STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- With just 100 days until Election Day, Democratic candidate for the South Shore Council seat, Dylan Schwartz, celebrated the opening of his campaign headquarters on Sunday.

Schwartz, a 25-year-old Bay Terrace resident will be challenging Councilman Joe Borelli (R-South Shore) on Nov. 7.

"This day let's the community freely share their ideas," said Schwartz.

Several signs with the words, "People over Politics," were hung in each room in the new headquarters. An oversized map of the 51st district was placed on the wall, that was also filled with post-its indicating South Shore neighborhoods.

Residents from both the North Shore and the South Shore traveled to the new headquarters in Great Kills located at 55 Lindenwood Rd. Schwartz also filed 2,829 signatures with the NYC Board of Elections.

"I am humbled and honored to receive such strong support from the community, our campaign is powered by people who are tired of politics as usual and my strong filing is proof of that," Schwartz said. "I will be a full-time council member who will always put people before politics and I will fight for your family the way I fought for mine."

Some issues Schwartz is advocating for are:



* Dealing head-on with drug and opioid overdoses by creating the "Narcan Emergency Responder Volunteer" (NERV) program in the city. The program would alert first responders via text message when there is an overdose in their proximity so they can quickly get to the scene and administer life-saving treatment.

* Secure funding for a permanent South Shore ferry with a park-and-ride for residents commuting to lower Manhattan.

* Fighting back against overdevelopment by rezoning the community to protect family homes and work with community groups to stop unsafe non-union development.

* Advocating for more education funding for our public schools to reduce class sizes as well as to upgrade classrooms with the latest teaching technologies.

Schwartz spent time working with homeless LGBTQ youth in central Florida, is involved in local Democratic clubs and worked on Barack Obama's re-election campaign and those of local Democratic candidates. He is hoping the solidly Republican South Shore considers more than his party affiliation when voting months from now.

A native Staten Islander who attended college in Florida and returned to the borough after graduating, Schwartz founded Rose and Thorn Consulting and Election Technologies LLC, working mostly in the medical marijuana industry, an issue that hits close to home.

"I'm trying to help out any way I can," said Chepe Gonzalez of Arden Heights. "I'm an LGBT activist so I'm happy to see our community members run for some type of office."

The celebration offered refreshments, pizza and snacks to residents who stopped by to show support. Residents were also encouraged to write their name, phone number and email under their neighborhood to act as volunteers during his campaign.

"I came to support him and the democratic candidates on Staten Island," said Barbara Kent of Silver Lake.

For more information on Dylan Schwartz and his campaign, visit his website at www.dylanforcouncil.com.