Morning Roundup: Goodbye, Abe Edition
D.C. Police Seek Suspect in Series of Bank Robberies
Suspect in 9-Year-Old's Murder Found Dead in D.C. Jail
Photo of the Day: November 25, 2009
Ballou HS Rocks the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade
Good morning, Washington. Woohoo, spring! It's going to be gorgeous for the next couple days, and then ... summer arrives on Saturday? We're certainly not complaining about such a long stretch of sunshine, but just a couple more days in the upper 60s and 70s might have been nice before it starts getting seriously hot. At least we got all our freaky thunderstorms out of the way during the work week. Start planning your outdoor weekend activities, stat.
Nationals vs. DDOT vs. Metro: The Washington Post's Lena Sun had a late night last night, first filing a great story about how freshly confirmed DDOT Director Gabe Klein recently sent a letter to the Nationals informing them that the city could no longer afford to pick up the $27,000 per hour tab to pay for Metro to stay open late on nights when games go past midnight. The Nats apparently only got this news shortly after opening day, and while Metro ended up deciding to go ahead and stay open late for the most recent rain delay against the Braves, the entire situation appears to be an open question. Then late last night, Deputy Mayor Neil Albert inserted himself into the debacle, calling Sun to let her know that in his mind, Klein jumped the gun, and the city is actually committed to finding the money to continue to pay for the extended Metro hours. But the most interesting part of the story is this: "Under a 2003 Metro policy, organizations that want Metrorail to open early or close late are required to pay the agency a fee of $27,000 per hour. Such organizations and events include Susan G. Komen for the Cure, the Marine Corps Marathon, the Washington Redskins and groups that perform at the Verizon Center." So why can't the Nationals pay for this themselves?
MPD Hires PR Firm: The Metropolitan Police Department has been consulting with the Glover Park Group on crafting its public message, reports Theola Labbé-DeBose in the Post. That's why they've been putting out more positive press releases of late, such as almost daily announcements of the number of guns confiscated by the department. Bottom half of the story includes quotes from Washington City Paper's Jason Cherkis complaining about getting stonewalled by the MPD's public information office, while WTOP's Mark Segraves defends police spokesperson Traci Hughes, placing blame on the mayor's office for most defensive press shop maneuvers.
Briefly Noted: Crash in 3rd Street Tunnel creates huge traffic backup on I-395 ... City dedicates affordable housing at R Street apartments ...
Leak discovered in WASA’s 25-year-old crosstown tunnel ... Bill Clinton to campaign for Terry McAuliffe in Va. ... Company apologizes for ‘Natinals’ jersey error ... $1.7 million in artwork proposed for Dulles Rail stations.
This Day in DCist: In 2007, we visited the Takoma Park farmer's market, and in 2008, the Harris Teeter opened in Adams Morgan.
add to stumble upon
add to reddit
tweet this
post to facebook
MPD hired Glover Park Group? Good outfit, but I would have done it for half their feel.
The pr peeps are doing it for free.
I like Mendo's attempted slam about the best way to let people know crime is down is by actually reducing crime. Maybe if Mendo wasn't such a weak-on-crime pansy, we'd have tougher laws when it came to gun-related crimes.
So why can't the Nationals pay for this themselves?
Because they're a bunch of cheap bastards who'd steal Tiny Tim's crutch?
And just how "affordable" are those apartments on R Street? I can't find any numbers as to how much they're paying in rent.
The Nationals pay? Hahaha. That's a good one. The same outfit that didn't pay their rent in full on the ball park last year.
The Nats have paid their rent on the stadium in full, and this year they paid early. Yes, they paid late last year because of a contract dispute. But no one has ever done that, right?
I agree that they should help cover the cost of late game service since the Nats do have a say in deciding when and how long games are delayed.
It is funny, the Metro can't get funding or refuse to pay for pretty much most everything. Yet, they are seriously contemplating putting art in the Metro which will end up costing them $1.7 million a year in lighting and other care. No wonder the Metro is always in the hole. They can't seem to get their priorities straight. Sigh.
Well, of course Metro is always "in a hole." It's a subway. You would not have these financial problems with a proper crosstown skilift gondola network and jetpack public transit system. You're always "flying high" with them. Unless you run out of fuel or get stuck and have to use the toilet, which can be quite a problem if you've had one of Clyde's Thousand Island Bacon Ranch Chili Cheddar Burgers.
People seem to use the Metro as a toilet anyway, at least that is generally what I smell the days I actually do take public transportation.
I do need to correct myself about the so called art being $1.7 million. The $1.7 million is for the Dulles Rail. The other art they are proposing is for Farragut North and it will end up costing money for lighting and upkeep, which is money that could be better spent. I figure the only people who really would pay attention to art in the Metro, are tourtist or if there is a guy named Art doing performance art.
