De BLASIO LANDS IN STATEN ISLAND:
Sweet talk for his toughest boro
WHO’S MORE popular among Staten Islanders — Mayor de Blasio or the new Shake Shack coming to the borough next year?
The answer shouldn’t surprise you.
De Blasio’s arrival in the borough Monday was upstaged by something else that’s on its way — a Shake Shack.
At the same time as the mayor turned Borough Hall into a temporary City Hall for the week, the popular burger chain said it would open its first Staten Island outpost next year as part of the Empire Outlets development in St. George.
For some Staten Islanders with a de Blasio beef, the burgers beat the bureaucracy.
“I’m probably more excited for Shake Shack,” said Trevor Sykes, 25, of Mariners Harbor. “I’m not really into politics.”
Even those who are into politics showed little relish for de Blasio.
“I’m pretty sure Shake Shack; the mayor doesn’t have many friends in Staten Island,” said Kadri Arapi, 40, of Dongan Hills.
Nonetheless, he hoped the mayor would have a successful week in the borough.
“I like him personally, but I can’t say that for the majority of the people I speak with,” he said.
Even elected officials picked a side.
“Have you ever had Shake Shack? ’Nuff said,” said Staten Island Borough President James Oddo.
In 2013, de Blasio defeated Republican Joe Lhota by a whopping 73.3% to 24.3% margin — but lost Staten Island. De Blasio could only muster 44.3% of the vote there.
Said de Blasio spokesman Eric Phillips: “I’m not sure there's anyone in American political history who’d compare favorably to a Shake Shack burger.”
The mayor and his top administration officials will spend the week working out of Staten Island Borough Hall and holding events across the borough, where de Blasio’s poll numbers have been dismal — something Oddo noted as he welcomed the mayor.
“It’s not a shock and I don’t think the mayor minds me saying this in front of the media: the mayor’s numbers on Staten Island aren’t great,” Oddo said.
“I think the mayor himself has always appreciated in the last three-plus years that I have not kind of gone with the flow and taken cheap shots. The mission is what it’s all about, and the mission for him and for me is to improve the lives of Staten Islanders.”
Oddo welcomed de Blasio to the GOP hotbed with two big boxes of cannoli from Royal Crown, a bakery and deli in the Grasmere neighborhood.
“It is part of our culture, right Mr. Mayor, that if you invite guests to your home you have to feed them,” Oddo joked.
With the help of an aide’s car keys, de Blasio ripped through the bakery string to open the box and take a bite — but not before noting the borough president had made a “controversial” choice in selecting chocolate-covered cannoli.
He also took a moment to note that, car keys aside, he had arrived in the borough via ferry, where he took photos with the tourists who make up the bulk of Staten Island-bound ridership in the morning.
But it won't all be scenic ferry rides and Italian pastries: The mayor is likely to hear an earful from those Staten Island residents who are behind his low poll numbers.
He was greeted by a single protester who heckled him as he walked inside, decked out in a “Make America Great Again” hat and yelling about de Blasio's legal troubles.
A more subdued group held signs urging the mayor to save Sky Light Center, a mental health and drug rehabilitation facility that’s based near Borough Hall.
He plans to hold sit-downs with constituents and a town hall on Thursday. De Blasio said the week would be “a chance to hear concerns and learn better how we can” serve the community.