The former Bronx borough president, Fernando Ferrer, has released his first commercial, an innocuous 30-second biographical piece run on cable and Spanish-language TV in a very limited buy. The spot is designed more for the press than for the public. By becoming the first Democrat to hit the airwaves, Mr. Ferrer’s handlers hope to get buzz going. Since I’m writing about it, as is every other political observer here in Gotham, there must be something to that strategy.

Interestingly, Mr. Ferrer’s new slogan is “Fernando Ferrer: for all of us, for a change.” What does this mean? Is Mr. Ferrer suggesting that Mayor Bloomberg – who, if nothing else, is annoyingly inclusive – is not the mayor of some group? Who is us? Is it everyone? Is it the poor? Minorities? Puerto Rican New Yorkers?

Or does he mean that this time HE intends to be the mayor of all of us, a departure from the Sharpton-inspired “two cities” theme he pursued four years ago?

One aspect of the commercial already seems to have backfired. You could imagine the smoke coming out of Mayor Koch’s ears as the spot gives Mr. Ferrer credit for the huge number of affordable housing units built in the Bronx while he was borough president. This is one of Mr. Koch’s signature accomplishments, and Mr. Koch is certainly not shy about his record.

Mr. Koch points this out, noting that all Mr. Ferrer did to make the 66,000 units of housing a reality was to “stay out of the way.”

This is not exactly true. In one key instance, Mr. Ferrer did get in the way and was responsible for killing 1,000 units of moderate-income housing, a project known as Tibbett Gardens. This development became the crown jewel of Mr. Koch’s housing program.

Located largely in Marble Hill – a small piece of Manhattan that is geographically attached to the Bronx – and spilling into neighboring Kingsbridge, the project was wildly unpopular among the politically potent residents of “liberal” Riverdale, just to the north and west.

This was still in the era of the old Board of Estimate, and before term limits. Borough presidents had real powers over budgets, land use, and franchises, and they could stay in office for as long as the voters tolerated them – sometimes seemingly forever.

Each borough president had one vote, while the mayor, comptroller, and president of the city council each had two. In order to maximize their clout, a huge amount of horse trading went on to help ensure that the favored projects of each member was passed – or in this case, defeated.

It was in this climate that Mr. Ferrer and Mr. Koch split over Tibbett Gardens in 1988. But the relationship between the two men was already cooling on a number of fronts. In the 1988 presidential primary, Mr. Ferrer endorsed Jesse Jackson, whose “Hymietown” remarks four years earlier infuriated the outspoken mayor. The following year, Mr. Ferrer backed Mayor Dinkins in the Democratic primary that turned Mr. Koch out of office.

This is not to say that Mr. Koch kept Mr. Ferrer at the top of his enemies list. Four years ago, in the runoff between Mr. Ferrer and Public Advocate Mark Green, Mr. Koch endorsed – just for the runoff – Mr. Ferrer. The former mayor simply disliked Mr. Green more than Mr. Ferrer. Had Mr. Ferrer won the runoff, Mr. Koch – his job done among the Democrats – probably would have still endorsed Mr. Bloomberg in the general election, as he did against Mr. Green.

Mr. Ferrer’s record in the troubled borough of the Bronx, which he led as president for over 14 years, is a weakness that will be exploited by his opponents in the months ahead. If the highlight of the Ferrer record, housing, is taken off the table by constant criticism from the well-liked Mr. Koch – acting as a one-man truth squad – Mr. Ferrer’s resume and standing in the polls could sink in the public’s perception.

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Mr. Bloomberg has criticized Council Member Margarita Lopez for her ties to the Church of Scientology, whose members are actively soliciting funds for her campaign for Manhattan borough president.

It seems that Ms. Lopez became a favorite of the Scientologists after she helped secure city funding for a detoxification center sponsored by the controversial church. Isn’t it great to live in a city so flush with cash that we can fund projects such as this?

But can the mayor really be overly critical of Ms. Lopez’s supporters, when he is neck deep in the quicksand of the Lenora Fulani-Fred Newman political cult?