| Gregory J. Nickels | |
|---|---|
| 51st Mayor of Seattle | |
| In office January 1, 2002 – January 1, 2010 |
|
| Preceded by | Paul Schell |
| Succeeded by | Michael McGinn |
| Personal details | |
| Born | August 7, 1955 Chicago, Illinois |
| Nationality | American |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouse(s) | Sharon Nickels |
| Children | Jacob Carey |
| Residence | West Seattle, Seattle, WA |
| Alma mater | University of Washington (College) Seattle Prep (High School) |
| Profession | Politician |
| Religion | Roman Catholic |
Gregory J. "Greg" Nickels (born August 7, 1955) was the 51st mayor of Seattle, Washington. He took office on January 1, 2002 and was reelected to a second term in 2005. In August 2009, Nickels finished third in the primary election for Seattle mayor, failing to qualify for the November 2009 general election, and losing his bid for a third term as mayor. He left office on January 1, 2010.[1]
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Nickels, the oldest of six siblings, was born in Chicago to Bob and Kathie Nickels. In 1961, his family moved to Seattle, where he graduated from Seattle Preparatory School and attended the University of Washington, but left before graduating to pursue his passion for politics.
He now lives in West Seattle with his wife Sharon. They have two children, Jacob and Carey.
Nickels was legislative assistant to Seattle City Council member and future mayor Norm Rice from 1979 to 1987. Nickels was elected to the King County Council in 1987, defeating longtime incumbent Bob Grieve, and reelected in 1991, 1995 and 1999. In 2001, he was elected Mayor of Seattle and was re-elected in 2005. Nickels ran for a third term in 2009, but he failed to advance to the general election after coming in third place in the primary election held in August 2009.
Nickels has had several notable events during his tenure as mayor of Seattle. In 2003, he helped to break ground for the Sound Transit Link light rail project in November, and signed an executive order in 2004 giving equal rights to everyone who is married and works for Seattle city government regardless of sexual orientation.
Nickels' popularity began to decline in July 2008, when the Seattle SuperSonics NBA franchise relocated to Oklahoma City, Oklahoma after a lawsuit against the team's ownership group was settled out of court – an outcome in which Nickels' administration, as well as Washington State lawmakers were faulted by many Seattle sports fans for not doing enough to keep the team in Seattle.[2]
In addition, in December 2008, Nickels came under fire from some Seattle citizens after the city's policy of not using salt for snow removal due to potential environmental concerns contributed to a paralysis of the city's transportation systems after an unusual snowstorm blanketed the city in the greatest snowfalls it had seen since December 26–29, 1996 (the Seattle "snowpack", which began accumulating on December 13, did not melt until December 27, the longest period of time snow had remained on the ground in Seattle since the mid-1980s).[3]
Due to disapproval of Nickels' handling of illegal tent cities in Seattle, a tent city community in the Seattle area is known colloquially as "Nickelsville".[4]
A late 2008 poll of likely Seattle voters reflected dissatisfaction with the incumbent mayor, showing that 31% approved of Nickels's performance as mayor while 57% disapproved.[5] Nickels' low popularity numbers did not recover by August 2009, when he was defeated in the primary election in his bid for a third term as Seattle's mayor. In Nickels' concession defeat, he thanked Seattle voters and noted, "Twice they gave me the honor of doing this. They want a new generation of leadership."[6]
Nickels left Seattle to pursue a teaching position at Harvard University.[7]
Nickels is a member of the Washington State Democratic Party and served as the President of the United States Conference of Mayors, but left that post on the day he left office as Seattle mayor. Nickels served on the board of directors of Sound Transit. Since 2003, he has also been the chair of the Transportation and Communications Committee of the U.S. Conference of Mayors and served on the Conference's Board of Trustees.
Nickels is a member of the Mayors Against Illegal Guns Coalition,[8] a bi-partisan group with a stated goal of "making the public safer by getting illegal guns off the streets." The Coalition is co-chaired by Boston Mayor Thomas Menino and New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg.
He was the key negotiator for the City of Seattle in accepting $45 million up front from the Bennett Group to move the Seattle Supersonics of the NBA to Oklahoma City.[9]
In 2005, Nickels announced an “Environmental Action Agenda” with the goal of protecting air quality and public health. The primary goal of the agenda is to reduce Seattle’s greenhouse gas emissions “to meet or beat” the levels stipulated in the Kyoto protocols.[10] Nickels spearheaded the US Mayors Climate Protection Agreement, an accord between over 600 US cities committed to reducing greenhouse emissions.[11][12] Nickels won the 2006 Climate Protection Award from the Environmental Protection Agency, the 2006 Edgar Wayburn Award for Environmental leadership from the National Sierra Club, and the 2006 National Conservation Achievement Award from the National Wildlife Federation.[13][14][15]
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Paul Schell |
Mayor of Seattle 2002–2009 |
Succeeded by Mike McGinn |
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