Office of Borough President James P. Molinaro
Staten Island, New York
B.P. Molinaro, Councilman Oddo and DEP Announce Completion of ULURP Application for South Beach Phase of Mid-Island Bluebelt
Aerial view south of Hylan Blvd. between Slater and Graham Ave.
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. – Borough President James P. Molinaro, Councilman James S. Oddo, and The New York City Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) today announced that the DEP have filed the application for the ULURP process for the second phase of the Mid-Island Bluebelt Project, involving 35 acres of property within a South Beach watershed of several hundred acres.
The filing of this second ULURP means that the DEP is a step closer to acquiring private property needed to create a Bluebelt system within the wetlands. The ULURP may take 6 months or so to be certified. Significantly, the step of filing the ULURP application allows the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) the regulatory grounds to deny permits for development near the wetlands – a crucial protection given the fact that the DEC moratorium on permits is about to expire on December 31, 2004, after two extensions.
“I am pleased that the Mid-Island Bluebelt second phase has reached a major milestone,” Borough President Molinaro said. “This means that within a year the City can move forward with the appropriate acquisition steps for the properties needed for the Bluebelt areas in South Beach. Thereafter we can ensure that the community is better protected from flooding and overdevelopment near the wetlands.”
Councilman James Oddo said, “This is a crucial step in ensuring the success of this vital project that Borough President Molinaro and I have worked so hard to bring about. The residents of the Mid-Island are one step closer to the long awaited relief from flooding.”
Both Councilman Oddo and Borough President Molinaro warned that the State DEC moratorium on issuing permits expires on December 31, 2004. Once the moratorium expires there will be an anticipated wave of permits issued by the DEC allowing certain kinds of development in the areas nearby the wetlands.
“We are racing the clock to preserve enough land to make the Bluebelt system work,” Molinaro said. “I want to commend Mayor Michael Bloomberg, the New York City DEP, and the New York State DEC for their leadership and hard work in making the Bluebelt a fast-tracked major priority for Staten Island.”
Borough President Molinaro and Councilman Oddo held a meeting with DEC and DEP last month to strategize on how to expedite the study and approval process for the third and final phase of the Bluebelt which affects Oakwood Beach.
The first phase, the New Creek Bluebelt in Ocean Breeze and Midland Beach, is the farthest along, having passed the ULURP process and begun the acquisition of property.
Photo by Vinnie Amesse - November 18, 2004