After graduating from college Olmedo was employed in New York City as an anti-poverty worker.
He worked as chairman of Los Sures to create, and then headed up the Southside United Housing Development Fund Corporation.
[1][2] He organized a number of protests against the racially biased allocations of public housing.
[2] Olmedo was first elected in 1973 to the New York City Council from the newly redrawn 27th District, which included major portions of the Williamsburg and Bushwick sections of Brooklyn.
[3] Council member Olmedo was arrested in 1983, and charged with extorting money from two food production companies.