Uploaded to flickr.com by parks_traveler

So how many bureaucrats does it take to fix a pothole?

Sadly, there’s no punch line to this joke, and the actual tally keeps climbing.  Over a month ago THIH reported how dangerous the driving conditions are on a short stretch of Potomac Avenue SE.

After engaging the mayor’s citywide call center twice, I forwarded the pothole problem to Councilman Tommy Wells.  Mr. Wells promptly emailed me back, agreeing that the potholes were dangerous and causing drivers to swerve into oncoming traffic.  He mentioned that his office has also been trying to get the issue addressed.  He was kind enough to forward my email to a couple of people at DDOT, who tracked my call center request down and emailed back that the potholes would be addressed “by Tuesday next week” (being Tuesday August 31).

Tuesday has come and gone, and the potholes are still there.  I’ve received word from DDOT that the sent out a crew on Tuesday but the potholes cannot be filled.  Instead the ruts require a more in-depth paving treatment called a deep patch or overlay.  DDOT is “in the process of scheduling the work.”  Counting the initial call center operator, these potholes have taken at least seven city employees to fix so far, and they haven’t been fixed yet.  Our tax dollars at work, apparently.

Perhaps THIH should take up a collection for some asphalt.

Photo by Claudia Holwill

At last week’s candidates forum at the Southeast Library, a few questions drew a bit more reaction with the audience than others, one of which was regarding whether or not Kelvin Robinson would have supported the same-sex marriage bill had he been a Councilmember at the time it was voted on.  There was a spirited exchange, of which you can read below — it has been taken from the transcript I was provided with by the organizers.  Robinson wanted to clarify his position on this topic, since he feels that there is still some confusion regarding his position on the issue, and issued the following press release:

WASHINGTON, DC‐ Ward 6 Council Candidate Kelvin Robinson called for an end to skepticism regarding his stance on same‐sex marriage in the District of Columbia. Robinson supports the Religious Freedom and Civil Marriage Equality law and will not do anything to restrict or repeal it.

“We are a Nation and a City of laws. I respect the District’s marriage equality law and support equal rights for all District residents including our GLBT neighbors,” said Robinson. “I have no intentions of imposing a referendum on this law nor asking the Council to repeal the law.”

Robinson’s opposition to the language of the marriage bill came during the debate on the bill last year. As a member of the Board of Catholic Charities during that time he did not believe the bill supported adequate religious exemptions. He pushed for a measure similar to the San Francisco same‐sex marriage law, which he supports, in which the Catholic Church continued to work closely with the city. Robinson hoped the District would have been able to reach a similar compromise.

It has also been reported falsely by many in the press that he had accepted campaign contributions from the National Organization of Marriage (NOM). He has not.

“I have not, nor will I, accept funding from the National Organization of Marriage and I resent the interference of any outside organization that attempts to divide our community and meddle in local District politics.”

And here is the full exchange from the forum, including moderator Mark Segraves reading the question submitted by an audience member.

Mark Segraves: Mr. Robinson, you served as Vice Chair for the Board of Directors of Catholic Charities, which is opposed to marriage equality in the District. Do you support marriage equality, and will you fight in the future not to take away this civil right? And, if I could add to both candidates, if there were ever to be a voter referendum or initiative on this, would you respect the will of the voters on this or any matter if it did go to referendum? As both of you probably know, the DC Council can overturn a voter referendum or voter initiative, and they’ve done it. So, I just add that little. Mr. Robinson.

Kelvin Robinson: So, the short answer is that I support equality. I reject any organization, outside organization, that would come in DC to try to interfere with our local politics, and I will do nothing but adhere to current law and do nothing to overturn it.

MS: And if there were a voter referendum or initiative on any issue, would you respect the will of the voters on any referendum or initiative? Will you take that pledge?

KR: I think we would have to respect the will, but I think in this instance if you’re talking about the rights of individuals, I think sometimes there needs to be a solution where you have to also stand firm, and say that to the extent that it will not provide equality, we should not accept this.

MS: And given the murmur of the audience, I would argue that you haven’t fully answered the question. Had you been on the Council at the time and were able to vote, how would you have voted, yes or no, to support the same sex marriage bill?

KR: As I’ve said in the past, and I’ll say again here, is that the process was flawed because

Audience: Answer the question!

