If you're interested in who's running for the City Council this year, and you should be, stop by the Metropolitan Democratic Club tomorrow at 5:30 p.m.

The jam-packed race for City Council position eight just got a little more so today as Bobby Forch, 53, announced his intention to run.

City Council position eight is currently filled by Richard McIver, but he's not going to run for re-election. Forch isn't yet listed on the Seattle Election's Web site, but his candidacy makes him the sixth contender for McIver's open seat.

There's a public forum scheduled for 5:30 p.m. this Wed. at City Hall to discuss Mayor Greg Nickels' proposed budget cuts.

Facing a worsening recession, Nickels has had to find more $13 million in budget cuts this year. While the 2009 budget cuts are up to the mayor's discretion, next year's budget - already projected to be $40 million short - Nickels will need to work with the City Council on what to cut.

The Seattle City Council chamber was unusually crowded this morning. More than a dozen people signed up to speak about Mayor Greg Nickels' $13 million in budget cuts, most were concerned about the impact on the library system.

Under Nickels' proposal all of the Seattle libraries will be shut down for a week this summer to save about $650,000.

A handful of reporters gathered on the seventh floor of City Hall this morning to hear how Mayor Greg Nickels plans to balance the budget now that forecasters are predicting that the city's revenue will drop another $29 million this year.

But the process this morning was a little backwards. The way it worked was that first Nickels held a press conference, then afterwards, reporters were told what the mayor plans to cut from the budget.

After years of planning, the demolition of buildings on the corner of Broadway and East John hails the start of construction of the Capitol Hill light rail station, and yesterday, City Council members met to debate the still incomplete plans for a $140 million streetcar serving First Hill and Capitol Hill.

"I really question the financial wisdom of building a streetcar network when we could expand metro transit significantly for far less," Councilmember Tom Rasmussen said as he entered the meeting.

A proposed ballot measure could make running against local politicians, like fundraising-all-star Mayor Greg Nickels, easier.

Seattle City Council members decided to support the re-introduction of publicly-funded elections, after an advisory committee suggested that new donation trends could be giving wealthier donors more influence with local candidates.

The battle over "green fees" will continue at least through the summer as an ordinance approved this afternoon by the Seattle City Council will put the issue to voters.

Though news cameras were in the council chambers, today's ordinance approval was merely "a ministerial action," according to Council President Richard Conlin.

In a special meeting today, the Seattle City Council Transportation committee approved a measure to reverse a council vote last month to release the money to get started on the Mercer Corridor project.

The Seattle City Council Parks and Recreation committee met yesterday to appoint members of the Parks and Green Spaces Levy Oversight Committee and to review upcoming plans on how to spend Parks Levy funds.

Yesterday, the Seattle City Council Parks and Seattle Center committee met to discuss terminating the 15-year agreement between the City and KeyCorp bank, the title sponsor of Key Arena.

Yesterday, the Seattle City Council unanimously approved an additional $150 fee for anyone busted hiring a prostitute. The money will go to pay for a "john school," a program aimed at educating patrons of prostitutes about the dangers of sexually transmitted diseases and other negative consequences of engaging in the sex trade.

City Attorney Tom Carr is credited with recommending the new john school, but Councilmember Nick Licata said that he's been working on setting up a program to counsel offenders in Seattle for years and that Carr opposed the idea in 2005.

Supporters and journalists crowded into a neighborhood pizza joint on Capitol Hill today to hear Michael McGinn announce his candidacy for mayor. McGinn is the first and only candidate to step up to challenge two-term Mayor Greg Nickels.

Taking questions from behind a row of tables draped in checkered table clothes, McGinn said Seattle needs more effective leadership, leadership that seeks community involvement.

Prostitution and the Mercer Corridor project will be up for debate this week in the Seattle City Council.

Councilmember Tim Burgess wants anyone busted for patronizing a prostitute charged an additional $150 fee to cover the cost of john school to educate johns on the evils of prostitution.

