Go Home Already: Shouts and Murmurs
Man Stops Traffic at 17th and K to Demand $200 Million
Compromise Uncertain on Same-Sex Marriage Law
Morning Roundup: Second Helpings Edition
Fire at 17th and L NW Forces Evacuations
NBC Washington reports that former Virginia attorney general Bob McDonnell is the official Republican option for governor of the Commonwealth. McDonnell, who accepted the nomination yesterday, faced no contestant in his bid to represent the GOP. This puts him at a comparative advantage to any of the three Democratic primary candidates -- State Senator Creigh Deeds, former Democratic National Committee Chairman Terry McAuliffe, and former House of Delegates Democratic Caucus leader Brian Moran -- who will need to wail on one another while resisting attacks from McDonnell. As the hilariously named Not Larry Sabato observes, it's unusual to see a fierce contest for the Democratic nomination in Virginia. A sign of changing political tides in the firmly purplish state? Is Virginia too changed for a Republican to win against an undecided Democratic convention?
News: May 2009 Archives
add to digg
add to stumble upon
add to reddit
email this
tweet this
add to facebookWith his final column, Marc Fisher examines the highlight reel from his career total of 1,250 columns for the Washington Post and an additional 1,200 posts for Raw Fisher. Fisher pores over the perennial debates at the heart of his column -- failing schools, wishful transit schemes, cynical bureaucracy -- and finds that Washington hasn't changed much, even if the way we talk has. Underlining his discussion of the transition from newsprint to new media is a polite complaint about the direction of journalism. There's a wistfulness to his criticism that the proliferation of opinion journalism (I take it he means blogging) is "elbowing out the rigorous work of reporting." Fisher's no David Simon raging against the perceived collapse of beat reporting, but Fisher's new project bespeaks a dissatisfaction with the way things are. "Starting next month, I'll be putting together a group of writers whose job it will be to tell the truths of the Washington area in compelling and essential ways, combining traditional storytelling with new forms that involve and engage the people who live here." If anything, Fisher's "journalistic SWAT team" sounds like an alt-weekly within a newspaper. It also sounds like a potentially great outlet for Fisher's well-reasoned curmudgeonliness, his acute local radar, and his catalog of characters and contacts in the city -- all, I think, the distinctive takeaways from his column.
So reports the Baltimore Sun: as the District considers its own same-sex marriage legislation, our neighbors to the north are currently stuck in limbo -- Maryland law clearly defines marriage as between a man and a woman, but also strictly recognizes marriages performed elsewhere. Recently, both D.C. and New York state have passed similar laws which would recognize same-sex unions performed in Massachusetts, Connecticut, and Iowa (as well, ostensibly, as both Vermont and Maine when those states' laws go into effect this fall). Attorney General Douglas F. Gansler, a proponent of same-sex marriage, is expected to release an opinion on a recognition law in the coming weeks. Efforts to grant equal marriage rights in the Old Line State have been consistently buried in legislative committee; many activists believe that state lawmakers are unlikely to change course until after the 2010 midterm elections.
Before jet-setting to New York today for another Saturday night date with her husband, First Lady Michelle Obama spent yesterday at Bancroft Elementary School in Mount Pleasant, where students are tending a garden -- similar to the one on the South Lawn of the White House which supplies veggies to both the White House and Miriam's Kitchen.
NBCwashington reports that Nationals season ticket holders -- the bloated throng of humanity that they are -- will get first dibs on the chance to be extras in the upcoming Owen Wilson/Reese Witherspoon flick, which has a working title of How Do You Know? (Honestly, the news that the film will apparently contain scenes of actual baseball -- instead of the two blonde actors just talking about their feelings or whatever -- is probably the real news here. Also: Paul Rudd.) Filming at Nationals Park begins in two weeks. If you're really desperate to be in a James L. Brooks rom-com but somehow don't possess Nationals season tickets, you can go wait in line at the park -- auditions will run on Monday from 4 to 8 p.m. Considering that individuals who have the disposable income to buy Nationals season tickets likely don't have a desire to waste time standing in the background of a movie scene for five seconds, folks in line might have a half-decent shot.
Good morning, Washington. Hopefully you enjoyed your Friday night -- perhaps you took in the scene at Artomatic's opening night, or pulled a Sam Raimi double feature with Send Me To Hell and Evil Dead 2. But whatever you did, here's hoping your evening was better than the one passengers had on United Airlines Flight 7542 to Montreal. Due to poor weather all over the map, the plane was stuck on the tarmac at Dulles for nearly eight hours. Take-off was scheduled for 12:20 p.m., but it wasn't until 6 that passengers were even allowed to deboard and stretch their legs. Ouch.
When legislation allowing the District to recognize same-sex marriages performed in other states came to a first vote before the D.C. Council, it received unanimous support. On its second vote, Council member Marion Barry (D-Ward 8) -- a "moral politician," or so he called himself at the time -- switched sides and voted against it. Now as a battle heats up over a possible referendum on the issue and future legislation that would fully legalize same-sex marriage in the District, some members of the council are starting to waffle on whether to support the cause.
The Oak Hill Youth Center, open since 1967 and plagued with the predictible issues of violence and failings one might suspect from a D.C. youth detention center, officially closes today. The last kids arrived yesterday at the New Beginnings Youth Center, not far from Oak Hill in Laurel, Md., where Mayor Adrian Fenty will be on hand today for its opening ceremony. The new campus is spacious and technologically advanced, with electronic key cards, floor-to-ceiling chalkboards for the kids -- and no razor wire -- making it "the anti-prison," the Post quotes Vincent N. Schiraldi, director of the D.C. Dept. of Youth Rehabilitation Services. "What we had before was a training school for them to become adult inmates. We want them to aspire to college, to be in a place that looks like you care about them."
Oh for the love of Pete. We Love DC caught this post over at Reality Blurred that Bunim-Murray, the producers of the Real World, have started seeking production assistants in the area in earnest (unlike earlier this year, when they were only searching for a production accountant, they're now seeking a slew of people who know the city and can work with camera crews). As they note, unless they're looking to produce a brand new series, it looks like the rumor mill about a Real World season finally happening in D.C. is about to kick into high gear. Between Blonde Charity Mafia, Real Housewives of D.C., and the friggin' Real World (not to mention a new Owen Wilson film that's scheduled to being filming in June, partly in the District), it looks like we won't be able to swing a jumbo slice without hitting a camera crew.
Written by former DCist Editor-in-Chief Ryan Avent
Mayor Adrian Fenty isn't having what one would call a stellar week. First he gets busted letting a buddy drive him around in his mayoral SUV. Then he's faced with the first real competition for the 2010 election. And after a $75,000 heater is installed in the public pool in which he trains, he's forced to issue a quasi-apology and deny that favoritism played a role in the decision. Now the City Paper's Loose Lips has found that the mayoral SmartCar was recently hit with a $50 speeding ticket on East Capitol Street. (Thankfully, should the ticket be contested in D.C. it may well be dismissed!) But better yet, a little digging finds that one of Fenty's assistants might have been driving the car as of late. No, it's not a violation of the law, but it begs some questions that LL is looking into. TGIF, right Adrian?
After months of hardly-secret negotiations between the two clubs, it's now official -- D.C. United will take on La Liga's Real Madrid in a friendly at FedEx Field on August 9. The game will likely be a mid-afternoon kickoff, and United's previously scheduled August 8 home match against Kansas City will be moved to September 9. The match will be a part of a short North American tour for the Spanish giants; the two teams last met in Seattle in 2006, a game in which United played well and earned a 1-1 tie. Steven Goff -- who, as usual with all things soccer, has been all over this story for an eternity -- also reports that current United season ticket holders are being emailed for the advance ticket sale, with prices ranging between $50 and $100, including parking. (Since it's FedEx Field, we're assuming that the face value of tickets is likely between $25 and $75. Thanks, Dan Snyder!) With this match and AC Milan and Chelsea in Baltimore on July 24, it's turning into a very nice summer for European football fans in D.C. indeed.
The Washington Times today carries news that will surely embolden area drivers and challenge District parking authorities.
City Desk reports that Jeffrey Taylor, the U.S. Attorney for the District, is resigning effective tomorrow and will be joining the private sector. He has served in that position since September 2006. The U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia handles not only federal crimes, but also serious local criminal cases. If you're a local lawyer or just a legal junkie, The Legal Times has a brief rundown on who the contenders to replace Taylor may be.
The Washington Examiner has an interesting report on the legality of billboards in the District. Interesting, in that no one seems to know whether any of them are legal or not. D.C. put a moratorium on new billboards in 1931, grandfathering in existing signs and preventing replacement if they were taken down, but around 1972, someone stopped updating the list of legal billboards. The Dept. of Consumer and Regulatory Affairs has now started an investigation into signs around the city and promises removal of any that are illegally placed. If you suspect you've found an improperly hanging billboard, contact DCRA (including any info and photos you have) at signs.dcra[at]dc.gov.
Ever since President Barack Obama announced that he would shut down the detention facility at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, law enforcement officials and politicians across the country have been fighting to out-NIMBY each other in refusing to house the 241 detainees that would need to be tried stateside. Virginia officials have been especially adamant about the issue, lining up to oppose sending any of the suspected terrorists to a jail in Alexandria. The issue has even become a point of contention in the coming Democratic gubernatorial primary.
Good morning, Washingtonians. Topping off the news this morning is word that Metro might decide today whether or not to allow vendors to set up in Metro stations. According to WJLA, the proposal, which more than 50 percent of riders are said to favor, would be used to help narrow a $29 million budget gap. For a transit agency as staid and conservative as Metro has historically been, this is nothing short of a monumental change. We love a clean Metro, but there's something to be said for food and drink options being available in stations, right? Especially if there's döner kebab, of course.
Even though the talk of someone taking on Mayor Adrian Fenty in the 2010 mayoral contest has been mostly idle chatter to date, a familiar face might be ready to take him on.
It's been awhile, thankfully, since the National Zoo had to answer questions about mysterious animal deaths. Unfortunately, it seems that 11 of the zoo's 18 stingrays and two arowana fish died over the holiday weekend, the Post reports. After they were found Monday morning, immediate testing of the water revealed that levels of dissolved oxygen were too low in the Amazonia exhibit's aquarium. The levels were fixed and the remaining stingrays are doing fine.
Fairly exciting news from WMATA: the transit agency let the world know this morning that they are planning to relaunch the much-clamored-for Next Bus service on July 1. In preparation, your bus stop du jour will be getting new signage anyday now. The Next Bus system, which uses GPS technology to accurately estimate the real-time arrivals of buses, should really assist those of us -- all of us, I should say -- who know the frustration of waiting forty minutes in the rain for a Metrobus, only to find three bunched buses, arriving at the same time.