MS: Allow him . . . Allow him to answer the question!

KR: What I’ve said . . .

MS: Please, please. Really. Let the candidate –

Audience 2: Go ahead. Let him answer the question.

KR: What I’ve said in the past and what I’ve continued to say is that I did not appreciate the way the process was the right process. It did not allow for all parties to be together and find a solution that was right for everybody. I would not have voted for that bill because it did not provide a solution that was win-win. It was a solution presented, and it was not accepted, but that does not mean that I don’t support equality. It just means that the result of the bill that came out wasn’t the bill that I would have voted for.

TW: When we went through the process of over 200 witnesses on behalf of saying that this was a basic right of equality, and as we went through that process, I supported same sex marriage from the very beginning, but what became clear to me that I in many ways through benign attention had been supporting taxpayer money for oppressing and discriminating others and realized that not only was same sex marriage an important civil right but also that things like vouchers, where we take vouchers paid by taxpayers that include gay and lesbian taxpayers and then they’re used by organizations and schools that then discriminate on whether women can have full rights in that organization and gays and lesbians can have full rights in that organization made me realize that by not fighting that as well, and I came out strongly against vouchers after the gay marriage/same sex marriage debate because I realized that we were just turning a blind eye and that we were using again against the folks that were testifying saying “This is our civil right”, we were taking their taxpayers to fund organizations who would then discriminate against them, and that’s why not only would I not support a referendum, and if a referendum . . . Just like if a referendum on can you discriminate on race went to the people, I would not support if it went in a way that said yes, we can discriminate. I will not support any referendum that says it’s okay to discriminate against the residents of the District of Columbia.

MS: When you talk about a group that discriminates against women, you’re talking about the Catholic Church?

TW: Yes.

MS: How much money do Catholic charities currently receive in other funds from the District? Why don’t you cut off all funding to Catholic charities?

TW: That was exactly the issue that when I looked at – and I had oversight of Human Services – and they were licensing in a same sex couple only one of those members, and I had not spoken up to that, I did realize the hypocrisy of that, Mark, and that that organization which does in Catholic Charities as an organization allow women to become the Director of that organization, there’s not a built-in discrimination against women. In Catholic Charities as a stand-alone non-profit organization, they did have a policy that said that gay, lesbian, and transgender individuals and couples are to be treated differently. They don’t have a policy there to say that women are treated differently, and so I think you also pose a good question, though, in terms of how our taxpayers moneys are used and is it funding discrimination.

MS: Mr. Robinson, do you want to follow up on any of that?

KR: You know, listen. This issue is already resolved, and there are a lot more issues that we need to address. Catholic Charities is an organization that for the past 80 or some-odd years has been providing, in partnership with the District, some of the most comprehensive social service programs in the region. It is the largest social service agency providing much-needed support to families who need it. This was a situation, quite frankly, not of Catholic Charities prove it and make it. What we did . . . You know, the Catholic Church is one thing. I’m not here to defend the Catholic Church because, quite frankly, you know, they don’t need defending. But the fact of the matter is when you talk about services being provided to needy families, you have to look at . . . You have to look at the great works they do for so many thousands of families, and, quite frankly, that, to me, was a paramount concern when we were having this debate and discussion about how you were going to provide for those families, whether there were going to be strict laws or rules that would preclude us from being able to do that. I thought it was absolutely critical for us not to be fighting for ensuring the continuation of those services to those families who need it. They come to our doors every single day, every night, looking for a place, looking for unconditional love to get their needs met.

Originally uploaded to flickr by Madame Meow

There is a certain amount of excitement I feel when I see a for sale sign standing proudly in front of a house I have admired for years. I think about, dream about, calling an agent and telling her that I’m in the market for a new home, only to see the “Open Sunday” sign appear days later.

While I have always been saved from making the call that begins with an elaborate lie and ends with a real estate agent wasting her time, there are the few rare homes that don’t change hands as quickly as I’d like them to, making it nearly impossible to even get through the front door–until now. Welcome to Hill Homes: Behind the Iron Gate.

