Whether it’s by the councilmembers, the hotel association, passengers, or the taxicab commission, drivers feel put upon.

Everyone, it seems, has done the drivers wrong: There are too many cars on the streets. License fees are too high. Customers have a chip on their shoulders. The hack inspectors are assholes. Get rid of the Taxicab Commission and bring on more hack inspectors! Testimony from a pro-medallion system advocate was met with muttering: "Go back to Chicago!" The list goes on. (And on: More than 80 people signed up to testify at the hearing. As of mid-afternoon, Chairman Mary Cheh hadn't even called the first quarter of the witnesses.)

In the hearing, the drivers are a vocal bunch. Scores of them line the walls, bursting out with frustration frequently enough for Councilmartyr St. Tommy Wells to shush them thus: “If the room is quiet, we won’t notice it’s over capacity.”

Wells was asking them to stop praising him; during his questioning of Taxicab Commission Chair Ron Linton, he was a recipient of cheers as he bore into the reasons why Linton wants to pay for the new meter, GPS, and credit card system with money from a customer surcharge. Not that the drivers want to pay for it themselves, mind you—they simply cheered any criticism of the plan because they want it dead.

And they're still unhappy about the end of the zone system. During testimony, drivers went after Wells for praising the Uber model of cab dispatch—one 30-year veteran said the abolished zone system allowed for higher fares (better for drivers, and thus, service) through shared riding. In response to a complaint from Ward 4 Councilmember Muriel Bowser that her constituents can't catch cabs right now, the zone system was brought up again: a driver insisted that picking up multiple fares was the best way to hit underserved areas.

Wells acknowledged this, wondering if allowing shared rides east of the Anacostia River at night would help residents there catch cabs home. Only if shared rides were allowed everywhere, the driver said: "If you're going to have it east of the river, you need it west of the park."

And on it went, with each driver bringing up a different gripe. With such scattershot complaints—and, likely, diversity of opinion among drivers—it's hard to evaluate their claims. But the anger is obvious, and to listen to the cabbies, everyone else is to blame.

Photo by Shani O. Hilton

It’s apparently part of a citywide move to install 1,150 solar-powered single-space meters in areas that are picked for their high-turnover (read: revenue generating) potential — although the Taylor Street spots are not highlighted on the PDF map attached to DDOT’s announcement.

The DDOT, as announced on their sporadically updated blog, had to walk back a recent meter installation in Anacostia because the community wasn’t given notice. We checked with former ANC chairman Joe Martin, and he couldn’t recall DDOT presenting this to the commission.  Nor were we able to locate any written notice of this move on the Petworth listserv or in any constituent mailings from Ward 4 Councilmember Muriel Bowser, but we’ll keep checking.

The new meters mean anyone running in to the Yes! will have to pay to park during their errand if they park on the street. As Adam Mazmanian writes, this is in the wake of a kerfuffle in Anacostia over (busted-looking) meters being installed along Martin Luther King, Jr. Avenue with no notice. DDOT apologized and removed the meters within 24 hours.

On the Petworth email list, a number of residents are unhappy, though Ward 4 councilmember Muriel Bowser writes:

As I recall, we had two meetings on Petworth parking where this was discussed, including the residents of 4100 Georgia Avenue and Yes and other businesses in the immediate area.  The changes are meant to turn over parking in commercial areas, but also addressed ensuring nearby free and unrestricted parking. We had similar discussions around the area near the Metro station. Implementation of the plan was to occur with Great Streets.  I can't remember if the DDOT presented to the ANC, but ANC members were included in the meetings. We'll ask DDot to post to the website.

DDOT spokesperson John Lisle says "at some point there were meters there" and that reinstalling meters doesn't require an advance announcement.

While the agency isn't sure exactly when the meters were there, they suspect the machines were removed when the building housing the Yes! Organic Market was built. Still, Lisle says, "we do like to give people notice." And, Lisle adds, in the neighborhood, more parking meters are coming—though in areas that haven't had them before, residents will be notified.

Photo by Wayan Vota via Flickr/Creative Commons Attribution Generic 2.0 License

Instead, there will be an eight-month study of speeding and pedestrian safety in Wards 4 and 6.

Full release after the jump.

Bowser and Wells table speed limit bill pending safety review

Today, Councilmembers Bowser and Wells withdrew their proposal to reduce residential speed limits to 15 miles per hour.

