May 26th, 2017

When we visited the site of SCAPE's Oystertecture project there was a man on the tour that seemed a little opposed to the plan. To me, the Oystertecture project is wonderful in theory and it is difficult to see how someone would be upset about the site development. However, after a moment of trying to place myself in his shoes I could see how he could be precautious about the SCAPE's activity along the shoreline. Staten Island is his home and I am sure he has seen it go through many changes, and perhaps for the worse. He is just trying to protect a place that is special to him and his community.
Every project, whether it seems inherently a good idea, will have those opposed to its development. I think it is important we consider peoples' skepticism because it is most likely sourced from negative past experiences. This man made me realize how important it is to work with and educate the community is during the development of a project.

​I did some research about some of the other changes Staten Island is experiencing. Currently the Fresh Kills Landfill is being converted into a park 3x the size of central park, which makes it one of the largest public park projects in the world. The second article talks about how the ecology of a creek on island has been severely compromised and overrun by invasive species. 

http://www1.nyc.gov/assets/planning/download/pdf/plans/fk

http://www.silive.com/news/index.ssf/2015/09/post_1282.html