On Tuesday, January 28, BP Oddo joined with Councilman Steve Matteo, NYC Parks Borough Commissioner Lynda Ricciardone, representatives from the School Construction Authority and the Department of Education, and students and staff from IS 51 to officially cut the ribbon on their new playground!
 
As BP Oddo stated at the ribbon-cutting, "this project really is an example of teamwork and coordination across city government." Thank you to everyone who made this project a reality!
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This project -- jointly funded by Borough Hall, Matteo's office, Speaker Cory Johnson and Mayor Bill de Blasio -- includes a synthetic turf field with a painted track around it, new basketball courts and an area for outdoor classrooms.

 
The best news is there's money left over for phase two to renovate another portion of the playground! This phase is currently in design and final decisions have not been made about the amenities. Here are some of the recommendations for amenities that could be included in phase two:

Borough President James Oddo is pleased to announce that Child Mind Institute (CMI) – the children’s mental health facility which launched a groundbreaking research program on Staten Island called the Healthy Brain Network (HBN) back in 2015 – has obtained the financing necessary to maintain a presence on Staten Island thanks to funding provided by the de Blasio Administration.

This program collects information on how children think, feel, and learn, and also collects data from many sources (including, but not limited to, neuropsychological testing, IQ testing, EEGs and functional MRI scans) in order to create the largest biorepository of information on children's mental health. The goal is to identify new ways to diagnose and treat mental health disorders in children and adolescents, using a biological approach.

CMI/HBN on Staten Island was only funded for a five year period. Without further funding, its doors would have closed on Staten Island as originally planned, and they would have moved to their Harlem location, in order to focus on recruiting children and families from other boroughs. Staten Island was in danger of losing a unique and valuable resource that provides free, comprehensive mental health screenings and evaluations for our community. At the request of Borough President Oddo to Mayor de Blasio, City Hall agreed to fund the Child Mind Institute in order for them to continue to operate on Staten Island.

Borough President Oddo is also pleased to announce his office has been working closely with top administrators and the Department of Pediatrics at Richmond University Medical Center (RUMC) to enable the co-location of CMI/HBN at their outpatient pediatric ambulatory center.

“As you can imagine, had we lost these valuable services it would have left a huge gap in our community, since it is highly unlikely that many – or any – of our families would have traveled to Harlem for twelve hours of screening. The methods we used to obtain this funding from City Hall were extensive and varied, and in the end the Mayor came through,” said Borough President James Oddo. “Mental health and learning disorders are real, common and treatable, but the majority of children don’t get the care they need. The number of children screened through the CMI/HBN represents not just the children who received needed evaluations, but also their families who were searching for answers. Far too many children and adolescents simply don’t get the treatment they need, which is why we did whatever it took in order to help obtain funding to continue their important work right here on Staten Island.

“Reading Dr. Warren Farrell’s book ‘The Boy Crisis’ reaffirmed our belief in the importance of fighting for these resources and strengthened our resolve to not allow this critical work to come to an end. Councilman Joe Borelli, an early supporter of our Boy Crisis work, stepped up to be the City Council sponsor for this money in the recently adopted city budget. Thanks must also go to Emma Wolfe, Chief of Staff to the Mayor, without whose behind the scenes work and support this would not have happened.”

“In New York City, we recognize that there is no health without mental health. Failing to invest in diagnosis and treatment for kids means missed opportunities to improve people’s lives early on. I applaud Borough President Oddo’s commitment to the mental health of Staten Islanders and am glad to know kids and their families will continue having a much-needed resource to get the screenings and help they need,” said Mayor Bill de Blasio.

“I’m so glad we were able to ensure that the Child Mind Institute remains on Staten Island. The free screenings provided by this program have been positively affecting the lives of thousands of children and their parents over the last 5 years. Too often, we have to travel and endure long commutes with our children because of a lack of available local resources,” said City Councilmember Joe Borelli, “the funding BP Oddo and I were able to secure will keep this resource right here and available to our community.”

In just under five years on Staten Island, the CMI/HBN has provided FREE mental health and learning evaluations as well as language screens to over 2,000 children ages 5-21 on Staten Island. Of those children, 48% children enrolled in the HBN were diagnosed for the first time during their participation. All families who enrolled in this study were given comprehensive feedback reports and a one-on-one session to discuss their child's results with the licensed clinician who conducted the evaluation.
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The work of the CMI on Staten Island doesn’t end with the HBN. When our office asked the CMI to help identify other ways to integrate mental health care into primary care, the CMI launched a unique pilot providing pediatricians in our borough with an easy to use iPad screening tool for use during well visits. The tool allows pediatricians to easily screen their patients for behavioral, emotional, and other complex mental health issues that require attention and is currently offered in both English and Spanish. Over 2,000 parents and children have completed this screening tool thus far with 11.8% of patients meeting levels of clinical concern for emotional problems, 8.9% for ADHD, and 6.9% for eating disorders. A staggering 4.8% reported suicidal ideation, and 11.9% reported being the victim of bullying.

