Lightning Rods
Dear Lighting Strikes:
Another laudatory article about Chancellor Michelle Rhee was
published last week: Clay Risen’s “The Lightning Rod,” in the
November Atlantic Monthly, http://www.theatlantic.com/doc/200811/michelle-rhee.
However, as the article’s title indicates, Risen already sees some of
the problems Rhee is creating. Although Risen is clearly cheering for
Rhee, he calls her “controversial” and gives an almost fair hearing
to her critics. Most importantly, he understands what is at stake in
Rhee’s and Fenty’s dictatorial stance toward public education, and
frames the argument well in his last paragraph: “It is to answer a
basic question about the nature of urban governance, a question about
two visions of big-city management. In one, city politics is a vibrant,
messy, democratic exercise, in which both the process and the results
have value. In the other, city politics is only a prelude, the way to
install a technocratic elite that can carry out reforms in relative
isolation from the give-and-take of city life. Rhee’s tenure will
answer whether these two positions are mutually exclusive — and, if
they are, whether public-school reform is even possible.” Fenty and
Rhee see themselves as part of that technocratic elite, isolated and
above having to respond to the democratic mob over whom they rule, and
not to be questioned or challenged by citizens or their representatives
on the city council. Risen’s question answers itself; of course the
two positions he describes are mutually exclusive, and lasting reform of
any public agency can only be brought about through a democratic process
in which citizens are full participants.
Another member of the administration who sees himself as being above
the checks and balances of the democratic process is Acting Attorney
General Peter Nickles, whose confirmation hearing was held on Friday.
Nickles, who sees his job as representing the mayor, and only the mayor,
rather than the city government or the citizens of the District of
Columbia, is leading the executive’s campaign to deny basic
information about government programs and departments to the city
council, and to withhold executive branch witnesses from testifying
before the council. If the city council acquiesces in Nickles’
appointment, it sanctions and approves of its own demotion to be a
subordinate and subservient branch of the city government.
In the last issue I wrote about Comcast’s poor customer service. I
should have known better than to have taunted fate. The next day,
Thursday, the man trimming our trees brought down the Comcast cable to
our house. I called the company, and the response I got was that I
should call them back in a week if by then I hadn’t received a call to
schedule an appointment. When I escalated the matter to the management
level, Comcast called me back fast to schedule a time to splice the wire
— but it called my broadband telephone number, which went down with
the rest of the cable service. Cable companies used to provide just
television signals, and then it may not have been terribly urgent to
resolve disconnection problems; most people could suffer through the
hardship of having to watch broadcast television for a week or two. But
when cable companies are also responsible for telephone and Internet
connections, for providing basic communication services, a cable
disruption is longer just a minor inconvenience, and a cable company’s
lackadaisical indifference to providing prompt service isn’t good
enough.
Gary Imhoff
themail@dcwatch.com
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Some students paid, some students not paid the right amount, Http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/10/17/AR2008101703276.html.
By not paying kids the right amount what real lesson are they
teaching these students? This is so like the summer jobs program: you
can work, but you may be paid — you never really know.
Shaw and Whittier students feel somewhat slighted, because how can
they have been underpaid and other schools’ students have been paid
what they rightfully should have been paid? How do you really explain
this to a child?
###############
Statement on Shepherd Elementary School by Councilmember Bowser
Kristen Barden, kbarden@dccouncil.us
Ward 4 Councilmember Muriel Bowser issued a statement today [October
16] to the Shepherd Elementary School community about the lack of
leadership continuity at Shepherd Elementary School. “I was very
disappointed to learn last Friday that there had been an abrupt change
in leadership at Shepherd Elementary School in Ward 4. The unrest caused
by such an action concerns parents and the entire community that this
may signal a school year of further disruptions. Leadership stability is
paramount in our schools if we are going to usher in the changes we’ve
promised DCPS children and families,” she added. “The Chancellor may
have good reasons for her personnel action, but no one can be satisfied
with the manner and timing of these actions. Reasonable people
understand that personnel actions are sensitive by nature and that the
Chancellor is in the best position to make them, but they also expect
that an orderly and transparent process is used when making these
decisions,” further expressed Councilmember Bowser.
