BEDFORD-STUYVESANT — A congressman is calling on the New York City Housing Authority to rename a community center in memory of the two NYPD officers killed near the Tompkins Houses last December.
Rep. Hakeem Jeffries sent a letter to NYCHA Chairwoman Shola Olatoye this week requesting that the Tompkins Community Center be named in honor of Dets. Rafael Ramos and Wenjian Liu.
“This horrific incident shocked the conscience of the nation. New York Police Department officers risk their lives every day to make our communities safe,” Jeffries wrote.
“Renaming the Tompkins Community Center to coincide with the one-year anniversary of the tragic assassination of Detectives Ramos and Liu will respectfully pay homage to the ultimate sacrifice they made in defense of the Bedford-Stuyvesant community.”
The pair were gunned down a block away from the Park Avenue center as they sat in their patrol car near the intersection of Myrtle and Tompkins avenues on Dec. 20.
Gunman Ismaaiyl Brinsley fatally shot himself soon after at a nearby subway station.
Two Brooklyn streets have already been co-named after Liu and Ramos.
Renaming a NYCHA property is a decision that would be made by NYCHA's board, according an agency spokesman. It would involve input from residents in the community.
The agency will work with the congressman and locals to bring the proposal to the board’s attention, officials added.
“Renaming the Tompkins Community Center in memory of Detectives Liu and Ramos would be a fitting tribute to their dedicated work,” the spokesman said.
