On Friday, April 27th, Borough President James S. Oddo joined with Dennis Gonzalez, Acting Regional Director of the US Department of Health and Human Services, and representatives from NYPD and the recovery community outside the 122nd Precinct to announce the National Prescription Drug Take Back Day locations on Staten Island. National Prescription Drug Take Back Day took place on Saturday, April 28th.
 
“Staten Island is doing everything imaginable to push back against this epidemic, and I am proud to see that,” said BP Oddo. “We are doing lots of great things here, but we still need help. We need everyone to come together, law enforcement, the recovery community, elected officials, and especially the federal government.”
 
"In New York, every week, 70 people die due to a drug-related overdose," said Dennis Gonzalez. "It has to start with us, as individuals, in our homes. One way to do that is by cleaning out our medicine cabinets."
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Chris Pancini, a former addict and recovery advocate, noted, "Through my experience of drug addiction, and the hardships of my life, this is near and dear to my heart. I know for myself that experimenting at 13 years old brought me to a really hard bottom. The first pill that I took could be removed from your medicine cabinet tonight."
 
If you missed National Prescription Drug Take Back Day, you can drop off unwanted prescription medications at the following locations throughout the year:
 

• NYPD 120th Precinct, 78 Richmond Terrace
• NYPD 122nd Precinct, 2320 Hylan Boulevard
• NYPD 123rd Precinct, 116 Main Street
• Delco Drugs, 3833 Richmond Avenue
• Super Health Pharmacy, 6400 Amboy Road
• Ocean Breeze Pharmacy, 1817 Hylan Blvd
• Randal Manor Pharmacy, 395 Forest Avenue

On Thursday, April 26th, Borough President James S. Oddo attended the groundbreaking for the reconstruction of the cross-country running trail at Clove Lakes Park with NYC Parks Staten Island Borough Commissioner Lynda Ricciardone and Assemblyman Michael Cusick.
 
The reconstruction for the state-of-the-art trail will include improvements to drainage, improvements to surface material and edging. Additions also include distance markers as well as a new start/finish line.
 
“We want Staten Islanders to have top of the line amenities, and that is what they will get with the reconstruction of these trails,” said BP Oddo. “The running community in this borough is active, engaged, and an integral part of Staten Island. When this work is completed, I hope to see Islanders of all ages taking advantage of this remarkable corner of Staten Island.”
 
The $1.9 million project was funded by Mayor Bill de Blasio and BP Oddo, with $1.5 million of the funding coming from BP Oddo’s FY 2015 capital budget. The project is expected to be completed in March 2020. 

​On Wednesday April 25th, Borough President James S. Oddo attended the Commitment to Excellence Awards Ceremony at Sector New York, the largest Coast Guard operational field command on the East Coast.
 
This ceremony was All Hands, meaning it was a total unit meeting, and among those in attendance included Admiral Zukunft, Commandant of the Coast Guard, Rear Admiral Steven Poulin, Commander, First Coast Guard District, Captain Michael H. Day, Sector Commander, Captain Jason Tama, Deputy Sector Commander, and Master Chief Marcus S. Evans, Command Master Chief.
 
The Commitment to Excellence Award Ceremony highlighted eight Coast Guard personnel members who have demonstrated a commitment to excellence through their actions within their commands. In addition to these honorees, Borough President Oddo was presented with a Meritorious Public Service Award in recognition of the long-standing relationship and steadfast support Staten Island has shown the men and women of the Coast Guard.
 
Part of this recognition included announcing that New York City officially has the designation as a Coast Guard Community – a formal title bestowed upon a community by an act of Congress for developing a unique and supportive relationship with a Coast Guard Station or Sector. The Borough President’s office played a major role in making this designation a reality.
 
“As a borough, I believe Staten Island being home to Sector New York of the US Coast Guard should instill a deep pride in our identity,” said BP Oddo. “Their work managing the security for the Ports of New York and New Jersey directly affects our safety every day. As such, I am extremely humbled to be honored with this Meritorious Public Service Award. What is important to me is not so much that the Coast Guard recognizes me – but that we recognize and appreciate them. I am committed to welcoming the Coast Guard community to our borough.”
 
Staten Island is the home to both the United States Coast Guard Sector New York and USCG Station New York. Sector New York, located on the grounds of Ft. Wadsworth, has three stations under its jurisdiction: Kings Point (at the Merchant Marine Academy), Sandy Hook and New York, which is located on Bay Street. Station New York is the largest station in the Coast Guard, with over a hundred active duty members and 10 small boats assigned.

​On Thursday, April 19th, BP Oddo joined Schools Chancellor Richard Carranza to cut the ribbon on the new Borough President’s Hall of Science at the Petrides Complex. The facility is a two-story, 15,000 square foot space, which features hands-on science exhibits and stations aimed at students from K-12. Students from across the Island will be able to use this science lab as part of their STEM curriculum.
 
BP Oddo allocated $500,000 in capital funding to turn the space into an immersive STEM learning environment. The facility includes eight science stations with different themes, including an arch bridge, Lite Brite pixy pegs, Bernoulli blower, hyperbolic-funnel, Ferrofluid Magnetoscope, water table, design challenge, and a race track. In addition, the upstairs area will serve as a "Makerspace," where students will learn science, math, and technology through hands-on activities.
 
“I’m excited to see students from across the Island experiencing hands-on STEM learning at the new Hall of Science,” said Borough President James Oddo. “This is a great transformation of a previously underutilized space at the Petrides complex, and this is an example of common sense that isn’t too common at times across government. Kevin Moran and everyone associated with this project should be proud and deserve our appreciation for willing this Hall of Science into existence. Our students are going to benefit from this living and breathing science lab.”
 
