Ed Brasseur, thoughtful speaker at council meetings, dies

BLOOMFIELD, NJ — Ed Brasseur, 84, a township resident who regularly attended council meetings and often addressed the council with a question or opinion, was found dead at his Lindbergh Boulevard home on Thursday, June 15, the victim of an apparent heart attack.

A next door neighbor, Dennis Blomgren, said he became concerned after noticing a newspaper, and then a second newspaper, outside Brasseur’s door.

“I called Wednesday and Thursday and there was no answer,” Bromgren said. “I knew he was sick with bronchitis and I thought he was sleeping.”

But Blomgren alerted the Bloomfield Police Department.
“I had a key to the house but thought it was a better idea if we had supervision,” he said.

An officer arrived and Blomgren was told to wait outside. Brasseur was found upstairs on the floor. A downstairs TV was on.

“He was wearing his regular clothes,” Blomgren said. “I spoke to him Tuesday morning. We talked about politics and sports.”

When giving an opinion to the council, Brasseur would read from a text, sometimes reminding the governing body to proceed with utmost civility. It was said he wrote copious notes when preparing his remarks. A senior bank examiner with the Federal Reserve Bank of New York before his retirement, he was remembered for his decorum, and careful words, whether written or unwritten.
“He had no hidden agenda,” Mayor Michael Venezia said in a telephone interview. “He always cared about the integrity of the council. He wanted us to respect ourselves as a group.”

Venezia said if Brasseur did not attend a meeting, he would watch it on TV.
“During our energy-opt out discussions, he came to the meetings to educate himself so that he could explain things to his neighbors.”

Councilman Nick Joanow called Brasseur an incredible individual.
“There are few people who could command such respect,” Joanow said earlier this week. “He was always humble and also knowledgeable.”

Joanow said Brasseur was a gentleman’s gentleman who cared for the community.
“It is a loss that a man of this caliber has left us,” he said. “I will miss him badly.”

Councilman Carlos Pomares said Brasseur had a sense of community that everyone should possess: He could be warm but he could also be stern.
“Ed was right on the money when he called out disruptive council members,” Pomares said. “I appreciated that. Sometimes it takes the public to remind the council how it should conduct itself.”

The conduct referenced by Pomares that Brasseur addressed occurred following the official misconduct and bribery indictment of Councilman Elias Chalet and the request of then-Councilman Joseph Lopez for Chalet to step down or for the council to draft a condemnation. Neither action was taken, although Chalet eventually accepted a plea deal and forfeited his seat.

“I don’t even know if he was a Republican or a Democrat,” Pomares said. “He had a lot of respect for the system.”

Councilwoman Wartyna Davis said Brasseur exemplified the role of the model citizen/advocate.

“He was always prepared,” Davis said in a telephone interview. “If he didn’t like something, it was well-documented and clear. I knew if he made a comment, I would be enriched.”

As a result of ongoing contentions, Davis had an ordinance created that offered conduct guidelines for the council and public. It was passed earlier this year.
“He always expected us to represent the town well and he called us to task,” Davis said.

But she said Brasseur’s comments were never meant to be personal attacks or that he took sides.

Municipal Clerk Louise Palagano, in a telephone interview, called Brasseur a perfect participant at council meetings. And because he did not have a computer, she said he often called her office to find out what was on the agenda.
“He spoke from the heart,” Palagano said, “not loudly.”

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