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I've had two diffferent tenures on SI--from 1968-77 as a boy through high school, then 1990-2005 starting a family, and can certainly report that the Island is much changed from the early days during which it was almost entirely Irish/Italian American, Catholic, and civil servant. There are numerous other ethnic enclaves--Mexican, Liberian, Korean, Russian, and Sri Lankan (the Island hosts the largest Sri Lankan expatriate community in the US).

Still, the old guard holds sway, primarily politically (the recent election of the Island's first African-American politician, Debi Rose, notwithstanding). That guard keeps the Island far more conservative and insular than the rest of the city (and it can be argued the ambiance attracts more conservative members of the other groups, too).

I moved out upon realizing that despite the changes, there is still a broad overcurrent of racism and anti-intellectualism left to linger. As a Jewish atheist married to a lapsed Italian Catholic agnostic raising an adopted Korean son, I found Queens more accepting of such familial mash-ups. ("What are you? Chinese?" "No, I was born in Korea". "Aw, that means you're Chinese". Actual schoolyard exchange--kid to adult.) While the Island may be much more like Queens in another generation, overall, it is still very much a place (to use my semi-famous lines, carried in the now defunct Staten Island Register many years ago) where the people are provinical and xenophobic, and can't spell or define either word, and where the local daily, the Advance, would, in the event of a major disaster, run a headline that read "Staten Islander, Thousands of Others Killed".

The BP , to a lesser extent, followed his old boss', Mr.Molinari's policy.It's a known fact that they were both sponsored and bought by the real estate industry and sold some of the most beautiful parks and forests to them.
The ugly strip malls with plastic flags along Hylan Blvd, many with boarded-up facades look like a depressed town from the 1930's.
The majority of mom and pop stores are gone because the BP is enamoured with the uniformed-looking (feel at home?) Walgreens and banks at every corner . On the other hand, for over half a million people, there is only ONE Barnes and Noble here .
There in only ONE Farmers' Market (45 minutes drive one way for me) open Saturday mornings, when the other borough have a dozen-to-50. When I wrote the BP about this a year ago, he responded that he will try to bring a Supermarket from NJ...! We have no Fairways, No Trader Joes, No Gourmet Garage and no fresh produce for reasonable price that ALL the other borough have! Talking about health and the high cancer rate here, you see what are the BP's priority.
This is an island and the waterways around are completely unexplored, except for the one ferry (again, a big hike by car if you don't live nearby).
What kind of planning and infrastructure is that, Mr. Molinaro???

I am a "native" Staten Islander, born and raised here. I feel the island offers much but many injustices stand in the way of true progress. There is the obvious racial divide-mentioned also by "Kmanzur" with the North and South shores. The constant over development takes away from the beauty and attraction of what makes the island special. The island suffers from townhouse over development and lacks true home ownership appeal or promise with long term investment value. There are parts of neighborhoods that are in serious deterioration where citizenship values are evidently deficient. Unfortunately as neighborhoods continue to enlarge, trash, debris, and regard for a clean and beautiful neighborhood becomes more difficult to sustain. I guess to sum up what I am feeling is lacking would be to say that the island is missing huge quality of life agendas. Poor communities suffer with many issues still not addressed with increase in violence, immigration issues, high unemployment rates, low quality of housing, traffic, health concerns (asthma and cancer rates), and the decrease in reliable public transportation with bus lines decreased in hours and routes. Over these past ten years the standards of quality of life has been largely overlooked in the North Sore especially.

I was born and raised on Staten Island and the one major changed I've noticed over the past ten years is EXTREME over development. I remember when my neighborhood was quiet and Richmond Ave was all trees. Now all you see are those awful townhouses, one on top of another. I moved to Dongan Hills last October, and the traffic and congestion on Hylan Blvd and Richmond Rd. makes it almost impossible to travel anywhere during the day. I understand the fact that people need some place to live, but at one point or another the BP Molinaro has to look at the bigger picture - this Island is TOO crowded and we need to stop building for a while. We need to let this Island breathe a bit!

It's also important to mention that when you live on the West Shore and you don't have a car, transportation is impossible. The bus from Victory Blvd. and Richmond Ave. takes over an hour and a half (sometimes two hours) to get to the ferry. I've noticed how much easier travelling is on the East Shore because of the SIRR. I don't understand why the tracks on the west shore cannot be revitalized and used.

One last major change I've noticed is within the school systems. When I was younger children had arts programs: Music, Art, Drama, etc. Nowadays, most schools have cut these programs, and it's a shame. There should be more money allocated into the school system out here because it is highly needed. Children should always come first!

The key issue for Staten Islanders is that the changes on the island have been far more traumatic than any section I have seen in the tri-state area.
Comparative to places outside the other boroughs the island has a metropolitan complexity and the main difference is not race but the timing and abrupt arrival of people coming into the island, frequently as groups.
There are swaths of townhouses where there were once trees alone.
Significant changes within the past 20 years.
The need for adaptations to these changes is the most significant issue, for those new or old hat.

