| rdfs:comment
| - Staten Island, as Shaolin was known during Pre-War times, was known as "the forgotten boro," of New York because it was the last to be developed, really getting its start when the Verrazano-Narrows bridge between the island and Brooklyn was built in 1962. The neighborhood of Travis, located on the western side of the island, was known as the “last frontier”. As late as the 1970s, farms and other vestiges of New York City’s past could still be found in the small, tightly-knit neighborhood. Through the turn of the 21st century, the people of Travis did their best to fight the efforts of corrupt politicians and the contractor companies they were in bed with to stop the rapid development of the neighborhood and preserve the soul of one of New York’s last true unique neighborhoods.
|
| abstract
| - Staten Island, as Shaolin was known during Pre-War times, was known as "the forgotten boro," of New York because it was the last to be developed, really getting its start when the Verrazano-Narrows bridge between the island and Brooklyn was built in 1962. The neighborhood of Travis, located on the western side of the island, was known as the “last frontier”. As late as the 1970s, farms and other vestiges of New York City’s past could still be found in the small, tightly-knit neighborhood. Through the turn of the 21st century, the people of Travis did their best to fight the efforts of corrupt politicians and the contractor companies they were in bed with to stop the rapid development of the neighborhood and preserve the soul of one of New York’s last true unique neighborhoods. Their efforts were only semi-successful, as the entrenched political corruption just proved too much for the effort of the few working and low middle class neighborhood families trying to stop things. More and more single-family homes- many of them historical and over one hundred years old- were knocked down in favor of multi-family townhouse communities. More and more previously protected wetlands were cleared and paved over to make room for more roads and multi-family townhouse communities. With fewer and fewer legal means available to them, longtime residents and their families began resorting to illegal methods. Death threats, property damage, and even organized assaults on newer residents of the neighborhood began taking place. The problems between longtime residents and new arrivals reached its peak in May 2020, when a massive fire broke out in Travis, killing dozens and causing millions of dollars worth of property damage. Though the perpetrator was never discovered, rumor was it that it was started by an angry local who had his property scammed from him by a contractor with connections to the Boro President. The intentionally set blaze had its desired effect, but as an unintended consequence, the neighborhood began suffering economically. People began fearing for their safety and moving out of the area, causing jobs and businesses to leave. Homes were never rebuilt or were left abandoned, inviting elements of crime. The Great War occurred before the neighborhood turned into a complete cesspool, but it was well on its way before nuclear bombs fell from the skies.
|
![[RDF Data]](/fct/images/sw-rdf-blue.png)