If media reports are true, and had DCPS shown due diligence in the
hiring process, this disruptive episode may have been avoided. The
principal’s departure raises questions about the school system’s
vetting process and the great weight given to the community’s
recommendation in the selection process. Councilmember Bowser is
committed to making sure that these processes are thorough and
transparent. Shepherd Elementary School is a great school on the brink
of excellence with good test scores, a diverse student body and an
active parent community. What it has lacked has been consistent, engaged
leadership and needed support from the central administration.
Chancellor Rhee will address the school community tonight [October
16] to discuss her plan to restore stability to Shepherd Elementary
School. Above all, Councilmember Bowser will join the school community
in demanding that administrative processes are fixed and that the
appropriate resources are assigned to Shepherd Elementary to make this
great school an excellent school.
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Gang Attacks Near Potomac Avenue Metro
Bryce Suderow, streetstories@juno.com
The whites in the neighborhood near Potomac Avenue Metro are under
siege from black teenagers and young black men. Nearly every day,
commuters walking to the Metro are being beaten and robbed. Early this
week a young black man tried to rape a woman in her home and when she
resisted he stabbed her seventeen times. Citizens have asked the
Guardian Angels to walk the area around the Metro with them to
discourage attacks.
According to a Washington Post article, similar activity is
occurring elsewhere in the city. Is this happening in your
neighborhoods? How are you coping with it?
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DC GOP Asks Office of Campaign Finance if Strauss Is Hatched
Paul D. Craney, press@dcgop.com
Robert J. Kabel, Chairman of the District of Columbia Republican
Committee, wrote the chief of the Hatch Act Unit of the Office of
Special Counsel (OSC), Ana Galindo-Marrone, Esq., requesting an advisory
opinion as to whether the members of the Board of Real Property
Assessments and Appeals, including its former chairman, Paul Strauss,
are covered by the Hatch Act at all times. Strauss, the District of
Columbia Shadow Senator, is presently campaigning for reelection, having
won the Democratic nomination for this position in the September 9
primary. He is also the immediate past chairman of the Board of Real
Property Assessments and Appeals, but is still a member of the Board.
Mr. Kabel said that he believes that occupancy of both positions by Mr.
Strauss may put him in violation of the Hatch Act.
At issue are two advisory opinions written by the Hatch Act Unit. A
recent opinion stated that the Hatch Act applies at all times to members
of the District of Columbia Board of Zoning Adjustment (BZA) because its
members meet regularly. In 2006, the Hatch Act Unit issued an advisory
opinion, apparently in the case of Paul Strauss, finding that the Hatch
Act only applied to members of the BRPAA when they were performing their
duties. This was presumably because the Hatch Act Unit found that this
board only met occasionally. Mr. Kabel has asked the Hatch Act Unit to
revisit its 2006 decision regarding the BRPAA on the basis of new
evidence, the recently released DC Auditor’s Report on the workings of
the BRPAA, which is replete with evidence that the Board works regularly
throughout the year.
On September 30, the Office of the District of Columbia Auditor
issued the Auditor’s Review of the Board of Real Property Assessments
and Appeals Operations. This 27-page report, with an appendix, can be
found online by going to http://www.dcauditor.org.
