A head scratcher. (Darrow Montgomery)

In a report issued last week that took two years to put together, the D.C. auditor found that the Office of Public Education Facilities Modernization had committed a host of improprieties under now-City Administrator Allen Lew. The charges mostly had to do with recordkeeping, but also included an allegedly cozy relationship between an OPEFM procurement manager and a construction company that received school contracts.

Put on the spot about it at his weekly press conference, master-of-process Vince Gray responded very much like his predecessor might have: Well it turned out all right in the end, didn't it? "Our schools look better today than they have ever looked in the District of Columbia," he told a packed briefing room. "The product of what they did is quite evident. I talk to parents all the time, and a lot of parents are very appreciative of the physical environment."

Then, to make things doubly awkward, Gray said that auditor Deborah Nichols had done a great job during his time as chair of the Council, and he reappointed her without hesitation. But according to Lew, she couldn't accomplish fairly basic auditing tasks, like asking the Chief Financial Officer for records.

"I didn't quite understand how the auditors were conducting this thing," Lew said. "It's all in the records. For some reason, the auditor couldn't find them." The bottom line, Lew said, was that shit got built—and built well—despite a system that had been in "absolute paralysis."

"OPEFM intentionally dispensed with much of the bureaucracy and top-hamper that traditionally impeded progress, and instead assembled a highly qualified team of construction and development professionals with proven track records of implementing sophisticated projects," Lew wrote in his 11-page response to the audit.

With an operating budget of $637.8 million, this new super-agency–called the "Department of General Services"–will manage postal services, building maintenance, parking, leasing, energy purchasing, contracting and procurement for all District-owned real estate, as well as "provide for the operations and management of Eastern Market through the revenue-generating Eastern Market Enterprise Fund." That gets closer to the very expansive mission of the federal General Services Administration, which provides all sorts of assistance to U.S. government agencies. (It also explains why permanent directors haven't yet been appointed for OPEFM or DRES).

From combing through the proposed budget, it doesn't look like there are significant staff cuts, but it's hard to tell when so much is being consolidated. More as more is available.

More money for everybody! (Lydia DePillis)

Today, Mayor Vince Gray announced a new pilot project that would create a carrot for employing District residents on six public school modernization projects: A five percent premium for general contractors that meet District resident hiring requirements negotiated in their contracts, and a bonus paid to subcontractors equal to 10 percent of the payroll of District residents on the job. City Administrator Allen Lew estimates that if this program boosts the percentage of District residents working from 22 percent to 35 percent, the projects will cost one percent more overall.

But, you say, don't we already have a First Source law that requires projects built with city funding to employ 51 percent District residents? Well, not quite–it only stipulates that contractors have to make 51 percent of their new hires from the District. Many of them bring a crew from project to project, or even do their hiring right before the project officially starts in order to skirt the requirement. So that results in tiny numbers on the site overall. Gray called this pilot project a "positive way to close an unintended loophole in the First Source law."

Very positive for the contractors, who now get paid more for every District resident they hire!

Council Chairman Kwame Brown decided not to be so nice. Along with Councilmembers Michael Brown and Harry Thomas, he introduced legislation a few weeks ago that would change the benchmark contractors must meet from new hires to total hours worked. The baselines are broken down by category of job, ranging from 20 percent of all non-construction hours to 70 percent of all common laborer hours. On top of that, rather than incentives, the bill increases fines for non-compliance from five percent to ten percent of the value of the contract. Probably appropriate to call that a stick.

It's a little strange to see Gray trying to "close a loophole" in a law that hasn't been successful in getting residents hired by just throwing more money at contractors–and after all, what's the point of a pilot project if you don't think it could work on a larger scale?–while Thomas and the Browns actually fix the law. Does Gray not think they'll be successful? It's not an example of using all the tools in the city's toolbox to get D.C. residents back to work, because the two approaches represent different conceptions

Watch it, contractors. (Darrow Montgomery)

of a contractor's responsibilities: Should they be expected to hire District residents as a condition of getting city contracts? Or is it a special bonus that they can choose to do or not?

Brown is very proud of the Council's independence, and Gray doesn't want to tell him what to do. But I feel like this one could be sorted out over a couple of beers.

Looking out to the "necklace," which completes the circular campus. (Lydia DePillis)

It's the start of a new semester for Wilson High School students, which means they're halfway through their stay at the University of the District of Columbia's Building 52–their magnificently redone campus is set to finish this July. Right now, more than 200 people are working every day to meet that deadline, completely gutting and restoring the landmarked, 75-year-old building. I took a tour last week (the same day this happened, unsettlingly) with the general contractor, Sigal Construction's Sarah Norman, focusing specifically on the green aspects of the renovation.

The most enviro-friendly thing about Wilson is what they're not doing: Bringing in a ton of new material to replace old but still-sound walls, floors, ceilings, and details. Much of the gracefully curving hallways and high-ceilinged classrooms will just be restored, with hardwood flooring taken up and put back down again, and terrazzo staying where it's intact (now they just have to scrub off spray paint from a recent tagging rampage). All the windows have already been replaced, though, making for superior insulation, acoustics, and lighting.

Then there are the bells and whistles. Stimulus funding provided for a green roof the size of a basketball court, which science classes will be able to access from a top-floor terrace. Another grant got them a 12,000 square foot cistern for recycling rainwater. Meanwhile, during the construction, a group of students comes up from the interim facility to visit and learn about the construction process, with the help of volunteer professionals.

High school buildings–so much more fun when you don't actually have to take classes in them.

The halls in progress.

Two D.C. energy auditors out on the job

The Downtown Business Improvement District is reporting that Washington DC will receive $30 million in energy efficiency and conservation funding through the US Department of Energy.

The DC government plans to use 75% of the funds for agencies in need of energy efficiency improvements, with the remaining 25% going to District Department of the Environment (DDOE) programs that provide direct services to businesses and residents. The anticipated end result: reduced energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions.

For a breakdown of which agencies will be receiving the most cash, check below the jump:

Here is the proposed distribution: Office of Public Education Facilities Modernization (26.3%); Office of Property Management (26.3%); Fire and Emergency Medical Services (4.7%); Department of Parks and Recreation (4.7%); D.C. Public Libraries (4.7%). The rest can be found here.

Image by Darrow Montgomery