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District 51

Joseph C. Borelli

Todt Hill-Emerson Hill-Lighthouse Hill-Manor Heights, New Springville-Willowbrook-Bulls Head-Travis, Freshkills Park (North), Oakwood-Richmondtown, Great Kills-Eltingville, Arden Heights-Rossville, Annadale-Huguenot-Prince's Bay-Woodrow, Tottenville-Charleston, Freshkills Park (South), Great Kills Park

Published Aug. 17, 2024, 10:10 a.m. ET

By Rich Calder

Except in rare emergencies, NYC correction officers will no longer be allowed to use pepper spray to protect themselves or inmates on Rikers Island and other Big Apple jails, under a “reckless” new bill being considered by the City Council.

Far left Democratic Councilwoman Sandy Nurse’s legislation would require correction officers to first get authorization from tour commanders before firing “high-powered oleoresin capsicum sprays” — better known as pepper sprays – on out-of-control detainees.

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Published Aug. 13, 2024, 4:18 p.m. ET

By Carl Campanile

City Council members from every borough are urging Gov. Kathy Hochul to block a push by the state’s weed regulatory board to allow more licensed pot shops to open in neighborhoods across the Big Apple.

Nine members of the council’s “Common Sense” Caucus fired off a letter to Hochul on Monday decrying what critics call the state Cannabis Control Board’s half-baked idea to provide waivers for its current 1,000-foot buffer between legal cannabis shops — thus allowing two or more stores to sell weed on the same block.

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Published Aug. 10, 2024, 11:09 a.m. ET

By Matthew Sedacca and Georgia Worrell

They’re blowing up patriotism.

Drones should replace fireworks at the annual Macy’s Fourth of July show, according to a scientist and co-author of an explosive new study bashing the cherished holiday tradition as a public health concern.

“In the ideal situation, if we wanted to protect our health as best as possible, let’s replace fireworks with drones,” said David Luglio, a postdoctoral fellow at Tulane University who co-authored a new pollution study, published this week in the Journal of Exposure Science &

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Published Aug. 10, 2024, 1:13 p.m. ET

By Rich Calder

NYC Councilwoman Nantasha Williams is trying to drum up City Council support to back controversial legislation requiring police officers statewide to buy personal liability insurance to hold them more accountable for misconduct – a move the head of the Police Benevolent Association called a veiled attempt by the left to “Defund the Police.”

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Updated: Aug. 07, 2024, 2:02 p.m. | Published: Aug. 07, 2024, 5:50 a.m.

By Paul Liotta | pliotta@siadvance.com

CITY HALL — Mayor Eric Adams’ administration said Tuesday that hizzoner’s housing plan encompasses a broad set of initiatives, but much of it will rely on its most controversial portion.

Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs) account for as many as 40,000 of the 110,000 new units to be built under Adams’ “City of Yes for Housing Opportunity” proposed plan over 15 years, administration officials said Monday, but for Staten Island council members they’re a non-starter.

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Updated: Aug. 01, 2024, 9:59 a.m. | Published: Aug. 01, 2024, 5:50 a.m.

By Paul Liotta | pliotta@siadvance.com

An aerial view of Tottenville with the Outerbridge visible from Conference House Park on Thursday, August 3, 2023. (Staten Island Advance/Jason Paderon)

EDITOR’S NOTE: Tipping Point? is a journalistic initiative launched by Advance/SILive.com to inform Staten Islanders how NYC’s City of Yes for Housing Opportunity proposal could impact the borough.

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Updated: Jul. 09, 2024, 6:15 p.m. | Published: Jul. 09, 2024, 6:14 p.m.

By Paul Liotta | pliotta@siadvance.com

The entrance to the Rikers Island jail complex is shown iTuesday, May 7, 2024. (AP Photo/Ted Shaffrey)

CITY HALL — Mayor Eric Adams said Tuesday that he supports a conservative-pushed rollback of sanctuary city policies passed during Mayor Bill de Blasio’s administration.

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Published July 3, 2024, 6:33 p.m. ET

By The Center Square

New York City officials are dramatically expanding a controversial program that gives debit cards pre-loaded with cash to migrant families staying in taxpayer-funded hotels across the city.

The Adams administration says another round of debit cards is expected to be distributed to more than 7,300 migrants over the next six months, costing the city about $2.6 million.

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Published June 23, 2024, 5:14 p.m. ET

By Carl Campanile

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority has halted construction projects at two Queens rail stations to put pressure on Gov. Kathy Hochul after she knocked down the unpopular congestion pricing plan, sources said.

The MTA sent a letter ordering a contractor to immediately suspend work on making its Long Island Railroad stations in Forest Hills and Hollis more accessible to riders with disabilities 

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Published June 15, 2024, 11:53 a.m. ET

By Rich Calder

New York City voters in November could have the power to repeal “misguided and dangerous” “sanctuary city” laws that severely limit the NYPD’s ability to cooperate with the feds on immigration matters and are a clear “threat to public safety.”

Joe Borelli (R-Staten Island), Robert Holden (D-Queens) and six other members of the City Council’s “Common Sense Caucus” fired off a letter this week to a newly-appointed Charter Revision Commission, asking it to put a referendum question on the ballot to determine whether to roll back the “sanctuary” laws that help criminals avoid deportation.

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District Office

2955 Veterans Road West, Suite 2
Staten Island, NY 10309
(718) 984-5151 phone
(718) 948-1592 fax

Legislative Office

250 Broadway, 1551
New York, NY 10007
(212) 788-6989 phone 1
(212)-788-7159 phone 2
(718) 948-1592 fax

 Send Email
borelli@council.nyc.gov

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COBA Rally for Safer Jails