Seattle (Wash.). Law Dept.

The Law Department represents the City in all legal matters and litigation, provides legal advice and opinions to City departments and agencies, and is responsible for prosecuting violations of City ordinances in Municipal Court. The position of City Attorney was established in 1875. The 1890 City Charter created the Law Department headed by the Corporation Counsel. The title was changed to City Attorney in 1977.

From the guide to the Seattle Law Department Condemnation Files, 1897-1982, 1901-1981, (City of Seattle Seattle Municipal Archives)

Born in 1951, Mark Sidran grew up in Seattle's Seward Park neighborhood, attending Franklin High School and serving as president of his senior class. After earning a BA in government at Harvard, he received his law degree from the University of Washington in 1976. He worked for the King County Prosecutor's Office from 1975 to 1985, and was a partner in the law firm of McKay & Gaitain from 1986 to 1989. In 1990, he became Seattle's City Attorney, holding that office through 2001.

During Sidran's tenure, one of his signature issues was the impoundment of cars of people caught driving with suspended licenses. He endorsed the law as promoting responsibility and increasing public safety, while his critics claimed the practice disproportionately affected the poor. Sidran's advocacy of "civility laws" - ordinances outlawing aggressive panhandling and sitting on sidewalks - caused a great deal of controversy, as did his crackdowns on problem nightclubs.

In 2001, Sidran chose to run for mayor instead of seeking a fourth term as city attorney. After losing the mayoral race to Greg Nickels, Sidran practiced with McKay Chadwell and served as chair of the Washington State Utilities and Transportation Commission. He ran unsuccessfully for Washington State Attorney General in 2004.

From the guide to the Mark Sidran Subject Files, 1990-2002, (City of Seattle Seattle Municipal Archives)

The Seattle Pilots were the city's first major league baseball team, but were in the city for only one season before relocating to Milwaukee and becoming the Brewers. The team played in Sick's Stadium, which was a minor league park built in 1938. The stadium had to be extensively renovated to accommodate the team, and construction work continued right up to the first home game on April 11, 1969. Less than two months later, the American League declared the facility to be "inadequate" for a major league team.

Complaints about the stadium, coupled with low attendance and finances in the red, led to threats by the Pilots' owners to leave Seattle. When the state of Washington obtained a temporary injunction to stop the move, the team's parent company, Pacific Northwest Sports Inc., declared bankruptcy. However, Bud Selig had already worked out a deal to buy the team and move them to Wisconsin, a change that the American League approved. The team went to spring training as the Seattle Pilots but were the Milwaukee Brewers by the time the season started - a move so sudden they didn't even have uniforms made in time.

The city, the state, and King County joined together in a lawsuit against the American League in 1970, seeking $32 million in damages. The suit was delayed while the league floated proposals to move various other teams to Seattle, but in 1976 the case finally came to court in Snohomish County. Eventually the league offered to locate another franchise in Seattle in exchange for the plaintiffs dropping the lawsuit. By this time the Kingdome was nearing completion, so a new team would have a suitable home without the headaches of Sick's Stadium. The plaintiffs agreed to this settlement, and the Seattle Mariners debuted in 1977.

From the guide to the Baseball Litigation Records, 1932-1977, 1964-1977, (City of Seattle Seattle Municipal Archives)