Is Great Kills Safe? Staten Island Livability, Crime & Rent
Great Kills scores a median 6.5—a solid neighborhood for tree-seeking families who drive, but transit limitations temper appeal for those prioritizing walkability or frequent Manhattan commutes.
Great Kills at a glance
- Borough
- Staten Island
- Livability score
- 6.5/10
- Borough rank (NYC Open Data guides)
- #3 of 15
- Safety verdict
- Exceptionally Safe
- Crimes (12 mo)
- 1,080
- Subway stations
- 2 (Great Kills, Eltingville)
- Data updated
- 2026-09-14
Is Great Kills Safe?
Great Kills, Staten Island scores 6.5/10 for overall livability, ranking #3 of 15 Staten Island neighborhoods scored from NYC Open Data. Great Kills scores a median 6.5—a solid neighborhood for tree-seeking families who drive, but transit limitations temper appeal for those prioritizing walkability or frequent Manhattan commutes.
The livability score draws on HPD housing violations, subway access, NYC Parks' tree inventory and parks, and 311 noise complaints per resident from NYC Open Data, refreshed periodically rather than live. It does not include crime; NYPD complaint and shooting figures are on the Great Kills safety page. Safety varies by block — check a specific Great Kills address below for a block-level breakdown.
Score Overview
Vertical line = borough median. Scale: 0-10.
Practical measures HPD housing violations per residential lot over the last 12 months (higher = fewer violations). Borough medians are computed across DwellCheck's Staten Island neighborhood guides.
Neighborhood Character
Great Kills is a residential waterfront neighborhood where you'll find tree-lined streets—averaging 183 trees within a 200-meter radius with a tree density of 6.4/10—and a quiet, suburban feel anchored by marina access and beach proximity. You'll have five parks within roughly a kilometer on average, including King Fisher Park and the specialized Seaside Wildlife Nature Park. The building stock splits evenly between walk-ups and mid-rise structures, creating a mixed but predominantly low-rise residential character. Transit connections via the Staten Island Railway (Great Kills and Eltingville stations) provide your main link out, though commute scores reflect the reality of crossing water to reach Manhattan.
Livability & Restoration
Trees
183 trees
Expected in a 200m circle (NYC Parks tree inventory) | Density: 6.4/10 (city percentile)
In Toronto, 10 more trees on a city block went with a rise in self-rated health comparable to being 7 years younger (Kardan et al., 2015, Scientific Reports). In a cross-sectional study of London boroughs, each additional street tree per km of street went with 1.18 fewer antidepressant prescriptions per 1,000 residents (Taylor et al., 2015, Landscape and Urban Planning).
Park Access
10 parks
NYC Parks properties inside the neighborhood | largest: King Fisher Park | nearest to the center: Great Kills Veterans Playground, 431m | 3 nearest average 1047m from the neighborhood's center
Acoustic Quality
6/10
Noise proxy score (higher = quieter)
Environmental noise exposure increases the occurrence of hypertension and cardiovascular disease; WHO's night-noise guidelines call average outdoor night noise above 55 dB increasingly dangerous for public health (Basner et al., 2014, The Lancet).
What is the ART Score?
ART stands for Attention Restoration Theory (Kaplan & Kaplan, 1989) — the framework environmental psychologists use to measure whether a place helps your brain recover from mental fatigue, or pushes it deeper into overload. Cities deplete directed attention (the effortful focus you use at work); exposure to restorative environments replenishes it.
DwellCheck uses the idea in two separate places, and they measure different things. The neighborhood ART score below comes from neighborhood-wide data: up to 5 points from tree density (a city percentile) and up to 5 from how few 311 noise complaints there are per resident. An address report has no ART score. It runs the Wellness checks below, and their points go into the address’s overall score.
More than a point above the Staten Island median: denser trees, fewer noise complaints per resident, or both.
What an address report checks instead (Wellness)
- ±Sensory environment. A calm score minus a busy score, each starting at 50. Busy: a firehouse within 100m (+15) or 200m (+8), and 311 noise complaints within 200m over 6 months (15+ adds 5, 40+ adds 12, 80+ adds 20, and 3 more at 20+ complaints that include vehicle or street noise). Calm: a library (+15), community garden (+12) or public plaza or atrium (POPS; +15 indoor, +8 outdoor) within 200m, and a park within 300m (+10; +15 at 1+ acre; +20 at 5+ acres). A difference of +20 or more adds 8 points; −10 to −29 costs 2; −30 or less costs 4. Bars, museums, tourists and foot traffic are not counted.