Borough President James Oddo has issued the following statement regarding the Bay Street Corridor Re-zoning Plan. As part of the Uniform Land Use Review Process regarding the Re-zoning Plan, Borough President Oddo issued a formal ‘Disapproval With Modifications’ response.

“For five years, Borough Hall has attempted to inject some common sense into the de Blasio Administration’s plan for affordable housing on Staten Island.  Their strategy, which will add thousands of new residents to the North Shore in mid- and hi-rise buildings along the Bay Street Corridor, will provide little in the way of corresponding services. 

“We have tried to make them see this issue through the single most important prism to Staten Islanders: infrastructure and the diminishment of our quality of life when our infrastructure is resoundingly insufficient.  It’s a reality we experience in various ways on a daily basis – because of a void in the farsightedness of past leaders.

“In recent months we have aggressively used social media to express facts, concerns, and realities on the ground, and we even used a good dose of ‘reductio ad absurdum’ to ensure the Administration and the local Council Member did right by this borough. They have come up short, which means we at Borough Hall have missed the mark, and the people of Staten Island, both current and future residents, are worse off for it.

“For all this density and the infrastructure challenges that most certainly will come with it, what are we really getting? Well, we seem to have a commitment to pay off an existing debt to Staten Island -- the Cromwell Center and a new school at the Hungerford site – and projects created long ago by the Bloomberg Administration, which heretofore have remained unfulfilled during the current administration, i.e. waterfront plans.

“Peel back the onion a bit and take away the $92 million for the Cromwell Center, which we were promised anyway; the tens of millions for the Hungerford site, which would have been allocated anyway; the $39 million from FEMA for the esplanade, which was expected anyway; and well, that onion will indeed make you cry.  Cry for the opportunities missed, for the shirking of responsibility by the agencies, for their refusal to do the hard work, for how let down Staten Islanders have been, and for the looming specter that what could have been a transformative moment in our history is now likely to go sideways.

“What you won’t see in this re-zoning announcement is as critically important as what you do see.  You won’t see any genuine effort to stop the already awful traffic and transit reality from getting exponentially worse, let alone being mitigated to some degree.  At this point, why not call in Staten Island’s old ‘friend,’ former NYC DOT Commissioner Janet Sadik Khan, and have her make the entire stretch of Bay Street a pedestrian plaza?  Because with tens of thousands of people added to this corridor as a result of this re-zoning, commuting or traveling by vehicle will certainly be painful, and maybe even pointless.

“What was done today was a repeat of the lack of planning that has plagued Staten Island ever since the opening of the Verrazzano Bridge. Today’s decision makers, just like our counterparts of decades ago, will have the benefit of being long gone when the byproducts of their shortsightedness manifest themselves. 
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“As bitterly disappointed as I am, the harsher arbiter will be time.”

​On Tuesday, September 11th, hundred joined us for our annual 9/11 Memorial Ceremony at the Postcards Memorial to remember those we lost 17 years ago.

​This year, we also paid special tribute to the First Responders who gave their lives by heroically toiling in and around Ground Zero in those fateful days, months, and even years after that terrible day. Their names are inscribed on a memorial adjacent to the Postcards memorial, which was dedicated last year.
 
In addition to BP Oddo, speakers included Mayor Bill de Blasio, Lt. Governor Kathy Hochul, and City Council Speaker Corey Johnson. Rev. Timothy Mercaldo, Jenna Flynn, Alison Madill, Arlette Roxburgh, and the P.S. 29 Chorus performed special musical tributes. Family members read the names of those we lost on 9/11 as well as the First Responders who have passed since due to their work at Ground Zero.
 
“Seventeen years ago, our lives changed forever. We will never forget those we lost that day, and it is my honor to continue to hold this ceremony dedicated to remembering those who were taken from us far too soon,” said BP Oddo. “This year, we also acknowledge the memory and sacrifice of our First Responders. Together, we remember all those we lost. We hope you take this ceremony as a small measure of comfort.”
 
Special thanks to FDNY, NYPD, US Coast Guard, US Army, Fred Ariemma, the Staten Island Yankees, Michael Black, Staten Island Pipers, Susan Wagner High School JROTC, Tottenville High School, NYC EDC, and all the performers for their work to make the evening so meaningful.
 
You can watch a tribute to those we lost below:

Borough President James Oddo has joined with the de Blasio Administration to announce a partnership that will bring a new program aimed at addressing high blood pressure to barbershops along the North Shore of Staten Island.
 