Forget the indiscretions by tourists, Metro is aiming its new courtesy campaign at locals. Are you the anarchist in the video below sitting in the handicapped seats? Are you the obnoxious guy screaming on your cell phone about picking up the kids from soccer practice? Metro features a new YouTube video (no adorable Peeps, this time we get slightly scary Second Lifers) just for you, about common courtesy practices on the train.
Ever since the D.C. Council voted to recognize same-sex marriages performed in other states, there has been a growing debate over whether or not the District will proceed one step further and fully legalize the practice. Proponents have been thrilled at the possibility of the city's legislature making the move; opponents have warned of a great social and cultural conflict that could result.
Morning, Washington. We start your day not with weather problems (though we did get record-setting rains Monday and Tuesday, we'll only have light, isolated showers today), but traffic alerts. Those of you procrastinating your commute over the 14th Street bridge this morning might want to get a move on: major construction begins at 10 a.m. today through Sunday, which, we hate to tell you, is only more prep work for the extended two-year long rehabilitation of the bridge. Drivers can get the most updated info through DDOT, and sign up for their Twitter alerts here.
Among the thrilling matches of human prowess coming soon to our city: the Scripps National Spelling Bee and the US Air Guitar Championships. The Spelling Bee got started today, with the Round One Test, in which all 293 spellers spell 50 words on computers. The onstage action stats tomorrow. The Air Guitar Championship arrives on the 29th, at the 9:30 Club. Too bad the dates don't overlap. Wouldn't it be great if the competitors spent one day switching competitions? Shirtless, stoned, wannabe rockers mangling guerdon or appoggiatura and nerdy little kids rocking out all nervous?
The last 48 hours have been rather calamitous, even by D.C. standards. It started with the rain, torrential rain, many inches of it, which snarled traffic all over, and stranded three drivers in flooded roads in D.C. today and three in Beltsville last night. Flash flood warnings have been extended to tomorrow morning. This morning, a manhole fire on Harvard Street cut power for about 1,600 customers, disrupted traffic lights on Sherman Aavenue and forced the closure of part of Georgia Avenue. Wind gusts toppled trees, which closed roads, including a section of the southbound George Washington Parkway at Roosevelt Island. Until recently, police were directing traffic away from 14th and S streets NW because of a fire.
Remember that housing bubble mess? We'll we're not quite out of the deep end yet, emphasized by the Washington Business Journal today. They're reporting that local home prices are continuing to fall in most major cities compared to last year, with D.C.'s declining 18.4 percent. The reality: "We see no evidence that a recovery in home prices has begun," David Blitzer, chairman of the index committee at S&P, said in a statement. The Wall Street Journal blog notes that the nationwide decline has at least slowed ... except in D.C. and California, with the nation's capital posting the biggest monthly decline in the 25 market survey. The writer at DC Home and Condo Prices notes that sales volume in the area is up, however.
When news spread that the court would hand down its ruling today, D.C. gay rights activists made immediate plans for a gathering tonight, the flavor to be determined by how the justices ruled. Well, the court has decided to uphold the proposition, which bans gay marriage in the state. So tonight's gathering, starting at 8:30, will definitely be a protest. One positive note, though obviously bittersweet: the justices ruled that about 18,000 same-sex marriages sealed before the ban went into effect will remain legal. More info on the protest can be found on Facebook.
Bravo has gone and done it. Producers are currently casting for the newest franchise in the Real Housewives series, and they're doing it here. From the release: "We're tapping personalities who are among Washington D.C.'s influential players, cultural connoisseurs, fashion sophisticates and philanthropic leaders - the people who rub elbows with the most prominent people in the country and easily move in the city's diverse political and social circles." What I don't get: are there actually any housewives in D.C.? Don't the women here all work?
Mayor Adrian Fenty and Mayor for Life Marion Barry might need a little dose of humility with their morning tea, we think. Over the weekend we found out that Barry will once again dodge prison time for not paying his taxes for five years, and instead will face another two more years of probation. But rather than gracefully accept the ruling, the Post reports, Barry has accused U.S. prosecutors of harboring a vendetta against him and has demanded that their actions be investigated. Just as Barry justified his opposition to same-sex marriage by calling himself a "moral" politician a few weeks back, we think maybe it's time for the Ward 8 council man to not try and turn everything into a spectacle. Mayor Fenty might also want to tread a little more carefully. As we wrote earlier this morning, the Post reports that Fenty has allowed a close personal friend to chauffeur him around town in the mayoral SUV, possibly violating city regulations in the process. Is the mayor's buddy allowed to drive Fenty around? "He is if I let him," claims the mayor. We're guessing we aren't the only ones reminding the mayor today that laws aren't deemed applicable or not based on the mood of the city's chief executive.
Obama is set to nominate appeals judge Sonia Sotomayor to the Supreme Court seat vacated by David Souter at press conference this a.m. Sotomayor has been a front-runner for several weeks and received some, er, enthusiastic critiques from legal observers, like TNR's Jeffrey Rosen, who quoted anonymous law clerks to portray the Yale and Princeton grad as "not that smart." Sotomayor made her way to the Ivies after growing up in a housing project in the Bronx. Should make for interesting confirmation hearings. If she makes it, Sotomayor will be the third woman in the history of the court, the second on the current bench, and the first Latina.
More college grads headed this way: The Post reports that the region's reputation as a recession-proof economy is attracting more and more college graduates. Turns out there's reason for the optimism about DC, which is adding jobs in health care and government. The unemployment rate here is 6 percent, compared to 9 percent nation-wide.
Watch out National League. After Adam Dunn's triumphant grand slam yesterday against the Orioles, the Nationals have now not been swept for two straight series!
Yesterday's Post Metro section was all over the influx of federal stimulus funds making their way into the District, Maryland, and Virginia, and the jobs that said money is providing -- complete with all the colorful graphs and maps you'd expect.
Happy Memorial Day, D.C. As we pointed out earlier this weekend, news makers and news recorders are taking things easy this weekend. Hopefully, you're similarly preparing to fire up the grill well in advance of rain showers which will likely happen this afternoon. But if, for whatever reason, you're voluntarily or compulsorily stuck in front of a monitor today, here's some news to get your day rolling.
Ward 8 Councilmember and Marion Barry held a press conference yesterday to assail publicly the U.S. attorneys who tried to put him behind bars for not filing his 2007 tax returns on time, a violation of the former mayor's parole. "This is a victory for the people of the District of Columbia and myself and a defeat -- a defeat, a defeat, a defeat -- for the U.S. attorney's office," he said, according to Nick Miroff at the Washington Post. A victory for you and me, District of Columbia! Barry was given an extension to his probation as punishment for violating the probation he earned in 2006 for failing to pay his taxes. He told people at the conference that he's feeling good after his recent kidney transplant and intends to become an advocate for kidney health issues. Should we expect to see him as a judge in the National Kidney Foundation–sponsored DC 101 Chili Cookoff next year?
From the start, it just seemed like a match that one goal would win. After all, the evening's opponents just so happened to be winless (0-4-0) on the road, without a single goal to their name. But unfortunately for United, that vital tally never came -- the team couldn't avenge their loss to Real Salt Lake earlier this season and sent 16,089 away kissing their sisters after last night's 0-0 draw at RFK.
According to a Yahoo! Sports report, the Tennesee Titans are claiming that the Redskins tampered with free agent Albert Haynesworth before the official opening of the free agency period. The 'Skins outbid several other teams to sign the hefty defensive tackle to a nine-figure deal mere hours after he was eligible to be inked to a new contract; the Titans are claiming that due to the illegal Redskins negotiations with Haynesworth, they were unable to fairly tender an offer to their former star defender while he was still with the team. It's an incredibly difficult accusation to prove, but if Tennesee succeeds, Washington would forfeit a draft pick -- likely in the later rounds. The last proven tampering case cost the San Francisco 49ers a fifth-round pick in 2007.
The quotes in this morning's Post are straight out of a schlocky horror movie: "You prevent the spread for as long as you can, and then you just suck it up." Zombies? Aliens? C.H.U.D.s? Oh, no, it's zebra mussels, pesky little creatures that invade freshwater bodies and generally cause chaos. The mussels -- considered the roaches of the sea, as they feed on detritus -- vex everything that uses the water: their sharp shells cut swimmers' feet and damage boats, while power plants and water treatment plants usually need to spend a whole bunch of money to clear them from pipes. Having toted over here on Eastern European ships in the 1980s like a modern-day version of rats, the mussels have most recently caused a ruckus in the Great Lakes, costing millions of dollars in damage -- and now, they are working their way down the Susquehanna River to the Chesapeake Bay. They breed rapidly, can slip through dams, and there's not much that can really be done to stop them. As a associate director at the Maryland Department of Natural Resources notes: "I'm knocking on wood that we don't have a zillion of them by fall." I'd tell you to aim for the head, but they don't have one.
It's Memorial Day Weekend, which means that there's very little in the realm of hyper-analytical journalism out there -- and, by jeeves, that's the way it should be. That said, here's some stories to catch you up on the day's news, presented in an easily digestible format; a description which probably can't be used to describe that second hamburger and half-pound of potato salad which you just inhaled. Godspeed, fellow grillmasters!
Is Jumbo Slice a nuisance? It certainly feels that way by [ the walk of shame home -- because you spent your last single bills ensuring that your blood-grease content matched your BAC -- you bet, Jumbo Slice feels like a right pain in the high heel.
Nothing screams "relaxing summer holiday weekend" like news about increases in electricity rates for the winter of 2010, right? The AP is reporting that Pepco requested an increase in delivery rates from the D.C. Public Service Commission on Friday. The increase would likely mean a six percent increase in monthly electric bills for every electricity user living inside the District. Enjoy! Hey, at least if your electric bill suddenly shoots up by a few bucks every month come January, you'll know why -- unlike this past winter.
In yesterday's Go Home Already, we noted that family and friends of D.C. area resident Chris Gascoigne were searching for him; Gascoigne had been missing since Wednesday after he and his vehicle were last seen in Hagerstown, Maryland. Sadly, we received word last night that Gascoigne's black Pontiac was found in nearby Middletown, Maryland with a deceased male inside. Although authorities are not confirming the identity of the deceased, a member of grassroots effort to find Gascoigne confirmed that it was indeed the 22-year-old who was found in the car. Both Fairfax County and Frederick County police are still investigating.
If you're leaving the District for the holiday weekend but you haven't hit the road yet, you might be asking yourself, "Did Beyonce actually record a song about Jay-Z's penis? Does the gold lamé napkin she's wearing for the video constitute clothing?" Good questions -- but the wrong questions! You need to know about traffic.
Welcome to your 2009 Memorial Day weekend, D.C. Apparently, more of you are going to be enjoying what Washington has to offer over the holiday -- whether that's soaking in the rays at the now-open pools, reflecting at monuments and memorials, or simply being stuck in traffic somewhere around the District. If you are planning on traveling outside of the confines of the District -- and based on projections, plenty of you probably are, including about 350,000 cars predicted to use the Bay Bridge -- remember to pack plenty of patience and awareness, and, of course, remember that Memorial Day is also one of the biggest weekends of the year for the highway patrol.
