Staten Island Business Trends.

Transcription

NOVEMBER 2013
20 years
of service
for the
SBDC
www.sibiztrends.com
BITS & BYTES
Business model revolution at Apple?
PAGE 6
FROM THE CHAMBER
You can’t break our spirits.
PAGE 9
YEAR-END TAX CUT
By TIM RONALDSON
Suggestions for businesses.
Business Trends
The Small Business Development Center’s impact on Staten
Island is undeniable. Since 1993,
the SBDC has worked directly
with more than 6,300 businesses
and has created or saved more
than 4,300 jobs.
It has played a crucial role in
kick-starting, stabilizing and fueling new and established businesses through its support services,
provided free of charge at its original location at the College of
Staten Island.
Its success led to the opening of
a satellite location two years ago
in Brooklyn and a third location
at the Empire State Bank branch
on Railroad Avenue in May.
On Oct. 2, the SBDC celebrated
its 20th anniversary at a meeting
at the Grand Oaks Country Club
with its theme of the “three E’s” –
education, entrepreneurship and
economic development.
“The plan has always been to
provide a very comfortable, readily accessible outreach to the residents in Staten Island,” said Dean
Balsamini, the executive director
of the SBDC.
Over the last 20 years, the
SBDC has provided support services and counseling to a variety of
businesses in Staten Island and
Brooklyn that has resulted in an
investment of more than $140 milplease see SBDC, page 27
PAGE 2
Business expo
JANET DUGO/Business Trends
Mercedes Benz of Brooklyn partnered with Ivy Branding & Marketing to present a business expo at the Historic
Old Bermuda Inn. Representing Mercedes Benz were, from left, Lou Romano, Antoinette Gordon-Hessing, Carlo
Caruso, Marie Celestino and Mario Castelli.
Steering committee to direct $25M
By TIM RONALDSON
Business Trends
One year ago, New York was blindsided by
Hurricane Sandy. The damage and devastation was unthinkable.
Business Calendar
Check out our monthly listing and
attend an event on Staten Island.
PAGE 4
One year later, the recovery is still continuing.
In the year following the storm, wills have
been tested, communities have rallied together and lessons have been learned.
The federal, state and city governments
have provided assistance, financial and otherwise, to residents and businesses alike,
with nonprofits and business organizations
supporting as well.
In conjunction with the Staten Island Notplease see FUNDS, page 18
2 BUSINESS TRENDS — NOVEMBER 2013
Year-end tax cutting
suggestions for businesses
By JOHN J. VENTO
It’s not too late to make moves
to reduce your 2013 taxes if you
are a business owner.
• Use the new “streamlined”
home-office rules. Many self-employed taxpayers declined to
claim the home-office deduction
because it was so complicated to
compute.
For 2013, the deduction is
streamlined, allowing for a deduction of $5 per square foot, up to a
maximum of 300 square feet or
$1,500.
• Create a retirement plan. It’s
not too late to create a retirement
plan for yourself and your employees if you have them. The
plans can be simple to set up and
administer, such as a Simplified
Employee Pension (SEP) plan. A
401(k) plan could be established
even for a one-person business.
While some of these plans must
be established by the end of the
year, most can be funded up to the
extended due date of the tax return.
• Purchase business equipment. Up to $500,000 (scheduled to
be reduced significantly to $25,000
in 2014) in business equipment
purchases can be expensed this
year, rather than being expensed
over a number of years. Additionally, there is also a 50 percent
bonus depreciation allowance
(that will not be available in 2014)
if your purchases exceed the
$500,000 limit.
2013 might be the last year to
maximize your equipment purchase deductions to such an extent.
• Deduct health insurance. If
you are self-employed, you are allowed to claim 100 percent of the
amount paid for health insurance
for yourself, your spouse, and
your dependents as long as you
follow certain conditions.
• Consider credit card purchases. If you want to purchase equipment or supplies for your business before the end of the year,
but you are cash-strapped, consider using your credit card.
Your deduction occurs this
year when the purchase is made,
not next year when the credit
card charges are paid.
John J. Vento is a certified public
accountant in private practice and
president of Comprehensive Wealth
Management, Ltd. He may be
reached at (718) 980-9000 or via
email at [email protected].
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Business Calendar
For information, call 718-948-007
EDEN II: MARDI
GRAS DINNER
Visit us online:
www.sibiztrends.com
FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 8
Location: Hilton Garden Inn, 1100
South Ave.
For information, all 718-816-1422
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THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 14
Time: 7:00 p.m.
Location: Richmond Diner, 3954
Richmond Ave.
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Time: 6:00 p.m.
Location: Above Rooftop, 1100
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TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 19
Time: 6:30 p.m.
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NOVEMBER 2013 — BUSINESS TRENDS 5
WEEKLY MEETINGS
MONDAY
Bus. Outreach Ctr of SI/WBCLDC
Small Bus. Counseling –
MWBE/BOC Capital: WBCLDC, 705
Forest Ave., 2nd Fl. By appointment
only. For info, call 718-816-4775.
Kiwanis Club of Richmond Co.:
LaFontana Restaurant, 2879 Amboy
Rd. 7 p.m. For info, call 718-4201966.
College of S.I., Small Bus. Dev. Ctr.
Business Counseling: CSI, 2800
Victory Blvd. 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. No
charge. For info, call the SBDC at
718-982-2560.
TUESDAY
Direct120.com, Ultimate Think
Tank: Lorenzo’s, 1100 South Ave. For
info, visit www.direct120.com.
Kiwanis Club of South Shore:
LaFontana, 2879 Amboy Rd. 7:30
p.m. For info, call 718-370-2770.
SCORE Business Counseling: S.I.
Bank & Trust, 1550 Richmond Rd. 9
a.m. to noon. No appointment necessary. No charge. For info, call 718727-1221.
Business Guild I of the S.I. Chamber of Commerce: Hilton Garden
Inn, 1100 South Ave. 7:45 a.m. Members and invited guests only. For
info, call Jim Thomson at 718-4420900.
Business Network Int’l. (BNI) Network Alliance Chapter: Z-One
Lounge, 1821 Richmond Ave. 7 to
8:30 a.m. For info, call Timothy
Houston at 718-981-8600.
Rotary Club Staten Island: LiGreci’s Staten, 697 Forest Ave. 12:30 to
1:30 p.m. Members and guests welcome. For info, call 718-370-3140.
Business Counseling: Chamber of
Commerce, 130 Bay St. 9 a.m. No
718-982-2560.
Victory Blvd. 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. No
718-982-2560.