(Click “Reports” on the left, and then click “Fiscal Year 2008
Reports,” then scroll down to DCA232008 and click document symbol on
right). The DC Auditor is an office under the District of Columbia
Council. The Auditor is Deborah K. Nichols, Esq., who can be reached at
727-3600. Chairman Kabel offered to the OSC Hatch Act Unit the following
information from the Auditor’s Report which is compelling evidence
that the BRPAA meets regularly and not occasionally:
1) In addition to its other responsibilities, the BRPAA is required
by DC law to hold four required annual meetings on administrative
matters (see page 2 of Auditor’s Report);
2) In Fiscal Year 2008, the BRPAA disposed of 3,231 cases (see
appendix of Auditor’s Report for Board of Real Property Assessments
and Appeals Fiscal Year 2008 Annual Report);
3) In Tax Year 2008, BRPAA made downward adjustments to proposed real
property tax assessments totaling $2.9 billion which had a corresponding
negative revenue impact of -$49.7 million (see page 2 of Report); and
4) From Tax Year 2005 through Tax Year 2008 the total revenue loss DC
government amounted to -$143.38 million dollars (see page 2 of Report).
Mr. Kabel said, “I do not see how it is possible for the BRPAA to
meet only occasionally and dispose of more than three thousand cases in
one year causing a revenue loss to the District government of nearly
fifty million dollars.”
Two of the eight major recommendations of the Auditor’s Report (see
page iii), which should be of interest to the Hatch Act Unit, are as
follows: “The BRPAA Chairman not accept campaign donations from
individuals who appear before the Board of Real Property Assessments and
Appeals,” and “BRPAA members not simultaneously hold elected and
appointed positions.” The DC Auditor found that Mr. Strauss accepted
campaign donations from individuals who had business before the Board.
According to information gathered from the District of Columbia Office
of Campaign Finance web site, http://ocf.dc.gov,
Mr. Strauss received more than $135,000 in campaign contributions in
three campaigns for partisan office since October 10, 2002. A notable
amount of donations came from real estate interests which did business
in the District. Mr. Kabel wrote to OCF, “As the general election
takes place on November 4, I request that your Advisory Opinion be
issued as soon as possible, but certainly before that date.”
###############
Wisconsin Avenue Development
Trudy Reeves, Commissioner ANC 3C-06, trudyreeves@yahoo.com
Before posting on themail, it would help if folks did a bit of easy
research. Paula Miller [themail, October 15] should go to http://www.wisconsinavegiant.com
to review the plans before she spouts off. Yes, an underground garage
for 396 cars is proposed under the Giant. Yes the residential units in
the north parcel will all have one parking space each under their
building (DC law only requires one space for every two units, so they
are providing double the requirement). The eight townhouses on Idaho
will each have two parking spaces (only one is required). How about a
little research that is easily accessible before printing untruths? I
think the biggest problem with this development is the amount of
misinformation out there. I am disappointed that themail contributed to
it.
###############
Paula Miller’s posting [themail, October 15] about parking and
traffic at the Giant (that’s planned for Newark and Wisconsin) is
utter nonsense. If she had been at the meeting last evening, she would
have learned that Giant has planned and allotted twice, repeat, twice as
many parking spaces as are required under normal zoning regs. What more
can reasonable folks in the community ask or demand — unless they want
to be totally unreasonable and find any reason for opposition (while, as
usual, claiming — falsely — that they fully support the project).
As for the allegation that the new store will become a traffic
destination, this too is nonsense. There’s a Safeway in Georgetown,
two superduper Whole Food stores in Glover Park and Friendship Heights,
another Safeway in Friendship Heights, a Giant at Van Ness, and the very
attractive new Harris Teeter in Adams Morgan. Someone has to be a
dedicated opponent of Giant’s plan to try to argue that all of a
sudden the new Giant will be the only destination for all supermarket
shoppers all over the city. It will be a destination true — but,
thankfully, for those of us who have long lived in the neighborhood but
have for the past several years scrupulously avoided going to the Giant
because of its deplorable condition and the even more deplorable
conditions along the block.
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Wisconsin Avenue Development
Richard Stone Rothblum, ANC3C07, richard@rothblum.org
Paula Miller writes [themail, October 15] that, “The fact that a
zoning waiver is being sought by the developer on the number of
commercial parking spaces is suspicious.” The fact is that the Office
of Planning or the Zoning Board is quite likely to recommend less
parking than what Giant has proposed. The policy of the city government
is to discourage private transit in favor of public transit. Reducing
the number of available parking spaces is part of that strategy.
