Scarier than Halloween
Dear Founts of Wisdom:
Mayor Williams is pushing his Neighborhood Action Initiative. There's
information about the initiative on the DCWatch web site at http://www.dcwatch.com/mayor/991020.htm,
and on its own web site, http://www.neighborhoodaction.com/dcgov.us.
I have to admit, so far the initiative seems like a lot of double talk. But it's supposed
to give citizens real input into what the government actually does in their neighborhoods,
and that would be a welcome turnaround for the city and for this administration. So far,
the Williams's administration's attitude to neighborhood planning has ranged from
indifference to actual hostility — in the case of its Redevelopment Land Agency
appointees' rejection of the Columbia Heights planning charrettes and in the case of the
Mayor's nasty letter berating Councilmembers who don't want to play dead when a rich,
politically powerful institution (the Red Cross) wants to roll over Foggy Bottom (see http://www.dcwatch.com/mayor/991025.htm).
So, what are your insights and predictions? Is the Neighborhood Action
Initiative for real? It is a charrette, or is it a charade? Are you going to participate,
or keep your distance? And what should the rest of us do?
Gary Imhoff
themail@dcwatch.com
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What I Used to Like about Living in the City
Matt Berlin, New York City, mjberlin@excite.com
Real local bookstores — Kramer, Politics and Prose, Trover, Reiters,
Cleveland Park, even Olsson's are some of my favorites. This is something unique and
terrific about Washington, I bet in part the result of a smart population in a (formerly)
non-attractive city for big retailers. The way things are going, unfortunately, DC too
might soon be shopping at McBookstore.
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Can you stand a bit of nostalgia? After 16 years as a DC resident, I've
been out of town almost three years, and I have to admit it gave me a pang when I traded
my DC plates for a baig ol' Texas one. It shore is nice now to zip into work in 10 minutes
with no traffic; have pleasant service, even in the post office; not have to dodge
potholes; not have to pay state taxes; no emission controls on cars and car inspections
right at my neighborhood service station. But that said, what's missing is being able to
walk anywhere, movies with subtitles, excellent international cuisine, world class
museums, and neighborhoods. Yes, there is life beyond the beltway, quite good life,
actually, but I miss the beauty of DC and all the crazy stuff that goes on, which keeps me
reading themail.
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Annie’s Paramount and Other
“Attractions”
Julie Newman, jnewman@fbr.com
[Regarding Jean Lawrence's comment in the last issue about Annie's
Paramount:] Bite your tongue! Annie's Paramount is still the best place for chow hounds
after a late night of clubs and bars on the weekends. No better midnight brunch around.
Were I ever to leave the city, besides Annie's I'd also surely miss the Albert Einstein
Memorial at 2 am, watching the sunrise over the Capitol, Eastern Market in November with a
steaming cup of hot chocolate, and the street fairs — especially the street fairs.
Adams Morgan Day. Taste of DC. The Drag Races (bet you can't find that in the 'burbs).
Okay, Jean, enough nostalgia for one day.
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I should think that the decision on where one resides is a very personal
one based on psychological, philosophical and often economic factors. Still, it has been
nice being reminded by some contributors of all the wonderful things about my city that I
often take for granted.
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Living In D.C.
Ed T. Barron, edtb@aol.com
As I read the postings from those who extol the virtues of living here in
the District, I came to sense that probably all of those who posted do not have children
in the DCPS. If they have children of school age, they are probably in private schools.
Lack of choice for those who cannot afford private schools is a major deterrent to those
who would otherwise like to continue living in the District, or who would otherwise move
to D.C. Ted Forstmann's Children's Scholarship Fund has provided scholarships to more than
40000 low income students in this nation to attend the school of their choice. Without any
significant publicity, thirty-three percent of eligible families in the District applied
for these scholarships, which clearly indicates that people want choice in schools for
their children. The argument that having vouchers and Charter schools will delay
“fixing” the DCPS won't wash. Until there are clear choices for parents of
school age children and real competition for the DCPS, the system will never be reformed
to the point where our kids are getting a decent primary and secondary education.
Competition for the DCPS will help accelerate the process of reform and,
at the same time, will offer at least some of our kids the opportunities they are
currently denied. The rights of parents here in D.C. are being needlessly trampled by
public policy and civic arguments. If we want people to stop leaving the District and to
come back to the District to live, we must provide them with clear and viable choices for
educating their children. Without more vouchers and more Charter Schools, the current and
future generations of kids here in D.C. will never get a decent opportunity to learn.
