Brian OPERT

Brian Opert

Brian's 2011 Autobiography

Until recently, Brian Opert was a resident of Fairfield County, living in Westport, then Fairfield and finally Trumbull. A father of 2 adult sons, Brian is now also a proud grandfather of 1 year old Emmett, son of 32 year old Peter and his Fairfield-born wife Lisa, who live in Blackrock. Mark, 37, lives in NYC with fiancé Jessica. Mark also graduated from Staples.

Since relocating from Connecticut to New Orleans about 5 years ago, Brian hosts a live drive-time talk radio show called “From the Ground Up” on WGSO 990 AM. “From the Ground Up” is focusing on the reduction of crime in greater New Orleans.. The show airs on Thursdays from 5:00-6:00 PM CT , also simulcast/podcast on wgso.com

Brian also oversees all Company operations for two firms he owns: Sterling Commercial Capital, a nationwide commercial mortgage banking firm, and Precast Building Solutions, a local firm that develops, designs and erects hurricane proof precast contract panels for houses along the Gulf Coast. He also organized a not-for-profit corporation in New Orleans called the Legacy Coalition of the Gulf Coast, Inc. that is developing programs to address the issues of area youth and crime.

Early in his career, Opert was appointed by the Massachusetts Governor as the Director of the 43,000 unit Low Rent Housing Program for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, and was a member of the senior staff of the Boston Housing Authority for a time.

While in Boston and New York, Opert was active as a commercial real estate developer and property owner, in commercial leasing, sales and commercial property management and as a principal responsible for commercial development and construction in metropolitan New York,

After graduating from Staples, Opert’s college career began at the mechanical engineering school at the University of Connecticut. He earned his Bachelor’s degree from the University of Bridgeport, and his Master’s degree from the University of Maryland School of Social Work and Community Planning.

Opert has been a faculty member at the University of Massachusetts, Boston College, an Adjunct Professor with The Boston Architectural College, an Adjunct Instructor with ITT Technical Institute in LaPlace, Louisiana, and also a Design Jury Member with Harvard University’s Graduate School of Design. Brian was the chairman of Bridgeport based Child Guidance Center, Vice Chair of Danbury based Connecticut Counseling Centers, a state-wide methadone based adult drug treatment program. Opert has been a licensed real estate broker and certified property manager for over 35 years.

A resident of New Orleans’ MidCity with a precast concrete “safe-house” he constructed in 2008, Opert has been a CASA volunteer in New Orleans as well as Fort Worth, TX. Opert is also an Editorial Board member with the Neighborhoods Partnership Network in New Orleans.

Brian’s Update (2021)

My life in a 5-minute summary! Living for over 15 years in New Orleans, I am single, have 2 grown married sons (43 and 47); the younger has 4 kids in Orange CT and the elder has a new daughter due the end of January 2021 in London, England (the older son’s first!). Also, a grown stepson, married with 3 boys plus a grown stepdaughter, married with two. I am very proud of my 4 kids and their kids– all happy and successful – they top the list! I home-office and still run my business most days and enjoy all available leisure activities in the area. Yes, I am in the deep south, but New Orleans is the exception – definitely the exception in the south.

In 1967, after graduating from Univ of Bridgeport, I left Westport to attend grad school of social work in Baltimore (Univ of Maryland); this was the “old” Baltimore – an awful old and beleaguered city. After graduation in 1970, I relocated with my wife to Boston, another favorite city. Lived in Brookline for about 15 years - had 2 sons. I worked first for Barney Frank (Mayor Kevin White’s deputy mayor), who then “loaned” me to the State of Mass, and I was hired by Governor Frank Sargent to manage the state’s 43,000-unit low rent housing program. My back-fence neighbor was Michael Dukakis – we commuted together daily on the T. When he was elected governor, I resigned my position, and opened my own property management business.

My marriage ended in 1983 with me gaining full custody of my sons, then 5 and 10, and returned to Westport so my folks (then in their 70’s) could help me raise my boys. It worked - this was very good for my sons.

I became a NYC commuter, taking the 7:25 am from Westport and the 5:25 pm back to Westport – 2 hours per day, before cell phones, that were mine to enjoy! I worked for a major NYC construction company for several years developing and constructing medical office buildings throughout the metro NYC area. That company went out of business in 1990 (remember the banks were crashing and the RTC and FDIC?) So, I started my own business and worked as a receiver for several area banks as well as managed a small portfolio of commercial properties between Hackensack New Jersey and Madawaska Maine. I also remarried, gained 2 more (step) kids – a 4 yo boy and an 8 yo girl – and raised them along with my sons, until the youngest turned 18 and went off to college.

I formed a new company in 1999, Sterling Commercial Capital, LLC, a nationwide commercial hard money mortgage banker/lender. The company still exists and has been my source of income for decades. I still work at my business. When located in Fairfield, I had 6 full time employees. Today, it’s all digital, and it’s just me!

After my dad passed away over 15 years ago, I called my mom and said “pack, we are moving.” I had always wanted to leave Connecticut (I have lived in Westport, Fairfield, and Trumbull). Once my sons were grown, other than sailing the Sound, and visiting NYC, there wasn’t much for to do. (Connecticut is a fine, green, safe place to live and raise kids, since it has the best school systems in the country – but it’s also a very boring place to live). I married a sweet Texas girl, and things went fine until we left Connecticut and moved to Fort Worth TX – you think CT is boring? Other than Friday night rodeos, and square dancing in saloons wearing the right boots and starched jeans, there isn’t even one ma-&-pa restaurant in the entire metro area!

After Katrina in 2005, I started another company to design, engineer and construct precast concrete houses. We, in the USA, are the only country in the world that builds houses out of sticks! And in hurricane and tornado prone regions, that seemed just stupid. So, I built the prototype which I still live in! Click to see the actual house. In 2010, with 12 houses under contract in design and/or under construction, the BP Oil Spill happened, and all of my clients lost their jobs during the next 2 weeks. This ended Precast as a company.

After all these many years, I have never been happier, nor more content, any place other than New Orleans. I have grown to love New Orleans people- their openness and friendliness; of course, the endless live music, the phenomenal food (New Orleans is a city of under 400,000 with 1,302 restaurants!; the amazing history; the many ghosts and goblins that live and are very active here; the racial mix, culture, and the history, the laissez faire attitude, and much, much, more. (We don’t have a problem with crazy – we just put them on our front porch or put them in a Mardi Gras parade!).

Today, I am single, live with my loving 9-year-old pup, sail the lake, motorboat the bayou, hunt for hog, ride my bicycle all around in this totally flat region, enjoy my many area and now Staples friends, while we enjoy live music, fabulous food, and magical people, to my heart’s content. And on January 20^th, we have a new President! Nothing more needs to be said.