Much of Washington went to bed last night thinking the stadium lease deal was finished, rejected by a D.C. Council that remained unable to come to an agreement on a cap for stadium costs. We chose today’s pic last night thinking this, only to read before shutting off the computer that the Council had reconvened. We’ll get a kick out of seeing whose papers did and did not change their headlines in time, but we feel bad for all the columnists with wasted copy.
Early this morning, the Council agreed upon a $611 million price cap for city funds used in stadium construction, with an additional stipulation stating that any surplus from development rights not be used to cover cost overruns. With that cap in place, the Council approved emergency legislation authorizing the lease by a vote of 9 to 4. The new lease agreement was not an arrangement to which baseball had agreed, and MLB President Bob DuPuy was still grumbling after the final vote, but Mayor Williams was pleased with the outcome, and it is expected that MLB will ultimately sign off on the deal.
While they’re at it: The Council passed a measure yesterday to allocate $100 million in sales tax revenue per year to school improvement. This brings the annual total dedicated to the cause to $200 million; combined with recent decisions to close 3 million square feet of school space, and potential plans linking facilities improvements to private developers, this measure promises to drastically alter the face of the District’s crumbling schools. The Council also agreed to raise the minimum wage for public employees and employees of companies that benefit from public funds to $11.75 an hour. The move was particularly interesting given Virginia’s decision on Tuesday to reject a $1 increase in the state’s minimum wage, from $5.15 to $6.15 an hour.
Pretty sure the FISA court would have said no: A mid-level CIA employee has been arrested on suspician of serial burglary in McLean, Virginia. Investigators believe George Dalmas is the man responsible for 17 area burglaries in which jewelry, antiques, and women’s underwear were the principle targets.
Briefly Noted: Barry to be sentenced today in tax case…Kaine takes transportation plan to the people…Post profile of anti-immigration activist reveals she’s a nut job…And then, there’s this.
Picture uploaded to DCist Photos by Mike Palmieri.