It's true, many Staten Islanders are incredibly racist. I grew up in a house in New Dorp and knew of only 1 other person of color. I was called terrible names while growing up.

Still the South Shore is almost completely color-less and I'm sure the community wants to keep it like this.

**I've heard the Staten Island Expressway referred to as the Mason-Dixon Line. It divides the North (color) and South shores (no-color).

While it is true that there is a great deal of racism on many parts of Staten Island, it also has some of the most ethnically diverse neighborhoods in the city on North Shore. I live on the border of Tompkinsville and Stapleton and I literally can't tell you what the majority ethnic group is here.

I have lived on the North Shore now for over 40 years coming from Manhattan before the bridge was built. I used to be active in local politics and found Staten Island to be completely backward and corrupt. In the 50's there were five railroad lines and only one has survived on the very white side of the island. I heard out Borough President speak and was pretty outraged. He has done nothing to help transportation issues even though he admits that this is the most serious problem. Monies have been spent for huge concrete fishing piers while here on the north shore where the most diverse population lives the transportation is horrible and we have just lost some bus lines. The roads on this side of the island are awful and driving your car here is a threat to your suspension. Real Estate developers here have raped this island for the last 40 years. The ferry terminal is not more pleasant. There used to be stores in both terminals and a large comfortable wooden benchs. Now the rentals are too expensive for any small stores such as the she repair shop which had been in the old terminal for 20 years before the "renovation" of the terminal. It's now a large cold area with bleak glass walls. I don't know how much was spent for a giant aquarium which was supposed to enliven the area and had to be finally removed as the upkeep was impossible. Money was wasted on a giant steel arch while the terminal became more and more austere. Staten Islanders are hostile to newcomers (anyone not born on Staten Island) but it was the old Staten Islanders who colluded with real estate agents and were instrumental in erecting the thousands of shoddy town houses which are already crumbling. I love Staten Island but all the amenities are for the rich. In areas where the rich live there is no parking on the streets even though they are public streets. Less than a half mile away small streets on lower middle class residents are overparked and you can hardly get down the street the cars are so thick. We are now stuck with hundreds of half completed construction because these real estate rapers have run out of money. I hate to say it but some of the characters on that stupid show Jersey Girls really do reflect a large part of Staten Island culture. Our lovely Cromwell Center which used to provide art, exercise and music program has just crumbled because it was allowed to deteriorate and the bid to demolish it or renovate it was given in a strange bidding process in the parking lot to a company who had been indicted and fined for fraud in the past. There was an outrage and the bidding was determined to illegal but this is typical of Staten Island. I was hoping for change as the island is very beautiful but I have seen nothing but more corruption which is mostly from the old real estate owners not the invaders from other boroughs.

Muslims on the Island with the Muslim American society (MAS) and supporters will hold a Press Conference at 11 a.m. tomorrow re the Midland Beach Mosque. Borough Hall-Richmond Terrace Side-Across from Ferry Terminal.

It's the big yards and open spaces, that everybody for good reason likes, that are a big reason for the traffic congestion. The denser the boro becomes the better the transit will become. But there will definitely be some lag time

re: the growing diversity

I live on the North Shore, in the Silver Lake area Jenna is correct in some respects...but where I live, it seems so much more relaxed then it used to be.

The South Shore..Midland Beach...quite obviously still has a high degree of racism. BUT...there are less apparent offshoots of racial hatred. On the North Shore, Mexican immigrants are victimized occasionally by whites, but quite a bit by other Ltinos and blacks. as for the anti- Muslim fanaticism...complete ignorance seems to fuel that energy.

Talk about the CANCER numbers. cancer is out of control on Staten Island. https://apps.nyhealth.gov/statistics/cancer/environmental_facilities/mapping/map/

huge cancer numbers. according to map a few superfund sites.

I moved off Staten Island because of the lack of public transportation, etc.

Why isn't the Verrazano Bridge FREE for Staten Islanders?!?! (It is @5.50 (w/tag) or $11.00! That is crazy!-My Ezpass bill was $130+ a month just to go to Brooklyn.)

Now there are fewer Express buses & the cost keeps increasing. It's now $5.50 each way.

The commute takes at least an hour to Manhattan! ***WHY aren't HOV lanes open more than just a few hours a day on BQE/SI Expressway???

Also, what happened to extending the subway? Can't we extend the 'R' train from Bay Ridge?

It is horrible.

