Exhibit 99.2



                                  PRESS RELEASE



                                              Contact:     Donald Fleming
                                                           Senior Vice President
July 17, 2002                                 Contact #:   (718) 556-6517


ANNOUNCEMENT:   STATEN ISLAND BANCORP, INC. INCREASES
                QUARTERLY CASH DIVIDEND BY 9%


STATEN  ISLAND,  NEW  YORK - (NYSE:  SIB),  Staten  Island  Bancorp,  Inc.  (the
"Company")  announced  today  that its Board of  Directors  has  declared a cash
dividend of $0.12 per share on the Common Stock of the  Company,  an increase of
$0.01 or 9.1% from the cash  dividend  paid for the first  quarter of 2002.  The
dividend will be payable  August 13, 2002 to the  stockholders  of record at the
close of business on July 29, 2002.

Staten Island Bancorp,  Inc. is the holding company for SI Bank & Trust. SI Bank
& Trust was  chartered in 1864 and currently  operates 17 full service  branches
and three limited  service  branches on Staten  Island,  New York,  and two full
service  branches in Brooklyn,  New York;  and 15 full  service  branches in New
Jersey.  SI Bank & Trust  also  operates  SIB  Mortgage  Corp.,  a wholly  owned
subsidiary of SI Bank & Trust,  which  conducts  business  under the name of Ivy
Mortgage and has offices in 42 states.  On June 30, 2002,  Staten Island Bancorp
had $6.4  billion  in total  assets and  $557.3  million of total  stockholders'
equity.