For those of you who feel the same, I am making it my mission to go behind the iron gates and wooden doors that separate us from the homes we love to admire, so I need to know what homes you want to see! Is it a stately three-story on in edge of Lincoln Park, a modern home nestled in between 19th Century stunners, a wood home with a front porch that makes you want to walk through the gate and proclaim, “Honey, I’m home”?

Include your favorite, must-see homes in the comments section. Then look for a behind the scenes tour of your favorite homes this fall!

Uploaded to flickr.com by Sue Elias

Woohoo!  Long weekend!  I mean, let’s stop for a moment and be thankful for labor.  And what better way to honor hard work and long hours than by stretching a two-day break into three?  Lots of people will be heading out of town for one more dip at the shore, but if you’re hanging on the Hill here are a few events to keep you occupied.

Thursday

Thursday night is the second installment in “The Dinner Party” series at the Atlas Performing Arts Center.  Artists from various genres will be meeting to “sample” each others’ work, leading up to the Intersections: A New America Arts Festival in February 2011.  Tickets are just $10, and the show starts at 8:00 p.m.

Friday

Haven’t been to Palace of Wonders yet?  Friday night might be a great introduction to this unique venue, with “Moonshine Cabaret” at 9:30 and 11:30 p.m.  The show promises a healthy blend of burlesque, vaudeville, dance, and comedy.  Tickets are just $10.  Additional shows are scheduled for Saturday.

Saturday

Kick off the Jewish New Year at The Star and Shamrock for a rocking Rosh Hashanah.  The party kicks off at 8:00 p.m. and includes music by DJ Kosher Stylee as well as $1 off He’Brew drafts and Manischewitz Sangria, and $6 L’Chaim Vodka mixed drinks.

If you’re looking for a special four-legged friend to add to your home, check out the dog adoption event at Chateau Animaux from 1:00 to 3:30 p.m.  The Washington Humane Society will be on-hand with lots of adoptable pooches. (If cats are more your speed, there’s a feline adoption event scheduled for Sunday from 12:00 to 3:00).

The last of the Summer Film Series movies will be screened at the Atlas on Saturday night.  Catch “The Wiz” at 5:00 p.m. and “Roman Holiday” at 8:00 p.m.  Tickets for each are just $6.00 each.

Sunday

Take in the annual Labor Day Concert on the West Lawn of the Capitol with a few thousand of your closest new friends.  The concert is free.  Gates open at 5:00 p.m., and the concert starts at 8:00.

Monday

If you’ve got the day off, or just want to play hooky, catch the Washington Nationals as they take on the New York Mets at 1:05 p.m.

Image courtesy of the Old Naval Hospital Foundation

Things are well underway at the Hill Center, especially underground. The restored Old Naval Hospital, scheduled to open next June and offer cultural, educational and civic programs to the community, will be heated and cooled by a geothermal system, and this week there’s a drilling rig on site digging 30 wells that are 350 feet deep.

Nicky Cymrot, president of the Old Naval Hospital Foundation, said the decision to install a geothermal system, to the tune of $875,000, was an expensive one, but just one of many steps that are being taken to ensure costs to maintain and run the center’s building and programs are as low as possible for the generations to come.  The foundation has a long-term lease from the city for the building and they’re planning for the long haul. “Also, since we’re only 9 blocks from the Capitol, we wanted to set an example with use of resources,” she said.

There are dramatic things happening inside too, including removal of years of paint and trim stripped away, replacing miles of ad hoc wiring, tearing down temporary walls and beginning construction on the multi-use classrooms, workshops, offices and event space. Plans are under way now to develop programs that appeal to a cross-section of the community.

Ad hoc committees of community members are forming to make sure the center offers classes and workshops that appeal to a variety of individuals. The center will contract with existing program providers like the Writer’s Center in Bethesda, the Levine School of Music or L’Academie de Cuisine, or Capitol Hill Arts Workshop. Cymrot says partnering with seasoned, experienced vendors with proven track records is key because, “we want to want to be sure what we bring (to the center) is excellent. We’re going to do our best to have a very rich and interesting mix of things going on.”

The renovated space features 11 program rooms, some that will be perfect for small groups and seminars, while others are designed for community meetings, such as the monthly ANC 6B meeting which will resume there next summer. Each room is being planned for mixed-use and the hope is the building will be bustling with activity all hours of the day. An art studio, computer lab and a large demonstration kitchen for cooking and nutrition courses will make the most of the high ceilings and grand windows. Several non-profits will rent office space on the top floor, and meeting space and conference space will be available for rent.