I moved here from Park Slope Six years ago after the parking became unbearable. For the price of a Park Slope one bedroom co-op, I bought a three bedroom carriage house that was part of the Underground Railroad from 1859 with 3/4 acre of land and a stream. For me, its perfect. A slice of nature and close to Manhattan and Brooklyn.
The potential here is enormous, but it has been a failed Urban experiment in overdevelopment by greedy contractors with no respect for the environment, the community or blending in with existing landscapes. With all due respect to Mr. Molinaro, his building codes are too little, too late.

Still full of racists....now hating Asians!

Brian it's shhh - OWW - lynn...

Brian,

Wu-Tang's 'Shaolin' is pronounced "Show" (rhymes with chow)-lin, not "shay"-o-lin.

Brian,

Wu-Tang's 'Shaolin' is pronounced "Show" (rhymes with chow)-lin, not "shay"-o-lin.

For musicians, don't forget Galt McDermot, composer of Hair, and Vernon Reid of the band - Living Colour

Isn't the problem that Staten Island (and all suburban sprawls) faces is the resistance to making room for more transportation and pedestrian space? It is pretty easy to fix this problem; Condense housing lot sizes, build more local centralized commerce. And bring in rapid buses, streetcars, and light rails and more bike lanes. New urbanism!

I was born on SI in 1947, and grew up in the Bulls Head/Granitville area. My parents, Dad 91 and Mom 89, still live in the house they bought in 1951. I escaped to New Jersey, but visit every Sunday. My parents Cape Cod development was surrounded by farms, one of which is now the SI Expressway. Cape Cod houses have been knocked down and two or three occupant town houses were built on the 50X100 lots. I’m on the Planning Board in my NJ town, and we would never allow the wild development that goes on Staten Island. It’s the wild west in New York. The over development causes heavy traffic, and other urban problems. The one redeeming factor: Denino’s!

The North shore, my area is more urban, liberal, and diverse than the south shore, with plenty of cultural locations. I am quite certain the first waves of gentrification today have reached the north shore. The south shore on the other hand is very homogeneous, and filled with townhouses and mcmansions, devoid of proper planning

Wasn't the John Carpenter documentary, "Escape from New York" filmed in Staten Island :)

The majority of Staten Island's 30 and 40 somethings have moved to New Jersey. A whole generation of native or near-native Staten Islanders nearly disappeared from island life.

WAY too many "boutique bank" branches and drug-store chain outlets. WAY too few real grocery stores.

And as with the rest of the city during the last decade, it's all about *appearances*, not actual WORKING services. Case in point: the new SI Ferry terminal. Exactly how were the contracts for maintenance of the escalators & elevators; were the seats really so expensive that is was cheaper to install the useless fish-tanks instead of providing seats now that there are more cancellations? And why aren't no-smoking laws enforced for the inside parts of the bus-ramps?

May want to pass on asking the BP about the hospital/healthcare issue on Staten Island since his son is a surgeon for the North Shore LIJ affiliate - SIUH

Traffic, traffic, traffic! Although the HOV lane is helpful when leaving SI, but there's no relief coming into the island (especially after the changes which make most of the lower level lanes exit and not enter the expressway, which creates crowding on the upper level). Something needs to be done! Perhaps more lanes can be added from the west direction when there's traffic going east (and the other way around when there is traffic in the reverse direction). Leaving traffic aside, overbuilding is seen in every neighborhood. On my street alone, about 6-7 new oversized, huge McMansions have been built in the last 5-6 years. Our neighbor has no front yard and so most of the time his kids are playing on the street or even worse in our driveway. Which I guess deficits the purpose of such a huge house, since the kids need a place to play outside.
The increasing population on the island is definitely seen everywhere, streets, stores, etc.
Putting all of these things aside, I still enjoy living on Staten Island. It's so close to Manhattan but provides the peace and serenity that I crave after a long and hard work day.

The Fresh Kills Landfill is closed!

I almost forgot. The left on the split second of a green light is now semi-official on the island. Even squad cars do it! You now have to expect it or make sure your insurance is current.

The population explosion continues on Staten Island accompanied by two hospital closings and many other quality of life issues (traffic is just one). Politicians for whatever reasons are not working toward resolving . For the Year 2000 the population was about 444 thousand, it is now approaching 500 thousand with just 3 hospitals two of which are controlled by the North Shore LIJ system. Perhaps they control the political system and why Staten Island has no NYC Health and Hospitals hospital located on Staten Island?

I lived on the North Shore from 2000-2007, and worked on the island until last fall. The most noticable change to me is the (over-)development. A really prominent example is "The Point," a large apartment building at the intersection of Victory and Bay Streets. Whenever I would pass it going to the ferry, it was obviously less than 10% full (you could tell from the number of lit-up apartments in the evening).

The North-shore has become more diverse as the surprising migration of hip straight and gay couples continues. Potholes are growing more prevalent and deep. Port Richmond has half its storefronts shuttered in this economy. The wooded vacant space and lot of the North-shore have been replaced by a vacant series of foundations or attached housing all of which resembles all others produced in the decade.