T-NAC.
For more information about T-NAC, contact
Rocco DeFazio at rdefazio@nycap.rr.como or
TRIP at 272-8289 x214 or hilary@triponline.
org
kids yoga
Osgood resident Joely Johnson Mork spent the
first week of the new year earning a new yoga
teaching certification through the Manhattanbased group Karma Kids Yoga. The 4-day,
30+ hour training was very physical and fun,
and now Joely is ready to share yoga with kids
from toddlers to teens. Yoga teaches children
important skills including coordination, focus,
self-esteem, and mental discipline. Yoga can
also improve asthma and attention issues, and,
for the younger set, yoga really helps to shake
your sillies out. Look for classes soon. In the
meantime, if you are interested in private,
small group kids classes (up to 6 children) in
your home or other location, contact Joely at
jaycubed@earthlink.net.
TROY LITTLE ITALY ANNUAL
EVENTS
April - Stickball Tournament
May - City-wide Garage Sale
June- October - Weekly Little Italy
Farmers Market
June to September - Cinema under
the Stars
June - Flag Day Parade
July Drop in Center for young
adults
August National Night Out
September - Italian Community
Center Shrine Festa
September - International Day in
Little Italy
December - Victorian Stroll and
Christmas in Little Italy

Nonviolent Response to Public

Provocation
A Workshop with Geralyn McDowell and
Rosa House Volunteers, Saturday, February
6, 2010, 1- 4:30 pm at Rosa House, 2251 Old
Sixth Avenue, Troy. Pre-registration required.
Considering how to de-escalate conflicts while
in a supportive setting can help us to make better choices when conflict arises (and it will!).
In our stressed out, road-raged society we can
choose a safer, more gentle path, advocate for
win-win solutions ~ even influence others to
do the same.
In this concise, highly practical workshop we
present an introduction to the roots of conflict
and offer strategies to help you to respond
nonviolently in individual or group situations
of conflict. This workshop is suitable for those
beginning to explore nonviolence, for experienced practitioners and for everybody in

between. We will serve refreshments and

send you home with an information packet
to serve as a resource and a springboard for
further reflection, study and action. Spaces
are limited and pre-registration is required;
call Rosa House at (518) 272-1468 or email
rosahousenotes@yahoo.com. Your registration donation, payable when you arrive,
helps to support our work at Rosa House
Peace Community, Troy Catholic Worker.
Suggested donation is on a sliding scale: $25
- $10 or work exchange or nothing (no one is
ever turned away from our events for inability to pay). Call Rosa House between 10am
and 9pm, please with questions or to sign up.
valentines day
On February 14, around 270 A.D. a Roman
priest was beheaded for his belief in Christianity. This priest, whose name is Valentine,

6th Annual Homemade Wine Enthusiasts

Tasting and Competition
Accompanied by a Five Course Dinner and
Entertained by the Union College Jazz Trio

Saturday, March 13, 2010

Italian Community Center (Charitable Foundation)

1450 5th Avenue, Troy, NY

Judges:

Pat Casale (NYS Assemblyman)

Fred LeBrun (Times Union Columnist)
Roger Savoy (Hennessy Homebrew Emporium)
Michael LoPorto (Troy Councilman at Large, Celebrated Chef,
Proprietor LoPorto Restaurant)
Tickets: $40.00 per person.
For reservations or details regarding entry rules and registration form contact:

Bob (Rabbit) Riley 518-369-5141

or Dom Russomanno 518-766-7019
March 6, 2010 Registration Deadline - Get your tickets early!
Limited Seating - 200 people MAX

lived during the reign of Claudius the Goth. It

is uncertain as to why Valentine was imprisoned by Emperor Claudius. Some believe it
had to due with Valentine secretly marrying
couples, which was prohibited by the Emperor. Others suggest it had to due with Valentine
saving Christians from persecution. While he
was imprisoned Valentine miraculously cured
the jailers daughter who was blind. When people heard of this miracle they began to believe
in Christianity. Once the Emperor heard of
this event he had Valentine beheaded.
It wasnt until the late fifth century that Pope
Gelasius declared February 14, St. Valentines
Day. February 14 was one day before the Roman feast of Lupercalia, which is a pagan love
festival and it was the day that Valentine was
martyred. The Christian Church felt it would
be best to replace the Pagan celebration with a
Christian celebration and thus Valentines Day
became synonymous with Love.
It is said that prior to his death Valentine sent
a letter to the jailers daughter. The letter ended
with the words, From your Valentine.
Halt Old Yeller
Did you know you can opt out of receiving
a phonebook on your front steps every year?
Its quick and easy. Call 1800-YB-YELLOW and they will ask for your address.
Thats it! Keep unwanted phonebooks off
the sidewalks and out of the landfill.
flavour cafe and grill
celebrates!
Have you noticed the GIANT spinning 5s in
Flavour Cafes windows? Come and join Flavour as they celebrate their 5 YEAR ANNIVERSARY!!!! Thats a really big deal in these
tough times and we in Little Italy are so happy
for their success. Flavour is a very popular
place whether it is to grab a quick cup of coffee and pastry on the way to work, to convene
a business meeting or to sit down and enjoy
breakfast, lunch or dinner. Come and show
your support as Flavour launches the next 5
YEARS!
The LAST WEEKEND IN FEBRUARY,
that is Friday, Feb. 26th, and Sat., Feb 27th,
Flavour will have lots of specials!

Buy a $20 Gift Card Get $5 Free!

Select Sandwiches $5
Giveaways
Free Pyschic Readings
Live Entertainment.
Chance to win Free Coffee for a
Year.
99 Cent Small Coffee and more!!!!!

