Thompson touts new strategies for the city

Irving SilversteinComptroller William Thompson at the Staten Island Advance's Grasmere headquarters. STATEN ISLAND, N.Y.--Comptroller William Thompson wants to stem the rising cost of living and doing business in the city, and explore giving more control to community boards and local officials as the next mayor of New York City.

Speaking to the Advance Editorial Board ahead of the first mayoral debate this week, the Democratic candidate positioned himself as a "man of the people" in contrast to billionaire Mayor Michael Bloomberg, and spoke about the difficult task of getting out a message when he's been outspent by his opponent by a factor of 16 to one.

"The issue that I'd like to be able to look back on -- after eight years -- isthat I made it an easier city for middle class and working New Yorkers to be able to stay here, to be able live here, to be able to bring their families up here," Thompson said.

Thompson called ads by Bloomberg's campaign that attack the comptroller as a failure when he headed the now-defunct Board of Education as "incredible distortions" and "outright lies."

Thompson served as the president of the board from 1996 through 2001, under Mayor Rudolph Giuliani. At that post, he said, he helped lay the foundation for success under Bloomberg, cutting principal tenure and changing the practice of local boards hiring them, curtailing social promotion by mandating summer school and pushed legislation giving the school chancellor more power.

"I'm proud of the record I had, it is unfortunate