SEATTLE -
Seattle Mayor-Elect Mike McGinn says having a bit of time before taking office January 4th is nice -- but he's still working behind the scenes on some of the city's problems, including the economy.
The soon-to-be mayor of Seattle spoke with Q13 FOX News this morning in a live studio interview, about the future direction of the city.
He says he's glad the campaign is over and is ready to start to work.
"It's really nice to move from the kind of the fighting for votes and really working on the campaign trail," McGinn said. "We get to step back right now and start talking about how do you build a team and how do you set objectives and how do we do outreach to the citizens and residents of Seattle to talk about the future."
The mayor-elect says it's clear the economy needs to be turned around, but he warns Seattle residents that it may not happen overnight.
"That has real effects on the city budget as well. A tough economy means a lot less money in the city budget for essential services to take care of people in need. So that's a really big challenge."
McGinn says even though the legislature and the city council are committed to the Alaskan Way Viaduct tunnel project, he still has doubts about it. He initially opposed a tunnel, but changed his position on the issue when it became clear the governor and a majority of members on the city council back it.
"I remain very much a skeptic of that project. I think it's a lot of money. I think it's going to take a long time," McGinn said. "It leaves the viaduct up for the longest time, too, which is risky, as we know, and doesn't really deliver that much transportation benefit. So I'm going to keep asking the tough questions about how we're going to pay for it, who's going to pay for cost overruns."
The mayor-elect's take on the failure of WAMU and the recent Boeing decision to start up a 787 plant in South Carolina -- is that the northwest still has many advantages over other parts of the country that can attract all kinds of businesses -- from large corporations to small, privately-run businesses.
"It's the government's job to make sure transit is good, education's good, public safety is good, that small businesses that want to succeed and expand, you know, find an ally in government, not an obstacle. If we do all those things right, I think we have a lot of natural advantages out here in Seattle, a great educational system, cheap, inexpensive electricity, a beautiful place and smart, creative people."
What about this year's snow plan?
"I'm still not in office yet. But when January hits, I am," he said.
He says he's been getting briefed on the snow plan from the city's transportation department and King County Metro, both of which have already begun planning this year's snow strategy.
"One of the things I'll be doing with my transition team is getting fully briefed what the plans are and making sure that as we roll into the new year we'll be fully prepared for it."
He says earthquakes or other emergencies we haven't had before may be more of a threat to the city's well-being.
"We may be well-prepared for (snow), I hope we'll find that's the case. I think it's the emergencies that we haven't had for a while, that we need to be more careful about.
The mayor-elect also spoke about his love for bicycling -- and how more bikes on the road will help the city's transportation struggles.
"I am passionate about bicycling. On a personal level, it's a great way to get around," says McGinn. "I'm actually not a recreational biker, I don't bike to have fun. I bike to get from place to place. And everytime you can get someone to take a short trip by bicycle that means that they're not out there in their automobile. And that means we have more space on our roads for everyone that needs it."
But it's not just to make more room on the roadways. McGinn says when he gets on a bike -- the goal is to get somewhere. But there are other benefits:
"You get exercise, cleaner air, cleaner water in Puget Sound. And every city that's made investments in bike facilities, like bike trails or bike paths, they see the bike riding go up, because people want to use it if it's safe and convenient for them."
The soon-to-be mayor of Seattle spoke with Q13 FOX News this morning in a live studio interview, about the future direction of the city.
He says he's glad the campaign is over and is ready to start to work.
"It's really nice to move from the kind of the fighting for votes and really working on the campaign trail," McGinn said. "We get to step back right now and start talking about how do you build a team and how do you set objectives and how do we do outreach to the citizens and residents of Seattle to talk about the future."
The mayor-elect says it's clear the economy needs to be turned around, but he warns Seattle residents that it may not happen overnight.
"That has real effects on the city budget as well. A tough economy means a lot less money in the city budget for essential services to take care of people in need. So that's a really big challenge."
McGinn says even though the legislature and the city council are committed to the Alaskan Way Viaduct tunnel project, he still has doubts about it. He initially opposed a tunnel, but changed his position on the issue when it became clear the governor and a majority of members on the city council back it.
"I remain very much a skeptic of that project. I think it's a lot of money. I think it's going to take a long time," McGinn said. "It leaves the viaduct up for the longest time, too, which is risky, as we know, and doesn't really deliver that much transportation benefit. So I'm going to keep asking the tough questions about how we're going to pay for it, who's going to pay for cost overruns."
The mayor-elect's take on the failure of WAMU and the recent Boeing decision to start up a 787 plant in South Carolina -- is that the northwest still has many advantages over other parts of the country that can attract all kinds of businesses -- from large corporations to small, privately-run businesses.
"It's the government's job to make sure transit is good, education's good, public safety is good, that small businesses that want to succeed and expand, you know, find an ally in government, not an obstacle. If we do all those things right, I think we have a lot of natural advantages out here in Seattle, a great educational system, cheap, inexpensive electricity, a beautiful place and smart, creative people."
What about this year's snow plan?
"I'm still not in office yet. But when January hits, I am," he said.
He says he's been getting briefed on the snow plan from the city's transportation department and King County Metro, both of which have already begun planning this year's snow strategy.
"One of the things I'll be doing with my transition team is getting fully briefed what the plans are and making sure that as we roll into the new year we'll be fully prepared for it."
He says earthquakes or other emergencies we haven't had before may be more of a threat to the city's well-being.
"We may be well-prepared for (snow), I hope we'll find that's the case. I think it's the emergencies that we haven't had for a while, that we need to be more careful about.
The mayor-elect also spoke about his love for bicycling -- and how more bikes on the road will help the city's transportation struggles.
"I am passionate about bicycling. On a personal level, it's a great way to get around," says McGinn. "I'm actually not a recreational biker, I don't bike to have fun. I bike to get from place to place. And everytime you can get someone to take a short trip by bicycle that means that they're not out there in their automobile. And that means we have more space on our roads for everyone that needs it."
But it's not just to make more room on the roadways. McGinn says when he gets on a bike -- the goal is to get somewhere. But there are other benefits:
"You get exercise, cleaner air, cleaner water in Puget Sound. And every city that's made investments in bike facilities, like bike trails or bike paths, they see the bike riding go up, because people want to use it if it's safe and convenient for them."