We have to admit, when we first started watching this C-SPAN video of RNC Chairman and D.C. native Michael Steele talking to students at H.D. Woodson Senior High School, we were ready to scoff. Really Michael Steele, we wondered, do you actually want to tell students in DCPS, where only one out of ten students ever graduate from college, that while at Johns Hopkins, "I partied my behind off," and "I heard there were classes" and then mock the letter announcing that you had been kicked out?
It looks like Congress has once again left District residents without a resolution on voting rights. At the end of March, Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) said he expected the D.C. House Voting Rights Act to come to a vote in some form by the end of May. But the U.S. House left town for its Memorial Day recess last night, making it now impossible for anything to happen until June at the earliest. We're also still waiting to see if the White House is going to get involved, as D.C. Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton claimed last week and the Post demanded yesterday. Rumor has it that Attorney General Eric Holder is on the job, but even a big push from him next week wouldn't yield any forward momentum from an absent Congress. We're still hoping for the best, but we're not above feeling like we're stuck in a real-life version of Groundhog Day.
Peter Nickles
WMATA has posted the holiday transit schedules for D.C.'s transit system, along with the nearby suburban systems. Note that on Monday, Memorial Day, Metrorail, Metrobus and MetroAccess will all operate on a Sunday schedule, with the Metrorail system open from 7 a.m. to midnight. Parking at all Metro-operated lots will also be free on Monday. Check the full schedule for more details.
D.C. Fire/EMS is reporting an apartment fire on the first floor of a residential building at 253 V Street NW. Streets in the surrounding area, including V Street, 2nd St. NW, and 3rd St. NW are currently blocked off as firefighters work to control the blaze. At least one adult female is being treated for minor smoke inhalation.
The Department of Employment Services released the latest jobs figures this morning, and despite last month's modest improvement, things are once again looking worse. The April unemployment rate for the District of Columbia was 9.9 percent, up 0.2 percent from the March 2009 rate and the exact same as the February 2009 rate. The figure also shows a 3.5 percent increase in the number of unemployed D.C. workers over the same month last year. Nationally, the unemployment rate for April was 8.9 percent, an increase of 0.4 percent from the March 2009 rate. Back in December, D.C. CFO Natwar Gandhi predicted the District's unemployment rate would reach 10 percent by 2010.
We're hearing from a lot of people who had lengthy Red Line delays on their way in to work this morning, with anecdotal reports of sitting still for up to 35 minutes underground before getting going again. Metro says the delays are due to a track circuit malfunction outside the Dupont Circle station, which forced trains to single-track between Dupont Circle and Van Ness. The malfunction was, according to Metro, already resolved by about 8:30 a.m., but delays have been ongoing since then.
It's Memorial Day weekend, which means an official start to the summer season, open public swimming pools, white shoes for the ladies and just about the time we at DCist switch our official weather commentary policy from "F**k the cold" to "F**k the heat." (Davy DCist will have plenty to say this summer; trust me.) It's looking to be a lovely weekend, though, so whether or not you're heading out of town, make sure to enjoy it. And read DCist. A lot. Most of us will be prying ourselves from our keyboards and trying to develop something approaching a tan, but we've made sure to chain someone to the computer to bring you news, commentary and pictures galore.
The pools are open! The pools are open! Thus declared D.C. Mayor Adrian Fenty today (well, we're paraphrasing slightly). The outdoor municipal swimming pool season got its official start at a ceremony at the Anacostia Pool this morning, though minus any sort of mayoral or celebrity cannonball. Instead, members of the Bell Multicultural and Dunbar Senior High swim teams did the honors by being the first to dive in. It's nice to get the kids involved, but is too much to ask for something a little sillier, Mr. Mayor?
The District of Columbia today gained a few more members of Congress who think they know what's best for our city. A handful of socially conservative House members gathered reporters this afternoon to introduce a bill that would define marriage in D.C. as a "union of one man and one woman," Politico reports. The effort is designed to signal opposition to recent D.C. Council action that would allow same-sex marriages legally performed in other states to be recognized in the District, as well as any further local legislation that might come this year to legalize such ceremonies in D.C.
It's almost time to hit the road for the shore, and AAA Mid-Atlantic has per usual put out its prediction for holiday weekend traffic. Bad news, area drivers: they're putting it a 4 percent increase over last year, and as we recall, last year was pretty terrible in its own right. An estimated 608,000 D.C.-area residents will be traveling by car this Memorial Day holiday weekend, versus 49,000 who will be flying. Please to consider carpooling, fellow travelers. We don't want to have to end up in a road rage-fueled shoulder-driving expedition followed by eventual arrest and the paying of big fines. It'd really put a damper on our BBQ plans.
The Cleveland Park location of D.C.-area based Margruder's Market is closing its doors this weekend, according to Nbcwashington.com. Saturday will reportedly be the last day of business for the market, located at 3527 Connecticut Avenue NW, at the intersection of Connecticut Avenue and Porter Street NW. It's a bummer for the adjacent neighborhood, as Magruder's was a convenient spot to be able to pick up essentials. Magruder's locations in Gaithersburg, Rockville, Kemp Mill, Vienna, Falls Church, Alexandria and Chevy Chase will remain open. The rising cost of rent is cited as the reason for the closing.
Victor MacFarlane, the San Francisco-based real estate magnate, has sold his share of D.C. United to partner Will Chang, another San Francisco real estate executive. Chang now owns 98% of the team, with former Dukies Christian Laettner and Brian Davis splitting the rest. Chang and MacFarlane bought the team in 2007 and have been particularly active in pushing new stadium developments in both Poplar Point and outside the District in Prince George's County. While the initial reaction may be panic — Red Bulls supporters could be heard chanting "St. Louis United" tauntingly after last night's D.C. win — there is a belief out there that MacFarlane's demands went beyond a stadium to include an entire complex. Either way, the next few months may hold some very interesting developments in the future of the club in the D.C. area.
If there was anything to glean from United's 5-3 whupping of the New York Red Bulls last night, it was that any analytical recap angles this writer planned to explore went out the window after United struck four times in the opening 30 minutes. Oh, and that Chris Pontius is really, really good in the air. With apologies to topics like goalie Josh Wicks and how he compares to United's other keepers and United's incredible bench strength, last night's win -- which earned United a place in the First Round Proper of the U.S. Open Cup -- was simply about one side running roughshod over the other for 45 minutes, and, of course, the further emergence of United's newest goal-scoring phenom.
The Metropolitan Police Department and the U.S. Park Police are warning area drivers about the following temporary road closures for events scheduled over the Memorial Day weekend.
Man, the Washington Post really knows how to twist the knife while the wound is still fresh. Just a day after we all learned that the National Zoo's female adult panda, Mei Xiang, wasn't pregnant after all, Postie Michael E. Ruane files a story reminding us that Tai Shan, our beloved stick o' butter who's now all grown up, will eventually be sent back to China. Oh, and that day could come sooner than you think. Thanks, man. You also had something to tell us about Santa Claus, right?
Good morning, D.C., and happy pool day! Yes, today is the day when Mayor Adrian Fenty officially declares the city's outdoor public swimming pools to be open. Unlike his predecessor, Anthony Williams, Fenty has eschewed the traditional cannonball in previous years, instead tapping a local celebrity or media personality (like NBC4's Tom Sherwood) to do the honors. So who will jump in the pool this year? DCist doesn't know and the mayor's office isn't giving any clues, just touting 'DPR's Mystery "First in the Pool" Guest(s),' an intriguing plural if there ever was one. The whole thing's going down at 10:30 a.m. this morning at the Anacostia Pool, located at 1800 Anacostia Drive SE. We'll bring you more about D.C. public pool openings and hours later in the day.
D.C. Fire/EMS is reporting an explosion at a Southeast D.C. home this afternoon that critically injured at least one person. It's looking like a propane tank exploded inside the basement of a house at 1127 46th Street SE. FOX5 is reporting that a 49-year-old man who was inside the home is in critical condition after suffering second and third-degree burns from the explosion and subsequent fire. Fire crews remain on the scene, and there's some concern that the house could collapse.
You may already be following the story of the Capital City Diner, a new restaurant planned by Trinidad resident Matt Ashburn (City Paper wrote about it yesterday). Ashburn and his partner, Patrick Carl, bought a Silk City Diner, one of those original 1940s era sleek modular diner buildings, in upstate New York and planned to install it on the site of one of the former used car lots shut recently shut down by Mayor Fenty. Great idea, right? We were definitely intrigued by the news, and had already set up a time for a photographer to go down there this weekend to check the place out.
Might want to prepare some brain bleach before clicking through to this story, from Fredericksburg.com, about a Spotsylvania man who was arrested this week 'after admitting to family members he had been "fooling around" with his pet German shepherd.' The charges? Bestiality. The suspect, Robert John Ward, 66, was also apparently a registered sex offender. Highlight of the story: the arrest came only after a veterinarian exam revealed the female dog’s anal glands were swollen. Gaaaah. NBC4 also has the story, and they say Ward's actually being held without bond, which, despite the grossness of the crime, does seem awfully extreme.
Just like the public swimming pools open over Memorial Day, there's usually an unofficial kick-off to the summer crime season in the District. It's never on the same day and it's usually not just one event, but rather a series of incidents that invariably provoke a response from the police and politicians. This year, it looks like it's come a little earlier than usual, and the city is already grappling with ways to respond.
Oh, Mei Xiang, you absolute heartbreaker. Staff at Smithsonian's National Zoo confirmed late yesterday their adult female giant panda is in fact not pregnant, and was instead experiencing another one of her pseudopregnancies. This also happened last summer. And the summer before that.
Yesterday we reported that after an acrimonious debate, on Monday the Ward 5 Democrats voted 87-51 against endorsing any plans to legalize same-sex marriage in the District. The vote followed in the wake of the Ward 8 Democrats weekend vote in favor same-sex marriage. Yesterday, the Ward 6 Democrats chimed in, overwhelmingly siding with marriage equality in a 73-3 vote. Charles Allen, president of the Ward 6 Democrats and Chief of Staff to Council member Tommy Wells (D-Ward 6), said in a press release, “Equal and full civil rights are core principles of the Democratic Party and that was affirmed again tonight by the Ward 6 Democrats." The Democratic committees of Ward 2 and Ward 4 have also voted to support marriage equality.