According to the Giant plan, the number of parking places available to
residents and shoppers, including patrons of local restaurants, will
remain approximately the same, and will be free. The Office of Planning
held a public meeting on October 15 at the 2D Police Station to inform
the community about the planning and approval process. Jenifer
Steingasser, Deputy Director, Development Review and Historic
Preservation, of the Office of Planning, stated that Giant is providing
one space per condo on the north parcel, twice what is required. For the
single family houses on Idaho, she stated that Giant is providing two
spaces per house, twice what is required. For the residential units on
the south parcel, Giant is providing one space per unit, although these
spaces will be mingled with general parking for the shops. Again, twice
what is required. I believe that the requested waiver is to allow
certain parking spaces that are being provided to satisfy requirements
of the North parcel to be situated on the South parcel
Giant has been fairly open about its planning process and has
involved the neighborhood to a great degree. They have sought community
input to the point where I am getting tired of meeting after meeting
related to this development. The fact is that the “community” doesn’t
speak with one voice, and it seldom knows what it is talking about. I
have observed already several instances in which plans were reversed
based on community input, only to be reversed again when other elements
of the community were heard from. By the time all the district agencies
are done with their review, the project may end up looking like one
designed by the proverbial committee of visually challenged personnel
trying to guess what an elephant looks like based on the particular part
each examined. It is a shame that the planning process is taking years,
and that it will be at least another year before the city completes its
approval process and ground is broken. No wonder businesses avoid the
District.
###############
Thank you, Richard Rothblum, for your E-mail (above), but why didn’t
you summarize your understanding of the Giant Food development parking
situation at the meeting? It would have been helpful to a lot of people
and alleviated a lot of the questions and confusion. Last night [October
15], the ANC-3C community met at the Second District Police headquarters
to voice their concerns about the ongoing Giant Food development
planning effort at Wisconsin and Newark, NW. From the start, it was
unclear if the meeting was to be an open forum for all concerns to be
aired, or just a question and answer session about the planning process.
It was not clarified until almost one hour into the meeting that the
purpose of the meeting was to discuss the planning process. Jennifer
Steingasser, Deputy Director, Development Review and Historic
Preservation, chaired the meeting, but did an inartful job of leading
the “discussion,” such as it was. Her transparent attempts at
obfuscation became frustrating to the audience as she continually
repeated that the Giant’s seeking of a waiver from the current zoning
“overlay” would not itself change the underlying zoning overlay —
as if such attempts to reassure the audience would alter our concerns.
At one point, an audience member asked her to drop the zoning-speak and
explain clearly the terms she was using, to no avail. ANC commissioners
present last night, and other community members in-the-know, tried to
help clear up the process issue, but no one seemed to understand the
entire zoning and planning process, as it applies to this particular
project, enough to help the community attain a better understanding of
how we’ve gotten to this point in the “process” and where we’re
going from here.
While I fully agree with Mr. Rothblum’s impatience about the
geologic pace of the planning and zoning process, no one in this
community wants to be treated like a mushroom. But that is how we’ve
been made to feel by the ANC, the DC developers, and the Giant Food
development representatives. No one is pretending to know what they’re
talking about regarding this development, as Rothblum accuses me of
doing. They are asking good questions, but not getting good answers.
Yes, the Giant Food expansion project needs to move forward more quickly
to execution. However, the community wants to understand the process
better, and not feel as if the developers and ad hoc secret neighborhood
groups are acting behind the community’s collective back, trying to
either push the planning through back channels, or stall or halt the
project.
