IN CASE YOU MISSED IT—'Michael Schaffer is New Editor of Washington City Paper'; and tweets galore!

Morning all. Afraid the rumors are true; this LL's time is up. You're reading the last edition of Loose Lips Daily penned by this LL, but he will be back soon (after a week's tropical vacation) observing the same scene from a different perch. Now LL will not ponder all the time he's spent reading, copying, and pasting on the nearly 400 weekdays since Loose Lips Daily debuted on Oct. 27, 2008—that would be sobering, if not depressing. But LL will extend a hearty thank you to his more than 2,500 current subscribers, who have been kind enough not just to read, but to send in the tips and thoughts and simple thank yous that kept LLD going every day. But most of all, LL thanks all the fellow reporters whose hard work was read, digested, and regurgitated here on a daily basis. Another Loose Lips, the seventh, will follow sometime soon, and in the meantime LL Daily will continue in the able hands of honorary LL Jason Cherkis. Goodbye!

AFTER THE JUMP—Strings on contract proposal could derail fiscal certification; Gandhi says Rhee's 'blaming the messenger'; Congress moves against D.C. gun laws; Orange quits Pepco to ponder chair run; WaPo ed board wants explanation for Slover demotion; immigration politics comes to JAWB; Leonsis wraps up Wiz purchase

DEALBREAKER—WaPo's Bill Turque is first to report on the major strings attached to much of the $65M in private funding that DCPS is counting on fund the breakthrough teacher contract proposal. Put simply: 'If Schools Chancellor Michelle A. Rhee leaves, so could the money.' More precisely: 'The private donors have told the District that they reserve the right to reconsider their $64.5 million pledge if leadership of the school system changes...That clause, yet to be publicly discussed by D.C. officials, is a standard feature of private grants. But it comes at the beginning of a primary campaign that could leave Rhee out of a job.' Mayoral challenger Vincent Gray won't say if he'd keep Rhee, and Rhee won't say if she'd be willing to work for Gray. But if she doesn't stay, the foundations could bounce, along with $21M in teacher salary cash. And in the middle is Chief Financial Officer Natwar Gandhi, who is tasked with certifying the funding for the contract. Question is: Can you certify a contract contingent on an election? His office tells WaPo: 'The government has to be assured that the money it is getting is without condition. We cannot spend money that we are not certain of. This is one of the issues that have made this analysis such a lengthy and difficult process.' WTOP is even more blunt: ' Sources inside [Fenty]'s office tell WTOP that the Chief Financial Officer for the District will not certify the new D.C. teacher's contract, which puts the deal in serious jeopardy.' Also Examiner, NC8, WAMU-FM.

THE STRINGS—'The foundations set out their conditions in letters last month to Rhee and Cate Swinburn, president and executive director of the D.C. Public Education Fund, the nonprofit organization established by political supporters of Fenty's to raise and funnel private contributions to the public schools. Although the four foundations differ on some conditions, all insist on stability at the top of the school system....The foundations also expect growth in test scores and teacher retention. "In the case that the anticipated outcomes are not being realized, the third party funders reserve the right to reconsider their support," Swinburn wrote to Rhee on March 30. Swinburn said the achievement targets match those in the District's application to the federal Race to the Top grant competition. These include 5 percent annual growth in reading and math proficiency on the DC-CAS and a 10-point rise on the National Assessment of Educational Progress. Swinburn said the conditions are "standard for private foundation grant agreements." She said Tuesday that she has never faced a situation in which foundations have rescinded grants for not meeting such conditions.'

THE UNION LINE—'Union President George Parker said his sole concern is Gandhi's analysis of the contract. If he judges it to be fiscally sound, it is incumbent on the city to live up to it, regardless of what happens to Rhee, he said. "We don't have an agreement with the funders. We have an agreement with the city," Parker said. "It is up to the CFO to say whether it has the money."'

OH, AND THAT SURPLUS—The back-and-forth between Rhee and Gandhi continues, nastily, with another report from Turque—this on how Gandhi 'dispatched spokesman David Umansky to push back at Rhee's assertion [in Sunday's WaPo story] that she has little or no control over budget and financing questions, calling it "absolute hogwash."..."This is the case of the chancellor blaming the messenger for information she doesn't like. When she first got here she didn't like the information she was getting. She got the CFO to replace her with someone she liked [Noah Wepman!] and never complained about the information she was getting. Now she is getting a truly independent analysis of their budget." Umansky said the current analysis of the $700 million budget shows a surplus of $2,000 for FY 2009.'

SAVE THE DATE—High-stakes council testimony from Gandhi is scheduled for Friday.

###

That didn't take long: Fears that the congressional gun orgy is far from over are proven true, with senators John McCain (Republican!) and Jon Tester (Democrat!) and representatives Travis Childers (Democrat!) and Mark Souder (Republican!) coming together in a rare show of bipartisan comity to screw over the District of Columbia. Ann Marimow writes in WaPo that the bills are 'intended to make it easier to buy guns and ammunition in the District and to repeal local registration and firearm storage requirements,' in keeping with an expansive reading of the Heller decision. McCain explains: 'It's simple — we believe that residents across this country should be able to exercise their constitutional right to have access to firearms to protect themselves.' The good news: 'Unlike the gun amendment to the voting rights legislation, the bills...are stand-alone measures. Democratic leaders are unlikely to schedule the bills for floor consideration on their own. Lawmakers could try to attach the gun bills to some must-pass legislation.' Matthew Cella details the bill's provisions in WaTimes: 'The bills introduced Tuesday would eliminate gun-registration requirements in the city and prevent the mayor and the D.C. Council from adopting laws prohibiting gun ownership. It would also bar city officials from enacting laws that would prohibit guns from being carried in public places (whether concealed or openly brandished), that would diminish the authority of the city's police chief to deny concealed-carry licenses, or that would prohibit city leaders from preventing guns from being taken into city buildings.' In other words: Same as the DCHVRA rider. Eleanor Holmes Norton says in a statement that she is 'not surprised.' Also WTOP, Examiner, DCist.

FENTY STATEMENT—'The homicide rate in the District of Columbia is the lowest it has been in more than 40 years due to the hard work of the Metropolitan Police Department along with the assistance of community members all over the District. Any provisions that would permit more guns in the District would be a major step backward for public safety in the Nation's Capital.'

V.O. STRAIGHT UP—Vincent Orange resigned yesterday from his senior government-affairs post at Pepco, clearing the way for a run for D.C. Council chairman that could begin as soon as next week, three years after ditching his Ward 5 council seat for an ill-fated mayoral tilt. Michael Neibauer reports at WBJ: 'Thomas Graham, Pepco region president, told community and business leaders Tuesday in a widely circulated e-mail that Orange “has decided to pursue career options outside of Pepco.” “Pepco wishes him well and appreciates his three years of service to the company,” Graham wrote.' Nikita Stewart notes at D.C. Wire that Sean Metcalf, a 'close friend and associate,' said there was 'a great celebration at Pepco today as Vince goes on to pursue other options, as we try to analyze the next steps.' Great celebration that he was leaving, eh? Orange called LL yesterday afternoon to emphasize that his departure was mutually amicable. And V.O., who almost single-handedly inspired revisions to exploratory-committee disclosure rules during his mayoral run, said he would not establish an exploratory committee. 'I'll either do it, or I won't,' he said.

QUESTION—How does he incorporate the number '5' into his run? If elected, he would be the seventh council chairman since Home Rule.

The WaPo editorial board takes a rare and fair shot at Fenty, asking why erstwhile D.C. Housing Authority board chair Bill Slover was asked to step down after questioning why Banneker Ventures would get an unusual markup for overseeing the infamous parks contracts. Hizzoner 'cites the competitive process in which 13 bids were reviewed by a five-member board. He proudly points to the refurbished parks and recreation centers that are the result of that work. Why, then, did Mr. Fenty retaliate against an official who dared to question the arrangement?...City officials defend the fees as commensurate with the risk the company was taking in insuring the work of the subcontractors. But experts we consulted called it generally bad business for a public project, saying it can create a perverse incentive for higher costs....Mr. Fenty needs to be more forthcoming. In particular: Why did he get rid of someone who was asking questions that apparently needed to be asked?'

ALSO—Examiner's Bill Myers reports on 'quiet' settlement talks between AG Peter Nickles and Fenty-connected/Scott Bolden-represented Banneker Ventures. After the D.C. Council canceled Banneker's contract last far, principal Omar Karim has threatened to sue. Says Nickles, 'My lawyers have been talking to his lawyers...I'm not giving anything away.' But it's Mary Cheh who gets in the Zinger! Of! The! Day!: 'Is this the same Peter Nickles that refuses to settle with anybody and takes the same scorched-earth policy with everyone else?...I am somewhat skeptical of the haste of attempting to settle with Mr. Karim while we're still investigating his behavior.'

Meanwhile, a Fenty hustings sighting by WaPo's Tim Craig, who catches Hizzoner during a 'morning viz' outing in Dupont Circle: 'Greeting pedestrian commuters at the base of the Dupont Circle fountain, a relaxed Fenty reached out to nearly everyone who passed by, asking them if they were a "D.C. Democrat." He then posed for photographs and plastered "Fenty" stickers on their clothes. Most importantly, however, Fenty and a small army of volunteers gathered all-important names, e-mail and addresses to log into their voting files – which will become indispensable commodities when it comes to the mayor's get-out-the vote effort....Many of people who Fenty came in contact with this morning gladly gave their information to the mayor's volunteers. And when someone said they were too busy to stop because they were late for work, Fenty ordered a volunteer to walk with that person to collect the information on-the-go.'

WHY VINCE GRAY SHOULD BE HAVING SECOND THOUGHTS—Fenty's database, plus comments like this: 'I don't follow D.C. politics, but I think he has been great' and 'I don't follow local politics too closely, but I don't think he's done a terrible job.'

WTOP's Mark Segraves identifies an obscure but potentially costly federal-local jurisdictional conflict: The feds are refusing to pay new WASA stormwater assessments—even though it was EPA mandates that led to the fees in the first place. 'The federal government won't pay the fee because it says the fee is a tax. WTOP has obtained a letter sent to WASA and the U.S. Department of Treasury from Lynn Gibson, acting general counsel for the Government Accountability Office: "The Impervious Surface Area charges adopted by the District appears to be a tax on property owners....Accordingly, we are instructing the Department of Treasury not to make a payment to the District."...The dispute comes down to whether the Impervious Area Charge is a tax or a fee.' WASA General Manager George Hawkins 'says it's ironic that one federal agency is imposing the requirements that necessitate the new fees while another agency is refusing to pay the fees.' Also Examiner, which notes the WASA position: "It's a fee, because it's directly related to a service that is rendered by our agency," WASA spokesman Alan Heymann said.' If the feds don't pay, it could mean a revenue loss of $2M per year—passed on the ratepayers! A court challenge could be in the offing.

ALSO—Hawkins makes case in WaPo op-ed for big hikes in WASA bills to cover infrastructural improvements. He asks: 'What is a fair price for a life-giving resource, a resource that is largely invisible unless a problem occurs? Our proposed 2011 rates will add less than $9 to the average residential customer's bill — not an insubstantial amount but one that still leaves the average bill at a quarter of an electricity bill, a third of a cell phone bill and half a cable bill. An interruption in these other services is generally inconvenient; an interruption in water supply could be catastrophic.' Also: Watch for upcoming WASA town halls in your ward.

Harry Jaffe quite wisely identifies 'the man who might be responsible for [Gray's] defeat in the upcoming mayoral campaign'—school facilities chief Allen Lew. 'Lew and his staff are responsible for renovating school buildings, athletic fields and playgrounds from one end of D.C. to the other. With a top core of fewer than 30, Lew has hired and monitored construction companies that have done in three years what the District has failed to do in the past 50. Lew has fixed the schools, period. The chattering classes are focused on whether Gray would keep schools Chancellor Michelle Rhee around if he's elected mayor. If Gray were smart, he would let Rhee's future slide but guarantee Lew's job....Ask yourself: Will voters pay more attention to the politics of school reform or the very real improvements to their schools?'

PLEAS PLEAS ME—Two developments of note at Prettyman: First off, in OCTOgate action, Sushil Bansal, CEO of Advanced Integrated Technology Corp., pleaded guilty yesterday to bribing city official Yusuf Acar and others, WaPo reports. 'Bansal, of Dunn Loring, admitted that between 2005 and 2009 he and his company paid more than $700,000 in bribes to District technology office employees, according to court records. In return, the documents state, the employees favored Bansal's company when awarding contracts, overpaid for the firm's services and paid "ghost employees" who did no work.' Sentencing is July 16. And Ted Loza, alleged JAWB bribe-taker, pleads not guilty to a new set of federal charges. 'Loza, who was arrested in September, is accused of accepting or soliciting more than $30,000 in cash, trips, limousine rides and meals. During a brief hearing in federal court in the District, Judge Paul Friedman raised the question of whether an extra-large jury pool will be needed because of extensive press coverage of the case. For now, a trial is set for October, and prosecutors said it could last about a month. Loza declined to comment after the hearing. But his attorney, Pleasant S. Brodnax III, said: "We look forward to our day in court."'

After three months of negotiations, Ted Leonsis is now on the cusp of control of the Abe Pollin sports empire, including the Washington Wizards and the Verizon Center. WaPo's Thomas Heath was first to report that a deal was all but done—a deal 'giving the former AOL mogul control over one of the few trifectas in sports: two major franchises and their home arena.' And, Heath writes, 'Leonsis and his group, Lincoln Holdings, are likely to energize the culture at Washington Sports & Entertainment, the sports empire cobbled together by [Pollin]....Leonsis, 53, is a rarity among sports owners: He is visible and accessible to fans and the public, publishes a blog called Ted's Take, regularly appears on television and quickly responds to e-mails....Sources said Leonsis will push to get the paperwork finalized before the June 24 NBA draft so the new owners can have input in new player selection. Leonsis would like to act quickly to lay the groundwork for what could likely be a years-long campaign to rebuild the basketball franchise....Family spokesman Robert Pollin, who announced the deal in a statement on Tuesday, said in an interview that he expects the sides to officially sign a purchase agreement in a week and transfer ownership in a month to six weeks, after the financing for the deal is in place....Pollin would not say how much the Leonsis group was paying, other than to say it was "a pretty good number." Sources have pegged the value of the team and arena at around $550 million [a figure also reported by AP]. Pollin did not dispute that figure.' Meanwhile, on WaPo A1, Les Carpenter anoints Leonsis as the heir to the Pollin legacy: '[T]hrough 11 years, Leonsis has come to be seen as one of the better owners in sports — a man who learned to squelch his impulsiveness, control his combativeness and ultimately build a team through the proper mix of smart draft picks and savvy trades. On Tuesday, Leonsis moved a step closer to getting the chance to apply these lessons on another Washington sports franchise.' Also WBJ.

The Hill East/Reservation 13 project bows to reality. What was once an ambitious, sprawling effort encompassing the whole of the D.C. General campus and more has been scaled back, Neibauer reports in WBJ. City officials are 'opting to develop a small, landlocked area at the Stadium-Armory Metro Station into a town center rather than take the project all the way to the Anacostia River,' and the 'decision to move the Hill East project forward piecemeal has already driven away a developer whose proposal for the larger project had won overwhelming community support. El Paso, Texas-based Hunt Development Group is no longer part of a team that still includes Abdo Development, EYA Development, Jair Lynch Development Partners, William C. Smith and Co. and Mosaic Urban Partners.' The spin: 'The long-term concept...remains grounded in a master plan developed by the community eight years ago.' The reality: 'The Fenty administration, said one person familiar with [a Hill East community meeting], “just doesn’t think anyone can pull this off in one fell swoop.” There’s no money for infrastructure, sources said, the market won’t support a $1 billion redevelopment and the administration doesn’t want another Poplar Point mess — where the chosen master developer dropped out over financing. “They got burned there,” said Ellen Opper-Weiner, a member of the Hill East Waterfront Action Network who attended the meeting.'

Jeffrey D. Best, 21, the fifth and final suspect to be charged in the South Capitol Street drive-by slayings, was ordered held without bond by a Superior Court judge yesterday. Best, Keith Alexander reports in WaPo, is charged 'with four counts of first-degree murder and one felony murder count in the attacks....Judge Karen Howze ordered Best held after a prosecutor told the judge that Best was also a suspect in two deadly shootings that led up to the March 30 drive-by attack...Assistant U.S. Attorney Bruce Hegyi argued that Best was a suspect in the March 22 shooting death of Jordan Howe, 20, on Alabama Avenue SE after a bracelet belonging to the brother of one of Best's friends, Sanquan Carter, went missing after a party....Hegyi said Best was also charged in the death of Tavon Nelson, 17, who was standing outside his apartment complex on Galveston Street SW on March 30 when he was shot in what police said was a botched robbery. Then, about five minutes later, according to court records, Best and the three other men charged in the Nelson shooting...drove to South Capitol Street in a rented minivan and opened fire on a crowd of mourners who had attended Howe's funeral that day....Best, his legs and arms shackled, stood quietly in court. At times he looked behind him and smiled at people in the gallery, before a federal marshal ordered him to face the front. Best had two gun possession convictions last year.'

Here's to efficient governance: The D.C. Zoning Commission moved swiftly Monday evening to up the bar-and-restaurant limitation in the Mid-City Arts Overlay from 25 to 30 percent on an emergency basis, Missy Frederick reports in WBJ. 'Now that the commission took action, that number has been extended to 30 percent for the next 120 days, meaning that existing projects in the works will not be encumbered by the previous limit...The commission will next consider a measure that would further raise the limit to 50 percent.' Also Housing Complex.

THANKS, MARY CHEH—Neibauer reports in WBJ on a $50,000 grant available for 'Ward 3 businesses willing to organize and launch a business improvement district-like nonprofit to support commercial operations along their corridor.' Hmm—anyone know any troubles Ward 3 commercial corridors? 'The genesis of the business association plan, Cheh said Tuesday, was “of course Cleveland Park,” which has struggled to maintain any semblance of a stable business community. “I was thinking of Cleveland Park, but I do want it to be a competitive process,” Cheh said. “The idea was to let them go through the process, think about how they would organize and maybe the money can be shared.”' So not an earmark, then? Good. Apps are due May 25.

Housing Complex's Lydia DePillis covers a new Downtown BID-sponsored study, which says there's just not enough housing downtown to meet demand. '“If you’re looking to buy a new condo for your daughter in the downtown area, there really aren’t any,” said David Mayhood, president of the Mayhood Company. “You’re going to see this total lack of inventory, like a rope just snapping.” He pointed to the latest big condo projects in the area, Madrigal Lofts and City Vista, each of which have only nine units left. The retail market, on the other hand, is totally oversupplied, with 215,000 square feet available now and 400,000 more coming online over the next five years at the old convention center site alone.' Also WAMU-FM.

Diamond Teague Park, an $8M marina project on the banks of the Anacostia next to Nationals Park, is open, DCmud reports: 'At 10:45 am today (11:15ish Fenty Standard Time), the Mayor and his entourage of Fenty for re-election volunteers gathered together with Earth Conservation Corps volunteers and Florence and Ivory Teague – parents of the slain teenager for whom the park is named – for a grand opening ribbon-cutting ceremony....Before his murder in October 2003, 19-year old Diamond Teague served as a member of the Earth Conservation Corps, a non-profit organization committed to engaging youth in "activities that restore and clean the Anacostia River and surrounding communities." As part of its agreements with the District, Coastal Properties, a commercial dock operator, has agreed to hire students from the Corps to help maintain the park.' Also video from NC8.

Former SecState Madeline Albright is slated to appear at a Clark Ray fundraiser, D.C. Wire notes. 'Albright will be a special guest of the May 24 event at James D'Orta's Harriman Mansion, also the site of Ray's first fundraiser that featured Tipper Gore as a special guest. D'Orta, a physician and Democratic fundraiser, will be joined by a long list of Ray supporters.'

National immigration politics are headed for the JAWB, it seems: National advocacy groups are calling on the D.C. Council to take a stand against Arizona's strict new illegal-immigration laws—to wit, a city boycott of the state of Arizona, WaPo's Craig reports. 'Juan Carlos Ruiz, director of the Latino Federation of Greater Washington, said lawyers are currently looking into how such a boycott would operate. Ruiz said he hopes the council could take up the resolution as early as next week. The resolution could be modeled after one the San Francisco Board of Supervisors plans to take up today in response to the new Arizona law that allows police to stop anyone they suspect of being in the country illegally. That resolution calls for the San Francisco city government to stop doing business with Arizona and Arizona-based companies.' Jim Graham calls the Arizona law 'a crime against civil rights.' Question: How much business are we doing with Arizona?

ALSO—Graham and Phil Mendelson vow to legislate to keep D.C. out of the federal Secure Communities program, which 'allows authorities to check the immigration status of people they arrest.' D.C. Police Chief Cathy Lanier has come out against any legislation: 'It pre-empts my ability to explore appropriate ways to safeguard our city with the participation of our community,' she tells AP. 'Last month, Lanier told the council that the program would have prevented the slaying of 9-year-old Oscar Fuentes, who was shot Nov. 14 as he and his family hid behind their apartment door. Josue Pena, who was charged in Fuentes' death and found hanging in his jail cell weeks later, had seven prior arrests in the city and was here illegally, Lanier testified.'

WaPo: 'About 200 Metro employees were among the estimated 3,000 transit workers from Washington, New York, New Jersey, Chicago, Baltimore, Atlanta and other cities and states who chanted, waved signs and urged lawmakers to pass legislation to increase transit funding and allow federal money to be used to meet immediate shortfalls in operating budgets....One specific change the transit workers want would lift a restriction in the federal transportation program that requires cities with populations above 200,000 to use their federal funds only for capital expenses and not for operations.' Also WAMU-FM.

IN CASE YOU WERE WONDERING—The price for Northrop Grumman: '$12 million to $14 million in grants and cash incentives, with the exact amount based on which location the company chooses,' WaPo reports—plus, you know, right-to-work laws and a generally friendly tax and regulatory climate. This also helps: 'Economic development and political officials in two jurisdictions told The Washington Post that Northrop asked for several perks during preliminary discussions, including reimbursement for moving costs and country-club memberships.' Also, via Housing Complex, reaction from Valerie Santos, who is 'philosophical about the District’s loss. “As for Northrup Grumman, what would it have taken?” she asked, arguing that DC did well under the circumstances. “Northrup Grumman didn’t think the District would be as competitive as it was.”'