Good morning, Washington. Last night was the NBA draft lottery, the event that determines which teams will have the privilege of making highly speculative bets on freakishly athletic basketball prodigies. The Washington Wizards have just come off of a terrible season, making them mathematically incapable of drawing a spot any worse than the fifth... which is what they drew, of course. Great. More on Bloomingdale Shootings: The Post has the latest on yesterday's series of shootings in Bloomingdale, which left four people injured, — one seriously — and made the evening commute in the area a mess. A brown minivan fled the scene and eventually crashed, injuring four police officers in the process and leading to the arrest of the van's three occupants. Police Chief Lanier has speculated that the shootings were gang-related. Loudoun Teacher Suspended For Death of Student Years Ago: The Post's Loudoun Extra section reports some unexpected fallout from yesterday's Hill testimony about the restraint and abuse of schoolchildren. One of the incidents highlighted in the report and testimony concerned a Texas teacher who restrained a student by lying on him, which resulted in the child's death. No charges were filed, and the teacher now works in Loudoun County — and her bosses were apparently quite surprised to learn about the past incident. She's been placed on administrative leave while the county reviews whether she was appropriately forthcoming about the incident when interviewing for her current job. Final Va. Gubernatorial Debate: The Examiner's William Flook takes one for the team, sitting through the final debate among the candidates vying for the Democratic nomination for the Virginia governorship. It sounds like things heated up a bit as Brian Moran and Creigh Deeds took collective aim at apparent front-runner Terry McAuliffe. Exciting! Or at least it's what passes for excitement when you have three candidates with very similar policy positions and a need to differentiate themselves. Briefly Noted: Barbara Jordan Public Charter School closing doors due to low enrollment... Man claiming to be police officer assaults teenage girl in Prince William County... Amtrak cutting some rates out of D.C. for the summer... Former AARP employee pleads guilty to fraud scheme... Maryland giving unclaimed money to residents, swears it's not a scam despite obvious similarities to contents of your junk email folder... Civil war artillery shell found in landfill, disposed of by bomb squad... Some purple line funding to come from road projects... Traffic congestion down thanks to gas prices and sluggish economy... Virginia man sentenced to five years for fish fraud... This Day In DCist: One year ago commenters were bummed about Benjamin Banneker's apparent selection as the face of D.C.'s state quarter and a life-or-death standoff began between the city and a local art gallery (the lives in question belonged to some goldfish). Image posted to DCist Photos by Flickr user mosley.brian
D.C. Fire/EMS is reporting that four people were shot just before 5 p.m. near North Capitol and R Streets NW, one in critical condition and the rest with serious injuries, all being transported to the hospital. The incident is the second shooting to happen in the same vicinity since this morning. An unidentified individual was shot in the ankle before 10 a.m. this morning near 1st Street NW and Florida Ave. NW.
Martin made the case yesterday that playing up the racial divisions within our city when it comes to same-sex marriage was misleading, especially when considering how the Ward 8 Democrats recently voted to support marriage equality legislation, despite opposition from their D.C. Council member.
First the issue of guns came to haunt the D.C. voting rights bill, now it seems to be haunting other pieces of legislation Democrats are looking to pass. The Politico reports today that Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) has all but thrown in the towel, admitting that Republicans have effectively used amendments related to guns to either stall legislation or force conservative Democrats into tough votes. While the voting rights bill has been stuck due to an amendment that would gut the District's gun laws, legislation on credit cards will likely pass with an amendment attached that will expand gun carrying rights in national parks. Hoyer still claims that the D.C. voting rights bill will pass "one way or another."
We got several tips about a car catching fire on 17th Street NW near K, right by Farragut Square a little while ago. Reader Brett Andriesen was kind enough to send in this image from his phone - looks like the fire department already has the situation under control. Hope that wasn't your green SUV (looks like an Explorer maybe?).
Hey, great news for those of you who have found yourselves un- or underemployed in this rough economy ... thousands of recent college graduates are moving to Washington to compete with you for jobs and housing! And they're willing to work for nothing and overpay to live in rooms the size of closets! Hooray! We kid (a little, anyway), naturally. Of course we want to welcome these youngsters and encourage the continued growth of our city. Besides, as the Examiner notes in its article: "the market was significantly better for those with at least a couple of years of experience, or a master’s degree." So suck it, graduates!
Good morning, Washington. Once again today, there's nothing on Mayor Adrian Fenty's public schedule, so the city's top official is presumed to be still in Las Vegas for the International Shopping Center Convention. As far as we know there are zero local reporters in Vegas to keep tabs on the D.C. delegation there, so we've been trying to guess which of today's panels and workshops might be of the most interest to our favorite local politicos. "Public-Private Deals in a Credit Crunch World," perhaps?
Or so Tony Kornheiser of PTI fame described his replacement, Jon Gruden, on ESPN’s Monday Night Fooball. Gruden perfected his tan as head coach of the Tampa Bay Bucanneers for seven years and won one Super Bowl with the franchise before being fired this offseason.
Another "don't panic" flyover warning to tell you about. The North American Aerospace Defense Command, better known as NORAD, sent out a press release earlier today announcing that a pair of fighter jets will make passes over the District in the predawn hours on Tuesday and Wednesday mornings this week. The two-day exercise, being called Falcon Virgo, is made up of a series of training flights designed to hone NORAD's intercept and identification operations. Two Air Force F-16s, along with Civil Air Patrol aircraft (a pair of Cessnas) and Coast Guard helicopters are set to begin passing over the city starting at midnight and pass back over several times until 6 a.m. The same thing will happen again the next morning. Hopefully most of you won't even notice the majority of these flights while you're sleeping. Also see The Post.
The Examiner ran an interesting piece this morning on the results of a 2007 survey that suggests that Metrorail riders in the D.C. metro area are wealthy (they have a whopping median income of $102,110) and college educated (80 percent!), while Metrobus riders are less well off: their median income is $69,620, and 59 percent have a college degree. First things first: the most obvious point to be made here is that even Metrobus riders in the D.C. area appear to be very, very well off according to this survey. I mean crap, I realize that figure isn't an average income, but I now feel like one of the poorest people on the bus.
An AP story is making the rounds of the broadcast outlets (WTOP has some of its own reporting as well) about how D.C. firefighters rescued a bunch of baby ducklings from a storm drain near 16th and U Streets NW early this morning. Neighbors called the fire department after the mama duck alerted them to her babies' predicament with her incessant honking. From WTOP: "Three firefighters from Engine Company No. 9, which is right next to the alley, went into action, pulling off the drain's cover and getting out a bucket. One held the legs of Sgt. Michael Engels as he reached down and scooped the swimming ducks into the bucket." Pretty cute. All the little ducklings are safe and sound and have been turned over to animal control.
Ryan Zimmerman's hitting streak ended the same day as the Capitals season, leaving the Nationals without any positive story lines right when people are going to start paying attention to them. To those local sports fans, let us implore you to turn your eyes towards D.C. United. They are tied for first in the East, with three wins, one loss, and six ties.
Social divisions and fissures make for good headlines. After all, it's much easier to write about group A feuding with group B than it is to have to explain that neither A nor B are neatly recognizable groups.
Good morning, Washington. Hopefully you've all dried out by now from Saturday night's impressive storm - the one The Washington Post says might have caused a $700,000 fire in Silver Spring and officially increased our annual rainfall to 0.23 inches above normal. I was at Nationals Park that night, and the sudden downpour (which eventually forced the officials to call the game after fewer than six full innings) was really a spectacle in and of itself. Watching the sky fill up all at once with those massive, seemingly endless raindrops through the the stadium lights was as beautiful as it was wet. What does this week have in store for us? It may be cool again today, but looks like we'll be in the 80s again before you know it.
Whew, we can all breathe a little easier now. After what seemed like weeks of incessantly meaningless bickering, D.C. Wire reports that the Mayor's office handed over 19 Nationals seats to the City Council today, in what I'm sure new City Administrator Neil O. Albert is going to remember fondly as his first official duty in said capacity. Vincent Gray & Co. will be able to use the seats in Suite 61 at Nationals Park starting on Wednesday against Pittsburgh. (Hey, just in time to watch the Nationals and Pirates battle for the title of most incompetent National League franchise!) Post scribe Nikita Stewart, who broke the story, wonders about the timing of the exchange: "[t]he tickets could be a peace offering as Fenty tries to convince the council to restore some of his original budget proposal before a final vote on the budget support act." Uh, sure, tickets are nice and all, but if the Mayor thinks that giving the Council Nats tickets which they already believed were theirs is really going to grease the wheels, he probably has not seen a lot of Nationals games this season. (Springsteen tickets probably would have been a better choice.) But hey, that's beside the point here -- at least now we won't have to hear about this nonsense again until there's something interesting happening at the Verizon Center.
Council member Marion Barry must have felt pretty confidently that he'd taken the temperature in Ward 8 on the issue of gay marriage. Barry, as you know, cited his constituents when he voted against recognizing same-sex marriages from other jurisdictions. Oh, but fickle democracy! Mercurial, bicurious base! How might Barry have known that left to their own affairs, Ward 8 Democrats would vote nearly 2 to 1 for teh ghey! The Washington Post reports that the meeting saw a 21 to 11 vote supporting the legalization of same-sex marriage in the District. The article also notes that opponents of same-sex marriage are appealing for a direct referendum on gay marriage. A Prop 8 for Ward 8? Good god almighty, let's hope not.
Once the Third Church of Christ, Scientist, razes its building -- as is now the church's confirmed right -- photographs are all that will remain of the Brutalist bunker. Take a good look now, because it won't be long before 16th and Eye NW looks quite different -- and almost certainly less architecturally distinct.
Via Prince of Petworth, there's word of yet another shooting inside the District, adding to the already lengthy tally of gun violence this weekend. In this instance, a PoP reader reported that a up to five shots were fired on the 1800 block of Monroe Street NW in Mount Pleasant last night. One youth -- only 15 years old -- was reportedly hit in the leg and transported to a hospital in an ambulance. Police are still investigating.
Despite some dire warnings from ABC7, traffic doesn't look too terrible. It looks as though Howard's commencement is taking its toll on Georgia Avenue NW, but otherwise traffic doesn't look out of ordinary for a Saturday that's only threatening rain.
Good morning, D.C. It was an incredibly violent night in the District, as a rash of gunfire rang out in multiple incidents in Adams Morgan, Columbia Heights and other neighborhoods. In the Adams Morgan shooting, the Post reports that two plain-clothes officers and a uniformed lieutenant interrupted an armed robbery near the Marie H. Reed Learning Center between Kalorama and Champlain Streets NW. The perpetrator then opened fire, hitting one officer in the back and the other in the leg. In the exchange, the suspect was killed.
On the heels of Nikita Stewart's scoop last night that people have been getting vetting calls from the FBI about D.C. City Administrator Dan Tangherlini, D.C. Mayor Adrian Fenty called a 3 p.m. press conference today to announce a “Cabinet-level” personnel announcement. And the word has just come down: Tangherlini is off to Treasury, where he'll serve as assistant secretary for management, chief financial officer, and chief performance officer. That's sure a lot of titles, DanTan!
