"Palin LOL" courtesy of Seattlest contributor Shaun Kardinal West Seattle Blog has the latest update on Nickelsville. WSB also pointed us to a Nickelsville Google Group where residents and supporters are posting updates and minute-to-minute news. MyBallard has photos of hygiene stations planned for neighborhood homeless car camps. Maybe Mayor Nickels could talk to some Ballard community activists about options for homeless residents, at least Ballard seems to be dealing with the issue in a......

Even if this was John McCain's Chief of Staff, we still wouldn't vote for him. Photo courtesy of Seattlest Flickr Photographer Jessiqua A couple of Seattle's finest neighborhood blogs are also covering Nickelsville. Blogging Georgetown and West Seattle Blog are both giving thorough coverage to the story.Did someone say gumbo? Honest to god, Louisiana-made gumbo in Seattle? Hallelujah! The Central District News has a glowing (tummy-grumble-inducing) review.Ballard High graduate Jean Smart won an Emmy last......

Under the cover of darkness and secrecy, a Seattle homeless encampment named "Nickelsville" in mockery of Seattle Mayor Greg Nickels moved to a new location early this morning. The residents of the new Nickelsville pitched 155 neon pink tents in a field off West Marginal Way. The residents of Nickelsville hope the encampment can become a permanent location for their tent town, while Mayor Nickels says that like any illegal encampment in the city, Nickelsville......

If Mayor Greg Nickels can cut youth crime in half, as long as we give him $9 million, shouldn't we just give him $18 million and get rid of youth crime all together?......

Ceis was irritated by Licata's criticism. "I don't poke around and ask questions about Nick's personnel and the council's personnel. I don't think it's any of their business about how we deal with personnel issues in the mayor's office."That's Seattle Deputy Mayor Tim Ceis, not sounding as nearly agreeable as Michael J. Fox, as quoted in the Seattle Times story on the kerfluffle over new communications director Robert Mak's salary. At the risk of stirring......

Photo Courtesy of Seattlest Flickr Contributor, Kables Yesterday, Mayor Greg Nickels announced his plan for a six-year, $75 million levy to renovate Seattle's historic Pike Place Market. If passed by voters, the money would go toward renovating the Market's bathrooms, electric, ventilation, and heating systems, as well as seismic upgrades and new elevators. The century-old Pike Place Market has not undergone major renovations since the 1970s. Funding for the renovations would come from an......

We apologize, Greg. We got a little hot under the collar last week, after hitting one pothole too many, and we became...intemperate. The Pothole Rangers are not hiding out; they're working hard and filling potholes whenever you notify them. This weekend we were biking along, ready to dodge this one (pictured), when we were startled to see it had been filled, just three days after our post about it. Point for Mayor Nickels and the......

The failing state of the roads on Capitol Hill (and maybe all over Seattle, we just happen to spend most of our time cursing Capitol Hill potholes) has been getting to us the last few days. Biking around, we're spending as much time avoiding potholes that will swallow our front tire as sleep-deprived drivers on cell phones. We wanted to get a photo to illustrate what we're talking about, and the only issue was, which......

Maybe it's the recession like it was in the early 90s, but as a city, we're recycling more than ever before. Mayor Greg Nickels announced today that Seattle set a new city record for recycling rates in 2006, with 47.5 percent of the city's residential, commercial and self-haul waste heading to recycling bins instead of the landfills. That’s a good thing. Did you know that every single day, we send a mile-long train filled with......

In the "State of the City" address on Tuesday, Mayor Greg Nickels introduced his new plan to make housing more affordable in Seattle. Definitely something Seattle needs to tackle with verve and determination, we just don't think anyone is going to take the "Affordable Seattle Strategy" (ASS) that seriously. Then again, partially thanks to Mayor Nickels a few Seattlites do ride the S.L.U.T., so maybe it's right on par. The State of the City address......

Seattle Mayor Greg Nickels either loves condos or he hates renters. The Mayor's Office has indefinitely frozen a $350,000 fund created to compensate Seattle area renters who'd been forced out of housing due to condo-conversions. Mayor Nickels wants to wait and see if the legislature passes a statewide bail-out funded by developers this winter. Because it makes perfect sense to rely on the people who are profiting most off of Seattle renter's misery. If......

We tried to get into the Obama Rally at Key Arena this afternoon, but we couldn't. The crowd had already filled up Key Arena by 11:15 (doors were at 11), so we were relegated to standing outside with a few thousand other people in the cold, wind and rain. Seattlest Katie was inside and had this to say: Key Arena was packed. I sat on the floor in the aisle on the third level. It......

Seattlest just got done attending the press conference for the re-opening of the Downtown Bus Tunnel. After two years of work, it's set to reopen next Monday. That's exactly two years (as King County Exec. Ron Sims was fond of repeating over and over today) after it closed. We have to say, we're pretty impressed with what they've done. Needless to say, it's a pretty big achievement in a region not exactly known for making......

According to a report in this morning's Seattle Times, Mayor Nickels has decided to play hardball in his attempt to get all Stasi on Seattle's nightlife. In what appears to be a blatant attempt to politicize Seattle's police force, according to the Times, "Seventeen bouncers, bartenders and other nightclub employees were arrested Saturday night for allegedly violating state liquor laws." Police Chief Gil Kerlikowske and City Attorney Tom Carr used the sting to push for......

Mayor Greg Nickels told reporters yesterday he thought Key Arena was a great place for basketball, and if the Sonics would just pony up $100 million, the city would be willing to renovate it to match the team's needs. Sonics owner Clay Bennett's response was swift and unequivocal.We have been clear since July 18, 2006, the day the sale of the Sonics and Storm was announced, that KeyArena is not an option as a future......

