Borough President James S. Oddo is excited to announce the dates and lineup for his 2019 Summer Sunset Concert Series. All concerts will take place at 7pm, with the exception of August 1st where the concert will begin at 6:30pm. The Thursday night concert schedule is as follows:
 
June 27th—Lemon Creek Park (Seguine Avenue & Johnston Terrace) featuring Grounded 4 Life and Freepass
July 11th—Historic Richmond Town (441 Clarke Ave.) featuring The Black Ties
July 18th—Snug Harbor Cultural Center (1000 Richmond Terrace) featuring Anthony DeRoss and Joan Caddell and the Midnight Choir
July 25th—Conference House Park (298 Satterlee Street) featuring The Resistance
August 1st— United States Coast Guard Appreciation Night at Fort Wadsworth (210 New York Avenue), with a special thank you to our Military service members, featuring 42nd Division Infantry Band. *6:30PM START TIME*
August 8th—Westerleigh Park (Neal Dow Ave. and Maine Ave.) featuring Julia Gargano and JD & the All Stars
August 15th—Silver Lake Park (Forest Ave. at Haven Esplanade) featuring Cause and the Effects
August 22nd—Wolfe’s Pond Park (Cornelia Ave. and Chester Ave.) featuring Whiskey Tango Four and Saints in the City
 
A special concert with headliners Vito Picone and the Elegants and guests will take place on Saturday, August 17th at 7pm at Midland Beach Splaza (Fr. Capodanno Blvd. at Seaview Ave). Additionally, Back to the Beach will take place on Saturday, July 13th and Sunday, July 14th.
 
“We at Borough Hall are excited to offer this free entertainment series to Staten Islanders for another summer, while giving some of our homegrown talent a chance to show off their musical skills,” said Borough President Oddo. “This is a wonderful way for people to enjoy our Borough of Parks and experience some of the homegrown talent Staten Islanders have to offer. Good music should be enjoyed!”
 
The Summer Sunset Concert Series is sponsored by Borough President Oddo and Councilmembers Debi Rose, Steven Matteo, and Joe Borelli.
 
For more information, visit statenislandusa.com/sunset.

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 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.”

Borough President James Oddo is pleased to announce his postponed Lyme Disease Forum has been rescheduled. The free event, which will provide an update for Staten Islanders about the prevalence of ticks and tick-borne illness on Staten Island, will be held on Monday, June 17th from 7 to 8:30 pm at Wagner College (1 Campus Road) in a Spiro Hall lecture room. Please note the location change from the original event.

At this forum, The New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DOHMH) and researchers from Columbia University will present important information about Lyme disease and the black-legged ticks that are vectors for the disease. DOHMH staff will also provide statistical updates on the incidence of Lyme disease cases in New York City and on Staten Island. There will also be presentations on tick precautions and removal. There will be a demonstration of how mice bait boxes—or mice “car washes”—work, one of the tick control measures that New York City is undertaking at the urging of Borough President Oddo.

Topics to be discussed at the event include basic facts about Lyme disease, symptoms and health impacts, public safety tips, precautions when exploring natural areas, and do’s and don’ts on tick removal. A question and answer period with the audience will follow the presentations.

Speakers at the event include:

• Members of NYC DOHMH including Sally Slavinski, DVM, MPH, Assistant Director, Zoonotic and Vector borne Disease Unit; John Zuzworsky, Senior Vector Ecologist, Office of Vector Surveillance and Control; and Mario Merlino, Assistant Commissioner, Bureau of Veterinary and Pest Control Services
• Maria Diuk-Wasser, Ph.D., Associate Professor, Columbia University
• Christopher J. Pappas, Ph.D., Associate Professor, Manhattanville College

“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,” said Borough President Oddo. “The New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene and the Department of Ecology, Evolution and Environmental Biology at Columbia University are working with us on the front lines to combat ticks and the spread of Lyme disease. It is essential Staten Islanders gain as much information as possible to be able to protect themselves.”

If you wish to attend the forum, please RSVP below or contact Diane Marciuliano at (718) 816-2246 or DMarciuliano@statenislandusa.com.
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The Borough President’s previous Lyme disease Forum in August 2016 attracted over 100 individuals.

Borough President James Oddo is pleased to announce the encouraging results of a Borough Hall-led pilot program that adds to the growing body of evidence demonstrating the positive impact of exercise on academic achievement.

Borough President Oddo was inspired to pursue physical education reform after reading Dr. John Ratey’s bestselling book Spark: The Revolutionary New Science of Exercise and the Brain which presented a critical mass of scientific evidence demonstrating the connection between exercise and brain development. In Spark, Dr. Ratey provided scores of case studies and academic findings that support his conclusion that aerobic exercise is “Miracle-Gro for the brain.”

