STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- If you noticed some bright street art on your way home from work this week, the South Shore Business Improvement District (BID) successfully did its job: Three new art installations were recently installed in some desolate or eyesore-laden sections of Eltingville, Great Kills and Annadale, with the intent of making the neighborhoods cleaner, safer and more attractive destinations for people to work, shop and live.
“We try to do something new as often as we can, and this idea was brought to our attention from some local artists, so we said, ‘Why not?,’” noted Gary Fleming, president of the South Shore BID and broker/owner of Emerald Elite Realty in Annadale. “Once I saw the first one go up in Eltingville, I said this has to be done in all of our towns.”
A partnership between the South Shore BID and ArtBridge, a non-profit that empowers local artists to transform prominent urban spaces into gallery-quality exhibitions, the project was underwritten through a grant from Councilman Joe Borelli’s (R-South Shore) office and includes three installations -- a banner application on Brower Court in Great Kills, a sign installation on Annadale Road and a painting of a cement façade on Amboy Road in Eltingville.
“We chose very visible locations that we thought should be beautified,” Fleming said, detailing the sites which include the former perimeter of the Farrell Lumber yard, a brick dumpster container outside Sofia’s Taqueria and an otherwise blank wall outside the Annadale train station.
“If you’re driving through the town, it’s something pleasing that immediately catches your eye,” Fleming added. “We’ve gotten a great response from it, people love the colors and the fact that each display has brightened the neighborhood. We’d really love to expand this project in the near future.”
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