Fritz Blau
STAMFORD — For Fritz Blau, Stamford Republican Town Council chairman since March of 2016, it’s very simple why he’s running for the Board of Finance this November.
“I want parity on the board,” Blau, 52, said in reference to the finance board that is comprised of six members with a Democrat majority. “The 42 rubber stamp is killing us — the Republicans are outnumbered and every bill that goes before the Board of Finance is passed 42.”
The Board of Finance is currently comprised of Democrats Richard Freedman, Mary Lou Rinaldi, Dudley Williams and David Kooris, and Republicans Salvatore Gabriele and Kieran Ryan.
As finance board members serve for four years on a staggered schedule, Gabriele and Ryan do not have to run this year. Kooris and Rinaldi are both seeking to reclaim their open seats, and there is a third slot available this November as Williams is not seeking reelection.
Besides Blau, Kooris and Rinaldi, Republicans Chris Woodside and Andrew Krill and Democrat Geoff Alswanger are also vying for the three open spots on the finance board.
Originally from Haddam — a town with nearly 10,000 residents in Middlesex County — Blau manages an auto repair facility in Stamford, a place where, he said, he hears from residents from all walks of life about their grievances and concerns about the city.
A lot of people are disappointed in the way that the city is being taxed, said Blau, a Stamford resident for 22 years, though he acknowledges that some examples of how the city is being run have been positive, like the way in which the police contract was negotiated.
But tax increases, the Republican said, are hurting Stamford residents.
“To the average voter, if your taxes have gone up 30 percent in the last 8 years, I ask, ‘Have your equity and home values increased 30 percent?’ I would say that everybody would say no. We’re being taxed above and beyond what is fair and reasonable,” the RTC chairman said.
If taxes continue to go up, Blau said, the city runs the risk of its longtime residents leaving and others not coming here at all.
Asked about his interest in politics, Blau said he joined the Republican party a decade and a half ago and that his mother’s past as first selectman of Haddam was also something that encouraged him to enter the arena.
“I’ve always felt that politics is a dirty game — I’m all about altruism, I act with integrity and courage and when you stand up to the powers that be and the Democrat majority and speak truth to power, when you do it, it comes at a personal cost,” he said. “This is hard, thankless work and it’s absolutely necessary.”
This race isn’t Blau’s first rodeo in politics even though he has yet to hold a publicly elected position.
In the 2018 elections, Blau ran for the state House of Representatives of the 145th District. Democratic incumbent Patricia Miller defeated Blau with 4,580 votes to Blau’s 965.
Just a year later, Blau said he’s prepared to run for a seat on the finance board and to voters, he said, a vote for him is a vote for fiscal responsibility.
“I just want voters to know that if they vote for me, I’ll do anything in my power to put the brakes on reckless spending increases year after year after year,” Blau said.
“I help people and I find solutions,” Blau said. “I do it every day. I’m very good at seeing the big picture and finding the details, savings and efficiencies. I’ve done so for the last 40 years.”