Avella may run for borough president

From City and State:

The already packed field for Queens Borough President could be getting even more crowded. So far the diverse array of candidates includes Councilmen Leroy Comrie and Peter Vallone, Jr., former Councilwoman Melinda Katz, and State Senator Jose Peralta, with Deputy Borough President Barry Grodenchik also rumored to enter the race.

Now it appears that State Senator Tony Avella might jump into the fray. Asked about the possibility, Avella insisted that his focus at the moment was on his current reelection bid, though he hardly denied having seriously considered the job.

“My basic philosophy has always been to do the most good for the most number of people and if I can be effective as borough president helping the borough of Queens, which I think needs somebody to fight for [it], then I probably will do it,” explained Avella, before adding, “I’m going to give it some thought after the election and I’ll probably come to a quick decision.”

Avella said that whether the Democrats regain the majority in the Senate would figure into his considerations, though it would not be a deciding factor. “Even if I ran for borough president I’d still be [in Albany] for a year to try to get accomplished a lot of things I want to do up there,” explained Avella. “At the same time, you still have the issues in Queens where, in my opinion, Queens doesn’t get its fair share of city services. There are a lot of things the city should be doing differently, and the borough president does get to allocate five percent of the capital budget.”

Avella, who made a long-shot bid for the Democratic nomination for mayor in 2009 against former City Comptroller Bill Thompson, would bring to the race for the borough presidency a record and reputation as an iconoclast willing to embrace reform-minded stances from which his colleagues tend to shrink—even when those positions put him at direct odds with his fellow elected officials.