“My constituents asked me to take a step back and I listened. But, there still needs to be more done to advance pedestrian safety,” said Ms. Bowser.

The Pedestrian Safe Streets Speed Limit Amendment Act was introduced on November 1^st. Designed to reduce traffic speed and increase safety while promoting pedestrian and bicycle activities, the bill would have aligned many neighborhood streets with the speed limits in school zones.

Instead of moving forward with the measure, Councilmembers Bowser and Wells have negotiated an expanded pedestrian safety pilot program to include Wards 4 and 6. The Pilot will last for 8 months and will study speeding on targeted residential streets. The Department of Transportation will monitor road conditions, pedestrian activity, speeding, and determine how to best make our streets safer for everyone.

“The pilot study is a great first step to improving the safety of our streets,” said Bowser. If it turns out there is a need for legislation, we’ll revisit the bill at another time. The goal here is safety for pedestrians; one way or another.”

MPD is addressing speeding concerns on a major arterial as well with the deployment of a mobile speed camera on upper 16th street.

Image via Wikimedia Commons

As mad as some of you might be after Pepco’s recent missteps restoring power following the Jan. 26 thundersnow event, don’t worry: some members of the D.C. Council would like you to know they are even more angry.

Speaking at public hearing of the Committee on Public Services and Consumer Affairs late Friday afternoon, several councilmembers did not mince words about their feelings toward Pepco.

Mary Cheh of Ward 3, a member of the committee, said Pepco had no reason to fear the fines she wants to impose on it, as "Pepco itself is doing quite well."

"They're doing really nicely, thank you, while we sit in the dark," Cheh said. "It’s an understatement to say that we have woefully inadequate service in the District of Columbia."

Cheh also said she had trouble believing Pepco’s claim that D.C.’s tree canopy was a huge obstacle that hindered the utility's ability to restore power. "Pepco tries to make the trees responsible," she said. "The trees are not primarily responsible for the outages."

But even if the trees were a huge factor, Cheh noted Pepco has yet to use up all the funds it has to prune D.C.'s trees. Nevertheless, Cheh said, Pepco has complained to the city about difficulties with the tree canopy.

"Talk about hypocrisy," said Cheh, who did not reserve her vitriol for just Pepco. She also singled out the D.C. Public Service Commission, which she likened to a "fat little puppy."

"The Public Service Commission has failed us," she said. "The chief sheriff has to be the Public Service Commission...both entities—Pepco and the Public Service Commission—need a push in the right direction."

To her credit, the committee’s chairwoman, Ward 7's Yvette Alexander avoided going off into extended speeches about her displeasure with Pepco. Instead, she focused on asking questions of the members of the public who showed up to testify.

Similarly, Ward 4's Muriel Bowser said she had come to the hearing only to listen to what her fellow residents had to say. "I just wanted to join you and thank you for calling this hearing," she said, in lieu of an opening statement. "All of us are concerned about improving reliability for our residents."

Ward 5's Harry Thomas Jr. also showed up, ostensibly to listen to the public as well.

"While I’m not a member of your committee, Chairwoman Alexander, this is an issue which is very important to me," he explained. "We want to make sure our utilities are doing the right job.... we need to figure out what obstacles we can remove to expedite our services."

Although Thomas started his remarks by saying “I’m here to listen,” he went on to argue the city needs to change the way it deals with events like the January snow event.

"We need a coordinated effort that I have always been saying needed to exist," Thomas said. "We need to solve this problem once and for all."

While it did take some time to get power fully restored following the storm, Thomas did note that his post-storm calls with the utility were returned promptly. "I got responses that were expeditious in a personal manner," he said. "But the citizens didn’t see this."

Thomas then ended his remarks, and began taking notes on each public witness’ testimony. At one point, he expressed his surprise at the number of witnesses who showed up to testify. "I bet many of you would rather be at happy hour.”

