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Ferrer Endorses Gleason
August 3rd, 2009
http://www.gothamgazette.com/blogs/wonkster/2009/08/03/ferrer-endorses-gleason/
Former Bronx Borough President Fernando Ferrer, the Democratic mayoral nominee in 2005, endorsed Pete Gleason this morning for the City Council's district 1 seat.
Gleason is looking to unseat Councilmember Alan Gerson in a district that includes SoHo, Chinatown and the Lower East Side.
Gleason is "the kind of talent, kind of intelligence, integrity, compassion, that we need in the City Council," said Ferrer. "I'm very happy to not only endorse your candidacy, but to meet with you when you need me in Lower Manhattan, and try to get you elected to the City Council."
A former New York police officer and now an attorney, Gleason praised Ferrer's record of public service. "I fully realize there's a responsibility with this endorsement, to live up to the model he has set."
In response to a question about Gerson's vote for extending term limits, Gleason said, "the vote on term limits violated not only democracy but the public trust. And we need elected officials that will say what they mean and mean what they say."
He also slammed the way discretionary funds get handed out, saying that they should be given out equally, rather than distributed by "virtue of who's in who's pocket."
In response to a question from this reporter about the rezoning of Chinatown, Gleason criticized aspects of the zoning changes. "Park Row should be reopened immediately," he said. "With regard to the Chatham Square reconfiguration, we've seen how long it takes to get something built in Lower Manhattan. We can't subject the people of Chinatown to that."
Gerson is facing a tough challenge from four other candidates. Gleason recently won the endorsement of the Downtown Independent Democrats, a move that the Downtown Express described as a "body blow" to Gerson's re-election efforts.
Furthermore, Gerson was bumped off the ballot in late July. Gerson has appealed the Board of Election's decision to keep him off the ballot due to a technical error that involved the misprinting of his address. A spokesman for the Gerson campaign said that if he is not reinstated, the campaign would go to court.
By Alex Kane on August 3, 2009, 2:43 pm
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