We received several reports of a booming, explosion-like noise coming from a parking garage near 16th and L Streets NW just before 11:30 a.m. D.C. Fire/EMS spokesperson Alan Etter tells us that the fire department responded to what turned out to be an electrical failure with some Pepco equipment, possibly a transformer, at that location. No visible fire resulted from the short circuit, but we did hear some smoke was visible in the area immediately after the booming noise. Etter described the incident as "not a big deal."
Logan Circle men's clothing and athletic store Universal Gear posted a surveillance video of a recent robbery in their store to YouTube, and they're offering a $500 reward to anyone who shares information leading to the arrest of one or more of the individuals involved.
Mark your calendars, Washington. Eastern Market's official reopening has been set for June 26, as D.C. Mayor Adrian Fenty announced yesterday. It's been a little over two years since the historic building was ravaged by fire. A temporary structure was eventually built to house the market's vendors while a $22 million renovation project began on the building itself.
Frustrating but entirely predictable update on Metro's federally mandated cell phone service expansion plan from the Examiner's Kytya Weir today. You'll recall that as part of a $1.5 billion funding package passed by Congress last fall, Metro is required to expand cell phone service coverage to all major companies, including Verizon, Sprint Nextel, AT&T and T-Mobile, to the 20 busiest underground rail stations by October. But of course as Weir writes, it turns out the entire project will "remain a patchwork of service for up to three more years." You will be able to use your phone inside those 20 stations by the end of the year, but not in the subway tunnels adjacent to those stations for a long time later. Metro isn't required to have service up and running in all 47 of their stations until October 2010, and the entire system, including tunnels, until October 2012. So in other words, you'll soon be able to make calls regardless of your service provider while you're standing on many station platforms, but at least for the next couple of years, don't necessarily plan on continuing those calls once you board a train.
The massive two-year-long 14th Street bridge construction project was scheduled to begin on Monday, but the start of work has been postponed until Tuesday, May 26, the day after Memorial Day, WTOP reports. The change in plan is due to a need to coordinate traffic control with the National Park Service, according to DDOT.
A man who was shot near the intersection of 7th and N M Streets NW Thursday night died of his injuries. The Metropolitan Police Department said it is investigating the shooting, which happened at approximately 9:37 p.m., as a homicide.
Happy Bike to Work Day! Thankfully the torrential downpours have passed just in time for the area's cyclists to head to work, stopping at designated pit stops along the way for free food, coffee, and camaraderie.
The Going Out Gurus are reporting that two Adams Morgan bars, Bossa Bistro & Lounge and Bobby Lew's Saloon, have had their liquor licenses revoked by the D.C. Alcohol Control Board for low food sales. Both bars had restaurant-class licenses, which require 45 percent of gross receipts to be derived from food sales. Neither establishment has ever been in trouble regarding their liquor licenses before, but it's unclear what will happen now, as the board seems bent on sticking to the letter of the law and making an example out of the two.
DDOT reports that H Street NE has been closed between 5th and 7th Streets due to a gas main break. The gas leak is reportedly at 624 H Street NE, right outside the H Street Self Storage building. Traffic is being detoured around the area.
So D.C. Attorney General Peter Nickles says he's finally moved into the District from Virginia, as he was required to do under D.C. law after he was confirmed as Fenty's replacement AG. "I have moved. I have a D.C. license plate. I have my picture on a D.C. license. I'm paying D.C. taxes," Nickles said. But he won't say where, exactly, he's living, and it sure sounds like his wife is not really living there, so we're guessing he won't actually be sleeping there all that often. It's not as though we think we ought have the man's home address, but it would at least be nice if he could say which neighborhood, or which ward even, he's moved into. So, DCist readers, if you see Nickles at the grocery store or parking his car in your neck of the woods, be sure to send in word of the sighting to tips@dcist.com.
Groups including Bilerico D.C., The Gay and Lesbian Activists Alliance, The Gertrude Stein Democratic Club and The Log Cabin Republicans of Metro D.C. sponsored a community forum on gay marriage and the faith community Wednesday night at All Souls Church in Adams Morgan. The panel featured Episcopal priest Rev. Monique Ellison, D.C. For Marriage Chair Michael Crawford and ACLU attorney Sharon McGowan.
Here's the statement we got back from a Google spokesperson about this morning's seemingly large outage in the Washington, D.C. area: "The issue affecting some Google services has been resolved. We’re sorry for the inconvenience, and we'll share more details soon." So basically, not really an answer at all. We'd press them on the issue, but today's outage really drove home how completely and totally this company appears to have taken over our ability to function on a daily basis. Angering The Google would be like hanging up a big sign in our yard saying "We Hate Oprah" in Chicago. You really shouldn't do that if you value your life. UPDATE: More from the Official Google blog: "An error in one of our systems caused us to direct some of our web traffic through Asia, which created a traffic jam. As a result, about 14% of our users experienced slow services or even interruptions. We've been working hard to make our services ultrafast and "always on," so it's especially embarrassing when a glitch like this one happens. We're very sorry that it happened, and you can be sure that we'll be working even harder to make sure that a similar problem won't happen again."
NewsChannel 8's Bruce DePuyt has an interview with D.C. Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton in which Norton drops some teasers about what's to come in the long-stalled D.C. House Voting Rights Act (h/t Loose Lips). Apparently the White House is set to get involved, though Norton won't say exactly who. And what will the final bill look like? “We think we can keep [same-sex marriage] off of it...I think I can keep some guns off.” Hmmmm. Some? We tried to get details out of voting rights activists, but no one seemed to know much right now. The last time we checked in, Norton and Majority Leader Steny Hoyer were quibbling over when the bill should be voted on. We're now half-way through May, and time is ticking away...
Inside Edition's "Rat Patrol" returned to the District this week, taking aim, perhaps predictably, at the various D.C. fast food joints recently frequented by the Obamas. The television program confirmed that two of the eateries featured in the upcoming episode were Five Guys restaurants, including the Dupont Circle location where Michelle Obama took members of her staff for lunch back in February. Indeed, the Five Guys located at 1645 Connecticut Ave NW is shuttered this morning, with a sign on the door explaining that the fast food restaurant is "closed until further notice."
Roll Call's Emily Yehle reports that some drunk guy managed to wander in and out and back in to the Hart Senate Office Building through a parking garage on Monday before finally being stopped by Capitol Police. The incident "appears to be a function of somebody not doing their job." You think? The man, described as having "no malicious intent," was eventually arrested for unlawful entry. Lots of hemming and hawing about human error from officials, and frankly we're surprised this sort of thing doesn't happen more often. One interesting tidbit about the effect of the new Capitol Visitor Center, which was built with the intention of streamlining security procedures: Senate Sergeant-at-Arms Terrance Gainer says the new CVC has resulted in "more open doors" and a need for more officers. Earlier today, Terrie S. Rouse, CEO for Visitor Services at the U.S. Capitol Visitor Center, announced that the center has received one million visitors since it opened in December.
It's not just you. It's all of us, too. Gmail, Google Reader, the entire Google family of products seems to be out across the region. Friends in other cities say they're not having the same problem, so who knows what's up. In the meantime, while you're waiting for the ability to do practically anything else on the Internet, consider leaving say, one or two or twelve comments on DCist! UPDATE 12:15 p.m.: We have Gmail! We have Gmail! International crisis averted.
Okay, maybe it's not coming up. Maybe it's not tomorrow. Maybe it's not next year. Maybe it won't happen this decade, but someday, Alex Ovechkin and the Washington Capitals will face Sidney Crosby and the Pittsburgh Penguins in the playoffs again.
A truck caught fire earlier this morning at 12th and P Streets NW, eventually leading to a small explosion as the gas tank succumbed to the flames. The truck was a rambling pickup that, along with its bed full of scrap wood, has been a neighborhood fixture for years. The single bike cop on the scene kept onlookers from walking down P and waited for the fire department as the fire spread from beneath the hood to envelope the cab and front tires. Eventually, fire personnel and additional police arrived; as they were setting up the hose, the truck's gas tank exploded (previous exciting noises: the horn going off; the horn's pathetic death squeak; and a long, loud hissing).
Good morning, D.C. So, uh ... no one wants to talk about that Caps game, right? What a rough night. What a crushing disappointment of a game seven. What a ... blergh. If you'll excuse us, we've got to go attempt to scrub off this penguin-shaped indentation from our behinds.
The AP is reporting a that a group of students have filed a class action lawsuit against Vienna, Va.-based Envision EMI, after they claim the company failed to deliver on promises of special access to President Obama's inauguration in January. The students each paid thousands of dollars for a trip to the inauguration, only to be disappointed: "...the lawsuit says once the students got to Washington, they had no tickets for the inauguration or parade. And the balls they attended were not official events connected to the inauguration." I have a lot sympathy for these kids believing they could buy their way in to a special inaugural experience, and it certainly sounds like this company got greedy and promised way more than they could deliver. But the complaint that the ball they went to wasn't "official" seems pretty naive. There were hundreds of inauguration-themed parties over the course of the four-day long celebration, and only ten of them were "official."
The good news: Metro says it is busy installing 300 additional bike racks at stations across the system in time for Friday's Bike to Work Day, adding up to a 20 percent increase in bicycle storage options for commuters. The bad news: The Examiner is reporting that the opening of the long awaited Bike Transit Station at Union Station has been delayed once again, this time until July. “It’s a delay related to the construction,” District Department of Transportation spokesman John Lisle told the newspaper.
This year's Capital Pride street festival will close out with a dose of hair, heels and attitude. WTOP reports that the Capital Pride Alliance - you may recall they beat out two other groups to produce the annual event this year - announced RuPaul as this year's headlining act. The entertainer will perform on the festival's main stage on Pennsylvania Avenue on June 14. RuPaul rose to fame in the early 1990s with the single "Supermodel (You Better Work)," and currently hosts RuPaul's Drag Race on Logo. Her most recent album, Champion, dropped in February.
You probably read the cute story in the Post on Monday about a woman who returned an overdue library book to Arlington County, 31 years later. Sarah McKee, who is now retired and living in Massachusetts, found the book while cleaning out her basement and mailed it back to the library, along with a check for $25. Well today the PR savvy Arlington Public Library announced it has created a little display of the book, along with a printout of the WaPo story, at their Central Library branch on North Quincy Street.
The Caps head into game seven of their epic playoff series with the Penguins at 7 p.m., so Chinatown is going to be a sea of red tonight. Drunk, yelling, fanatic red. At the same time, the annual Candlelight Vigil at the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial, one of the main events of National Police Week, will begin at 8 p.m. on E Street NW between 4th and 5th Streets. The District Department of Transportation is rightly advising area drivers to stay the heck away from downtown tonight if at all possible. Spectators for both events are encouraged to take Metro. The Gallery Place/Chinatown station is right below the Verizon Center, and the Law Enforcement Memorial is above the Judiciary Square station on the Red line. F and E Streets NW between 3rd and 5th streets will both be closed to traffic tonight for the Candlelight Vigil.
