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Plans To Separate Staten Island From The Other Four Boroughs---How Would This Effec..

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Sea Beach

Sea Beach

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By Staten Island Advance------------------

 

Get ready for "Staten Island Secession: The Sequel."

 

State Sen. Andrew Lanza (R-Staten Island) next month will introduce legislation to separate the Island from the other four boroughs and make it into the second-largest city in New York State.

 

"It's something I really believe in," said Lanza, who is putting the finishing touches on the 2,115-page bill, which he said would likely be the most voluminous piece of legislation submitted next year aside from the state budget. "I always thought [secession] was a good idea."

 

Lanza's effort comes 14 years after Democratic Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver killed the borough's first secession movement in 1994 by refusing to allow his members to vote on the question. In November 1993, 65 percent of Island voters had supported a split.

 

From the tortuous effort to close the Fresh Kills landfill years ago right up until today's attempts to get a fair share of Health and Hospitals Corp. funding, Lanza said that "being part of New York City works against Staten Island on all the issues we care about."

 

"Staten Island's voice is diminished in this big, bureaucratic system that we pay a lot of the bill for," he said. "No one can deny that we have been short-changed for decades."

 

Lanza said that a financial study included in his legislation shows that the Island could raise enough of its own tax revenue from homes, businesses and payrolls in order to be self-sufficient.

 

He said that revenue generated by the New York Container Terminal at Howland Hook and the solid-waste transfer station at Fresh Kills would also boost the Island's bottom line.

 

Lanza said that other "unexploited" economic-development opportunities could be pursued if the Island were no longer part of New York City.

 

"Being the second-largest city in the state would give us a lot of clout," Lanza said. "We'd have the second-biggest seat at the table."

 

With an estimated population of 481,613, the Island would also rank among the top 35 cities in the U.S.

 

Secesson fever had cooled since 1994 with Mayors Rudolph Giuliani and Michael Bloomberg paying closer attention to the Island, a key part of their political bases and the borough that provided both men with their mayoral margins of victory.

 

Lanza acknowledged that the relationship between the Island and City Hall has been "better than it's ever, ever been," but added, "It hasn't changed to the extent that the Island has an adequate voice at the table."

 

Said Lanza, "It shouldn't be left to chance. We shouldn't have to hope that the next mayor will care about Staten Island."

 

Silver, of course, is still in charge of the Assembly and as he showed during the recent congestion pricing battle, is still more than willing to smother legislation by keeping it off the Assembly floor.

 

In 1994, Silver said that a home-rule message from the City Council was required in order for the Assembly to vote on secession.

 

Lanza today said that a home-rule message was not required under the State Constitution, and that he would go to court if the same roadblock is thrown up again.

 

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How Would This Effect Bus Service On SI?! and maybe even SIRR

 

 

Link To Article: http://www.silive.com/news/index.ssf/2008/12/politician_planning_to_relaunc.html

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7LineFan

7LineFan

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How Would This Effect Bus Service On SI?! and maybe even SIRR

 

Well (MTA) would probably still run the SIRT. There would be no subway expansion into SI.

 

If they and the city want to be tough they could restart charging for SI Ferry rides (since SI would not be part of the city anymore, the city would not be obligated to keep the ferry free as that was a condition for mayoral support).

 

(MTA) could stop bus service within SI, forcing them to start their own, but I could see the Staten Island routes going to (MTA) Bus instead.

 

That is, if this ever happens.

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metsfan

metsfan

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Again. No.

 

This is a stupid idea.

 

Also.. There will never be subway to staten island -EVER-. SIR would have to be transferred to the new entity as it isnt currently chartered to run 100% outside of nyc under (MTA) control. Would be like (MTA) running the HBLR. The staten island ferry would have to become privately operated or operated by NYDOT vs NYCDOT. This is a stupid idea.

 

These crackpots should be dragged behind a good ole familiar orange ferry in january till they shiver the stupidity out of their heads.

 

Don't mean to sound harsh, but it is a really daft idea.

 

- A

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Kexpress

Kexpress

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If it means more money for NYC, go for it. I have never seen that island as part of the city any way, it is more like Jersey.
Yep. Well they should make Staten Island part of NJ since the other 4 boroughs have no care for staten island so they might as well have Staten Island be its own city and be part of state New Jersey. Even if this was not a great idea they might as well do it since most people that live in any 4 boroughs have no care for Staten Island. The (MTA) can sell the Staten Island Railway to NJ Transit or PATH (Port Authority Trans-Hudson) since there will never be a subway connection with SIRT or extended to S.I,which is a great idea,which will never happen,so they might as well sell it to NJ Transit or PATH (Port Authority Trans-Hudson) and as for the (MTA) New York City Bus in S.I they might as well sell it to NJ Transit.
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metsfan

metsfan

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Again, there will be no subway extension to staten island, and it will not separate from the rest of nyc or become part of NJ. All of these absurd ideas need to be put to rest along with all of the wild & off the wall related speculating. Granted, stranger things have happened, but this isn't going to.

 

- A

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Paul P

Paul P

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Ok people let's just chill out and think here: this is only some stupid proposition from some crackheads, and let's not think selfish here: Staten Island is a great borough, maybe not as influential as the others, but many New Yorkers still live there. If this is all because the borough is a separate island, then really screw this proposal, it's never going to happen anyway, the economy will hopefully get better in the future, and it will be forgot along all the other bs that has been planned. Anyways, we will always see what happens, for them it's like saying: I DON'T KNOW WHAT I'M DOING, BUT I KNOW I'M DOING SOMETHING.

 

Agree?

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