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DC Comprehensive Plan Now On-Line
Bob Andrew, rdandrew@erols.com
I've put up all 19 chapters of Title 10, Comprehensive Plan, as proposed
to be amended in 1998, at http://209.8.191.190/comp/index.htm.
(Not difficult, just time consuming doing all the hyper-linking) This is on its own web
with a simple layout that could easily be migrated for maintenance updates with the
Register and DCMR. Once the city commits to maintaining it on-line, a site with a DC
Government domain address should take over from this site with the latest plan, but this
web site will still be a vital archive snapshot of a point in time at the beginning of the
William's administration. Note that this content is the “Committee Print” that
was submitted to the “Committee of the Whole” December 1998 meeting. It does not
include any changes they made to it, but DOES show (with BOLD and STRIKEOUT) what was
different from the previous plan.
The DC Federation of Citizens Associations took a stand to ask the DC
Council to wait until the new mayor came in before adopting the plan, but it was put
through before he took office. There is one very significant change that was adopted
(without opposition) by the Council, and it has to do with CBRFs. When it became clear
that Council was going to go ahead and pass some version of the Comprehensive Plan, the
Federation opted to try to mitigate at least the most odious of the new provisions. Former
Federation president Barbara Zartman might follow up with citations for the CBRF change
— and the citation that retains current standards for campus plans (which would have
been further loosened).
Staff at the DC Office of Planning is keen to have the office get on-line
with a public web site. This on-line linked text plan has been done pro bono by
me as one contribution towards that. (The web site plan will also need the associated Maps
1 and 2; hopefully Washington GIS Consortium can help with that — see their link on http://www.ncpc.gov home page.) Wouldn't be great if the
Mayor will also make all Transition Committee reports available in electronic form for
posting on a web site?
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School Boundaries/Chevy Chase Center Redux
Ted Gest, 110751.3712@compuserve.com
Pursuing two threads: Did anyone who posted in recent weeks regarding
school boundaries make any progress? As an active parent for 14 years in D.C. schools (my
son graduated from Wilson H.S. this past June), I always had the feeling this was a hidden
“scandal” — that boundaries were manipulated by whoever had the power to
manipulate them. I'd be interested in anyone's findings.
I posted a month ago on the Chevy Chase Community Center. Next week will
be the one year anniversary of its closing for what was said to be a maximum six-month
renovation. Officially, the District will try to reopen it by December, but I hear
rumblings to the effect that officials will just throw in the towel and say “let's
just wait until 2000.” I have asked the Chevy Chase Citizens Association, the local
ANC, Councilmember Patterson's office, and others not to let any further delays occur
(assuming, of course, that the building, or even PART of it, can be opened without serious
public safety risks). Anyone want to chime in, or is this another case in which we must
assume the worst?
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Thank you, thank you, thank you for the posting about moving around a
crowded city. The problem of incivility and thoughtlessness in DC MUST be addressed. I
have lived in Philadelphia, upstate New York, New Jersey, Alabama, Northern Virginia and
now, DC and the people here seem basically comatose when it comes to common sense courtesy
moving around a city. Why do people get on the Metro and stand 6 inches inside the door,
effectively blocking anyone else who wants to get in or out, even when there is plenty of
room inside the car? Why do people leave their cars double parked and stranded on U Street
during rush hour while they dash into a store? Do they not realize they are blocking half
the street and causing a traffic jam, or do they just not care?
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Keep Rock Creek Park Cell Phone Free
Connie Ridgway, kaniru@aol.com
Cheers for Lea Adams who reminds us that the park is a place of natural
solace! I agree; if you want to use cell phones, you have plenty of other places to do it.
And the park is small enough that it isn't a true issue of safety; that's bogus. Let the
deer and the humans have a bit of respite. Let all the cell phone users on the street, in
the restaurant, in the movie theater, in my doctor's office waiting room, in Lea's dreams
(!), and in the hands of drivers in front of me not paying attention to driving, find a
room similar to a “smoking room” where they can all listen to themselves talk.
(Note: there are cell phone users in my family. Hopefully they are used discreetly and
only when necessary).
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How The Washington Post Can Help Save D.C.
