{news} Brison in Yale Daily News

[David Bedell]

http://www.yaledailynews.com/articles/view/22463
New alderman prepares to shake up board

Aaron Bray
Staff Reporter
Published Thursday, November 15, 2007

Newly elected Ward 10 Alderman Allan Brison ran as a Green Party candidate.
But he won as an independent.

He also won as someone who will aim to shake up the Board of Aldermen -
which, he said, is merely a "rubber stamp" for the mayor.

In other words, Brison is not even waiting to take his seat to begin
sparking controversy. He has already declared his intention to join a
faction that its alleged leader claims does not exist.

In contrast to outgoing Ward 10 Alderman Ed Mattison LAW '68 - whom Brison
called the "insider of insiders" - Brison said he is ready to assume his
position as a skeptic of and opposition voice to the mayor. Even supporters
of Mattison on the Board - who received the vote totals on election night
with evident surprise and silence - called Brison's 20 percent margin of
victory over Mattison overwhelming.

In an interview, Brison said he intends to support Ward 5 Alderman Jorge
Perez for Board president against current Board President Carl Goldfield,
even though Perez said he has not even decided whether to run yet.

"There are two factions on the Board of Aldermen," Brison said. "There is
the Jorge Perez faction, and there is the mayor's faction . I feel I'll be
more in the dissenting faction."

The board presidential election will take place in two and a half months.

Perez said he welcomes Brison and his independent voice just as he welcomes
everyone else, but that the lines on the Board are not drawn as clearly as
Brison makes them out to be.

"I don't think there is any Jorge Perez faction per se," Perez said. "I am
perceived to be [an independent voice on the board] . I work with the mayor
when it makes sense, and when I disagree, I disagree. My disagreements with
the mayor tend to be less theoretical than practical."

Others on the Board said it was unwise for Brison to indicate his partisan
preferences so publicly and so early. Ward 1 Alderman Nick Shalek '05, who
did not pursue re-election this fall, said it is preferable to start with an
open mind and get to know all the aldermen instead of rushing to judgement.

Ward 13 Alderman Alex Rhodeen said he agrees.

"I don't think anyone would say there are factions," Rhodeen said. "There
are just different approaches to different issues. But I think it is
important to be on the Board before you start declaring factions and which
one you are going to be on."

Fellow co-chair of the local Green Party Charles Pillsbury '70 DIV '90 said
Brison is a "man of principles" who is averse to bargaining with his vote
once he is on the Board.

Brison said he has no interest in playing politics.

"You have to decide to what degree you are upfront, and to what degree you
are diplomatic," Brison said. "I may not always make the right choice, but I
strongly support Jorge for president, though on other issues it will be an
issue by issue decision . With Jorge, I don't feel I have to have total
allegiance on every issue."

Rhodeen said that as one of the more conservative Democrats on the Board, he
looks forward to meeting with Brison, who he said ran a conservative
campaign focused on "homeowner rights, police issues and lowering taxes."

But Brison said any perception of him as a conservative is misinformed.
Although Brison said he will also promote environmentally-friendly
practices, a more classically "Green" platform, during his tenure on the
Board of Aldermen, he said his principle motivation is providing an
independent voice for his constituents.

The promotional pamphlets he handed out the day before the election are
embossed with the logo of the Connecticut Green Party, but the issues they
highlight - the high taxes, rising crime and unfair towing practices - are
less about party politics than the quality-of-life of his constituents. And
he said aldermen's relationships with the "power-brokers in the city - Yale,
the mayor, the Democratic political machine" matter as much as any other
issue.

Mayor John DeStefano Jr said he hopes common ground can be found.

"It's good to campaign during election season," he said. "But the city is
better served when we look for opportunity to work together."

Pillsbury said Brison knows enough members of the Board to work effectively
with them, even as a Green minority of one.

"He's not as isolated as some," Pillsbury said, referring to Joyce Chen '01,
who began her tenure as a Green before changing her affiliation to Democrat
well into her first term. "But when he needs something from City Hall, he
may not get it. It's a calculated gamble that you take."

Asked on which issues he thought he could easily work with all members of
the Board, Brison said he expects to find common ground on environmental
issues.

But Brison said he knows that on some issues, he will have to lead a
possibly lonely charge. To ensure tax dollars are well spent, Brison said an
elected Board of Education is necessary - one that will be accountable not
only to the mayor, but also to citizens.

"As long as all the members [on the Board of Education] are appointed by the
mayor, there is no way to stop the patronage that exists," he said. "We have
beautiful new buildings - wonderful facilities that I never had as a child -
but there is not enough money for school books, and teachers can't get stuff
copied."

Still, DeStefano said that attacking the Board of Education was empty
rhetoric. Changing the Board of Education's selection would require
modifying the city charter, which he said requires a citywide vote, and so
is not something the Board of Alderman can even vote on.

"It's not even on the table," he said.

He said the most important issue he heard from voters were reducing the
number of shootings, which have gone up even as murders have gone down. He
said residents want more police in the neighborhoods - something both he and
Brison agree on.

Mayoral candidate Ralph Ferrucci said that Brison's victory - the first for
a Green Party candidate in a contested seat - was a first step in a larger
effort to make a third party an acceptable and frequent choice in New Haven.

"Over the next two to four years, if we bring down the number of Democratic
aldermen down, the government will have to be more representative of the
city," Ferrucci said.

The strategy for the Green Party has more to do with listening to citizens
needs than any specific policy proposals. He said that most people, if
asked, would give a definition of reminiscent of "a 1972 Green Party in
Germany," focused solely on environmental issues. Instead, the local Green
party would be soliciting opinions from community members in the coming
months on what direction to take the party.

Brison - who lost to Mattison in 2001 - credited his victory to his
relentless door-knocking and his efforts registering new voters. He said he
though he registered about 120 residents, of whom he said maybe 80 were
graduate students or post-docs who were not usually involved in the
political process.