Latest / Sid & Friends In The Morning / Vito Fossella | Staten Island Borough President on FerryHawks Bringing S.I. Community Together

Transcript

Vito Fossella | Staten Island Borough President on FerryHawks Bringing S.I. Community Together · Sid & Friends In The Morning

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: Right now, there are some big things happening, I understand,
• 0:03
  Speaker 1: in Staten Island. Big things happened in Staten Island last night.
• 0:07
  Speaker 1: And who better to tell us what the heck is
• 0:09
  Speaker 1: going on? We have the borough president of Staten Island,
• 0:12
  Speaker 1: Vito Fussella. One common sense guy. He is a common
• 0:16
  Speaker 1: sense guy. His father was a Democrat. He is a Republican. And, well,
• 0:22
  Speaker 1: Vito Fussella— Well, let's teleport to Vito Fussella.
• 0:24
  Speaker 2: How about that?
• 0:25
  Speaker 1: Let's teleport. I mean, big things happened in Staten Island yesterday.
• 0:31
  Speaker 1: Give us the big, the great news.
• 0:33
  Speaker 3: Well, yeah. Good to be with you, John, as always, Michael. And, um,
• 0:37
  Speaker 3: my friend is Dr.
• 0:38
  Speaker 1: Don't forget about Jake Novak.
• 0:40
  Speaker 3: You remember Dr. Chivago?
• 0:43
  Speaker 2: So where am I love?
• 0:44
  Speaker 1: So, uh, yeah, there.
• 0:47
  Speaker 3: Was a very nice thing happening at your stadium, John, um,
• 0:50
  Speaker 3: over the weekend, um, And something the world could use
• 0:54
  Speaker 3: more of, just people coming out, expressing their support of
• 0:56
  Speaker 3: the community, loving Staten Island. And one of the best
• 1:01
  Speaker 3: venues of any stadium in the country, let alone the world,
• 1:06
  Speaker 3: more people should take advantage of it. And it was
• 1:10
  Speaker 3: just people coming together to express their support for this
• 1:13
  Speaker 3: great borough of Staten Island, great community. It supports its
• 1:17
  Speaker 3: men and women in law enforcement. They care about their schools.
• 1:21
  Speaker 3: want to keep this place safe. It would be probably
• 1:23
  Speaker 3: the safest big city in the United States. And we're
• 1:26
  Speaker 3: there for each other. And that's what we're trying to
• 1:29
  Speaker 3: preserve and enhance. And that's why we still see so
• 1:31
  Speaker 3: many people coming and moving to Staten Island for a
• 1:34
  Speaker 3: better quality of life. And that's what we try to do.
• 1:37
  Speaker 3: And fortunately, you and Margo and others took over the
• 1:40
  Speaker 3: reins of the ferry locks a few years ago and
• 1:42
  Speaker 3: have been doing wonderful to promote it. And I think
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  Speaker 3: it's just one more great part of of what they
• 1:49
  Speaker 3: call community and loving it, and that's what it was
• 1:52
  Speaker 3: all about.
• 1:53
  Speaker 2: And it was a real, it wasn't just a Staten Island,
• 1:55
  Speaker 2: it was a Staten Island America Day. I mean, people
• 1:59
  Speaker 2: coming out, they were buying the hot dogs, they were
• 2:01
  Speaker 2: seeing baseball, just an amazing, amazing event. Vito, I have
• 2:06
  Speaker 2: to ask you, though, I think you're going to have
• 2:09
  Speaker 2: a lot of days like yesterday where coming up, especially
• 2:13
  Speaker 2: next year. I'm sorry I can't ignore the elephant in
• 2:16
  Speaker 2: the room. Almost every person who really has inside information
• 2:20
  Speaker 2: or not so inside information about Major League Baseball is
• 2:22
  Speaker 2: expecting a significant work stoppage next year. And that's going
• 2:26
  Speaker 2: to be great news for the Ferry Hawks and these
• 2:28
  Speaker 2: other independent teams because that's going to be the only
• 2:31
  Speaker 2: baseball in town, I think, for a significant portion of
• 2:34
  Speaker 2: next summer. I don't wish it to happen, but I
• 2:36
  Speaker 2: do like the idea that this might bring more people
• 2:38
  Speaker 2: out to that ballpark you say everyone needs to visit.
• 2:42
  Speaker 3: Yeah, it's a fair point. I think it's a question
• 2:44
  Speaker 3: of the probability of it happening, and it would be
• 2:47
  Speaker 3: bittersweet for those Major League Baseball fans if they have
• 2:50
  Speaker 3: to see a stoppage. But the flip side is if
• 2:53
  Speaker 3: it brings more attention to the Ferry Hawks and the stadium.