Income from renting event space will also be key to the center’s sustainability. Foundation members have been consulting with event planners to make sure the space is appealing to a variety of hosts, so expect to see everything from fundraisers, to anniversary parties to corporate retreats making the most of the gardens, halls and conference rooms. The extensive gardens surrounding the building, designed by 8^th Street firm Oehme, van Sweden & Associates, have been laid out in such a way to accommodate a tent; let’s hope a dance floor is also an option. There will also be a café in the carriage house on the west side of the property that will offer a family-friendly and healthy spot for breakfast and lunch.

With this flurry of activity and planning, it’s a good thing the search for an executive director for the organization is nearing an end; the application pool closes September 15. The board has already received more than 48 applications and Cymrot says they look forward hiring the person who’s the perfect blend of business acumen, creativity, and civic energy by the end of October.  Top on the new director’s to do list will be forwarding the capital campaign efforts and finding underwriters for the rooms, gardens and fence pieces.

Originally uploaded to flickr by Elly Blue

Whenever I go home to New Jersey I regularly see bikes left unlocked outside of homes and even busy stores. I’m jealous and also inclined to steal these bikes just to teach the owners a lesson. See, I’ve had some bad luck with bikes in the District (and I know I’m not the only one).

In 2005, a thief stole my locked bike in the middle of the night from my front yard. One week to the day later, my husband took his bike out of the basement—we learned our lesson about locking up our bikes outside—so I could ride it to work. Locked to the fence for no more than 15 minutes, a thief broke the lock and rode my bike down the street and out of my reach. Despite my best efforts to chase down the thief, he got away and I never saw the bike again.

Since the thefts, I’ve been extra protective of my bikes. I’m especially nervous when it comes time to park my bike somewhere other than in my basement. Will my headlight still be attached? Will I have all of my tires? What about my fancy leather bike seat, will it be there? I’m filled with worry any time I park my bike outside, except when I go to Nationals Park. Why is that? Because I use the amazing bike valet service sponsored by CycleLife USA.

On game day, I ride my bike to the entrance of the bike valet “garage” located at the corner of N and First Streets SE. One of two bike valets takes my bike and places it on a rack while I fill out a claim check. That’s it. In a matter of minutes I am on my way to the game, certain that my bike is safe and secure—without even having to lock it up!

While the service, in place since the park opened in 2008, is free, I do tip the valets regularly. I offer a cash tip at the end of a run of games at the park. It’s worth the extra cash knowing my bike and its accessories are waiting for me when the game is through. If only the people riding the bikes locked to the bike racks around the park took advantage of this great service. Your U-locks could use the break!

image uploaded by wallyg on Flickr

Early voting may have started, but the Democratic primary is still two weeks away.  So it’s time to ask the candidates questions about what matters to you most in our neighborhood.  You have your next chance tonight at7:30 pm at Christ Our Shepherd Church, 801 North Carolina Avenue, SE. All three candidates — Tommy Wells (D-Incumbent), Kelvin Robinson (D), and Jim DeMartino (R) –  will be there and ready to discuss the issues.

The forum will be moderated by Mark Segraves of WTOP and Channel 50 and sponsored by DC Coalition Against Domestic Violence, DC Jobs Council, DC Jobs with Justice, Defeat Poverty DC, District Alliance for Safe Housing, Empower DC, Fair Budget Coalition, Latino Economic Development Corporation, Metropolitan Washington Council AFL-CIO, Washington Legal Clinic for the Homeless, Wider Opportunities for Women, Ward 6 Democrats and Ward 6 Republicans.

To submit questions for inclusion in the forum, email questions to dcjobswithjustice@yahoo.com.

Chesuncook Lake. Posted on Flickr by cluczkow.

Do you check your email from the bathroom? What about while dining at fancy restaurants?

If you answered yes, you’re not alone. Three years ago, an AOL survey found that Washington DC is the most email-addicted city in the country. About three in four Washingtonians admitted to checking their email from a restaurant. A full 65 percent admitted to reading their email in the bathroom.  

