FOR RELEASE:

Staten Island’s economy has grown in recent years, in large part because it is insulated from the economic volatility experienced in other boroughs, State Comptroller Alan Hevesi said in a report released today that examines the state of economic development and the overall economy in Staten Island.

“While Staten Island experienced an economic downturn during the last recession, its impact was milder than in other parts of the City,” Hevesi said at a breakfast hosted by the Staten Island Chamber of Commerce. “In recent years, the borough’s economy has been bolstered by strong retail and home construction markets, historically low crime rates, and an influx of new residents.” Hevesi noted that Staten Island is the fastest-growing borough in the City.

“As stated in the report, Staten Island faces many challenges due to our rapid growth. The Chamber plans on using this report as a resource to move our agenda forward,” stated Linda M. Baran, President & CEO, Staten Island Chamber of Commerce.

While Staten Island, the smallest of the City’s boroughs, has a more suburban character than other boroughs, it struggles with many big-city problems, including urban sprawl, congestion, traffic, and the need to revitalize neighborhood economies. In recent years, the City has initiated a number of programs in an attempt to mitigate the impact of Staten Island’s population boom. Initiatives have rezoned areas throughout the borough, studied transit options, and supported lagging sectors of the borough’s economy.

Hevesi’s report details the composition of the Staten Island economy. Notable findings include:

• Staten Island's economy gained a combined total of 470 jobs in 2003 and the first half of 2004, and employment has almost returned to pre-recession levels.
• Staten Island’s economy is focused on the local market, with 28.7 percent of the borough’s jobs in the health services and social assistance sector and 18 percent in retail trade.
• Home prices have more than doubled in Staten Island in the past six years (and are projected to reach $430,000 according to the City’s recently released tax roll).
• Staten Island residents have a higher per capita income ($34,980) than any other borough except Manhattan.
• Staten Island’s poverty rate has dropped since 1990 and is the lowest in the City, at 9.3 percent.

The report also examines the local economy of each of the borough’s 12 zip codes and highlights economic development projects throughout the island.

The report found that:

• St. George (located in zip code 10301) is the focus of the largest redevelopment project in the borough’s history — to build a new waterfront gateway to Staten Island.
• The Staten Island University Hospital and Local 1199 of the Service Employees International Union recently opened a job training and educational center in Port Richmond (10302), which has the borough’s second highest poverty rate.
• Transportation and warehousing jobs account for nearly one quarter of the jobs in Arlington, Howland Hook, Mariner’s Harbor, and Port Ivory (10303) and contribute to the area’s high salaries, which were the second-highest in Staten Island in 2003.
• The health care and social assistance sector provided nearly half of all jobs in Clifton, Concord, Park Hill, Stapleton, and Todt Hill (10304), but it has contracted recently, and the closing of Bayley Seton Hospital will further impact the neighborhood’s employment.
• South Beach (10305) has been the site of significant recreational waterfront development along the FDR Boardwalk, which will include a new pavilion, bathhouse, and restaurant and the Vanderbilt Catering Hall.
• Approximately 35 percent of the jobs in Bay Terrace, Grant City, Lighthouse Hill, Midland Beach, New Dorp, Oakwood, and Richmondtown (10306) are in the health care and social assistance sector.
• Tottenville (10307), Staten Island’s least populated neighborhood (11,669 residents), recorded the fastest population growth in the borough during the 1990s (54 percent) and has one of the highest median household incomes in Staten Island ($64,159).
• Great Kills (10308) only expanded by 6.5 percent in the 1990s, the slowest gain of any Staten Island zip code.
• Charleston, Pleasant Plains, Prince’s Bay, Richmond Valley, Rossville, and Woodrow (10309) had the second-highest rate of population growth in Staten Island in the 1990s—nearly 46 percent—and nearly 38 percent of the area’s housing units were constructed during this period.
• Livingston (10310) contains Snug Harbor, which is an 83-acre national historic landmark district that contains the Staten Island Botanical Garden, the Chinese Scholar’s Garden, the Newhouse Center for Contemporary Art, and the Staten Island Children’s Museum. Plans are underway for a new waterfront park and marina.
• Annadale, Arden Heights, Eltingville, Greenridge, and Huguenot are located in the second-largest zip code (10312) in Staten Island and had the borough’s highest median household income during 1999 ($67,728). Overall employment grew by 4.5 percent in 2003, the fastest rate of job growth of any zip code in Staten Island.
• Zip code 10314 (Bloomfield, Bulls Head, Castleton Corners, Chelsea, Graniteville, Heartland Village, New Springfield, Travis, and Westerleigh) is the most populous area in the borough, housing 19 percent of Staten Island’s population, and is tied with zip code 10312 for the lowest unemployment rate (4.1 percent) on the island.

Hevesi noted, “Staten Island is benefiting from public and private sector investments throughout the borough, including the remediation and redevelopment of the Fresh Kills landfill and the transformation of the St. George waterfront into a dynamic entertainment destination. Combined with the borough’s existing natural resources and cultural institutions, the borough’s economy is poised for continued growth.”

Click here for a copy of the report.

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