The case against locking up kids and throwing away the key, courtesy of Jerry M. attorney Elizabeth Alexander writing in WaPo: 'Data show that, in general, locking kids up leads to worse outcomes than alternatives to incarceration. Moreover, even the most dangerous youth held in secure facilities will not be there forever. Real behavioral change requires providing the resources to support confined youth when they return to the community.'

The case for investment in 'affordable housing, public education, healthcare, and a safe and reliable transportation system,' via the D.C. Fiscal Policy Institute and the Invest in DC coalition.

TOWN V. GOWN—GU neighbors not happy with campus plan. A surprise, verily!

Why are the lights on at this shuttered mental health clinic?

Armored car robbed on 600 block of Rhode Island Avenue NE.

IS THIS PANDA PREGNANT?

Yupp-o-licious: DCmud previews the new Room & Board store.

WTOP asks: 'Does D.C. have an anti-car bias?' DDOT's Gabe Klein answers: 'One of the things we really need to do is capitalize on the fact that our built environment was not built for the automobile. That's a fact....What we are trying to do is allocate the space for everybody.'

...EVEN STREETCAR RIDERS! And you can ride one next week, or at least board one, during a 'Streetcar Showcase' in the Old Convention Center parking lot.

Want more 11th Street Bridge debate? Here ya go.

Dorothy Height begins her journey home. Hamil Harris notes in WaPo: 'A private service was held for Height's family and NCNW board members. Doors opened to the public at 6 p.m., and thousands of people waited in a serpentine line that stretched all the way down the block to pay their respects....Former D.C. mayor Sharon Pratt Kelly waited more than an hour to file past Height's casket. "She was such an exemplar of grace, dignity, perseverance," Kelly said. "After all, she was about the only woman who was there with the leadership of the civil rights movement when they gathered" for the March on Washington in 1963.' There will be another private viewing today; the funeral is Thursday at Washington National Cathedral, with President Barack Obama delivering the eulogy.

D.C. COUNCIL TODAY—9:45 a.m.: Committee on Government Operations and the Environment hearing on PR18-646 ('1320 Mississippi Ave. SE Disposition Approval Resolution of 2010'), JAWB 123; 10 a.m.: Committee on Finance and Revenue budget hearing on Lottery and Charitable Games Control Board, Board of Real Property Assessments and Appeals, and Office of the Chief Financial Officer, JAWB 500; Committee on Public Works and Transportation budget hearing on Department of Motor Vehicles and Department of Public Works, JAWB 412; 12:30 p.m.: Committee on Economic Development meeting on PR18-646 ('1320 Mississippi Ave. SE Disposition Approval Resolution of 2010'), JAWB 123; 1 p.m.: Committee on Public Services and Consumer Affairs roundtable on PR18-766 ('Board of Barber and Cosmetology Lenya Gregory-Perkins Confirmation Resolution of 2010'), PR18-764 ('Board of Barber and Cosmetology Richard DeCarlo Confirmation Resolution of 2010'), PR18-0765 ('Board of Barber and Cosmetology Anwar Saleem Confirmation Resolution of 2010'), and PR18-817 ('Board of Accountancy Robert Todero Confimation Resolution of 2010'), JAWB 120; 2 p.m.: joint public oversight roundtable on 'The Contracting Process Related to Parks and Recreation Projects,' JAWB 123; 2:30 p.m.: Committee on Human Services meeting (scheduled), JAWB 120.

ADRIAN FENTY TODAY—10:30 a.m.: remarks, 'Bank on DC' program kick-off, HEW Credit Union, 403 C St. NE.

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT—'Fenty Visited Dorothy Height Before Her Death'; 'Final South Capitol Shooter in Custody'; and tweets galore!

Morning all. Here's the kind of newspaper lede big-city mayors dream of: 'Suburban governments lag behind the District in efforts to help slow the spread of AIDS even though they are home to nearly half of the Washington area residents infected with the disease,' Darryl Fears writes in WaPo, wrapping up a new study by the Washington AIDS Partnership. 'In what is billed as the first look at the scope of HIV/AIDS infection in suburban Washington, the study decries the lack of coordination that it says denies thousands of infected people the medical and support services they need and deserve, "regardless of where they live." The study calls on local governments to establish standards so that everyone gets tested for HIV during routine medical visits, unless they opt out.' You know, like in D.C.! Suburban officials whine that urban comparisons are unfair, but how about these fun facts: 'Despite having one of the highest rates of HIV/AIDS infection in the nation, the city is on its way to becoming a model of aggressive prevention. In the past three years, it has issued millions of condoms citywide, created a sex education curriculum and offered tests for sexually transmitted diseases for all public high school and some charter school students.' Yay us. Now if we only hadn't allowed the epidemic to run out of control in the first place...

AFTER THE JUMP—Gray locks up big-sunglasses vote, still straddles on schools; you can fight parking tickets, Examiner discovers; WaPo ed board slams Maryland for Metro welching; Northrop is Old Dominion-bound; Blade is back; time for a bottle tax?

MORE—The A1 report is paired with a Petula Dvorak Metro column, which features one of her best lines to date: 'The report found that HIV-prevention education in schools is "inconsistent and timid." "Ha! I can't bring a condom into a school," [a Virginia sex educator] said. "I can't even talk about condoms." Yes, we have no bananas.'

###

News flash: Attractive, 20-something white woman with giant sunglasses plans to vote for Vince Gray! Tom Sherwood discovers this, but also cruelly highlights Gray's legislate-o-speak in a WRC-TV report on his campaign kickoff.

In other Blue Team (or Cerulean Team?) news: A D.C. Wire mini-biography of Gray campaign manager Adam Rubinson from WaPo's Tim Craig reveals a fellow without a whole lot of recent campaign experience: He 'last managed a campaign 20 years ago when he worked for U.S. Rep. Nita Lowery (D-NY).' (It's Lowey, but close enough.) Rubinson worked a deputy chief technology officer in the Williams administration and is leaving a job as a Deloitte consultant to run the Gray tilt. 'Rubinson said he first met Gray four years ago when Gray was a candidate for council chairman. A self-described local political junkie, Rubinson would watch Gray, who was then a Ward 7 council member, on the local government access channel. "I was one of those Channel 13 junkies and I always admired him," Rubinson said of Gray. "My dad was inspired by John Kennedy and I am inspired by Barack Obama and Vince Gray."...During a meeting three weeks ago at the Marriott Hotel downtown, Rubinson said Gray unexpectedly made the offer. 'We started talking political strategy and he found out I had managed a campaign before," Rubinson said. "And it was rather to my surprise he then asked me to be his campaign manager." When asked if he's up to the job, Rubinson noted he's managed projects and programs with budgets of "tens and tens of millions of dollars."..."I have managed people and projects and I have written campaign plans," said Rubinson, who is also an attorney. "Everything I have done my whole life has prepared me to run a campaign."' Hmm—LL detects a lack of subject-matter experience. If this guy was a Fenty executive-branch appointee, he might be sweating his council confirmation.

ALSO—Ben Butler, head of the DPR employees union, writes at the DC Union Power blog, 'While it has often been said that anyone would be better than Fenty, the question we labor leaders should now be asking is just what do we want from Vincent Gray? Certainly Mr. Gray should not expect for us to blindly support him. We need to obtain specific commitments from this candidate....Without specific commitments, we could end up with another mayor who says one thing and does another.' And WaPo's Craig notes at D.C. Wire that Gray still hasn't given a straight answer on whether he'd keep Michelle Rhee or not. But he is not advocating a return to the school board days. 'Gray told reporters after his speech that Rhee doesn't have to be in charge for school reform to be a success. Although he stressed he will consider keeping her if he is elected, Gray thinks it's time the debate over the future of school overhaul efforts moves beyond Rhee. "I voted for school reform before I even knew Michelle Rhee," Gray said. "We voted for a new governance approach several months before she came on board. There probably will be a lot of people that will ask me that question, but that is something she and I will have to work through."' Bottom line: 'With education shaping up to be a top issue in the campaign, it remains to be seen if voters allow Gray to avoid taking a firm position about Rhee's future. And, in this case, the polls won't help him pick a politically expedient course.' Also note that he hasn't mentioned anything about Rhee's marriage in weeks.

Meanwhile, Hizzoner continued his election-year ribbon-cutting tour in Anacostia yesterday, where he opened up a new $14.7M library on Good Hope Road SE. 'The new library, which can hold 80,000 books, DVDs, CDs and other materials and features 32 computers for public use, was six years in the making. Though the former library's closing pre-dated the Fenty administration, the mayor was criticized in 2007 for quickly moving to rebuild the Georgetown public library after a fire when construction on other libraries, like Anacostia, were in limbo.' The political context is thus: 'Over the past three years, the Fenty administration has saw the opening of dozens of new parks, playgrounds, athletic fields, libraries and recreational centers. Although many of them were in the planning stages before Fenty took office, administration officials argue they deserve credit for pushing the projects to completion.' Also WAMU-FM.

NOTA BENE—'Since [the January WaPo] poll was published, Fenty's official scheduled has included at least one event in Southeast a week, suggesting he understands he faces an uphill reelection battle unless he improves his numbers in that part of the city.'

It pays to fight parking tickets, Examiner's Bill Myers seems surprised to discover. 'Nearly three-fifths of motorists who challenged their D.C. traffic tickets beat city hall and another two-fifths beat back parking tickets in challenges...Another 38 percent of people who fought tickets from photo radar machines won, the District Department of Motor Vehicles reported in its fiscal 2010 "Performance Plan." Even when people lost their initial challenge, 1 out of 3 were able to reverse the tickets on appeal. Who says you can't fight city hall?' Those stats prompt a recrimination from the AAA that LL will not be repeating in this space. And never mind that '[o]nly 3 percent of photo tickets were "adjudicated" in fiscal 2009,' while 7 percent of parking tickets and 20 percent of moving violations were challenged. Myers explains why there might be an issue: 'internal documents suggest that part of the problem is the staff is overwhelmed.'

The WaPo editorial board sounds the alarms for Metro as 'storm clouds continue to gather over its long-term financial and operational health.' Signs of the apocalypse: A gap-closing plan that raids the capital budget to pay for operational needs, and 'for a transit agency whose infrastructure is as aging and accident-prone as Metro's, it's a foolish move and creates a budgetary hole that will be difficult to fill in the future.' Whose fault is this crisis? Maryland's! 'Virginia and the District have indicated that they're prepared to find additional funds so that Metro needn't raid its capital budget. But Annapolis insists it's already ponying up $14 million more next year (bringing its subsidy for Metro to $230 million) and that it will go no higher. The trouble is, much of that $14 million is for services rendered — namely, more residents of Montgomery and Prince George's counties using MetroAccess, the agency's service for passengers with disabilities. It's troubling that Maryland won't dig slightly deeper to safeguard Metro's future....Metro, sorry to say, is on a slippery slope, and Maryland is pushing it downhill.'

ALSO—GGW's David Alpert, now one of the occasional contributors to the WaPo All Opinions Are Local blog, writes that Metro is on the horns of a semantic dilemma: Apparently, 'the WMATA general counsel has issued an opinion on a technical but important question: Whether Maryland's lack of payment for capital obligations in FY2010 is a "failure to pay" or a "failure to appropriate." Apparently, Metro Matters [WMATA's capital program] says that if a jurisdiction doesn't pay what is promised, WMATA can borrow the money on its behalf and charge interest, but if the legislature of that jurisdiction just never appropriates the money, it can't. There was some question about which it was, and for at least some of the money, the general counsel believes it's a "failure to pay."'

Northrop Grumman is going to Virginia. It sure was fun to pretend they weren't going to do this all along. Kudos to WBJ on the scoop. WaPo reports: '[CEO Wes Bush] gave credit to competitive offers from Maryland and the District but said in Monday's statement that the company's "final decision was driven largely by facility considerations, proximity to our customers, and overall economics."' No kidding. Also Examiner.

YAY, SOUTHWEST!—WaPo's Lisa Rein celebrates the re-rebirth of a quadrant in a Metro fronter. 'For 50 years, Southwest Washington was divided in half by a mall and an office complex that withered with age. Like the freeway that isolates the neighborhood from downtown, Waterside Mall left its community without a center. Today, the mall is gone, two gleaming glass office towers with a splashy ground-floor Safeway supermarket have risen in its place and the road that was mothballed to build it is back, with wide sidewalks for pedestrians. Fourth Street might be a stretch of asphalt over two city blocks, but its reappearance in a neighborhood plagued by a generation of poor urban design is an important milestone in its revival.' However! 'Tight credit markets have put a bigger renaissance on hold. Forest City, which is developing Waterfront with Vornado/Charles E. Smith, is still trying to line up financing for the second phase. And a plan to transform 47 acres along the Washington Channel into an inviting stretch of housing, restaurants, shops and cultural attractions has not been started, for the same reason.' Still, there's a pretty sweet Safeway...

The bag tax is a success. Now a bottle tax? NC8 reports: 'Ward 6 Council Member Tommy Wells says maybe there should be some strategy to get people to recycle more disposable plastic bottles instead of throwing them away.' And WAMU-FM's Peter Granitz reports: 'At the annual Anacostia River Clean Up, Wells said new rules are needed because local littering laws are only so effective. "For some people it's part of their daily thing to just throw trash on the ground," he said. "We've got to turn that around and get people to be responsible. We can do a better job of getting the message out there."' Wells was concerned enough about a potential misconstrual of his words to call in a pre-emptive strike to LL yesterday, emphasizing he has no plans for legislation 'right now.'

The fifth and final suspect sought in last month's South Capitol Street drive-by slayings is in custody, 'ending the search for the alleged perpetrators of the most lethal outbreak of violence in the city in years,' Paul Duggan writes in WaPo. That would be Jeffrey D. Best, 21, who was apprehended yesterday morning. Also a factual update: 'Police initially had said that four people were killed in the drive-by attack, which occurred about 7:30 a.m. March 30 outside a ramshackle tenement in the 4000 block of South Capitol Street SE. But court documents detailing the police investigation, which were made public Friday, say that three victims were slain in the drive-by and that the fourth had been killed minutes earlier in an attempted robbery nearby.' Also Examiner.

Your daily DCPS budget update: WaPo's Bill Turque asks at his blog, given that Nat Gandhi is claiming $30M in central-office overspending, where exactly is that overspending? 'I assumed that by now, DCPS would have a more detailed idea of what Gandhi was talking about. But Rhee spokeswoman Jennifer Calloway and her boss, Marrianne McMullen, said they had nothing. Same for mayoral flak Mafara Hobson. Calloway and McMullen both referred me to Gandhi flak David Umansky, who declined to comment. George Dines, the school system finance officer who is in the middle of this mess, continued his no-response policy.' But answers could come today!

WUSA-TV's Bruce Johnson covers the D.C. Auditor report on government automobile misuse. He even follows it up with a peek at government scofflaws outside the Daly Building and Moultrie Courthouse!

Support the Free and Equal D.C. Fund: Shadow Rep. Mike Panetta's vehicle to fund political payback against voting rights foes is hosting a fundraiser next Tuesday at Local 16, DCist notes. 'According to the invitation to the event, "Money raised will be used to fund targeted campaign activities and independent expenditures in [Rep. Jason Chaffetz's] home district. We'll make sure his constituents know he's been spending his time in Washington attempting to do the job of the a DC Councilmember, instead of representing the interests of Utah's 3rd district in Congress."...Donations are being accepted in amounts of $25.51 (I'll drive him to the airport!), $51 (I'll help him pack!) or $151 (I'll make sure the door hits his a** on the way out!).' Check out the sweet art on the F&EDCF Web site.

THE BLADE IS BACK—Starting Friday, D.C. Agenda becomes the Washington Blade, re-establishing one of the most storied monikers in Washington journalism. The change, which comes five months after the original Blade folded, follows the February acquisition of the name and corporate assets by a group of former Blade employees. Dan Zak reports in WaPo: 'Working with half the staff of the Blade (which last year had 24 full-timers) and an array of freelancers, D.C. Agenda...relied on the generosity of lawyers, accountants, advertisers and readers from around the world, many of whom contributed pro bono or financial support, according to editor Kevin Naff. "A lot of people really have an emotional connection to the Blade, and the outpouring since it closed was overwhelming and was really what led us to carry on," Naff says. "We'll be a leaner publication and we'll grow as we can afford to grow, but Friday's issue, as of now, is 56 pages, which is remarkable considering Agenda launched with eight pages." The acquisition replants Blade ownership in the District under Brown Naff Pitts Omnimedia Inc., which Naff, publisher Lynne Brown, sales executive Brian Pitts and other staffers formed in January to publish D.C. Agenda....The moniker "D.C. Agenda" will live on inside the Blade as the title of its arts and entertainment section.' Also WBJ.

Just a real mess yesterday morning on 395: A trash truck 'was on Interstate-395 near South Capitol Street when it caught fire and the driver dumped the load at about 10:30 a.m. Monday.' Then 'a motorist ran over the foot of an officer who helped direct traffic after the incident. The officer's injuries were not serious,' NC8 reports.

In the Augusta Free Press of Waynesboro, Va., one Sanford D. Horn explains, at great length, why the D.C. House Voting Rights Act was a terrible, horrible, no-good idea. Except for the gun part, of course.

Susie Cambria would like those agency Q&As posted to the council Web site now, thank you very much.

Fake DCRA inspector: Still on the loose!

Meet the 7000-series Metro cars.

Missing 14-year-old has been found.

We're good at Census.

How Gonzaga College HS introduces its students to poverty.

Rapper Head-Roc holds forth on the state of Bruce-Monroe Elementary.

Fred Smoot-owned Waffle House at 14th and U?

The Leo Alexander Wikipedia page is back. How long will it last this time?

D.C. COUNCIL TODAY—10 a.m.: Committee of the Whole budget hearing on Office of the State Superintendent for Education and Office of Public Education Facilities Modernization, JAWB 412; Committee on Economic Development budget hearing on Department of Small and Local Business Development and Commission on Arts and Humanities, JAWB 120; 1 p.m.: Committee on Public Services and Consumer Affairs budget hearing on Public Service Commission and Department of Insurance, Securities, and Banking, JAWB 500.

ADRIAN FENTY TODAY—10:45 a.m.: remarks, Diamond Teague Park ribbon-cutting, 1st and Potomac Streets SE.

Mayor Adrian M. Fenty visited a stricken Dorothy Height last month, weeks before the civil-rights pioneer's death.

The visit is significant because nothing has symbolized Fenty's deteriorating relationship with black voters quite like his seeming snub of Height last summer.

Height, who died last week at 98, became enmeshed in a city political squabble when the Fenty administration threatened to evict former First Lady Cora Masters Barry and her nonprofit from the Southeast Tennis and Learning Center last August. Barry tapped her impressive Rolodex, and Height, along with poet Maya Angelou, twice scheduled meetings with Fenty to plead for mercy. Both were canceled by Fenty's office; the mayor would not explain why.

Height attended a September court hearing challenging the eviction, telling reporters afterward in a faint, matter-of-fact voice that she'd been unable to get a meeting with Hizzoner.

They finally had their rendezvous.

Fenty visited Height at Howard University Hospital last month, shortly after she was admitted on March 25. The meeting was confirmed by a spokesperson for the National Council of Negro Women, the advocacy organization founded long led by Height.

Perhaps the meeting was meant to defuse tensions—tensions that have already bled onto the hustings. Or perhaps the mayor simply wanted to pay his respects to a civil rights legend.

The mayor's office would not confirm the meeting.

UPDATE, 4 P.M.: A person who was at the hospital during Fenty's visit offers some more detail: "She was in a coma," the person says, so there would have been no conversation. The mayor was at Height's bedside "for a very short period of time."

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT—'Vince Gray Rallies Supporters With Feisty Attacks on Fenty'; 'Voting Rights, D.C. Vote, and Return on Investment'; 'A Leaner CFSA Means Fewer Kids, Families Under City Watch'; and tweets galore!

Morning all. Saturday afternoon, Vincent C. Gray kicked off his mayoral campaign with a speech brimming with rebukes of incumbent Adrian M. Fenty. It was a hearty serving of red meat for a crowd that at times seethed at the current regime, chanting 'send Fenty home!' at times, and it was the prelude to what's sure to become an intensely personal campaign. Nikita Stewart and Tim Craig report in Sunday's WaPo on the big picture, how Fenty and Gray 'face vastly different hurdles to win, setting up a race that appears to be wide open. Fenty needs to reconnect with voters who four years ago placed their hopes in a young candidate willing to take on the city's biggest challenges. The relatively unknown Gray, the D.C. Council chairman and former bureaucrat, must introduce himself to much of the electorate and convince voters that he is a viable alternative to Fenty.'

AFTER THE JUMP—WaPo reports some Green Team disarray; Gray speech reax; Turque examines 'crisis of confidence' in DCPS finances; council targets pawnshops; big business eyes St. E's redevelopment; farewell to Officer Bryson and Officer Peterson

MORE—'Fenty's closest advisers and friends say they are alarmed that the campaign has yet to capitalize on his strengths, such as improved student test scores, fewer homicides, a rising population for the city and new neighborhood amenities. Supporters fear he has been too slow to put together a full campaign team and craft a successful message. Campaign chairman Bill Lightfoot played down the delay in assembling the team but acknowledged that "there has not been a concerted effort to say, 'This is what I have done.' Although Gray did not file to run until late March, his supporters and advisers are confident that they can compete with, or even outmatch, the energetic Fenty in generating enthusiasm and lining up endorsements and volunteers. "There are a lot of people out there frustrated with Fenty, but not really sure what the alternatives are," said Mo Elleithee, a senior Gray adviser. "We need to show these people that Vince is a credible alternative."...Fenty loyalist Ellie Anderson, 76, lives in Shepherd Park, a Ward 4 neighborhood known for its high voter turnout. "I see a lot of people that have Vincent Gray signs," said Anderson, who is worried the Fenty campaign has not reached its stride. "Most of those people were in Adrian's 2006 campaign." Anderson said she cannot understand the "anger" toward Fenty. The mayor "has worked himself to death. He's at an office opening, a park opening, a pool opening two or three times a week," she said. Though many residents in predominantly black communities say Fenty has ignored them and their needs, Lightfoot said the mayor has to remind them that "the people in Ward 8 are going to new playgrounds and recreation centers just like people in Ward 3."'