It's time for another exciting week in Seattle politics. The most interesting developments will be on Wednesday when a special full City Council session is scheduled for 2 p.m. to discuss a bond issue, and at 9:30 a.m. Sally Clark's Planning, Land Use and Neighborhoods Committee will meet to hear recommendations from Mayor Greg Nickels' office on proposed changes to the multi-family zoning code.

After weeks of delays and public testimony, the Seattle City Council voted Monday to approve changes to the city's noise ordinance.

"The whole goal of the legislation is to strengthen enforcement of the ordinance," Councilmember Sally Clark, chair of the Planning, Land Use and Neighborhoods committee, explained as she introduced the council bill.

So what's happening this week in Seattle politics? Apparently not much. Aside from the full City Council meeting today, which may or may not involve changing the noise ordinance, almost all of the City Council committee meetings have been canceled.

Microsoft billionaire Paul Allen has lots of friends in Seattle. Why wouldn't he, he's a billionaire? Council member Jan Drago has been Allen's point-person in the City Council, and Mayor Greg Nickels his goto-guy in the executive. To see the results, just look at South Lake Union, where Allen's Vulcan Inc is redeveloping 60 acres of commercial and residential real estate.

So what really happened? Did Mayor Greg Nickels and Seattle Councilmember Jan Drago know that the Mercer Project was not on the list to receive federal funding before the City Council voted on Monday to remove the spending restriction, releasing the available funds to get the two year project going? Or were Nickels and Drago as dumbfounded as everyone else when the Mercer Project didn't make the cut?

Tree activists applauded yesterday when the Seattle City Council voted to make it illegal for most homeowners and businesses to cut down a tree - well actually three trees a year - without a permit.

On Monday, the City Council will discuss and possibly vote on modifications to the noise pollution ordinance that if passed will allow large construction projects, such as replacing the Alaska Way Viaduct and the Mercer Mess, to operate outside of the current noise restrictions.

It's a confusing issue. And according to Council President Richard Conlin, it's the oddest thing he's ever seen the council have to deal with.

The City Council voted today to pass a series of bills that will give Seattle water utility customers a refund, a refund that they will then have to give back over the next 21 months.

Today is a federal holiday to honor the birthday of President George Washington. It's designated as "Washington's Birthday" in section 6103(a) of title 5 of the United States Code. You can call it President's Day if you want to, but let's be honest, are all presidents really worth celebrating? Mattress sale.

As the economy continues to flounder in recession, politicians in the other Washington and in our own Olympia continue chattering about economic stimuli, yet more and more people are looking for help with one of life's most basic needs - food.

A Seattle City Council committee met this morning to move forward on a plan to increase your water bill.

The Seattle City Council Planning, Land Use and Neighborhoods committee met this morning to discuss creating new regulations regarding the condition of rental housing in Seattle.

The Seattle City Council's Culture, Civil Rights, Health and Personnel committee voted today to move resolution 31111, supporting universal health care, out of committee for a vote by the full council.

Jordan Royer announced today that he will be running for Position 8 on the Seattle City Council.

The Seattle City Council's Planning, Land Use, and Neighborhoods Committee convened a special meeting today to carry out its final actions on the proposal to rezone the land on S. Dearborn Street. The committee also discussed development standards for Fire Station No. 30 on South Mount Baker Boulevard.

The Seattle City Council's Budget and Finance Committee met today to discuss a proposed utility tax increase stemming from a court order to refund former taxpayers. According to estimated calculations by Seattle Public Utilities, the total cost could amount up to $23 million, with $15 million in customer refunds.

The Seattle City Council Transportation Committee met Tuesday morning to discuss a number of transportation issues, including Sound Transit Link Light Rail System fares.

Seattle Mayor Greg Nickels and the homeless advocacy group, Seattle Housing and Resource Effort, are currently embroiled in a battle over $50,000 that the mayor yanked from the group's funding.

The Alaskan Way Viaduct will turn 56 this year. While it's widely agreed that it's time for the old girl to go the way of the buffalo, the only consensus among those involved in planning a replacement seems to be that actually reaching a consensus is tricky business.