By David Alpert (Executive Director) • November 6, 2019
Virginia is now a wholly-blue state, as Democrats won majorities in both the state House and Senate in Tuesday’s election. They will have the opportunity to pass many previously-stalled legislative proposals, including on transportation and housing as well as hot-button national issues.
By Elizabeth Whitton (Contributor) • November 6, 2019
Each day, 100,000 people ride the Rabat-Sale Tram, the streetcar system in Morocco’s capital city. They do so, because the tram connects mostly working-class neighborhoods with job centers, bridges a divide over two riverbanks, and efficiently moves people from all types of backgrounds. The Rabat-Sale tram offers six lessons that could make the DC streetcar a better option for more people.
Seven DC councilmembers (Brianne Nadeau, Mary Cheh, Brandon Todd, Charles Allen, David Grosso, Elissa Silverman, and Robert White) have now called on Jack Evans to resign following an investigation which found he used his position to help paying clients 11 times, earning over $400,000, and without disclosing the conflicts. We previously called on him to resign and want to reiterate our statement here.
By Leah Brooks (Guest Contributor), Genevieve Denoeux (Guest Contributor), Jenny Schuetz (Guest Contributor) • November 6, 2019
At the top of any Washington region constituent’s concerns is the high and increasing cost of housing. Over the past 20 years, increases in house prices have far exceeded residents’ increases in income. These concerns are just as elevated in the metro’s urban core—the District, Arlington and Alexandria—as they are in the suburbs and exurbs.
After DC Attorney General Karl Racine put three apartment listing companies on notice of discriminatory ads on their sites, one which owns apartments.com and a suite of other websites is taking action. The company added a filter to spot ads that discriminate against people with Section 8 vouchers, as well as a manual review process. (Andrew Giambrone / CurbedDC)
A pedestrian was struck by a driver on November 6 while trying to cross McAuliffe Drive in the Twinbrook area, and later died from her injuries. The driver was not charged. (Dan Schere / Bethesda Beat. Tip: Chester B.)
In Rockville, current anti-development mayor Bridget Newton beat our endorsee, Virginia Onley. Two members of Newton’s slate were elected, as were two from the more pro-housing slate we endorsed. More the 12,000 votes were cast in Rockville’s first vote-by-mail election. (Post)
A new study conducted by the Guild, the Washington Post’s union, found that the Post underpays women and people of color in its newsroom. The study’s results were given to management, but there have been no comments from the organization regarding the matter. (Andrew Beaujon / Washingtonian)
Electric vehicles may have benefits to the environment, but the materials their batteries are made out of could pose a severe threat to the environment in the future. The lithium-ion batteries are not sustainable and pose a threat to the worlds recycling infrastructure. (Maddie Stone / Vice)
While the signs of age and neglect are showing up on RFK Stadium, its glory days are felt by those who got to experience it in its prime. (Matt Blitz / DCist)
Project X, a pilot program DC’s Department of Consumer and Regulatory Affairs rolled out this summer, would help speed up the processing time for building permits on projects smaller than 10,000 square feet. Last year, DCRA rolled out two similar services that leaned towards larger projects. (Nena Perry-Brown / UrbanTurf)
