We’re finally doing it. Our long-awaited episode digging into Nicole Malliotakis’s legislative history… such that it is. We’ll go over her voting record before digging into a very unusual bill that leads us on a journey back to the 1970s. We’ll unravel a web of land-grabs, NIMBYism, political backstabbing, racism, and legal maneuvers to keep Staten Island segregated. And how, aware or not, Nicole’s only legislative achievement has its roots in Staten Island’s long history of oppression and exclusion.
Come for the analysis, stay for Dan and Rachel getting more fired up than they’ve ever been on the podcast. We’ll look into Nicole’s rejection of Democratic norms, her history of incitement going back to 2017, and her inability to reject people who maim law enforcement officers or who spout Nazi slogans.
Audio Bookmarks
Quickly jump to key parts of the episode by clicking the links below…
- Introductions
- Malliotakis’s Transition from Albany to Congress
- Malliotakis and the Capitol Insurrection
- Voting Record Snapshot
- The Gateway Bill
- Caveats and Due Diligence
- Nicole’s Bipartisan Legislation
- A Weird Bill
- The 70s Plan to Develop and Desegregate Staten Island
- Racism and Opposition by the Conservative Party
- The Threat of Gateway: The First Urban National Park
- Greenlining
- Keeping the Bill Alive
- Does Malliotakis Know?
- The Reversion Clause
- Malliotakis’s Legislative Legacy
- Nicole’s Congressional Strategy
- History of Incitement: IDNYC and Mac’s Public House
- Turning Charity into a Campaign Event
- Closing
Show Notes
Resign Malliotakis
During the pod, we discussed many of Nicole’s crummy votes during her time in the State Assembly. Rachel mentions a volunteer who documented her voting record. You can check that out on the ResignMalliotakis website.
The Rouse Development
Note the presence of landfill for development at what is now Great Kills Park, the only part of the Gateway National Recreation Area that Staten Island Republicans wanted included in the park. Eventually they’d add the northern beachfront areas not under risk of development after transit provisions had been stripped from the Gateway project federally.
For more about the project (and great images of the proposed development) check out The Limits of Liberal Planning: the Lindsay Administration’s Failed Plan to Control Development on Staten Island by Jeffrey A. Kroessler.
Links to Malliotakis’s Gateway Bills…
- 2019-2020 Session: A08150 – Extends the time period for the conveyance of lands for the establishment of the Gateway National Recreation Area until June 30, 2021.
- 2017-2018 Session: A04864 – Extends the time period for the conveyance of lands for the establishment of the Gateway National Recreation Area until May 1, 2019
- 2015-2016 Session: A05614 – Extends the time period for the conveyance of lands for the establishment of the Gateway National Recreation Area until May 1, 2017
- 2013-2014 Session: A02297 – Relates to conveyance of lands for the establishment of Gateway National Recreation Area
- 2011-2012 Session: A05765 – Relates to conveyance of lands for the establishment of Gateway National Recreational Area
Bill Jacket Information
Our Reciepts…
IDNYC Protest Letter to Neighbors
During the episode, Dan mentioned that Nicole has previously leaned dangerously close to inciting people. In light of the capitol riots, he mentioned an IDNYC protest in which Malliotakis suggested that protesters peacefully marching through the neighborhood could become a riot, and sent letters to her neighbors warning them.
Here’s the letter:
You can read about how the protest went at SocialistWorker.org
Further Reading…
- The Limits of Liberal Planning: the Lindsay Administration’s Failed Plan to Control Development on Staten Island by Jeffrey A. Kroessler.
- Greenlining research by Dr. Patrick Nugent:
- From the Richmond Parkway to the Staten Island Greenbelt: The Rise of Ecological Zoning in New York City (2016)
- The Urban Environmental Order: Planning and Politics on Staten Island, 1945-1984 (2017)
- Current Book Project: The Greenlining of Staten Island: Ecological Preservation and Racial Segregation in Postwar New York City
- A Report to the City of New York: An Analysis of Development Trends and Projections and Recommendations for a New City in South Richmond by the Rouse Company (1970)
- Senator John J. Marchi Papers – 1956-1998