While it appears that the majority of the community supports the
Giant Food development project, last night’s meeting revealed a split
between those merely seeking more accurate and complete project
information as we move forward, and those impatient with the snail’s
pace of the planning process who want to barrel ahead and get the
project started. If Steingasser had done a better job of framing the
meeting’s purpose and given us a “where-we-are-now, and where-we’re-going-from-here”
synopsis, the tone of the meeting could have been much more informative
and productive. Steingasser is the wrong person to lead any community
outreach or education efforts. Could we now just move on to the zoning
commission’s review and hearing process armed with a better
understanding of how this is all supposed to work?
###############
Curbside Parking for Commuters Continued
Jack McKay, jack.mckay@verizon.net
Mount Pleasant resident Denise Wiktor complains (themail, October 16)
that the proposal for curbside parking for commuters to Mount Pleasant (themail,
October 11) “means business owners and employees until midnight”
parked around her house. No, it doesn’t. “Daytime-only parking
permits” means valid only until 5 p.m., and “a limited number”
means few enough to have only a modest effect on daytime parking for
residents. A recent count found over five hundred vacant curbside spots
at 11:00 a.m. on a weekday, and DDOT recommends that no more than two
hundred such permits be issued, whereas the ANC proposed just
eighty-five. Surely we residents can get by on three hundred vacant
parking spots around the neighborhood.
Furthermore, the DDOT plan will allow these permits only for blocks
which currently have daytime parking occupancy of less than 60 percent.
This means that none of these daytime-only commuter parking spots will
be within a block of Ms Wiktor’s home. They’ll be in front of my
house, certainly (40 percent daytime occupancy). But that’s okay, if
they’re paying us $160 a quarter for the privilege. I don’t own that
spot in front of my house.
I estimate that four thousand cars leave Mount Pleasant every
morning, because many residents drive to work. That opens up lots of
curbside parking during the day. Given that there’s no commercial
parking lot in the neighborhood, why not rent this curbside parking out
“ . . . to bona fide Mount Pleasant school and business employees”
coming to our neighborhood to work? We need the services these people
provide, they need the parking space, it’s public space, and the
neighborhood can make good use of the revenues.
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With a Few Days to Spare
Ed T. Barron, edtb1@macdotcom
After six phone calls to the Board of Elections, and speaking with
three persons, I was assured that the absentee ballots would be mailed
out right after Columbus Day. Sure enough, my ship came in today
(Saturday) and delivered absentee ballots for roomie and me. They’ll
be mailed back on Monday, properly filled out. I was primarily
interested in writing in Carol Schwartz (fie on you, Washington Post)
but my vote for McCain will be in a very small minority here in DC. I
will learn of the results of the national election while I’m in
Germany, but I won’t likely learn about the DC results until I get
back.
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CLASSIFIEDS — EVENTS
At-Large Council Candidates’ Debate, Dupont Circle, October 20
Joel Lawson, president@dupont-circle.org
The Dupont Circle Advisory Neighborhood Commission (2B), in
conjunction with the Dupont Circle Citizens Association (DCCA), will
co-host an at-large council candidates’ debate on Monday, October 20.
The debate will feature questions submitted directly by residents.
Residents may submit potential questions at: http://www.dupontcircleanc.net.
Confirmed to participate are Kwame Brown, Michael Brown, Mark Long,
Patrick Mara, Carol Schwartz, and David Schwartzman. Monday, October 20,
from 7:00 p.m. to 8:30 p.m., at the Cosmos Club, Powell Room, 2121
Massachusetts Avenue, NW.
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DC Public Library Events, October 21, 23
George Williams, george.williams2@dc.gov
Tuesday, October 21, 12:30 p.m., West End Library, West End Book
Club.
Tuesday, October 21, 3:00 p.m., Martin Luther King, Jr., Memorial
Library, Room 110. Shades of Black Book Club. Discuss The First Lady
by Carl Weber. Next month’s selection: Drama in the Church by
Dynah Zale.
Tuesday, October 21, 6:30 p.m., Southeast Library, Capitol Hill
Nonfiction Book Club.
Tuesday, October 21, 7:30 p.m., Palisades Library, Palisades Library
Book Club.