WEDNESDAY
Richmond County Referral Source:
Comfort Inn. 7:00 to 8:15 a.m. For
info, email [email protected]
Staten Island Business Council:
Lorenzo’s at Hilton Garden Inn, 1100
South Ave. 7 a.m. Members and
invited guests only. For info, call 347855-4488 or send an e-mail to
[email protected].
Bucks Business Network: Hampton Inn, 1120 South Ave. 7:45 a.m.
For info, call 718-351-2557 or visit
www.sibucks.com.
please see MEETINGS, page 24
in our opinion
21st century transit
I
t’s been a long time coming, but it
looks like Staten Island is on the
verge of bringing its public transportation system into the 21st century.
Not long ago, we received news that
the SI Economic Development Corp.
and the SI Chamber of Commerce had
joined forces to work toward an integrated mass transit plan. Previously,
each organization had been toiling independently to establish a West Shore
Rail line and a North Shore Rail line,
respectively. The two groups rightly
determined that looking at the transit
system as a coordinated whole, and
combining their resources, would be
the most effective way to push for
progress.
We can’t say for certain all the circumstances that came together to
bring about some recent good news
from the Metropolitan Transportation
Authority, but we do think that such a
united front helped. Recently, the
MTA approved a plan that will build a
Bus Rapid Transit system on the site
of the old North Shore Rail line. This
system will provide a dedicated corridor, unattached to public streets and
roads, which will allow buses to swiftly move passengers from point to
point.This is welcome news, indeed.
But we are not all the way there yet.
The end game for Staten Island is to
have a West Shore mass transit system
as well, to connect with both the existing SI Railway that runs across the
South Shore and the new North Shore
BRT system. The ultimate goal is that
the integrated system will connect
66 Willow Avenue
347-682-4867
passengers with New Jersey Transit
light rail via the Bayonne Bridge.
Only then will we have transportation
infrastructure palatable to major businesses and governmental agencies,
not to mention our residents and visitors.
The SIEDC and Chamber are looking for $5-$7 million to fund a study of
a West Shore Rail line. This is a crucial step in moving the project along.
It was this study of the North Shore
rail site that led to the current plan.
The North Shore study was funded
through some shrewd horse-trading
by Borough President Jim Molinaro.
We urge our new borough president to
take a cue from that success and make
it a priority to facilitate the West
Shore Rail Alternative Analysis study.
JANET WARREN DUGO
Publisher
TIM RONALDSON
Executive Editor
STEVE COPPOLA
Director
RICHARD GRADO
Director
ROBERT CUTRONA
Director
LAWRENCE RAMPULLA
Director
DAN McDONOUGH, JR.
Chairman
Business Trends is mailed each month to the
business and community leaders of Staten
Island. To be added to the mailing list, email [email protected]. To submit a
news release, email [email protected].
For advertising info, call 347-682-4867 or
email [email protected].
BITS & BYTES
Business model revolution at Apple?
By BILL DUBOVSKY
Situation
Apple made some pretty amazing announcements on Oct. 25. Along with new
products, it announced that operating system and applications upgrades are now
free, as long as your hardware is up-to-date
enough to run them. This is a revolutionary new business model as computer software vendors have always charged for version upgrades and it was a significant profit center for them. With Apple’s now-free
upgrades over the Internet, most users will
be on the same version of the “latest and
greatest” software. Not only should this
make users happy by making sure that
bugs have been fixed ASAP, and new, free,
functionality is introduced into older devices, but it should also make it easier for
Apple to support products, make it easier
and less expensive for application developers to write and support apps for Apple devices, and encourage more variety and
higher quality of apps for all iDevices. Bottom line – a home run for Apple.
What is it?
The operating system, or OS, is the software that controls the complete look and
feel of the hardware. Some of us might remember names such as CP/M, MS-DOS,
and Windows of various names and versions that ran on PCs. In 1981 Apple began
development of its Lisa and Mac OS based
upon the look and feel of the Xerox Alto
computer and Smalltalk development
tools. While the graphical user interface or
icons that we are all familiar with are ubiquitous, before this time one needed to type
in commands or use the arrow keys and hit
return to make the computer obey. Over
the years Apple added the menu bar to the
top of the screen and many other enhancements to the current OS X (OS 10) named
Mavericks (10.9). The reason this software
is important is that it controls the functionality of your device, how easy it is to use,
what devices it can connect to and control,
how fast (compute and graphics), battery
life, and how it lets apps run.
In the past, software would come in a
box that told you which versions of the OS
it would run on, how much memory was
required, what boards or other devices
were necessary and sometimes even what
screen or printer was supported. Apple’s
OS X works the same over all its devices
such as: iMac, MacBook, and Mac Pro.
Once you learn it, you’re good to go on a
laptop, desktop or professional powerhouse.
Apple also announced that its iWork pro-
ductivity suite, which is similar to Microsoft’s Office suite, is now free on new
hardware and is upgradable. Included are
Pages (word processing), Numbers (spreadsheet), and Keynote (Media and slides
shows). iLife includes creative applications such as iMovie (video editing), iPhoto
(photo editing, sharing), and Garageband
(music composing and arranging) which
are also included and upgradable for free.
Where to get it
Apple’s App store.
How hard is it to use?
It is automatic. When you turn your
Apple device on, a message may come up to
alert you to do the upgrade, but if it doesn’t, go to “software update” on the Apple
please see BITS, page 7
Apple business revolution?
BITS
Continued from page 6
icon or go to the App store. If you
choose to start the free upgrade,
the software will check your system to see if it can be done on
your processor (my old Macbook
Pro from 2007 could only be upgraded to 10.6.8, not the latest
Mavericks 10.9). To get the full
flexibility from the Apple family
of devices, you also need to download the free updates of the OS for
your iPad, iPhone or iPod Touch.
These are straight-forward and
take less than 10 minutes over
WiFi.
Pros
Apple apparently made 200
new features available to make
the OS even more flexible and
seamless with other iDevices.
iWorks now allows you to open an
iBook and copy parts out to your
document – perfect for writing papers or reports. It will probably
take weeks to get a better feel for
more of the innovations on all the
apps.
Cons
Be sure to know your Apple ID
and password before you begin,
and review your iCloud account
information and passwords if you
want to set up iCloud sharing at
the same time. If you don’t remember, you can skip that part of
the installation and do it at a later
time. Also, it took almost an hour
to download and install Mavericks to a fairly new Macbook Pro,
even with a wired FiOS Internet
connection.
For more information
View the 83 minute keynote
presentation
at:
http://www.apple.com/appleevents/october-2013/ or just go to
www.apple.com.
