Doug Biviano stands alone, and he likes it that way.

Biviano, the latest addition to the seven-person race for Councilman David Yassky's seat, is positioning himself as the ultimate political outsider - an ambitious, out-of-the-box candidate without burdensome ties to local special interest groups who will best represent everyday voters struggling through a growing recession.

A strong anti-war candidate who advocates for smarter social service spending, Biviano has called for Medicare for all and increased education investment in Brooklyn. In his listening tours around the district, said Biviano, he has found the message is resonating.

Biviano said he joined the race for just this reason - to "broaden the conversation" - to include issues often neglected during campaigns. Like any born-and-bred Brooklynite, Biviano is not afraid to voice his opinion.

"I'm a person before I'm a politician. I'm living what people are worried about right now," said Biviano, who lives in Brooklyn Heights with his wife and three children. "I see this economic crisis we're in as just the beginning. I don't see anybody talking about how we're going to ride this out."

Biviano, whose family ties in Brooklyn date back four generations, attended P.S. 207 and P.S. 143 before eventually going on to earn his Master's Degree from Cornell University in Civil and Environmental Engineering.

A self-ascribed "professional and laborer," Biviano prides himself on maintaining a job as the superintendent of the Brooklyn Heights building where he lives while working as an engineer on various eco-friendly projects during the past two decades.

"There's all this talk about 'green', but I've lived it, I know how much you can do with just a little," said Biviano, who once outfitted his boat with solar panels and sailed it south to Florida, living off the electrical grid for nearly one year.

He said through these and other experiences he would bring a fresh perspective to the alternative energy debate amongst city officials, who Biviano criticized as oftentimes out-of-touch with their constituents on that and other issues.

Biviano's broad legislative agenda would tie national issues to city ones affecting residents in the diverse 33rd Council District, which stretches from Greenpoint to Park Slope.

"Let's take a slice of the trillion-dollar war pie and feed investment in our communities," said Biviano. "There are structural problems at the city, state, and federal levels where there are funding processes that are not connected to community interests. I want to think big."