McGinn sworn in as new Seattle mayor

SEATTLE — Mike McGinn’s young children administered the oath of office to Seattle’s new mayor on Monday. One of his first actions as mayor included telling city agencies to reduce the number of executive level employees. And he said all new consultant contracts must be reviewed by him. The city’s 52nd mayor also put a freeze on some salaries and has released salary figures for his new hires. McGinn replaces Greg Nickels who served eight years and lost in the August primary. McGinn is a former Sierra Club leader who defeated Joe Mallahan in the November election. McGinn campaigned against the city and state plan to replace the Alaskan Way Viaduct with a tunnel. He says he won’t stand in the way, but he doesn’t want the city to be stuck with any cost overruns on the project.