- +Third places (Oldenburg, 1989). Public libraries, public plazas and atriums (POPS) and community gardens within 400m: 1–2 add 5 points, 3 or more add 10. Cafés and community centers are not counted. In a meta-analysis of longitudinal studies, loneliness or social isolation went with a 29% higher risk of incident coronary heart disease (Valtorta et al., 2016, Heart).
- 0Street vitality (Jacobs, 1961). Permitted block parties, farmers markets and similar community events in the borough over the past 12 months. The event data has no coordinates, so this is a borough-wide count shown for context. It doesn’t change the score.
Health mechanism. The theory holds that natural settings let directed attention recover. The evidence is mixed: a systematic review of 31 studies (Ohly et al., 2016, Journal of Toxicology and Environmental Health, Part B) found that time in natural environments improved 3 of 13 pooled attention measures (Digit Span Forward, Digit Span Backward and Trail Making Test B) and showed no marked benefit on the other 10.
Theoretical foundations. Kaplan & Kaplan (1989), The Experience of Nature; Jacobs (1961), The Death and Life of Great American Cities; Oldenburg (1989), The Great Good Place.
Transit & Commute
Subway Stations
Commute Score
5/10
Borough median: 4/10
Outdoor & Green Space
Avg Tree Count
183
Trees expected in a 200m circle
Tree Density
6.4/10
1,459 trees per km² in NYC Parks' tree inventory (street and park trees); city percentile, 1 = sparsest
Largest Parks In or Near the Neighborhood
- King Fisher Park
- Siedenburg Park
- Seaside Wildlife Nature Park
- Wegener Park
- Greencroft Playground
Nearest to the neighborhood's center: Great Kills Veterans Playground, about 431m. The 3 nearest NYC Parks properties average 1047m from the center (approximate park centers, not entrances).
Practical Living
Practical (HPD violations): 9/10 (Staten Island median 9). It measures HPD housing violations per residential lot over the last 12 months (higher = fewer violations).
Building Mix (Residential Tax Lots)
Share of the 15,529 residential tax lots in the neighborhood by PLUTO building class (NYC Department of City Planning).
Who Great Kills Is For
Car-dependent families seeking green space
Practical score of 9 (borough median: 9.0) reflects a low rate of HPD housing violations; ART/Livability at 5.7 suggests tree coverage and relative quiet support residential comfort
Outdoor enthusiasts with patience for transit
Five named parks within ~1km (King Fisher, Siedenburg, Seaside Wildlife, Wegener, Greencroft) and marina/beach access make this appealing despite commute score of 5
Those prioritizing safety over urban walkability
The lowest crime rate per resident of the 14 Staten Island neighborhoods we track; moderate rodent complaints (134) signal maintenance standards, though commute score of 5 and outdoor score of 4.8 show trade-offs
Pros & Cons
Strengths
Tree density and park proximity
183 trees avg within 200m; 6.4/10 tree density; five parks within ~1km including King Fisher Park and Seaside Wildlife Nature Park
Few housing violations
Practical score of 9, equal to the borough median, reflects a low rate of HPD housing violations per residential building
Above-average safety standing
The lowest crime rate per resident of the 14 Staten Island neighborhoods we track; moderate rodent complaints (134) suggest well-maintained residential conditions
Waterfront amenities and beach access
Marina access and beach proximity are documented existing highlights of the neighborhood character
Trade-offs
Weak commute accessibility
Commute score of 5 (above the borough median of 4.0) still reflects reliance on Staten Island Railway with limited frequency and cross-water travel to Manhattan
Limited outdoor recreation score
Outdoor score of 4.8 sits just below the borough median (5.1); the 3 nearest parks average 1,047m from the neighborhood's center
Score Any Address in Great Kills
Get detailed livability scores based on building health, transit access, safety, noise levels, and 15+ NYC data sources.
Search an Address in Great KillsFrequently Asked Questions about Great Kills
1Is Great Kills safe?
By NYPD data, Great Kills is rated "Exceptionally Safe", with the lowest crime rate per resident of the 14 Staten Island neighborhoods we track. 1,080 crime incidents and 0 shooting incidents over the past 12 months. See the safety page for the full breakdown.
2What is the average rent in Great Kills?
Rents in Great Kills, Staten Island vary significantly by building and apartment type. Market pricing isn't aggregated for this neighborhood yet; use DwellCheck to research specific addresses for HPD registration, HPD violations, and other building-level records. DwellCheck doesn't show rent-stabilization status; request the apartment's rent history from DHCR for that.