In case you haven't been paying attention to the ins and outs of the D.C. Council's recently passed FY 2010 budget, here are some of the highlights. Also see Tim Craig, Gary Emerling and Michael Neibauer for more coverage.
Bruuuuutal. TicketsNow.com, the resale company owned by Ticketmaster, oversold the upcoming Bruce Springsteen concert at the Verizon Center, WTOP's Mark Segraves reports. The company is in the middle of contacting customers who thought they had awesome seats to the show and letting them know that their dream night with the Boss won't come true. TicketsNow is giving refunds, and some customers are also being offered free tickets in the nosebleed section. The concert is set for Monday, May 18; only the D.C. Springsteen show reportedly saw the overselling problem.
Marc Fisher has the big news that the years-long fight between historic preservationists and the congregation of the Third Church of Christ, Scientist at 16th and I Streets NW appears to have been resolved by the District.
Good morning, Washington. Tonight's the night! The final game in the Caps/Penguins series will be played at the Verizon Center this evening, and if it's anything like the first six games in the series, it's going to be pretty exciting. Sadly, my own bandwagon-jumping is going to be foiled by some previously-bought concert tickets. But hopefully those of us who won't be watching the game can just listen for a celebratory roar emanating from Chinatown. For those of you who are dead-set on seeing it in person, WTOP says that tickets can be found online starting around $140. New Chesapeake Preservation Initiative Announced: The Feds are trying to help save the bay, the Post reports. Yesterday the EPA announced the first executive order regarding the bay since the 80s. Local authorities will be getting more money and more regulatory support — including federal willingness to make politically unpopular regulation — as they try to clean up the Chesapeake. Some bay advocates are skeptical, though: the Post quotes some as saying that the goals being mulled by the EPA aren't aggressive enough; and the Examiner's writeup includes UMD professor Robert Nelson explaining that the EPA can't regulate agricultural runoff, which is a major source of Chesapeake Bay pollution. City Backs Out of Deal With Metro: WTOP reports that D.C. is declining to make good on a promise to pay for relocating Metrobuses from a garage in Southeast near the stadium as part of a plan to free the property for redevelopment. Since payments have stopped the city has racked up a $1.2m tab, which it says it will pay by adjusting the sale price of a pending land deal with Metro elsewhere in the city. Metro officials seem displeased with the city's decision to back out of the Metrobus arrangement. Arrests for Gang Stabbing Continue to Grow: The number of people implicated in the murder of Dennys Alfredo Guzman-Saenz has now grown to nine, according to WJLA. WTOP has a bit more context, explaining that the accused are members of a gang that considers itself a rival to another one with which Guzman-Saenz was associated (although he was apparently not a member). WJLA also notes that one of the accused men may also be responsible for some additional incidents of knife violence that occurred over the weekend on 14th Street. Briefly Noted: Body found in Potomac confirmed to be boy who fell into river last month while fishing... Local man among those killed in Iraq base friendly-fire shooting... Virginia officials still don't know how much private health data was recently stolen by a hacker... Handicap parking placard theft ring broken up... Cocaine cheese!... WTOP is wrapping up its week-long series on sexting (yes, really)... This Day In DCist: One year ago we chatted with Brooklyn Brewery's Garrett Oliver and Jonetta Rose Barras left Kojo Nnamdi's Politics Hour. Image posted to DCist Photos by Flickr user FIZ
D.C. Wire reports that this morning, the D.C. Council voted to strip $27 million from the DCPS budget for next year, on the grounds that that the original funding projected that school enrollment would grow by 3,000 students, an estimate that's obviously unrealistic. The Council says it will not spend the money now, and voted to place it in escrow, to be released in the fall only if an enrollment audit confirms growth. "Given the enormous budget challenges facing the District in 2010," Chairman Vincent Gray argued, "there needs to be a justification why this increase is warranted."
Via the Washington Business Journal, we learn that The Bullpen, the new outdoor beer garden and entertainment venue going in at the corner of N and Half Streets SE, plans to open on Friday. On the one hand, we're obviously thrilled that something, anything is opening up next to the ballpark. The neighborhood has sadly continued to be a wasteland of construction sites and empty condos well past the one-year anniversary of the new stadium. On the other, initial reports on what's actually in store for fans who pregame at the Bullpen have been ... let's just say not exactly promising: the live music is being described by the manager as "Dewey Beach bands." Blech. JDLand has a couple photos of part of the space. Hey, it's drinking and eating outside no matter what, right?
With news today that the 11th Office of Tax and Revenue embezzlement scheme co-conspirator has received her prison sentence, all we have left in the case is to await the sentencing of mastermind Harriette Walters. Connie Alexander, Walters' gambling friend who was one of the first people to come forward to cooperate with the authorities in the wake of the scandal, was sentenced to almost four years in prison by U.S. District Judge Alexander Williams Jr. yesterday, the Post reports. All 12 indicted members of the $50 million conspiracy have pleaded guilty, and the 11 who have already been sentenced received prison time ranging from one year up to six and a half years. You can be sure that Walters will receive the longest sentence of all 12. She's scheduled to be sentenced in June.
The Nationals may still be the worst team in the Major League, but at least they can hit. They currently lead the National League in OPS with .808, and are in the top three in the league in Batting Average, OBP, and Slugging. Adam Dunn and Ryan Zimmerman are at the top of the National League in most offensive categories, with Elijah Dukes, Nick Johnson and Jesus Flores not far behind.
Tomorrow night's Caps game at Verizon Center features the four most talented hockey players on earth competing in a winner take all, game seven, series final struggle for playoff survival. We'll have the last two winners of the NHL's Hart Trophy (player most valuable to his team) playing out a rivalry that has made hockey important even to non-fans. Alex Ovechkin and Sidney Crosby have been billed for years as the greatest talents of this generation, and this will be the first time one of them eliminates the other from the playoffs.
HBO has pulled out of its annual sponsorship of the popular Screen on the Green outdoor film festival on the National Mall.
The Associated Press (via the Los Angeles Times) gets on a story near and dear to several DCist staffers hearts: The Federal Trade Commission is apparently close to taking legal action against the truly evil company (or companies?) responsible for the almost weekly robocalls many of us have been receiving that warn us our auto warranties are about to expire. Have you been getting these calls, too? The messages go something like this: "This call is to warn you that your 10-year auto warranty is about to expire! Call us today before you wait too long to fix this potentially dangerous situation - renew your auto warranty with our company today!"
That was certainly fast. Police have arrested Bernard Bellamy, 20, of Oxon Hill, and charged him with first-degree murder in the death of Valicia Demery, 19, whose body was discovered early on Sunday on a jogging track behind Forestville Military Academy, the Post is reporting. Bellamy was taken into custody at West Virginia State University, where he is a sophomore. The suspected motive is painfully obvious: Demery was four months pregnant, and Bellamy was none too pleased. Interesting details from reporter Matt Zapotosky: The suspect's father admits he had basically zero clue what was going on in his son's life, and doesn't seem willing or able to rule out that his son might have killed his on-again, off-again girlfriend.
Good morning, Washington. How's this for a pair of headlines: "Job market shrinking for college grads," from the Washington Business Journal, combined with "Consumers more positive, but still not spending," from WTOP. Makes us feel more than just a tad guilty for wasting time worrying about the area's commencement speakers of late; probably, we should have been out buying new iPods and eating in local restaurants and figuring out some way to offer paid internships instead. Thinking back to the sheer panic that naturally goes with the six months surrounding college graduation and imagining it happening when there are literally zero jobs available ... shudder. If you've got a graduating senior in your life, give them a hug today. Also, a couple hundred bucks.
The Post is reporting that the D.C. Office of the State Superintendent of Education accidentally emailed personal information belonging to roughly 2,400 D.C. high school students out to about 1,000 people last week. The mistake reportedly happened when an employee who works in the Higher Education Financial Services Program, which administers the District's Tuition Assistance Grant Program that helps eligible college-bound D.C. residents pay the difference between in-state and out-of-state tuition at state universities across the country, inadvertently attached a spreadsheet to an email she was sending out to applicants. What kind of information was in that spreadsheet? "Student names, e-mail and home addresses, phone and Social Security numbers and dates of birth." Major drag, and major mistake.
This Friday, May 15 is the annual national Bike to Work Day (not to be confused with D.C.'s local Car Free DC Day, which happens in September). The Washington Area Bicyclist Association is once again taking the lead in organizing this year's event locally, and they're asking those of you who plan to participate to pre-register before showing up at the relevant "pit stop" on Friday morning. Registration is free, and allows the organizers to make sure each "pit stop" has enough supplies on hand to handle the crowds. Each "pit stop" will offer free breakfast and entertainment, plus the chance to win bicycles and other prizes. Registration also makes you eligible to receive a free T-shirt (the first 7,000 registrants who show up to their pit stops will get the shirts).
Grim story of the death of District Heights, Md. resident Valicia Demery, only 19. The AP via WTOP reports her beaten body was found by a jogger at about 6:30 a.m. Sunday on the running track at Forestville Military Academy, the high school from which the victim had recently graduated. WJLA has heartbreaking reaction from Demery's family and friends, plus this detail: "Demery's father Garrett says that she left the family home around 4 a.m. Sunday, less than three hours before her body was found." NBC4 puts the fact that Demery was four months pregnant front and center. A sad story that seems certain to only get sadder.
Exterior surveillance cameras have been installed at 12 high-crime Metro stations, WMATA announced this morning. Most of the cameras are at stations inside the District of Columbia, with a few in Fairfax County; those two jurisdictions paid for them to be installed. Stations with exterior cameras now include: Rhode Island Avenue-Brentwood, Congress Heights, Deanwood, Minnesota Avenue, Fort Totten, Takoma, Brookland-CUA, Columbia Heights, Georgia Avenue-Petworth, Tenleytown-AU, Vienna/Fairfax-GMU and Franconia-Springfield.
We're all in favor of the Washington Post doing what they can to stay on top of smaller local crime stories despite a shrinking newsroom. But this single-paragraph story from Theola Labbé-DeBose and Christy Goodman is crying out for more details: "A car that crashed into a dry-cleaning business in Prince George's County about 1 a.m. yesterday drove into the District and crashed into another car, killing one person." The fatal crash was reportedly at Southern Avenue and Chesapeake Street SE. Unanswered questions: was this a stolen car? How did the driver manage to hit the dry cleaner, then back up their presumably damaged car and make it all the way into the District without anyone stopping them?
