Meet the City Council’s New Members: Mark Treyger

A first generation New Yorker, Mark Treyger’s work ethic and passion for education were instilled in him by his Ukrainian immigrant parents, who always stressed the importance of taking school seriously.

It is safe to say that Treyger has made his family proud. The Brooklyn native grew up to become a teacher of world history and U.S. government at New Utrecht High School.

Before enlightening his students about the ins and outs of politics, Treyger learned the ropes of city and state government firsthand working for Assemblyman William Colton. He hopes to apply some of those lessons as a city councilman.

“I believe that the job of public servants is to really empower people. You empower them by servicing them, by being transparent and listening to them, and being a voice for them,” Treyger said. “It’s about trying to promote their interests and address their needs.”

Treyger hopes to change the perception of Coney Island as “not just an amusement district” by banging the drum on infrastructure issues. The needs of his district were exacerbated by Superstorm Sandy, which devastated neighborhoods such as Coney Island and displaced many residents. Treyger hopes that the incoming de Blasio administration will prioritize infrastructure issues. Every time it rains, for instance, the sewer system that services Bensonhurst, Coney Island and Sea Gate floods.

“The conditions of the boardwalk are unacceptable; the conditions of the sewer system are unacceptable— these are great needs,” Treyger said. “We have to find a way where we build a public-private partnership where we address those infrastructure needs. One of the things that I’ll be looking to do is to see how to build this collaboration between the private industry and the public sector to address these challenging needs.”