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Learn more about this district in Searchlight 2002
General
Election Results
x-G. Oliver Koppell, Dem 19,129 - 79 percent
Richard Imprescia, Rep 5,047 - 21 percent
Primary
Election Results
G. Oliver Koppell 10,190
Laura Spalter 3,716
Terry Anne Bastone 1,987
Mark H. Vogel 1,055
(Official Vote Count from the Board of Elections)
Incumbent: June M. Eisland (can't
run in 2001)
The Candidates:
Contributors to these candidates, according to the Campaign
Finance Board:
Contributors
to Terry Anne Bastone
Contributors
to Richard Imprescia
Contributors
to G. Oliver Koppell
Contributors
to Laura Spalter
Contributors
to Mark Vogel
City's
Official Primary Election Voter Guide for Residents of District
11
Issue Statements:
District
11 candidates' statements on the issues, at Savvyvoter.org
Campaign
Feature:
[Campaign
Update]
A Familiar Face versus New Blood
As a native of Riverdale who grew up in the City Council district
he hopes to represent, 28-year-old Mark Vogel feels he understands
the northwest Bronx better than his rivals for the seat - even
if one of them has one of the most recognizable names in this
particular political landscape. G. Oliver Koppell, a long-time
state assemblyman and former New York State Attorney General,
is running against Vogel and at least two other candidates to
replace June Eisland, who has represented the area in the council
since 1980.
If Koppell is a dominant figure in Riverdale, politically, Riverdale,
with its large Jewish population, tends to dominate the district,
which also includes Van Cortlandt Park, Wave Hill, Manhattan College
and enclaves in Bedford Park, Norwood, Wakefield and Woodlawn.
Three of the likely candidates hail from affluent Riverdale and
one from neighboring Kingsbridge. But the district also is home
to more modest, largely Hispanic or black neighborhoods.
The Koppells are doing a lot of campaigning these days. Just
last year, Oliver's wife, Lorraine Coyle-Koppell ran unsuccessfully
against Bronx Republican State Senator Guy
Velella after defeating Bronx Democratic District Leader Michael
Benedetto in the primary.
Some observers had expected that, if any Koppell ran for council
this year it would be Lorraine, not Oliver.
After taking time to consider whether to run or not, Koppell
announced on Lincoln's Birthday that he is a candidate. He says
he will participate in the city's Campaign Finance program. He
also predicts "it is likely" that he will enjoy Eisland's endorsement.
Laura Spalter and Terry Bastone have also declared their candidacies.
Some local press had viewed Spalter, who supported Velella in
November's state senate race, as the front runner -- until Koppell
entered the race.
Those backing Koppell claim it would help the community to have
a well known person representing it on the council. But Vogel
says, "A lot of people are looking for a new face," he says. Calling
a run by Koppell "somewhat ridiculous," he said, "It's kind of
like the president of the United States running for class president."
Koppell's path to the City Council may not be as smooth as his
prominence suggests. He is currently president of Community School
Board 10 -- a post that is almost certainly less prestigious than
City Council -- and in that capacity has fought for adding high
school grades to a Riverdale middle school. That plan sparked
tension between Riverdale residents and some members of minority
communities. Vogel, for one, claims that his former boss Koppell
has not handled the controversial issue well. "Oliver has had
a hard time reaching out to parents of minority students," Vogel
asserts.
According to Spalter, a middle-school teacher, Riverdale parents
- herself included - have been dismayed at the lack of a neighborhood
high school. The expansion of the local middle school to accommodate
high school students, Spalter says, had wide support from members
of the community hoping to maintain the academic quality of their
local schools.
However, some Bronx residents claim that the drive to organize
a Riverdale-centered high school reflects that community's desire
to remain segregated from the rest of the school district. For
now, the new school facilities remain incomplete, and the controversy
continues.
For a long time, a key issue in Norwood was the proposed construction
of a federally mandated water filtration plant in Van Cortlandt
Park. All the candidates opposed the current site.
Bastone, a long-time resident of the district, was particularly
concerned that part of the park would be off-limits during the
estimated five to seven years it would take to construct the facility.
Spalter concurred and said that, while she recognizes the need
for clean water, she hoped the plant may prove to be unnecessary.
This issue, though, may since have become moot. In early February,
the state court of appeals ruled that the plant could not be built
without the approval of the state legislature.
On other matters, the candidates all cite the need for more economic
development in District 11. Bastone serves as a member of the
steering committee for the Kingsbridge Business Improvement District.