AT LIBERTY
The Saga of an Italo-American Family in
South Troy
by Frank LaPosta Visco
Book Two, Chapter 4: War Stories
Once FDR declared that the US was at war,
every Americans focus shifted. There are
always people opposed to war, but anti-war
protests subsided, German sympathizers were
stifled and if there ever was a unanimous national will, it came sharply into focus in late
1941.
Troys factories were dedicated to providing
our exponentially-growing military forces
with clothing and other materiel. Underage
boys pleaded with their parents to let them enlist. As men left their jobs to fight overseas,
women who werent already employed took
their places in factories, offices and the local
Watervliet Arsenal, which had been turning
out cannon since the War Between the States.
Women who were nurses, secretaries and language specialists were called into service.
The countrys national symbol, Troys own
Uncle Sam, was once again pointing at each
and every American, emphasizing the need for
personal involvement in the war effort.
For four years, from 1941 to 1945, boys and
some girls who were in high school one year
were in uniform the next forced into grownup roles, facing the horrors of war, yet writing
letters to their teachers, friends and families
that hid the facts and bolstered our hopes.
Of course, there was genuine fear and conscientious objection to war. I remember hearing
a story long after World War II ended, about a
young man -- not from Troy --who was determined not to be drafted. He was so fearful of
being shot by the enemy, that he shot himself
in the foot, only to discover that he was too
short to serve in the first place.
The story is apocryphal of course, because no
one was too short to serve. In fact, two of
Aunt Giovis boys, who lived upstairs over
Eddie and Esther Case and me, their baby son,
were just over 5 feet tall, and the Army found
important work for both of them.
Willie, known forever after to the family as
Smilin Jack, was recruited into the Army
Air Corps (later the US Air Force) as a tail
gunner. They had to be small there was
barely enough room in the tail of a bomber
for a man and a machine gun. But it was a
vital position, because once the planes took
off from their bases in England, and were over
German-occupied Europe, the tail gunners
life expectancy was something like seven
seconds. The Luftwaffe fighter planes would
attack from below and behind, as shrapnel
or flak filled the skies ahead of our planes,
protecting the industrial targets below.
Our Smilin Jack was given a small stuffed

creature, called a gremlin, by his beautiful little sister, Michelina known as Mike before he went overseas. He took it with him on
every flight, held on to it even when his plane
was shot down over the English Channel, and
brought it safely home and later, gave it to
his daughter. I remember hearing about other
things he and his fellow flight crew members
carried false identification papers, currency
and compact emergency rations necessary
for survival in case they were shot down and
survived after parachuting into enemy territory.
Anthony, who was known as Kokomo, or
Coke, from a popular comic strip of the
time, graduated high school a year after Willie. Although even on tiptoe he barely reached
5 feet, he became a jeep driver in Pattons
army. His legs were just long enough to reach
the pedals, and his diminutive size left more
room in the jeep for the mail he would deliver
from mobile headquarters to the GIs on the
front line.
Stories of amazing feats and heroic deeds mingled in the local newspaper with lists of dead,
wounded and missing soldiers from all over
the area. I still have a yellowing copy of a clipping about Coke when he was written up for
disobeying orders, and took off for the front
lines with Victory Mail from home for the

fighting men on the front line, in the middle

of a ferocious battle. Instead of being reprimanded, he was awarded a medal for bravery.
Vittorio, or Vic, another Case cousin fresh out
of high school, found himself, in the last year
of the war, slogging through Italy, pushing the
retreating German Army northward, where the
weary and mostly disillusioned enemy soldiers
were eager to survive and return to what was
left of their ravaged homeland. That didnt
make them any less dangerous, of course, and
incredible as it may seem, even today you
can see film from the US National archives,
on your home computer, of my cousins unit
rounding up German soldiers amid gunfire, as
they liberate a northern Italian town!
The video was found and uploaded to the website of a resident of the town, Cornuda, whose
main street has been renamed for the date of
the US liberation. There are plenty of grateful
Italians there, and no ugly Americans.
As I write down these family tales, and watch
that black and white film, I find it hard to believe that, back then, boys just out of high
school were forced to become men of such
strength and courage and resolve. No wonder
we owe them so much.
Next: In Book 2, Chapter 5: Life goes on.
Copyright 2010 Frank LaPosta Visco.

Little Italy Real Estate

FOR SALE
1 FAMILY
191 Second St.,$499,900, Karen, 892-1326.
261 Liberty St., $54,900, Harvey, 466-1303
164 Second St., $269,000 Michael, 813-6049
1023 Fifth Ave., $124,900, Cindy, 269-8278.
2 FAMILY
42 Ida St., $64,500, Patricia, 885-9121
198 Hill St., $118,500, James,857-5427.
MULTI UNITS
191-193 Second St. $849,000 Karen, 8921326
199 Fourth St., $99,900, Marion - 961-0590.

APARTMENTS FOR RENT

3rd floor, 3 bedroom, Living Room, Dining
Room, Kitchen $600./month, 1 months security, utilities not included, call 368-2516.
Upscale 1 Bedroom, bamboo and ceramic tile
throughout, central air, Dishwasher, built-in
micro-wave, jetted tub, separate shower washer/dryer combo. No pets or smokers.$800.00/
month, 1 months security, utilities not included
call 368-2516.
245 2nd Street, (Vicinity Washington Park)
Victorian brick row house, convenient to Sage,
library, downtown amenities. Smoke free
house. No dogs 3rd Floor - 1 br, lr, k, lg bath,

great light, good closet space. $625 (inc heat) +

security. Call 518/273-1692.
keeping it cool at the
little italy visitors center
Thanks to Ed and Michele Mack of Little Itlay
for donating the refrigerator to the Visitor Center. It was really needed and very much appreciated.
Drop into the Visitor Center to say hello,
43 Hill St. Call 518 326 0415 for hours.