BURIED LEDE—'Privately, Fenty campaign advisers worry that some of his 2006 supporters have lost the passion that helped propel him to office. The advisers also fret about Fenty's responses to controversies—some of them self-inflicted, such as his refusal to share his travel schedule. Recently, the Fenty campaign has appeared to lack a coherent message as it has struggled through fatal shootings in Southeast, endured another council hearing on parks contracts and managed reaction to a controversy over school layoffs and budget figures. Some observers say that may have been a result of not having Tom Lindenfeld, the man credited with masterminding Fenty's 2006 campaign, on board. Lindenfeld and Lightfoot said they were negotiating a contract and fully expected him to be hired.'

GRAY SPEECH REAX—Jonetta Rose Barras reviews the speech: 'Folks who went...hoping to hear specifics about [Gray]'s mayoral platform, surely were disappointed. The nearly 30-minute kickoff speech—flatly delivered, despite aid of a teleprompter—was a broad outline of the usual issues and a series of attacks on [Fenty]....His supporters appear to be old-guard politicos: former government functionaries and longtime residents unhappy with changes in their neighborhood—a code phrase for white gentrification. He also has a sprinkling of disgruntled Fentyites, who had imagined the young executive as politician-wizard reforming the government without controversy, slaying—not succumbing to—a century-old patronage system and remaining unaffected by the powers of the office....[T]here's evidence the process-driven council chairman has slowed or arrested the reforms Fenty has sought to implement....That kind of behavior creates doubts in the minds of citizens who didn't like the government before Fenty and his predecessor Anthony A. Williams arrived on the scene. Gray will need many of those folks if he wants to win. He won't get them by rehashing well-known problems or by attacking his opponent....If Gray wants to move the city forward, the next time he has a captive audience, he could try less Fenty trashing and more future focusing.'

—From WaPo's Craig: 'In a hard-hitting 20 minute address that took repeated swipes at Fenty's personality and record, Gray (D) set the stage for a potentially bruising campaign against the first-term mayor. Although he did not mention Fenty by name, Gray repeatedly referred to "cronyism" in city government and accused the mayor of stoking "childish bickering" that has stifled the city's progress....Gray, 67, used his speech to cast himself as a public servant who had fought his way through life. He spoke of growing up in segregated Washington in a one-bedroom apartment with his parents, neither of whom attended high school. "My brother and I slept on rollaway beds in the living room," Gray said. "Let me tell you—it's pretty destabilizing to a young person to see your bedroom disappear every morning."

—From a WaTimes report by Deborah Simmons: 'Mr. Gray's speech targeted Mr. Fenty on schools, which the mayor has said since day one of his administration are his No. 1 priority. In a lengthy autobiographical speech that touched on crime, jobs and his hard-scrabble beginnings, Mr. Gray told supporters at the headquarters of the Historical Society of Washington that his mayoral administration would provide ethical leadership, "bring people together" and restore real transparency to the decision-making process. "[W]e need a mayor who understands that the best way to achieve real and lasting school reform is to involve the community—not impose his will," Mr. Gray said. With scores of teachers, public safety employees and other city workers cheering him on, Mr. Gray promised to "double our efforts to empower, recruit, reward and retain good teachers—and, frankly, fire not only bad teachers, but unproductive government employees in any position."'

—From Patrick Madden of WAMU-FM: 'In his speech, Gray called himself a consensus builder with the background and experience to "unite" the city. But it was his consistent attacks on Mayor Adrian Fenty's personality and governing style that earned the loudest applause from supporters at Saturdays rally....Gray offered a few policy specifics. He spoke about improving early childhood education and creating more jobs, but its clear the two candidates are not that far apart on the major issues – and this race is shaping up to be more about personalities than policies.'

—Gary Imhoff writing in themail: 'What's missing from the news stories is the great enthusiasm of the crowd. Gray's speech, which had dozens and dozens of applause lines, didn't tire out the group, which had as high a level of energy and enthusiasm at the end as at the beginning....Fenty doesn't engender anything like the enthusiasm he did in 2006; instead, his best chance to hold on to office is through intimidation. Walking through the crowd during Gray's speech at the kickoff event was Fenty friend and supporter Ron Moten, taking numerous photographs of the attendees, and at the end Moten stood at the door of the Carnegie Library, taking names.'

###

BALLOON WOULDN'T FLOAT—On WAMU-FM's Politics Hour Friday, Jack Evans said he's 'unlikely to run' for council chairman. D.C. Wire notes: 'For weeks, Evans has been saying that he may bow out of the race, given an impending marriage to his fiance and raising his 13-year-old triplets. Privately, sources close to Evans, a longtime incumbent who has represented Ward 2 for 19 years, said he worried about waging a race for the chairmanship against at-large Council member Kwame R. Brown, who has now won twice citywide.'

If DCPS officials were hoping for a quick conclusion to the Washington Teachers' Union RIF lawsuit, well, they aren't getting it. At a court hearing Friday, Superior Court Judge Judith Bartnoff, who had earlier ruled last October's teacher layoffs to be proper, is raising new questions in the wake of the $34M surplus revelations. 'Bartnoff's action breathes new life into the union's legal challenge,' Bill Turque writes in WaPo. 'Bartnoff said Friday that the case was "morphing" because of recent events. "The issue is now whether it was reasonable for the chancellor to believe last fall that there was a budget shortfall to justify" the layoffs, she said. She deferred a motion by District lawyers to dismiss the case and granted the union "limited discovery" to explore the financial information that was available to Rhee at the time of the layoffs....Robert C. Utiger, a lawyer for the D.C. attorney general's office, called the discovery authority given to the union a potential "fishing expedition."...In response to a question from Bartnoff, Utiger said there is little the District can do for the laid-off teachers, even if a budget surplus is authenticated. The most they would receive is "priority consideration" in the event that jobs open up that match their skills.' The parties are back in court June 18. Also NC8 and DCist considers the 'Flummoxing Budgetary Shambles' at DCPS. 'Man, this is almost as complicated as Lost.'

More broadly, Turque examines a '$34 million crisis of confidence in D.C. schools' in Sunday's WaPo. 'Follow the money, if you can' is how he begins recounting the disputes between Michelle Rhee and Natwar Gandhi 'The remarkable back-and-forth between the chancellor and the chief financial officer also has parents, teachers, District officials and business leaders asking: Why do the school system's finances appear to be such an impenetrable mess?...[T]he financial muddle also grows out of tensions Rhee has created with her high-velocity, high-profile quest to transform the city's long-struggling public schools. [Fenty]'s huge political stake in the success of the education overhaul makes Rhee the 800-pound gorilla of his administration. Early in Rhee's tenure, the Democratic mayor put out the word that D.C. officials said "no" to her at their peril....[D]iscord and disarray have been closer to the norm than the exception for Gandhi and Rhee. While the school system financial officer reports to Gandhi, Rhee's unique status in the government means that the person in that post effectively serves two masters. The arrangement hasn't gone smoothly, with the turnover of the school finance deputies. Sources told The Washington Post in 2008 that finance chief Pamela Graham was forced out by Rhee after she raised questions about excessive hiring and spending. Rhee said she did not force Graham to quit. When Graham left, Rhee persuaded Gandhi to replace her with Noah Wepman, then 34 and an assistant to then-City Administrator Dan Tangherlini. Wepman's relative lack of experience gave Gandhi pause, sources familiar with the transition said, but he ultimately agreed to assign him....But by November 2009, Wepman was gone after telling the D.C. Council that he did not alert Gandhi to a $13 million budget gap that helped trigger October's teacher layoffs. Gandhi certified the school system's 2010 budget as in balance without knowledge of the gap. Wepman, who has declined interview requests, has never really explained why he didn't keep Gandhi informed. Despite council members' calls for Wepman's resignation, Gandhi spokesman David Umansky said Rhee pressed Gandhi to keep Wepman on. Rhee said she "continued to express my confidence in Noah."'

HMM—'The dispute has also shaken the confidence that the city's business leadership has in Rhee and Gandhi. "It doesn't seem like anybody knows how much money is being spent on a regular basis," said James C. Dinegar, president and chief executive of the Greater Washington Board of Trade. He calls that "inexcusable."'

###

D.C. Auditor Deborah K. Nichols delivers a report that lands with a nice campaign-season thud: Various executive branch agencies have racked up more than $70K in unpaid parking and other tickets, with more than $1,000 of that belonging to cars assigned to executive offices of Fenty and Michelle Rhee. 'One of the vehicles assigned to the mayor's office has $770 in unpaid fines, and a vehicle designated for Rhee's office has $345 in fines,' Stewart reports in WaPo. 'According to the auditor, the agencies said that the outstanding fines had not been paid because they "could not consistently identify the employee who was assigned to use the vehicle when parking and traffic fines were issued." The unpaid fines were among several problems the D.C. Auditor's Office found with the management of the city's 2,635-vehicle fleet. The Fleet Management Administration, a division of the Department of Public Works, does not keep a list of which city employees are authorized to operate government vehicles. The city also lacks uniform policies for all employees, such as prohibiting those who have driving infractions from operating vehicles, according to the report....The auditor's office also looked at a fuel card assigned to Fenty and found that a police employee used the card on October 3, 2009, in Randallstown, 47 miles from the city. But because the card "did not have the vehicle identification feature, it could not be determined whether the [police] employee used the Mayor's fuel card to refuel a government owned or leased vehicle assigned to the Mayor."'

TIGHTEN THOSE MIRRORS!—'In [fiscal 2008 and 2009], the city shelled out nearly $1 million in automobile damage claims for accidents incurred by employees in the five agencies studied and in the Department of Public Works. One $5,000 claim involved an employee in the Department of Parks and Recreation who failed to "keep in proper lane," according to a police report. The employee was on the way to "Bible Study."...The employee's supervisor wrote in a report that similar accidents would be prevented by tightening the vehicle's mirrors and reminding "drivers to be extra careful."'

NOT TO PUT TOO FINE A POINT ON IT—'The report comes at a time when [Fenty] has proposed increasing parking meter rates and fines for traffic violations in an effort to close the city's budget gap.'

###

The WaPo editorial board comes out in support of the D.C. Republican Committee challenge to the Office of Campaign Finance ruling that found no misconduct in Gray's 'Comcast letter.' They write: 'The Republicans may have political motives, but they raise legitimate questions about the decision by [OCF]. The interests of good government call for further review....GOP officials make good points about the faulty reasoning behind this ruling. Under the law, what counts is who received the money, not the worthiness of its purpose. There is no question that the convention account in which the Comcast donation was deposited was an official organ of the Democratic State Committee and, as such, subject to all regulations governing political contributions....The OCF finding, if left standing, could set a worrisome precedent. Nothing would prevent officeholders from using their positions to raise money for their campaign accounts as long as they say that the money will be used for non-political purposes tangential to their offices. The D.C. Board of Elections and Ethics should hear the case.'

More voting-rights-defeat reax, starting with WaPo's Colby King, who writes that the D.C. House Voting Rights Act, even without a gun rider, is fatally flawed. 'It would have meant accepting the assertion that Americans in the District of Columbia don't have a fundamental right to representation in Congress; that D.C. congressional representation is a privilege that Congress may extend or withhold as it sees fit. The voting rights bill pulled by House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) this week was not worth having, even if it would have allowed D.C. Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton (D) to vote on the floor of the House. Under terms of the now-scuttled bill, [Norton] would have enjoyed that privilege—only until another Congress decided otherwise....Let's face it: There's only one way to gain our rightful place in America. It's the same approach taken on behalf of disenfranchised Americans before us: a constitutional amendment. I hear the groans, but I plow on....We can't give up or look for an easy way. There is none.' In a WaPo op-ed, meanwhile, Mark Plotkin asks a simple question, 'Where were you on D.C. voting rights, Mr. President?' He recalls: 'When asked about D.C. voting rights in a meeting with reporters and editors at The Post [after his election], [President Barack Obama] called the issue "partisan" and "controversial." What he should have said in no uncertain terms was that this was a fundamental component of democracy—a statement such as "I can't wait to sign a bill that should remove this blight on democracy."...Obama made a cold political calculation: Ignore those people. They don't count. And you wonder why the bill went nowhere and why the future looks so bleak. President Obama won't give the District the time of day.' Maureen Fiedler asks at the National Catholic Reporter, '[W]here is the archdiocese' on the issue? DCist's Martin Austermuhle asks: 'Where Does the D.C. Voting Rights Movement Go From Here?' And D.C. Vote, feeling nervous, responds to criticism in WaPo and WCP.

ALSO—Annandale resident chimes in, dismayed by city leaders' eschew of the gun deal: 'D.C. officials should change the slogan on city license plates from "Taxation without representation" to "Taxation without representation by choice."'

The key witness for city investigators piecing together the circumstances of last month's deadly South Capitol Street drive-by shooting is one of the suspects, 26-year-old Nathaniel Simms, Paul Duggan reports in WaPo. Simms 'has given homicide detectives a detailed account of the mayhem, including the names of his alleged accomplices, their specific roles in the attack, the motive for the gunfire and how they obtained the weapons used to kill four people and wound several others,' Duggan writes, citing courts docs and police sources. 'Based largely on information provided by Simms, the sources said, two other men were arrested Thursday....Simms has told police that [Robert Bost] took part in the attack and that [Lamar Williams], who was not present during the shootings, supplied the guns, according to the sources and affidavits. The affidavits say that [Orlando Carter], who also has pleaded not guilty, was the driver of the rented, silver-colored minivan used in the attack on a group of people standing outside a dilapidated residence in the 4000 block of South Capitol Street SE. Bost, armed with a .45-caliber pistol, was in the front passenger seat, according to the affidavits. The suspect who is being sought, Jeffrey Best, 21, was in the back seat with a 9mm handgun, the affidavits say. Simms, also in the back seat, was armed with an AK-47-style assault rifle, according to the sources and affidavits. As Carter drove and the others opened fire, the four wore "black ninja-style masks to conceal their identities," one of the affidavits states.' Also WRC-TV, WTTG-TV.

Meanwhile, while WaPo editors and reporters have declined to name the now-cleared 14-year-old suspect in the slaying, the editorial board has no such qualms, mentioning Malik Carter's name in a Saturday editorial lauding his exoneration as an 'important affirmation of a system that worked.' But that's not all: 'The importance of the government's ability to share this information with the public cannot be overstated, and we hope it serves as a guide for officials considering changes to the juvenile justice system. Malik had been under the supervision of the Department of Youth Rehabilitation Services, and so his arrest sparked calls to overhaul how the District deals with its juvenile offenders. While that reaction was overblown, there is a need for a measured look at the system. While previous reforms should not be abandoned, there are legitimate concerns about how young offenders who may pose continuing threats to the community are treated. Strict confidentiality laws are a bar to an understanding of the issues and, as such, undermine public confidence in the department and the youth it serves.' Examiner, meanwhile, gathers a selection of pundits who are shocked and appalled that police could make such a mistake, including Mary Cheh and Joe diGenova.

The WaPo Capital Business team—Dana Hedgpeth, Lisa Rein, and Jonathan O'Connell—looks at the business opportunities in St. Elizabeth redevelopment efforts, what's to become 'a 4.5 million square-foot federal mini-city for the Department of Homeland Security' on the St. E's west campus. 'It's the largest federal construction job since the Pentagon in the 1940s. The $3.4 billion consolidation of Homeland Security's far-flung agencies in one campus is slated to create 16,000 direct construction jobs involving at least 100 contractors over the next six years....The potential for development is breathtaking. Panoramic views of official Washington and Northern Virginia. Interstate 295 and the Congress Heights Metro station minutes away. A District government vowing to mold 170 acres it controls on the east campus across Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue into a destination place of shops, offices and homes. Another $3 billion in still-to-be-let construction contracts. Eventually, 14,000 DHS workers who will come and go every weekday, plus 2,000 daily visitors to the Homeland Security campus. The area, some say, could become another Crystal City of federal contractors hopping on the $17 billion Homeland Security train.....[D]espite the hopes of community and city leaders and local residents, the obstacles to bringing back the neighborhoods around St. Elizabeths loom large. Lenders, planning experts and some developers say a 9-to-5 workforce alone, especially one behind a secure perimeter, will do little to spur development around the campus unless a large retailer comes along with it. The land rush that engulfed the area across the river five years ago as the new Washington Nationals ballpark was on the way isn't in sight around St. Elizabeths, at least not yet. There are few available large commercial spots nearby and land-use experts say there will be a lag time before the surrounding area starts to change....Federal officials are putting in few amenities on the west side of the campus in hopes of getting DHS workers to patronize businesses in the surrounding neighborhood and to go to the east side of St. Elizabeths. The city owns 170 acres on the east side of the campus and is creating a blueprint for a mix of offices, shops and restaurants, and housing to attract, not just DHS workers—90 percent of whom live in Maryland and Virginia—but also the community, which is now underserved by retail...."This campus has been the heart of this community for generations, and we want to make it become that again," said Harriet Tregoning, director of the city's Office of Planning. "We don't want it to be a place where people come to work and then leave for the day, and we get their fumes. We want to capture them to live and work here."'

After 28 years inside St. Elizabeths Hospital, presidential assassin John W. Hinckley Jr. is set for permanent release. WaPo's Annys Shin looks at what he has ahead of him. 'At 54, the one-time presidential assailant lives like a kid on perpetual spring break. The closest thing he has to a 9-to-5 job is a volunteer gig at the hospital library. He fills his free time strumming on his guitar, crafting pop songs about ideal love or going on supervised jaunts to the beach or a bowling alley....Over the government's steadfast objections, U.S. District Court Judge Paul Friedman, who oversees his case, and Hinckley's doctors are slowly preparing him for what they see as inevitable: His release from St. Elizabeths—life on his own....Hinckley now enjoys the most freedom he has had since his 1981 arrest for shooting and wounding President Ronald Reagan, two law enforcement officers and White House press secretary Jim Brady. Brady suffered brain damage and remains partially paralyzed....Hinckley now splits his time between two very different gated communities: the crumbling campus of St. Elizabeths and Kingsmill, the 2,900-acre luxury resort community to which his parents relocated from Denver in the late 1980s to be closer to him. One has a shelter for the homeless, knee-high weeds and boarded-up buildings; the other boasts three championship golf courses, a yacht club and a spa. Around St. Elizabeths, the fatal shooting of a resident might earn a brief in the local paper. Around Kingsmill, the fatal shooting of a pet cat is front-page news....Hinckley has voiced his preference. If released, he hopes to settle in Williamsburg. And who can blame him? Instead of Martin's [carryout], he has the Pottery Wine and Cheese Shop, where Hinckley and his mother are a frequent sight. Instead of carryouts, he has the Mill, a gourmet coffee shop overlooking tennis courts, where the manager says Hinckley sat recently with a small group of people drinking coffee....But Williamsburg compares less favorably to Ward 8 in one crucial way: The residents are not quite as accommodating. While Hinckley was accosted at least once during an outing in the District by an angry citizen who recognized him, he has ventured out undisturbed on hundreds of other occasions, with hospital staff or on his own. In Williamsburg, by contrast, his social worker...found it nearly impossible to find Hinckley a volunteer job. The Humane Society, a local foundation, a homeless services group, a retirement home, a prison, and the Salvation Army, among others, turned him down.'

A master planner has been selected for the city's 62-acre Walter Reed Army Medical Center site. It's Banneker Ventures...just kidding. It's Chicago-based Perkins and Will, Jonathan O'Connell reports in WaPo. 'Fenty picked the company from 15 competing for the work—a sign of a competitive market for municipal planning work. The company's experience planning re-use of another military facility, the Presidio of San Francisco, played heavily into its selection, according to Fenty spokesman Sean Madigan. "We saw a lot of commonalities in their work for the Presidio Trust and the work that we'd like to see them do here," he said. The two properties are similar in that they feature urban military hospitals surrounded by communities eager for economic development, according to James Wood, Perkins and Will principal.'

Pawnshops are under council scrutiny these days, and WaPo's Ovetta Wiggins explains why: 'Pawnshop oversight legislation sponsored by [Muriel Bowser] won unanimous approval last week as an emergency measure; the council is expected to discuss a permanent measure next month. The action follows a nearly three-month effort by some residents and business owners to stop Famous Pawn from moving into a vacant real estate office in the 7300 block of Georgia Avenue NW....Opponents of the pawnshop say they don't want it to hurt the redevelopment that is expected on 62 acres of the soon-to-be-closed Water Reed Army Medical Center and the economic boost that it is expected to give the Georgia Avenue corridor. But the legislation contains no specific provisions to prevent the pawnshop from opening....Under the D.C. measure, a pawnbroker would not be allowed to charge fees exceeding 24 percent, ANCs in the affected areas would be given 30 days' notice before a license is issued, and the commissions would be given "great weight during deliberations to approve or deny the license application."' A lawsuit concerning Famous Pawn is also underway.

Mr. D.C. Register, aka Michael Neibauer, reports in WBJ on new pedicab regulations released Friday. 'Pedicabs, the rules state, must be operated only on public streets and in accordance with the "safe operation of bicycle regulations." They must include a seat belt for each passenger, hydraulic or mechanical disc or drum brakes, at least one battery-operated head lamp, battery-operated tail lamps, turn lights, reflective tape, a loud bell and spoke reflectors....The proposed rules, which...were drafted after conversations with New York City and Boston officials, prohibit pedicab operators from parking or riding on a sidewalk, from riding while intoxicated, from parking in a restricted zone identified for other vehicles and from riding on any D.C. street with a posted speed limit of more than 30 mph.'

The city has designated the 1900 block of Q Street NW as 'Diego D'Ambrosio Way,' in honor of the proprietor of Diego's Hair Salon, stylist to the rich and powerful. As WaPo's Christy Goodman notes, his work gets an endorsement from no less a personage than the mayoral mom: '"He is the most friendly, most charming man," Jeanette "Jan" Fenty said of D'Ambrosio. She is commonly introduced by him as "La mama de mayor," she said. "The 'Ciao, bella!' makes you feel so good," said Fenty, who brings her grandsons to the shop....Friends and family members sang along to the music blaring from his shop Friday, as meatballs and pastries were passed among the crowd of about 200 people at the street-naming event. [Fenty] said D'Ambrosio is "not only a fantastic barber this side of Rome, but he is a true Washingtonian."'