This isn’t surprising — Washington is a plugged-in town. Even the President uses a Blackberry. When Obama entered office, he famously decided to hold onto his smartphone. (And Blackberrys are the smartphones of choice. While Blackberrys outnumber iPhones two-to-one nationally, the ratio is closer to 106:1 in Capitol Hill offices.)

I’ll admit to being an email-addicted Washingtonian. It’s the first thing I do in the morning and the last thing I do at night. And even though it has been illegal since 2004, I’ve certainly replied to emails from behind the wheel. Even when traveling outside the United States, I’ve kept my blackberry on and responded to emails.

That all changed earlier this month, though, with a canoe trip to T3-R12, an unincorporated township in Maine’s Great North Woods. While I didn’t experience the shakes, it certainly made me realize just how much I’ve come to depend on connectedness. It’d be great to say I felt liberated – perhaps motivated to toss my Blackberry in the trash – but instead, a world without cell phones was just sort of creepy.

What about you? Do you respond to emails while in your pajamas or ever pulled out your Blackberry while on a date? What’s the longest you’ve gone without a smartphone?

Image courtesy of the Old Naval Hospital Foundation

Your typical good Samaritan may pick up an abandoned purse or wallet tossed after a mugging or even a child’s sippy cup or toy that’s been catapulted from a stroller, in hope of returning them, but it really takes an upstanding citizen to haul home a hundred pound urn and locate its proper owner years later. The volunteers in charge of restoring the Old Naval Hospital and transforming it into the historically-accurate Hill Center are hoping angels like that really do exist, and that urns will start coming out of the woodwork at any moment.

During the years the building sat mostly empty, and the grounds and the property looked like something out of a Edgar Allen Poe novel, pieces of the iron fence went missing. A number of the finials and flourishes that fell off were collected by concerned neighbors and have been recently returned to the Old Naval Hospital Foundation. It’s hoped the same sense of civic pride and concern motivated whomever made off with the large urns that graced the top of the fence posts. The decorative cast-iron pieces were several feet high and a foot and half wide, not the kind of thing one makes off with lightly, right? It’s time for those urns to come home, so should you have one in your garden or garage, save your back and contact the Foundation – they’ll be happy to pick them up.

If they’re not able to locate any of the original urns soon, the foundry in Baltimore that’s reconstructing the fence will use historic photographs as a model for the replacement pieces. Wouldn’t it be grand if they could recast from one of the original pieces?

Speaking of the fence, did you know that you could “own” a piece of it? Well, with your donation of $5,000 for a section of the monumental structure, or $2,000 for a post, not only will you help underwrite the preservation of the iconic property, but you or our organization’s name will be permanently recorded on name plates built into fence.  A number of the segments have been sold already, and Hill Center President Nicky Cymrot is encouraged by the outpouring of support for the project shown thus far. She said to date $9 million for construction funds have been raised for the $12 million dollar project. The $3.2 million capital campaign will ensure center and its variety of programs are not only up an running next year, but sustainable for many years into the future. Donors have the opportunity to put their stamp on rooms to be dedicated as meeting and event spaces as well as to classrooms for a host of activities from jewelry making to cooking demos to basic and advanced computer training.

Read more later this week about the status of construction, programming and space use planning and the search for the executive director at the Hill Center.

The proposed redesign for the Great Hall

The Union Station Redevelopment Corporation (USRC) has proposed plans to cut a large hole in the center of Union Station’s Great Hall for a redesign project that will add two large spiral staircases and elevators, which will open the main hall up to the food court below. Something similar was attempted in the 70s, but was a massive failure.

For those who are newer to the area, Union Station was not always what it is today, and there was talk about demolishing it all together. The project in the 70s, timed with the opening of the DC Metro system, was an attempt to turn Union Station into a visitors center, and included a recessed pit to display a slide show presentation (and why you will hear this new proposal referred to as another version of “The Pit”).   However, it failed to bring the revitalization as hoped, and after just two years, the Great Hall was closed and fell into terrible disrepair. The Union Station we know today was re-opened in 1988, after a $70 million rehabilitation project.

Greater Greater Washington has some of the renderings as well as posts looking at arguments for and against the plan, as does Beyond DC and the City Paper’s Housing Complex blog.. Take a look at the plans (PDF), read the arguments, and let us know — do you support the new design?