Bottom-line
This is a daring business move
and probably one that only Apple
will be able to pull off as they are
the only company that makes its
own hardware and software. Android and other software platforms are not the same across all
manufacturers’ devices. This fact
along with the overwhelming
number of reliable apps only
available through Apple’s iTunes
store gives it a formidable
durable competitive advantage
for the foreseeable future. Next
time we will review the new iPad
lineup.
Bill Dubovsky - Comtel Information
Services, has a proven track record
of business success spanning over
30 years in helping hundreds of organizations improve their profitability. He is the principal technology
RUMC to address
prescription drug abuse
Richmond University Medical
Center is working with the NYC
Department of Health and Mental Hygiene to address the prevalence of prescription drug abuse
on Staten Island. RUMC has
adopted the NYC Emergency Department Discharge Opioid Prescribing Guidelines for the management of patients with acute or
chronic non-cancer pain discharged from the Emergency Department. This set of nine guidelines, coupled with professional
clinical judgment in the appropriate care of patients, can help reverse opioid dependence and
overdose. RUMC also partners
with the Drug Enforcement
Agency as a host site for the
DEA’s Drug Take Back program,
where residents are encouraged
to dispose of their unwanted, expired and/or unused prescription
drugs, in order to reduce pill
abuse and potential theft of these
potentially dangerous medications.
specialist with Comtel Information
Services, a New York based telecommunications consulting firm, and an
adjunct lecturer in business at the
College of Staten Island, C.U.N.Y.
Contact him via email at
[email protected].
on the job
Visit us on the Web at www.sibiztrends.com
NEW CHAIR, OFFICERS
SCORE
SCORE of Staten Island had its
Annual Membership and Board
meeting, at which
Anthony DeFazio
was elected the
new chairman of
the chapter.
DeFazio
received his BBA in
public adminisDeFazio
tration, with a
minor in finance,
from the Baruch School of CCNY.
Upon graduation, he worked
five years for the New York City
Housing Authority before joining
the Internal Revenue Service.
At the IRS, he specialized in tax
collection and taxpayer service.
In collection, he rose to the position of chief of the field branch of
Long Island, and in taxpayer service he became division chief of
the Brooklyn district.
Upon retirement, he became
chief of enforcement and customer service for the NYC Office
of Child Support Enforcement at
HRA.
DeFazio has been a member of
SCORE for six years. He also
serves as treasurer on the Board
of Directors of the Staten Island
Mental Health Society.
Other officers appointed at the
meeting were John J. Amodio as
first vice chairman, Richard
Stanley as second vice chairman,
Patricia Sturman as treasurer
and Rita Jackson as secretary.
PROMOTIONS
The Nicotra Group
Hoteliers and real estate developers Lois and Richard Nicotra
announced the promotion of five
dedicated employees and welcomed a new salesperson.
• After more than a decade at
Lorenzo’s Restaurant Bar &
Cabaret, Murat Paljevic has been
promoted to assistant restaurant
manager.
• His colleague of seven years,
Ozzi Avdalovic, has been promoted to executive restaurant captain
and assumes sole responsibility
of running the dining room.
• Nick Sayegh has been promoted from a line cook to sous chef at
Lorenzo’s. Sayegh is a graduate of
the Culinary Institute of America
and previously worked at Carol’s
Café on Staten Island as well as
Brooklyn’s River Café.
• Nicotra’s Ballroom and Above
Weddings welcomed Shainah
Bowens as salesperson. Bowens
has worked as an event, sales and
catering coordinator at Marriott
properties in New York and New
Jersey. Bowens will handle social
events.
• After three years with the
Hilton Garden Inn, Carlann Scala
was promoted to night audit supervisor.
• The Nicotra Group Comptroller, Nick Nocerino, has assumed
an additional role as director of
Executive Suites division. He will
oversee all leasing and manageplease see JOB, page 10
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FROM THE CHAMBER
Can’t break our spirits
By TOM SCARANGELLO
Sorry I haven’t written in a
year. Been busy trying to stay
afloat and dry out. Seems last October, Mother Nature decided to
give us a big “wave” hello and she
doesn’t know her own strength!
Thankfully we can relax because,
based on my unwavering political
beliefs, there is no such thing as
global warming, so Hurricane
Sandy will never happen again.
Who needs science!
So let’s catch up. Here’s some
stuff I figured out since I last
wrote to you;
You can’t break Staten Islanders’ spirit even if you destroy
everything they own. Watching
neighbors take in neighbors and
help feed and clothe those in need
gave me new faith in my fellow
man and, more importantly, my
fellow Staten Islander.
Most people consider their
home to be their castle and the
one place they can always find
safe refuge. It’s been over a year
since Sandy and many homes are
still vacant and boarded up. It’s a
nightmare for those still displaced, so please appreciate what
you have, even if it’s not your
dream house. According to the
Labor Department, forty percent
of businesses that are victims of
natural disasters never reopen.
Many businesses that were
drowned out have risked everything to rebuild and reopen because they are entrepreneurs, so
they inherently have an incredibly positive outlook even in the
darkest times. Make it a point to
reward their faith in our community by doing business with them.
For example get your drugs from
Jerry and Lou at Midland Pharmacy and your drinks from Joe
and John at Toto’s Restaurant.
Jimmy Oddo is our next Borough President and no one will
work harder for Staten Islanders.
While he can’t stop natural disasters (he is a Mets fan, after all) he
can be counted on to make us as
prepared as possible and to get us
the assistance we will need
should we run into problems
going forward. Feel fortunate he
is on our side.
The Staten Island Chamber of
Commerce continues to quietly
be the most helpful and critically
important business organization
in our community. Linda Baran
and her staff stepped up just after
the storm to help all those possible. They have since coordinated
getting help to any business who
asked and even helped those contractors working on the New York
City Rapid Repairs project to get
an audience with city officials in
hopes of closing out the project in
the best interest of all involved.
Speaking of NYC, we will miss
Mayor Mike Bloomberg. You
don’t have to agree with all his decisions or policies to appreciate
his decisiveness and ability to get
things done. The Rapid Repairs
program is just one example.
Over 20,000 homes were made inhabitable through heating, hot
water, and electrical repairs over
the course of just three months -an incredible achievement of
commitment, organization, and
coordination in response to an
unprecedented natural disaster. I
worry about the next administration and I am especially suspect
of how Staten Island will be treated, not to mention the business
community.
The coastline needs to be rethunk. We need to seriously examine how close to the water we
should build and what is appropriate to build. While we all hope
a disaster like Sandy never reoccurs we all understand that it can,
even if it’s a hundred years from
now. Beachfront property is nice.
