Copyright Staten Island Advance
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. — Borough President Vito Fossella secured his seat for the next four years after besting Democratic challenger Michael Colombo. Fossella declared victory having secured 68.5% of the vote as of 10 p.m., according to the New York City Board of Elections. “First and foremost, I am grateful and have eternal gratitude to the people who started my army -- the community that we all love, that we will continue to cherish, and as it has been said, repeatedly, we will say it again and again, we will always put Staten Island first,” said Fossella. “We love to deliver for them [Staten Islanders], to improve the quality of life for all the folks here...giving young families the opportunity to succeed, to let them know that they live in the greatest country in the world, and here on Staten Island, we live in the greatest borough in the city,” said Fossella. Colombo, flanked by Democratic Assemblymember Charles Fall, was offered support from family and friends at Osteria Santina in Port Richmond, where the Democrats held their election night party. A former congressman, Fossella has been at the forefront of pushing against laws and propositions that he believes to be not at Staten Island’s best interest. Fossella’s tenure has included a bevy of lawsuits in pursuit of his ideal Staten Island, including litigation against non-citizen municipal voting, congestion pricing, migrants shelters, and more. He opposes the Northeastern Supplemental Enhancement Pipeline, which threatens to impact Staten Island’s coastal environment, and has raised concerns about the coming proliferation of trucking facilities along the Arthur Kill Road corridor. He did an about-face on the proposed Arthur Kill Terminal, however. The terminal project did pass through his office on the way to approval by the city council — which it did grant. The South Shore-based terminal is meant to function as a specialized port at the foot of the Outerbridge Crossing where offshore wind turbines and towers could be assembled and staged before being brought out to sea. Though federal funding was pulled by President Donald Trump earlier in the year — a move celebrated by Fossella — the minds behind the terminal vowed that the project will be built with or without the money.
