New York real estate: Great Kills, Staten Island

By Joe Filippazzo | Special to amNewYork

September 4, 2008

Great Kills, Staten Island (Phil S. Kropoth / September 3, 2008)

No one really uses the word "love" when they describe their feelings toward Great Kills, Staten Island. In fact, most residents speak with a blend of reservation and cautious optimism that it's almost disarming at first. It's not a dangerous place or a ghost town, but then again, it's no Shangri-La, they say. It's middle-class, medium sized, centrally located and even-keeled, through and through. What you see is what you get in Great Kills and the people that live here like it just fine.

Make no mistake, Great Kills is not without its charms and the neighborly allure is readily recognizable with just a short walk through town. Charlie Santa, who rounded a corner and happened upon a lost reporter, was quick to offer directions and a friendly chat.

"Great Kills is really nice. It's not the greatest, but it's definitely one of the better places to live on Staten Island," Santa said, "and it has been for some time."

Like most Staten Island neighborhoods, Great Kills' population exploded in the late 1960s, right after the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge was built. Property values quickly doubled as families moved to State Island from Brooklyn in search of a quieter, suburban life.

Though this new-found attention brought commerce and stability to Great Kills, the area never became a land of plenty or even a specific destination. It was just a quaint and convenient place to settle -- a sort of happy accident.

Now there are primarily two types of people who live here. They are either entrenched families from that initial population boom, or the newly married couples from other parts of Staten Island.

"It's a lot of younger people; in fact, I just sold a few this year to some couples that just got married," said Trudy Galli, a real estate agent. "It's also families with kids and a lot of people who just sold houses in Brooklyn. It's because you get more for your money here than in Brooklyn and Manhattan."

Ultimately, transportation is one of the biggest draws to the area. With 16 buses embarking from the Eltingville Transit Center and the express train to the Staten Island Ferry running out of Great Kills Station, the convenience of this neighborhood is paramount.

The commercial situation, though stable, is a strange mixture of time-tested businesses and seemingly perpetually empty storefronts. There are many restaurants and a reasonable number of places to shop or relax, but a few businesses have found it exceedingly difficult to stay put.

"Just look down Amboy Road," said Santa, "Stores keep coming in then going out of business and closing up shop. It's unfortunate and it makes the area look dilapidated."

But that is easily the exception rather than the rule as plenty of successful families and businesses continue to move into Great Kills.

"Great Kills is a nice area but it's not the absolute nicest on Staten Island," said Galli. "There are certainly nicer areas and worse areas but Great Kills is sort of in the middle in a good way."

Find it

Great Kills is bounded by the Atlantic Ocean on the south, Armstrong Avenue on the west, Arthur Kill Road on the north and Greaves and Fieldway avenues on the east.

The basics

Transportation: Great Kills has some of the best transportation options on Staten Island despite its south shore seclusion. Great Kills Station on the Staten Island Rail Road is right in the center of the neighborhood and it boasts rush hour express service to the St. George Ferry. A two-minute drive west of Great Kills is the Eltingville Transit Center, home to the S55, 56, 59, 74, 79, 84 and 89 buses and the X1, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 15, 17 and 31 express buses. The S54 swings past the train station, too.

Police Station: The 122nd Precinct covers all of the mid-island neighborhoods including Great Kills. With 27 square miles under its jurisdiction, the one-two-two is the largest precinct geographically in the city.

Crime Stats: In 2007, there were three murders, nine rapes, 295 burglaries, 87 felony assaults and 513 grand larcenies in the 122nd Precinct.

Schools: P.S. 053 Bay Terrace, 330 Durant Ave., 718-987-8020; I.S. 24 Myra S. Barnes Intermediate School, 225 Cleveland Ave., 718-356-4200; P.S. 32 Giffords School, 32 Elverton Ave., 718-984-1688.

Libraries: Great Kills Branch of the New York Public Library, 56 Giffords Ln., 718-984-6670