D.C. News Medley: Lots of District news this morning, courtesy the Post:
… First up, the District says that it has struck a deal with Howard University to open a hospital on 19th Street in Southeast, a quadrant of the city that is currently underserved in terms of quick access to medical care. But please note that the Post has “Deal” set off by quotation marks in its headline, saying in its lede that it is a “deal in principle.”

… CSX railroad is suing the District over legislation enacted that bans hazardous material-carrying trains from passing through the center of the city. Going around the District can add a considerable detour to the trip — nearly 500 miles in some cases.

… Renters are poised to gain more rights, with legislation being pushed by Councilman Jim Graham and other members of the D.C. Council that would “abolish the loophole that has allowed landlords to skirt a law giving tenants first refusal to buy their apartments.” Nearly 90 concerned renters, fearful of being scorched by the city’s sizzling real estate market, were scheduled to testify before the D.C. Council’s Consumer and Regulatory Affairs Committee about being stuck between a rock and a hard place.

… So what ever happened to plans to construct (and finish) a new car inspection station on West Virginia Avenue NE? And what about the businesses that opened up shop nearby anticipating the new station? Well, no comment.

AIDS Rates High: The Examiner reminds us that AIDS/HIV rates in the area are much higher than national and state averages. High-concentration areas include Prince George’s County in Maryland, Alexandria in Virginia and the District of Columbia as a whole, which has a rate 10 times the national average.

Briefly Noted: According to the W.Times, a man “claiming to be a Colombian doctor” has injected at least 16 women with a liposuction-replacement therapy that has caused some of the women to have severe skin reactions. … Also in the W.Times: “Summertime is coming, and you are going to have traffic jams like you never imagined,” says former Maryland Gov. William Donald Schaefer, who warns that the current governor, Robert Ehrlich, must take some responsibility in the botched Chesapeake Bay Bridge repairs. … And in random blogging news, why.i.hate.dc points us to news that the blogger “Libertarian Girl” is actually a “Libertarian Man of Mystery” after a photo of “Libertarian Girl” turned out to be that of a Russian mail-order bride (above).