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Borough President Vito Fossella slammed a proposal to construct affordable housing on CUNY campuses, including the College of Staten Island, which lacks parking, public transit access and the amenities and infrastructure needed to support living space.
A report issued by the Center for an Urban Future proposed using unused or open space on CUNY campuses to build affordable housing and urged the city to adopt this policy. The College of Staten Island is highlighted as one such school with enough available space to build “multiple five-acre developments.” An estimated 8,700 students have decals to park on the CSI campus, but there are only 2,600 parking spaces -- "and here comes this group that says let's make this problem worse." “We’re here today to say it’s a really bad and it’s a really dumb idea,” said Borough President Fossella at a press conference outside of CSI’s Victory Boulevard entrance. “It will hurt the students, it will hurt the faculty, it will just hurt the flow here. Let’s take away hundreds or who knows how many parking spots, which would only compromise the quality-of-life for the students and the faculty at the College of Staten Island." Jonathan R. Peters, a professor of finance and data analytics in CSI’s Lucille and Jay Chazanoff School of Business, called the Victory Boulevard entrance “traffic central on Staten Island" and "a very challenged corridor." “This really serves as the front door to the college,” said Professor Peters. “The reality of life here on the campus is we have a heavy dependency on autos. This is not Hunter College, where we have the 4/5/6 train at the corner of our building. Our students, our faculty, our staff rely on automobiles. It is very difficult to get to and from other areas of Staten Island to this campus. If transit was here and if we were seeing improvements, you’d have some ideas about what you could do further, but I would suggest that we think clearly about how it would function if this was actually done."  Borough President Vito Fossella, NYPD Borough Commander Assistant Chief Melissa Eger and District Attorney Michael McMahon addressed burglary patterns involving forced home invasions and the theft of high-end luxury vehicles and urged residents to take preventative measures.
Despite Staten Island recording a 14% decline in grand larceny autos thefts, a 69% decline in burglaries and an 8% decline in overall index crimes so far this year, a recent burglary pattern in Todt Hill and Dongan Hills, involving several forced home entries and thefts of personal vehicles, as well as an attempted grand larceny auto theft in Arden Heights, has raised the alarm among law enforcement officials and residents. The suspects have been dubbed the “Crowbar Crew” by law enforcement officials as they allegedly use crowbars to open windows to gain access to homes and vehicles with this current pattern taking place between Feb. 1 and Feb. 9. "Part of why we're here today is to remind the people of Staten Island to be vigilant and to take caution," said Borough President Fossella at a press conference outside of the 121st Precinct in Graniteville. “There are bad people on the streets. The effort and the goal are to get rid of them so that you can live in peace, but there are little pockets in Todt Hill and Dongan Hills, and more recently Arden Heights, where there are people looking to steal cars. We’re going to do everything we can to ensure it comes to a halt or is minimized as much as possible.” Borough Commander Eger said the NYPD has stepped up its patrols in the areas most impacted by the burglary pattern and has increased the number of unmarked cars, particularly overnight. Residents are urged to take precautions by ensuring they remove their keys from their vehicles, remaining with their vehicles when warming them up, keeping their windows closed and locking their vehicles upon exiting them. “The message here to Staten Island residents is be vigilant but at the same time, we know what’s going on, we’re doing everything we can to make sure we bring those people to justice so that you don’t have to wake up with a car out of your driveway,” said Borough President Fossella.  Borough President Vito Fossella visited the home of Linda and Bob Ollis after President Donald Trump called them with the news that he was awarding their son, Staff Sgt. Michael Ollis, with the Medal of Honor, the nation’s highest military decoration.
“If there ever was an American hero, a son of Staten Island, it was Michael Ollis,” said Borough President Fossella during his visit in a CBS interview. A graduate of the Petrides School, Staff Sgt. Ollis sacrificed his life while protecting a Polish soldier from a suicide bomber at their base in Afghanistan during Operation Enduring Freedom on Aug. 28, 2013. He was only 24. In the years since, his parents, elected officials and community leaders have advocated for his sacrifice to be officially recognized and honored at the national level. “SSG Ollis’ legacy is one of courage and selflessness,” said Borough President Fossella in applauding President Trump’s announcement. “With this honor, his sacrifice is immortalized forever as a tremendous example of the enduring American spirit, for many on Staten Island and across the country. To Robert and Linda Ollis, you and Michael deserve this moment many times over.” He was posthumously awarded the Purple Heart, the Silver Star, and the Bronze Star, as well as the Polish government's highest military award, the Polish Medal of Honor. Now, his parents can add the Medal of Honor to the display of awards in their son's childhood bedroom in New Dorp. "I am extremely proud, but very sad," said Bob Ollis in the CBS interview. "I'd rather have Michael than the medal." |