Located nearby was Warren Manor, a residential development that was demolished in the 1950s to make way for a proposed new City University of New York campus that was never built.

By the early 20th century, many Italian-Americans, including immigrants, settled in the neighborhood, and their descendants still form the majority of the community's population.

[6] LaMarcus Adna Thompson built one of his Scenic Railway roller coasters in South Beach in 1899, though that only lasted four years.

One source adds that "fortune tellers, card printers, and photography studios" began to open very close to the park.

[10] Other entertainment at Happyland included continuous vaudeville, a ballroom, bandstand, roller rink, shooting galleries, and penny arcades.

More passive features included a Japanese garden, picnic areas, landscaped groves, and Venetian style canals.

[11] Patrons could watch the shows or listen to music for free, and the park gave visitors "pass-out checks" so they could return later in the day without paying another fee.

By 1909, the park's admission had been repealed, and numerous independent amusements had been built adjacent to Happyland, including photograph studios, fortune tellers, two dance halls, a souvenir shop, card-printers, and several games.

[22][23] The City of New York built a public housing project in the neighborhood in 1949; it is one of three such developments south of the Staten Island Expressway.

[24] Service on the South Beach Branch was halted in 1953; by the 1980s the tracks of this line had been removed, and tract homes now stand on the original right-of-way in most places.

Today, Railroad Avenue's name, the Robin Road Trestle, and the street grid are the only remaining pieces of evidence.

The neighborhood's principal thoroughfare was originally named Seaside Boulevard, which ran parallel to the shoreline, with the South Beach Boardwalk flanking it on the shoreward side.

This roadway, which was the only portion of the "Shore Front Drive" proposed by Robert Moses to be actually built, was later renamed Father Capodanno Boulevard, after a Roman Catholic chaplain who was killed in action during the Vietnam War, and runs from near the Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge to Midland Beach.

Situated in a low-lying coastal area, Ocean Breeze often experiences the worst flood-related damage in all of Staten Island after heavy rain has fallen, and many of the neighborhood's side streets become impassable.

[2] In 2018, an estimated 14% of South Beach and Mid-Island residents lived in poverty, compared to 17% in all of Staten Island and 20% in all of New York City.

Based on this calculation, as of 2018[update], South Beach and Mid-Island are considered high-income relative to the rest of the city and not gentrifying.

[39] South Beach is served by the New York City Fire Department (FDNY)'s Engine Co. 161/Ladder Co. 81, located at 278 McClean Avenue.

[33]: 14 The concentration of fine particulate matter, the deadliest type of air pollutant, in South Beach and Mid-Island is 0.0069 milligrams per cubic metre (6.9×10−9 oz/cu ft), less than the city average.

[33]: 6  The percentage of South Beach and Mid-Island students excelling in math rose from 49% in 2000 to 65% in 2011, though reading achievement declined from 55% to 52% during the same time period.

[45] South Beach and Mid-Island's rate of elementary school student absenteeism is lower than the rest of New York City.

[34]: 24 (PDF p. 55) [33]: 6  Additionally, 87% of high school students in South Beach and Mid-Island graduate on time, more than the citywide average of 75%.