“Beach-in” property is not.
I learned plenty more since the
storm and my last column but
nothing more important than to
just be thankful for what I have.
Hope you are, too.
Scaran Heating, Air Conditioning and
Plumbing, is chair of the Small Business Committee of the Staten Island
Chamber of Commerce.
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To learn how a customized financing program can grow your business
call Jeanne Sarno 347-592-1938 or JoAnn Libretti 347-592-1937.
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Tom Scarangello, a principal with
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Jeanne Sarno
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On the Job
NAT'S MENS SHOP
Work • Uniforms • Casual Wear
Carhartt • Timberland • Dickie • Red Wing
Embroidery & Screen Printing
718-442-1698
Pat Silvestri, Proprietor
81 Port Richmond Avenue
JOB
ment with regard to the Executive Suites at both 900 and 1110
South Ave.
The Executive Suites is fully
customizable Class A office space
with shared support staff and
varied amenities including meeting spaces and copier services.
ACHIEVEMENT AWARD
Richmond University Medical Center
Richmond University Medical
Center has received the Get With
The Guidelines–Stroke Gold Plus
Quality Achievement Award
from the American Heart Association. The award recognizes
RUMC’s commitment and success
in implementing a higher standard of care by ensuring that
stroke patients receive treatment
according to nationally accepted
guidelines.
This marks the fourth consecutive year that RUMC has been recognized with a quality achievement award.
THERESA SARRICA
The Harbor Lights Theater Company
The Harbor Lights Theater
Company announced the election
of Theresa Sarrica as board chair.
Sarrica, a resident of Staten Island for a little
over a decade,
brings more than
two decades of exSarrica
perience
in
fundraising and
marketing for the not-for-profit
sector to her new position. Prior
to her serving as director of communications for the New York
City Department of Finance, she
served as director of inter-agency
communication for the Department of Transportation, director
of development for the Queens
American Cancer Society, director of development for the Dominican Sisters Family Health
Service and director of external
affairs for Samaritan Village.
OFFICERS
The Staten Island Zoological Society
The Staten Island Zoological
Society board of trustees re-elected three officers, including
William J. Frew, Jr. as president.
Frew, an attorney and Grymes
Hill resident, has served on the
board since 1977. Other officers
re-elected were Joseph Romagnolo of Pleasant Plains, vice president, and Richard Prinzi, an Annadale resident, treasurer.
please see JOB, page 21
Do you have any New York Liquor License issues?
Then call…
StartUP S.I.
NEIL M. VISOKY
Attorney at Law
Retired Lieutenant, NYCPD
Successor of
Alexander Weiss, Esq.
Former Deputy Commissioner
New York State Liquor Authority
• License Transfers and Applications
• Summonses and Disciplinary Defense
• Renewals/Alterations
The Corporate Park
1110 South Avenue, Suite 54 • Staten Island, NY 10314
Tel 347-273-1356 • Fax 347-273-1456 • Email [email protected]
StartUP S.I. organizers Lyle Foxman (left) and Charlie Balducci hosted a live stream of a recent NY Tech
Meetup at Balducci's NYC Arts Cypher location on Broad Street. StartUP S.I. aspires to create a local
community that highlights the importance of startups as innovators and job creators, giving them access to the relationships, opportunities, and knowledge they need to succeed here on Staten Island.
‘Small Business of the Year’
For the life of your business
SCORE is the most recognized
and utilized provider of FREE
Confidential Counseling
and Mentoring services to America’s
small businesses.
Let SCORE help YOU!
Special to Business Trends
The NYC Small Business Services "Small Business of the Year" Award was presented to Rab’s Country
Lanes of Dongan Hills. Pictured, from left, are SBS Commissioner Robert W. Walsh, Mayor Michael
Bloomberg, Frank J. Wilkinson of Rab's, Eileen Auld of Citi Community Development and Kevin Burke of
Con Edison.
around the island
The Staten Island YMCA hosted its annual Golf Outing at Silver Lake Golf Course. All proceeds from the
event benefit the organization’s Strong Kids Campaign, which ensures that no child or family is turned
away from the Y’s services due to an inability to pay. Attending the event, from left, were: John Semerad, executive director of the Staten Island South Shore YMCA; Anita Harvey, senior executive director
of the Staten Island YMCA; Victor Vientos of National Grid, the outing’s co-chair; and Jack Lund, president and CEO of the Y of Greater New York.
Students from the College of Staten Island marketing program conducted a semester-long research project for local heating, air conditioning, and plumbing business Scaran to identify best marketing
practices going forward. Results were presented to company Vice
President Tom Scarangello via PowerPoint and video. Pictured, from
left, are participating students Rick Liu, Winnie Tam, Kristina Ivanova, and Andrew Ponce.
Five Staten Island Nonprofits Received a Technical Assistance Award from the Richmond County Savings Bank Foundation. Grantees will benefit from the services of the Neighborhood Technical Assistance
Clinic, which will assist the organizations with a variety of services such as organizing a strategic
fundraising plan, understanding the role of a board and executive director in fundraising, and creating a
membership drive. Pictured, from left, are: Beverly Neuhaus of Richmond Senior Services; Melanie Cohn
of Staten Island Arts; Wendy DeShong of New Direction Services; Rev. (Dr.) Valerie Oliver-Durrah of
Neighborhood Technical Assistance Clinic; Georgette & Denise Lakeman of Friends of Westerleigh Park;
and Janice Monger of Friends of Alice Austen House.
Veteran jeweler and Staten Island community leader Jerry Amerosi
has opened his third jewelry store – Pandora in the Ocean County
Mall in Toms River, NJ, that employs 29 people. Amerosi currently
owns Gerald Peters Gold Mine and Pandora in the Staten Island Mall.
Pictured, from left, are some of the management team of the new
store: Peter Amerosi store manager; Mary Katherine Honan, sales
leader/visual specialist; Donna Stabile, district manager; and Sal
Bianco, assistant manager.
Representatives of Reality Check and ASSIST Tobacco Cessation Center teamed up at the Staten Island
Health and Wellness Expo at the Hilton Garden Inn to educate the local community on the marketing tactics and effects of the tobacco industry. Pictured, from left, are Josephine Bosco, ASSIST Tobacco Cessation Center Program Manager, and Ashley Zanatta, Reality Check Program Manager.
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Location: LiGreci’s Staaten, 697
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HVAC, Chiropractor, Travel Agent,
Florist, Jeweler and more
S I BC
Staten Island Business Council
WE MEAN BUSINESS!!!
