James Molinaro facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
James Molinaro
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Molinaro in 2009
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| 14th Borough President of Staten Island | |
| In office January 1, 2002 – December 31, 2013 |
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| Preceded by | Guy Molinari |
| Succeeded by | James Oddo |
| Deputy Borough President of Staten Island | |
| In office January 1, 1990 – December 31, 2001 |
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| Preceded by | Nicholas LaPorte |
| Succeeded by | Dan Donovan |
| Personal details | |
| Born | March 11, 1931 (age 94) Manhattan, New York, U.S. |
| Political party | Conservative |
| Spouse |
Carol
(m. 1962; died 1990) |
| Children | 2 |
| Signature |  |
James P. Molinaro (born March 11, 1931) is an American politician. He served as the Borough President of Staten Island for many years. A Borough President is like a mayor for one of New York City's five main areas, helping to manage local government and services.
Molinaro was first elected as Borough President of Staten Island on November 6, 2001. He won with 50 percent of the votes. He officially started his job on January 1, 2002. He was re-elected for his third and final term on November 3, 2009. He received 46,061 votes, which was 62.7% of all votes.
Contents
About James Molinaro
Early Life and Family
James Molinaro was born in Manhattan, New York. His parents were Italian immigrants. He grew up with three brothers and two sisters. Since 1964, he has lived in the Fort Wadsworth neighborhood on Staten Island.
He was married to Carol for 28 years. Sadly, Carol passed away in 1990. They had two sons named Peter and Steven.
His Career in Politics
James Molinaro started his political journey in 1964. He joined the New York State Conservative Party. In 1976, he became the Chairman of the Conservative Party in Richmond County (which is Staten Island). Later, he became the Vice Chair of the State Party. In 1989, he was elected Executive Vice Chair of the New York State Conservative Party.
Before becoming Borough President, Molinaro worked for 12 years as the Deputy Borough President. He served under former Borough President Guy V. Molinari. He was also Molinari's chief of staff when Molinari was a congressman.
While in office, James Molinaro had two Deputy Borough Presidents. The first was Daniel M. Donovan, Jr.. He left in 2004 to become the Richmond County District Attorney. Later, Molinaro named Ed Burke as his deputy. Ed Burke had worked with Guy V. Molinari and James Molinaro for many years.
Over 20 years, Molinaro served on several important boards. These included the Veterans Memorial Sports Complex and Staten Island Community Television. He also helped create the St. Elizabeth Ann's Health and Rehabilitation Center.
In 1989, Molinaro helped set up Staten Island’s first day care and medical care center for people with AIDS. He also helped dedicate a local dialysis unit in memory of his late wife in 1991. In 2000, a part of St. Elizabeth Ann's Health and Rehabilitation Center was named the James P. and Carol E. Molinaro Health Care and Rehabilitation Center Atrium.
Today, Molinaro is on the board of the Heart Institute of Staten Island. He also serves as a Senior Advisor to a law firm that helps people affected by the September 11th events get support.
Molinaro has often spoken about how Italian-Americans and Staten Island residents are shown in the media. In 2010, he wrote the introduction for a book called Italian Staten Island (Images of America).
Key Accomplishments
James Molinaro worked on many important projects for Staten Island.
Controlling Development
Molinaro led a big effort to control new building projects on Staten Island. This was done to protect the unique feel of the area. This plan affected over 41,000 properties. It helped reduce the number of possible new homes on Staten Island by 25%.
Improving Parks
Since becoming Borough President, Molinaro helped get nearly $100 million for parks. This money was used for buying new park land and keeping parks in good condition. Some projects included improving the South Beach Boardwalk and creating new sports fields. He also helped expand the Blue Belt, which protects wetlands. A new fishing pier was also built. Today, 25% of Staten Island is protected parkland. This is more than any other borough in New York City. Molinaro considers himself an environmentalist.
Boosting the Economy
Molinaro played a big part in bringing Visy Paper to Staten Island in 1997. This company opened a cardboard recycling facility. It created hundreds of new jobs. This was the largest investment in manufacturing in New York City in 50 years. Molinaro also helped bring back freight rail service to Staten Island in 2007. This connected Staten Island to the rest of the country by train for the first time in 16 years.
Supporting Education
Molinaro used $500,000 from his budget to buy wireless laptop computers. These were for all of Staten Island’s middle schools and many elementary schools. He also worked with Mayor Michael Bloomberg to build more schools on Staten Island. This included P.S. 58, which opened in 2003.
He also set aside $1,000,000 for "electronic" blackboards. These were for every public school on Staten Island.
Current Discussions
Wind Turbines for Energy
James Molinaro supports urban parks, including Fresh Kills Park. However, he has disagreed with the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation about building wind turbines there. He believes wind turbines could create renewable energy on the site.
New York City Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg also thinks the former landfill could be used for renewable energy. However, he prefers using photovoltaic systems (solar panels) instead of wind turbines.
Opening Landfill Roads
Molinaro has also disagreed with the Parks Department about opening old roads within the former landfill. These roads were once used by the New York City Department of Sanitation. Molinaro believes opening these roads would help reduce traffic around the Staten Island Mall and other shopping areas.
In the past, his predecessor Guy V. Molinari and former New York State Assemblyman Eric Nicholas Vitaliano also thought these roads should be opened.
In April 2011, the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation announced plans to build a bicycle and pedestrian path along the park's eastern side.