The temporary chlorine-y state of our tap water is more than a matter of inconvenience, Rose Overbey writes in a WaPo op-ed. 'The chlorine efficiently kills germs in those old pipes, but when it comes out of the faucet, it remains a powerful chemical. I recognize that WASA must clean the city's pipes, but extended higher levels of chlorine raise a number of concerns....In a hot shower, your pores open, allowing the chlorine to soak in and wreak havoc with your skin's natural oils. The same thing happens to hair. Have you ever noticed how your hands wrinkle quickly in a pool? The chlorine is drying them out. And that's just what it does to the outside of your body....WASA's most recent charts of chlorine levels show that the water flowing through our pipes is already teetering close to the maximum levels recommended for pools, let alone for drinking water. Pipes might be able to handle the extra chlorine for three and a half months, but should people have to?...For the sake of its customers, WASA needs to decrease its dependency on chlorine flushes and put a higher priority on replacing antiquated pipes.'

New York Times investigation raises questions about Imagine Schools, operator of three charter campuses in the District, and describes how 'it is coming under growing scrutiny from school boards and state regulators questioning how public money is spent and whether the company exerts too much control over the schools.' Among those regulators is the D.C. Public Charter School Board: 'At Hope Community Charter School in the District of Columbia, which opened in 2005 and where Imagine helped identify board members, the board agreed to pay Imagine virtually all of the school's revenue, to allow Imagine to set the school's budget subject only to approval that "shall not be unreasonably withheld or delayed," and to seek Imagine's approval for how it spends charitable gifts....Josephine Baker, executive director of the [PCSB], which grants and oversees charters in Washington, said the board had concerns about who was running the show at Hope Community. "It's not just Imagine, though Imagine is the one that probably has given us the most concern," she said. "We find it is very hard for schools that hire management companies to maintain their independence, and charter schools are supposed to be independent." Mrs. Baker said she did not think the contract between Imagine and Hope Community would be approved today, in part because the entire model of using management companies is flawed. "There are not a whole lot of charter schools that are just marvelous, and those that are do not have management companies," she said.'

ALSO—NYT fronts story on changes to New York schools' layoff protocols. No surprise: '[Chancellor Joel Klein] frequently cites the teachers' contract in Washington, D.C., as a model. Last year, when the Washington schools chancellor, Michelle A. Rhee, laid off nearly 300 teachers, she was not bound by seniority.'

Washingtonian has posted a portion of Harry Jaffe's 10,000-word opus on the Robert Wone murder, featuring an exclusive interview with his wife Kathy. An excerpt: 'Was the murder of Robert Wone a perfect crime? We may never know exactly what happened that night on Swann Street. We're left with the tragedy of Wone's killing—an unexplained act of violence that has tested the power of friendship and brought out the best in some prominent Washington figures. It has forced Kathy Wone to search for the beauty of the human spirit after the love of her life was taken away. "Right after Robert died, my world was blown into so many pieces—not even pieces but mountains of ash," she told me in one of two exclusive interviews about her life with Robert; she declined to talk about the pending cases. "I wondered: Is there even really a finish line to putting one's life back together?"'

After two decades in the MPD press office, officers Kenny Bryson and Quinton Peterson are retiring. WaPo's Clarence Williams pays them their due at the Crime Scene blog: '[T]his pair anchored the Metropolitan Police Department's Public Information Office as low-key subordinates in a high-profile office. On Friday, Bryson, Peterson and their colleague Barbara Jean Gooding—a 39-year civilian employee herself—will answer their last phone calls and retire. Collectively, they have fielded calls about cases of international interest—such as the shooting of President Reagan in 1981 and the disappearance and murder of Congressional intern Chandra Levy in 2001—but also worked lesser-known cases, particularly during the violence of the crack cocaine wars. They were rarely the lead face or voice for the department in such cases, but day-to-day the trio were on the front lines of ongoing tension between a demanding press corps seeking immediate answers in cases that all too often lacked any resolution, immediate or otherwise. "I will remember always having to deal with one crisis after another and answering only God knows how many questions," Peterson said this week. "It got so bad that at one point I'd answer my phone at home, 'Public information office, Officer Peterson.'"'

An off-duty MPD cop was robbed a gunpoint Saturday night in Suitland, Matt Zapotosky reports in WaPo, and the officer fired his gun at the assailant. 'The suspect, apparently unhit by the gunfire, fled on foot with an unknown amount of cash.' The cop was not hurt.

Two convictions, via WaPo: Pedro Petrovic, 37, is guilty of first-degree murder in connection with a 2008 shooting on Riggs Road NE; he faces 60 years or more. And Makeya Liggins, 20, pled guilty to assault with intent to kill. The assault followed a Jan. 24 argument with his mother over cornbread. 'Liggins got a knife from the kitchen, followed his mother into the bathroom and stabbed her in her chest. "I told you I would kill you," Liggins said to his mother, according to prosecutors. Then he fled to a relative's house, where police arrested him. His mother, whom prosecutors did not identify, survived.'

Nautica Brown, 14, is missing. WTOP reports that she 'was last seen on Friday at 6:45 a.m. in the unit block of Brandywine Street SE. Brown is described as medium complexioned black female with short brown hair. She's 4 feet, 11 inches tall and weighs 98 pounds. She was last seen wearing a blue coat and white shirt.'

This year's Servathon was this weekend; some 7,000 area residents participated in Greater DC Cares' yearly volunteerism push. WaPo's Ovetta Wiggins reported from the Washington Home, where '[m]ore than 100 volunteers gathered...to clean windows, play checkers, wash baseboards, build planters, paint trellises, polish brass plaques and serve meals. But mainly, they talked and listened.' Also WTTG-TV.

Resident Christopher Herman writes in to Dr. Gridlock to make the case against the 11th Street Bridge project: 'Project documents and expert studies show that a new freeway shortcut across the District means more, not less, traffic on local streets and more congested and more dangerous freeways....Adding a trolley and a bike path does not change the fact that this project is a throwback to the 1960s that a cash-strapped city cannot afford: It gobbles $300 million needed for infrastructure rehabilitation and upgrades, and it consumes limited borrowing capacity. It is not too late to reevaluate.'

DDOT has a new chief engineer: Ronaldo T. "Nick" Nicholson, formerly of the Virginia transportation department, takes over Kathleen Penney's old spot. 'In his role with VDOT, Mr. Nicholson oversaw the successful completion of the Woodrow Wilson Bridge project, and the design and start of the High Occupancy Toll (HOT) lane projects, The Dulles Corridor Metrorail Project and other large scale design-build/design-bid-build transportation projects....Mr. Nicholson is a member of the American Society of Civil Engineering, the Transportation Research Board and a life member of the Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity.'

At Poverty & Policy, Kathryn Baer warns of a troubling provision in council legislation: 'Part of a proposed amendment to the District's Omnibus Public Safety Amendment Act would permit any community group of any size to file a civil action against these groups as constituting a "public nuisance." The court could then issue an order to "abate, enjoin and prevent" it. Violation of the order could lead to a fine or imprisonment. And not groups only. Any individual perceived as interfering with "the quiet enjoyment of life and property" by any group purportedly organized for the benefit of the community could be subject to such a lawsuit. We can see what the cosponsors of the bill—–Councilmembers Jim Graham and Jack Evans—may have had in mind....[But] the language of the Graham-Evans amendment is way over-broad and an open license to harass and displace homeless people and others who are already socially and/or economically disadvantaged.'

Thomas Phillips IV, 22, falls down smokestack to his death at Connecticut House apartment building early Saturday. Reports WaPo: 'Fire and emergency medical crews arrived at the apartment building in the 4500 block of Connecticut Avenue about 3:45 a.m. Witnesses told rescuers that it appeared the man fell from the top of the smokestack on the roof of the nine-story building, said Pete Piringer, a D.C. Fire and Emergency Medical Services spokesman. "Firefighters and rescuers were met by individuals who indicated there may have been several people or a small gathering on the roof," Piringer said, adding that the roof has a designated rooftop patio area. The man was found at the bottom of the smokestack shaft on the building's B2 level, a fall that authorities estimated would have been 90 feet. Rescuers were able to access the site and bring the man to floor level, where he was pronounced dead. Police are investigating the circumstances of the man's fall and would not say whether alcohol was involved.' Also NC8.

Former director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse writes to WaPo: 'There are two fundamental questions to ask about the medical marijuana bill passed by the D.C. Council: (1) Is smoke a safe drug delivery system? and (2) Is it safe to approve drugs, especially those with high abuse potential, by ballot initiatives and legislative actions? Any sensible person would answer "no" to both questions....Medical marijuana is a stalking-horse for legalization. This can be seen in California, where medical marijuana advocates have had great success and are pushing for full legalization. But it is not a smart public health strategy.'

Man gets cocaine charges dropped, thanks to SCOTUS ruling.

National Lesbian & Gay Journalists Association asks: How germane is Brian Betts' 'lifestyle' in coverage of his death?

The Socialist Worker covers the new DCPS teacher contract and subsequent controversies. Title: 'Telling lies to attack teachers in D.C.' Nut graf: 'In short, the proposed contract is a scheme to divide teachers and undermine tenure rights—which is why it is being funded by the likes of the union-hating Walton family and real estate billionaire Eli Broad. For most teachers in the district, the involvement of private donors is a major cause for concern. If passed, the contract would allow the leading national forces behind the dismantling of public education to carry out their plan on [DCPS].'

Community College real-estate deal is done. 'CCDC now said it will immediately begin building out the 88,000 square feet of space at 801 N. Capitol St. that it will use for classes and other services. The school plans to be open in time for fall classes this year,' WBJ reports. 'According to the lease, UDC will occupy the building for 17 years, paying $1.8 million in the first year with rent escalating to $3.8 million in 2027. The community college, which is separate from UDC's four-year undergraduate programs, also plans future campuses at the former Bernie Backus Middle School at 5171 South Dakota Ave. NE, as well as a planned 3 million-square-foot mixed-use project at Hayes Street and Kenilworth Avenue in Northeast D.C.'

Metro cars derail in New Carrollton yard.

WAMU-FM previews the SYEP.

WUSA-TV asks, 'Do DC Police Get Enough Help From The Community?'

It may still be better in Baltimore, but fewer Washington residents are choosing to move there.

What's the connection between Marion Barry, Peaceoholics, and Barry crony Roy Littlejohn? Congress Heights on the Rise tries to make some connections.

Why lawns are bad for the Bay.

Check out DDOE's Green D.C. map.

'When it comes to illegal immigration, Leo Alexander "gets it."' And he's having a fundraiser...in Arlington!

Man says Metro train's doors closed on his neck.

Fire station gets green roof.

University of Richmond profiles alumnus Maurice Henderson, now running the D.C. Counts campaign.

The American Lung Association may have left D.C., but its 'Quitline' hasn't.

The man who brought beach volleyball to Potomac Park is dead.

D.C. COUNCIL TODAY—10 a.m.: Committee on Public Works and Transportation budget meeting on Department of Transportation, Bicycle Advisory Council, and Pedestrian Advisory Council, JAWB 500; Committee on Health budget meeting on Department of Mental Health, JAWB 412; 2 p.m.: Committee on Government Operations and the Environment roundtable on PR18-792 ('District of Columbia Board of Elections and Ethics Mital Gandhi Confirmation Resolution of 2010'), JAWB 123.

ADRIAN FENTY TODAY—10:30 a.m.: remarks, Anacostia Neighborhood Library ribbon-cutting, 1800 Good Hope Road SE.

In a 25-minute speech delivered inside the Carnegie Library building in Mount Vernon Square, Gray took repeated swipes to Fenty in a speech rife with references to "sweetheart deals" and "cronyism." The crowd of hundreds, which included councilmembers Yvette Alexander, Michael Brown, Phil Mendelson, ate it up.

"There are some who say, 'Who cares if the mayor ruffles some feathers? He’s getting results.' To them, I have a simple message: That ain’t good enough," Gray said in a challenge to Fenty's governing style. "You know what happens when you’re always knocking heads? People walk away with a really big headache. And I don’t know about you, but I never work effectively when I have a headache."

Gray also made it clear that he's willing to go toe-to-toe with Fenty on his signature issue: education. In the speech and in remarks to reporters afterward, the candidate made it clear that wants to be judged on an issue where Fenty can and will claim serious progress as mayor.

"I remain committed to school reform," Gray said, but added that "we need a mayor who understands that the best way to achieve real and lasting change is to involve the community, not just impose his will."

On education, as well as the other issues he addressed, Gray promised to adopt holistic strategies to addressing key problems without offering much in the way of detail. "We can’t just look at government as a bunch of separate initiatives," he said. "We need to connect the dots and look at a comprehensive and robust approach to solving our problems." Detailed policy proposals, he promised, would be issued in the coming weeks.

He did offer some specifics: On education, Gray promised to work to improve the District's special-education programs, in order to reduce the number of D.C. kids sent to private programs—a huge budget drain for both tuition and transportation. He took a page from the Kwame Brown playbook, emphasizing a return to vocational and technical education. He said he'd reduce emphasis on standardized testing. And he pledged to "stop neglecting the University of the District of Columbia" and to make it a "first-class state university."

Gray was less specific on his jobs strategy, if more biting in his critique of Fenty. "We’ll restore fairness, integrity, cost-efficiency, and transparency to the economic development process by putting an end to 'pay to play,'" Gray pledged, adding that "a mayor should create jobs for everyone in D.C., not just friends and cronies."

Same deal on public safety: Gray called nebulously for "effective partnership between law enforcement, the communities they serve, and the mayor's office." And then came the nod to the incumbent: "When violence erupts on our streets, people shouldn’t have to ask where their leaders are"—a clear reference to the fact that Fenty was on vacation when four were killed in last month's drive-by shooting on South Capitol Street.

The hits kept on coming: "It seems like every day there’s another story about mismanaged public dollars and shady deals," Gray said. "We read about a school system that can’t even figure out if it needs to fire teachers because it has a deficit, or give them raises because it has a surplus. We were promised transparency and openness, but read about sweetheart deals and cronyism....People want a mayor who works with the [D.C. Council] and with residents to get results. Sadly what they see is childish bickering over silly things like baseball tickets, and contempt for the will of the people."

And the coup de grace: "As your mayor, my sincerity doesn’t end when I knock on your door, asking for your vote."

In a rare personal note early in the speech, Gray described a hardscrabble upbringing in a one-bedroom apartment near Gallaudet University, having to share a rollaway bed with his brother. He described his time at Dunbar High School and his integration of the George Washington University fraternity system, before describing his advocacy on behalf of the developmentally disabled.

Even those warmhearted stories morphed into Fenty slams: As a member of the Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps at Dunbar, he said, "I learned you can work hard and achieve a leadership position, but you have to work hard and be a leader in order to keep it. That's a lesson some of our public leaders could stand to learn."

Even more subtly: "I was an athlete, where I learned the importance of working together as a team," he said—no doubt aware that Fenty, too, is an athlete, albeit in individual-oriented sporting endeavors.

Gray read his remarks for a teleprompter, often inserting "my friends" in the text, John McCain-style. Repeatedly he was interrupted by the hundreds-strong crowd with chants of "Go Vince Gray" and once instance of "Send Fenty home."

He closed his speech with an invocation of his long-running "One City" campaign theme. The PA then blasted the Black Eyed Peas' "Let's Get It Started."

After the speech, in brief comments to reporters, Gray addressed the tone of his speech: "I think a lot of people who voted for this mayor feel like they voted for somebody who turned out to be different than the person they voted for," he said. "There's a lot of anger out there–anger I haven't seen in the past in the District of Columbia, and I've been here my entire life."

"Since the idea of trading a single House vote for D.C. for an extra House vote for Utah took root five years ago in the mind of then Rep. Tom Davis (R-Va.), the fire and fury that was once channeled into mass arrests and fiery street protests has been transformed into lobbying calls in the halls of congressional office buildings," LL wrote. "But playing nice, it turns out, isn't much of a play at all. The logical conclusion of the compromise approach played out over the past year: If you choose to play the game, sometimes you get outplayed."

LL also took a shot at D.C. Vote—the voting rights advocacy group that boasts the highest profile, fattest coffers, and most institutional support, by a long shot. After years of effort and millions of dollars invested in the group, LL wrote, "there is the real possibility of emerging with nothing to show for it."

D.C. Vote Executive Director Ilir Zherka responded to LL's piece in a statement today. "You got it wrong," he wrote. "We successfully shifted the debate to a focus on rights—to representation and democracy—for DC residents."

He continues:

As a result, we have garnered more bi-partisan support than any other effort in a generation. We have built the largest and most enduring national coalition ever around this issue. That coalition has engaged tens of thousands of people in the fight. We have educated over a 100 million people world-wide through the news coverage of our activities. We have secured bi-partisan majority votes in Congress for the first time in 30 years. With others, we have also secured the complete elimination of riders on reproductive rights, needle-exchange and medical marijuana.

Most importantly, we have institutionalized the movement for the first time in the history of the District.

Advocacy campaigns are marathons, not sprints. No legislation is ever "dead" while the movement promoting it is still strong. Despite this set back, we remain strong. Our campaign of steps toward statehood is the only viable strategy. Don't count us out. Within the remaining months of this year, we will fight against attacks to our gun laws, improve Home Rule and work to create an opportunity for passage of the DC Voting Rights Act.

D.C. Vote employs many committed, hardworking activists, and Zherka touts some undeniable achievements—particularly the death of social-policy riders. But how much of that credit goes to D.C. Vote for those achievements—as opposed to Eleanor Holmes Norton or simply to the existence of a solid Democratic congressional majority—is not an easy call.

So the question remains: What's our return on investment—with the Davis-Norton compromise generally, and with D.C. Vote in particular?

For D.C. Vote, the question would be quite so sharp if it hadn't been anointed as the institution that's "institutionalizing the movement."

Not only has D.C. Vote functioned as the movement's de facto strategy hub, but the District government, in particular, has sent hundreds of thousands of local dollars to the organization in recent years (including very recently), in addition to its impressive private fundraising.

D.C. Vote is, among other things, a lobbying firm, and given the movement's Hill-focused strategy (i.e., passing the D.C. House Voting Rights Act) that's a hugely important part of its business. After all, if a large corporation hires Patton Boggs or Quinn Gillespie to get results and pays big money for it, sooner or later it wants results.

At what point do taxpayers and private funders deserve to see some results?

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT—'Parker to Teachers: Layoffs and Raises Are 'Distinct Issues''; 'Shooting Victims' Kin Outraged After Cops Arrest Wrong Kid'; 'Drunk Bicyclists, Beware: Court Upholds DUI Conviction'; and tweets galore!

Greetings all. Mayor Adrian M. Fenty announced yesterday that all 41 charges have been dropped against the 14-year-old boy alleged to have been at the wheel of a rented minivan while thugs inside sprayed a crowd with gunfire, killing four. Rather, police have arrested two adults in connection with the crime—Robert Bost and Lamar Williams, both 22—making four total suspects in custody, with one more at large. So what happened? Why were police and prosecutors so wrong about a boy whose troubled past became great grist for the local journalism mill? Paul Duggan and Clarence Williams report in WaPo that 'a patrol sergeant made a critical mistake' by identifying the boy when he was found at a school near the shooting scene. Attorney General Peter Nickles announced yesterday at a news conference that fingerprints and other evidence has 'absolutely cleared' Malik Carter of any connection to the shooting. Nickles went on to take a shot at media outlets, primarily the Examiner, for the 'unlawful' publishing of Carter's name. LL Daily reprinted the Examiner's disclosure, so allow LL to cry from the rooftops: Malik Carter had no part in this heinous crime. Also WTTG-TV, NC8, WAMU-FM, WTOP

AFTER THE JUMP—Press conference drama; Metro board backs off vast service cuts; new St. E's opens; Fenty proposes big hikes in vacant property fees; city commits $3M more to Fort Lincoln projects; Barry wants Rhee 'report card'; will Nats Park have a new name soon?

THE SCENE—The Fenty administration called a short-notice press conference for 5 p.m. on the steps of the Daly Building. After that, Duggan writes in a blog post titled 'Was Fenty trying to avoid victims' family members?,' news crews hurriedly set up outside. 'Then a group of angry-looking people arrived outside headquarters....They were fuming, saying they had come to confront the officials about the continuing violence on D.C. streets. Soon a Fenty staffer appeared at the mayor's podium and announced that the news conference had been moved – it would not be held outside, but inside, on the third floor of the headquarters. The TV crews howled in protest, saying they were on deadline. The standoff dragged on.' Finally, toward 6 p.m., Fenty et al. emerged, and held the press conference without incident. Afterward, 'a TV reporter began peppering them with questions about their delayed appearance outside...."Why move it inside?" the reporter asked. "Because you didn't want to be around the family members?" "We just didn't want to keep people waiting," Fenty replied. "We apologize for taking so long." Then he turned again to walk away. "Thank you all very much!"'

WHAT HAPPENED—'After police chased the van, the four occupants got out in the 700 block of Yuma Street SE and ran, authorities said. It was shortly after 7:30 p.m. Two adults were quickly arrested, and one escaped. Police said the driver ran into Ferebee-Hope Elementary School. The 14-year-old was arrested after officers, during the foot chase, entered the school and encountered him, police said. One law enforcement source, speaking on the condition of anonymity because the case is still being investigated, said that a program was underway in the school and that several young people were there, including the boy, who had registered on a sign-in sheet earlier in the evening. When the boy saw the officers, the source said, he put his hands in the air. He apparently did so not because he had been involved in the shooting, but because he was an absconder from the juvenile justice system in an earlier criminal case and assumed that police had come to arrest him, the source said. The police sergeant, Laswaun Washington, who had been involved in the vehicle chase and had seen the driver, "responded to the scene of this apprehension and identified this subject as the person in the driver seat of the silver minivan," according to a police affidavit filed in D.C. Superior Court. Asked to elaborate on Washington's misidentification of the boy and whether the sergeant will face disciplinary action, [Chief Cathy Lanier] said, "There's no police misconduct involved in this case."'

THE SUSPECTS—'"We feel comfortable now, with all the information we have, that we have all the people responsible for this either identified or in custody," the chief said. She said four of the suspects were in the silver Chrysler Town and Country van when the shots were fired. A fifth suspect was not in the vehicle, she said. She would not say which man was not in the van or discuss his alleged role in the killings.'