This year's National Police Week kicked off yesterday. The big NPW events to keep in mind are the candlelight vigil at the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial on Wednesday, the National Peace Officers' Memorial Service on Friday, and then of course, the rowdy, drunk cops pissing in the streets early on Saturday morning. In the meantime, the city has been warned that a flight of eight local police helicopters will fly over the District this morning as part of Police Week. The helicopters will fly overhead between 11:15 a.m. and noon. So don't freak out! The fly over has been approved for today's Washington Area Fallen Officers Memorial Ceremony.
Good morning, Washington. After Sunday's stunningly gorgeous, breezy, sunny and warm conditions, waking up to cool, clammy and gray this morning has us in a fightin' mood. Is it going to rain again today? Gah. Sure looks that way. The rest of the week, however, is shaping up to be perfectly pleasant, so we're doing our best not to despair. We do apologize in advance if you run into us on the street before the sunshine reappears. Reacting to inquiries of the "why so grumpy?" variety by stomping down your foot isn't appropriate, we realize. Sorry about that.
"Aaaaauuuuuugggghhhhhhhh!!!!!!," writes NBC Washington's Asha Beh, vocalizing an emotion familiar to the District: that wretched howl of frustration you scream from the far corner of your soul when you miss a train because some jerk tourist couldn't figure out how to do the SmarTrip machine. Time is money, and the minutes of your life lost behind bumbling tourists examining those fare-trip charts would buy a lot of tchotchkes. Metro, it would seem, is not unsympathetic. Officials are considering an alternative to Metro and SmarTrip cards that would draw the money directly from a rider's debit or credit card.
To a nation of brunching mothers, we salute you. Today's matronly headlines:
- WTOP says make your mom a salad.
- The Washington Times would call that creative shopping in tough economic times.
- The Washington Post reveals that even if you join the army, moms will still find a way to embarrass you.
- ABC7 looks back on a killing this time last year.
- Meet Vivian Heyward-Bey, the proud Silver Spring mother of the Oakland Raiders' Darrius Heyward-Bey.
- If you haven't sent your mom anything yet, consider sending her this.
Continue reading "Happy Mother's Day, Moms"
: Thieves, butchers, nature, starvation, cannibals, godlessness, forgetfulness. "Borrowed time and borrowed world and borrowed eyes with which to sorrow it," author McCarthy writes.
NBC Washington has a truly ghastly photo of a car impaled by a train crossing gate after it was struck by a Brunswick Line train in Rockville last night. According to the report, 25-year-old Cemile Valencia was stuck on the crossing when the train passed through; despite efforts to force the car in front of her forward, she wasn't able to drive off the tracks in time.
NBCWashington.com reports that The Partnership for Civil Justice -- who unsuccessfully sued the city last year in an attempt to strike down last year's controversial checkpoints in Trinidad -- was back in front of an appeals panel yesterday in a last-ditch attempt to strike the practice. Mara Verheyden-Hilliard, an attorney with the organization, argued that the checkpoints violated "fundamental constitutional rights," and that the police's standards for selecting who could enter the neighborhood were arbitrary. The checkpoints in Trinidad, an incredibly combustible issue last summer which even led to internal rifts in the police force, could potentially return this year if the appeal is denied and violence spikes again.
Good morning, D.C. Lots of interesting stuff happening around town today: of course, that includes the annual White House Correspondents' Dinner, so expect the yearly backup around the Washington Hilton north of Dupont Circle this evening. Comedian Wanda Sykes is the entertainment for folks who ponied up for pricey tickets to Obama's first Correspondents' Dinner -- but if attendees are looking forward to dessert, they're out of luck. The BBC is reporting that organizers decided to cut out the cake this year and donate the savings to a homeless shelter. For those of us not dressing up for the Washingtonian version of the prom, C-SPAN has blanket coverage of the gala, which is usually good for a memorable moment or two.
Hoo boy. Friday evening is a bad time for major northbound MARC delays. NBC4 is reporting that a MARC train struck a car on the tracks near Rockville. A 25-year-old woman in the car was reportedly injured, but the severity of her injuries is still unknown. Drivers are also being asked to avoid the area around Randolph Road near Nebel Street in Rockville. MARC trains heading northbound out of Union Station are experiencing major delays.
The Borderstan blog alerts us to what appears to be a string of armed robberies in the past week in their Logan/Dupont/Shaw overlap area. Three different gun-involved muggings have happened along R Street NW between New Hampshire and 13th, and another happened the other night at 11th Street NW and Vermont Ave. We also heard about at least one other armed robbery Thursday night, right around 14th and T Streets NW. Stay alert in the 'Stan this weekend, DCist readers.
Barack may like Ray's Hell Burger, but Michelle is all about the Good Stuff. Spike Mendelsohn's Good Stuff Eatery, that is. Blogger DC365 spotted the first lady earlier today stopping in the Capitol Hill burger spot to pick up some lunch.
She whizzed past us, waving and smiling, in a kicky little ponytail and grey capri pants, as the crowd shouted "We love you!"The Twitterverse lit up with several reports of the FLOTUS sighting, too. We like to think the Obamas can now compare notes and discuss which burger is better.
If you drive over the Chain Bridge on a regular basis, take note that delays are headed your way.
Good morning, D.C. Yesterday, Maryland joined a growing national movement to limit the use of the death penalty when Gov. Martin O'Malley signed legislation that would curtail the use of capital punishment in the state. While O'Malley originally sought to ban the use of the death penalty after a state study found that it was more expensive than any alternatives and was used disproportionately against African Americans, delegates in the state legislature were forced to make compromises by leaving the death penalty on the books but making it much harder to use. Under the new law, the death penalty will only be applied if prosecutors have DNA evidence, videotaped evidence or a voluntary videotaped confession. In other Md. legislative news, the Examiner reports that O'Malley also signed legislation that would include the homeless in the state's hate crime law.
The word on high from DDOT after Wednesday's massive water main break in the 1700 block of Florida Ave. is that the street won't reopen until Saturday evening, weather permitting. DDOT engineers spent today assessing the damage and came up with this time estimate. Work crews have already backfilled the large hole in the roadway, and are now preparing for the complete reconstruction of the road surface from V Street to Champlain Street. The work will also include the repair or replacement of damaged curbs and brick gutters, and sidewalk repairs as necessary.
D.C. Police have closed a number of streets around the 2700 block of 29th St. NW due to a woman threatening to jump off the top of a building there. 29th St. NW is currently closed between Woodley and Calvert Streets, along with a section of McGill Terrace. The police situation is ongoing; note the closures for your commute home.
WTOP is reporting a large explosion at a shopping center in Prince George's County. Six people, most of them firefighters, were seriously injured in the blast. The firefighters had been there in response to a call for a natural gas leak at the Penn Mar shopping center in Forestville, Md. See also the AP, and WTOP provides the aerial photo. Looks like the mall was basically leveled at one end. Luckily, the building was evacuated shortly before the explosion.
The Washington Kastles, D.C.'s one-year-old team in the World TeamTennis (WTT) league, announced their 2009 schedule today. The Kastles are set to host seven home matches this summer, along with the 2009 Advanta WTT Championship Finals in July. Team star Serena Williams will play in one home appearance, and throughout the season visiting star players Venus Williams, Anna Kournikova and John McEnroe will also play here in Washington.
Del Quentin Wilber files yet another sentencing story in the ongoing Office of Tax and Revenue embezzlement court proceedings. This time, it's Alethia Grooms, 53, close friend of Harriette Walters and early participant in the $50 million scam. U.S. District Judge Emmet G. Sullivan sentenced Grooms to just over 3 years in prison today, in addition to restitution in the amount of nearly $651,000. Best tidbit from the courtroom: '[The judge] noted that Grooms received the scheme's first and last fraudulent refund checks in the 18-year scam. "She was there from day one until the last day," Sullivan said. "She was not a minor" player.' Today's sentencing brings the total to nine our of the 11 people who have pleaded guilty in the case so far. Harriette Walters is scheduled to be sentenced in June.
The Post offered up a panda pregnancy update this morning that contained nary a scrap of news. Not that we can blame Michael Ruane for teasing us with vague reports that Mei Xiang has refused to allow zookeepers to perform an ultrasound on her of late. (She did the same thing when she was pregnant with Tai Shan! But that doesn't necessarily mean anything!). Panda Fever is practically a religion around these parts, and with young Tai Shan now almost fully grown, D.C. is starting to get desperate for a brand new bundle of joy. It's been nearly three years of false pregnancies for Mei Xiang in the interim (not to mention the 4+ years before her only successful pregnancy), and we should know either way in the next couple of days whether the latest attempt at artificial insemination has worked. Either a new little stick o' butter will shoot out of Mei's uterus, or we'll have to settle for just another false alarm. In the meantime, the zoo's Panda House remains closed until further notice.
During a live interview yesterday afternoon on NewsChannel 8's Let's Talk Live, co-host Doug McKelway lost all sense of professionalism while interviewing gay blogger Michael Rogers about the upcoming documentary film, Outrage. Rogers appears in the film, directed by Kirby Dick (This Film Is Not Yet Rated), which targets politicians who are known (or rumored) closet cases but who also fight against policies that would be beneficial to the LGBT population.
Metro posted its track maintenance reminder this morning, and it looks like Orange and Red Line riders will bear the brunt of delays this weekend.
More violence on Clifton Street. The Metropolitan Police Department's Third District reported a shooting at approximately 2:10 a.m. this morning in the 1200 block of Clifton St. NW. An unidentified male was shot and is reportedly in stable condition, and a second subject was grazed by a bullet. Third District Commander George Kucik described the shooting as "not a random assault."
Here at DCist Storm Command Central, we're about 15 minutes away from declaring this last week an official Deluge '09 Event (loyal readers may recall the previous incarnation of this designation, Deluge '06). The latest press release from the District Department of Transportation is really pushing this decision over the top. Could Davy DCist be on his way down to DCist HQ? Check back in later to find out.
Good morning, Washington. Sigh. The rain. Good lord, the rain. It's dry right now, of course, but don't count on that lasting. How many days has it been since we had 24 precipitation-free hours? At this point we can't remember. And yesterday the water started coming from not just the sky but the ground, too, as water mains broke. Crews are still working to repair the sinkholes and related damage caused by those breaks — a process that's apparently being slowed by all the rain.
D.C. Swine Flu Case Identified: Sure, this whole swine flu fad's on its way out. And yes, we've already had some confirmed cases of the illness within city limits. But those haven't counted for the official tally, as the infected haven't been District residents. Well, count it: WTOP reports that a case of swine flu has been confirmed in the District by the CDC.
Nickles, Council Continue to Clash Over Fire Truck: Attorney General Peter Nickles has already indicated that he doesn't think there's anything improper about the unusual donation of old District emergency vehicles to a small town in the Dominican Republic. The city council disagrees, and it seems like they and Nickles are destined to butt heads over the issue. Today the Examiner reports the latest example of this: Nickles is barring Deputy Fire Chief Ronald Gill and Robin Booth, a city contracting official, from testifying before a council panel unless the council first provides lawyers to the two witnesses.
