Staten Island’s “hotspotting” program—an MIT-backed partnership of health providers wielding AI, street smarts, and the occasional monetary nudge—has helped drive overdose deaths in the borough down by nearly half in a year, far outpacing New York C…
Councilmember Kamillah Hanks unveiled a much-awaited transit survey suggesting Staten Island commuters hold their bus and ferry service in low esteem—reliability and fare enforcement flunked, while crowding got a tepid C. Despite gripes about back-door freeloaders and school-time sardine routines, locals welcomed the OMNY payment system and a mooted ferry to Brooklyn. The MTA assures us they're “reviewing,” no doubt at their customary glacial pace.
After coverage of Patricia Brooks, a 70-year-old Westerleigh resident struggling with $200-a-month SNAP benefits during America’s government shutdown, Staten Islanders and distant do-gooders alike showered her with groceries and over $1,000 via GoFundMe. As the state’s bureaucracy stalls, community spirit—plus a fond memory of her Opie and Anthony radio appearances—has apparently achieved what federal payments could not: a full fridge and a dash of hope.
After Zohran Mamdani’s historic mayoral win—without much love from Staten Island Democrats who largely backed Andrew Cuomo—the borough’s elected officials now pledge to work with City Hall, albeit with cool reserve. Councilmember Kamillah Hanks and party chair Charles Fall stress they'll hold the newcomer to local priorities, though actual enthusiasm seems scarcer than MTA punctuality on a rainy Monday morning.
Veteran Service Officers accredited by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs are returning to Councilman Frank Morano’s Staten Island office to help local veterans and families untangle benefit claims—a partnership with the Department of New York VFW. Scheduled monthly, these free sessions seek to trim the bureaucracy veterans often face, though Staten Island’s war with paperwork may prove rather more enduring than the armistice itself.
Next week, Staten Island’s roads will echo with the hum of New York City Department of Transportation milling crews, as patchwork repairs spread across Community Boards, sparing only Veterans Day for rest. While the city promises safer, smoother commutes, road closures and surprise detours are likely to test drivers’ patience—reminding us that urban progress (unlike potholes) rarely appears overnight.
A crash blocked two Brooklyn-bound lanes on the Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge late Friday morning, with a single minor injury not requiring hospital care, according to the MTA and New York’s emergency services. Earlier police activity also sparked delays in both directions, making the usual Staten Island Expressway grind even less lively; as ever, neither fog nor bridge nor traffic can stop New Yorkers from inching forward.
We woke to a frost advisory on Staten Island, as the National Weather Service warned of overnight lows in the upper 40s and brisk winds gusting up to 35 mph along the coast—hardly beach weather. A brief shower and temperature bump to the 60s come Saturday will be swiftly undercut by another storm system Sunday and a chilly week ahead; thermometers are getting more exercise than residents lately.
