For the first time ever, the Jet City Maven has decided to endorse political candidates. Its decisions were made, in part, after asking the candidates to respond to a series of questions regarding issues concerning North Seattle as well as broader citywide issues. Given our tight deadline, the candidates were asked to respond in a short-time. As a result, we did not receive responses from some of the candidates, including those in the Mayor and County Executive races, and are therefore not endorsing candidates in those races. We thank all of the candidates who choose to respond for taking the time to answer our questions. Our endorsements are as follows:

RICHARD CONLIN, CITY COUNCIL NO. 2:

For City Council position No. 2, we endorse incumbent Richard Conlin. We were impressed with his knowledge of neighborhood issues. While some elected officials only seem interested in attending community meetings when on the campaign trail, Conlin has consistently gotten out to meet with constituents throughout his term. He has even been known to arrive at public events via bicycle. "I not only attend community meetings regularly in North Seattle, but schedule my committee to meet there," says Conlin, a Madrona resident. His accomplishments include chairing the Neighborhoods Committee, where he oversaw the approval of 38 neighborhood plans; he also led a drive to triple funding for community projects and expand funding for libraries, parks and community centers, as well as youth music, art and civic engagement. His priorities for the next four years include implementing neighborhood plans and developing an array of transportation choices for the region.

CURT FIRESTONE, CITY COUNCIL NO. 4:

For City Council position No. 4, we endorse challenger Curt Firestone. A self-employed tax consultant who lives in the Leschi neighborhood, Firestone has a long history of involvement in progressive causes, including helping to form the Green Party of Seattle and co-founding the Seattle Progressive Coalition. He also serves on the board for the Downtown Human Services Council and is a supporter of the Elevated Transportation Committee. Firestone impressed us with his knowledge of issues and sensibilities that seem most in tune with North Seattleites: favoring affordable housing, the monorail, and building more sidewalks, to name just a few of his positions. Even though his 1999 bid to get elected to the City Council failed, Firestone continued to frequently attend community meetings throughout North Seattle.

GRANT COGSWELL, CITY COUNCIL NO. 8:

For City Council position No. 8, we endorse challenger Grant Cogswell. Best known as co-author of the Monorail Initiative, Cogswell, a Capitol Hill resident, has worked as a cabdriver, bookseller, bike messenger and journalist. He would bring a breath of fresh air to the City Council with his innovative ideas and willingness to speak his mind. In addition to his stand on the monorail, he favors streamlining the City's land use permitting process, limiting property taxes and levying a fee on non-Seattleites leaving the freeway and using Seattle streets. "Twenty-five cents a piece would add up, and not scare anyone off," he notes. If elected, he would like to work towards achieving the following goals: "This year: fix Sound Transit. Five years: Build Monorail Transit. Ten years: Complete our sidewalks citywide: Twenty years: Anybody's guess."

TOM CARR, CITY ATTORNEY:

For the position of City Attorney, we endorse Tom Carr, a lawyer with 17 years of experience, including a stint with the U.S. Attorney's Office in Brooklyn, N.Y., during which he specialized in tackling organized crime. He currently works for the commercial litigation practice of Barrett Gilman & Ziker in Seattle and has handled environmental, contract, personal injury and many cases similar to those handled by the City Attorney's office. He is a West Seattle resident. If elected, he says, "My first priority will be working with the communities to preserve as much of the impound law as is consistent with the constitution. I also would like to work at finding a legal way to support Tent City. Right now it is in violation of City and State law." He also supports building the monorail. Carr particularly impressed us with his knowledge of North Seattle issues, as well as his resourcefulness: he admitted he got some answers by reading the Jet City Maven's Web site! (