A letter was sent to Mayor Greg Nickels Thursday, June 18 by Wayne Barnett, executive director of the city's Ethics and Elections Commission, stating his agency found no evidence of favoritism in removing snow around the mayor's Admiral District home during the snowstorm this past winter.

This was in response to the mayor's March 20 letter sent to the commission requesting the investigation a day following The Seattle Times front page story reporting that favoritism did occur.

The letter from Barnett states:

Dear Mr. Mayor:

You asked the SEEC to investigate whether any aspect of the response to the December 2008 snow storm violated the Ethics Code, and to mete out any penalties if we found evidence of Ethics Code violations. We have completed our review and I have made the determination that
there is insufficient evidence to charge anyone with a violation of the Ethics Code. A copy of our report is attached."

Mayor Nickels recently told the West Seattle Herald, "There was a TV news van stationed near my driveway waiting to report on plows clearing the snow on my street first. No plows came. Our street was as bad as the others."

He said that there was an attempt to give priority to hospitals and hilly areas that could be extremely slippery and hazardous, and that some of those hilly areas were located in West Seattle, Queen Anne, and Magnolia.

Nickels released a statement about the report.

"It's extremely disappointing that news reports left people with a false impression," said Nickels. "I have never tolerated any hint of special treatment in any regard and this allegation was both disturbing and frustrating. I requested this investigation because I expect nothing short of ethical conduct by all city employees. As we move forward, one thing is certain: We are determined to improve our response to snow. I appreciate the Ethics and Elections Commission's work to thoroughly investigate and answer this question of preferential treatment."