Office of Borough President James P. Molinaro
Staten Island, New York
B.P. Molinaro: “New Graffiti Removal Truck And ‘Clean Team’ Van Ready To Roll!”
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. – In his ongoing initiative to maintain Staten Island as the “cleanest” and “greenest” Borough, Borough President James P. Molinaro today announced that his office has acquired a new graffiti removal truck and a new van for the Borough President’s “Clean Team.”
Both vehicles were surplus acquired from the Department of Citywide Administrative Services (DCAS). A 1998 GM flatbed diesel was converted into the Borough President’s new graffiti truck, and all equipment and supplies were transferred from the old vehicle to the new. The Borough President’s Office incurred no expense to have the new vehicle operational.
In addition, a 2004 14-passenger Ford van was acquired from DCAS for a new Borough President’s “Clean Team” vehicle. The surplus van had a broken windshield and roof damage, but with $2,600 in Borough President discretionary funds, the vehicle was repaired by Auto Pro Collision on Grasmere Avenue as good as new. The vehicle will replace a van that was on loan more than nine years from Atlantic Express, and will carry the Borough President’s “Clean Team,” comprised of Borough Hall staffers and Arthur Kill Correctional Facility inmates who are dispatched to clean up areas across the Island.
“We’re very fortunate to replace at little or no cost vehicles that were either on loan or no longer functional,” said Molinaro. “Now we’ve got new vehicles up and running, and my office’s Clean Up and Graffiti Removal Crew is once again ready to roll.”
Molinaro has made graffiti and litter removal a top priority of his administration, and recently co-chaired with City Councilman James Oddo a series of “Graffiti Summits” to find creative solutions to graffiti vandalism on Staten Island.
Residents requesting graffiti removal can contact the Borough President’s Help Line at (718) 816-2000 or Councilman Oddo’s Office at (718) 980-1017. The Borough President’s Office will record these complaints and put them on a list for clean-ups.
November 30, 2004