Last week Ryan Mello announced a bid to retain his current seat (Position 8 At-large) on the Tacoma City Council. Mello was appointed to his council seat in January of 2010, at 31-years-old, and will now seek election to the Tacoma City Council for the first time. According to Mello's campaign he has already secured endorsements from many local organizations and elected officials including the Tacoma Firefighters, the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers and Mayor Marilyn Strickland.

Mello hopes his reputation is that of an advocate for reasonableness and an advocate for positive change.

"I don't just sit on the sidelines and take votes and take what staff tells me to be truth," he explains. "I dig in deep, I ask tough questions and I advocate hard for people who need access to city hall and need positive policy change."

In an interview with the Volcano Mello stresses his rejection of the status quo and his frustration with what he perceives as the slow pace of change and progress.

"People are yearning for change and progress," says Mello. "We need leaders who can articulate why we need change and what that direction is and who can get people off their duffs to make change."

Mello, an environmentalist by trade, says he plans on championing the expansion of public transit (notably the streetcar network), and also plans to work on growing green jobs Tacoma.

"I hope to hold the city even more accountable for economic development," he says. "I want to grow jobs leveraged on the center for urban waters that makes Tacoma known for clean technology, clean energy and clean water businesses."

It is still unknown if Mello will face opposition in this November's election; currently he is the only candidate filed to run for Position 8. Whether he is opposed or not, Mello says he welcomes opportunities to talk about his record.

"I will gladly talk about my record and my vision for Tacoma, and I welcome that opportunity because I think it's really important to the voters," he says.

If Mello does draw an opponent he says he will rely on traditional campaign techniques, with an emphasis on doorbelling, to spread his message. In fact, opponent or not, Mello says he will be going door-to-door this summer.

"I think it's important to not just show up at fund-raisers and organized neighborhoods that have the luxury of being organized," he explains. "Those are great and I will go to a lot of those, but I will still go door-to-door because I think oftentimes that's where you learn the most and meet the people who are really busy and trying to make ends meat."

Mello points out that if he doesn't end up drawing an opponent he will have more time to focus on policy.

"Just because I'm running a campaign doesn't mean the decision making stops," he says.

"We have some really important decisions to make that will be on our plate this summer - about billboards and the attractiveness of our city and the shoreline master plan and the future use of our shorelines in Tacoma," he continues. "If I'm able to not spend quite as much time on the campaign trail it means I'm going to be able to spend more time making good policy and listening to people."

Mello, who has at times  been at odds with Tacoma City Manager Eric Anderson and has often been criticized by local conservatives, understands his constituents hold many ideologies but hopes that beyond his policies, most have come to appreciate his character.

"Nobody agrees with anyone 100 percent of the time," he says, "but I hope people see I operate in good faith, I'm a good listener, and I have a vision that is generally in the direction that most Tacomans want, and that they want to continue to put their faith in my leadership."