« From Brooklyn to DC: Kevin Powell with Theodore Hamm | Main | Antonovich questions plan to again delay Grand Avenue project's start »
June 7, 2008
Tony Avella, the Anti-Overdevelopment Candidate
Brownstoner
City Councilman Tony Avella has been making himself known around Brooklyn lately, showing up at a community meeting about Gowanus and supporting other politicians who've called for a moratorium on Atlantic Yards demolitions. The common thread is also Avella's main talking point in his (longshot) bid to become our next mayor: Namely, that the Bloomberg administration has sold out to real estate interests, disrupting the fabric of neighborhoods and turning a deaf ear to community concerns. Voice blog Runnin' Scared has an interview with the man who wants to replace Mike. Here are some choice quotes:"You have so many communities throughout the entire City that need to be protected from overdevelopment. You have the Department of Buildings, which is in a shambles. And it has been such a huge effort to get even the smallest rezoning, even the smallest change done within the City Council. It’s bizarre."
"Listen, a lot of my fellow councilmen seem to be more interested, along with the Speaker, in getting money from the real estate industry than stepping up and doing the right thing. I don’t need to tell you, there’s very little independence in the City Council. It’s amazing to me how nobody speaks up."
Posted by amy at June 7, 2008 9:19 PM