Koppell says he is its "strong supporter" and would advocate a
similar business improvement district for Norwood as well.
A seamier issue surfaced in late January, as Bastone, who was
born in Cuba, charged that some Democratic Party leaders said
that she could not get elected to the council seat because she
is not Jewish. Those leaders replied that it was not her ethnicity
that may make it difficult for her to get elected, but the fact
that she once used an anti-Semitic slur. Bastone conceded that
she had but said she was only joking.
Posted 02/12/01
Campaign Update:
How the race in district 11 is covered by the local press has
become as much of an issue in the campaign as the real issues,
such as whether a new water filtration plant or middle school
should be built in the area.
Candidate Laura Spalter says the free local paper, The Riverdale
Review (not to be confused with The Riverdale Press), favors Koppell
and has been inaccurate in its coverage of her. "It is not a regular
newspaper," says Spalter. "They distort my record, lie about who
I support, and they do it in a very nasty way. I can't even read
it anymore."
First, Spalter says she never formally endorsed State Senator
Guy Velella in his campaign last year (when he was challenged
by Oliver Koppell's wife, Lorraine) as the paper reported. In
another case, Spalter claims that the Review falsely accused her
campaign of writing bogus letters of support to the paper.
Spalter also says the Review is a campaign vehicle of Koppell,
and the other two Democratic candidates agree, although to a lesser
extent. "The editor [of the Review] is unabashedly supporting
Koppell," says Mark Vogel. "Most of his paper is an editorial."
"We all know [Review editor] Andy Wolf supports Oliver, and that's
okay," say Terry Bastone. "But he doesn't have to be inaccurate.
It gives journalism a bad name."
When asked about the issue, Koppell says he believes the paper
is accurate. "Andy Wolf is certainly an opinionated writer. He
is a friend of mine, but he hasn't always praised me. He has been
critical of me in the past," says Koppell.
Wolf defends his paper. On the letters to the paper about Spalter,
Wolf says his office investigated about half a dozen letters defending
Spalter and that all were signed by people who do not exist. "I
don't know if Spalter herself wrote them, but when you get a bunch
of letters fawning over one candidate and then you find out that
those letters were signed with names of people who do not exist,
then it's pretty reasonable to assume that someone else wrote
them, someone linked to that candidate's campaign," says Wolf.
Wolf also defends his decision to support Koppell. "These candidates
are not strangers to us," says Wolf. "Before Koppell announced,
when names first started surfacing, I looked at the candidates,
and I was very concerned. They were lightweights. And Riverdale
needs a heavyweight."
Largely overlooked in this drama is the Republican candidate,
Richard Imprescia, who recently entered the race.
Imprescia, an economic development specialist with the Empire
State Development Corporation, has spent the last few years targeting
communities in need of an economic boost through tax credits and
business incentives designed to attract companies to those areas
to create new jobs. Imprescia proposes creating tax zones in district
11 to spur development in targeted areas, giving tax credits to
individuals or corporations that make contributions that preserve
gardens and green space, and privatizing some land that the city
owns.
"It's not government that is going to build the 11th Council
district, it's the people," says Imprescia. "All that government
can do is create the environment where such development can prosper."
On the two issues receiving the most attention in the district
-- the water filtration plant and building a new middle school
in Riverdale--Imprescia sides with his Democratic opponents. He
opposes the plan to build the water filtration plan at the currently
proposed site, and while he is strongly in favor of school vouchers,
he says he recognizes the immediate need to build a public middle
school in Riverdale to lighten the load of other schools in the
area.
When asked about his chances in a district that is five-to-one
Democratic, Imprescia replied "I am someone with economic development,
business, and academic experience. It is going to be an uphill
battle, but when these issues are brought to the working class
people of the district, it will resound with them."
Meanwhile the Democratic candidates are trying to get the endorsements
that will boost their campaigns. Koppell has a long list of endorsements
including Congressman Eliot Engel, Assemblyman Jeffrey Dinowitz,
Public Advocate Mark Green, Comptroller Alan Hevesi and the outgoing
Councilwoman June Eisland. But the other candidates have also
received endorsements. Spalter has been endorsed by Councilwoman
Kathryn Freed and by the Patrolmen's Benevolent Association. Imprescia
has the endorsement of State Senator Guy Velella. Baston has yet
to receive any endorsements. "Yes, I would like them," she said,
"but all I want is the endorsement of the people."
