A morning roundup of news, opinion, and links from Washington City Paper and around the District. Send tips and ideas to citydesk@washingtoncitypaper.com.

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Good morning from Washington City Paper! It’s Thursday! Happy 96th birthday Beverly Cleary! We’ll always have Ramona Quimby, thanks to you. Oh and there’s a dead tree edition of City Paper out on the streets. Go get yours; it’s our best one yet.

LEADING THE MORNING NEWS: D.C.’s projected growth making Rep. Darrell Issa, Mayor Vince Gray consider more flexibility on height limit rule. [Post] How Ward 5 D.C. Council candidates are distinguishing themselves. [Times] Occupy protesters at Freedom Plaza may move to join the few left at McPherson Square. [WAMU] Happy home opener, Nats! [WTOP]

YOUR DAILY QUALITY-OF-LIFE MEASUREMENT: On Wednesday, City Paper‘s Needle slipped 9 points. The bad news: Oh, everything. Take a look here.

SIX CITY PAPER STORIES FROM THE LAST 24 HOURS TO HELP YOU MAKE SENSE OF YOUR DAY:

Five Lessons From D.C.’s Elections (Plus One Bonus Lesson): In this week’s column, LL takes the longer view of last week’s primary race and takes away five killer lessons, including #2: “It’s better to be lucky than good.” True, if depressing.

Do Not Fret, Would-Be Artomatic Artist! Registration Is Open and Working: “OK, calm down people. No one’s going to keep your floral still-lifes, graffiti scrawls, or photos of your grandmother’s hands off the walls of this year’s Artomatic. While a spike in traffic—20 to 25 times more than what Artomatic’s site usually gets, according to Shutt—slowed the registration pages to an ooze, everything is back to normal now. And Artomatic has already had more than 450 people register.”

Pit Stops: The Howard Theatre: We are not done talking about the newly re-opened Howard Theatre yet, though we may be coming close to the end. Lydia DePillis hits the head and reviews the ladies’ bathroom below the stage: “Entering them is a like walking into someone’s dressing room: Bright lights bounce off wraparound mirrors, which capture primping concertgoer from every angle. Images of famous songstresses gaze out from the walls. And after you’ve washed your hands, an attendant gives you a towel to dry them off.”

How a Howard Professor Resurrected Lost D.C. Evangelist Film Hellbound Train: Maya Rhodan talks to a Howard University prof who’s re-edited an old evangelist film about the things people should avoid doing if they don’t want to go to hell. Take notes.

Playing Chicken: Should Chick-fil-A’s Politics Ruin Your Appetite?: In his column this week, Chris Shott ponders whether the anti-gay marriage chicken nugget purveyor should get your dollars if you’re in favor of marriage equality.

D.C. Launches 311 App For Smartphones—Again: Shani Hilton does a quickie review of the new smartphone DC311 app now available for Android and iPhone: “We downloaded DC311 for Android, and it’s a straightforward—if not particularly pretty—tool. It has a section for reporting just about any problem under the purview of the Department of Public Works or the DMV, and there’s a map where you can see the issues reported around you, and their status.” If you don’t like making phone calls, or you aren’t near a computer, this may be the 311 solution for you.

IT DOESN’T LOOK LIKE IT’S SINKING PHOTO OF THE DAY: Washington Monument

LINKDUMP AFTER THE JUMP!

LOOSE LIPS DAILY POLITICS LINKS, by Alan Suderman (tips? lips@washingtoncitypaper.com)

  • Marion Barry starts mending fences, is praised by Tony Cheng. [WUSA9]
  • Mayor Vince Gray and D.C. Council Kwame “Fully Loaded” Brown compete over who is the biggest anti-bully. [Post]
  • Height limit to be relaxed? [Post]
  • Schools Chancellor Kaya Henderson disses NPR, says it’s no big deal. [Post]
  • Ward 5 candidate Kenyan McDuffie nabs endorsements. [Times]
  • “Voting without regard for strategy has created problems in several recent elections,” says GGW. [GGW]
  • It’s been a year since Gray was arrested protested for budget autonomy. So where’s the budget autonomy? [DCist]
  • Speaking of, here’s a very long profile of DC Vote’s Ilir Zherka. [Washingtonian]
  • Taxi fare hike coming. [Post]
  • Council resists Gray’s plan to reimburse furloughed workers. [Examiner]

REAL ESTATE AND DEVELOPMENT LINKS, by Housing Complex blogger Lydia DePillis (tips? housingcomplex@washingtoncitypaper.com)

  • Cool it, scuttlebutters, Best Buy’s not gone yet. [DCist]
  • WMATA needs to change the lightbulbs. [GGW]
  • The Howard’s first opening night. [GhostsofDC]
  • MoCo mulls rent stabilization. [Gazette]
  • Visions for the Mall. [ASLA]
  • New hot building amenity: Libraries. [NYT]
  • Emory Beacon of Light reworks the development around it. [DCMud]
  • Today on the market: Awaiting renovation.

ARTS LINKS, by Ally Schweitzer (tips? artsdesk@washingtoncitypaper.com)

  • Local author Sarah Pekkanen goes big-time. [Style Blog]
  • Quick words of sage advice from Ian Svenonius [Express]
  • Gray Matter‘s Geoff Turner guest-DJs on Radio CPR [Dissonance]
  • Capital Hemp invokes Bad Brains. [DCist]
  • The Wizard of Oz‘s ruby slippers are back on display at the Museum of American History. [Style Blog]

FOOD LINKS, by Young & Hungry columnist Chris Shott (tips? hungry@washingtoncitypaper.com)

  • Here’s the scoop on the new Chef Driven food truck [Post]
  • More on the new Hank’s Oyster Bar on Capitol Hill [Eater]
  • Local 16‘s Aman Ayoubi and Utopia‘s Jamal Sahri are opening a Brazilian lounge below Lost Society. [Dining Bisnow]
  • Whole Foods in Foggy Bottom previews its Korean Cafe [Every Food Fits]
  • The Pi Truck converts a picky New Yorker. [Eat The District]
  • Drop by Fuel Pizza in Penn Quarter today for a chance to win free food for a year. [Twitter]
  • Here’s how to make Cube Libre‘s empanadas [City Eats]
  • A George Mason prof says eating local isn’t always economical. [Wall Street Journal]
  • D.C. Council will discuss a plan to extend bar and restaurant hours on April 17. [DCist]