This year for Halloween, Borough President Oddo hosted “Trick or Treat Around SI,” a free Halloween event for children and their families.  In partnership with 5 Staten Island business districts, Trick-or-Treat Around Staten Island allowed costumed children and their families across Staten Island the opportunity to trick-or-treat throughout each district at participating businesses.

In years prior, Borough President Oddo has hosted the annual “Halloween Hoopla” at Bloomingdale Park. The event has been changed this year due to the park’s closure for renovations and reconstruction. “I am happy to once again host a special celebration that kids of all ages can enjoy,” said BP Oddo. 

Thank you to the following business development districts for participating: Castleton Avenue Merchants Organization, Downtown Staten Island, Forest Avenue Business Improvement District, South Shore Business Improvement District, and Victory Boulevard Merchants Association. To see all the participating businesses within each district, please refer to this page. Each district received 100 trick-or-treat bags from our office for children to get allergy free candy (no nuts, no chocolate) from  participating businesses.

Thank you to everyone for making this event such a success! Happy Halloween! 

Borough President James S. Oddo will host “Trick or Treat Around SI,” a free Halloween event for children and their families, on Thursday, October 31st from 3 to 5 PM.  In partnership with 5 Staten Island business districts, Trick-or-Treat Around Staten Island will allow costumed children and their families across Staten Island the opportunity to trick-or-treat throughout each district at participating businesses.

In years prior, Borough President Oddo has hosted the annual “Halloween Hoopla” at Bloomingdale Park. The event has been changed this year due to the park’s closure for renovations and reconstruction.

“I am happy to once again host a special celebration that kids of all ages can enjoy,” said BP Oddo. “This year, I am looking forward to celebrating a Halloween in a new way with ‘Trick or Treat Around SI’ and welcome Staten Island families to join us for a great afternoon of Halloween fun.”

The following business development district will be participating. Each district will receive 100 trick-or-treat bags that can be picked up the locations listed below, bags will be given out on a first come, first served basis:

- Castleton Avenue Merchants Organization: Wicked Stitches (840 Castleton Avenue)
- Downtown Staten Island: Kiara's Beauty Salon (696 Bay Street)
- Forest Avenue Business Improvement District: Forest Avenue BID Office (686 Forest Avenue)
- South Shore Business Improvement District: Giovanni’s Trattoria (3800 Richmond Avenue)
- Victory Boulevard Merchants Association: Alfonso Pastry Shoppe (1899 Victory Boulevard)

Participating businesses will have a special Trick-or-Treat sign in their store window indicating that they are a sweet stop along the way. Children will receive allergy free candy (no nuts, no chocolate) so everyone can safely trick-or-treat in their neighborhood.

Click here for more information.

Borough President James S. Oddo is pleased to announce the 3rd Annual Festa Italiana at the Mount: The Biggest Columbus Day Celebration in Staten Island’s History. This year’s celebrations will take place at Mount Loretto on Friday, October 11th from 6-11pm, Saturday, October 12th from 12-11pm, and Sunday, October 13th from 12-9pm.

All are welcome to attend for a weekend of food, games, vendors, and entertainment, including live music throughout the day on Saturday and Sunday. This year’s headlining entertainment includes a Saturday performance by Louis Prima Jr. and the Witnesses, taking the stage at 8pm. The performance is sponsored by Lois and Richard Nicotra. Rounding out the weekend on Sunday will be a live performance from Staten Island’s own Charlie Romo at 6pm, who will perform hits made famous by Italian and Italian-American musicians and/or songwriters.

Over the course of the three-day event, guests will be able to enjoy rides and attractions, carnival games, vendors, and delicious food, including a Cannoli eating contest sponsored by Mark's Bake Shoppe on Sunday.

On Saturday, there will be educational displays from local cultural groups, including the Garibaldi-Meucci Museum, the National Lighthouse Museum, Casa Belvedere, Snug Harbor Cultural Center, Historic Richmond Town, the Jacques Marchais Museum of Tibetan Art, and the St. George Theatre. More will be announced soon.

“We’re thrilled to partner with Catholic Charities to present a festival that celebrates so many aspects of Italian and Italian-American culture,” noted Borough President Oddo. “It truly will be the biggest Columbus Day celebration in our borough’s history. All are welcome to join in the fun, enjoy some tasty treats, learn about our history, and listen to world class music this Columbus Day weekend.”

Admission will be a $5 donation for adults. Children under 12 will be admitted free. Proceeds raised from the event will benefit the programs at Mount Loretto.  Parking will also be free for the event.

“It’s a privilege to join forces with my good friend and Borough President Jim Oddo,” said Vincent Ignizio, CEO of Catholic Charities of Staten Island. “We’ve made this event even bigger than last year and are looking forward to celebrating Columbus Day with the Staten Island community.”

Limited vendor and sponsorship opportunities are still available. For more information, visit mountloretto.org, text the word “MOUNT” to the number 313131, or call (718) 490-5023.

Borough President James Oddo will host the 9/11 Memorial Ceremony to remember the Staten Islanders we lost 18 years ago and to pay tribute to those First Responders who have subsequently died from their service at Ground Zero. The annual ceremony, which is open to the public, will take place at the Postcards Memorial on the St. George Esplanade on Wednesday, September 11th at 6:30pm.

The names of brave First Responders are inscribed on a memorial adjacent to the Postcards memorial, the Staten Island 9/11 First Responders Memorial, which was dedicated in 2017.

The ceremony will include a reading of the names of the Staten Islanders who were lost on 9/11, as well as a reading of the names of the First Responders who have perished since that day due to their work at Ground Zero. Special musical selections and a video tribute will honor those we lost due to the tragedy.

