DC Government

Photo by PoPville flickr user sarahriceNC

In a series of tweets ‏@OPinDC writes:

“Director Harriet Tregoning to resign effective Feb. 23 to join the Obama Administration & U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.

Director Tregoning: “Thank you @MayorVinceGray for the tremendous honor and privilege of being the Director of the DC Office of Planning.”

Director Tregoning: “I could not be prouder of the progress the city has made.” @HTinWDC

Director Tregoning: “I am so grateful to have had the opportunity to serve the citizens of DC. This has been the best job ever.” @HTinWDC”

DCist recapped her experience before coming to the Office of Planning:

“Tregoning was appointed by then Mayor Adrian Fenty in 2007 and retained by Mayor Vincent Gray, who has defended her in the face of criticism to the Height Act changes her office proposed. She was previously the director of the Governors’ Institute on Community Design and co-founded the Smart Growth Leadership Institute.”

Looking forward to hearing who Mayor Gray nominates for a replacement.

Photo by PoPville flickr user elleno1975

From the Mayor’s Office:

“Mayor Vincent C. Gray today welcomed new figures from the Federal Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) that indicate that the District’s unemployment rate for December dropped to 8.1 percent, a decrease of 0.5 percentage points from the November rate of 8.6 percent. The figure is the lowest unemployment rate the District has seen since December of 2008.

The latest figures also show that the wards of the District that historically have had the highest unemployment rates saw major decreases from the previous month. Rates in Wards 5, 7, and 8 decreased by 0.5, 0.6, and 0.8 percentage points from November 2013, respectively. The figures continue a trend of significant decreases in the unemployment rate in those wards since Mayor Gray took office.

“I am pleased to see that our efforts to get District residents – and particularly those in the hard-hit East End of our city – back to work continue to bear significant fruit,” said Mayor Gray. “Nonetheless, we still have a long way to go to ensure that everyone in the District who wants to work can find a good job with a good wage, and I will continue to work hard at reaching that goal.”

Highlights of the District’s December unemployment figures include (more…)

@ColinHauck tweets us:

“The alley b/w Meridian & Oak. Haven’t had trash pickup in 2 weeks. Is there a strike I’m not aware of?”

I’m guessing it’s weather related, are others having pile ups like this?

From the Mayor’s office:

“Mayor Vincent C. Gray today joined Council Chairman Phil Mendelson in signing the Minimum Wage Amendment Act of 2013 into law. The bill increases the minimum wage for all District workers to $9.50 per hour starting in July of 2014, and includes provisions that will further increase the wage in the future.

“Last year, I vetoed the Large Retailer Accountability Act in part because it would only raise the minimum wage for a small percentage of the District’s workers. I said at the time that I supported an across-the-board wage hike. Today, I’m pleased to sign the Minimum Wage Amendment Act because it does just that,” said Mayor Gray. “A bill that raises the minimum wage for all is a much better vehicle for ensuring that all District residents who work hard earn a decent living.”

Mayor Gray also expressed hope that the law could be refined following the results of an Urban Institute study that he commissioned on how best to raise the District’s minimum wage without precipitating a negative impact on the city’s strong growth in private-sector jobs.”

Photo by PoPville flickr user Mr. T in DC

From a press release:

“Today, the District Department of the Environment (DDOE) released the results of recent surveys measuring opinions about the Anacostia River Cleanup and Protection Act of 2009 (the Bag Law) and its impact on disposable bag use among residents, businesses, and bag distributors in the District.

According to the surveys, which were conducted by an independent research firm and funded with fees collected under the Bag Law, eighty percent of District residents have reduced their disposable bag use. Among these, average District resident household use declined from 10 to 4 disposable bags per week. Reinforcing this finding, seventy-nine percent of businesses report that their customers are using fewer disposable bags, with a fifty percent median reduction in bags used.

The surveys also found that the majority of residents and businesses have accepted the Bag Law, with fifty-three percent of residents and sixty-three percent of businesses having strong support of it. Only sixteen percent of residents and 8% of businesses expressed concerns about the law, and the remaining residents and businesses have no feelings about it either way. Additionally, fifty percent of businesses reported saving money as a result of the Bag Law.

“This survey data confirms the significant progress the District is making toward reducing plastic bag litter and restoring health to the Anacostia and Potomac Rivers and their tributaries,” said Keith A. Anderson, Director of DDOE. “I am pleased that the Bag Law has reduced disposable bag use and garnered public support, while also saving money for many businesses.”