Posted 7/24/01
Candidate Biographies
Terry Bastone, a Cuban-American, has lived in the Kingsbridge
area for 30 years. A community activist, she has also had experience
in city government. She was an aide for Councilwoman June Eisland,
a District Manager for Congressman Eliot Engel, and an aide for
State Senator Franz Leichter. In the community, Bastone is the
President of the Kingsbridge Gardens Tenants Association and a
member of various organizations including the Kingsbridge Business
Improvement District Steering Committee and the St. Gabriel Home
School Association. She has served three terms as a district leader
in the county Democratic Party and is a former president of the
Benjamin Franklin Reform Democratic Club. She is married and has
three children.
Richard Imprescia was appointed by Governor George Pataki
to the New York State Department of Economic Development in 1998,
where he is currently employed as an Economic Development Specialist
with New York State's Empire Zones Program. He provides economic
guidance to encourage development in targeted areas. He has taught
political theory and urban sociology at Lehman College and LaGuardia
Community College. He is also in the process of getting his Ph.D.
in Public Policy Analysis at New School University. He lives with
his wife and two children in Riverdale, where he is on the board
of the Family Council at the Hebrew Home for the Aged. He previously
ran for State Assembly.
G. Oliver Koppell served as a member of the NY State Assembly
for 22 years, after which he became the State Attorney General
in 1994. In the community, Koppell is a Board member of the Anti-Defamation
League and the Riverdale Senior Center. He is also the President
of Community School Board 10. Koppell currently works as an attorney
in New York City. His wife, Lorraine Coyle-Koppell, recently ran
unsuccessfully for State Senator.
Laura Spalter, 52, has been a teacher at Middle School
80 in Norwood for the past 13 years. She is a community activist
and founder and current president of the Riverdale Community Association,
a civic group that focuses on quality-of-life issues and community
improvement. She is also a member of many clubs and organizations
in the area, such as the Riverdale Nature Preservancy and the
50th Precinct Community Council. Since moving to Riverdale in
1967, she and her husband have raised two boys. Among other honors,
Spalter was named Riverdalian of the Year in 1995 by the Riverdale
Community Council.
Mark Vogel, 28, is a lifelong resident of Riverdale. During
his years as a student at Queens College, he had internships with
Councilwoman June Eisland and State Assemblyman G. Oliver Koppell.
He also served a stint as a White House intern. Most recently,
Vogel was Assemblyman Richard Gottfried's legislative assistant.
He is a former Vice President of the Benjamin Franklin Reform
Democratic Club and belongs to the Bronx Young Democrats and the
American Israel Public Affairs Committee.
Campaign Trail
08/30/01
The Norwood News asks the candidates running for City Council
a series of questions. If you are elected to the City Council,
will it be your only job or do you plan on holding another position
as well? What are your three top priorities? What specific proposals
do you have concerning these priorities? As an elected official,
what improvements would you propose for the Williamsbridge Oval
park? Do you support the 1 percent for parks proposal? How do
you propose to help solve the overcrowding problem in School District
10? Where will you have your district office? (Norwood
News)
8/28/01
The New York Times today endorsed a candidate in this race.
District 11 (northwest Bronx): "Residents of this district, which
includes Riverdale, will be able to elect an experienced and trusted
public servant in Oliver Koppell, who was New York's attorney
general seven years ago, and spent almost 23 years as an assemblyman
from his Bronx district. Although Laura Spalter has run a spirited
campaign, we strongly endorse Oliver Koppell."
08/09/01
Amid bickering over party loyalty and political alliances, candidates
for the Riverdale-Kingsbridge area's City Council seat revealed
some fundamental differences in both ideology and style last Monday
night. In a half-hour debate moderated by Gary Axelbank, host
of the show BronxTalk on the public access network BRONXNET, Democratic
candidates Laura Spalter, Oliver Koppell and Terry Bastone slugged
it out over local schools and the city's Board of Education, the
fight over building a water filtration plant in the Bronx, their
own qualifications for office and, of course, local politics.
A fourth candidate, Mark Vogel, shunned yet another chance to
show his face to voters. Mr. Vogel has failed to appear at two
debates and a string of candidate forums. Ms. Spalter, the founder
and president of the Riverdale Community Association, hammered
away at her campaign promise of political independence and a fresh
infusion of civic activism into the Council. Mr. Koppell, the
president of School Board 10 and the Riverdale-Kingsbridge area's
Assemblyman for more than 20 years, emphasized his legislative
experience, his successful campaign to create a new school in
Kingsbridge and restructure another in Riverdale and his loyalty
to the core principles of the Democratic party. Ms. Bastone, a
longtime operative of the Benjamin Franklin Reform Democratic
Club and the local female district leader, promised to give equal
attention to all the neighborhoods in the 11th Council District.