“Each year, it is my great honor to host the September 11th Memorial Ceremony,” said Borough President Oddo. “Please join me as we remember those we lost on that fateful day and those who gave their lives as a result of their heroics in the aftermath. I ask all Staten Islanders—including those who did not lose loved ones—to join us to honor their memories and provide support for their families and friends.”
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Free parking for the ceremony will be available in the New York Wheel Parking Garage (located next to Richmond County Bank Ballpark at Richmond Terrace and Nicholas Street). Those who wish to attend can also access the Memorial via the walkway adjacent to the ballpark. The Memorial is a short walk from the St. George Ferry Terminal and the Empire Outlets.
 
Please call (718) 816- 2239 to RSVP.

​Borough President James Oddo sponsored a Lyme Disease Awareness Forum on Monday, June 17th. This free event took place at 7pm at Wagner College (1 Campus Road) in a Spiro Hall lecture room. Over 150 Staten Islanders came out to learn how to protect themselves and their loved ones from ticks and Lyme disease. After having to reschedule in May due to inclement weather, we were extremely pleased to hold a standing room only event.
 
“Our quest to mitigate the growing number of Staten Islanders suffering from Lyme disease is being fought on many fronts, and educating the public about the disease and how it is spread is a vital step. We will continue to raise awareness on this topic because it is real and it is affecting Staten Islanders,” said Borough President Oddo.
 
At the forum, researchers from NYC DOHMH presented an update on their surveillance measures with statistical updates on the incidence of Lyme disease cases in New York City and on Staten Island as well as information on the black-legged ticks that are vectors for the disease. Borough President Oddo was pleased to hear their tick surveillance has been increased from 14 to 24 sites in parks across our borough and that they will be implementing Met52 in their tick control measures, a fungus based approach that kills ticks without hurting any other invertebrates.
 
Maria Diuk-Wasser, Associate Professor and Researcher at Columbia University, presented information on how exactly ticks get around and where people are exposed to ticks. Can you guess how ticks ‘move’ around parks in New York City? That’s right – deer. Deer are where ticks meet and reproduce. She stressed that connectivity is key, as only parks close to other parks in NYC have ticks. Parks surrounded by vegetation and are more connected to others by habitat corridors have more ticks infected with the Lyme bacteria. We continue fight for ways to control the deer population to also reduce the tick numbers and Lyme cases on Staten Island.
 
Attendees also heard from Dr. Christopher J. Pappas, Ph.D., Associate Professor at Manhattanville College, who talked about what attracts the different types of ticks we have on Staten Island, how to avoid them and prevent tick bites, as well as do’s and don’ts on tick removal. Among many tips, one that stuck out: make sure to put clothes in the dryer, not the washer to kill ticks. Drying ticks out kills the ticks.

Dr. Ernest Visconti, pediatric infectious disease specialist, moderated a question and answer period with the audience following the pretensions.

Gaynor McCown Expeditionary Learning School tabled at the event showing their school projects to educate Staten Islanders on how to protect themselves from ticks and Lyme disease. 
 
Here is the link to the PowerPoint presentations from the forum: http://www.statenislandusa.com/lymeforumslides.

​New York State Senator John Liu, Chair of State Committee on NYC Education, and Borough President James Oddo will join together on Monday, June 24th, to hold a school diversity and specialized high school admission community forum on Staten Island. The forum will take place at Labetti Post, 390 Hylan Boulevard, from 6:30 to 8:30 pm.
 
This community forum, the last is a series of forums in New York City, is an opportunity for parents, teachers, students, alumni and stakeholders to speak about the issue of school diversity and specialized high school admissions.
 
“It is important that Staten Islanders have the opportunity to speak about the issue of school diversity and specialized high school admissions. Please join us for a chance to let your voice be heard,” said Borough President Oddo.
 
For more information, please call (718) 765-6675. To RSVP and to sign up to speak, please fill out the form in the link bit.ly/StatenIslandForum.

Borough President James Oddo will joined with NYC Department of Parks to hold a beach cleanup event in honor of World Oceans Day 2019 on Saturday, June 8th. A call to action was issued for Staten Islanders who are interested in cleaning up our beaches to join us at Conference House Park for a cleanup of the 3.5 miles of shoreline from 10am to 1pm.

104 Staten Islanders volunteered their time to join us, including students from IS 75, Port Richmond HS, Tottenville HS, PS 22, and PS 51. 

Cooling stations and restrooms were available. The cleanup at Conference House Park will featured tables with information from different environmental education groups and City agencies.

Below is video of Deputy Borough President Ed ​Burke showing the tremendous work our volunteers put in.  

Borough President James S. Oddo is excited to announce his office will once again host “Kids Day at the Carousel,” a free event for children and their families, on Sunday, June 2nd from 12 to 5pm. The event will take place at the Carousel for All Children in Willowbrook Park.

“We invite all Staten Island families to come out to Willowbrook Park for a fun day that kids of all ages will enjoy,” said BP Oddo. “Last year, hundreds of Staten Islanders came out to have a great day at the carousel, so I am happy to continue the fun this year.”
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Rides on the carousel will be sponsored by the Borough President’s office. In addition to free carousel rides, the event will feature inflatable attractions, chalk art, crafts, and music. The Rock-A-Silly band will perform from 12:30-1:30pm. The New York Public Library will host story time at 2pm.

For the duration of the event, the Staten Island Zoo will have a table of animal presentations and the NYC Parks Play Mobile will be present with games and activities for children of all ages.