JF: Why should we believe the donations [from Rick's owner Frank Colacurcio Jr.] didn't influence your rezone decision?
The rezone was the right decision regardless of who gave me money. We had to make the best decision for the neighborhood, recognizing that Rick's is a legal business. I totally supported all of the elements of the legislation: [requiring] shrubs, an attendant, a thick fence--right now there is something very flimsy there--and parking that can only be used for employees so you won't have [customers using those spaces].
Look, I am probably the only council member who has taken major votes against people who have contributed thousands of dollars into my first campaign. I took thousands of dollars from labor and the housing community, and I've taken two major votes that have pissed off those constituencies, like voting against the housing levy and voting for Hedreen's square-footage bonus. [Editors' note: Developer Richard Hedreen kicked in $650 to Nicastro on July 16. ]
JF: Why is Judy Nicastro getting the lion's share of attention on this Colacurcio story? First of all, some of the headlines have been completely counter to the articles. The P-I did a headline, ["Nicastro got illegal donations last year,"] and if you read the story it says that I didn't take illegal contributions. But to answer your question: I'm an outsider. I'm not from machine politics. I don't come from the establishment, and this is clearly a political feeding frenzy against somebody who they would like to get rid of, who wouldn't be a rubber-stamp for the mayor, and for their special interests. No one has been able to control me, including The Stranger. Look, I have been frustrated by the amount of attention this issue is getting. It is so overblown. The romantic days of The Sopranos in Seattle are over. I was in diapers when that was going on.
JF: So why did all this money come in? Because [former Governor Albert Rosellini] supports me. He's raising money for me.
JF: So your explanation for this is, Rosellini was a big fundraiser for you. Oh, absolutely. Oh my god, yeah. And he still is, and now he's raising money from some of his other friends.
Let's talk about the issues that I've worked really hard on. I mean, I've done more for renters in this city--we've passed more legislation for renters in this city then god knows who else in history. [Helping renters legally fight] rent retaliation; increasing the amount for tenant relocation; the emergency rental money in the budget, what, we almost quadrupled it. And reducing parking. Well, that's not really for renters, though--that's just for affordable housing.
DS: If you're reelected, what's on the agenda for your second term? Well, first of all, I want to continue on the third-party [water] billing. Besides renters' issues, I'm interested in housing and land use. My agenda is tweaking the land use code to get more density and affordability. I want to work on small neighborhood businesses. One of the issues for them is infrastructure, so I'm interested in putting in parking garages, parking facilities with housing on top.
JF: Any thoughts on Jean Godden? She's a lovely, mature woman. If she's not mature, I don't know who is. If the voters choose her they'll be in mature hands. Meanwhile, we're putting up hippie beads in our office. I enjoy Jean's gossip column, but I know so little about where she is on policy.
JF: Are we going to see a lot of cell phone company donations on your next set of campaign finance reports? [Nicastro is currently holding off on a Nickels proposal that would put stringent regulations on cell phone towers. ] What will you see? Lots of donations from lots of people. [Nicastro got a fairly light $250 from the Cingular Wireless Employee PAC on July 9 and $250 from Sprint on June 8. ]