Photo by William F. Zeman

Walter E. Washington Convention Center, Jan. 2. © 2011 Matt Dunn

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT:

• City Paper exclusive on MPD's go-go report.
• Wanted: One mayor for mayoral forum
• Sweeperscam now even more expensive

Good morning sweet readers! Did anyone manage to watch all 27 hours of the D.C. Council session yesterday? If you missed any, LL TiVo-ed it and is having a viewing party this weekend at the parking lot of RFK Stadium. (Just pretend you're at the old 'HFS-tival!) On with the news:

2+2=5?: The foundation of Mayor Adrian Fenty's re-election campaign is the progress made in D.C.'s schools, right? Duh. So yesterday's news that new standardized test scores show a four to five point drop for elementary school students probably wasn't exactly what Hizzoner wanted to hear. Both the Post's Bill Turque, and the Examiner's Leah Fabel said the results come at an "inopportune" time for Fenty (teacher, someone is copying my use of the word inopportune!) Turque: "The elementary-school decline also represents a blow for [Chancellor Michelle] Rhee, who has made test score growth an integral part of the cultural change in schools she has pursued since becoming chancellor in 2007. Handpicked principals have established academic 'war rooms' to chart the progress of each student, tailoring instruction to address weaknesses that emerge on interim tests. Through winter and spring, schools are fully mobilized to prepare for the April tests in grades 3 through 8 and in grade 10. Field trips are canceled, and classes spend more time on test preparation. Selected schools offer 'Saturday academies' to help students. And this year's scores for the first time will determine half of the annual evaluation of some D.C. teachers. Last week, Rhee confirmed that she intended to expand standardized testing to cover all grades." Fabel: "[Fenty] appeared somewhat perplexed when asked by a parent why his office doesn't do more to communicate the school system's results. 'I grew up in D.C. when people, all they did was talk and talk. I like to do,' he said. 'People can look around and see the progress.' Not that it was all bad news, scores for middle and high school students rose, and overall 'officials said the three-year record of double-digit growth in secondary schools' test scores — an average gain of 14 percentage points in the reading pass rate and 17 points in the math rate — surpasses the norm for big urban school districts.'" Freeman Klopott has more on what the "mixed bag" of test results mean for Fenty in the Examiner.

AFTER THE JUMP: Trolley cars and hospitals; Immunity!; Mendelson and Stein...

A Little Ditty, About Two Guys Running For Mayor: WaPo's Tim Craig and Nikita Stewart tag-team the current state of the mayoral race two months out and air some criticism of both campaigns. Here's the low down on Fenty: "But the campaign has at times appeared rudderless, and sources close to the campaign say Fenty has been reluctant to heed advice and slow to grasp that he faces a far different election than he did in 2006 (not a fresh-faced council member known for his constituent service, but an incumbent mayor defending his record). For instance, Fenty overruled campaign advisers who urged him to hold off on the TV ads until a more comprehensive strategy was put together, two sources close to the mayor said. And Fenty's style has hampered his ability to build and nurture an electoral coalition. Despite his business-friendly agenda, Fenty lost the D.C. Chamber of Commerce endorsement to Gray." And on Gray: "The more immediate concern of those who support Gray—known for relishing the details of governing—is that he is too slow to make some campaign decisions. A dozen advisers helped Gray develop the education plan he rolled out two weeks ago, for instance. Before it was released, however, Gray and his staff vetted it before nearly 100 government officials, teachers, school administrators, labor leaders, parents and other stake-holders, campaign sources said. Gray is using a similar formula in developing proposals on crime, economic development and job creation and fiscal responsibility." LL regularly consults with nearly 100 people when deciding what to have for lunch. The consensus today: bacon. Unless the polling comes back and suggests empanadas.

Council Roundup: WaPo's Ann Marimow catches us up with two issues. Trolley Cars: "The D.C. Council made way for the first leg of a 37-mile trolley system Tuesday, passing legislation to allow the use of overhead wires along Benning Road and H Street NE. The debate over the use of the electrical wires for streetcars has centered on whether the lines violate a long-standing ban intended to preserve the appearance of the federal city. The temporary legislation approved unanimously Tuesday specifically prohibits overhead wires around the National Mall and creates a public process for determining whether the wires can be used in other parts of the city." And the hospital: "With some reservations, the council also gave final approval Tuesday to the creation of a nonprofit to run United Medical Center, the city's only hospital east of the Anacostia River."

Loophole!: WAMU's Patrick Madden reports on a big old campaign finance loophole that allows corporations to give lots more than the $2k limit to their candidate. "Some of the names sound generic: Acme Atlantic Leasing Company LLC or Gotham Investors LLC. Others sound a little more specific: Round Hill Investors LLC or FGV Investors LLC. There are 11 companies in all. They all gave the $2,000 maximum to Mayor Adrian Fenty’s campaign and all are listed at the same address: the 8th floor at 2000 Tower Oaks Boulevard in Rockville, Maryland. That turns out to be the headquarters for Lerner Enterprises, the area's largest real estate developer. Tax records show the resident agent for most of them is a vice president at the company." LL notes that the same practice has been going on for years in Maryland. Possibly involving some of the same companies!

