Hamden Council Elects Consensus-Builder To Vacant Seat

Adrian Webber likes to lead through balance and building consensus with facts. In his new post on the Hamden Legislative Council, those skills may be put to the test.

Webber is the newest member of Hamden’s legislative body after he was appointed Monday to fill a vacancy in the Seventh District. He is replacing Mike Colaiacovo, Jr., who passed away in July.

Monday evening, the council voted unanimously to appoint Webber to the seat. Though other candidates had thrown their names into the ring earlier in the search for a new representative, Webber was the only one who kept his name in the hat until the matter actually came to a vote.

Webber, 49, is a therapist. He holds a master’s in social work as well as an MBA, and was previously a social worker.

Webber has not held elected office before. He said this felt like an important time to step up and serve the town.

“I feel like it’s kind of an all-hands-on-deck-type scenario,” he said.

Growing up in Buffalo, N.Y., he said, he had the ethos of helping other people instilled in him early on. He recalled days when he would walk out a second-floor window of his house onto a snow bank. Whenever those big snows came, everyone helped each other get by until the city could clear the streets.

“I grew up thinking that Buffalo was the city of brotherly love,” not Philadelphia, he said.

In Hamden, when a seat on the council becomes vacant, the rest of the council votes on the replacement. The custom has been that the party of the person whose seat becomes vacant proposes a replacement.

When Democratic Town Committee (DTC) Chair Sean Grace and DTC 7th District member Tracy Bowens approached Webber about filling the seat, he said, he decided it would be a good opportunity to help the town.

Webber said he thinks of himself as a leader. He said his leadership style involves hearing everyone out and working toward agreement.

“I try to bring balance to the situation and build consensus, and be cognizant of everyone’s opinion and try to work towards a solution,” he said.

Webber will be joining a council that has been racked by heated disagreement, and sometimes shouting matches, for the last few years. Much of the tension comes from a rift in the Democratic party between newer, left-leaning Democrats and longer-serving Democrats, including Mayor Curt Leng.

“I think there’s an opportunity for healing through trust,” Webber said. ​“And I think that trust is derived from information. And if you have the information, you’re able to make an informed decision.”

Having a new voice on the council could shift the balance when it comes to some votes.

Webber is replacing a council representative known for going far out of his way to help the residents of his district. Colaiacovo once got up early on a Saturday morning with then-Mayor Scott Jackson to fix a resident’s fence because he and Jackson did not have the heart to tell the resident that the town could not do it.

Webber said that like Colaiacovo, he will make his first priority serving the needs of the people he represents.

“You’re in the seat to serve the people,” he said. ​“Whatever’s important to the people in your district, and to Hamden, should be important to you as their representative.”