This always comes up when Metro's hard up for cash, but why aren't they selling more advertising space? Every one of those sound absorbing wall baffles in the stations should be sold to the highest bidder. Same thing with with the floor lights that indicate a train is coming. And if they ever get around to letting the public actually USE the station restrooms, they can put urinal cake advertisements in them. Think of all the money they could make from incontinent tourists? Metro would be stinking rich from all the golden showers of cash!
I think most people could come up with ways for the Metro to make money. If they actually did open the station restrooms, they could have people pay a quarter to use it. More ads would help. Actually, different ads would help liven up the joint or ads or restaurants and shops that are near that particular station. I think the Metro board is far more interested in trying to make the Metro some kind of fancy rail system to draw in more people.
They should close low-use stations on the weekend, convert the platforms to boutique bowling alleys, and charge exhorbitant prices for cocktails and burgers. Also, pipe in a lot of Journey/Boston/Kansas/BOC via the intercom and have a stripper do pole dances inside the platform elevator.
The fired Dupont Station Manger can finally get that consultant gig he was looking for.
All they have to do is install turnstiles in front of the restrooms. That way, you could use your SmarTrip when you needed to pinch a loaf or drain the main vein, and folks who took longer to drop the kids off at the pool would have to pay more.
That might be the most useful thing to ever be suggested for Metro. Ever.
I'd totally pay for that.
~EEE~
That might be the most useful thing to ever be suggested for Metro. Ever.
I'd totally pay for that.
~EEE~
All they have to do is install turnstiles in front of the restrooms. That way, you could use your SmarTrip when you needed to pinch a loaf or drain the main vein, and folks who took longer to drop the kids off at the pool would have to pay more.
Federal rules require spending on art for FTA-funded transit projects.
So let them spend a couple grand on art that DCPS students put together, and put the rest into fixing the system. I'd rather see some stupid misspelled 2nd Grade crayon refrigerator crap stuck up on station walls than know that millions were wasted on some chrome-plated turd some trustafarian art fart cobbled together from rusted girders, "found" objects, and crucifixes suspended in urine. No, strike that, I INSIST that the station art contain crucifixes in urine. The smell might distract from the awful fecal stench emanating from the Potomac Avenue Metro escalator. Better yet, they do an art installation called "Untitled #1s and #2s" which consists of a hole in the platform that passengers defecate into. You can also tack on a bronze memorial plaque honoring Richard Nixon/Marion Barry/the Unknown Credit Default Swap Inventor, so you're killing, like, twelve birds with one smelly stone right there.
I think they should buy some of the fecal sculptures that the "dirty protesters" did. It'd certainly be more relevant and interesting than the usual hunk of abstract scrap metal made by some art school washout.
If you want to see art, go to a museum. Spend the dough on making the system work.
Screw public "art."
Two words: disappearing urinal. WMATA needs to make this happen. NOW. Millions of bladders full of Starbucks, Mountain Dew, and $3 Miller Lites are depending on it!
Every time someone mentions art, I reach for my revolver...
Cue the thousands of sensitive art pansies who will flame me for misquoting Hermann Goering.
PS - Metro did NOT stay open late on Monday for the Braves game. I was there and left with most of the crowd at 11:15 after the second rain delay when an announcement was made that the last metro would leave at 11:45.
They announced that the last train would leave at 11:45, but they actually kept the Navy Yard station open till after midnight.
I think we should all get along like a rainbow. Let the kids sell lemonade inside the metro station. Rename the baseball team to The Nations Capitols. Expand the Cherry Blossom Season. Employ the homeless. Eat the rich.
..and events include Susan G. Komen for the Cure, the Marine Corps Marathon..
I think you mean the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure. Spending $27,000 to transport one person would be grossly inefficient, even by WMATA standards.
WassaMATA could save Millions of dollars if they switch to GEICO or use the already dug out tunnels made by the C.H.U.D's and Morlocks. Everbody wins. Everybody WANG CHUNG TONIGHT!
I don't understand how Dunn's and Zimmerman's jerseys even made it that far without being caught. The person that did the initial logo sewing....the person that did the number/lettering...the equipment manager who cleans the jerseys, places them on the hanger and puts them in their lockers....Dunn and Zimmerman themselves for not catching it when putting them on and taking part in warmups?
It's not like those were the only Dunn and Zimmerman jerseys they had.
A pic for refenence: http://wtop.com/?nid=398&sid=1656471
Oh well, back to thinking about more important topics...
Whoa is me. A single man. I don't drive a car. I don't go to baseball games. Yet I...have to pay taxes for schools and pay for the late buses at some baseball game. What does a single man get in this day and age?