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JACK EVANS'
ACCOMPLISHMENTS IN LOGAN CIRCLE BLAGDEN ALLEY -- 1999-2000
We're in a renaissance in our neighborhood -- and Jack Evans
deserves great credit for it. He's been working hard since 1991 on our greatest concerns
-- prostitution, infrastructure, economic development, public safety, schools, and
parking. Since his first major victory,. real anti-prostitution legislation (1992), he has
been a real leader for us and for all of Ward Two.
ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
- Fresh Fields feels welcome in the 1400 block of P Street, and
construction is underway, because Jack worked to show the company how strong this
community really is. He's working with neighbors to make sure this project, and others
like it, benefit us all.
- Fourteenth Street is changing dramatically and rapidly, and
Jack's Logan Circle/Fourteenth Street Economic Development Task Force is meeting monthly
to work on the issues this presents, from infrastructure to dislocation to parking to
zoning.
PROSTITUTION
- Legislation Jack drafted, in consultation with the community,
has made all the difference in solving a problem some considered unsolvable. From the car
seizure bill, to the increases in fines and jail time for offenders, Jack has worked to
create a majority on the Council to take this community nightmare seriously and pass the
important bills he has crafted.
- Anti-Prostitution Task Force members, convened by Jack, have
met monthly during "peak season" since 1995 to bring together the community,
prosecutors, law enforcement, judges, and those who work with prostitutes. Those meetings
were the catalyst for the system that has actually worked -- the police make arrests, the
prosecutors bring the cases and the judges impose the sentences -- and now the prostitutes
look for greener pastures outside of DC. The summer of 1999 was the first in living memory
when law-abiding pedestrians outnumbered hookers and johns on our streets, and Jack
deserves real credit for this accomplishment.
PARKING
- Parking Task Force members, convened by Jack, have been
reviewing existing regions and working on changes that will create more spaces for
residents. Their report will soon be presented to the community. Jack has also supported
creative solutions like angle parking where neighbors have called for more space.
- Budget money for additional parking enforcement officers will
keep out-of-neighborhood cars off our streets, and Jack is working to secure those funds.
PEACE, ORDER and QUIET
- Diversite nightclub, the catalyst for two murders and other
crimes on Fourteenth Street, is still open despite the best efforts of the ANC and Police
Chief Ramsey. Jack has stood strong with the community to demand that this club be
shuttered. While the recent decision by the Alcoholic Beverage Control Board was favorable
to the nightclub, Jack is working with the community to overturn the ruling and restore
peace and order to the neighborhood.
- Convention Center traffic and parking issues have been improved
through work with Jack's office, and trucks have been kept off our residential streets.
- Public pay telephones, which line our community's streets and
serve the needs of drug dealers and pimps, must be subject to reasonable limitations. Jack
has stood with the ANC and the unity to demand regulations that will protect neighborhoods
from the overt proliferation of these phones.
- Trash haulers no longer ignore the 7 am early morning curfew
because Jack has worked with the ANC and the community to ensure that the police will
issue citations if they do. Not content to declare victory after a few good weeks, Jack
kept after city officials for months to rid us of these illegal haulers.
INFRASTRUCTURE
- Rats and trash are a perennial issue in our area. Jack has
worked continuously with city officials to make sure trash laws are enforced and rat
control is practiced.
- Trees make Logan Circle Park and our community more livable,
but the lack of resources for maintenance and new trees is a long-standing problem.
Angered by the city's Tree Division's neglect and underfunding, lack has worked to improve
this agency.
- Infrastructure defects make our neighborhood look and feel
dangerous and uninviting. Jack supported ANC 2F's "Project Punchlist", which
lists 800 needed repairs in PSA 309. When the Department of Public Works repeatedly
dropped the ball, Jack brought the DPW director and the ANC together to force a response.
DPWs continuing failure to address these concerns will be a major issue for Jack as the
Council considers the Mayor's proposed budget.
PUBLIC SAFETY
- Leadership has long been lacking within our community's police
force. Jack has regularly lobbied Chief Ramsey to remove underperforming officers and to
promote community-oriented officers to leadership.
- Manpower is our greatest concern -- where are the officers?
Jack has been a consistent and vocal advocate for implementation of the Department's
longstanding promise to put officers on foot patrol in Logan Circle.
PUBLIC SCHOOLS
- Accountability is sorely lacking in our system. Jack supports
efforts to hold our elected officials responsible for the failures throughout the schools,
by giving the Mayor authority to hire and fire the superintendent and to remove principals
and teachers who don't perform.
LOWERING YOUR TAX BILL
- Tax rate reductions that make the District competitive with the
surrounding jurisdictions have long been one of Jack's priorities. With At-Large
Councilmember David Catania lack introduced and passed sweeping tax reform that lowered
rates for low-income earners, property taxpayers, and businesses and individuals paying
the highest rate.
- The Earned Income Tax Credit, which provides tax refunds to
working poor and near-poor families, is available in other states -- why not DC, which has
the highest rates in the region for the low-income? Jack introduced a bill last month to
allow DC taxpayers to take advantage of this Federal program like other citizens can.
JACK IS WITH US WHEN WE NEED HIM
- He regularly attends community meetings, ANC meetings and
neighborhood events, and is ready to tackle problems he hears about directly from
residents. When he can't make it, his able staff always attend.
Jack Evans has been a strong, committed leader
working on the awe care about. For Logan Circle/Blagden Alley, and for all of Ward Two,
vote to re-elect Jack on September 12.
Paid for by the committee to Re-Elect
Jack Evans / Dennis Bass, Treasurer |
