Can State Island stand alone?

When Staten Islanders go to the polls on Nov. 2 they will be voting for a mayor that may barely affect them should their other vote on secession prevail. A vote to create a charter for a new City of Staten Island does not in and of itself create the new governing body. The New York State legislature and the governor would have to approve the Borough of Richmond's voters' choice and also decide what taxes it can impose. Items such as income taxes, commercial rent and occupancy tax, unincorporated business tax and certain hotel taxes are only granted to New York City.

Although a Staten Island reform commission found that taxes would have to go up 132 percent on a single family home to support current levels of services, it neglected to realize certain state mandates place on cities with a population over one million would not have to be followed, saving lots of money for the 340,000 residents.

A new report places the property tax increase at closer to 72 percent, a figure residents are weighing against any rise that would occur should the state reform current property tax laws, now under review by a mayoral commission. Right now, homeowners are being subsidized by both commercial property and multi-family residential property. Since Staten Island lacks much of the latter two categories, and as a borough uses more money than it gives back to New York City, providing Island services will fall primarily on its homeowners.

"The Secession Commission said if everything remained status quo, Staten Island would be $190 million in the hole," explained Marc Wurzel, counsel to Minority Leader Alfred C. Cerullo III, one of three Richmond Council-members. "But that was looking at it status quo and not with greater flexibility. That's why the city's estimation was way out of whack. They just pro-rated everything."

Councilman Cerullo believes the Island, which lies to the south of Manhattan close to the shores of New Jersey, could run itself cheaper and more efficiently than the city does now, with less police, fewer prison beds and more local control.

"There is more revenue here than we thought," agreed a spokesperson for Borough President Guy Molinari, who has declared his desire for secession. "The city is in a downward spiral. We can make it without the city and without a 100 percent tax increase."

The spokesperson attributed most of that increase to the loss of tax revenues, such as personal income, cigarette, unincorporated business and gasoline taxes.

Richmond Councilman Jerome X. O'Donovan said, "Secession would give us our own destiny. We can afford it, it's do-able and we control our own destiny without being strapped."

Councilman O'Donovan, who as head of the City Council's Economic Development Committee has been a supporter of well-regulated gambling, said Staten Island could then certainly look closer at having hotel-casinos and would be able to give out its own tax breaks and incentives for businesses.

Steven D. Kowaloff, a sole practitioner and a counsel to the Building Industry Association of New York City, said Staten Island secession may cause a problem for a small real estate developer. "You will be dealing with a smaller, less objective city," he explained. Right now, he says, there is always some ability to argue and appeal that the project would benefit the City of New York as a whole, such as with new real estate taxes, even if it would generate more traffic.

"When you draw boundaries around the City of Staten Island." Kowaloff noted, "you will show the same impact arounct the site and now you are going to benefit what? It's the local impact that will register. It's going to be seen as much more significant that it had been."

If Staten Island is not successful attracting job generators, Kowaloff feels casinos might be developed. "O'Donovan is looking to create Atlantic City on Staten Island on the North Shore. I've heard all kinds of public officials talk about a major sports arena - high publicity types of things with the Manhattan skyline in the background." Something like that would be easy to rezone or build he feels, if the local politicians want it. Right now the Staten Island Councilmembers are three out of 51, and the Island has only one out of thirteen members on the planning commission. Under the new scheme, they are proposing a Planning Dept. and a City Council.

Wurzel said voter support for secession would give Staten Island a chance to formulate its own taxation policy. "An independent Staten Island will be like an island enterprise zone," he explained. "You may see a tremendous influx of commercial businesses - of companies relocating to Staten Island because the cost of doing business there will be cheaper."

Councilman Cerullo has also been an outspoken critic of current rent regulations and has proposed reforms to the Council. In a new City of Staten Island, such reforms could come about more easily. "We favor extending the rent protections but reforming the law," explained Wurzel, with such items like means testing.

While voter polls are showing secession favored by 70 percent of the voters versus 30 percent who want to remain a part of Now York City, what happens after Election Day will be up to the politicians.