EXAMINER STATEMENT—From Scott McCabe's story on the announcement: 'The Washington Examiner is aware of no rule or city statute violated by naming the juvenile who at the time was charged with four homicides and numerous other crimes. Mr. Nickles apparently is referring to a stipulation some news organizations entered into under which they would not name the juvenile in return for attending juvenile proceedings. But The Examiner did not sign that stipulation or attend the proceedings. The Examiner's policy on naming juveniles charged with crimes is the same as many newspapers: In most cases, we do not do it. In very rare cases involving particularly heinous charges, the Examiner believes the public's interest in knowing details of an alleged crime supersedes a juvenile's privacy rights.'

###

WMATA board members stepped from the brink of crippling service cuts at yesterday's meeting, opting instead to 'rely instead on additional fare increases and borrowed capital funds to close a $189 million operating shortfall in the next fiscal year,' Ann Scott Tyson reports in WaPo. 'The proposal would limit cuts in bus and rail service to $8 million, compared with $33.7 million in the original budget. Meanwhile, the increase in revenue from fares and other fees, such as parking, would grow from $89.2 million to $108.8 million. Board members generally endorsed the new plan, whose emphasis on fare increases is in line with the majority of public comments. The plan also includes higher parking fees and special fares for historic and sporting events. "I think there is a majority" of board members broadly backing the proposal, said board member Jim Graham.' Still controversial: cuts to bus lines and late-night rail service, and a 'last resort' proposal to raid the system's capital maintenance budget for $30M—a situation also complicated by delays in receiving promised federal capital dollars. WAMU-FM covers the capital budget squabbling, and Examiner notes that 'City Administrator Neil Albert voiced concerns that 20 percent fare increases would unduly hit bus riders, and thus city residents, compared with the 15 percent increase for rail fares and 12 percent parking fee hike that would tend to affect suburban riders.' Also WTOP, WTTG-TV, and WaPo breaks down the gap-closing plan piece by piece.

MORE—'As part of a stepped-up safety effort, the board also moved to require Metro to develop a mechanism for tracking all safety recommendations made by oversight agencies, including the National Transportation Safety Board, the Federal Transit Administration and the Tri-State Oversight Committee, which oversees safety at Metro. The resolution requires that Metro's staff provide quarterly reports to the board and Metro's inspector general on the status of actions to correct problems, including any significant delays.'

The new $161M St. Elizabeths Hospital is now open. Henri Cauvin reports in WaPo from yesterday's ribbon-cutting that 'city leaders said the building signaled the District's commitment to creating a modern mental health system and to putting to rest the troubles that have dogged the hospital for many years. "This is a great day for D.C.," Attorney General Peter Nickles told the crowd of hundreds gathered at the building for the ceremony. It was Nickles who, as a private lawyer, helped bring a 1974 federal class-action suit over conditions at St. Elizabeths, and it is Nickles, who as the top legal adviser to Mayor Adrian M. Fenty (D) has pushed for an end to the 36-year-old case, saying the city's mental health system has made great strides and no longer requires court supervision. The judge in the case, Thomas F. Hogan, and his appointed monitor, Dennis R. Jones, have expressed optimism that the class action may be nearing its end, and both were spotlighted at the ribbon-cutting....When Justice Department investigators return to the hospital next month for a periodic review, it will be their first visit to the new facility, and their findings could be critical to the court case and to the future of the department's involvement with St. Elizabeths. On Thursday, the focus was on the nearly 300 patients who will be moving into the building in the coming weeks.'

THE BUILDING—'From tranquil courtyards outside patient living areas to functional heating and cooling systems, the building off Alabama Avenue in Southeast Washington is intended to make the hospital a more welcoming place for the people who are there for treatment. "We don't want it to be anybody's home," Patrick J. Canavan, the hospital's chief executive, said at the ceremony, "but while you stay here, we want it to be very comfortable and we want it to support your healing. "'

A week's worth of Michael Neibauer scoops—now all on one day! The newly minted business reporter leads his WBJ coverage with a look at steep hikes in vacant property fees—'an annual registration fee up to 250 times what they pay now'—proposed in the Fenty budget plan. 'Fenty suggests charging the owners of more than 900 vacant buildings a graduated schedule of registration fees that start at $250 and soar to a top rate of $5,000. The mayor also proposes to eliminate most existing exemptions, so that the owners of newly constructed buildings, properties under active rehabilitation or renovation, and buildings for sale or rent will have to pay. If the D.C. Council adopts the new rates, a vacant residential building with an assessed value of $250,000 would have a $5,000 registration tab if it remains vacant five years later — roughly double its annual tax bill.' The fee could raise $4.2M by 2014. A real-estate lawyer calls the proposal 'onerous on many levels.'

Big scoop from Neibauer on an 'imminent deal' to bring a new Giant to 3rd and H Streets NE. 'A highly placed Giant of Maryland executive confirmed the impending agreement with Chevy Chase-based Steuart Investment Co., the parcel's developer, but asked not to be named because "the deal is not done," and the "I's and T's [are] not crossed."...Steuart's plans for the 286,500-square-foot mixed-use project, on the west end of the H Street corridor, include 212 residential units, 279 parking spaces and a grocery store. But which grocery store to place there has long been the question. Harris Teeter Inc. had a non-binding agreement to locate there, but backed out in 2007. Steuart was in talks with Yes! Organic Market and Trader Joe's....Kelvin Robinson, chairman of the H Street advisory neighborhood commission, said the community "definitely wanted to have a different level of store" from Giant at that location....Another community leader, Tony Richardson of Advisory Neighborhood Commission 6C, said most residents would welcome Giant. "What's so bad about Giant?" Richardson asked.'

The Nei-man also has the latest on the city's commitment to Fort Lincoln development. Now in addition to sweetening a 2005 $10M TIF deal by an additional $5M, the city is prepared to spend $3M to construct 'stormwater management ponds' on the property—'part of a major upfront investment in the Northeast community that city leaders expect will pay big long-term dividends.' Why all the sweeteners? '"The project won't move without it," said [Kwame Brown]. But Brown said the investment will pay big dividends in jobs and revenue. "We're looking at $7 million a year in revenue coming into the city," Brown said. "I think it'll be closer to $10 million. In three years we'll pay it back. That's faster than the Verizon Center." The Shops at Dakota Crossing is an estimated $120 million project with 2,500 parking spaces. Costco could be joined by Target, Shoppers Food Warehouse and Staples, all of which may demand their own subsidies.' Let's pair that story with another Neibauer piece, titled 'D.C. tax giveaways mounting; critics follow close behind.' Noting the NoMa hotel tax abatement passed this week, Neibauer notes some inconsistency in Vince Gray's position: 'Tax abatements, [Gray] said, must be reviewed and supported only with evidence "that this is an investment that will pay off." The responsibility to demonstrate the economic benefit of a tax break, Gray said, generally falls to Chief Financial Officer Natwar Gandhi. A day after he addressed the issue, Gray voted in favor of an $8.1 million tax break for a planned $59 million Hilton Garden Inn in NoMa — a break Gandhi found "no evidence...to justify."'

ALSO IN WBJ—Capitol Riverfront developers, including Forest City and Monument, are turning to HUD-backed financing to get projects moving, Sarah Krouse reports in WBJ; and $1.5M in energy stimulus funds set to retrofit Garfield Hills Apartements with 'energy-efficient lighting and bathroom faucets, green floor coverings, formaldehyde-free bathroom cabinets, and EnergyStar thermostats, kitchen range exhaust hoods, refrigerators and bathroom exhaust fans.'

Do read the most comprehensive review to date of the Arts Overlay mess, from Housing Complex's Lydia DePillis: 'The fallout from DCRA's sudden freeze on the occupancy permits has been dramatic, icing projects already underway, spooking would-be investors, and sending elected leaders into a tizzy. It also reopened old wounds in the body politic. When Housing Complex first reported DCRA's shocking announcement online two weeks ago, a flurry of heated comments ensued. Neighborhood blogs exploded with indignation. Fingers were pointed in all directions, some directed at this reporter's portrayal of the situation. One critic even threatened legal action. Participants in this regulatory brouhaha could be almost evenly divided between two camps: Those who want to see more bars and restaurants on U Street, and those who think there are too many already.'

OTHER BIZ NEWS—Big mixed-use development set for southwest corner of 14th and U Streets NW could soon move forward, and 'signs of progress are appearing' for Roadside's O Street Market project, DCmud reports. 'The project team is now working with the District Department of Transportation and the Department of Consumer and Regulatory Affairs to obtain construction permits so that in September, Roadside can begin the process of bolstering and securing the existing structure. Construction will likely follow in "Spring of 2011."'

Good news: D.C.'s 2010 Census mail-in response rate is improving, Carol Leonnig reports in WaPo. 'Both the District and Virginia are improving on their 2000 performances, and Maryland has matched its 2000 rate. The ultimate success of the census depends on the next phase. The Census Bureau is hiring about 630,000 temporary workers to go door to door, starting May 1, to find people who haven't yet returned their forms.'

MORNING VIZ—Fenty spotted this morning outside the Georgia Avenue/Petworth Metro station by Park View D.C. blog. 'While Fenty was speaking with residents, his supporters were encouraging folks to register to vote, offering to deliver yard signs, and asking for their support.'

More voting rights reax, starting with DCist's Sommer Mathis, now writing on occasion for the WaPo local opinion blog. 'The staunchest of statehood advocates might be the only ones who came out on top in this latest failure to achieve even a single vote in Congress for the District,' she writes. '[N]ow that the combined forces of the powerful gun lobby, disagreement among city leaders, and lukewarm support within Congress itself have managed to fell the incrementalist approach, the hard-core statehood view could well end up back in vogue....If this thorough, conservative-led mucking up of the D.C. House voting rights bill teaches us anything, it's that we're going to need more creative ideas than ever, not fewer, on how to proceed. Limiting ourselves to a statehood-only approach will only prolong the 200-year-old injustice of D.C.'s second-class status.'

—A Baltimore Sun editorialist also weighs in: 'The brouhaha over gun control was just another example of the cynical games Congress plays using its constitutional authority to oversee District affairs. Add to that the complicating factors of a hotly contested District mayoral primary this fall in which the two main candidates came down on different sides of the issue, and the timorous Senate Democrats who have their own re-election worries this year, and perhaps it's no wonder the whole scheme collapsed under its own weight. Still, one wonders whether voters there shouldn't have bitten the bullet and seized the chance for a historic breakthrough. Surely it would be a pity if years from now and possibly, decades the District's residents were to find themselves in the same situation they're facing today, with no vote in Congress and still wondering whether the trade-off between keeping their gun-control laws and losing the franchise was worth it.'

—Matthew Yglesias airs a fabulous reader question: 'I still don't understand why the Democrats didn't just push through DC statehood while they had the chance, during the brief period in which they had 60 votes in the Senate. Even more so, I really can't understand why no one within the Democratic coalition even bothered trying to push for DC statehood during this Congress[?]'

—And at Salon, national politics writer Mike Madden covers the efforts by Shadow Rep. Mike Panetta et al. to exact some revenge on voting-rights opponents: 'Panetta is trying to get Washingtonians and those who support D.C. voting rights to give money to opponents of the Republicans who have helped keep the city unrepresented in Congress. His "Free and Equal D.C. Fund," a registered political action committee, will direct contributions through Act Blue to try to defeat targets. First on the list? Rep. Jason Chaffetz, R-Utah, the ranking Republican on the House subcommittee that oversees D.C. affairs.'

—THE GRAY DOCTRINE—As expressed at the Judith Terra fundraiser Wednesday night: '"With all the energy we spent on getting a vote, why didn't we just commit that energy on being a state?" Gray asked to roaring applause. "The 51st state." Gray's remarks coincide with chatter among D.C. Council members over the effectiveness of DC Vote, a coalition of organizations that has been fighting for voting rights but not heavily engaged in the broader – and much more difficult – quest for statehood,' Tim Craig reports at D.C. Wire.

TODAY—Gray appeared this morning on the AFGE's 'Inside Government' radio show.

Latest Brian Betts murder investigation details: MoCo police 'think at least two people were involved in the killing...based on a witness who reported seeing a vehicle leaving an alley just outside Betts's house,' Dan Morse reports in WaPo. 'The vehicle seen in the alley might be a big clue in the case. Detectives have spoken to at least one person who reported seeing the vehicle at 12:15 a.m. April 15 being driven away from an alley that runs between Betts's home and an Exxon station near Georgia Avenue and Columbia Boulevard. Starks declined to release more details about what type of vehicle it was. "We believe it may be related to the homicide," he said. Betts's Nissan sport-utility vehicle was found Friday in Southeast Washington, and detectives think the apparent theft was related to the slaying. Detectives have been looking for two people seen walking away from the vehicle Friday.' Also Examiner, WTOP, WRC-TV, WTTG-TV.

Meanwhile, WaPo columnist Petula Dvorak looks at the 'field of mangled little souls' that Betts leaves behind at Shaw MS: 'It might not have been so bad for them if Brian Betts weren't so good. If he were just another adult who came into these kids' lives, went through the motions, proclaimed that test scores would be going up and sat in an office issuing orders and shuffling papers, it might not be so hard on the kids right now. But he was a force. This was a guy who got them....The cycle of anger, grief and loss is exponentially more devastating for kids who have experienced such pain before, whether it's a death, divorce or just a lot of instability in the home. It's like the economy and the recession: Those with the smallest bank accounts fall off the cliff first when the economy sours. The kids with the smallest reserves of trust, affection and solid adult relationships will have the hardest time facing this loss, trusting again, putting all their emotional capital in another adult. Add to that their age—wasn't middle school awful for everybody?—and there is a lot of damage done.' Harry Jaffe also looks at the aftereffects in Examiner: 'Though the Betts tragedy and the abduction took place far from school campuses, they once again raise these questions: Are D.C. schools safe? Can violence in the streets migrate to the halls and ball fields? With all the focus on the teachers contract and school politics and test scores, are the schools under Rhee secure places to send our children? From all indications, official and anecdotal, the answer is yes. There are bullies in every school, and schools in tough neighborhoods are surrounded by dangerous streets, but the city's schools this year have been relatively serene.'

Teresa Chambers, the chief of the U.S. Park Police fired after speaking out for more funding and more officers, is still fighting her dismissal, Joe Davidson reports in WaPo. And she's winning: '[A] ruling by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit...threw out one of the charges that led to her firing in 2003. More than six years later, Chambers feels she is closing in on a final ruling that will vindicate her relentless effort to clear her name and allow her to return to work. "My goal has always been to go back to my job as chief of the Park Police, and that is what I still seek," said Chambers, currently police chief in Riverdale Park, Md. But more than her individual goal, the Chambers case is significant because of what it says about how the federal government, under both the Obama and Bush administrations, treats employees who speak truth to power. What Chambers has suffered reveals the unsightly way Uncle Sam deals with whistleblowers, even those whose disclosures seem mild.'

Legal Times covers a brief speech delivered last night by U.S. Attorney Ron Machen at an American Bar Association event, 'announcing his priorities to a room full of defense attorneys, prosecutors and recent law school graduates.' His quip: 'The more indictments, the more business you get.' 'Said Machen: "Public corruption is our bread and butter." Machen said he wants the office to be "very aggressive" in health care fraud prosecution, and he said he wants to pick up securities fraud cases. "We may not be the Southern District of New York overnight, but the SEC is located here and all the filings are here," he said. "There's a way to get venue here in most of these cases." Machen ticked off other areas he wants to focus on, including mortgage fraud and Foreign Corrupt Practices Act cases...."I think the sky's the limit, frankly," Machen said. "So it's good news and bad news for you guys. The bad news is, when you come to see me, I know the playbook because I was reading from it the past eight years. But the good news is, hopefully, we will keep you guys busy."'

A special-ed attorney is accused of practicing without a license, bilking parents mostly in Virginia, but in the District, too. Howard D. Deiner, 53, 'worked his way into the inner circle by listing himself as a lawyer on a number of Web sites that cater to special education parents, operating in the legal niche for families wanting to challenge the way public schools educate—or fail to educate—their children,' Tom Jackman writes in WaPo. 'But Deiner wasn't licensed as a lawyer for much of the time he took those cases, according to court records, and to bypass that issue he allegedly once signed another lawyer's name on important documents. He lost several cases at a point in the special education process that is the bleakest and the most critical for parents....Virginia and D.C. court documents show a pattern of Deiner's collecting thousands in retainers, and fees of $285 an hour, then not returning phone calls and e-mails while doing no work. At other times, records show, he did poor work and lost cases because of poor preparation or presentation.' HE was licensed in the District, and D.C. Bar discipline proceedings are underway.

BEWARE—Fake DCRA inspector is on the loose! Reports WRC-TV: 'Here's how the scam works: The guy approaches homes under construction, posing as a DCRA inspector. He tells the homeowner or construction crew that they could be fined for debris, garbage or other matters concerning the property. He pretends to call "headquarters," then comes back to the victims and says he will have to fine them. The impostor then offers to forget the whole matter – for a little cash.'

Latest doings on school budget matters: WaPo's Bill Turque reports on his blog that Rhee claims in a court filing that there was in fact no surplus at the time of last fall's teacher layoffs, and thus the RIF was legal and proper. Rhee also says in an affidavit that she didn't learn of a potential surplus until Feb. 26 this year. 'Nickles, in filings accompanying Rhee's declaration, said the union has offered only "26 pages of inadmissible hearsay," including newspaper clippings and blog posts. "The fact that months after the RIF at issue was conducted, there was some indication that the information on the budget available to the Chancellor in August of 2009 might not have been accurate is of no legal significance," Nickles said.' Meanwhile, WTU's George Parker and AFT's Randi Weingarten want a meeting with Rhee and Fenty ASAP 'to get "a single, definitive and accurate accounting of the DCPS budget"' having had 'expressed dismay about conflicting accounts of a $34 million surplus in the budget and unanswered questions about how the $140 million labor contract will be funded.' In other news, the elusive Noah Wepman is set to participate in a May 4 Urban Institute panel: 'The Big Disconnect: Spending Policies, School Priorities and Student Achievement.'

SHEER BUFFOONERY—At yesterday's FY2011 budget hearing, Marion Barry demanded a 'report card' from Michelle Rhee on school reform, Deborah Simmons reports in WaTimes. 'Barry said that as a four-time mayor and a former school board president he has seen a lot of school budgets and lots of school reform plans. But he said he never has witnessed the kind of confusion that surfaced last week....Rhee should deliver her report card to the council before she "utters" another word on the budget, Mr. Barry said.' Hmm, 'report card'—you mean, like the $750K legally mandated independent evaluation that's already underway? (FWIW, one former teacher has already filled out a report card.)

The D.C. Fiscal Policy Institute highlights a $1M cut in the Fenty budget to the District's Earned Income Tax Credit—'a tax benefit that works effectively to reduce poverty and encourage work.' The DCFPI also lauds the unemployment reform bill passed Tuesday by the council.

The Open Government Act has been introduced by Mary Cheh, billed as a 'major reform measure of public accountability and transparency' that 'covers changes to the District's freedom of information, administrative procedure, lobbyist disclosure, and financial disclosure laws, and would require agencies to develop transparency plans.' And she's got a new Web site on the legislation, where you can review the bill and leave comments.

Ajene Jones—the man accused of slamming his van into a car driven by a mother of four, killing her—tried a novel legal argument in his initial court appearance yesterday, WTTG-TV reports. 'Public defender Santha Sonenberg argued her client should not be charged with second-degree murder because PCP was found in his bloodstream, and therefore he could not form a "specific intent to kill" or consciously disregard the safety of someone else....Magistrate Judge Milton Lee rejected the argument, saying it would require a "high level of intoxication" for someone to be unable to form intent, and the mere presence of PCP in the defendant's bloodstream does not prove the contention of the defense. Lee also rejected bond for Jones, pointing out his history of traffic offenses and drug and alcohol involvement.'

The D.C. Court of Appeals has spoken: Biking while drunk is illegal.

Woman shot in leg on 700 block of Kenilworth Avenue NE.

Police seek these Nellie's robbers.

D.C. Jail escapee faces new charges.

Van driver pleads guilty to sexually assaulting Southeast woman, 75.

CHECK IT OUT—Behold the 'Get to Know the New UDC' ad campaign.

IFAnews.com covers Urban Institute health insurance study showing D.C. as a leader in rates of insured citizens.

'Valerie Santos is a Filipina in a hurry,' reports the Philippine Star. 'She wants to make a difference as Washington's deputy mayor for planning and economic development and frets there are not enough hours in a day to get things done to bring growth and prosperity to the district. Appointed in June 2009, she is one of the most visible and highest ranking Filipino Americans in public office.'

Metro bus garage workers will soon be able to park at the underused DCUSA garage.

If you've been jonesing for some Vivek Kundra buzzwordage in your life, here ya go.

Charles Krauthammer: 'For a Nats fan, joy is in the losing'

Brooklyn food vendor moves to D.C. because...the bureaucracy is less onerous here.

Nats' new COO addresses stadium naming rights in WBJ interview: 'You've got the Dallas Cowboys without a naming-rights partner, the [New York] Jets and Giants without a naming-rights partner, and the Nationals. Those three venues are probably the top three venues in the United States that don't have a naming-rights sponsor. Until the market changes, I think it will be a wait-and-see approach, but what makes our situation different is that we're in arguably the most important city in the world, the nation's capital, and there is unique access here beyond just business. There are interests here beyond just sales interests.'

Kwame called for 24,860 Earth Day tweets. That's 'a number equal to circumference of the planet' in miles, in case you didn't know. 'Councilmember Brown believes that this will help send a message of hope that we can work together to safeguard our environment and preserve it for generations,' said a statement.

TBD.com: Get ready.

Funeral services for Dorothy Height will be held at 10 a.m. Thursday at Washington National Cathedral, before her burial at Fort Lincoln Cemetery in Brentwood, Md. Hamil Harris also notes in WaPo: 'On Tuesday, a public viewing will be held from 6 to 10 p.m. at the [National Council of Negro Women]'s Dorothy I. Height headquarters building at 633 Pennsylvania Ave. NW. At 2 p.m. Wednesday at Howard University, the Delta Sigma Theta sorority will conduct the traditional "Omega Omega" farewell ceremony, which is due every sorority member....And at 7 p.m. Wednesday, a "Community Celebration of Life" will be held at Shiloh Baptist Church, 1500 Ninth St. NW. The celebration is open to the public.'