Jim Moran Doesn't Want To Hear About Your Long-Lasting Erection: We missed it when WTOP first reported it yesterday, but prurience demands that we note Jim Moran's proposed legislation to place limits on ads for erectile dysfunction medications. The bill would label such ads as indecent, thereby restricting their broadcast to the hours between 10 p.m. and 6 a.m. This isn't the first time Moran has introduced such legislation — he put forward a similar measure in 2005.
Briefly Noted: Standoff between police and apparently suicidal man ends without injury at N.Y. Ave Metro in Northeast... Ray's Hell Burger reports big crowds in wake of Obama/Biden visit... Prince William County testing commuter ferry... There was a tornado watch in effect until 4 a.m. this morning... A headline too great to rewrite: Massage Therapist Fights for Right to Treat Horses...
This Day In DCist: One year ago D.C. was named the year's most improved city for bicycling.
Image posted to DCist Photos by Flickr user solupine
DDOT has sent around word that Florida Ave. NW between 17th Street and California remains closed due to this morning's massive water main break. The 1700 block of V Street NW is also closed at this time. From the release:
WASA crews are on site and are working to repair the broken 20-inch water main. There is significant damage to the roadway as well, and it is likely to take at least several hours to complete the repairs. In the meantime, motorists are advised to use alternate routes including U Street, to detour around the affected area.In other words, the evening commute in this area is going to be a mess. Go around it if at all possible. City Desk has more photos of the flooding, and the Post has video of the impressively large sinkhole that formed as a result.
As we told you on Monday in our first installment of the Commencement Speaker Scouting Report, Howard University will be leading off this season's college graduation ceremonies on Saturday, May 9. Howard University Police Chief Leroy K. James announced the following streets will be closed to vehicular traffic for several days in preparation for commencement activities. Most of these closures are on the Howard campus, but LeDroit Park and Shaw residents will want to make a note of them.
Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi told reporters today that she thinks the District of Columbia ought to be able to pass laws legalizing same-sex marriage without Congress sticking its nose in its business.
Separate from the massive main break/sinkhole/gas leak/basement flooding in the 1700 block of Florida Ave. NW, crews are working to repair two other water main breaks in the District this morning.
City officials are responding to a large water main break in the 1700 Block of Florida Ave., along with an accompanying gas leak and sinkhole. WTOP quotes a D.C. fire department spokesperson saying the break has led to basement flooding in homes around the vicinity of 18th and U Streets NW.
Good morning, D.C. Quick fact check time: President Obama did dine at Ray's Hell Burger yesterday. But he never went to Hard Times Cafe in Bethesda on Friday night, as Marc Fisher figures out in his self-appointed Myth Buster role in today's Raw Fisher. We've of course been following the first family's visits to local businesses and other D.C. organizations, intrigued by the idea of the Obamas as the biggest show in town right now. Rumors like these were bound to happen sooner or later, but for some reason it strikes us as especially funny that it happened first in Bethesda. Falling so easily for a hoax about the president: how gauche!
The swine flu scare is saying sayonara. The virus, while very infectious, proved not to be very deadly. With this new CDC directive, all closed Maryland schools will reopen Wednesday. As far as we know, Our Lady of Victory in the District has not yet decided to reopen.
It's a been a while since we've had any more jail sentences to report in the massive Office of Tax and Revenue embezzlement case. WaPo brings us this one today: Samuel Earl Pope, 61, the former owner of the Head to Toe Salon in Southwest, was sentenced today to four years and three months in prison for his role in the scheme. Pope, who was one of the earlier members of the Harriette Walters-led bunch o' thieves, was also ordered to pay $1,586,406 in restitution by U.S. District Judge Emmet G. Sullivan. BTW, Harriette Walters herself is scheduled to be sentenced in June.
The D.C. Council has voted 12-1 in favor of a bill that recognizes same-sex marriages performed elsewhere. Ward 8 Council member Marion Barry (D) was the lone dissenter.
Make sure to tune in to Mike DeBonis and Tim Craig, who are both posting live updates from D.C. Council chambers as a bill that would allow the District to recognize same sex marriages performed legally in other jurisdictions is debated. Apparently the full Council actually initially voted unanimously, without debate, to pass the legislation, but then Ward 8 Council member Marion Barry (D), who last week pledged to vote against the bill, asked that the bill be reconsidered because he didn't realize what he had just voted on. DeBonis is reporting that since debate began, it's gotten pretty damned heated, with Barry and Catania trading barbs about which position is more moral.
In yet another sign that local arts and non-profit groups continue to struggle amid the recession, Catalyst Theater Company announced today that budget issues have forced them to cancel their last show of the season. In a message posted to the Northeast D.C. theater company's Facebook page, Artistic Director Scott Fortier wrote that Catalyst's production of Dan LeFranc's Bruise Easy, which had been scheduled to run May 20 - June 21, has been scuttled entirely. Fortier also made an appeal for the company's patrons to continue to donate to the organization to help them meet this year's budget needs. Full letter after the jump.
Good morning, Washington. That was some sports night last night, eh? Still not sure what was more amazing: the hat trick(s) or the fact that the Nats have now technically won two games in a row. Talk about different levels of expectation! Game 3 against the Penguins is in Pittsburgh tomorrow, while the Nats stay at home today for a 12:35 p.m. matchup against the Astros.
There's a Metro alert right now warning commuters that Red Line trains are sharing the same track between Shady Grove and Twinbrook due to a train experiencing mechanical difficulties outside the Rockville station. Lena Sun has more details: "... a fire reported under the last car of a Glenmont-bound train. The fire was reported about 4 p.m. and the train was pulled into the Rockville station about 4:30 p.m." Adjust your plans accordingly.
Everyone's still going ga-ga over the story of Barack and Michelle going on a date to Citronelle on Saturday night and following it up with a romantic, albeit brief, stroll around the White House grounds. They totally held hands 'n' stuff, because they love each other! Awwww.
DC for Marriage will hold a rally for marriage equality tomorrow at the John A. Wilson Building as the D.C. Council prepares to cast its final vote on a bill that would allow the District to recognize same-sex marriages performed legally outside of D.C. The rally begins as early as 8 a.m. and the Council session begins at 10. Rally participants are asked to wear white in support of marriage equality.
Pretty amazing news for the local theater community. The 2009 Tony Award nominees are set to be announced tomorrow morning, but in the meantime, the special, non-competitive awards were announced today, and Arlington's Signature Theatre was awarded this year's Regional Theatre Tony Award. From the release:
On the recommendation of the American Theatre Critics Association, the Tony Awards has selected the Signature Theatre of Arlington, Virginia as the recipient of the 2009 Regional Theatre Tony Award. The Award is accompanied by a gift of $25,000 from Visa, USA.Continue reading "Signature Theatre Wins 2009 Regional Theatre Tony Award"
We still don't know his name, but The Washington Post and WTOP now have more details on the Southeast D.C. man who formally claimed the $144 million Powerball jackpot today. He's 82 years old, a lifelong D.C. resident, and a widower with 10 children and 47 grandchildren and great grandchildren. A lawyer for the winner informed D.C. lottery officials today that he has opted to take the lump sum payment of $79.6 million, which will be about $60 million after taxes. The money will be split up into three separate trusts: one to provide for the education of the winner's grandchildren and great grandchildren, another to provide healthcare for his entire family, and another that will donate money to charitable causes.
We already told you that Project Runway's Tim Gunn would be delivering the commencement address at the Corcoran College of Art + Design, but what about all the other traditional colleges and universities within the District? It's time once again for our annual Commencement Speaker Scouting Reports, now with 80 percent more post-college recession-related job market panic than last year!
WMATA sent out an alert just before 8:30 a.m. that a suspicious package investigation at Farragut West had closed the 18th & I Street station entrance, and we've since heard that the surface streets surrounding the area were also closed, leading to an impressively bad traffic jam. Metro gave the all-clear at 9:23 a.m., but not before many a commuter was stuck in a mess at the height of the morning rush. The area should be getting back to normal by now. UPDATE: The Post is now reporting that the suspicious package in question turned out to be an empty can inside a garbage bin. But what kind of a can? A soda can? A can of beans? Coffee can? CAN-bus?
Good morning, Washington. Very few local headlines to start out the week apart from endless H1N1 stories, to which we're growing more than a little weary of linking. The Post, thankfully, squeezed all of the relevant D.C. area updates into one story, while the broadcast outlets and smaller papers opted to spread the swine flu news around.
Despite the fact that epidemiologists have said that the swine flu isn't a drastically worse bug than the conventional flu, and notwithstanding the fact that conditions in near Maryland are not like the conditions in areas of Mexico where swine flu has claimed lives, a fifth school in Prince George's County will close on the threat of swine flu, reports ABC7. Six-hundred students plus faculty and staff will enjoy up to two weeks' recess from all academic and extracurricular activities. Swine flu has not yet been diagnosed at any PG County school. Nevertheless, Maryland Governor Martin O'Malley isn't taking any chances. Declaring a statewide public health emergency, Gov. O'Malley is closing any school where a probable case of swine flu is detected. Fortunately, the flu season is rapidly coming to a close—but then again, so is the spring semester.
A busy week in Washington ended on a sad note this morning with the word that former New York Congressman and Vice Presidential candidate Jack Kemp passed away last night at his Bethesda home. Kemp, who had been diagnosed with an undisclosed cancer earlier this year, was a strong advocate for District voting rights -- as Mark Fisher remembers this morning, he worked closely with former Virginia Representative Tom Davis to help push forward the compromise which would grant the District a seat in the House. Kemp's political stances likely didn't resonate with a wide majority of District residents -- but a politician with Kemp's influence who so understood why Districtonians need representation in Congress was truly a rare asset to have.
A source who spoke with airport police says that yesterday's security lockdown at Washington Dulles International Airport was prompted by a male passenger who left the security screening area to go to baggage claim and returned through a secure door. Since he bypassed TSA security screening, airport police shut down the airport for 45 minutes at 4:30 p.m.
Sometimes, in football as in life, it's just not your night. But even when that's the case, a team can ride out the storm and still take the three points. And so it was last night: the Black-and-Red overcame a frustrating first half by leaning on the back of captain Jaime Moreno, whose silky second-half brace led them to a 2-1 victory over a less-than-stellar FC Dallas team.
Dulles police confirmed reports from sources that Washington Dulles International Airport is on security lockdown. Flights are neither arriving nor departing at this time, and no passengers are passing through airport security. Police could not say at what time airport activities were put on hold, and police would not comment on the cause. Flight status as of 5:25 p.m. is still showing normal departures and arrivals. Transportation Security Administration agents said that no one at the information call center had any knowledge of the lockdown. Developing. . . .