Father Macris Park, Staten IslandDuring the middle of the twentieth century, the City of New York began acquiring land for the current Staten Island Expressway.  In 1958, a parcel of a little over thirteen acres of land was acquired in the neighborhood of Bulls Head.  Grass was planted on the parcel, but nothing else was done to the site for decades.  It is bounded to the north by the Staten Island Expressway, to the south by Lamberts Lane, to the west by Fahy Ave., and to the east by a ramp connecting to the Staten Island Expressway.

In 1993, the park was named for the recently deceased Greek Orthodox priest, Revered Spyridon Macris, who had been the pastor of Holy Trinity – St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church.  The park was dedicated as Father Macris Park in May of the following…

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In 2011, a park opened in the neighborhood of Annadale.  For years, the land taken up by the park, as well as surrounding land, had been undeveloped.  By the end of the 1960s, after the housing boom, one house was built on Drumgoole Tot Lot, in Staten Islandthe property of the current park.  This house was demolished just a few years later, however.  Up until 2010, the land was left to its own devices and a gate protected the wildlife within.

In the middle of February of 2010, construction began on the parcel of land.  Construction was completed in April of 2011.  By the end of July of 2011, the park opened as Drumgoole Tot Lot.  Drumgoole Tot Lot is located to the west of the Korean War Veterans Parkway.  It is bounded to the north by Grantwood Avenue, to the south by Carlton Boulevard,…

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If you love nature, you're certain to love Staten Island, as it is filled with many parks and nature preserves.  On the southwestern shore of Staten Island, in the neighborhood of Charleston, you will find the 260-acre Clay Pit Ponds Clay Pitt Pond, Staten IslandState Park Preserve.  This park was the first and only state park preserve to be established in New York City, having been set up in 1976.  In 1980, Clay Pit Ponds State Park Preserve opened to the public.  It is under the jurisdiction of the State of New York Office of Parks, Recreation, and Historic Preservation.

Prior to its use as a park, the land taken up by Clay Pit Ponds State Park Preserve was mined for clay, hence the park's name.Beginning in the middle of the nineteenth century, brick manufacturer Balthasar…

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In 1975, the City of New York purchased two parcels of land in Staten Island's Rosebank neighborhood for use as a public park.  The similarity shared by the two parcels was that they both contained a house of historical significance.  The two differed, though, as the houses were unrelated and had their own special significances in 
Alice Austen Park, Rosebank SI NYStaten Island's past.  Nonetheless, the two were included in what soon became Alice Austen Park, with the addresses of the homes being 2 Hylan Boulevard and 30 Hylan Boulevard.

The home at 2 Hylan Boulevard was significant for two reasons.  The first reason was because of when the home was constructed, as well as the architectural styles used.  It was originally a one-room Dutch Colonial home constructed at the turn of the…

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Prall Playground, Staten IslanndIn the middle of the twentieth century, a school building was constructed in the neighborhood of West Brighton.  On April 28, 1960, the school was named for Anning Smith Prall.  Born on Staten Island, Prall served as president of the New York City Board of Education for three terms in 1919, 1920, and 1921.  Anning Smith Prall also served as a member of the House of Representatives and president of the Federal Communications Commission in later years.  Intermediate School 27 was named for him twenty-three years after his death.

Intermediate School 27 is located above the corner of Elizabeth Street and Clove Lake Place.  Two parcels of land and Forest Avenue form its northern boundary.  Shortly after the naming of the school, the parcel to the northwest…

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Naples Playground, Staten IslandIn 1931, a school was constructed in the neighborhood of Grasmere at the corner of Targee Street and Naples Street. In 1953 and 1955, the City of New York acquired two plots of land to the east of the school, with Stanwich Street being their eastern boundary. Since the school first opened, these two parcels of land had been used as a play area for local residents, who named it as Concord Playground. Once the two parcels were acquired by the city, a playground was constructed.  It opened in 1965 under the jurisdiction of both the New York City Board of Education and the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation. At the time of its opening, it became known as P.S. 48 Playground, for the adjacent school.

When it first opened, P.S. 48 Playground had…

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If you're interested in salt marshes, Staten Island's West Shore is the place to go.  Most of the West Shore has been undeveloped, leaving much marshland.  In the neighborhoods of Travis and Chelsea, you can find what was once Meredith Woods, Staten Island Parkknown as the Neck Creek Marsh, named after the creek that runs through it.

During the twentieth century, the name of the site was changed to Meredith Park, after a property owner in Chelsea, William T. Meredith.  In 1998, New York City Department of Parks and Recreation Commission Henry J. Stern changed the name of the park yet again, to Meredith Woods.  Though Commissioner Stern is well-known for his appropriate renaming of parks, Meredith Woods is actually made up mostly of marshland.

Meredith Woods is made up of three…

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Pleasant Plains Plaza, Staten IslandAfter the First World War, many World War One memorials began to be placed all over New York City to commemorate those who fought in the war.  In the early 1920s, residents of the southern portion of Staten Island-then known as the Fifth Ward-raised money to have a sculpture built for their community.  George Thomas Brewster, a resident of Tottenville, sculpted an $8,500 statue based on the Louvre's Winged Victory of Samothrace.

The monument Brewster created showed a woman standing atop a globe, holding above her head a sword and the branch of a palm tree, which was considered a symbol of victory before the Common Era.  Sitting in front of the woman was an eagle with its wings spread.  On each side of the quadrilateral pedestal were four plaques.  The…

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Open House at 14 Ionia Ave. Staten Island, NY 10312

BEAUTIFULLY DONE KITCHEN IS OPEN & AIRY,MAPLE CABINETS,GRANITE COUNTERS & FLOORS WITH ISLAND,HARDWOOD FLRS,3 NEW BATHS, ANDERSON WINDOWS,NEW 4 ZONE BASEBOARD HEAT,FINISHED BASEMENT WITH 1/2 BATH,GARAGE,3 CAR DRIVEWAY.2 BEDROOM APT HAS NEW BATH & KITCHEN WITH MAPLE

OPEN HOUSE

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The South Shore of Staten Island is well-known for having acres upon acres of wetlands.  With all of the housing developments that had taken place in the twentieth century, these wetland areas began to disappear.  In 1994, the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation created a Natural Resources Damages Program known as the Jamaica Bay Damages Account.  This program was created in an attempt to restore, replace, or acquire wetland areas that had been affected "as a result of a release of hazardous substances from five landfills within New York City",
Brookfield Landfill being the one in Staten Island.  In the five boroughs, there were eighty-two project proposals proposed for the program.

Of the eighty-two projects proposed, eight had…

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