After running a campaign staffed entirely by volunteers, it's good to see that McGinn will be continuing to engage members of the public as he takes the reins from Nickels. McGinn has said he plans to "open source" his transition. We're happy he's getting input from the public, and frankly relieved he's doing so using the internet in addition to traditional media. But judging from a quote McGinn gave the Stranger, this might be more about the wintertime blues. more ›

• Urban farming--Sightline has a nifty article with mock-up photos about what it would be like to really green up our cities. Because, you know, it would be totally cool to have cows on the roads.
• Publicola has its own problems with recent KING5/SurveyUSA polls, offering the hope we could have both a bag tax and a not-Mayor Nickels! Oh, and Erica C. Barnett scratches back at Joel Connelly for flaming her in his column today.

The Seattle Department of Transportation failed to properly oversee almost $200,000 in roadwork, the reports, all of which will now be replaced at the city's cost. In the midst of the ongoing budget crisis at City Hall, this does nothing to help Greg Nickels' re-election campaign, who some pollsters show losing in head-to-head races with virtually all his potential opponents. more ›

• Playground purse snatcher on the loose! A woman reported her purse stolen today at 11:30 a.m. from West Seattle Gatewood Elementary. A young man (late teens/early 20s) jumped out of a car, ran into the park, and grabbed the purse---which was sitting on the ground near the woman.
• The next bus King County Metro purchases should come with spell check, because "Freemont" is inexcusable.

• The bus tunnel shut down at 7:10 a.m. this morning for about 20 minutes, thanks to an automated (and false) alarm--for the third time in six months. Funnily enough, we think every time has been during morning rush hour, too.
• Publicola's newest addition, Erica Barnett, broke the news to Seattle taxpayers that we've paid over $43,000 since 2006 to send the City Council's Jan Drago to China, India, Iceland, the United Arab Emirates, and Finland.