3How is transit access in Great Kills?
Great Kills has a commute score of 5/10. 2 subway stations serve the area: Great Kills, Eltingville.
4What are the best streets in Great Kills?
The best streets depend on your priorities. Use DwellCheck to compare specific addresses across livability, safety, transit, and environmental factors.
5What is Great Kills known for?
Great Kills sits in Staten Island and ranks #3 of 15 Staten Island neighborhoods scored from NYC Open Data on DwellCheck's livability score (6.5/10). It's served by 2 subway stations (Great Kills, Eltingville). Great Kills scores a median 6.5—a solid neighborhood for tree-seeking families who drive, but transit limitations temper appeal for those prioritizing walkability or frequent Manhattan commutes.
6What is it like to live in Great Kills?
DwellCheck scores Great Kills, Staten Island from NYC Open Data on practical (HPD housing violations per residential lot over the last 12 months (higher = fewer violations)), commute (subway stations and lines in the neighborhood), ART (tree density and 311 noise complaints per resident), outdoor (trees and park proximity). Great Kills's composite is 6.5/10. Great Kills scores a median 6.5—a solid neighborhood for tree-seeking families who drive, but transit limitations temper appeal for those prioritizing walkability or frequent Manhattan commutes. For the block-by-block view, run any specific Great Kills address through DwellCheck.
7Where is Great Kills?
Great Kills is in Staten Island, New York City. DwellCheck maps it to the Great Kills-Eltingville Neighborhood Tabulation Area (SI0302), which falls in the Census tabulation area that approximates Staten Island Community District 3 (South Shore). Its main ZIP codes are 10308, 10312 and 10306. Subway stations in the neighborhood include Great Kills and Eltingville.
8What ZIP code is Great Kills in?
Great Kills spans ZIP codes 10308 (51% of residential units), 10312 (41%) and 10306 (8%). Shares are of the 20,724 residential units in the Great Kills-Eltingville Neighborhood Tabulation Area (SI0302), from NYC PLUTO 26v2 tax-lot records.
9Can you walk around Great Kills at night?
Great Kills is classified as "Exceptionally Safe" by NYPD complaint data. Over the past 12 months it recorded 0 shooting incidents and 1,080 total crime incidents. Walking at night carries the same risk profile as anywhere in NYC: stay on commercial corridors with foot traffic, avoid empty side streets after midnight, and prefer subway lines that run 24/7.
10Is Great Kills dangerous?
By NYPD data, Great Kills is rated "Exceptionally Safe", with the lowest crime rate per resident of the 14 Staten Island neighborhoods we track. 1,080 crime incidents over 12 months. Block-level risk varies; check the address-level safety score for any specific street or building.
11What parts of Great Kills should I avoid?
NYPD complaint records carry approximate incident coordinates, but a neighborhood total can't tell you which blocks drive it, so we don't publish an "avoid this street" list. For a specific block, use DwellCheck's address-level safety score, which counts NYPD crime complaints within a 300m radius of the building over the latest 12 months of published data and compares that count with the borough average.
12Is Great Kills a good place to live?
Great Kills scores 6.5/10 for overall livability and has the lowest crime rate per resident of the 14 Staten Island neighborhoods we track. Great Kills scores a median 6.5—a solid neighborhood for tree-seeking families who drive, but transit limitations temper appeal for those prioritizing walkability or frequent Manhattan commutes. Whether it's a good fit depends on what you weight: families, solo renters, and remote workers each prioritize different factors (noise, transit access, parks, building quality).
13What is the average DwellScore in Great Kills?
The composite score is 6.5. Practical scores highest at 9, while commute and outdoor recreation lag at 5 and 4.8 respectively.
14How safe is Great Kills compared to the rest of Staten Island?
Great Kills has the lowest crime rate per resident of the 14 Staten Island neighborhoods we track—rated exceptionally safe. Crime also fell 10.5% over 12 months.
15What is the noise situation like?
1,190 noise complaints were filed over 12 months, low per resident compared with the other neighborhoods we track.
16How much tree coverage does the neighborhood have?
Great Kills averages 183 trees within 200 meters with a tree density of 6.4/10—the second highest of the Staten Island neighborhoods DwellCheck tracks.
17What are my transit options?
Two Staten Island Railway stations serve the area: Great Kills and Eltingville. The commute score of 5 reflects limited frequency and the need to cross water to reach Manhattan, making a car nearly essential.
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