Both Ms. Bastone and Ms. Spalter called for the abolition of the
Board of Education, while Mr. Koppell said the board should be
preserved, laying the blame for a dysfunctional school system
squarely at the feet of Mayor Rudolph Giuliani. "It's broken.
It can't be fixed," retorted Ms. Spalter. More subtle differences
emerged on the topic of local schools. Boasting of his leadership
in the effort to add high school grades to the David A. Stein
Riverdale School, MS/HS 141, and to build a new school, MS/HS
368, in Kingsbridge, Mr. Koppell implied that Ms. Spalter did
not support the plan until it was politically expedient to do
so. Ms. Spalter bristled. She declared that she supported the
underlying concept of the plan from day one, but had legitimate
concerns about charging ahead with restructuring MS 141 without
planning for inevitable delays in the construction of MS/HS 368.
Mr. Koppell dismissed her charge, saying the school plan was a
reaction to a crisis. "We saw a mass flight" from MS 141, he said,
"and we had to do something, and do it quickly." As for Ms. Bastone,
she opined that "all sides are using the children for their own
agenda." (Riverdale Press)
08/09/01
With less than five weeks until Primary Day, the candidates vying
to succeed June Eisland in the City Council say they are pushing
their campaigns into overdrive. Terry Bastone, Laura Spalter and
Oliver Koppell were appearing across the 11th District last week,
meeting voters on train platforms, doorsteps and street corners.
Mark Vogel is a cyber candidate, waging a campaign from his office,
sending hundreds of e-mails and reaching out over the phone lines
to pull in donations. Ms. Bastone and Ms. Spalter both hit the
pavement early each morning, catching commuters on their way to
work. In the evening, they crisscross the neighborhoods, knocking
on doors and selling their agendas. Mr. Koppell is also campaigning
vigorously at transit stops, shopping centers and concerts, and
his cadre of volunteers from the Benjamin Franklin Reform Democratic
Club supplements his personal appearances with literature blitzes
on shopping streets from Riverdale to Norwood. In contrast, Mr.
Vogel is foregoing face-to-face campaigning to fund an upcoming
direct mail blitz. Behind in the money race, he explained, "If
you don't have enough money for a direct mail campaign, you don't
have a campaign." While Ms. Spalter and Mr. Koppell have each
been endorsed by a political club and have recruited armies of
supporters, Ms. Bastone has fewer volunteers. Just 10 helped her
gather signatures to get on the ballot. So using a list from the
Board of Elections, she and her husband Joe hit a different street
each night, aiming to rap on every registered Democrat's door
by September 11. Ms. Bastone, who lives in Kingsbridge, says she's
working especially hard to court voters there and in Wakefield,
Norwood and Bedford Park--neighborhoods she says have felt neglected
by Riverdale-centered politicians. "But I have votes in Riverdale
too," she emphasized. (Riverdale Press)
7/14/01
The City plans to cut off hundreds of nursing homes and senior
homes from getting voting machines on Election Day, which critics
could disenfranchise the elderly. Oliver Koppell, a candidate
in District 11, joined by current District 11 Councilwoman Jue
Eisland, threatened to sue the Board of Elections if they don't
provide the machines. (Daily
News)
7/12/01
Candidate Mark Vogel officially entered the race for council on
the Fourth of July by launching a campaign website. He is campaigning
as a next-generation politician. (The Riverdale Press)
7/10/01
Koppell gets Councilwoman Eisland's endorsement for her soon-to-be
vacated City Council Seat, and in turn, Koppell endorses Eisland
in her bid for Bronx Borough President. The exchange of endorsements
came as no surprise, reports the Daily News, however it underscores
the existing rift between Riverdale Democrats and the county organization
which is backing Adolfo Carrion's bid for the borough presidency.