D.C. COUNCIL TODAY—10 a.m.: Committee on Public Safety and the Judiciary budget hearing on Department of Corrections, Correction Information Council, Office of Unified Communications, and Fire and Emergency Medical Services, JAWB 500; Committee on Government Operations & the Environment budget hearing on Office of the Inspector General, Public Employee Relations Board, Office of Employee Appeals, Office of Partnerships and Grants, and Office of Resource Management, JAWB 412; Committee on Public Works and Transportation hearing on B18-718 ('Department of Transportation Streetscape Construction Small Business Relief Act of 2010'), JAWB 120.

ADRIAN FENTY TODAY—No public events scheduled.

In a letter being sent to WTU members, Parker writes that while he was "surprised and angered" by Chancellor Michelle Rhee's recent claim of a a $34 million DCPS surplus mere months after 266 teachers were laid off for budgetary reasons, he believes both that laid-off teachers should be reinstated and the contract should be funded.

"While it may seem intuitive–in view of the possible budget surplus–to link the issues of funding for the new teacher contract with efforts to reinstate RIF'ed teachers, these important matters must be dealt with separately," Parker writes. Efforts to reinstate the laid-off teachers "should not hinder the progress we have made on behalf of our schools, teachers and students in the new tentative contract."

"The reinstatement of RIF'ed teachers and funding for the new contract are two distinct issues," he writes, "that must be resolved fairly and thoughtfully."

What Parker says he wants most of all is solid information on the DCPS fiscal situation: "Regardless of the existence—or nonexistence—of a budget surplus, the 266 teachers deserve answers and they deserve justice." he writes. "Further, the entire D.C. community, parents, students and teachers deserve to know the truth about the school budget."

Regarding the contract, he fends off charges that he negotiated pay raises on the backs of the fired teachers: "The WTU negotiation team bargained in good faith with the District with the understanding that funding was available to pay for the progressive reforms and all financial provisions of the agreement. It is important to note that the raises in the new tentative contract were not negotiated contingent on DCPS having a surplus in the 2009-2010 budget."

He concludes: "We look forward to fiscal certification and financial approval by the chief financial officer and the city council as quickly as possible so that we can move forward and present the contract to you for a ratification vote."

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT—'Bryan Weaver to Officially Challenge Jim Graham in Ward 1'; 'Teachers Make Rap Video to Motivate Students for Testing'; and tweets galore!

IN LL WEEKLY—Muzzle Burned: The moral high ground interferes with the fight for D.C. voting rights.

Morning all. D.C. Council Chairman Vincent C. Gray's heretofore abortive mayoral run approached something like full swing last night in the home of philanthropist Judith Terra. About 200 gathered in the Gold Coast manse to drop off checks, pick up yard signs, munch on crudites and cookies, and give praise to the man who would topple incumbent Adrian M. Fenty—who, not concidentally, held fundraisers at Terra's home four years ago. Former Mayor Sharon Pratt, Gray's old boss, offered a few words of support. Councilmember Michael Brown, in brief remarks, praised Gray's work ethic and his 'compassion,' which, make no mistake, means something in particular. As Brown put it, Gray understands 'you don't have to kick the old people out to bring the new people in.' The candidate, in a brief speech, roughly outlined a platform heavy on a 'comprehensive approach' to education—more detail, he promised, will come at his campaign kickoff Saturday. Gray's sendoff: 'I'm a big Marvin Gaye fan,' Gray told the crowd. 'I want you all to adopt a battle cry of "Let's Get It On."' More at D.C. Wire.

AFTER THE JUMP—The Blue Team takes shape; GOP will appeal Gray OCF findings; congressmen ride herd at Metro hearing; Gunn Report sees light of day; EPA sets ambitious runoff goals for WASA; Cheh wants D.C. to join popular-vote effort; FLOTUS hits River Terrace

MORE—Gray announced his top campaign staff yesterday, starting with longtime friend and fellow Pratt administration vet Lorraine Green as his campaign chair. Adam Rubinson, a tech consultant who served as Suzanne Peck's deputy in the Williams administration technology office, is campaign manager. Mo Elleithee, big in national and Virginia politics, is a 'senior advisor.' Veteran media consultant Steve McMahon is on the team, as is ubiquitous pollster Ron Lester. He's also got direct mail and new media people on board. Notable: Traci Hughes, ousted last year as Fenty's MPD spokesperson, is handling press. And Gray's executive assistant is Wilson Building vet Stephanie Reich, former chief of staff to Linda Cropp. Also seen at the event: Former Fentyites Neil Richardson and Clinton LeSueur. More at D.C. Wire.

The D.C. Republican Committee, meanwhile, won't allow questions about Gray's ethics to disappear. D.C. GOP Executive Director Paul Craney tells WaPo's Tim Craig that the group plans to file an appeal to the Office of Campaign Finance's findings clearing Gray of wrongdoing with regard to Democratic National Convention fundraising in 2008. The GOP position is 'that [the OCF] decision "opens the doors" to elected officials using their offices to raise money for political purposes. Under election law, lawyers for the GOP allege, the act of raising money is governed by what organization or committee the money is raised for – not what it is used for....Gray, noting it is being filed by the GOP, called the appeal "purely political" in a brief interview Wednesday night. "They conducted a four month investigation and looked at all the facts," Gray said of the campaign finance office. "It seems frivolous and unwarranted to me." If the ruling is not overturned, GOP lawyers and leaders say elected officials will be able to use government resources to raise money for their campaign accounts so long as they specify the money will be used for charitable or non-political purposes.' The appeal goes to the Board of Elections and Ethics, and perhaps then to Superior Court.

Jonetta Rose Barras, meanwhile, digs into the 'sins of Sinclair Skinner,' whom she deems an 'FBOF,' or Frat Brother of Fenty. The mayoral crony and engineering-form owner 'has a memory worse than my 87-year-old aunt,' she writes. 'What the amnesiac did remember during his appearance before a D.C. Council committee was disturbing, and justifies banning his company from doing business with the city....Bilking the public is never acceptable. It's always unethical, and demands punishment. David Gragan, the city's chief procurement officer, attempted to penalize Skinner. Sources told me that on March 18 Skinner's company was banned from city contracting. "On March 19 [Attorney General Peter Nickles] made OCP take it back," a source said. That's outrageous, but not surprising. In 2008, in a similar case involving recreation projects, Inspector General Charles Willoughby recommended the city collect $2 million in overpayments made to Jair Lynch Consulting/Alpha Corp. and the Temple Group. Nickles didn't implement that recommendation. What does he care? It's not his money....The attorney general's intervention, preventing Skinner's debarment, means Fenty doesn't recognize the need to jettison the hustler from his inner circle. What's more, it tells future contractors it's OK to rip off the government—especially if you're a FBOF.'

MAYORAL FORUM ALERT—D.C. Wire notes that the civic associations in Palisades, Cleveland Park, and Foxhall are hosting a mayoral forum on June 3 at Key ES; Gray and Leo Alexander have already RSVP'd, while the Fenty campaign 'said it is still considering the request.' Sulaimon Brown is wondering where his invitation is. There also is a forum scheduled for 7 p.m. tonight at Grace Episcopal Church in Georgetown; unclear who will be attending.

###

Reaction continues rolling in to the latest setback, and possible death knell, for the D.C. House Voting Rights Act. The WaPo editorial board says the move to avert a guns-for-vote deal was 'difficult but correct' and that it 'won't end D.C. residents' struggle' to win its franchise. 'The city now finds itself back at square one with voting rights and sure to face more initiatives in an election year from a newly emboldened gun lobby. Rep. Travis Childers (D-Miss.), a co-sponsor of the extreme measures rejected by Ms. Norton, said he won't be thwarted, and he announced plans to introduce separate legislation. That the District was willing to sacrifice a vote in Congress for the protections of its reasonable gun regulations should underscore their significance—not only for city home rule but for homeland security in the nation's capital. We would hope that the Democrats who control both houses of Congress and the White House would recognize the importance of this issue and not—as has too often been the case—be complicit in letting the gun lobby set the agenda. In particular, it's time for President Obama to stick his neck out and insist on fair and sensible treatment by Congress of the city in which he now resides.' WaPo columnist Bob McCartney also chimes in, writing: 'The latest setback is severe. It's likely to take many more years or even decades to achieve this patently righteous objective.' But he too agrees the right decision was to shelve the bill. Who's to blame? McCartney finders the gun lobby (duh), Republicans, Obama, Harry Reid, and 'apathetic D.C. residents.' On that last point, he quotes an anonymous Hill staffer: 'There hasn't really been a grass-roots uprising on this. Where were the D.C. residents, you know, marching on the Capitol grounds?' The Georgetown Voice opines: 'While the virtues of compromising on gun-control laws in exchange for voting rights remain debatable, some blame for the bill's continued stagnation in congressional purgatory belongs to Norton. While Norton tends to be treated as a beloved institution in Washington, it is hard to understand lately why she deserves such deference and respect. From the late 1990s imposition of the D.C. financial control board to today's push for voting rights, Norton has routinely failed to turn what little power she possesses into progress for Washington.'

COMPROMISE—The McCartney Plan: 'First, give the District two Senate seats, as well as the House seat. Second, give California two extra Senate seats. This could be done by splitting it into two states or amending the Constitution....[I]t would be easy to draw a border so the two new senators were elected from Southern California. They would probably be Republicans, whereas northern California voters would select Democrats. Because California has two Democratic senators, the net result would be to add two Republicans to the Senate. They would offset the two Democrats presumably elected by the District.' Good luck with that one, Bob. Especially that 'split California in two' part.

###

A conflict is developing between Metro and the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority over who will pay for new rail cars for the Dulles line, Lisa Rein reports in WaPo. 'Unless Metro agrees to eliminate a $75 million increase on 64 rail cars it is preparing to buy for the new Silver Line, the [MWAA, which is building the line,] won't agree to the deal, the officials said. At issue is Metro's plan to have the Dulles rail project pay the entire cost of developing the new cars. Authority officials say that is unfair when the investment will benefit the entire Metrorail system. "It is not possible, nor is it reasonable, for the [Dulles rail] project to bear all these costs," authority President James E. Bennett told interim Metro chief Richard Sarles this month in a three-page letter....Airports authority officials say they budgeted $190 million for the 64 cars, about $3 million each, based on cost estimates provided by Metro in 2007. But the price has increased to $265 million, or $4.1 million for each car. Metro, meanwhile, will pay significantly less, $2.5 million each' for the remainder of the 748 cars in the contract with Kawasaki Rail Car. That's because the early cars include higher 'engineering, design and development costs' than the rest; Bennett wants those costs spread across the entire order. Here's the big politically treacherous threat being leveled: 'If the Dulles rail project is not given a better deal on the cars, "commuters on the Dulles Toll Road and citizens of Fairfax County" will pay the extra cost, Bennett wrote to Sarles.' Also Examiner.

Meanwhile, on Capitol Hill yesterday, Sarles told Congress that he has a six-month plan to get Metro on the right track. He was responding, Ann Scott Tyson reports in WaPo, to 'strong criticism from lawmakers and experts about a pervasive lack of safety and oversight at the rail agency,' including Federal Transit Administrator Peter Rogoff's description of 'grotesque' track safety violations and a 'dysfunctional and ineffective' safety office. Also released by the House oversight committee: The heretofore secret Gunn Report [PDF], which 'concluded that "Metro Rail has downhill momentum that will be difficult to stop!"...[Former GM David Gunn] took a hands-on approach, discovering a broken rail and seven concrete station platforms shored up by wood, according to the report. He also found serious problems with Metro management, including hostility between departments. In an opening statement, panel Chairman Edolphus Towns (D-N.Y.) said: "There was so much bad blood between the engineering and maintenance departments that they would not even speak to each other."' The good news: 'Rogoff said that Metro has taken some "encouraging steps," such as naming a new chief safety officer, but that it was difficult to determine whether communication had improved.' Sarles says he's pushed more money to safety and 'outlined a plan that prioritizes safety training, beefed-up protection for whistle-blowers, the appointment of safety personnel as well as an updated manual designed to increase protection for track workers.' More on the Gunn Report, and the circumstances of its release, at Examiner. Also WAMU-FM, AP, WUSA-TV, WTTG-TV.

OVERSIGHT?—'Lawmakers focused on the lack of safety oversight at Metro, with some voicing support for strengthening the TOC and others calling for the three local jurisdictions that fund Metro to set up an independent safety commission, an idea first proposed Tuesday in a white paper issued by the governors of Maryland and Virginia and the mayor of D.C. Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-D.C.) called for a Metro safety commission funded and directed by the legislatures of the District, Maryland and Virginia, not through public agencies in the three jurisdictions, as the white paper proposed. Lawmakers noted that an initiative by the Obama administration to establish minimum federal safety standards and oversight for the nation's public transit agencies would probably take time.'

TODAY—The WMATA board takes up budget gap closing proposals, and Examiner's Kytja Weir reports that the latest management plan, based on rider feedback, calls for 'raising fares, laying off workers and begging for more taxpayer subsidies—but making significantly fewer cuts to bus and train service.' The Sarles plan would takes base rush hour fares to $1.95, with a max fare of $5, plus a 'peak-of-the-peak' surcharge and extra $0.25 charge for using a paper farecard. Bus fares would go to $1.60—but SmarTrip users would pay $1.50. Among $8M in proposed cuts: 'closing the rail system at 2 a.m., not 3 a.m. on weekends, with riders paying a flat $4 fare for late-night service regardless of the trip length...close four station entrances after 8 p.m. on weekdays and eight more on weekends...limit service around holidays, such as the day after Thanksgiving, and lengthen the waits for trains between 6 and 6:30 a.m. by two minutes.' Also WAMU-FM, WTOP.

###

Also on the Hill yesterday: Fenty and Gray sat together before the House appropriations subcommittee that oversees the District budget, where 'they were playing for the same team...sitting side-by-side and sharing a microphone as they made the case for federal dollars,' Ann Marimow reports at D.C. Wire. 'House Appropriations subcommittee chairman Jose E. Serrano (D-N.Y.) joked that those who had come to the hearing expecting "fireworks" from the two mayoral candidates were surely disappointed. "With you two, it's clear that D.C. comes first," Serrano said.' At one point, Rep. John Culberson (R-Texas) 'quizzed Fenty about how he would protect the right of D.C. residents to keep and bear firearms following the 2008 Supreme Court ruling on the city's handgun laws...."In Texas, we want you as law-abiding citizens to be able to protect yourself," Culberson said, asking if Fenty didn't want the same thing for District residents. Fenty politely nodded, before saying, "I believe residents of the District want very strict handgun laws."..."It's very different from Texas," Culberson concluded.' Serrano also noted a 'fairly stable bipartisan consensus that the people of D.C. should not have Congress interfering in their local affairs.' Of course, there also seems to be a pretty good consensus that D.C. shouldn't meddle in Congress, either. Deborah Simmons notes at WaTimes that Fenty 'offered detailed responses under friendly questioning from [Serrano], but was less forthcoming when challenged by panel Republicans on issues such as abortion, school vouchers and needle-exchange programs. Asked how many abortions have been funded with tax dollars since the Democratic Congress lifted restrictions last year, Mr. Fenty said he couldn't answer....Rep. Jo Ann Emerson, Missouri Republican, asked Mr. Fenty if he is "comfortable" limiting the availability of vouchers in the face of a comment by [Michelle Rhee] strongly endorsing the right of parents to select the school for their children. Mr. Fenty quietly said that he was.'

WASA is under a potentially burdensome green mandate from the Environmental Protection Agency, David Fahrenthold reports in WaPo. The EPA's proposed permit for the city's storm sewers 'would require developers to trap 90 percent of the water that falls on a plot during a storm. Water usually hits roofs and parking lots and runs into sewers, carrying trash and chemical pollutants. Under the permit, that water would be filtered naturally, through plants and dirt, or be caught in a receptacle for use watering plants.' That would mean a much greater embrace of green roofs and rain gardens in new developments, and if developers can't meet the standards, they would be have to fund off-site projects. The plan, Fahrenthold writes, 'mak[es] the city a test case for an ambitious effort to stop pollution from flowing into rivers along with the rain' and 'would mean a major shift in thinking for a city covered in glass, concrete and shingles.' On his blog, WASA General Manager George Hawkins expresses support for the goals of the permit proposal, if not its details, calling it 'overly stringent.' And 'if we are too stringent on urban permits, development will be driven back to green fields by market costs – since stormwater can always be managed easier on larger parcels in the hinterlands then in heavily developed cityscapes. This is an outcome we do not want to encourage!' Also AP.

Mary Cheh has introduced legislation that would commit D.C. to the 'national popular vote' movement. In other words, Patrick Madden reports at WAMU-FM, the District would commit to hand 'their electoral votes to the candidate who wins the nationwide popular vote. If enough states commit to supply the 270 electoral votes needed to win, the popular vote winner would win the election...."There is something intuitively appealing in a democratic society that the person who gets the most votes actually wins the election," says Cheh.' The idea is that such a system would break the tyranny of the swing states. The requirements would not go into effect until states comprising 270 or more electoral votes joined the scheme. Five states have already passed the bill, and 14 others are considering. Gary Imhoff reacts in themail: 'I actually hope this bill passes, because I can't wait for the next time that a Republican president is elected, and Cheh and her other cosponsors have to explain to the public why DC is casting its electoral votes for a Republican rather than for the Democratic candidate who will undoubtedly have won 90 percent of the DC vote.'

Ajene Jones, 34—who drove the van that slammed into a Toyota Camry at high speed in Hillcrest Monday, killing a mother of four and seriously injuring her children—'was high on PCP at the time of the accident and has a history of reckless driving,' Theola Labbe-DeBose reports in WaPo. 'Jones of no fixed address did not have a valid driver's license at the time of the crash and was also on probation for a previous charge of driving under the influence, according to court records. About 7 p.m. Monday, people saw Jones driving on the wrong side of Alabama Avenue SE. Near 36th Place, his van collided head-on with the car Mary Elizabeth Wimbush, 37, was driving with her four children....Police said Jones never tried to apply his brakes and was traveling more than 52 mph.' Jones had been arrested for driving without a permit last July, and the next month he was arrested again for DUI, for which he was put on probation. 'He tested positive for PCP use in early January and 10 other times....He faced having his probation revoked and was scheduled to go before a D.C. Superior Court judge to explain his behavior. His court date had been set for April 28.'

Another scrap in the Brian Betts murder investigation: Freeman Klopott reports in Examiner that MoCo police spokeswoman Melanie Brenner 'said that detectives are aware that Betts was gay and that they were "looking into the possibility that his lifestyle may have played a role in his murder." Police have said they believe Betts may have known his killer and invited the suspect inside. A co-worker who went to check on Betts on April 15 when the principal didn't show up for school found the door to Betts' house open and a light on. The co-worker left the house and called the police. Authorities found Betts in his bedroom fully clothed and shot to death.' WRC-TV reports that neighbors continue to be questioned. WAMU-FM, WUSA-TV, WTTG-TV covered Betts' wake yesterday in Manassas, which as many as 2,000 visited. He will be laid to rest today, NC8 reports.

Details on the Dec. 27 murder of gay man Anthony Perkins, from DC Agenda's Lou Chibbaro: Police allege that Perkins 'was shot to death in his car by a 20-year-old District man he met on a telephone chat line and who posed as gay for the purpose of luring him to a location where he could rob him.' That man is Antwan Holcomb, who 'was overheard saying he "shot the 'faggy' in the head and robbed him of a pack of Newport cigarettes" before leaving the car and fleeing the scene on foot, the affidavit says. It says the pack of cigarettes appears to be the only item taken.' Hate-crime charged could follow, say prosecutors.

CATHOLICA—Controversial cardinal won't be saying Mass at CUA after all, and local parishioners react to German priest's removal after sex abuse charges.

WaPo readers react to medical marijuana legislation. One member of Americans for Safe Access argues that allowing for-profit dispensaries is the wrong move, as is only allowing medical marijuana use in the user's home or a hospice. Another correspondent, from Common Sense for Drug Policy, writes: 'I don't buy the argument that the District needs a restrictive medical marijuana law to head off "abuses." In California, pretty much anyone who wants a medical marijuana recommendation can get one. So what? The recommendation allows consumers to buy locally grown marijuana of known quality and safety from dispensaries that generate tax revenue. Is it preferable that consumers buy marijuana from organized crime groups that also sell cocaine, methamphetamines and heroin? Is financing drug cartels a good thing?'

ALSO—The fact that the council voted on medical weed on 4/20 was 'simply a coincidence,' David Catania tells WaPo. And, no, Catania doesn't party.

FLOTUS, speed-skater Shani Davis visit River Terrace ES. 'The visit was part of Mrs. Obama's "Let's Move Campaign," which is designed to encourage kids to get at least 60 minutes of exercise a day. "We want your parents to have better information about the food you eat, we want to make sure your school is serving healthier food," the First Lady said.'

More on streetcars: WBJ has more on federal funding request; CityBizList has report on streetcar's impact on development. Streetcars 4 DC and The Hill Is Home have more recaps of Tuesday's informational meeting. And Railway Age is on the story!

REMEMBER SNOW?—Talk live tomorrow with DDOT about how to improve the response to massive snowstorms.

Bad times for pedestrians: MPD cruiser strikes woman in Columbia Heights; another woman is struck in Dupont, is seriously injured.

Lizard-killing has consequences in this town: 'The Washington Humane Society claimed 43-year-old Nelson Privado was angry after his son returned home late from school in October and decided to take it out on the boy's pet bearded dragon. Privado threw Beardie across the street, killing it. This week, Privado was convicted of animal cruelty and sentenced to 40 hours of community service, a $100 fine and one year of supervised probation,' WRC-TV reports.

Informer covers Congress Heights School redevelopment—being undertaken by Ward 8 ally and fundraiser Phinis Jones.

GW Hatchet covers Barry-Catania feud over public health contract.

The Washington metropolitan area is now the nationa's eighth largest.

The Coolidge HS track team is really, really good.

Behold! The D.C. Fiscal Policy Institute's FY2011 Budget Toolkit.

Waah! 14th Street's narrower! Waah!

Pepco Holdings sells off Connectiv power-generation arm for $1.7B.

Danny Glover was at Benning Library!

See pics from DCPS prom dress boutique.

Hey, look—the Informer noticed there's a new coffeeshop in Anacostia...

Bernard Simon, among the 1977 Hanafi Muslim hostages and the father of journalist and 'Wire' auteur David Simon, is dead at 89.