Give the Gift of Theatre…
BUS. LEADERS
TOASTMASTERS
BOY SCOUTS
FALL LUNCHEON
Join us at Lorenzo's in the Hilton Garden Inn
every Wednesday morning at 7:00 a.m.
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Forest Ave.
EVENTS
working for you?
SIBIZCOUNCIL.COM
347-855-4488
Business Calendar
Time: 7:00 p.m.
For information, call Fran Okeson at
718-753-8006
Time: 11:45 a.m.
Forest Ave.
NETWORKING PLUS
SIEDC EXEC. WOMEN’S
COUNCIL MTG.
Time: 8:15 a.m.
Location: Golden Dove, 3281 Richmond Ave.
Time: 12:30 p.m.
please see EVENTS page 22
Theatre Tickets are great Holiday
Bonuses for Your Employees!
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For show reservations call: 718.442.2900
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Committee to
direct $25M in
recovery funds
FUNDS
for-Profit Association and a coalition of 50 partners throughout
the Island, the Staten Island Jewish Community Center has been
running a program called Connect To Recovery, which has resulted in a “robust” list of needs
for the community, according to
the JCC’s executive director,
David Sorkin.
Working alongside Vin Lenza,
the executive director of the NFP
Association, Connect To Recovery helped to develop a coalition
of representatives from some of
the strategic asset organizations
on Staten Island – including universities, hospitals and social
service industries – to prepare for
future disaster planning.
Lenza said they’ve been trying
to create a collaborative effort
around how nonprofits respond
to crises.
“We kept hearing from our
members that this was a real
problem. They were not prepared
for the kind of inter-organization
work that needed to be done,”
Lenza said. “They were not prepared to quickly ramp up to work
with other agencies and elected
officials.”
Now, Lenza and Sorkin will
help lead Staten Island’s version
of The New York Rising Community Reconstruction Program, a
state-run program that will provide $25 million for rebuilding
and revitalization assistance, including future disaster planning.
Lenza and Sorkin are the cochairs of the steering committee,
which includes 27 of the Island’s
most influential business and
community leaders.
“I would say, for the most part,
we’re not missing one person in
our community who does not
have significant influence for the
steering committee,” Sorkin said.
Over the summer, Gov. Cuomo
designated 102 New York Rising
Communities that were eligible to
receive more than $750 million to
“empower communities hit hard
by the storms to create and implement locally-created and federally funded strategies for rebuilding and strengthening their communities against future extreme
weather,” according to the governor’s office. In each community,
steering committees were created
to help plan and direct their local
money.
At the end of August, some
members of Staten Island’s steering committee traveled to Albany,
where they heard from Cuomo
the importance of developing a
process that came from the
ground up and not from the top
down, with the steering committees at the epicenter of how each
community would look at itself
for future storm preparedness
and asset management.
“This was very empowering to
us,” Sorkin said. “We felt very
good that we had the ability to
look at the storm, its effect on
Staten Island, and how we would
look at developing assets and infrastructure changes based on
what we needed on Staten Island.”
Lenza said the goal of the steering committee is to serve as the
preliminary experts for what’s
happening in Staten Island’s communities – identifying things that
happened during and following
the storm and what can be adjusted, and working with the state
and their contracted firms.
“The state has really invested
quite a bit of assets. The amount
of professional assets they’ve provided to these communities is
quite impressive,” he said. “It’s
really about getting as much
input from the community as possible.”
please see FUNDS, page 30
On the Job
JOB
Two new officers were elected:
Richard Salinardi and Robert
Moore. Salinardi, founder and executive director of Lifestyles for
the Disabled and an Eltingville
resident, was elected secretary of
the board, and Moore, a retired
utility executive who now serves
as Chairman of the Staten Island
Economic Development Corporation, was elected assistant treasurer.
The board accepted the retirement of one of its longest serving
trustees, William Beveridge. Beveridge, of New Brighton, served
on the board for 40 years, most recently as secretary. In recognition of his long tenure, the board
elected Beveridge trustee emeritus.
Newly elected to the board is
Bruce Liozzi, a resident of St.
George and a retired educator
from the New York City Department of Education.
Reelected to the board are Sean
Kelleher of Grymes Hill and John
Pitera of West Brighton.
The Staten Island Zoological
Society is the governing body of
the Staten Island Zoo, which
opened to the public in 1936.
DR. JENNA POLINSKY
Elite Dental of Staten Island
Dr. Jenna Polinsky has joined
Elite Dental of Staten Island, the
practice of Dr. Steven Acker. She
received her undergraduate degree at Brandeis University and
received her DDS from the University at Buffalo School of Dental Medicine.
Dr. Polinsky was accepted into
the Manhattan Veterans Affairs
Hospital for her General Practice
Residency, after which she began
a two-year Implant Fellowship at
Brookdale Hospital and Medical
Center. As an implant fellow, she
focused on prosthodontics in concert with placing and restoring
implants.
TIMOTHY BOYLAND
vengoechea+boyland
Timothy Boyland, of vengoechea+boyland
ARCHITECTURE/URBAN PLANNING, llp.,
a Staten Island-based architect,
has been elected President-Elect
of the New York State Chapter of
the American Institute of Architects. The election took place at
the AIA NYS Convention in Syracuse, New York. Boyland will
serve as the 2015 president of AIA
New York State.
Boyland has more than 30
years experience in architectural
design, land use planning, commercial, industrial and residential development, urban design,
historic preservation, community revitalization, and zoning and
code consultation. He is a past
president of the Staten Island
Chapter.
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S
TAT E N I S L A N D
CHAPTER
8.7002.%6142%7442871674.%5865.80
142,4)*)*+'
Now Available
For Lease
EVENTS
COMMERCIAL RETAIL & OFFICE SPACE
ST. GEORGE
Stuyvesant Place
RETAIL
500-20,000 SF
$21-26 RSF
MARINERS HARBOR Arlington Ave.
1000-2500 SF
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ST. GEORGE
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Bay Street
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WEST BRIGHTON
Richmond Terrace
1,000-15,000 SF
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WEST BRIGHTON
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WEST BRIGHTON
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ST. GEORGE
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ST. GEORGE/St. Marks Pl.
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WEST BRIGHTON
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1,500 SF
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WEST BRIGHTON
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$1,250 + utilities
MIDLAND BEACH
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WAREHOUSE
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Banks Welcome!! Only Drive-Thru opportunity in St.
