Long-time politician reflects on legacy as he leaves Riverdale

Oliver Koppell first moved to Riverdale when he was 2-years-old and stayed here for the next seven decades, four of them as the holder of various public offices. The only times he was away were the years he spent in college and law school—until his move to Manhattan this month. 

Koppell, 76, said he wanted to be closer to his Manhattan law firm. The move of 10 miles or so puts a period on a highly public career in the northwest Bronx, which began in 1970, when Koppell was first elected to the Assembly, and ended in 2014 when he was term-limited out of City Council and lost a state Senate race to incumbent state Sen. Jeffrey Klein.

That is a lot of years and political activity to reflect upon. 

“I actually feel very proud of the representation that I provided and the very positive feedback that I received over the years from my constituents,” Koppell said in an interview on Jan. 6. “Since I left office three years ago, as I’ve walked the community, I get many people saying hello and thanking me for my service.” 

Koppell served in the Assembly from 1970 to 1994, and though redistricting had shifted his seat, Riverdale remained at the heart of his district.  

“I think I accomplished a lot, I think the community is very strong. I don’t take credit for that by any means, but I think I contributed to the strength of the community,” he said. “I think the community has benefited from my representation and I regard it as something that I’m proud of, that I’m glad that I did.” 

It had always been Koppell’s goal in college and law school to come back to the northwest Bronx as a politician.  Of course, for career politicians, time is measured in elections. 

“Obviously I am proud of the elections that I won, I was never defeated after I was elected to the Assembly, and I was never defeated for the City Council after I was elected,” he said. “The races that I did lose, they were worthwhile races, they were races that I’m proud of running.” 

He won 17 elections in total, including 24 to the Assembly, four to the City Council, and one special election for state Attorney General. Among the things he did at that time, Koppell said he is proud of his work funding schools like Riverdale Kingsbridge Academy and parks like Seton Park. 

“I am particularly proud of my legislation for increased wages for low-income workers, the fight we fought for fair wages, especially in connection with government-related projects,” he said. “The Kingsbridge Library is something that I managed to get funding for; that’s really a beautiful library that I think we can all be proud of.”

Still, his career as a legislator in Riverdale was not always without bumps.  A hard-fought senate race with Klein in 2014 ended Koppell’s political career, the last in a number of election losses over the decades. 

“You know, there were disappointments along the way, I lost some elections, that were disappointing, including my last election,” he said. “But I’m proud of the races I lost because I did the right thing, so to speak. They took a lot of effort, took a lot of time and in some cases I wasn’t successful but I did it.”