This news comes from a memorandum [PDF] issued by City Administrator Neil O. Albert last month, which cites flat revenue growth, the cessation of stimulus funding, and need to replenish reserve funds spent to cover a gap in fiscal 2009. The bottom line is that every agency is "required to present expense reductions and revenue generating proposals that could sustain up to a 10% local funds budget reduction target."

Writes Albert: "It is critical that each agency evaluate all spending, and dig deeply into the assumptions that underlie its allocation of resources." Agencies have until Dec. 2 to come up with ideas.

Lazere notes that the "revenue generating proposals" stand to be interesting, given that Fenty made a campaign pledge not to raise taxes, "which severely limits how the city can create new sources of revenue in these cash-strapped times."

That was the rationale offered today by the administration of Mayor Adrian M. Fenty for why at least $120 million in city money has been sent to the D.C. Housing Authority and, in turn, handed to politically connected contractors with the faintest whiff of oversight.

The revelations at the D.C. Council hearing today shocked LL's conscience. And LL's conscience, for the record, is not easily shocked. The revelations included:

—That tens of millions of city dollars were moved around the city budget without independent review, in clear violation of the Home Rule charter.

—That the money was handed to a so-called 'quasi-independent' public concern, the D.C. Housing Authority, who in turn engaged in a contracting process that saw little, if any, legal review. For their trouble, that concern was paid $700,000.

—That project management functions were outsourced by DCHA to a private company, Banneker Ventures, that was paid more than $4.2 million to do a job—capital project management—that the Department of Parks and Recreation already employs a staff of 11 to do.

—That Banneker Ventures, in turn, was allowed to run a subcontracting process with only the faintest adherence to accepted procurement practices, with immense power to distribute millions of dollars in public money to the contractors of their choice (including, incidentally, to Sinclair Skinner's Liberty Engineering & Design). And, with the input, LL might add, of the deputy mayor's office.

—That Banneker Ventures' contract described the scope of the work to be done for several projects—in some cases costing taxpayers more than $10 million—in a single paragraph of about 100 words. (An Office of the Inspector General chief noted that the language was "problematic" and "needs to be redone.")

—That this whole scheme was created and calibrated in such a way as to elude oversight by elected officials, and that the D.C. Council took as long as it did to figure out that this was going on under their noses.

The most surprising testimony of the day came from a family-owned local contractor, HRGM Corp., which talked about the subcontracting process that ensued after Banneker Ventures was handed the project management contract. Ramesh and Rachna Butani, father and daughter, both testified, essentially, that the process was a farce—that they were given limited information on what they were supposed to bid on, that the judging process was opaque, and that there was no attempt afterward to explain why they had lost the bid.

Said Rachna Butani, "It has been unclear to me what value Banneker Ventures adds....They're not responsive....They can't answer questions."

She added: "I don't believe they are professional or capable to handle these contracts."

Faster, better, cheaper?

Please.

Two of the issues involve the fates of onetime public schools. For one thing, the council is proposing that the Grimke School, across Vermont Avenue NW from the east entrance of the U Street Metro stop and current home of the Fire and Emergency Medical Services department headquarters, to be reserved for the African-American Civil War Museum. That's a project headed and championed by former Ward 1 Councilmember Frank Smith. The problem, Albert writes, is that several developers have entered into a bidding process on the property, incurring "significant expense" to do so. He asks that the council allow the bidding process to continue.

Another point of contention regards the recently closed Bertie Backus Middle School, on South Dakota Avenue NE close to the Fort Totten Metro station.

Like with Grimke, the deputy mayor's office has started to entertain bids on the property, and, like Grime, the council has its own plans. In a plan championed by Ward 5 Councilmember Harry Thomas Jr., the council proposes handing the school directly to the University of the District of Columbia in order to house its new community college.

However, Albert points out, "since UDC has no approved community college plan, and no resources with which to carry out such a plan, the Backus School Provision effectively requires that the school remain vacant for many
years. Because of this, the school will be a blight on the community and is likely to attract illegal and undesired activity."

"Furthermore," he writes, "the designation of the Backus School as the site for a community college occurred without an opportunity to consider the potential significant, positive impacts that could result from locating the community college in another area of the city, such as a location east of the Anacostia River."

Albert suggests taking the Backus handover out of the budget bill and working out a mutually agreeable plan.

Got that.

But who replaces Albert as deputy mayor for planning and economic development? That is, after all, one of the most powerful slots in city government, in charge of shaping building and development in all corners of the city.

Allow LL to run some names, in order of likelihood:

Greg O'Dell: Currently CEO of the Washington Convention Center Authority, O'Dell's got a crackerjack reputation for getting things done—not least because as president of the Sports and Entertainment Commission he presided over the on-time completion of Nationals Park. The timing is good, too—with the SEC folding into the WCCA, either he or SEC chief Erik Moses will be in need of a job. Working against him: He might be just too nice of a guy.

Robin-Eve Jasper: The current director of the Office of Property Management is a former top aide to Albert and would certainly have his trust, if he has any say in the decision. She's also tough as nails by reputation. Working against her: Fenty's probably happy to have her keep doing what she's doing right where she's doing it.

Valerie Santos Young: If Fenty looks to promote from the bench, as he so often does, he'd have to consider DMPED's current chief operating officer. Good reputation; knows how things have been getting done.

Erik Moses: See above. In his tenure as Fenty's head of Small and Local Business Development, he won Hizzoner's confidence. He's got the relationships. Working against him: Like O'Dell, he's a low-key, laid-back dude.

Leila Finucane Edmonds: The director of the Department of Housing and Community Development has gotten strong reviews from affordable-housing developers, and she's a Fenty loyalist. Working against her: She hasn't been in D.C. that long, and may not have the relationships other candidates do.

Harriet Tregoning: The planning office director would be the out-of-the box choice for Fenty. She's widely respected by the urbanist crowd for her progressive views on development; she'd been a strong advocate for green building and smart growth. However, in this economy, don't look for Fenty to get particularly revolutionary with this pick. At the end of the day, being a planning director's about standing in the way of development (in a good way!), not getting projects done.

Fenty said this afternoon he expects to name the new DMPED in "a few weeks."