• 2:58
  Speaker 3: People have to envision a day like yesterday. You overlook
• 3:02
  Speaker 3: New York Harbor. People come from all over the world
• 3:04
  Speaker 3: to see the Statue of Liberty, to see New York,
• 3:07
  Speaker 3: the skyline, and you get that for practically nothing. at
• 3:12
  Speaker 3: the Ferry Hawk Stadium. And it's just a short visit,
• 3:16
  Speaker 3: literally a fast ferry at the base of the stadium,
• 3:19
  Speaker 3: 18 minutes or so from downtown Brookfield. Big town, about
• 3:24
  Speaker 3: a half hour. So if you're in Manhattan or visiting
• 3:28
  Speaker 3: as a tourist and you want to come and see
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  Speaker 3: something different and special, you're literally only a half hour,
• 3:33
  Speaker 3: less than a half hour away. So I think it's
• 3:36
  Speaker 3: just one more way to promote it. And you guys
• 3:38
  Speaker 3: have been doing a great job. And as we all say,
• 3:41
  Speaker 3: the best days are ahead.
• 3:42
  Speaker 1: Can you talk for a second? Just one second, and
• 3:45
  Speaker 1: then I'll go to you. What I really want is
• 3:48
  Speaker 1: the Cyclones are the other big minor league team in
• 3:52
  Speaker 1: New York and Brooklyn. And we have the Hawks, the
• 3:56
  Speaker 1: Ferry Hawks in Staten Island. Well, the Mets and the
• 4:01
  Speaker 1: Yankees are playing a subway series. How about the Ferry
• 4:06
  Speaker 1: Hawks and the Cyclones maybe having a ferry series?
• 4:11
  Speaker 4: That's a great idea.
• 4:12
  Speaker 5: Yep.
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  Speaker 2: And taking a boat. The teams take a boat.
• 4:14
  Speaker 1: Taking a boat back and forth from Brooklyn. And there's
• 4:17
  Speaker 1: a high-speed boat on now from Brooklyn to Staten Island.
• 4:21
  Speaker 1: And high-speed boats and regular ferries from Manhattan to Staten Island.
• 4:25
  Speaker 1: I mean, we'll make Staten Island great again.
• 4:30
  Speaker 3: I love it. Put it together. Let's take the boat ride,
• 4:32
  Speaker 3: whatever you want to do. I'm all on board, John. And,
• 4:35
  Speaker 3: you know, the flip side is next week on September 9th,
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  Speaker 3: it's just a grim reminder of what the impacts of
• 4:42
  Speaker 3: September 11th had, 25th anniversary. The fire department is going
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  Speaker 3: to have a ceremony at the stadium. I think it's
• 4:49
  Speaker 3: 4 o'clock. And once again, that reflects the contribution of
• 4:55
  Speaker 3: the service, firemen, police officers, Port Authority, and so many more,
• 5:00
  Speaker 3: and obviously the private sector, individuals, just innocent people lost
• 5:04
  Speaker 3: their life. And that will be the stage for the
• 5:08
  Speaker 3: 25th anniversary hosted by the New York City Fire Department.
• 5:13
  Speaker 3: So we've got to pause and reflect on that day,
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  Speaker 3: the significance, the carnage that took place, and the families
• 5:19
  Speaker 3: who still suffer. But we stick together, and we're not
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  Speaker 3: going anywhere, John. So, yeah, we're going to continue to
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  Speaker 3: make Staten Island great, continue to promote it for families
• 5:29
  Speaker 3: and schools and across the board, and that's what it's
• 5:32
  Speaker 3: all about.
• 5:33
  Speaker 4: And if I'm not mistaken, Staten Island has seen a
• 5:37
  Speaker 4: tremendous increase in terms of safety, right? over the course
• 5:42
  Speaker 4: of the past, I don't know, decade? What do you
• 5:45
  Speaker 4: attribute that to?
• 5:48
  Speaker 3: To safety? I just think it's against the backdrop, Michael.
• 5:54
  Speaker 3: If you remember a few years ago, there were nutjobs
• 5:57
  Speaker 3: who were promoting defunding the police, and there were riots,
• 6:03
  Speaker 3: and the police were told to stand down.
• 6:05
  Speaker 4: You mean like Kathy Hochul?
• 6:07
  Speaker 3: Well, I'm not going to point names, but there are
• 6:09
  Speaker 3: a lot of folks who just went along with it, right?
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  Speaker 3: Their silence was complicit in allowing these things to happen.