High blood pressure, or hypertension, is often referred to as the “silent killer” because it may not show symptoms before causing a heart attack or stroke. Hypertension is a leading cause of heart disease and stroke among New Yorkers; more than one in four adult New Yorkers is diagnosed with high blood pressure. In New York City, the prevalence of hypertension is 1.5 times higher among African American adults than white adults, and African American men in particular have a significantly higher rate of hypertension than white men. Under the program, New York City’s Health and Mental Hygiene department will work with BP Oddo to address the high blood pressure rates among African American men.
 
Individuals in communities with high health disparities have historically struggled to access care. One way experts have sought to overcome this challenge is by partnering with community spaces to conduct outreach. One program BP Oddo is familiar with is the Men’s Health Initiative, led by Dr. Joseph Ravenell at NYU’s Langone Health. The program has brought together a diverse group of research assistants, community health workers, and volunteers—including barbers—to barbershops in various neighborhoods across New York City to take blood pressure readings of African American men and connect those who are at risk of hypertension with medical care. The results of the program show a significant improvement in blood pressure among barbershop customers who participated. The proposed Staten Island program would reflect Dr. Ravenell’s program.
 
BP Oddo first discovered Dr. Joseph Ravenell’s work while reading “Who Can You Trust?” by Rachel Botsman. He subsequently watched Dr. Ravenell’s TED Talk on African American men and high blood pressure which detailed the barbershop pilot program. The TED Talk can be seen here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u6zkeyM0D2s
  
BP Oddo invited Dr. Ravenell to Borough Hall for a meeting with his staff and local clergy in early June to talk about replicating the program on Staten Island.
 
“High blood pressure can lead to fatal consequences if left unchecked, and unfortunately, so many African American men don’t even know they have it,” said BP Oddo. “After reading about the issue, I became incredibly interested in Dr. Ravenell’s program and worked with my staff to figure out how we could replicate it successfully on Staten Island. I’m pleased that the Administration has joined with us to bring this program to life on the North Shore. I hope this program allows African American men in our community to learn more about the issue and take control of their health. Thank you to Dr. Ravenell for working with us to bring this innovative program to Staten Island.”
 
“High blood pressure is a leading cause of heart disease and stroke – New York City’s top killers,” said Health Commissioner Dr. Mary T. Bassett. “High blood pressure is a common and dangerous condition that impacts an estimated 1.8  million New Yorkers. The Health Department recently launched a coalition of over 100 stakeholders focused on reducing the burden of high blood pressure citywide. I applaud Borough President Oddo and Mayor de Blasio for their attention to raising awareness of this condition among Staten Island residents.”

​On Staten Island, the number of hospitalizations related to hypertension are higher than other boroughs. The neighborhoods of St. George/Stapleton and Port Richmond have higher rates of hospitalization for high blood pressure than the city overall.

On Friday, July 27th, Mayor Bill de Blasio announced progress on new efforts at coordination among City agencies and utilities to avoid “street cuts” to freshly paved streets.  
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“Street cuts annoy everyone, and we want to make sure they bother people after a fresh re-paving as little as possible,” said Mayor de Blasio. “We have done more to re-pave streets across Staten Island than ever before, and now this program will help keep freshly paved streets undisturbed for longer. We look forward to continue working with Borough President Oddo on this.”

Back in May, the Mayor had announced that New York City had paved 5,000 lane-miles since 2014; under the de Blasio Administration, nearly 786 lane miles have been paved on Staten Island, nearly half of the borough’s streets.  Noting that progress, the Mayor had also acknowledged the frustration of elected leaders like Staten Island Borough President Jimmy Oddo, who had called on the City to better counter the incidence of freshly paved streets being reopened for utility work.

“I freely admit that I drive Staten Island at times solely to look for street cuts,” said Borough President Oddo. “This is how obsessive I have become over this issue. Why? For several reasons. They are literally undercutting one of the best things Mayor de Blasio has done during his tenure – our “Pave, Baby, Pave” campaign of historic levels of resurfacing of our streets. Street cuts waste taxpayer dollars. Street cuts rob our quality of life. Streets cuts are an example of poor planning, antiquated rule making, and a lack of coordination and collaboration. We can do much better. I value the ongoing dialogue I have had with the Mayor and Deputy Mayor Laura Anglin. The proposed changes are a good start. I have other specific suggestions I want to see implemented, and clearly we have more work to do. But, we have the attention of the Mayor. We have a very capable Deputy Mayor leading the undertaking, and finally we have a genuine effort to end the street cut status quo and bring about a more appropriate process that helps ensure we have better roads for a longer period of time.”

