Good morning, Washington. Over the weekend, it was reported that nearly 200 calls to the District’s 911 system went unanswered last Tuesday because most of the workers at the call center were on a city-mandated furlough. The Examiner now reports that attempts by the union representing the dispatchers to warn City Administrator Allen Lew and Mayor Vince Gray that 911 dispatchers are just as essential as firefighters, EMTs and police were mostly ignored. As a result, the number of city-wide dispatchers was reduced from 16 to 3 for six overnight hours. The administration has reportedly “acted to avoid future problems.” Uh, okay. One question: what good is not furloughing police, firefighters and emergency medical teams if they have no one to send them where they’re needed?
Solar Decrapathon: The District has reneged on about $700,000 in grant commitments to 51 residents who installed solar panels in their homes as part of a program encouraging renewable energy use, thanks to budget cuts. Councilmember Mary Cheh tells the Post that the Council is “scouring” the budget to see if there is money to restore the promised grants — but we’re not talking about a small investment: many who installed the panels were expecting reimbursements in the five figures.
High School Closures An Option: Interim schools chancellor Kaya Henderson admitted on Friday that the city is considering closing some of the District’s 17 high schools before the 2012-13 academic year due to — what else — budget issues. Three years ago, Henderson’s predecessor Michelle Rhee oversaw the closure of 23 schools citywide; Henderson suggested that the establishment of resource centers around the city that were open to all D.C. students might be a more financially practical option than upgrading and mantaining so many high schools.
Briefly Noted: D.C. cop hit by car while investigating hit-and-run on Key Bridge…Fire breaks out at apartment building on O Street SW on Saturday night…Application filed for 3.2 million square foot Waterfront redevelopment…Alexandria has highest rate of HIV/AIDS in Northern Virginia…Questions raised about San Francisco transit chief’s candidacy to lead airports authority…Miss Virginia’s reign as Miss America ends…The Virginia General Assembly sure was busy last week…Colbert King on last week’s Council nonsense: “Teacher, teacher.” “What is it, Jimmy?” “Kwame’s not playing fair.”
This Day in DCist: Last year, we were enamored with the Zoo’s new giant invertebrate, while in 2008, the District’s Historic Preservation Office its first LGBT historic landmark and we dumped a little cold water on the just-passed D.C. House Voting Rights Act.