D.C. COUNCIL TODAY—10 a.m.: Committee on Human Services budget hearing on Department of Disability Services and Child and Family Services Agency, JAWB 412; 11 a.m.: Committee on Economic Development and Committee on Government Operations and the Environment joint hearing on PR18-646 ('1320 Mississippi Ave, S.E. Disposition Approval Resolution of 2009'), JAWB 120; 1 p.m.: Committee of the Whole hearing on D.C. Public Schools, JAWB 500; 6 p.m.: Committee on Aging and Community Affairs roundtable on Advisory Neighborhood Commissions in Wards 3 and 6, JAWB 120.

ADRIAN FENTY TODAY—10:30 a.m.: remarks, St. Elizabeths Hospital ribbon-cutting, 1100 Alabama Ave. SE; 3 p.m.: remarks, 'Green' Recovery Act grant announcement (with HUD Secretary Shaun Donovan), Garfield Hill Apartments, 2301 Hartford St. SE.

Ward 1 Councilmember Jim Graham, seeking a third fourth term this fall, is facing another motivated challenger.

Bryan Weaver, a community activist and advisory neighborhood commissioner in Adams Morgan, is set to announce his run at noon on Saturday. The kickoff is being held in Weaver's stomping grounds—Walter Pierce Park, home base for the basketball fanatic and his Hoops Sagrado nonprofit.

A message distributed to supporters today touts Weaver's "new vision and bold leadership for a better Ward One that answers to Ward One residents."

The message continues: "We need better accountability and transparency, smarter crime prevention and youth programs, strategies to grow and revitalize Ward One’s diverse small business community, ways to nurture and support Ward One’s vital multicultural identity, a strong Green Economy led by Ward One residents and businesses, a true recycling program worthy of Ward One’s and the District’s progressive identity, better partnerships with parents and guardians for strong schools at every level, a safer Metro system, and more."

Weaver joins Jeff Smith, a school board member turned nonprofit executive, in challenging Graham. Smith made his run official last month after a short exploratory period. Weaver established an exploratory committee back in November. The committee's last finance report, filed in late March, showed $29,268 in cash on hand.

Smith, in a report filed in late February, showed a $38,831 balance in his campaign account. Graham, meanwhile, had more than $189,000 on hand as of March 10.

Both Weaver and Smith are hoping that, after re-electing Graham twice by large margins, voters have soured on the bespectacled, Volkswagen-driving incumbent. His longtime chief of staff, you will no doubt recall, was arrested for taking bribes last fall; prosecutors recently added a plethora of new charges. But none of the allegations has yet touched Graham personally.

Graham's campaign spokesperson, Chuck Thies, says that Weaver's priorities, as listed in his announcement, "are the very things Jim Graham has been actively engaged in and accomplishing for the past 12 years."

"Imitation may be the most sincere form of flattery," he says, "but it's not the best campaign platform."

UPDATE, 4/23: At Graham's request, LL is happy to make this crystal-clear: There is no evidence, allegation, or charge that suggests that Graham had any knowledge of or role in Loza's alleged crimes, and LL has no knowledge of any evidence, allegations, or charges yet to be disclosed.

But how to motivate kids to reach new heights of testing achievement? Snacks? Field trips? Inspiring speakers?

Teachers at one school, Petworth's E.L. Haynes Public Charter School, decided that a music video would be the way to go. To the tune of Young Money's "BedRock," behold "CASrock":

Says one WCP staffer, "They're totally gonna make AYP this year."

The video for the original is, um, somewhat different:

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT—'Council Approves Medical Marijuana Bill in Preliminary Vote'; and tweets galore!

Morning all. And like that, it's gone: A day after local politicians lined up against a guns-for-vote deal, Eleanor Holmes Norton and House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer withdrew the D.C. House Voting Rights Act from the House floor schedule yesterday—meaning Del. Norton likely won't become Rep. Norton anytime soon. Writing in WaPo, Ann Marimow and Ben Pershing call it 'an extraordinary reversal that came less than a week after Hoyer said he would revive the legislation on the House floor as early as Wednesday in spite of the gun language.' Why was Norton willing to go forward with a deal last week only to get cold feet now? In a statement, she said she was 'shocked' that NRA-sponsored gun language would have been significantly more severe than the Senate language already passed. Shocked, she tells us. Shocked! Meanwhile, the gun provisions threatened to peel off liberal Democratic support for the bill in both houses, and the opposition of onetime Senate Republican ally Orrin Hatch further complicated matters.

AFTER THE JUMP—Nickles intervenes to keep Skinner off banned-contractor list; medical pot passes council vote; regional execs want to step up Metro oversight; IGU charter nixed by board; Senate finally votes through Judge Demeo; RIP Dorothy Height

MORE—'Norton said the "egregious changes" by Reps. Travis Childers (D-Miss.) and Mark Souder (R-Ind.) would "directly proliferate guns throughout the District" in addition to eroding support for the bill among liberal Democrats, particularly in the Senate. Norton said that legislation would have restricted the District from prohibiting concealed or openly carried firearms....Former representative Thomas M. Davis III, the Virginia Republican who drafted the original bill, said the measure is "absolutely dead" if it does not come up for a vote before the next Congress. The Democratic majority could narrow after the November elections, and the political compromise with Utah could unwind with the reapportionment of House seats based on the census. Sen. Benjamin L. Cardin (D-Md.) said proponents would "continue the fight," but he expressed frustration that the issue was stuck yet again. "This was a compromise of a compromise, and then we had another compromise put on top of it," Cardin said. "This was a very modest proposal, and if you can't get this modest proposal moving forward, I don't know what it means in the short term."...House Democratic leaders had planned an elaborate floor strategy that would have enabled the legislation to pass without forcing any liberal lawmakers to vote in favor of the gun-rights language they disliked. Under the plan, the House would have voted on three separate bills—one creating the new House seats, one changing the District's gun laws and one dealing with the cost of the measure—that would have been automatically combined into one bill once the three had passed.'

GUN LANGUAGE—'Childers and Souder crafted the gun language in response to new gun laws passed by the D.C. Council after the landmark Supreme Court decision in 2008. Childers, in a statement, urged the House leadership to move forward with the bipartisan legislation to "end D.C.'s unconstitutional gun ban." Andrew Arulanandam, a spokesman for the National Rifle Association, said the organization is trying to ensure that the District complies with the court ruling because the council and Fenty have "thumbed their nose at the Supreme Court" with the new laws.'

REACTION—WaPo editorial page collects VIP reactions. Davis says: 'This bill could still be resurrected by attaching it to another bill, addressing it in a lame-duck session or strong-arming it through. It is clear, however, that after this Congress adjourns, the D.C. Voting Rights Act will go into a deep sleep. It is said that victory has a thousand fathers and that defeat is an orphan. All the finger-pointing in the world will not resuscitate this bill.' Mary Cheh writes that '[a]ll District residents should be greatly relieved that Congress is not moving forward with a voting rights bill that included a dangerous and deeply offensive amendment.' Ilir Zherka of D.C. Vote, of course, backs Norton without fail. And Kris Baumann of the D.C. police union laments the move: 'The District lost not only its opportunity to gain a House vote Tuesday; it lost its chance to begin an effective war on crime. District politicians decided it was more important to preserve their one-sentence shield to questions about the violence run amok in the District: "We have the toughest gun laws in the nation."' And D.C. Wire and @SegravesWTOP collect councilmember reactions at yesterday's breakfast meeting. Writes Craig: 'In an emotional closed-door debate over breakfast this morning, council members decried the gun amendment, calling it an insulting infringement on Home Rule. Many members spoke passionately about District residents who have died from gun violence. "I've got to look people in the faces and when they look back at me, I want them to respect me," council Chairman Vincent C. Gray (D) said. "I honestly believe they will not respect me when they hear I traded their safety for a vote" in Congress....[David Catania] argued that the National Rifle Association, which pushed for the gun amendment would probably revive the effort to undo the city's gun laws in another form later this year if the voting rights bill is shelved....[Jack Evans] and [Yvette Alexander] also appeared open to supporting the voting rights bill, even with the gun amendment. "There are not going to be legal guns committing these crimes, it's going to be illegal guns," Alexander said. "There are still going to be AK-47s, even without the gun amendment."'

OBAMA SAYS—'The president has been very clear on his feelings about voting rights for D.C. and that folks who live in D.C. should have voting rights,' White House Deputy Press Secretary Bill Burton told reporters on Air Force One.

ALSO—Examiner, WaTimes, Politico, The Hill, Salt Lake Tribune, New York Times, NY Daily News, USA Today, McClatchy, WAMU-FM, AP, NC8. And Fox News' Chad Pergram pens an excellent analysis piece: 'After championing the cause for voting rights, Norton could have secured a vote for the city on the House floor. But that would come at a price: more firearms on the city streets. Hoyer could have had the vote. But that may have ignited a civil war in the Democratic Caucus between pro and anti-gun members. And Democrats gun-shy from the health care fight aren't ready to go to the mat on firearms. Call it inflation. Call it gouging. Call it extortion. Democrats are bargain shopping. This bill would have drained what political capital they had left in the bank. And in this election climate, the price was simply too high.'

###

Helluva story from Examiner's Bill Myers, who reports that Attorney General Peter Nickles personally intervened to keep mayoral crony Sinclair Skinner off of a District procurement 'debarment' list—which would have meant Skinner was ineligible to receive city contracts. 'Contracting officials drafted a letter that would have barred Sinclair Skinner from city contracts, [Nickles], a longtime friend and confidant of the mayor, ordered the letter rewritten to delay the action until Skinner could respond. "That's what we call due process," Nickles said. "The first draft of the letter wasn't adequate."...Last fall, Skinner skipped a public hearing on the contracting scandal. Councilman Harry Thomas, D-Ward 5, asked city contracting chief David Gragan to have Skinner put on the city's "excluded parties list." In mid-March, a letter was ready to go out. City law requires businesses and their owners to be given a chance to respond to debarment allegations, but Nickles has never intervened in a debarment before, a source said....Nickles denied that there was anything special in his attention to detail in the Skinner matter. "I don't intervene unless I see something that's not in comportment with regulations," he said.'

Another good one from WaTimes' Jim McElhatton, who reports on convicted gangster and long-term D.C. Jail inmate Larry Wilkerson, who is making a novel argument regarding his incarceration. 'Convicted of murder, conspiracy and drug offenses, Wilkerson finally had his sentencing on Tuesday in federal court in Washington after years of post-trial litigation. His attorney, Sebastian Graber, made a novel — but not unprecedented — plea: Conditions are so bad at the D.C. Jail, he argued, that nine years served there ought to equal 20 or more years in a federal prison....At the hearing, Wilkerson told of moldy jail cells, questionable strip searches, broken locks on cell doors, staph infections, rodents and violent assaults at the city jail...."It's a shame it's in the shape it is," [U.S. District Judge Thomas F. Hogan] said of the jail. "I don't know why the D.C. government can't provide better conditions."...William Streit, a peace activist who testified Tuesday for Wilkerson, said he's served time at jails and prisons across the country after being arrested in various protests, including twice in Washington. He said the D.C. Jail is the only place where he's feared for his life. He said it has a reputation "hands down" as the worst jail east of the Mississippi River among the activist community.' Wilkerson got life in federal prison anyway.

###

A unanimous first-reading vote in favor of medical marijuana, on 4/20 no less, headlines the happenings at yesterday's council legislative meeting. If it passes a second vote and earns Mayor Adrian M. Fenty's signature, 'Hundreds of chronically ill District residents will be able to buy government-sanctioned marijuana by the end of the year,' Tim Craig writes in WaPo. 'Without debate, the council authorized five medical marijuana distribution centers throughout the city, a number that could grow to eight in coming years. A patient who has HIV, glaucoma, cancer or a "chronic and lasting disease" will be able to receive a doctor's recommendation to possess up to 2 ounces of marijuana in a 30-day period. Patients would not be allowed to grow marijuana but could buy it from dispensaries that are licensed and regulated by the Department of Health. Underprivileged residents who qualify will be eligible to purchase their drugs free or at reduced cost....But critics say the [highly regulated] approach could be problematic for the success of the program. Although the District's proposal specifies that growers need to cultivate "pharmaceutical" grade marijuana, distributors say only three companies in the world produce that grade. When asked which companies might be interested in locating in the District, council staff members singled out Bedrocan International, which produces pharmaceutical-grade medical marijuana in the Netherlands. Company officials, however, said they cannot move to the District because they do not want to operate in conflict with U.S. law.' Also WTOP, Wonkette.

OTHER DEALINGS:

—Emergency legislation should 'make it easier for foster families to provide permanent homes for children, especially older ones, who often languish in the child welfare system,' Henri Cauvin reports in WaPo. 'For years, some foster parents who wanted to adopt or to become legal guardians have opted not to because it would mean an earlier end to the subsidy that many rely on to help care for the children they take into their homes. Under the new law, instead of losing the subsidy when the child is 18, a legal guardian or adoptive parent will keep the subsidy until the child turns 21—the same age at which it ends for a foster child.' Says Judith Sandalow of the Children's Law Center: 'I think it's the biggest step forward in getting kids out of foster care and into permanent families in my 10 years here.'

—Harry Thomas Jr.'s attempt to force the rehire of the teachers RIF'd last fall didn't go anywhere, WaPo's Bill Turque notes on his blog. 'The proposal faced huge legal barriers, not least of which was the Home Rule Charter, which expressly reserves hiring and firing for the executive branch....Shortly before the session began, [Mary Cheh] sat in the corner of the chambers scribbling amendments to make the proposal more explicit that DCPS has the authority to decide whether to re-hire the teachers. "There's not a person on this council who is not deeply disturbed about the events that occurred with the teachers," Cheh said of the layoffs..."The problem with the resolution is that it doesn't make sufficiently clear that we have no authority to order reinstatement or direct reinstatement in any way."' The matter has been postponed until May, after DCPS/OCFO budget testimony. Also Examiner.

—Marion Barry's attempts to disapprove various contracts and reprogrammings also went nowhere, Craig reports at D.C. Wire—though the personality clash between him and Catania continues apace. '"David is an independent Republican and I am a progressive Democrat," [Barry said.] "He holds some values that are diametrically opposed by us progressive, liberal Democrats." Barry went on to accuse Catania, the chairman of the Health Committee, of ignoring the health needs of residents in Ward 8....Catania initially did not want to respond to Barry's charges. But then Catania quickly fired back. "Marion had his way as mayor for 16 years and did nothing on the matter of health care for this city," Catania said. Catania said that under his leadership, the city has slashed its rate of uninsured residents, placed a nurse in almost city school and pumped tens of millions into hospitals and other medical facilities...."I have real work to do," Catania said. "When was the last time Marion Barry delivered for Ward 8, and a 1984 summer job doesn't count anymore?"'

—Jim Graham floats a 10-cent-per-gallon gas tax to fund Metro, Kytja Weir reports in Examiner—'an unprecedented move in a region that lacks a permanent funding stream for the transit agency.' Still: ';the bill is considered a long shot as it contains a caveat that the tax would take effect only if the Maryland and Virginia jurisdictions in Metro's compact enacted the same increases.' Maybe it would have a shot in Maryland, but Virginia? Fuhgeddaboutit. Also WBJ, NC8, GGW, and WTOP, which notes the hike would give D.C. the ninth-highest gas tax in the nation.

—The $8.1M tax break for a Hilton Garden Inn in NoMa gets a provisional thumbs-up from the council, Michael Neibauer reports in WBJ—despite OCFO's opposition. 'By a 12-1 vote, the council backed property and sale tax exemptions for the $59 million, 204-room, 128,500-square-foot property developed by Spartanburg, S.C.-based OTO Hospitality Development Co. The hotel, expected to open in 2011, will be part of the Constitution Square development in the North of Massachusetts Avenue neighborhood. Councilman Kwame Brown, D-At large, was the lone vote in opposition.'

###

Fenty joins with governors Martin O'Malley and Bob McDonnell to call for tougher oversight of Metro by its constituent jurisdictions—a plan that would immediately toughen the now-toothless Tri-State Oversight Committee. And, Ann Scott Tyson reports in WaPo, 'In the long term, and with congressional approval, the leaders said the committee would be replaced either with direct federal safety oversight of Metro by the Federal Transit Administration, which would require the implementation of minimum federal safety standards as proposed in House and Senate legislation supported by the Obama administration, or with a locally and federally funded Metro Safety Commission set up by the jurisdictions...."We need more direct executive oversight of [WMATA] because of these safety issues, rather than less," McDonnell said during a news conference held by the three leaders after their private meeting. Describing riders' "frustration" with Metro, Fenty said he and the two governors will play a more "hands-on" role in improving Metro and plan to meet soon with the agency's new interim general manager.' Also some scene from WaPo's Frederick Kunkle, who is impressed by the mayoral Smart car, plus AP, WTTG-TV.

DETAILS—'The new oversight plan, outlined in an 11-page white paper issued Tuesday, will require the committee chairman to be a full-time staff member and extend his term from one year to two or three. The chairman will be given greater authority and be "empowered to make executive decisions for the TOC and address immediate real-time safety issues at Metro and approve correspondences and corrective actions," said Jack Cahalan, spokesman for the Maryland Department of Transportation....The plan will also create a six-person Policy Committee made up of the three local transportation secretaries and three alternates to which the Tri-State committee will report monthly on the status of accident investigations and corrective actions as well as "outstanding safety issues." The Tri-State committee will be required to provide monthly briefings to Metro's board, general manager and safety committee. It will also be required to brief the Federal Transit Administration on safety issues and deficiencies at Metro, the status of investigations and the implementation of corrective actions.' GGW calls the proposal 'extremely ironic since these three have plenty of oversight authority already which they've neglected to exercise.'

TODAY—'The push for tougher accountability of Metro came on the eve of a congressional hearing scheduled for Wednesday morning that will also probe Metro's safety practices, its yawning budget gap...as well as its need for effective long-term leadership. Sarles, the former head of New Jersey Transit, will appear before the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform in his first congressional testimony as Metro's temporary chief.' More at WTOP.

###

The District is seeking $25M in federal funds to extend construction of the H Street/Benning Road NE streetcar line across the Anacostia River, Lisa Rein reports in WaPo. 'Transportation chief Gabe Klein laid out the plan Tuesday at a community meeting at Wheatley Elementary school attended by about 100 residents of Northeast....Klein said DDOT also plans to extend the H Street line to Union Station by building tracks on a right of way underneath existing Amtrak tracks. The resulting underpass, now being designed, would provide streetcar riders "with a seamless connection to Metro and Amtrak service" at Union Station, said Scott Kubly, who is in charge of the streetcar project.' Much more on the meeting from Housing Complex and GGW, which notes that Klein said 'that DDOT is working with the National Capital Planning Commission (NCPC) on a compromise regarding overhead wires as a power source for the streetcars, stating NCPC is "very open to compromise."'

More details on the Wilson HS student-teacher carjacking, which is heading straight for News of the Weird: MoCo police say the student-carjacker 'didn't realize it was [his teacher] until he had forced his way into her sport-utility vehicle,' WaPo reports. '"It was a complete coincidence," said Capt. Paul Starks, a Montgomery police spokesman. "He didn't know it was his teacher until the crime started." New details emerged Tuesday in the bizarre case, including the arrest of the uncle and a police account that the student greeted his teacher and that they spoke during the abduction....The juvenile was arrested on Sunday by police in the District. He told detectives the assailant who approached from driver's side was his uncle. Montgomery detectives obtained an arrest warrant for [Jeremiah Juwley, 25] on Monday, and by Tuesday he was in custody, according to online court records. They charged him with first-degree assault, second-degree assault, robbery, false imprisonment and theft, according to court records.' Also Examiner, WTTG-TV, Gazette.

Brian Betts, slain principal of Shaw @ Garnet-Patterson MS, 'was out as a gay man to a circle of friends and D.C. public school system colleagues,' Lou Chibbaro Jr. reports at DC Agenda. 'One gay man who knew Betts from the time Betts lived in D.C.'s Shaw neighborhood said Betts had a circle of gay friends and was seen patronizing the Dupont Circle gay bars Omega and Fireplace. Another gay man who knew him said he assumed Betts was "out" as gay because many people in the gay community knew him in gay circles. "He was definitely a member of the GLBT community," said the man, who spoke to D.C. Agenda on condition that he was not identified. Capt. Paul Starks, director of the Montgomery County police's public affairs office, declined to comment on Betts' sexual orientation or whether police were looking into whether the case was a possible hate crime or pick-up murder.' Meanwhile, Betts' sister speaks to WRC-TV and WUSA-TV. WaPo's Michael Birnbaum writes about how friend and Wilson HS principal Peter Cahall is dealing with the loss: 'The bizarre spasm of violence, along with an operatic series of developments in the progress of the teachers' contract last week, has teachers and administrators taking a deep breath when their phones ring, worried about what might be waiting for them next. "Honestly, if it weren't for the kids and the staff, I don't know what I'd do," Cahall said.' And WTTG-TV reports that police are scouring phone and computer records. Also CNN.

ALSO—A wake will be held for Betts from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. this evening at Pierce Funeral Home, 9609 Center Street, Manassas, Va. And a public memorial service has been set for Saturday, May 1, at 11 a.m. in the Cardozo HS auditorium.

Four new charter schools get the thumbs-up from the Public Charter School Board, WaPo's Turque reports: '[Inspired Teaching Demonstration School], which intends to locate either in Ward 1, 4 or 6, will be run by an established D.C. nonprofit that trains teachers. One of the school's objectives is to give teachers-in-training a chance to partner with master educators. [Munde Verde Bilingual School], which plans to operate in Wards 2, 5 or 6, will stress cross-cultural communication and the importance of environmentally sustainable policies. [Shining Stars Montessori Academy], which lists its location as 1616 Georgia Ave. in Ward 1, will bring the Montessori approach to at-risk children, [Richard Wright School for Journalism and Media Arts], which plans to open in Ward 7, will emphasize a curriculum connecting students to the classics by focusing on strong writing skills and vocabulary.' Not on the list: University High PCS, the controversial proposal set to be located on the campus of International Graduate University. Outstanding question: Where will they all go?

SAVE THE DATE—Vince Gray for Mayor campaign kickoff rally is set for 4:30 p.m. Saturday at the Carnegie Library. Perhaps he'll have a speech ready for this one? Tonight is a fundraiser at Judith Terra's Gold Coast manse.