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30,000 SF Warehouse. (Industrial Loop) Approx. 15,000 SF
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Location: Marina Grand, Mansion
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Your gateway to better business and better living on Staten Island
285 St. Mark's Place • Staten Island, NY 10301
718-273-3800
www.gatewayarmsrealty.com
Contact our Commercial Division for
more information about:
Sales & Leasing • Investment Property
Multi-dwellings • Industrial/Manufacturing
Retail Space • Raw Land
Warehouses • 1031 Exchanges
Office Buildings
Send us your Staten Island business news
Want to send us news, story ideas, op-eds or information to publish? Drop us an email: [email protected].
NEW DAY
TOASTMASTERS
Time: 7:00 p.m.
Location: SI Univ. Hosp., Seaview
Ave.
For information, call 347-265-1161]
Weekly Meetings
Parisi Rampulla & Lenza, P.C.
78 Martin Avenue | Staten Island, NY, 10314
(718) 761-3333
Short Sales, Mortgage Modification,
Foreclosure Defense
MEETINGS
Kiwanis Club of Brighton: Jody’s
Club Forest, 372 Forest Ave. 7:30
p.m. For info, call 718-348-0505.
Kiwanis Club of North Central:
LiGreci’s Staten, 697 Forest Ave.
7:30 p.m. For info, call Len Bosso at
347-592-1937.
Rotary Club of Gateway: The Lake
Club, 1150 Clove Rd. 7:15 p.m. For
info, call 718-447-1509.
SCORE Business Counseling:
Chamber of Commerce, 130 Bay St.
9 to 11:30 a.m. Appointment necessary. No charge. For info, call 718727-1221.
E.L.I.T.E. (Executive, Leadership,
Interactive, Team, Effort) Networking Group: 1110 South Ave. 8
a.m. New members welcome. For
info, call 347-273-1375.
Victory Blvd. 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. For
info, call 718-982-2560.
THURSDAY
Kiwanis Club of Staten Island:
LiGreci’s Staten, 697 Forest Ave.
7:30 p.m. For info, call 718-967-4345
or kiwanisclubofstatenisland.com.
Rotary Club of South Shore: Marina Grand, 141 Mansion Ave. 12:15 p.m.
For info, call 718-987-2061 or visit
southshorerotary.org.
Rotary Club Mid-Island: New Dakota Diner, 921 Richmond Ave. 7:30 to
9:00 a.m. Call 718-981-0700.
SCORE Business Counseling: SI
Bank & Trust, 1550 Richmond Rd. 9
a.m. to noon. No appointment necessary. No charge. For info, call 718727-1221.
Rotary Club of North Shore: LiGreci’s Staten, 697 Forest Ave. 7 p.m.
MUSSDEVELOPMENT LLC
BUILDING NEW YORK CITY SINCE 1906
CONTACT US
BILL BERGMAN
Vice President
(718) 263-3800
[email protected]
For info, call Chris Williams at 718442-9047.
Business Network Int’l. (BNI) High
Achievers Chapter: PK’s Restaurant,1281 Arthur Kill Rd. 7 to 8:30
a.m. For info, call Timothy Houston
at 718-981-8600.
Business Guild II of the S.I. Chamber of Commerce: Hilton Garden
Inn, 1100 South Ave. 7:45 to 8:45
a.m. Members and invited guests
only. For info, call Ken Schneider at
718-720-4980.
Business Guild III of the SI Chamber of Commerce: Hilton Garden
Inn, 1100 South Ave. 7:30 a.m. New
members welcome. Call Melody
Minkoff at 718-370-0040.
Victory Blvd. 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. For
info, call 718-982-2560.
Community Emergency Response
Team (CERT): 7 p.m. For info. and
locations, call John Tidona at 718448-7160 or e-mail
[email protected].
FRIDAY
SATURDAY
SCORE Business Counseling: St.
George Library, 5 Central Ave. 10
a.m. to noon. Appointment necessary. No charge. For info, call 718442-8560.
SCORE Business Counseling: Richmondtown Library, 200 Clarke Ave.
10 to 11:30 a.m. Appointment necessary. For info, call 718-668-0413.
MONTHLY UPDATE
Every Thing Goes
celebrates 30th
Goes will be celebrating with special sales and free give-aways for
30 days, from Nov. 12 to Dec. 12.
Zurich North America
welcomes home family
build an additional 60 homes on
Staten Island over the course of a
year.
Every Thing Goes, Inc. is celebrating its 30th anniversary on
Staten Island's north shore. ETG
has been dedicated to reducing
waste by offering used furniture,
clothing, books, records and
housewares to customers from all
walks of life. “We wanted to create an atmosphere where even
those with a very limited budget
can find some very cool stuff,”
said Katie McCarthy of ETG
Book Cafe.
Putting Staten Island in the
vanguard of the green revolution
in 1983, the three ETG stores Every Thing Goes Clothing,
Every Thing Goes Furniture and
Antiques, and Every Thing Goes
BookCafé - are also cooperatively
owned and operated, which is remarkable in itself. As a thank
you to Staten Islanders for their
support and enthusiasm during
the last 30 years, Every Thing
CareConnect begins
enrolling in plans
Zurich North America, in alliance with the Stephen Siller
Tunnel to Towers Foundation and
the St. Bernard Project, took part
in a celebration to welcome home
the Chen family, the first of many
Staten Island families whose
homes are being rebuilt by the alliance following severe damage
caused by Superstorm Sandy. As
part of Zurich’s and its employees’ commitment to rebuilding
communities and helping to restore local economies following
natural disasters, approximately
200 Zurich employees donated
more than 1,700 hours to help rebuild the eight homes currently
in progress. The company also
announced a $165,000 grant from
its Z Zurich Foundation to the St.
Bernard Project, a contribution
that will fund St. Bernard Project
staff members who will mobilize
more than 8,000 volunteers to re-
Red Cross awards $1M to
Staten Island Foundation
On Oct. 1, North Shore-LIJ
CareConnect Insurance Company Inc. began enrolling individuals, families, and small and large
businesses on Long Island,
Queens, Staten Island and Manhattan in a range of commercial
health insurance plans. The new
insurance plan can be accessed
online through the New York
State health exchange, NewYorkStateOfHealth.com, or through
agents and brokers, or can be purchased directly from the company.
The first fully integrated
provider-owned Article 42 insurance company in New York,
North Shore-LIJ CareConnect allows individuals and employers
to tap into the state’s largest integrated health-care system.
The American Red Cross has
awarded a $1 million grant to The
Staten Island Foundation to support long-term recovery services
for people affected by Superstorm
Sandy in the borough’s hardesthit areas.
The Staten Island Foundation,
a member of Philanthropy New
York, will use the grant to provide
financial support to communitybased organizations involved in
disaster recovery on Staten Island including home repairs for
seniors, mental health services
and coordination of on-theground volunteers.
