Brett Boston is the city's newest councilor. Here's what you need to know about him

Mayor Heather Graham left her at-large seat on city council the day that she was sworn in as the city’s second-ever mayor in recent memory.

After council’s initial pick for her replacement resigned after a few months on the job, Councilors selected another young restaurant operator to serve out the remainder of Graham’s term.

Brett Boston is the co-owner of Southwest Grill in northwestern Pueblo. Boston, 26, was sworn in as Pueblo’s newest — and youngest — city councilor Monday night, joined by several of his friends, family and supporters.

Here is why Boston got into local politics and how he will approach serving on the dais.

Why Boston applied for the seat

Boston started speaking at city council meetings last fall. He said that there were many issues that his and other businesses on the Highway 50 corridor were facing with unhoused persons in the area.

He was encouraged by then-mayoral candidate Randy Thurston to start speaking at city council meetings during public comment, where he told council that drug use and homelessness was adversely affecting his business.

The day that Heather Graham started, a multi-agency operation led to the indefinite shuttering of the Roadway Inn, which is adjacent to Southwest Grill.

Since then, Boston said that business has likely picked up.

Role of younger leadership in Pueblo

Boston said that he was “inspired” by Graham and her success — and also looked to other younger leaders in Pueblo, such as former Pueblo County Commissioner Garrison Ortiz.

“It's a huge opportunity and hopefully I can help inspire some other young people on what's possible,” Boston said. “I had a lot of people inspired me to get involved and I saw what Heather was able to do at a young age.”

The role of party politics

Part of the oath of office that Boston recited Monday evening was to remain non-partisan, as are all of the city offices.

Boston is affiliated with the Republican party, according to voter registration history that the Chieftain previously obtained through an open records request. He first registered with the GOP, was unaffiliated starting in 2021 and recently switched back to the GOP in December 2023.

Boston said that his belief system and values align more with the Republican party, but that he doesn’t “fully stand 100% behind the ideas of either side.”

He re-joined the GOP at the end of last year to be able to participate in more of the political process, such as the local caucuses and assemblies, which are closed to unaffiliated voters.

How he will approach the seat

Council has struggled to find consensus in recent months: for example, they went through over 30 rounds of votes to choose the replacement for the at-large seat.

Boston said that he would not go into meetings having already decided how he will vote.

“I think it's very important to be open minded because once you open your mind up to a new way of thinking or a new way of looking at something, it can help give you some insight and perspective that you never had before,” Boston said.

He said that he will work on familiarizing himself with the process but would introduce ordinances in the future based off feedback from constituents.

He said that he has not yet given any thought to running for a four-year term next year, which he will have to do if he wants to stay on the council. But he would consider it depending on how the next year and a half goes.

“I haven't made any decisions of whether or not I plan to rerun. My biggest concerns right now (are) getting in here, learning the process and finding ways to help the community. If I succeed in doing that, and people are satisfied with what I do, I think it would be in the best interest of the community and myself to try to stick it out for another term,” Boston said.

Anna Lynn Winfrey covers politics at the Pueblo Chieftain. She can be reached at awinfrey@gannett.com. Please support local news at subscribe.chieftain.com.

This article originally appeared on The Pueblo Chieftain: Meet Brett Boston, Pueblo's newest city councilor