File Under Gross: A MetroAccess driver has been accused of sexually assaulting a disabled rider while transporting her home from adult day care in at least the third sexual assault case involving the agency's paratransit service so far this year, according to the Examiner's resident sex assault expert, Kytja Weir.

Where does he keep his immunity idol?: Clinton LaSuere's lawsuit against Fenty, alleging he stiffed him on $5,000 in unpaid campaign work for Fenty's Ward 4 successor, Muriel Bowser, was denied yesterday, Keith Alexander of the Post reports. "At a hearing Tuesday, Judge Michael J. McCarthy did not rule on the merits of LeSueur's claim. Rather, in dismissing the case, he cited a District law that provides immunity for elected officials." LL would like to point out that he also has immunity. From chicken pox!

Gerty for Mendo: The city's gay activists vote to support At-Large Councilman Phil Mendelson over challenger Clark Ray, Mike DeBonis reports. "Incumbent Phil Mendelson offered a simple pitch: 'I delivered the marriage equality bill,' he said in his opening remarks, a statement that hinted at years of legislative efforts that laid the groundwork for last year's climactic marriage vote. Challenger Clark Ray, the former city parks and recreation director, has had to sell gay activists on a different proposition—I'd be just as good on the issues, and, hey, I'm also gay."

You Kids Driving Me Crazy: Jonetta Rose Barras says in the Examiner that the D.C. Council needs parental control.

"Chat with Ward One School Board Candidate, Patrick Mara" [Examiner]

Prison Guards for Gray [Post]

Pierre L'Enfant, Frederick Douglas Statues to the capitol? [Post]

Mayor's schedule: Ribbon cutting at United Medical Center's New Pediatric ER unit, 10:45

Council hearings: Breathalyzer problems, election reform

'bout Rhee there is always some scowling
And Hardy has many folks howling
Now Council proceedings
Take cues from kids' readings
With villainous jabs based on Rowling

Some sunshine, both real and instructive
We citizens find quite seductive
M. Bowser's idea
While no panacea
Potentially could be constructive

Those Georgetown boys just couldn't hack it
And now they have f-ed up your bracket
I know this is lame
But it's just a game...?
And soon you need not wear a jacket!!!

This week is Sunshine Week, a "national initiative to open a dialogue about the importance of open government and freedom of information."

Today, Ward 4 Councilmember Muriel Bowser announced a step toward those ends, unveiling a bill to strengthen the city's open-meetings law.

Currently, the law only requires meeting where "official action" is taken to be opened to the public. And that, invariably, has come to meet a meeting where a vote is taken—even if all the details on what's being voted on has been hashed out in advance behind closed doors.

That is, for instance, what happened last summer, when the council was charged with closing a sizable gap in the 2010 city budget.

To get the job done in late July, Council Chairman Vincent C. Gray gathered his colleagues and staff in a Wilson Building conference room, where they debated what programs would be cut and what taxes would be raised. Press was allowed in the room, but the general public was not. With members in general agreement, the plan was adopted—the "official action"—by the council in a subsequent public meeting in the council chamber.

The Bowser bill makes it plain: "The public policy of the District of Columbia is that all persons are entitled to full and complete information regarding the affairs of government and the actions of those who represent them. Formation of public policy and conduct of public business shall not occur in secret."

Specifically, the public would have a right "to be present at all meetings of public bodies that advise or determine how the public's business will be carried out, and to witness all phases of policy formulation and decision-making, including information-gathering, discussion, deliberation, and resolution." And a meeting is defined as any gathering of a quorum of the council or other policymaking body. Chance meetings and social occasions are excepted "unless it is held to evade the letter or spirit of this section."

Further exceptions are in the bill for collective bargaining sessions, legal consultations, certain business negotiations, meetings concerning criminal investigations, and others. To enforce the law, citizens would be able to sue in Superior Court.

This is not the first attempt at public-meeting reform. In 2006, with then-Council Chairman Linda Cropp under fire for her institution of closed-door pre-legislative meeting breakfasts, Councilmembers Kathy Patterson and Vincent Orange introduced an open-meetings bill. But colleagues—members Carol Schwartz and Jack Evans and Jim Graham prime among them—led opposition to the bill, saying it would be burdensome for policymakers.