SIMHS ‘green’ center
LEED certified
The
Staten
Island
Mental
Health Society’s recently opened
“green” mental health center in
St. George has received LEED
Platinum Certification from the
U.S. Green Building Council – the
highest level of environmental
performance accorded by the
Council.
The facility at 444 St. Mark’s
Place, which has been named the
Dr. Kenneth Popler Children’s
Mental Health Center, is the borough’s first LEED-certified office
building and the Platinum designation has been verified by the
Green Building Certification Institute.
LEED, an acronym for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, is the nation’s pre-eminent program for the design, construction and operation of highperformance green buildings. To
achieve
certification,
LEED
measures five key areas: sustainable site development, water savings, energy efficiency, materials
selection, and indoor environmental quality.
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347.354.2228
347.354.2228
in Your opinion
Starting Up
Staten Island Tech
By LYLE FOXMAN
New York City has been the
fastest growing tech hub in the
country. According to the Center
for an Urban Future’s New Tech
City report, during the recession,
“information technology jobs in
the city have increased by 28.7
percent, from 41,100 to 52,900, an
amazing surge during a time
when there were few other bright
spots in the city’s economy.” The
Bloomberg administration has
supported the city’s tech sector at
every turn and launched initiatives that promote its growth.
With the planned tech campus on
Roosevelt Island and the proliferation of incubators and co-working spaces, every borough has
seen some level of growth in their
local tech scenes. That is, every
borough except Staten Island.
Staten Island is a small business and paycheck-to-paycheck
community, where many of our
young people have to look elsewhere for tech and entrepreneurial opportunities. In fact, there’s
so little focus on tech here that in
Tech and the City, which looks at
the rise of the city’s startup community, the only reference to Staten Island focuses on telephone inventor Antonio Meucci’s failed
startup in the 19th century. Why
are we relegated to a historical
footnote while the rest of New
York moves forward?
Much of the problem lies with
those of us who live and work
here – we have failed ourselves by
not taking the initiative to prove
that tech can succeed on Staten Island. The growth of the New
York City tech sector did not
come from government, universities, and larger tech companies –
it came from local leaders who organized communities of techies,
educators, creatives, and entrepreneurs with the vision and
drive to pursue new ventures.
They changed the culture and
made New York City a hotbed of
innovation. We must work together to create such a community and foster such a culture to enable our homegrown talent to remain here.
We must also highlight Staten
Island as an attractive place for
tech companies to set up shop. As
one of the more affordable places
in the city and with major development projects underway, such
as the New York Wheel, Empire
Outlets, and the new Stapleton
waterfront, Staten Island is becoming an increasingly viable location for startups. Furthermore,
according to the NYC Jobs Blueprint, the Partnership Fund for
New York City is prepared to invest $20 million in the creation of
urban tech campuses in every
borough, including Staten Island,
which would provide a further
boost. This new attention on Staten Island gives us a springboard
from which we can make the case
for and help cultivate a local startup tech scene. We must take this
opportunity.
Long gone are the days of
working for the same company
for 30 years, retiring, and getting
that special gold watch or pen.
Today’s world is about entrepreneurship, innovation, and creative thinking. We Staten Islanders need to understand this,
embrace this change, and take
ownership of our future.
Lyle Foxman is the founder of Startup Staten Island, owner of netLABnyc, and a member of the GoBizNYC
startup and small business coalition.
Follow him at lylefoxman.com.
Send us your Staten Island business news
Want to send us news, story ideas, op-eds or information to publish?
Drop us an email: [email protected].
SBDC celebrates 20 years
SBDC
lion in the area’s economy, according to the organization. Some
of its free services include helping clients understand the importance of a business plan, discovering sources of funding, preparing for e-commerce, identifying
avenues for exporting goods and
services, developing marketing
plans, assessing an invention’s viability, and complying with licensing and regulations.
In addition to one-on-one counseling, the SBDC – a program of
the U.S. Small Business Administration – also offers a variety of
workshops and seminars on a
number of topics throughout the
year, including business plans
and cash flow.
“When you’re running a business, you need both things that
are sexy and those that aren’t,”
said Balsamini, who has been
with the SBDC since 2005.
The SBDC played a huge role in
Hurricane Sandy relief, establishing one of the first Business Recovery Centers on the Island at
CSI, hosting the SBA in the community, counseling approximately 250 businesses, partnering with
key community organizations
and opening a satellite office near
the affected communities.
“Our ability to focus on providing business owners assistance…was very, very critical,”
Balsamini said. “People were confused. People were really upset.
They didn’t know where to go.
One thing we wanted to do was
make sure that everyone was
treated with respect.”
Following the devastation of
Sandy, there were a lot of relief
resources available, but there was
also a lot of confusion, Balsamini
said, so the SBDC helped business
owners figure out where to go for
the support they needed. The
SBDC worked with governmental
entities such as the Federal SBA
to make sure business leaders
had information on the variety of
options available to them to help
rebuild their business.
“From being instrumental in
assisting with the location of a
federal SBA office on the grounds
of the College of Staten Island for
business owners to interact personally with government administrators, to the opening of a third
SBDC location in New Dorp, closer to the Sandy-affected communities, the SI Small Business Development Center has proven to
be a leader during one of our
community’s
most
difficult
times,” said Michael Kress, vice
president for information technology and economic development at the College of Staten Island.
One year removed from Sandy
making landfall, Balsamini said
the recovery has not ended. He
said the SBDC has geared up to
provide assistance not just now
but also in the future. With three
centers set up in the region, they
will be better able to make site
visits to continue to provide relief
support, as well as continuing to
work with clients on financial
loans, business planning and the
“critical” area of developing an
emergency response plan.
“Sandy is not going away. The
impact of Sandy will still remain,” he said.
There is a perception that the
most recent downturn is the first
time New Yorkers have experienced tough economic times, Balsamini said. But over the last 20
years, the SBDC has helped businesses deal with other tough
times such as the Asian crisis in
1998, the implosion of the stock
market in 2000, and the attacks of
Sept. 11, 2001.
“Countless times, SBDC has
counseled businesses during difficult economic periods, helping
them to get back on their feet or
helping someone make their
dream a reality by opening up a
new business. Hurricane Sandy
is just the immediate and easily
identifiable example of this; yet
there were other hard times in
which the SBDC was there to lend
a helping hand,” he said.
“When 2008 came about, we
had many people who were established businesses who came to
see us. They were looking at
‘what do I do next? How do I actually move forward, so to speak?’
The downturn was so significant,
some people were just barely
holding on.”