Steph “Knowledge is Power” Faul, steph@intr.net
So I log on to the Post web site to read Joel Achenbach and look
up the rate history of the Water and Sewer Administration. Lo and behold, the Post charges
for ALL articles more than two weeks old. Not a whole lot, or anything, but downloading
“Water Rates Challenged” from April 2, 1997, will cost me $1.60 if I wait until
Saturday, and so will any other background stories I find on this issue. Which means that
researching the city's best source of on-line local history can run into big bucks.
OK, Posties, here's your chance to help local citizens: Make the
Metro Section archives available for free. Yes, free. Just Metro. We can pay to read
Sports, or those interminable candidate profiles in Style. Making Metro free would say,
“Hey, subscribers! We really DO care about this city! Help yourselves to local
knowledge!” How about it, guys?
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Deer in the Backyard
Ralph Blessing, rblessin@usia.gov
My brother-in-law in Cincinnati tells me that human hair repels deer and
keeps them from defoliating his garden. Of course, he gets more than a few puzzled stares
when he goes into the barber shop near his office and asks if he can bag the floor
sweepings.
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The message was sent last week absent information on the breed of the
puppies, sorry: Caesar and Tony, last seen Tuesday, October 19th, on New York Avenue, NE.
Six-month-old male fawn PUG pups, weight approximately 15-20 pounds. Please help me find
my babies! REWARD for safe return. NO questions asked. Please keep your eyes open. I have
traced the van that they were taken away in to a church in Columbia, Md. Please send this
on to anyone who may care. Julia, 202-277-5266, JAMMorton@aol.com.
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CLASSIFIEDS — EVENTS
Panel on the Chesapeake Bay Experience, November 4
Lynne Mersfelder, Lynne.Mersfelder@noaa.gov
The Women's Aquatic Network is pleased to invite you on Thursday, November
4, to an amazing panel on the Chesapeake Bay Experience: A Model for Global Eco-regional
Protection and Restoration? Panel and reception: 6:30 PM sharp -8:30 PM, World Wildlife
Fund, 5th Floor Conference, Room 5AB, 1250 24th Street NW. Panel: Charles J. Fox,
Assistant Administrator for Water, EPA; Jane Nishida, Secretary, Maryland Department of
the Environment; Mike Hirshfield, Vice President, Chesapeake Bay Foundation; Gerald
Winegrad, VP for Government Affairs, American Bird Conservancy and former Maryland State
Senator. Moderator: Tom Grasso, Director of Marine Conservation Policy, World Wildlife
Fund.
Metro: Orange/blue line stop at Foggy Bottom. Head North up 24th Street
across M street. WWF is on left, immediately after the Monarch Hotel. Red Line exit at
Dupont Circle (south or 19th Street) and walk to M Street and 24th Street. Parking is
available across the street from WWF in a pay parking garage or in a lot at the southwest
corner of 24th and M street.
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A Black Tie Gala at the Embassy of Austria
Michael Karlan, michael@dcyoungpro.com
Saturday, November 6. Includes Austrian buffet, Austrian pastries,
Austrian wine tasting, 20-piece presentation of the Washington Symphony Orchestra, waltz
demonstration and dancing. Black tie optional. $80. Hosted by the DC Society of Young
Professionals and Event Concepts, Inc. 8 p.m. - midnight, 3524 International Court, N.W.
For more information, to RSVP, or to be added to our E-mail list, visit http://www.dcyoungpro.com, call (202) 686-6085, or
E-mail michael@dcyoungpro.com.
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CLASSIFIEDS -- FOR SALE
Futon for sale. Full-size, black covered mattress, pine frame. Good shape.
$100. Mishelle at 202-387-3351 or mishellem@hotmail.com.
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CLASSIFIEDS — RECOMMENDATIONS
Firewood Recommendation Wanted
Stuart Weiser, otter@clark.net
Can anyone recommend a good source for firewood in small (i.e., half cord)
quantities? I'm afraid if I buy from just any pickup truck source, it won't be properly
seasoned (it's happened before).
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CLASSIFIEDS — WANTED
I'm seeking just one ticket for the Washington Opera for a November 4
performance of Le Cid, or any other night if it is exchangeable. If you can assist, please
E-mail or call 301-713-3078 x 172. Merci!
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A close friend of mine needs a ride to Baltimore Thanksgiving Day. Are any
themail subscribers headed that way? He can meet you at a Metro station. Thanks.
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