The council ended up voting 7 to 6 to send the bill back to committee, essentially killing it. Gray, as Ward 7 councilmember, cast the deciding vote.

UPDATE, 5:10 P.M.: Graham spokesperson Brian DeBose calls to challenge LL's assertion that Graham was a prime opponent of the Orange/Patterson bill. "At every instance when this bill came before the council in committee and in legislative session, Jim Graham voted in favor of it," DeBose says—including a vote against its recommittal.

LL drew his characterization from Graham's support of an amendment, as reported in the Washington Post, of an amendment that sought to redefine "meeting" to exclude "general discussions among members of a public body" where "there is no intention for the discussion to lead to an official action." That amendment, Patterson said at the time, "guts the bill."

Graham has yet to take a position on Bowser's bill, DeBose says.

UPDATE, 5:18 P.M.: Courtesy of DeBose, here is the roll call on the recommittal vote. Voting yes were Sharon Ambrose, Marion Barry, Kwame Brown, Jack Evans, Vincent Gray, Phil Mendelson, Carol Schwartz; noes were David Catania, Cropp, Adrian Fenty, Graham, Orange, Patterson.

UPDATE, 3/16, 11:15 A.M.: This morning, Bowser officially introduced her bill; Kwame Brown co-introduced. Co-sponsoring are: Michael Brown, Catania, Graham, Gray, Harry Thomas Jr., and Tommy Wells. Kudos especially to Kwame Brown and Gray for standing up where they didn't in 2006. May they see the bill through.

Today, the D.C. Wire reported that a five-member council delegation met with Mayor Adrian Fenty last night to discuss the standoff over Ximena Hartsock. A symbol of testy council-mayoral relations, Hartsock is Fenty's choice to helm the D.C. Department of Parks and Recreation. Following some discord among the council, Hartsock, and Fenty, however, the council voted against confirming Hartsock. The mayor responded by keeping Hartsock in place.

According to a source familiar with the meeting, the prevailing sentiment among the councilmembers in attendance (Chairman Vincent Gray and councilmembers David Catania, Mary Cheh, Harry Thomas Jr., and Muriel Bowser) was that Hartsock had to go.

Fenty, according to the source, assured that he was looking for her replacement but stressed that the search wasn't an easy one. The meeting ended with a promise: The mayor would replace Hartsock by Dec. 1, the source recalls.

Still, Fenty still couldn't help being Fenty.

At one point in the meeting, Fenty apparently told the councilmembers: "I want you to understand something—anything we agree to will not dictate my actions as mayor."

*photo by Darrow Montgomery.

Petworth residents are perturbed by a possible new round of gang warfare that broke out in their hood hours after the Red Line crash. Just before midnight Jun. 22, police say, there was a double shooting on the 600 block of Quebec Place, N.W. A woman suffered a gunshot wound to the leg and a man – who police believe was shot at the scene and fled in a car that crashed – later died of his injuries, Ward 4 Councilwoman Muriel Bowser told her constituents yesterday.

About three hours later, police responded to an apparent shootout on the 500 block of Shepherd Street, N.W. They reported finding cars riddled with bullet holes but no victims.

Bowser says police are investigating a link between the two incidents as a “suspected gang beef.”

Monday night’s wee-hour gunplay was just the latest street violence in Petworth and prompted a new round of recriminations over the D.C. Council’s failure to pass legislation aimed at cracking down on the city’s allegedly growing gang problem.

“Having lived in petworth my entire life and having seen Petworth at its worst, all I am simply saying is lets come up with solutions period! Whether a neighborhood beef or a gang or just someone randomly in the neighborhood shooting. It all needs to stop. We already know the problems in the area lets do something about it,” Roneal Josephs posted to the MPD-4D Listserv. His was one of several comments on the shootings.

Elsewhere in the city, debate also continues over the crime bill torpedoed earlier this month over concerns that the proposed measures could lead to racial profiling. The Washington Post had a story Monday quoting “youths” who say they need more and better extracurricular activities to lure them away from the streets.

But how to create successful programs is an ongoing challenge in D.C. and around the country. Anyone who works with teenagers knows getting them to consistently show up for structured and constructive afterschool time is an uphill battle. It’s a well-known fact that nonprofit organizations often end up vying for the same pool of kids willing to give these activities a try. Sadly, the ones who choose to participate rather than hang unsupervised on the streets are not necessarily the ones most “at risk” for gangster life.