Balsamini is quick to point out
that the ongoing recovery won’t
be the only focus of the SBDC
going forward. New keys will be
helping veterans – many of
whom will be returning to the
city in the near future looking for
jobs, counseling and business opportunities – new immigrants,
women and minority business
owners. He also says that marketing, which is changing every day,
will also be a key for future business success.
“We’ve tried to be a stabilizing
force in our outreach to the community to help businesses. There
will always be a cyclical environment to the economy, which is
nothing new, but we try to adjust
our focus of where people are
going in that period,” he said.
“I believe in Staten Island. Staten Island’s assets are just beginning to be recognized.”
HOME IMPROVEMENTS
• Commercial/Residential Renovations
• Additions & Extensions
• Kitchens/Bathrooms
• Custom Carpentry/Artistic Wood-Working
• Finished Basements
• Repairs/Handyman Services
• Fire/Flood Restorations
Call Bob or David
718-761-8390
Our Prices Fit Your Budget
Serving S.I.
32 Years
Insured. Bonded.
References Available.
License #1015742
Calling all
Restaurant Owners and Caterers…
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around the island
A recent merger between two venerable Staten Island real estate names – Salmon Real Estate and Turvey Dellomo – has resulted in a combined business-history of more than 140 years. “It’s an arranged
marriage, and it’s a good one,” said Jon Salmon, president of Salmon Real Estate. Turvey Dellomo has relocated operations to the Salmon headquarters at 1855 Victory Blvd., but retains its own name and
phone number. Pictured, from left, are: Henry Salmon, president and CEO of Equity Valuation Associates; Patricia Turvey Dellomo; and Jon Salmon.
STEVE WHITE/Business Trends
The 5th Annual Night of Networking With A Little Rock N' Roll took
place at the Hilton Garden Inn, with a band featuring Kasim Sulton, a
Staten Island musician who plays with Todd Rundgren and Meatloaf.
Here, while the band confers in the background, the evening's sponsors drew some raffle winners. Pictured, from left: Rich Grado of
Creative Media, Rob Fitzsimmons of Gateway Arms Realty, Robin
Lefkowitz of Northfield Bank and Tom Scarangello of Scaran.
Staff members of the New York Center for Interpersonal Development’s Supervised Visitation Program
gathered with representatives of the Northfield Bank Foundation after the Foundation presented a check
to support the agency’s Supervised Visitation Program. Pictured, front row from left, are: Denise Fisher
from NYCID, Diane Senerchia and Susan Lamberti from the Northfield Bank Foundation, and Jessica
Maria Bruno from NYCID; and back row: Alexandra Tereshonkova, Dominick Brancato, Erin NeubauerKeyes, and Sean Bridges, all of NYCID.
Licensed real-estate associate broker Fredrik Eklund, co-star of
Bravo TV’s “Million Dollar Listing New York,” (left) spends time with
Traci Cangiano, president of the Staten Island Board of Realtors, and
Laird Klein, president-elect, prior to his presentation during the organization's 7th annual Global Real Estate Symposium at the Snug
Harbor Cultural Center & Botanical Garden, Livingston.
Carol DiMarco and Charles DiBartolo (6th & 7th from left) hosted an open house to showcase their new
"Entrepreneurs Club," designed as a way for small business owners to share ideas and help one another
grow their businesses.
Committee to direct $25M
FUNDS
Get involved
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Broker NMLS ID 8162. Registered Mortgage Broker – NYS Dept. of Financial Services. All loans arranged
through Third Party Providers. Agent Funding & Abstract LLC DBA Mortgage Tech Home Finance.
Weddings
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..................................
Steve White
6 Genesee Avenue
Phone: 718.317.5025
Cell: 917.446.4029
Email: [email protected]
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The committee has been meeting since September to identify
all the assets in the community.
All committee work has been and
will be open to the public. Last
month, they held public engagement sessions to assess the needs
of the community.
The next step is to develop a
conceptual plan to see what’s on
the table, followed by an analysis
of the project to show what’s feasible, what’s not, what they cost
and how they interact with
what’s already being proposed.
“We need to get as many people
as possible into the room to talk
about the community,” Lenza
said. “To not have that knowledge
in the process would not produce
a plan that’s most effective.”
“Above and beyond what the
expectation is of us, Vin and I feel
very strongly that this issue of
public engagement is very important to the process,” Sorkin said.
“We have tried to engage a group
of professionals to try to create
some other avenues – whether it
be social media, other forums,
print media – we’re trying to
come up with other ways that the
community can be heard.”
Sorkin is excited about the
process because, unlike other
studies, he said there’s real
Want to be a part of the process? Visit
http://stormrecovery.ny.gov/nyrcr/community/staten-island to get
more information, fill out feedback forms and read about the people
on the steering committee. You can also connect with the steering
committee on Facebook by visiting the website
https://www.facebook.com/NYStormRecovery.
money at the end of the road.
Staten Island is looking at a minimum of $25 million for a project
or projects, and Sorkin said his
sense is that, in the long run, it
could be worth hundreds of millions of dollars when they interface with other projects throughout the Island.
“I read that there’s more to
come. The dollars that are sort of
implementing this process are
over $500 million from disaster recovery funds. I think this is sort
of the beginning of the process,”
he said. “There’s more Community Block Grant money yet to
come, plus there’s other money
being spent from other layers of
the government that may embellish or work in tandem with these
projects.”
The steering committee is in
early stages of outreach, and
they’re looking at other modes of
information collection and dissemination in addition to the
Dome Property Management - managers of
over 100 condo and homeowners association
communities - is now accepting vendors and
merchants to participate in the Dome Savings
Club, an "offer board" of discounted services
and products for the communities it serves.
Join national companies like Time Warner
Cable, Wells Fargo Home Mortgage and local
businesses like Jealan Fireplaces and The Pool
Therapist. To learn more, visit the Offer Board
at www.DomeGroup.com/dscOffers.
For more information, call
(718) 605-2500
www.domegroup.com
community forums. Sorkin said
other steering committee members have already reached out to
their constituents and members,
asking for feedback, input and
whether there are other studies
out there that would help in the
process.
“The reach of the people on the
group is unbelievable. These representatives are communicating
back to their constituencies in
what’s going on,” Sorkin said.
“Just that layer itself is so robust
that it really stokes the process.”
“What I’d like to see is a
process that allows the Staten Island community to benefit from a
significant amount of resources,
not only the money, but the significant amount of professional experience we have,” Lenza said.
“It’s been quite vocal throughout
this process that people want us
to look at communities throughout the Island and not just at
properties in their backyard.”

Staten Island Business Trends.

Transcription

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