“I am thrilled that students in Staten Island will have this new opportunity to experience hands-on, innovative science instruction,” said Schools Chancellor Richard A. Carranza. “I thank the Borough President for his partnership on this new state of the art science center and continued commitment to our students and schools.”
 
The space had been previously used to store Department of Education archives.

​On Thursday, April 12th, Borough President James S. Oddo hosted “A Conversation with the Class of 2018” in the Black Box Theater at Susan Wagner High School. This year, the format of the event was changed to allow for a more personal, one-on-one conversation with BP Oddo. Students were asked to bring questions about issues on Staten Island that affect them and to come prepared to talk about their own experiences and where they see themselves going in the future.
 
Topics that the students were interested focused mainly on the opioid epidemic. They gave BP Oddo and his staff ideas about how to revamp the anti-drug message to make it more effective for younger generations.  
 
“You all have great opportunities ahead of you, and I want you to take advantage of them,” BP Oddo said to the group of students. “I am so impressed by all of you and your passions. I hope you will take your passions and help Staten Island become a better place to live.”
 
Students from College of Staten Island High School for International Studies, Curtis High School, Gaynor McCown Expeditionary Learning High School, Michael J. Petrides School, Moore Catholic High School, New Dorp High School, Notre Dame Academy High School, Port Richmond High School, St. Joseph by the Sea High School, St. Joseph Hill Academy, Staten Island Technical High School, Susan Wagner High School, and Tottenville High School participated in the conversation. 

On Thursday, April 5th, Deputy BP Ed Burke joined Council Member Steven Matteo and representatives from the Parks Department to break ground on the reconstruction of the New Dorp Beach Friendship Club. The first floor of the building, which was badly damaged during Sandy, is undergoing a full $2.1 million renovation.
 
This project will reconstruct the interior of the first floor. Its restoration will include a remodeled kitchen so that daily meal service at the center may resume. Additionally, the first floor renovations will accommodate space for members to enjoy recreational activities.

Throughout the process, BP Oddo and Council Member Matteo pushed the administration to rebuild the facility. They also allocated the final funding for the new kitchen, which allowed the project to move forward.
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“When this project was dead, they revived it; when this project was delayed, they expedited it; and when the project was underfunded, they put more money in it,” Deputy BP Ed Burke said about BP Oddo and Council Member Matteo's dedicated to the project. “This will be a great place for friendships to form and continue. We’re looking forward to the return of the Friendship Club.”
 
“The damage to the New Dorp Community Center caused by Super Storm Sandy took away a sanctuary for seniors in this community,” said NYC Parks Commissioner Mitchell Silver. “We took a step forward as we broke ground to reconstruct and restore this space so that its members can once again find much needed meals and companionship here.”
 
Additional funding was provided by the Mayor’s office and FEMA. The project is expected to be completed in September of 2019.

As the snow melts and litter begins to resurface, Borough President James S. Oddo is pleased to announce that his Clean Team is kicking off its operations this month. The Clean Team picks up litter at locations around the borough three times a week through the month of November. Over the past four years, the Clean Team has cleaned hundreds of locations around Staten Island.
 
BP Oddo is asking the public to report locations to his office for a cleanup. Cleanup requests can be sent in through the following ways:

1. Send a message or post to his official Facebook page: www.facebook.com/statenislandusa
2. Tweet us a location at @statenislusa
3. Use the BP Assist mobile app, which is available here: www.statenislandusa.com/bpassist
   
4. Report it at: http://www.statenislandusa.com/contact.html
   
5. Call our Borough President’s Helpline at 718-816-2000
   
6. Email the location to Anthony Esposito at aesposito@statenislandusa.com

“This remains a campaign without an exit strategy,” noted BP Oddo. “The fight to reclaim our streets from those who litter continues. We ask the public to help us, not only by not littering, but also by letting us know when they see a dirty location so we can send our Clean Team out to beautify the area.”
 
In addition to restarting Clean Team operations for the year, BP Oddo will host his 2018 “Litter Summit” next week. The meeting, which city agencies and other stakeholders will participate in, will help BP Oddo craft his anti-litter plan for the year.

Borough President Oddo announced today that at the request of several Staten Islanders diagnosed with Lyme disease, he will be co-sponsoring the borough’s first Lyme disease patient support group forum to be held on April 24th at the JCC. The patient-run forum is open to the public, and participants will be invited to share their stories about the effect of Lyme disease on their health and quality of life.
 
At the patients’ request, the program for the meeting will be a conversation by patients and among patients, with opportunities for one-on-one discussions. There will not be health care experts nor physicians on the program, as the patients would like to focus on individual stories and patient perspective.
 
“A group of ten Lyme disease patients came to me asking for help to establish a support group where they would feel comfortable sharing their experiences,” said BP Oddo. “Having been involved in Lyme disease awareness for many years, I immediately saw the value in this initiative and respected the patients’ interest in helping others suffering from this disease.”
 
In February 2018, the Borough President invited a group of Lyme disease patients to Borough Hall. It was there that the patients and the Borough President’s staff came up with the notion of holding an open forum for those suffering from the disease. Their goal was to provide a venue for Staten Islanders who want to communicate with other Lyme disease patients but don’t currently know how. The forum is designed to not only give comfort to others, but also to create an organizational structure for a support group network that will hold future sessions. Once established, the Lyme Disease Support Group will hold future meetings with medical professionals; however, their core mission is to create a comfortable venue for patients to share their stories.
 
The event will take place from 6:30-8:30 on Tuesday, April 24th at the Bernikow JCC (1466 Manor Road). Light refreshments will be served at the meeting. Please pre-register for the event by contacting Kelly Pereira at 718-816-2226 or by email at kpereira@statenislandusa.com.