The Mayor noted progress since that initial announcement:

Street Cuts Policy Working Group – All City capital agencies, including Transportation (DOT), Environmental Protection (DEP) and Design and Construction (DDC) now meet monthly with senior representatives from utility companies to share plans and coordinate work.  This group focuses on higher-level structural issues to maintain City policy of strongly discouraging any street cuts in the first two years after a given street is repaved by DOT -- including through emerging trenchless technologies and ensuring quality restoration.

Improved DEP/DOT Coordination – The agency that paves streets and the agency that is responsible for the City’s water systems are also coordinating their work, including by:
·         As part of a new pilot program on Staten Island, DEP will coordinate inspection and repair of its manholes and catch basins with DOT’s paving schedule.  After a roadway is milled, DEP crews will use the two to three week period before repaving to inspect manholes and catch basins and make any necessary repairs.  This will significantly reduce the need for DEP to open the roadway for a non-emergency repair during the two-year protected window.
·         DEP has increased staffing, hiring seven additional supervisors to work with DOT to better coordinate restoration of City streets.

Improved DEP/DDC Coordination Around Manhole Covers – Aging and defective manhole covers are among the most challenging of issues around paving and restoring streets.  To address this challenge, DEP has procured 5 manhole restoration contracts with DDC. As part of this work, defective manhole covers and hardware will be repaired and/or replaced.  In addition, manhole covers will be raised where necessary and defective areas around manholes will be restored.  These contracts are valued at a total of $13.6 million, of which $2.75 million is dedicated to Staten Island.

Increased DDC work on Pedestrian Ramps – To increase accessibility, hundreds of sidewalk pedestrian ramps on Staten Island require construction or restoration.  DDC’s pedestrian ramp contractor in Staten Island has agreed to implement final restoration upon completion of pedestrian ramps at all locations (i.e., no temporary restoration allowed). The FY18 Pedestrian contract just bid included such requirements and we have scheduled a Pre-Award with low bidder to make sure the bidder read and understands the new requirements will be fully enforced.

Other DEP Improvements as Part of Street Cut Coordination Efforts:
·         Begin using excavation markers to quickly identify any defects in DEP street cuts. 
·         DEP will this month begin a pilot saw cutting of excavations in Staten Island for a smoother restoration of streets.
·         Maximize DEP in-house paving crews to address restorations:  DEP has allocated and maximized in-house paving crews to address restorations.

Agency Coordination with National Grid – The utility that provides most of New York City’s natural gas, has provided the City with its comprehensive multi-year capital plan, which will allow for improved coordination with all City agencies going forward.

​On Friday, July 27th, BP Oddo joined Mayor Bill de Blasio, Schools Chancellor Richard A. Carranza, and Lorraine Grillo, President and Chief Executive Officer of the New York City School Construction Authority, as part of “City Hall in Your Borough” to announce that the City of New York will acquire the St. John Villa Academy Campus.
 
The approximately seven-acre property will be converted into a new public school space by the School Construction Authority (SCA). DOE and SCA are still working develop a proposal for the future educational campus. The new project is expected to provide over 1,000 new seats to children on Staten Island.
 
“This is a deeply bittersweet moment because the pain of the St. John Villa family is still palpable, and it will be that way for a long time. I recognize that,” said Borough President Oddo. “The closure of this school will never sit well with some, and I very much understand those deep emotions. As the person responsible to represent the 500,000 people of this borough, I knew what would be even worse than St. John Villa closing would be St. John Villa closing and this bastion of education reduced into an unwanted residential development. We have seen that regrettable scenario play out nearby in recent years. I am pleased the City has stepped up in a big way to acquire this precious space. I will do all I can to ensure the learning that takes place here in the future lives up to the rich tradition of educational excellence of St. John Villa.”
 
“Schools are sacred places that fundamentally help our kids achieve their full potential and bind our communities together,” said Mayor de Blasio. “This new state-of-the-art facility will allow more than 1,000 children the opportunity to access a high-quality education.”
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“Today’s announcement is a big win for parents and students on Staten Island, and will bring hundreds of new high-quality seats to the area,” said Schools Chancellor Richard Carranza. “I’m looking forward to working with the Staten Island community to develop new, state-of-the-art facilities that will create new and exciting learning opportunities for our students.”
 
“New school buildings are a vital investment in our communities, and I am thrilled that we are going to be able support Staten Island families with this new campus,” said Lorraine Grillo, President and Chief Executive Officer of the New York City School Construction Authority. “This campus provides seven acres of space for us to build new school buildings that will meet the needs of students and ensure they have access to cutting edge facilities.”
 
The DOE will conduct community engagement over the next several months to get feedback from the community on the types of schools and programs that would best meet the needs of Staten Island. The DOE and SCA will then unveil a proposed plan and timeline for the new facility once the community engagement and final assessment of the condition of the current campus are complete.