STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. — The New York City Council last month unveiled the latest government vision for North Shore development taking aim at three targets around St. George, Tompkinsville and Stapleton.
Long on vision but short on substance, NorthShoreNYC calls for unspecified up-zonings in the area and the development of two city-owned parcels, with limited details regarding the proposed projects.
City Council Speaker Julie Menin, a Democrat representing the Upper East Side, joined Councilmember Kamillah Hanks, a Democrat representing the North Shore, Sept. 25 at the National Lighthouse Museum in St. George to announce the plan.
“The greatest challenge facing New Yorkers right now is the sheer unaffordability of living in this city,” Hanks said during the event. “Today’s progress gives us an opportunity to confront that challenge: whether the next generation of Staten Islanders can afford to live here.”
In addition to the development items, the announcement brought a $38 million city investment to the area for various projects, including repairs to the St. George Theater, construction of the Tompkinsville Esplanade and restoration of the Pier 1 Fishing Pier.
The Council’s Land Use Division published a vision plan the same day as the announcement outlining three specific targets for development in NorthShoreNYC.
The castle, old Staten Island Hospital, on Castleton Avenue being demolished, March 5, 2012. (Staten Island Advance/Irving Silverstein) STATEN ISLAND ADVANCECastleton site
A long-vacant parcel of prime North Shore real estate has sat dormant since the 1980s, but Hanks’ and Menin’s vision marked the latest push to reactivate the site.
Formerly the location of Staten Island University Hospital, the seven-acre site sits between two parcels at Webster Avenue’s intersection with Castleton and Stanley Avenues.
The city finalized its acquisition of the site in 2024, having needed to acquire hundreds of condominium units that 1980s developers sold off before building out the site for residences as had been planned.
That project went bust in the late 1980s and at least one developer served jail time, and the bank that made millions in loans to builders failed.
Now, the Council’s plan calls for another shot at housing at the location, but they’re not the only city entity with their eyes on the location.
The Department of Housing Preservation and Development wants to build about 330 units at the 101 Castleton Ave. location through Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s Land Inventory Task Force (LIFT), but the Council’s document calls for a more ambitious plan through up-zoning the area.
“Analysis suggests the site could accommodate even more homes, including a mix of apartment buildings and affordable homeownership townhomes,” the Council’s document reads. The document doesn’t provide a target number of units at the site.
A Council spokesperson did not provide a target for units, but said the plan would also include a new public school.
Community leaders and residents participated in a walking tour of Staten Island’s North Shore to discuss concerns about current redevelopment proposals and explore opportunities to improve waterfront access on Saturday, June 27, 2026. Owen ReiterVictory Boulevard/Bay Street
Multiple lots around the intersection of Victory Boulevard and Bay Street have been acquired by the same developer over the last two decades, including the Minthorne Street businesses.
The Council’s plan wants the city to show more support for that developer’s vision, including through the mixed-use development of a Department of Transportation surface parking lot at 54 Central Ave.
“Together, these sites could deliver new housing, neighborhood services, public improvements, and stronger connections along Victory Boulevard and Bay Street, turning an empty gap in the neighborhood into an active gateway to the waterfront,” the Council’s document reads.
The City Council’s vision for the Bay Street Western Beef lot.(Courtesy: NYC Council)Western Beef Lot
Another surface parking lot, the Council’s plan calls for the development of the site that is perhaps best known to local as the Bay Street Western Beef.
Again, the Council’s plan is unclear on the number of units it hopes to see built at the site, but calls for an up-zoning of the location along with a connection to the waterfront through a footbridge over the Staten Island Railway system.
A Council spokesperson could not provide an exact projection of the number of units that could be built at the Western Beef site, but said the location presents a “significant opportunity” for redevelopment.
“Front Street and Bay Street in Stapleton represent another one of the North Shore’s biggest opportunities. Along these streets sit largely vacant and underused sites right next to transit, the growing Urby community, and the future phases of the Stapleton waterfront redevelopment,” the Council’s document reads. “To unlock its full potential, we need a more ambitious vision that supports new housing, brings jobs and local services, improves connections to the waterfront, and delivers the public amenities that can help create a thriving, walkable neighborhood for both current and future residents. It is clear that unlocking critical density higher than R6 can catalyze development.”