Official Staten Island flag could make borough feel ‘part of the city’

STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. — A symbolic move could have a meaningful impact on Staten Island civic pride, one local elected official said Monday.

Councilmember Frank Morano, a Republican representing the South Shore, made his latest push at a City Council committee hearing to officially recognize Staten Island’s borough flag in the city’s administrative code.

“In one swoop, namely in adopting and giving us a flag, this City Council has the ability to do two things — one, celebrate and recognize borough identity, and two, make Staten Island feel like we’re actually part of this city,” Morano said.

Each of the city’s five boroughs has at least an unofficial flag, but only Brooklyn and the Bronx have them enshrined in city law.

Morano’s Staten Island counterparts — Councilmember Kamillah Hanks, a Democrat representing the North Shore, and Councilmember David Carr, a Republican representing the Mid-Island and part of South Brooklyn — have backed his legislation to make the flag official, along with 18 other members of the city’s legislative body.

The law would officially recognize the flag designed by Borough Hall graphic designer Emil Micha about a decade ago under former Borough President James Oddo.

“For Staten Island, to be proud of a flag that represents us, I think has value,” he said. “Somebody can look at it and say ‘yea, I feel good about that,’ then I think that was the purpose.”

The flag incorporates Staten Island’s seal, which features a female figure standing on the borough holding a sword and shield. She is seen looking out onto the Narrows, where Henry Hudson’s ship “The Half Moon” and a smaller boat sail.

The armed female figure in the seal is meant to represent the city of New York.

In 1609, Hudson named the borough “Statten Eylandt,” Dutch for “States Island,” and the borough became part of the city in 1898 after the five boroughs’ consolidation. Both years are represented on the seal.

Oddo unveiled the new design in 2016 because the previous version reminded him of the Fresh Kills Landfill, with a large mound in the background and seagulls flying over it.

Morano signaled during the hearing that some of his Council colleagues might not be on board with the idea as so much of the seal celebrates the nation’s colonial founding.