I spotted Josh Skaller, democratic candidate for City Council in the 39th district, sitting in the corner window at 'Snice as i walked down Third Street a few minutes late for our breakfast-of-candidates.

"Sorry I'm late," I said.
"I was early," he tells me good naturedly.

Josh, age 40, is a small, trim, hip-looking man with a friendly sculptured face and close-cropped gray hair. Because he already had his coffee in a tall glass,  I went up to the counter and ordered a skim latte and one of 'Snice's delicious lemon blueberry muffins. Toasted. Back at the table, we small-talked a bit and then I launched into the official first question of all the interviews. 

So where are you from?

"I'm from a mixed marriage," Josh told me. By that he meant that his homemaker mom was born in Queens and his ecologist dad was born in the Bronx. Throughout the interview I noticed that Josh threw in funny lines and phrases like that. When he told me that his wife was born in Los Angeles he said, "But I still love her anyway."

Josh talked about his dad, who taught ecology at the University of Pennsylvania. "When other kids were washing cars for their allowance, I was counting bugs, ants, stuff like that for my dad. When we went for walks in the woods he was always identifying things."

Despite the environmental focus of the household, Josh and his two brothers all became musicians. "As a kid, I discovered the guitar and that was it." At Hampshire College, Josh studied environmental science and music and found himself on the front lines of a school famous for progressive politics. "I protested the first Gulf War, and threw myself into other movements for change and social justice."

Hampshire is also where Josh discovered computer music and decided to pursue a career in academic composition because he loved to compose and teach. After three years at Columbia, and a stint at UC Berkeley, Josh landed a job at Harvard University where he ran the Computer Music Studio.

But when his wife  Kelly (they married in 1997) got pregnant in 1999 with their son Wolf, Josh had second thoughts about the academic life. A friend suggested he come to work for his company, Globalworks in New York City and ten years later Josh is still there as Director of IT.

The job at GlobalWorks, a branding company, is what motivated Josh and Kelly's move to Brooklyn from Cambridge. At around the same time, Josh found himself wanting more and more to be involved in politics. It was Al Gore's campaign — and subsequent loss to George Bush in 2000 — that really got him going. "I was very excited for Al Gore to be president. He articulated the environmental message, understood the science that was at stake and cogently discussed global warming and top soil erosion."

In 2003, Josh was active in the Howard Dean campaign until "the scream ended that." Afterwards he found himself looking for the next thing to do. So with a group of former Dean supporters he helped form Democracy for NYC, a group in all five boroughs that aims to "bring about change and help people learn about local politics." According to Josh, the group organizes frequent "link-ups," small group meetings where people talk about neighborhood issues. Leaders provide the framework for discussion and help facilitate conversation.

While the group has an extensive mailing  list, "it is not a political club," Josh said emphatically. "There are no barriers to joining and it's more grassroots and for people who want to get away from regular politics; it  falls under the mantle of reform and against the machinery of democratic politics."

Until recently Josh was also president of Central Brooklyn Independent Democrats (CBID) a political club that meets in the United Methodist Church on 6th Avenue and 8th Street in Park Slope. "It's a special club. Very reform-minded. It was started as an anti-war group in the 1960's. We get very involved in local campaigning," Josh explained.

Josh told me that members of that group were wary of the Atlantic Yards Project early on.  "We could tell that the process was rigged. That there was no attempt to have a dialogue, to talk to the community." Maybe that's why Daniel Goldstein, one of the founders of Develop Don't Destroy Brooklyn has already endorsed Josh. So has Candace Carpenter, who is that group's chief counsel. 

As president of CBID, Josh said, he had to deal with a lot of personalities:  "I work hard at facilitating dialogue and managing personalities." These skills are part of why Josh is running for City Council.  "I want to empower community groups across the district and make sure they have a real voice."

When I asked Josh what personal qualities equip him to do a good job representing the 39th district in the CIty Council he said. "I'm willing to speak my mind and I'm willing to stick out my neck."

One example of sticking his neck out: Josh's campaign, which is being managed by Chris Owen's, refuses to take campaign donations from developers. "I was scared at first but determined not to take that money because development money is what drives the political process in New York City."

While Josh's campaign may not be getting the big big bucks from the developers, they do have the distinction of having the most contributors: "We don't have the most money but we have the most donors of any candidate for City Council in Brooklyn," Josh told  me and he is clearly proud about this independence from that  particular sphere of influence.

Not surprisingly, Josh has strong ideas about what he wants to bring to the City Council:

Community Empowerment is a term Josh uses again and again. For him, it means that members of the community have a voice in what goes on in their community and in the city. Parent involvement in the public schools is one important version of this. He also believes that citizens can govern whether that means running for office or being taken seriously as a community leaders.

Having a voice in real estate development is also vital to Josh and he wants to see community input in that process "before it's a done deal." To Josh, every building should be wanted and the right questions must be asked: "How does this high rise enhance the community that already exists, the sense of place, time, history, the ability to know your neighbors, have conversations." His goal, Josh said, is "to preserve the things that make Brooklyn a wonderful place to be."

Affordable housing is an important part of this equation for Josh. "How many times do you hear 'I grew up here, my parents grew up here. But my kids can't afford to live here.'"

His father's son, environmental issues are vital to Josh. But he doesn't see this as a small local initiative but as a real citywide plan that includes tax incentives for those willing to build green roofs and add solar panels. "The benefits of this are tangible. Perhaps the cost of entry is too high. Let's look at funding sources to make this happen," he told me.

By the end of my conversation with Josh I am amazed at his  journey from Harvard, where he was a computer music composer, to his job in IT at a branding company, to his role as a passionate campaigner for Howard Dean and later Barack Obama. When he decided to throw his hat into the City Council race one friend reminded him that Brooklyn is a tough place to run. "Compared to academia, it's a dip in the shallow end," he told his friend. And he still laughs about it now.

A  good listener with the ability to manage personalities and facilitate diaglogue, Josh is clearly a smart, confident guy with strong opinio
ns about what he believes in. He's not afraid to stick out his neck and take a stand. He's been going door-to-door for months from Carroll Gardens to Boro Park getting to know the citizens of the 39th district. Clearly, he's prepared to run  hard for the privilege of serving this community.