Thursday, October 23, 6:30 p.m., Cleveland Park Library. Author talk:
Naomi F. Collins will discuss Through Dark Days and White Nights:
Four Decades Observing a Changing Russia. A book sale and signing
will follow.
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Historical Society of Washington, DC, October 22
Ed Bruske, euclidarms@yahoo.com
Wednesday, October 22, 12:00 p.m., Historical Society of Washington,
DC, 801 K Street, NW, at Mt. Vernon Square. Free admission. High Noon
Live Music: Me and Martha. Virginia’s Shenandoah Valley is a
wellspring of traditional folk music dating back to the days of the
early settlers. Beyond the historical tracings of fiddle/banjo music,
popular in rural Virginia until the guitar gained popularity in the late
1800’s, there has been little primary documentation of the music or
the music makers. Except for a dozen or so Library of Congress field
recordings by Washington based Alan Lomax, nothing of the Shenandoah
Valley’s music exists prior to 1940. This program will trace the
preservation and current trends in rural roots music with particular
attention given to the role Washington, DC, has played in preserving
this truly American performing art specifically the music of the
Shenandoah Valley. Don DePoy and Martha Hills, will share their own
efforts to preserve and promote traditional folk music with their live
presentations of ‘country thumping root music’. Bring the entire
family to hear this fun, authentic American music. RSVP@historydc.org or
383-1828.
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National Building Museum Events, October 22, 25
Jazmine Zick, jzick@nbm.org
Wednesday, October 22, 9:30 a.m.-12:00 p.m. National AICP Symposium:
Make a Difference with Green Community Strategies. Learn how city and
regional leaders are producing sustainable communities and addressing
climate change through innovative green infrastructure strategies such
as green municipal operations and construction standards, alternative
forms of transportation, and “energy-smart” growth. Free for APA and
AICP Members; $12 Member; $12 Student; $20 Nonmember. Prepaid
registration required. Walk-in registration based on availability.
Saturday, October 25, 10:00 a.m.-12:00 p.m.; 2:00-4:00 p.m. Family
Program: Haunted Halloween. Celebrate the spirit of Halloween as you
build and design your very own haunted house. Festivities include
crafts, treats, and ghost stories. $10 Member; $15 Nonmember, per child.
Ages six and up, accompanied by an adult. Prepaid registration required.
Both events at the National Building Museum, 401 F Street, NW, Judiciary
Square stop, Metro Red Line. Register online at http://www.nbm.org
or call 272-2448.
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Family-Friendly Halloween Alternative to Trick or Treating, October
31
Ingrid Drake, ingridnatasha@yahoo.com
M.O.M.I.E’s Great Persons Ball on Friday, October 31 from 6:30 to
10:00 p.m. At the ball, attendees are invited to dress up as their
favorite great person, an individual whose life story inspires them,
such as Rosa Parks or Malcolm X. The ball will have great food, positive
Hip Hop music, family picture-taking, and will feature contests for best
costumes. Organized by M.O.M.I.E.’s children and parents, the ball
provides families a fun, educational alternative to celebrating
Halloween. The ball will be held at the Brightwood Park United Methodist
Church, 744 Jefferson Street, NW (corner of 8th and Jefferson Streets,
NW). This event is a fundraiser! Please call Melantha at 468-5323.
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Videoblogging Class at SALSA, November 4, 11
Phil Shapiro, pshapiro@his.com
Would you like to learn how to put video on the web to support your
favorite cause? I’ll be teaching a videoblogging class for SALSA (the
Social Action Leadership School for Activists) on November 4 and
November 11, from 7:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. The price of the class is $75.
I teach this class using iMovie HD on a MacBook laptop, but refer to
Windows software equivalents. Further info at http://tinyurl.com/4e4kyq.
I also teach this workshop by arrangement at other places around
town. In teaching the class I show and explain how you don’t need
expensive equipment to get your message out to the world. For example,
the digital camcorder I use costs $225 new and produces excellent video
for the web.
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