>> The city is suing Dynamic Corp., the contractor who was performing renovations on the Georgetown Public Library branch when it burned down in April, for $13 million. [WTOP] >> Work crews have started dismantling the old Verizon Center scoreboard, with the new state-of-the-art one promised in time for the start of the Wizards' fall season, which begins Oct. 9. [Free Ride] >> One in four adults read no books at all in the... more ›

Thanks to the hard work of voting rights activists, a few Congressional allies, and the wisdom of the American people in November, the District is coming closer and closer to finally gaining some voting representation. Legislation to grant the District a voting seat in the House looks like it's moving forward, D.C. Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton can once again vote on amendments on the House floor, and D.C. Mayor Adrian Fenty has started asking aides... more ›

We're finally within 365 days of when District residents head to the polls to choose their next mayor, and what better way to celebrate than an old-fashioned debate? Yes, tonight marks the official beginning of the 2006 campaign season, and all five officially-announced mayoral candidates will be taking each other on in what promises to be a battle royale over school modernization, taxes, development, crime, and affordable housing. Ok, it may not be that exciting.... more ›

As we reported on Friday, the Moms on the Hill (or MoTHs, whose activities we are documenting at Ionarts) and their friends continue their efforts to get the money and donated items they have collected thus far to the people displaced by Hurricane Katrina. News reports on WTOP last night speculated that perhaps no evacuees were coming to Washington, but today we have learned (as reported in the Post) that 400 evacuees will arrive today by airplane from Arkansas, where the government, already overwhelmed, asked the District government for help. The buses that were sent down are still planning to fill up with anyone who wants to evacuate Louisiana and come to Washington, which means that the District may eventually be hosting more than 1,000 evacuees. Churches and private citizens have offered long-term help for those arriving, spare the initial relief they will be granted in the D.C. Armory. more ›

It may be a first, but it's a first that District voting rights activists have been waiting for and one which they are sure to celebrate -- an international endorsement of their cause. more ›

More than two years after 400-plus peaceful protestors were illegally arrested in Pershing Park during anti-globalization protests, a new District law protecting public assembly and the freedom of expression has gone into effect. The First Amendment Rights and Police Practices Act of 2004, whose enactment was spearheaded by Councilwoman Kathy Patterson (D-Ward 3), was signed on Jan. 27 of this year and took force on April 13. The law declares that protestors have the First... more ›