The Seattle Transit Blog reported (and Seattlest echoed) the fact that 3rd Avenue Downtown is going to remain a transit-only corridor during rush hour way back in June, but since the press release just came out and it'll probably be in the papers tomorrow maybe we should revisit it. Based on the outstanding success in moving buses quickly and efficiently through downtown, Mayor Greg Nickels today announced that local transit agencies will continue to use......

Clay Bennett and Greg Nickels talked today, and the upshot is that--a year and a day after buying the team, and only a few months after saying he was moving--Bennett wants to reopen talks about staying in Key Arena. So says Jim Brunner of the Seattle Times. KEVIN DURANT WE LOVE YOU! David Stern has seemed to cool on the idea of the Sonics moving, maybe the NBA doesn't want the Western Conference to be......

--iTunes just passed Amazon to become the third-largest music seller. --It's like a contest now: Who can be the next to get a body part trapped in something and then cut that body part off with a pocket knife to miraculously survive. Stay tuned for the photo set of Seattlest getting our head wedged between two rocks during a flood tide. --Tacoma is mobilizing for war on Clear Channel Billboards. --Where does our energy......

This week's Comment of the Week was posted as a reply to a post about an immigration announcement out of the office of Mayor Greg Nickels and uses the word "homo" six times, including such creative constructions as "homo liberals," "homo culture," and "liberal homos." Funny how homo liberals, choose not to see the real enemy in North America and they opt for hating America. Mexico has no culture except being forced into the Catholic......

Greg Nickels' son Jacob has been charged with one count of conspiracy and four counts of theft stemming from a multi state casino cheating ring. The Times is reporting that the group allegedly stole millions of dollars from casinos, which lovers of pain-free knee caps will note is a bad idea. The group allegedly used a technique known as "false shuffle" to rig hands. We know nothing about casinos, cards, or fancy shuffling so......

The quick answer: there is still Seattlest Trivia at the Old Pequliar. But now it only comes around every five weeks or so. After Seattlests Seth and David hung up their quiz caps, a number of people signed up to join the quiz-hosting rotation at the Old Pequliar. (So for now, no slots are open.) Regular players NAMBLA debuted as hosts this past Tuesday with an excellent quiz, and they'll be doing it again.......

South Lake Union is currently under water after a 20" main was broken by contractors this morning. Some businesses in the area aren't getting water and the area around Harrison and Dexter is flooded. "I just took my dog for a walk, and when I came back I saw a river coming down Harrison," said Nic Roussouw, who is working on opening a coffee shop at 404 Dexter Ave. N. "I imagine the city must......

This Saturday offers at least three ways to make a difference in Seattle, or at least look like you care whilst furthering your own selfish interests. Start things off at the Egyptian Theater for the SIFF volunteer meeting from 10am to noon. This is your best opportunity to learn about all the different jobs that you can do to pitch in for the festival. It's also a good way to get a few good......

Recently Governor Gregoire's been taking a lot of heat for her ambivalent handling of the Viaduct sitchyation we got here. Today, the Seattle Times rides to her rescue. The blame-reallocating story by David Postman and Andrew Garber begins: Gov. Christine Gregoire got so frustrated trying to broker a compromise between Mayor Greg Nickels and House Speaker Frank Chopp on the Alaskan Way Viaduct that she turned to a Republican wise man for advice. "She......

KARAOKE: Wednesday night is always karaoke night at the Little Red Hen, an outpost of country music that's inexplicably smack dab in the middle of Volvo-driving, NPR-listening, holiday-tree-owning Green Lake. The crowd veers toward the early-20s spectrum, so if you need a break from parties where people discuss mortgages, the new Whole Foods, and their fucking jobs, this is the place to go. Tip: Bring cash so you can buy beer from the guy with......

Wednesday, December 13 >>>Hugo House, 7:30pm. Screenwriters Salon: Geoff Miller and Mark Handley invite you to bring your questions about format, technique, structure, dialogue, writing characters, and how to use your catering gig to hand your script to celebs. $5 general/$2 students. Free to members. >>>Seattle Public Central Library, 5:30-7:00pm. Mayor Greg Nickels and City Council President Nick Licata rochambeau to see who gets to salute Seattle author Tim Egan. His book, The Worst......

Susan Paynter thinks all the talk about "freedom of speech" around Referendum 1 (the four-foot rule, etc.) is a ruse -- what the clubs really want to keep "legal" is prostitution: If we want a vote, up or down, on legalizing prostitution, then, in the words of G.W. Bush, bring it on. But if, outside of Nevada, we still oppose the oldest profession when it is practiced on the street, do we ignore it when......

Which is it, newsmedia types? Safe or not safe? Earlier this week there were 18 billion articles on the freshly-released City Crime Rankings report that listed Seattle as the 262nd safest city in America. 262nd? That's not safe at all! Used to be a time when Seattle was safer than Portland, at least. No longer true, according to this report. Portland is the 249th safest city in the Union. Our region's safest city is Bellevue......

Strip club owners got their wish: The referendum to overturn Nanny Nickels' anti-ecdysiast laws will be on the ballot in November, not September. At least, so says the PI: The City Council settled the question Monday of when the proposal should go to voters -- not whether it should. That was decided for politicians some time ago when the strip-club industry collected sufficient petition signatures to challenge new rules banning lap dances and dim lighting......

As of today, you may now receive a $101 ticket in the mail if one of the city's newly installed traffic cameras catches you running a red light. The cameras are being placed in four intersections with the highest number of red-light related crashes throughout Seattle. The locations are as follows: -Roosevelt Way NE & 45th St. NE. -Denny Way & Fairview Ave. N. -5th Ave. & Spring St. -Rainier Ave. S. & Orcas St.......