When I was a reporter covering gangs in the Boston area a few years ago, a high school principal made an observation that gets to the heart of the matter: He said combating the spread of gangs is like fighting against the tide. Every year, a new generation rolls in.

LL was there with camera. Behold!

Adrian Fenty, Mr. Smart Car, opted for something a bit larger than his signature everyday conveyance for parade purposes: a white Hummer. Not a mini-Hummer, either—the big one. Gotta support American automakers these days, right? (What's that? Hummer's been sold to the Chinese? Whatever.)

Before the march, Bill Rice and John Falcicchio engage in high jinks:

No one tosses beads like Hizzoner:

After the parade, Fenty and his 30-some marchers (including sons Matthew and Andrew) gathered for pictures:

Vincent Gray's wheels were even less fuel-efficient. But his giant truck at least carried a couple of dozen staffers supporters:

Gray again handed out custom beads with a "One City" pendant:

Jack Evans and family (that's companion Michelle Seiver) hanging out pre-parade:

Evans had 25-plus in his retinue:

Eleanor Holmes Norton showed off her signature parade pose:

Phil Mendelson showed LL his campaign-ready tough-guy look:

Mendo alone among politicos opted for leis over beads. Gal pal Carol Mitten helped hand 'em out:

Mendo couldn't ask for a better advertisement than this homemade banner, which led his entourage:

And just so you know Mendo means business, his retinue was followed by a black Cadillac driven by his "muscle" (aka staffer Mike Battle):

Mendelson's likely challenger, former DPR chief Clark Ray, was also marching, but near the back, with local Gay Games promoters:

A smattering of "DC NEEDS CLARK RAY" stickers (in Fenty green-and-white) were spotted in the crowd:

David Catania printed up custom marriage equality signs—one of the most popular items along the parade route:

Once again, Catania had a special guest rider: Ward 3 Councilmember Mary Cheh, aka the Queen of Green. LL asked Catania if he was king of anything: "The King of Queens, honey!"

Kwame Brown, however, was the king of bling, riding in a Porsche 911 Carrera:

Staffer Enrique Fernandez Roberts captured the hipster demo however, with his Kwamefied scooter:

Kwame brought a bubble machine, but LL did not see it in use:

Fenty wasn't the only politico to somewhat de-green. Tommy Wells traded in the Zipcar Mini Cooper he had last year for a Toyota Tacoma pickup:

For the second year running, couple Michael Ulrich and Paul Cooper, whom Wells joined in marriage, participated:

After missing the Pride parade for the first time in decades last year, Jim Graham was back in the saddle this year:

In one of the more eardrum-unfriendly developments, Graham marchers sported whistles:

Muriel Bowser brought a strong crowd:

Gay rights legend Frank Kameny, among the festival honorees:

D.C. For Marriage:

Gertrude Stein Democratic Club:

D.C. Democratic State Committee:

Ward 7 Democrats (Juan Thompson, right):

Ward 8 Democrats (Phil Pannell and Charles Wilson):

UPDATE, 4:20 P.M.: A couple of addenda:

Doxie McCoy, spokesperson for Gray, writes in to point out that "more than staffers were riding with the Chairman. We had people from GLOV/Gays and Lesbians Opposing Violence, DC for Marriage, Metro TeenAIDS, and Gertrude Democratic Stein Club, in addition to reps from DC Vote, Pre-K for All DC, State Board, etc."

And Charles Allen, Wells' top aide, notes, "Just for the record, Tommy had rented a Mini-Cooper again. Zipcar notified him on Friday that they were cancelling his reservation because the car had to be taken into the shop for repairs. The Tacoma was the only open top (-ish) vehicle left in the Zipcar fleet on such short notice."

OK, green cred's intact!

Dear Councilmember Bowser:

Is there anything that your office can do to rid our roadways of those ubiquitous signs for summer camps, in particular those for the martial arts camp located in Silver Spring just a stone’s throw from the DC line? Over the weekend I spotted dozens of their signs (plus a few touting other camps, some event in Puerto Rico, etc.), in particular along Georgia Ave. and North Capitol St. The latter was the worst, starting in the area around Kennedy St. and continuing all the way down to Michigan Ave. The median strip near the Old Soldiers’ Home was covered with them nonstop. I saw them on both sides of the park, even out on Rockville Pike! Most are stuck in the ground, but many are looped around utility poles, and some are even nailed to our street trees.

