Anthony Masiello

Anthony M. Masiello
61st Mayor of Buffalo
In office 1994–2005
Preceded by	James D. Griffin
Succeeded by	Byron Brown
Member of the New York State Senate from the 55th, later the 58th and 57th District
In office 1981-1993
Preceded by	Joseph A. Tauriello
Succeeded by	Anthony Nanula
Personal details
Born	April 28, 1947 Buffalo, New York
Political party	Democratic
Spouse(s)	Kathleen McCue
Children	3
Religion	Roman Catholic
[1]

Anthony M. Masiello (born April 28, 1947) was Mayor of Buffalo, New York from 1994 to 2005. Prior to being mayor, he served as a New York State Senator.

Personal and Educational Background

A Buffalo native, who was educated in Buffalo Catholic schools, Anthony Masiello graduated from Canisius College in 1969 after a Hall of Fame career as a basketball standout for the Division I Golden Griffins. The Indiana Pacers subsequently drafted him in the National Basketball Association's third round.

Political Career Prior to Being Mayor

In 1971, Anthony Masiello began his career in elective office when he was elected as a district representative to the Buffalo Common Council. He was subsequently elected to an at-large seat on the Council and served as Democratic Majority leader in 1976. He also served as Chairman of the Council Finance Committee.

Masiello was a member of the New York State Senate from 1981 to 1993, sitting in the 184th, 185th, 186th, 187th, 188th, 189th and 190th New York State Legislatures. Masiello's Senate district originally comprised mainly Buffalo and other parts of Erie County, New York. During the final year of his Senate service, his district encompassed Buffalo, Tonawanda, New York, Grand Island, New York, and Niagara Falls, New York. In the State Senate, Masiello ascended to Minority Whip and served as Chair of the Democratic Conference. As a senator, Masiello served as the Ranking Minority Member of various committees, including the Child Care Committee and the Energy Committee.

Mayor of Buffalo

Anthony M. Masiello was sworn in as the 57th Mayor of the city of Buffalo on January 1, 1994. Anthony Masiello received 65% of the Democratic Primary vote and 67% of the General Election vote in 1993. The Mayor was re-elected to second term in 1997 and again to a third term in 2001 with the joint endorsement of the Democratic and Republican parties. Much like his predecessor, James D. Griffin, Masiello was a registered Democrat.

As mayor, he focused on economic development, governmental restructuring, and education. He cut over 1,000 jobs from the city payroll by restructuring management and the police department. He successfully sought approval from the state to create a joint construction fund for the city schools, which has been used to renovate and build city schools. He unsuccessfully sought to take control of the Buffalo Board of Education and install his own appointees. This is unlike Mayor Michael Bloomberg of New York City who won this authority.

In 1997, Masiello's office, and under the direction of Buffalo State College's Center for Applied Research in Interactive Technologies, launched CityNet, an advanced telecommunications network that links 14 educational and community sites in Buffalo.^[2] For more than two years, Masiello and his team worked with NYNEX and Bell Atlantic to lay the foundation for the network, which is funded by Bell Atlantic for $1.9 million.^[2]

Family life

Mayor Masiello is the oldest of seven children born to Bridget and Dan Masiello. He is married to the former Kathleen McCue of Washingtonville, NY. He is the father of Kimberly, Ariel and Madeline Rose. He holds a Bachelor's degree from Canisius College and honorary degrees from Medaille College in Buffalo and Canisius College.

Retirement as Mayor

In 2005, he announced he was not running for re-election. He was succeeded by Byron Brown as mayor on December 31, 2005. Following his service as mayor, Masiello has joined a political consulting and lobbying firm located in Buffalo.^[3] He has also announced that he is considering converting the remaining $1 million in his campaign treasury into a charity.

Peace Bridge reconstruction controversy

On April 19, 2014 he was accused by Kevin P. Connor of lobbying Peace Bridge reconstruction. During the same time he also lobbied Niagara Frontier Transportation Authority but said that he doesn't have anything against stationary engineers being Fair Apportionment of Infrastructure Resources members and that he will not participate at the Buffalo and Fort Erie Public Bridge Authority votes.^[4]

References

1. Rizzo, Michael (2005). Through The Mayors' Eyes. Lulu. p. 424. ISBN 978-1-4116-3757-3.
2. Fiber-optic network links 14 educational, community sites, Buffalo News, Buffalo, NY: Berkshire Hathaway, November 25, 1997, Brady, K., Retrieved February 6, 2014.
3. Susan Schulman (October 21, 2012). "When elected leaders retire, but insurance costs don’t". The Buffalo News. Archived from the original on July 3, 2014. Retrieved July 3, 2014.
4. Robert J. McCarthy (April 19, 2014). "Watchdog says Masiello’s lobbying work conflicts with role on Peace Bridge Authority". The Buffalo News. Archived from the original on July 3, 2014. Retrieved July 3, 2014.

External links

• Biography
• Appearances on C-SPAN