• 6:18
  Speaker 3: I can recall watching with just total disgust as cops
• 6:23
  Speaker 3: were being hit over the head with, like, concrete buckets,
• 6:26
  Speaker 3: and there were political officials who were saying, take that
• 6:29
  Speaker 3: guy's badge away because they were responding. I say that
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  Speaker 3: because in other parts of the city it was sort
• 6:34
  Speaker 3: of okay, right? But on Staten Island, we said, no,
• 6:37
  Speaker 3: we support the men and women in the New York
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  Speaker 3: City Police Department. We're not going to let these nut
• 6:42
  Speaker 3: jobs take over. Most vast, vast majority, 98, 99 percent
• 6:48
  Speaker 3: of people just want to live freely. They want to
• 6:51
  Speaker 3: have peace. They want their young children to go to
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  Speaker 3: school safely. They want their daughters to walk the streets
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  Speaker 3: without fear of being attacked or assaulted. We work very
• 7:02
  Speaker 3: closely with the district attorney. And we send the message
• 7:05
  Speaker 3: that in Staten Island, if you cross the line, there
• 7:09
  Speaker 3: will be consequences and there will be accountability, despite what
• 7:14
  Speaker 3: the state legislature has done with so-called bail reform. where
• 7:18
  Speaker 3: I could tell you there are people, guys who were
• 7:20
  Speaker 3: arrested 10, 15, 20 times and back on the street
• 7:24
  Speaker 3: who should be in jail. But around here, we just say, no,
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  Speaker 3: we're going to do what we can and we're going
• 7:30
  Speaker 3: to keep Staten Island safe. So to your point, Michael,
• 7:33
  Speaker 3: I think we've only had one homicide this year, perhaps.
• 7:36
  Speaker 4: Yeah, that's what I read in the paper. I mean,
• 7:38
  Speaker 4: as we were sitting during a break, we heard over
• 7:41
  Speaker 4: breaking news that in Brooklyn, that there was a woman
• 7:45
  Speaker 4: who was attacked in, what was it, Park Slope. Literally,
• 7:50
  Speaker 4: not only was she attacked, but they also sexually assaulted her.
• 7:55
  Speaker 4: This is in the middle of the street. This is
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  Speaker 4: how bad lawlessness has gotten.
• 8:03
  Speaker 3: Yeah, and it's all great when they talk about all
• 8:06
  Speaker 3: these bases, why they support these reforms or so-called reforms,
• 8:11
  Speaker 3: until it's your kid, until it's your girlfriend, until it's
• 8:14
  Speaker 3: your wife. And then all of a sudden it becomes real.
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  Speaker 3: And our view around here, you know, many Staten Islanders
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  Speaker 3: work in Brooklyn or work in Manhattan for the sake
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  Speaker 3: of argument. They deserve the same level of safety as
• 8:29
  Speaker 3: if they walk the streets of Staten Island. And that's
• 8:32
  Speaker 3: why we've got to keep pushing it. And every one
• 8:34
  Speaker 3: of these individuals, these victims. They should not be faceless
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  Speaker 3: and nameless. They should be exhibit A as to why
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  Speaker 3: we need to keep bad people off the streets of
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  Speaker 3: the city so most people can just walk around and
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  Speaker 3: be free and live in peace.
• 8:50
  Speaker 2: Vita Vassella, borough president of Staten Island, reminding us that
• 8:54
  Speaker 2: sporting events have much more meaning than just balls and
• 8:58
  Speaker 2: strikes and the score on the scoreboard. I appreciate it.
• 9:01
  Speaker 2: I love when people just get together in large gatherings
• 9:04
  Speaker 2: these days. People are on their phones the whole time,
• 9:06
  Speaker 2: and they're not getting together and talking.
• 9:08
  Speaker 4: Or balls and strikes and safety throughout America.
• 9:10
  Speaker 1: Well, what we're trying to do, by the way, in
• 9:13
  Speaker 1: the stadium in Staten Island is bring soccer, bring a
• 9:17
  Speaker 1: whole entertainment center, and I've talked to economic development. They're
• 9:22
  Speaker 1: eventually going to put a highway, and I suggested to
• 9:26
  Speaker 1: them that they put it along the coastline so they
• 9:29
  Speaker 1: don't interrupt the neighborhood. Just like Manhattan has the Henry
• 9:34
  Speaker 1: Hudson Parkway or the FDR Drive. If you put it
• 9:38
  Speaker 1: along the northern part from the Verrazano Bridge all the
• 9:43
  Speaker 1: way to the New Jersey Bridge, then you speed up
• 9:49
  Speaker 1: people being able to get to the stadium without having
• 9:53
  Speaker 1: to go through all the neighborhoods.
• 9:55
  Speaker 2: Well, just keep putting a good product on the field
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  Speaker 2: and people will come no matter what.
• 9:58
  Speaker 1: Well, you've got veto for sellers. great borough president. And, uh, and, uh,
• 10:03
  Speaker 1: we love the people of Staten Island and, uh, Vito,
• 10:06
  Speaker 1: God bless. Thank you so much.
• 10:08
  Speaker 5: Thanks for listening to Sid and Friends in the Morning.
• 10:12
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• 10:14
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• 10:18
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• 10:34
  Speaker 4: See you next time for.
• 10:35
  Speaker 5: A new episode so you never have to wonder.
• 10:37
  Speaker 4: What the heck is going on here?