Driving west down Surf Avenue in his new gray Nissan SUV, Assembly Member Alec Brook-Krasny (D-Brooklyn) was doing what many politicians enjoy doing: being a tour guide.

"This," he said in a James Earl Jones-by-way-of-Moscow accent, "is Coney Island."

Brook-Krasny said he loves practically everything about Coney Island, a place synonymous with roller coasters, beach combers and carnival barkers. Fast food, especially Nathan's Famous, holds a special place in his heart, he said, as he drove past the green and yellow sign.

"I'm not a formal dinner guy," he said. "Although surf and turf is not bad."

As New York's first Russian-born elected official, Brook-Krasny's love of hot dogs and other American fare speaks to his desire to broaden his appeal beyond the borscht and blintz-eating citizens of Brighton Beach, which, including Coney Island, Dyker Heights and Bay Ridge, comprise his district.

While he has used his position as "the Russian assemblyman" to allocate money for victims of the Chernobyl nuclear disaster and to push for election material to be printed in Russian, Brook-Krasny said meeting the needs of the residents of Coney Island, most of whom are African-American, is sometimes even more of a priority.

"I'm trying to bring them all together," he said of the culturally divergent populations of Brighton Beach and Coney Island, "and dismantle all the stereotypes."

To that end, Brook-Krasny took a recent afternoon in his district to meet with several of his African-American constituents, people who he calls the "next generation of leadership in Coney Island."

In his district office, he met with Anthony Killiebrew, a 22-year-old sprinter who hopes to compete in the 2008 Olympics.
"Get his autograph," Brook-Krasny joked. "This kid is going to Beijing."

Killiebrew, meanwhile, was more impressed that Brook-Krasny used to own and operate one of his favorite spots growing up in Coney Island, the now-closed amusement area called Fun-O-Rama.

"That was the place to go for me," said Killiebrew, alive with the memories.

After a brief meeting to discuss several youth service groups that Brook-Krasny helps fund, Assembly member and the runner concluded their meeting with a back-slapping hug.

"The Olympics, you've got to win!" Brook-Krasny said, to which Killiebrew simply responded, "Fun-O-Rama!"
In 2006, his political connections with Rep. Jerrold Nadler (D-Brooklyn/Manhattan) and Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz (D) helped win him his seat in Albany.

His profile as a prominent businessman in the Russian-speaking community helped too, and he proudly discussed his ties to the rapidly growing Russian community in Brooklyn.

"Of course people know I'm representing Brighton Beach," he said with a grin. "As soon as I open my mouth people know this."

After immigrating to New York in 1987, Brook-Krasny bought a 14,000 square-foot dusty warehouse and turned it into Fun-O-Rama. He also helped found the Council of Jewish Émigré Community Organizations, an umbrella organization for over 40 Brooklyn community groups. He served as treasurer of the local community board and ran unsuccessfully for Assembly and City Council in 2000 and 2001, respectively, before being elected to succeed retiring Assembly Member Adele Cohen (D) in 2006.

In a campaign marred by accusations of voter intimidation and petition fraud from both sides, Brook-Krasny edged out fellow Russian émigré Ari Kagan by only 140 votes.

Since then, he has solidified his standing in the district, with most Russian-language newspapers in Brooklyn predicting a smooth re-election this year.

As of yet, he has no primary challengers and only one general election opponent, Robert Capano, the former head of disgraced Rep. Vito Fossella's (R-Brooklyn/Staten Island) Brooklyn operation.

If he wins re-election, Brook-Krasny will be one of several lawmakers who will preside over the most dramatic redevelopment of Coney Island in the area's 150-year history.

But with negotiations faltering and the size of the area allotted for amusement rides shrinking, some residents fear the development will destroy the history and heritage of Coney Island.

Brook-Krasny said that development is necessary to allow the amusement area to make enough money to stay in business. Otherwise, Coney Island will continue to decline, as it has in recent years, he said.

"We all have the desire to preserve the heritage of the amusement area," Brook-Krasny said. "But I'm always saying preserving the heritage of the amusement is a very tricky thing."

Brook-Krasny said he envisions a development on par with the one under way in Harlem: It should balance the preservation of Coney Island while allowing it to become a more self-sustaining business.

With that on his mind on a recent brilliant spring day, Brook-Krasny went to visit a variety of community groups with which, as a newly elected official, he is beginning to foster relationships.

These groups, he said, are the glue that holds Coney Island together.

At Art's House Dance School on Mermaid Avenue and West 17th Street, Brook-Krasny received another enthusiastic hug, this time from the school's founder Sophia Harrison who just secured a $10,000 grant for her school-with the Assembly member's help, of course, she said.

A block to the west, Brook-Krasny checked in on Mathylde Frontus, who had just opened a new office for her social service non-profit, Urban Neighborhood Services. The sign outside still advertised a beauty shop. The walls were still painted a gaudy yellow and blue.

The non-profit is representative of the changing face of his district, Brook-Krasny said, with residents beginning to organize to help themselves in the face of widespread poverty and a lack of sufficient community services.

People like the ones he met with that day, he said, are "the real leaders for the future of Coney Island."

As a leader of Coney Island in his own right, Brook-Krasny said he much prefers American politics to Russian politics. He notices the differences when he speaks to politicians from his homeland.

"When I'm meeting with people in my position in Russia, Belarus and Ukraine," he said, "the first thing I hear from them, 'Do you have any car from the government? Do you have an apartment from the government?'"
The answer always surprises them, he said.

"I say, 'No,'" Brook-Krasny said. "Next question is, 'Why are you doing it?'"