I know that Marc Loud, in his capacity as head of the Gateway Corporation, has informed the owner of the Silver Spring camp that posting signs on DC public property is illegal and has repeatedly pleaded with him to stop littering our roadways with the signs, but year after year the problem returns. Is there anything you can do in conjunction with your Montgomery County counterparts to rein in this behavior? For instance, could the county threaten to withhold operating permits if the problem continues?  Or how about the novel ideal of the DC govt actually enforcing its laws and levying a fine for each violation?

Back in the ‘80s and ‘90s, many of us spent a lot of time ridding our trees and utility poles of those day-glo concert posters, only to see them replaced now with signs for other commercial enterprises, in clear violation of DC law. Sure, we can call 727-1000 whenever we see them, or even yank them down ourselves, but that doesn’t address the overall problem. Anything you can do to in that regard would be greatly appreciated. Thank you.

Ralph Blessing

Not too often these days that you see overt displays of executive-legislative interbranch friendship. Yet, this was one of those days, with Mayor Adrian M. Fenty, Attorney General Peter J. Nickles, police Chief Cathy L. Lanier, and two members of the MPD brass joining legislators Muriel Bowser, Jack Evans, and Jim Graham on a Ward 1 street corner this afternoon.

The ostensible purpose was to urge passing of a sprawling anti-crime bill before the start of the traditional summer crime season. The clear subtext, however, was that the parties were taking a shot across the bow of At-Large Councilmember Phil Mendelson, who as chair of the public safety and judiciary committee holds the legislative fate of the bill in his hands.

Each of the parties urged that the 56-page bill, encompassing a number of crimefighting proposals, be passed on an emergency basis (meaning the bill goes into effect immediately for 90 days upon mayoral signature, bypassing congressional review) at the Council's June 2 legislative meeting. Mendelson has committed to getting an emergency bill through by the council's summer recess, which kicks off in early July.

"We need the new tools in this legislation," said Graham, citing recent shooting on the 1400 block of W Street NW (full disclosure: also LL's home block). "We need the tougher approach."

Evans was even more strident: "If we do not act...this bill going through the regular process next March. Next March!...That is unacceptable!" Later he added, in a swipe at Mendelson's meticulous ways, "What's process? It's the enemy of progress!" and "I want this thing moved pronto!"

OK, "pronto." Question is, where was Mendo?

If everyone's so committed to making this happen, wouldn't you want to have the chair of the relevant committee in attendance?

LL asked why he wasn't invited. Fenty said "everyone's been invited." Evans said that he had called Mendelson. Mendelson says he got a phone call this morning from Evans, but he didn't leave a message.

Furthermore, Nickles acknowledged that he and his staff have been meeting regularly with Mendelson and his staff to produce a workable bill. Is that, LL pointed out, what the legislative process is all about? Not calling a press conference and throwing a fit?

"The legislative process is not working," Nickles said.

Replies Mendelson, reached after the presser, "Of course, we know that Peter Nickles doesn't seem to believe in the legislative process."

Mendelson reiterated his pledge to have the bill ready for the mayor's pen by the council recess, and added that he's happy to pass an emergency bill at that time—it could happen even earlier, he says, if parties come to an agreement by the time the bill comes out of committee in June. As for Evans' "next March" statement, he says, "he needs to do his math."

Crime, Mendelson says, "lends itself to grandstanding....It just seems that there's this desire to grandstand and score points over this," he says. "I would rather do it correctly."

LL asked those in attendance if they thought they had the nine votes necessary to pass an early emergency bill—a tough sled for Fenty when his relations with eight of 13 councilmembers are strained at best, nonexistent at worst.

"You have my vote," Nickles said.

Holy Pork: From Muriel Bowser's public services and consumer affairs committee: "$500,000...is transferred to the Department of Parks and Recreation...for the sole and exclusive use of beatification of passive parks within the boundaries of Ward 4" [emphasis added]. Now Bowser's Catholic and all, but does she have enough pull with the pope to sanctify her parklands?

Dept. of Me: From Harry Thomas Jr.'s libraries, parks, and recreation committee: "Redirect $1M from General Improvement (RG001) to Harry Thomas, Jr. Recreation Center Project, created in the 2009 Capital Budget." The height of narcissistic legislating? Probably not: There is a Harry Thomas Sr. rec center in Eckington, named after the current councilmember's father and predecessor as Ward 5 councilmember.