The derelict condition of the land surrounding the Staten Island Sportsmen's Club in Bloomfield, Staten Island is part of its appeal. "There's nobody out here. And we like it that way," the club manager tells Nathan Kensinger. The desolation is great for shotgun enthusiasts who like to blast clay pigeons without disturbing their neighbors, but Kensinger explores a northwestern section of Staten Island that has been blighted by years of mob influence, industrial pollution, and underdeveloped infrastructure.
If there is any glamour in Bloomfield, it is the sordid infamous type of glamour associated with the mafia. The Gambino crime family has had a stranglehold on the area and used Bloomfield as a disposal spot for bodies and an arena for extortion, most recently helping to drive NASCAR from establishing a race track in New York City. Follow the link to Kensinger's site for plenty more photos of this alluring corner of Richmond County.
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