Kwame Brown demands to know from former council staffer turned Pepco lobbyist Donna Cooper whether her colleague Vincent Orange is planning a run for council chairman. Nikita Stewart writes at D.C. Wire. 'Cooper was at the council meeting to monitor legislation, but Brown prodded her about Orange's plans and whether Pepco would support him. "I asked her, 'Does Pepco have this candidate running for chair?'" Brown confirmed in an interview. "She was there. Hey, she works at Pepco. I asked her." Is Brown worried about competition? "I could care less. It's a democracy," he said....The buzz is that Orange, who gave up his Ward 5 seat for an unsuccessful bid for mayor in 2006, would like to jump in the race if Evans decides to bow out. Evans said in a brief interview that he's still in....Brown later said he was joking and did not know he would be taken so seriously.'

Marisa Demeo was confirmed by the U.S. Senate late yesterday as a D.C. Superior Court judge on a partisan 66-32 vote. Legal Times covers the background: 'As a lawyer for a prominent Latino civil rights group, [Demeo] opposed the nomination of Miguel Estrada to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit at the beginning of George W. Bush's presidency. Today, Republicans invoked that conflict in an unsuccessful attempt to oppose Demeo's own judicial nomination. "She would appear to support only the Latino nominees who agree with her politically," said Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-Ala.) in a speech on the Senate floor today....In a separate speech, Sen. Jim DeMint (R-S.C.) said Demeo's opposition to Estrada "sounds like ethnic bullying." DeMint and Sessions noted that Demeo also opposed Linda Chavez, Bush's first nominee for secretary of labor.' In a much less contentious nomination, DOJ lawyer Stuart Nash was also confirmed to the Superior Court. Also yesterday, three other Superior Court nominees got committe hearings.

Hiccup at WASA pumping station early yesterday morning meant high levels of chlorine in drinking water in parts of Northwest. The utility issued a warning not to use the water, which was lifted by the afternoon. Examiner's Myers finds a woman whose goldfish died. From WASA release: 'As our customer, you have a right to know what happened, what you should do, and what we did to correct this situation. We routinely monitor for the presence of drinking water contaminants. Results we received earlier today showed that our system exceeded the maximum residual disinfectant level (MRDL) for chlorine. The standard for chlorine is 4 milligrams per liter (mg/L). Chlorine was measured at 6.4 mg/L. Levels have returned to normal.' Also WaPo.

Police identify the woman killed in the fiery car crash Monday night on Alabama Avenue SE: Mary Elizabeth Wimbush, 37, died 'after the car she was driving was struck head-on by a van heading in the opposite direction,' WaPo reports. 'Investigators said the driver of the van, Ajene Jones, 34, of no fixed address crossed the double-yellow line and has been charged with involuntary manslaughter. Wimbush, who was pinned in the car, was removed by D.C. firefighters and airlifted to a hospital, where she was pronounced dead about an hour later. A 2-year-old girl who was thrown from the car and the three other children were taken to Children's Hospital in critical condition.' NC8 speaks with eyewitness. WUSA-TV notes that Jones 'has a long record of alleged driving violations.' WTTG-TV reports that 'the impact was so hard the license plate from the van was embedded in the car's engine.'

KUMAR GETS MUGGED—Kal Penn, the 'Harold & Kumar' actor turned White House aide, was robbed early Tuesday morning on the 1500 block of S Street NW, near his home. According to Scott McCabe in Examiner, 'a man with a dark-colored pistol ran up to him and demanded his belongings, police said. When Penn asked what the man wanted, the gunman is said to have replied, "Everything." Penn, 32, handed over his wallet, cash, his White House identification and two cell phones. The gunman ordered the actor to the ground and fled.' In his Examiner column, Harry Jaffe takes the mugging and a Monday stick-up at Nellie's as evidence of a crime wave that should have politicians 'running scared. Fenty becomes vulnerable. Council Chairman Vince Gray, who would be mayor, can't paint himself as tough on crime.'

German priest who had been ministering to D.C.'s German community is sent home after allegations of sex abuse surface, WaPo reports. 'The priest, Michael Schapfel, was removed from ministry after the German Bishops' Conference and the Diocese of Mainz in that country learned of the allegations March 30, reported them to authorities and called Schapfel at home during the Easter holiday. An archdiocese spokeswoman said local church officials were not told about it until Tuesday. The Archdiocese of Washington said it has not received any reports of abuse by Schapfel during his time in the District.'

Lydia DePillis at Housing Complex notes a brewing fight in Congress Heights over a group home being developed by Peaceaholics. An ANC meeting last night ended in chaos after commissioners verbally tusseled with Ron Moten & Co.

An Eaton ES teachers' analysis of NAEP test scores determines that the 'achievement gap' in DCPS is actually growing, and WUSA-TV picks up the story: '"They've been cited as proof that education reform in DCPS is succeeding," [Christopher Bergfalk] explained to the panel led by Chairman Vincent Gray on Saturday. "But if you are going to use this gold standard as proof that reform is succeeding, than we need to look at what all the NAEP data says."...From 2007-2009, DCPS had among the largest increase in scores in the country. "However if you look at the data you'll see that score increase is not evenly distributed throughout the population," said Bergfalk..."The increase in scores was disproportionately larger for small groups, for white students, for hispanic students and for those that don't qualify for free and reduced lunch," he said.'

Columbia Heights snowball case is dismissed. Finally. The defendant, Maria Lewis, tells WaPo, 'The whole thing was so ridiculous.'

Young boy was struck by a car on the 1200 block of Kenilworth Avenue NE last night, NC8 reports. 'The boy was transported with serious, life-threatening injuries.'

Demarco Nathan Scott, 20, is arrested for robbery of Northeast video game store. Examiner's McCabe writes that Scott 'apologized to the workers before fleeing with hundreds of dollars in cash, later telling police that he needed the money to help his brother.'

GGW wonders if there's any logic behind the Fenty budget's proposal to raise some parking fines but not others. Answer: They raised the fines for the most common violations.

Could construction finally begin on first Northwest One residential development? 'Mission First Development, The Henson Development Company and project sponsor Golden Rule Apartments, Inc. (GRA) are working with architects Grimm + Parker to build 60 residential units to replace the former Golden Rules Center that occupied the site until its demolition in early 2009. The empty lot will be developed in phases, beginning with a 100% subsidized project at First and K Streets, NW,' DCmud reports. Ground could be broken this summer.

Twenty British high-school students hang out at MLK Library while waiting for flight home.

Tractor-trailer overturns on 295 ramp just before rush hour.

DOH's Pierre Vigilance talks to GWU about 'Stress, Sex, and Sugar.' Some health pointers: 'Among his ten tips, he said, "Don't smoke (anything!), eat right (don't add the word 'now' after this), and wash your hands (if you see someone coming out of the bathroom a little too quickly, you can call them out)." Other rules included move more, love responsibly, reduce stress, see your doctor, know your family history, make peace, and be prepared.'

OCTO's Bryan Sivak talks 'real time data' in London.

Leo Alexander shows up at Citizens Association of Georgetown meeting, when members were planning for war against the new Georgetown campus plan.

Cheh2010.com is live.

D.C. Bond is back.

Why Don Peebles is 'haute.'

Think laying off 266 teachers is bad? In Detroit, Robert Bobb just sent pink slips to 2,000.

Dorothy Height, 'grand dame of the civil rights movement,' died yesterday morning at 98. The WaPo editorial board notes her recent cameo in city politics: 'Even as her age advanced, she continued to advocate for black families, preach self-reliance and despair over the lack of voting rights for the District. Recently, when she thought a worthy tennis program for children was threatened, she put her prestige on the line. Just as words can't fully capture her, so they fail to describe the void left by her death.' Cora Masters Barry tells WaPo, 'I'm so grateful that the kids at the Southeast Tennis and Learning Center knew her.' She adds that Height's recent visit to the center 'may have been Height's last public appearance.' Fenty, who famously snubbed Height in the course of the tennis saga, ordered flags flown at half staff yesterday and today in her memory.

D.C. COUNCIL TODAY—10 a.m.: Committee on Aging and Community Affairs budget hearing on Office on Human Rights, Office of Latino Affairs, and Serve DC, JAWB 412; Committee on Health budget hearing on Department of Health, JAWB 500; 10:30 a.m.: Committee on Finance and Revenue hearing on PR18-773 ('1522 K Street, LLC Recovery Zone Facility Revenue Bonds Project Approval Resolution of 2010'), PR18-774 ('Independent Sector Revenue Bonds Project Approval Resolution of 2010'), and PR18-775 ('World Wildlife Fund, Inc. Refunding Revenue Bonds Project Approval Resolution of 2010'), JAWB 120; 2 p.m.: Committee on Economic Development budget hearing on Washington Convention Center and Sports Authority, Commission on Arts and Humanities, and Boxing and Wrestling Commission, JAWB 412.

ADRIAN FENTY TODAY—10 a.m.: testimony, FY2011 congressional appropriations hearing, 2362B Rayburn HOB.

The council's action follows the decision by Congress last year to remove prohibitions on implementing a medical marijuana ballot initiative passed by city voters in 1998.

The legislation would allow distribution of cannabis to those determined by a doctor to be suffering from specific chronic diseases via a tightly regulated system. With only a limited number of city-sanctioned dispensaries to sell the marijuana, which is in turn grown only in a limited number of city-sanctioned cultivation operations, the District's legal pot industry stands to be much smaller and much more tightly regulated than in, say, California—a jurisdiction whose liberal attitude toward medical weed colored the debate here in the national capital.

Local and national marijuana advocates, many of them with experience in the California system, wanted looser regulations—including the right of medical marijuana users to grow their own supply. But local politicos, wary of interference from Congress, have tried mightily to keep plenty of leashes on the program.

A final vote is set for May 4, a date that has no significance whatsoever in marijuana culture. If passed and signed into law as expected, the dank could be available within months.

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT—'Dirty Tricks in Ward 5?'; 'Fenty’s Proposed Budget Cuts Include Housing Program'; and tweets galore!

Morning all. If Eleanor Holmes Norton was expecting the District's locally elected political leaders to line up quietly behind her decision to seek a full vote in the House of Representatives at the price of sacrificing the city's strict gun laws, she was mistaken. Mayor Adrian M. Fenty has fallen into line in favor of compromise, but D.C. Council Chairman Vincent C. Gray led an exodus yesterday, announcing at a morning press conference, 'I do not support a bill that would have us give up our right to legislate and have us give up our gun control laws,' Examiner reports. By the end of the day, councilmembers Kwame Brown, Michael Brown, and Harry Thomas Jr. had released statements opposing the deal; Yvette Alexander told WaPo she was 'withholding judgment'; and Mary Cheh went so far as to start a petition aiming to kill what she termed a 'disgusting deal.' DCist reports that Shadow Sen. Michael Brown is against a deal, too, with Shadow Rep. Mike Panetta holding his tongue for now. Christ, even the League of Women Voters is lining up against a gun-amended bill, WaPo reports. Meanwhile...gun lovers stormed the District's gates, almost literally—rallying while armed across the river at Gravelly Point.

AFTER THE JUMP—Shaw MS mourns Brian Betts; questions remain on Gray's home repairs; momentum builds toward youth-justice reform; Wilson student abducts Wilson teacher; NYT notes DCPS contract squabble; there's an Anacostia cleanup plan, but how to pay for it?

Scarce details emerge in the killing of DCPS principal Brian Betts. Police say that Betts was alive as late as 11:30 p.m. on Wednesday, when he placed a phone call from his home. Examiner reports: 'Friday was a previously scheduled day off from school, so Monday was the first day back since the slaying. School officials said they scheduled a 45-minute grief session in the morning. A "tribute page" to Betts created on Facebook had garnered nearly 1,000 fans and hundreds of messages from current and former students, and friends and family.' At WaPo, Michael Birnbaum reports on that first day back at school at Shaw @ Garnet-Patterson MS. 'This week was supposed to be dedicated to testing, and Betts was leading a major push to prepare for the exams. Rhee has rescheduled them for a later date. The front of the school was a makeshift memorial Monday, with roses, notes and candles on the stairs up to the main entrance and chalk inscriptions covering the sidewalks and doors. ' Also CNN, CBS News, WTOP, WRC-TV, WUSA-TV, WTTG-TV.

WHAT'S NEXT AT SHAW—WaPo: 'Until last week, [Betts] stood in front of his school every morning to dispense hugs and greetings to his students and their parents as they arrived. He wasn't outside Shaw at Garnet-Patterson Middle School on Monday morning. And the hugs between students and staff were grief-stricken. As class was held Monday for the first time since Shaw's beloved principal was found slain last week, the question was: Who can carry on the charge? Betts was D.C. Schools Chancellor Michelle A. Rhee's anointed symbol for her reform efforts — someone who was making unconventional educational choices to turn around a school that had been struggling for years. He hired a staff of mostly young, mostly new teachers, saying that dedication was more important than experience. But with so much resting on one man's shoulders, concerned community members wondered what will happen next....Rhee said that Betts built a strong enough team at Shaw that she's not worried about the basic functions of the school. "Are there people in the building who can carry on the structures? Yes. Can one of these people fill Brian's shoes? That's a different question," she said Monday night. "I wish I had a lot of Brian Bettses in my pocket, but I don't." For now, Assistant Principal Kimberly Douglas is in charge, Rhee said. She plans to run a search for a principal, and although she said it would be good for continuity if the eventual choice comes from the school, she won't confine herself to it.'

WaTimes' Jeffrey Anderson casts doubt on the 'exoneration' that Vincent Gray says the D.C. Office of Campaign Finance provided with regard to his home repairs. The OCF probe, Anderson writes, was 'based on a misrepresentation by the developer's attorneys and a questionable timeline of events.' The agency, per a 'extensive review by The Washington Times of the OCF investigative file,' 'accepted a series of invoices and payments, plus a written statement by the developer's attorneys, that are contradicted by telephone records and documented conversations.' To wit: The lawyer for a Wm. C. Smith & Co. subsidiary 'wrote that [the company] was unaware that anyone was questioning the repairs until The Times' story was published Nov. 18....But telephone records, calls and notes of conversations contradict that statement. On Nov. 4, The Times called William C. Smith Co.'s project manager, Erik C. Johnson, to ask about the company's work for Mr. Gray, telephone records show. The Times called Mr. Johnson after multiple sources said they heard him brag about the company helping Mr. Gray renovate his home. The next day, The Times also called company Vice President Bradley J. Fennell, records show. In both cases, voice messages were left that described the nature of the inquiry. According to telephone records, from Nov. 4 to Nov. 17, The Times either called, left voice messages for Mr. Johnson and Mr. Fennell, sent text messages, or talked on the telephone to Mr. Johnson a total of 31 times.' And then there's the timing on Gray's payments. '[OCF] documents show that all but one of the invoices were billed to WCS between July 30 and Aug. 31. Yet, a WCS general contractor's invoice is not addressed to Mr. Gray until Oct. 30....Mr. Gray's $10,051.04 check to WCS for electrical, carpentry, painting and cleaning services, and for the architect's renovation plan, is dated Nov. 15 — 11 days after The Times began calling the company's managers. According to a letter from his attorney to OCF investigators, which requests that "documents provided by Mr. Gray not be disclosed publicly," Mr. Gray's check cleared on Nov. 17 — the day before The Times' article, and the same day Mr. Gray said repairs at his house "had absolutely nothing to do with the company."'

Families of those killed in last month's drive-by shooting on South Capitol Street want changes to city law, Ann Marimow reports in WaPo—in particular, they want an end to the DYRS 'revolving door.' 'In testimony marked with anger, frustration and sadness, family members said the District's justice and juvenile offender systems had failed their children by allowing the suspects, as [mother Nardyne Jefferies] said, to "roam the streets and prey on innocent children." "I don't think anyone in the public feels safe," she said as she urged the council to change what she called outdated and lenient laws. Council member Phil Mendelson (D-At Large), who presided over the hearing of the Committee on Public Safety and the Judiciary, said he shared the frustration of those testifying. "If you are angry, you have every right to be angry," he said. "There have to be consequences."' Pair that with a WaPo op-ed from Jim Graham, who argues that the current youth justice system isn't working: 'Giving [D.C. Superior Court judges] limited authority to monitor cases it has committed to DYRS could be a good first step, but more needs to be done. Mayor Adrian Fenty, Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton and [Chief Judge Lee Satterfield] should immediately form a commission to develop reforms to increase coordination, transparency and accountability among CSS, DYRS, the Metropolitan Police Department and other agencies. The commission's recommendations should include legislative actions the D.C. Council could take to streamline and expedite information-sharing and services between local and federal agencies. It is time to halt the revolving door of the juvenile justice system and get our kids the help they deserve.' Graham will introduce legislation today to establish such a commission.

THEATRICS—'At times the testimony Monday turned angry. Ronald Moten, co-founder of the anti-violence group Peaceoholics, and other community leaders criticized elected officials for not providing more job opportunities and resources for at-risk minors in Ward 8, which has an unemployment rate of 27 percent. Moten's nonprofit group has been forced to lay off workers and move out of its headquarters after losing millions of dollars in city government funding. "We've got the answers. You all just don't listen," said Moten, who wore white gloves with red handprints that he flashed at the dais. "You all got blood on your hands."'

Bizarre story developing: Martin Weil reports in WaPo that a Wilson HS student abducted a Wilson teacher in Adams Morgan early Saturday and forced her to withdraw money from her bank account before she escaped in Wheaton. 'In a startling incident with little if any precedent in the Washington area, the teacher, who had been forced into her own car, eventually managed to escape from the student and a second abductor. A juvenile was later taken into custody. According to a source with knowledge of the situation, the incident appeared to be a chance encounter; the teacher was not targeted, the source said. The teacher suffered minor injuries....Little information about the incident was known Monday at Wilson. Several people connected with the school including parents and at least one administrator said they had not heard about it. Accounts of it evoked expressions of surprise and bewilderment.' Also WTTG-TV.

Not convinced that the DCPS teacher contract is a big deal–not just here but nationally? Well, check out today's New York Times editorial page, which urges union and city leaders to work out the financial dispute and move forward with the agreement. 'The contract, which changes the terms under which teachers are paid and evaluated, could pave the way for better schools for the District of Columbia’s students and could become a model for agreements between school districts and teachers’ unions around the country....Mayor Adrian Fenty needs to get to the bottom of the budget flap as quickly as possible. The situation was further confused when the city’s financial officer issued a statement saying that there is no surplus, as claimed by Ms. Rhee. She says the city is committed to finding the money to pay for the raises in the new contract — although under the law, any proposals she puts forward must be approved by that same chief financial officer. One bright spot is that the union’s leadership has wisely separated the two issues — last year’s layoffs and the new contract. They need to keep tempers cool so their members make the right choice and ratify the agreement. And Ms. Rhee and the mayor need to quickly and fully disclose who messed up the math.' NYT doesn't seem to understand Fenty is relatively powerless to 'get to the bottom of the budget flap.'

CFO Natwar Gandhi has come out against an $8.1M tax abatement for a Hilton Garden Inn in NoMa, Michael Neibauer reports in WBJ. 'The 204-room, 128,500-square-foot Hilton Garden Inn, which is being developed by Spartanburg, S.C.-based OTO Hospitality Development Co., is part of the massive StonebridgeCarras Constitution Square project in the North of Massachusetts Avenue neighborhood. Under legislation proposed by D.C. Councilman Tommy Wells, D-Ward 6, the $59 million hotel would nab sales and property tax abatements totaling an estimated $4.1 million by 2013 and $8.1 million by 2017. That figure includes a $400,000 tax break the OTO hotel will bank under an abatement awarded to the Constitution Square developers in 2008....Funds are “not sufficient” to afford Wells’ proposal, the CFO wrote in his fiscal analysis of the bill. What’s more, Gandhi wrote, “No evidence has been provided to justify a need for this additional real property tax abatement.” The tax break is subject to a D.C. Council vote set for today, and CMs are expected to approve the deal.

Federal and regional officials announce $1.7B Anacostia River restoration plan—a plan 'which took two years and $2.8 million to formulate [and] includes more than 3,000 projects to reduce the garbage, sewage and runoff that have plagued the river,' Alana Goodman writes in Examiner. 'Strategies to be implemented include stormwater controls, stream restoration, wetland creation, fish blockage removal, reforestation, trash and contamination control and parkland acquisition....Creators of the restoration plan hope it will not only lead to better water quality on the river, but also save money by reducing flooding, decreasing infrastructure repairs from stormwater damage, and reducing energy use by bringing more shade trees to the area. Supporters also predict that the plan will create "green" construction jobs in the area and provide residents who live near the river with more recreational activities and a greater sense of community.' In WaPo, David Fahrenthold details just how tall an order that $1.7B figure is—'so far,' he writes, 'none of that money has been budgeted.' Martin O'Malley, Steny Hoyer, EHN et al. were at the announcement in Bladensburg. Also WTOP.

More on Lisa Raymond's departure from the State Board of Education, from WaPo's Bill Turque.

AP reports: 'One person has died and several others have have suffered life-threatening injuries after a van collided with another vehicle, overturned and caught fire....[A]t least one person was trapped in the burning van, and firefighters helped passengers escape. Five people, including three children, suffered serious injuries.' The collision happened on the 3600 block of Alabama Avenue SE. WTTG reports that a child is in 'grave' condition. Also WaPo.

Brush fire halts freight trains along CSX line in Northeast.

High-earning WaPo reader stumps for high-earner tax bracket in letter.

NC8 covers 'Guerrilla Gardeners.'

Four more years, say Borderstan readers.

BIG THREE—First meeting of regional execs including Bob McDonnell to take place today in Alexandria.

Streetcar update tonight at Wheatley ES in Trinidad.

D.C. COUNCIL TODAY—10 a.m.: Committee of the Whole meeting, to be immediately followed by the 31st legislative meeting, JAWB 500.

ADRIAN FENTY TODAY—9 a.m.: remarks, national capital regional meeting, Virginia Mega Projects program site, 6363 Walker Lane, Suite 500, Alexandria, Va.; 10:30 a.m.: remarks, Arboretum playground ribbon-cutting and recreation center renovation kickoff, 2412 Rand Place NE.

A cyclist has been struck by a Georgetown University bus near the intersection of 35th Street and Reservoir Road NW.

The news and photo come to City Desk from reader and political consultant Chuck Thies, who had no information on possible injuries.

UPDATE, 2:50 P.M.: Fire and Emergency Medical Services spokesperson Pete Piringer confirms FEMS responded to a call in the vicinity, but has no word on injuries.