Al Ranieri loved his community and now a street in spencer estate will bear his name.
In a ceremony on Saturday, May 21, Assemblyman Michael Benedetto, Councilman Jimmy Vacca, and the family and friends of longtime attorney and civic leader Alfred Ranieri were on hand at the corner of Ampere and Stadium avenues to unveil a sign renaming the corner Alfred J. Ranieri Way.
The honor was approved by Community Board 10 and the City Council and signed into law in December by Mayor Bloomberg. Friends gathered to remember Ranieri, a former president of the New York City Tax Commission appointed by Mayor John Lindsay in 1973, as well as candidate for the state Assembly and borough president.
“I go back with Al Ranieri decades, to when he was president of the Eastchester Bay Homeowners in the 1970s, straight through his time with the Spencer Estate Civic Association,” Vacca said. “Al was always a dedicated and generous leader, and someone who cared deeply about his community. When you think Spencer Estate, you think Al Ranieri. Now his name will be visible for all to see for years to come.”
Before his passing in 2009, Ranieri became an officer and mainstay of the SECA and provided commentary as a columnist in the Bronx Times Reporter, said SECA president Al Carena.
Riana Ranieri, Al Ranieri’s daughter, said that it was fitting that the street was renamed in memory of her father on Armed Forces Day, as he was a proud veteran.
“If my dad is looking down today he would be happy to see his family and friends gathered together as they did so many times at the Knights of Columbus, Pelham Bay Park, OLA, or even George’s for coffee,” Riana Ranieri said. “When he realizes that they are renaming Ampere Avenue Alfred J. Ranieri Way he will be humbled, appreciative, and beyond honored. It is so appropriate that you chose Armed Forces Day for this wonderful ceremony, as he was truly proud of his community and the United State military where he served during World War II.”
Riana Ranieri also remembered her father as a lawyer, theater aficionado, and avid tennis player. He was also one of the first members of the Throggs Neck Community Players, where he was a mainstay and part of productions like ‘A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum,’ remembered Assemblyman Benedetto.
Ranieri was born on February, 17, 1924. His father John owned a grocery story on Zerega Avenue, where his mother Anna also worked. He attended James Monroe High School, and then served in the Navy in World War II in the Seabees.
He was admitted to the bar in 1949, after attending Long Island University and Brooklyn Law School. He was honored by the Bronx County Bar Association in 1999 for 50 years of outstanding professionalism. During his five decades in Spencer Estate, he served as president of the Eastchester Bay Homeowners Association, as well as interim president of the SECA.