Since January 1, 2010, businesses selling food or alcohol in the District are required to charge customers a five-cent fee for each disposable bag. The fee is intended to be an economic incentive to spur behavioral change. The goal is to reduce a common source of litter (plastic bags) in District waterways by reducing the amount of disposable bags that people use.

Among the other findings, two-thirds of residents and businesses reported that they now see fewer bags as litter around their neighborhoods and properties. The reduction in plastic bag litter is benefitting all parts of the District with significant reductions (greater than sixty percent) across all eight wards.

The surveys were developed and conducted by Opinion Works, in partnership with the Alice Ferguson Foundation and the Anacostia Watershed Society. DDOE provided a grant for the project, funded by fees collected under the Bag Law. For more information on the District’s litter and trash reduction efforts and the District’s Bag Law, visit http://ddoe.dc.gov/bags.”

Update on the new traffic enforcement cameras from MPD:

“The Metropolitan Police Department has announced that the warning period for the new photo enforcement technology has been extended until January 31, 2014.

Because this is a new enforcement effort, we made a decision to extend the warning period by 30 days to ensure the community is aware of the program. The goal of the program is to change driver’s behavior and increase safety for the driving, biking and pedestrian community. The new technology focuses on a number of new enforcement areas such as blocking the box, oversized vehicles and failing to yield to pedestrians.

The new automated traffic safety enforcement cameras were activated on Saturday, November 23, 2013.

Cameras at the new locations will issue warnings to vehicles for violations until Friday, January 31, 2014. Beginning Saturday, February 1, 2014, cameras at new locations will issue fines for violations.”

Photo by PoPville flickr user wolfpackWX

From the Mayor’s office:

“Mayor Vincent C. Gray today welcomed the latest estimates from the U.S. Census Bureau showing that the District’s population continued its rapid growth between July 2012 and July 2013, adding 13,022 residents and keeping D.C. among the list of fastest-growing areas in the country.

This means D.C.’s total population now stands at 646,449—a figure not seen since the 1970s. The District grew by 2.0 percent over the year, or by an average of 1,085 new residents per month. (Note: The previous 2012 population estimate of 632,323 has been revised upward to 633,427). This number means that the city has grown on average by 1,146 new residents per month between April 1, 2010 (when the 2010 Census count closed) and July 1, 2013. This continued trend of growth moves the District closer to its Sustainable DC goal of increasing the city’s population by 250,000 residents within the next twenty years. (more…)

From MPD:

“DC Street Safe is aimed at using new photo enforcement technologies to combat aggressive and dangerous driving habits that endanger some of our most vulnerable road users, such as pedestrians, bicyclists, and other vehicle drivers and passengers. Additionally, DC Street Safe allows traffic safety enforcement in areas and circumstances where it could be dangerous or impractical for police officers to pull over vehicles for violations. DC Street Safe will be comprised of the following new technologies:

Gridlock enforcement units that will improve traffic flow by targeting “blocking the box” at intersections;
Portable stop sign enforcement units to reduce violations in residential neighborhoods ;
Portable crosswalk enforcement units that will enhance pedestrian safety at crosswalks near schools, parks, and recreation centers;
Speed enforcement units that will focus on intersections with known speeding problems;
Units that will enforce rules on oversized and overweight commercial vehicles in order to reduce infrastructure damage and enhance quality of life in our neighborhoods.

The deployment locations for the automated traffic enforcement units were selected based on a variety of criteria, including sites with crashes and injuries, calls for service, high speed volume, near schools, or in zones prohibited for use by certain commercial vehicles. MPD also considered recommendations or requests from the Department of Transportation, Advisory Neighborhood Commissions, and community organizations.

The new automated traffic safety enforcement cameras will be activated on Saturday, November 23. Cameras at new locations will issue warnings to vehicles for violations until Sunday, December 29. Beginning Monday, December 30, cameras at new locations will issue fines for violations.”

MPD now says the issuing of fines have been a bit postponed. It’s not clear exactly when they will start but MPD tells me via email:

“The warning period will be extended. We are still issuing warning tickets. Warning tickets will continue to be issued until every location has 30 days of tickets. We are working to ensure that all possible warning tickets are mailed prior to issuing live tickets.”

DC Metropolitan Police Department Photo Safety Enforcement Camera Locations:

Click on map to see camera locations

Last year we spotted discarded trees into April. If you get yours collected by Jan. 11th – DPW will recycle them.

From DPW:

“Place holiday trees, wreaths and other greenery next to the trash container at the resident’s regular collection point. Trees collected between December 29-January 11 will be recycled. After January 11, trees will be collected with the trash as space allows in the trash trucks.”