The opening chapter of Spark details how the Naperville, Illinois school district significantly improved academic performance by transforming physical education classes. After seeing the documented benefits of a shift from sports-based skill development to a focus on cardiovascular fitness in physical education curricula, Borough President Oddo was determined to bring this innovative reform to the students of District 31 on Staten Island. As a first step, our office partnered with Principal Deirdre DeAngelis to pilot a Spark-inspired physical education program at New Dorp High School.

A randomly selected group of nearly one hundred ninth grade students began their early morning physical education class with seven minutes—building to 15 by the end of the school year—of intense aerobic exercise. Borough Hall’s graduate data fellowship program monitored the de-identified academic performance of the students in the pilot class and compared their grades in each marking period to those of their ninth grade peers.

At the end of the school year, Borough Hall’s Public Policy Team reviewed the results. Despite curriculum restrictions which limited aerobic activity to, at most, the first 15 minutes of each physical education class, the pilot found promising indications that students in the Spark pilot were gaining ground, as compared to their peers in the control group.

“Given the potential impact of Spark on the academic performance of public school students—not to mention the ancillary benefits on health, behavior, and personal development—a rigorous evaluation is the logical next step necessary to realize transformative physical education reform,” said Borough President Oddo. “A shift to aerobic exercise, if done right, could contribute to leveling the playing field for all students in New York City schools.”

The results of the study can be viewed here.

Based on the findings from the Borough Hall-led pilot, the Borough President is calling on the de Blasio administration to partner with Borough Hall to launch a large-scale pilot across public schools on Staten Island with full fidelity to the cardiovascular fitness model.

“I applaud Staten Island for applying the science of exercise to bolster student achievement, with measurable, positive results. This is only with 12 minutes of intense exercise three times a week.  It is wonderful to see the thoughtfulness and thoroughness of Borough President Oddo taking it to the next level and wanting to push it even further.  Imagine the possibilities,” said John J. Ratey, MD, author of Spark: The Revolutionary New Science of Exercise and the Brain and Clinical Associate Professor of Psychiatry at Harvard Medical School.

“(Borough) President Oddo’s study on the potential benefits of vigorous exercise in schools is a fitting exclamation point to National Physical Fitness and Sports Month. The pilot program at New Dorp High School on Staten Island is further evidence that we have only scratched the surface in realizing the power of exercise. To that end, at the direction of President Trump, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services is participating in the development of a national strategy to increase youth sports participation and regular physical activity. I thank the Borough President for his leadership on this important issue—and for doing the hard work on the ground to publish these important findings,” said Anthony C. Ferreri, DBA Regional Director, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services for Region II.

“Starting my day observing our ninth grade students engaged in rigorous aerobic activity is exciting, but it is the improvement in the academic data of these students that really makes me a believer in the SPARK experience. So thankful that our school staff and students are always ready to try something new, especially something that can make a difference,” said Deirdre A. DeAngelis, Principal, New Dorp High School.

“In an effort to educate the ninth grade students of the Institute of Health Science, on the importance of physical activity, we have begun to implement the SPARK program to supplement our current physical education curriculum. We have seen an increase in interest from our students in the areas that the SPARK program emphasizes (beating stress and anxiety, improving body and mind, and sharpening thinking skills). The evidence has been undeniable. By implementing this program, we have seen that aerobic physical activity in the morning stimulates the brain and increases maximum academic performance throughout the school day,” said Richard Rucireto, Assistant Principal of Health & Physical Education and Supervisor of the Institute of Health Sciences, New Dorp High School.

Borough President James S. Oddo has announced that he is continuing the Patrick F. Daly Award after reviving it in 2017 in honor of the 26th anniversary of Mr. Daly’s death. This award goes to two educators who exemplify the values of fallen principal Patrick Daly, who was gunned down in Red Hook, Brooklyn while searching for a student who had left the school building 27 years ago.

“I’m grateful to be able to continue this award in honor of fallen principal, Mr. Patrick Daly,” said BP Oddo. “This award gives us a wonderful opportunity to pay tribute to his sacrifice and legacy, while also recognizing outstanding educators who have made an impact in our community.”

Anyone who may wish to nominate a teacher, guidance counselor, assistant principal, or principal may do so. The award will be given in Mr. Daly’s memory, honoring his legacy of service to the community, his steadfast commitment to his students, and his leadership.

"My family and I would like to thank the Borough President for continuing to honor my father's legacy, as well Staten Island's many excellent educators, with this award. We look for forward to this year's ceremony and meeting the 2019 honorees,” said Pat Daly, son of the fallen educator.​

Nominations are currently being accepted and will be accepted until July 8th. For full details, please visit www.statenislandusa.com/dalyaward.

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.