(Daily
News)
5/31/01
Candidate Spalter held her first big fundraiser of the campaign,
in which she seeks to defeat the big-name Democrat Oliver Koppell,
former state assemblyman. (The Riverdale Press)
5/17/01
Laura Spalter wins the endorsement of the relatively new Northwest
Bronx Democratic Alliance. The organization's membership overlaps
with the membership of the Riverdale Community Association, which
Spalter founded and now leads. It was no surprise then that the
club voted overwhelmingly to endorse her. (The Riverdale Press)
Terry Bastone kicks off her campaign, and vows to be a full-time
councilmember, referring to her opponent Oliver Koppell, who plans
to continue his law practice if elected. (Norwood
News)
4/26/01
The Benjamin Franklin Reform Democratic Party endorsed Koppell
for the 11th District Council seat. It came as no surprise to
most, as Koppell received an overwhelming majority of votes. (The
Riverdale Review)
4/19/01
Spalter makes her candidacy official, even though she has been
acting like it for some time now. (The Riverdale Press)
3/29/01
Former Assemblyman and State Attorney General G. Oliver Koppell
is working his way down the ladder. And he couldn't be happier,
he says, as he runs for City Council against Laura Spalter, Mark
Vogel and Terry Bastone (NY-1)
2/13/01
G. Oliver Koppell, former New York State Attorney General, formally
declares for a City Council seat in District 11 in the Bronx (Daily
News)
2/2/01 City Council candidate Terry Bastone has admitted
she used an anti-Semitic slur in 1997. Rep. Eliot Engel and Assemblyman
Jeffrey Dinowitz say they told Bastone she wouldn't win because
she once called an Engel campaign manager a "cheap Jew bastard."
Bastone says she was "joking around" when she used the phrase.(Daily
News)
1/26/01
Terry Bastone, a candidate to succeed June Eisland in the 11th
Council district in the Bronx, said she sought the backing of
Assemblyman Jeffrey Dinowitz and Congressman Eliot Engel and their
Benjamin Franklin Reform Democratic Club, but was told she would
not get it "because I don't have a nice Jewish name," a charge
both men deny. Riverdale Democrats have been encouraging Attorney
General Oliver Koppell to run for the seat. (Daily
News)
1/25/01
Several Bronx elected officials, including Assemblyman Jeffrey
Dinowitz, Congressman Eliot Engel and State Senator Eric Schneiderman,
are trying to convince Community School Board 10 president Oliver
Koppell to run for City Council. Koppell is giving serious consideration
to a run, surprising many who considered his wife, Lorraine Coyle-Koppell,
a potential candidate. (Norwood
News)
1/4/01
A number of prominent Bronx citizens are urging former New York
State Attorney General G. Oliver Koppell to run for City Council.Both
Assemblyman Jeffrey Dinowitz and Congressman Eliot Engel report
that they are receiving numerous calls urging Koppell to make
the race. "People feel that he is the one possible candidate who
could walk into the Council and be able to wield tremendous influence
from day one." Engel said. A number of candidates have surfaced,
including Laura Spalter, the co-president of the Riverdale Community
Association; Community Board 8 Chairperson Lorance Hockert, Democratic
District Leader Terry Bastone and Mark Vogel a vice president
of the Benjamin Franklin Reform Democratic Club. (Riverdale
Review)
01/10/01
Election 2001 Overview (Village
Voice)
12/21/00
The Riverdale Review editorial staff takes an early stab at candidate
Laura Spalter, way before her, or any of the other candidates,
have announced their candidacy. They don't see her as qualified
for the job, and don't think she will do good things for the district.
This sets the tone for their later endorsement of Koppell. (The
Riverdale Review)
12/14/00
The still-unofficial candidate Mark Vogel launched the first mass
mailing of his campaign. He outlines his positions and asks for
donations. (The Riverdale Press)
1/14/99
Hundreds of parents and teachers are urging former New York State
Attorney General G. Oliver Koppell to run for the Community School
Board in the May 4th election. Koppell has been urged to run by
nearly 100 members of the M.S. 141 faculty and by the leadership
of the United Federation of Teachers are also urging Koppell to
run. Koppell has been spearheading local efforts to restructure
M.S. 141 by adding high school grades. Koppell noted that the
current Board majority is so prejudiced against Riverdale, that
"they are willing to literally give away a brand new school, M.S.
368, and deprive generations of children in Marble Hill of an
educational resource in their community, for no reason other than
it indirectly benefits Riverdale." (Riverdale
Review)
10/8/98
Democratic Club Lends Support to 141 High School Plan. The proposal
to restructure M.S. 141 by adding high school grades picked up
steam last week when the Benjamin Franklin Reform Democratic Club,
the borough's most potent political organization, voted to support
the proposal. Elected officials who have lined up in support include
Mayor Rudy Giuliani, Borough President Freddy Ferrer, Congressman
Eliot Engel, State Senator Guy Velella, and Councilwoman Eisland
and Assemblyman Jeffrey Dinowitz.