Photo from 2015 by lorie shaull
From Congresswoman Norton’s office:
“Today, Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC) released a statement calling on the U.S. Capitol Police to allow sledding at the Capitol tomorrow and next week in anticipation of a snowstorm.
“The west side of the Capitol is well known as perhaps the best place for sledding in D.C.’s high-density urban environment. (more…)
Map of Fence as of January 28, 2021
From Congresswoman Norton’s Office:
“Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC) today said that she will do everything in her power to prevent permanent fencing, walls or structures around the U.S. Capitol complex or in the District of Columbia. Norton today sent a letter to the Capitol Police Board opposing the recommendation of Acting U.S. Capitol Police Chief Yogananda Pittman for permanent fencing at the Capitol complex. In her letter, Norton called permanent fencing “security theater–it would make the Capitol ‘look’ safe but mask the lack of state-of-the-art security measures that could actually prevent attacks in the future.”
In a separate statement today, Norton said: “Temporary fences at the Capitol are necessary for security now, given the attack of January 6th. However, the attack must not lead to an overreaction that fundamentally changes the people’s house into a fortress against the people. The failure at the Capitol was largely preventable had the Capitol Police called on the assistance of more than a dozen available federal security forces. The planning and calls for people to storm the Capitol were not done in secret, but were done openly for weeks, encouraged by Trump’s hyped claims of a stolen election and his call for people to gather in the District on January 6th, capped by a speech actually urging people to go to the Capitol just before the insurrection occurred.
“Fencing is a 19th-century approach to security that must not become our response to the failures of January 6th, when state-of-the-art 21st-century approaches are available and are more effective. I remind the Capitol Police Board that our Founders and the architects of the nation’s capital placed the Capitol in the center of our city, in a neighborhood surrounded by residents. We will not allow the Capitol Hill neighborhood to be turned into a military zone any more than the Capitol itself.”
Norton’s letter follows. (more…)
Ed. Note: A few folks have also sent me this Change.org petition against the fence.
Thanks to Claire for sending:
“I’ve seen lots of posts about the Capitol fence (here and elsewhere), but no one seems to be circulating a map of how far the fence actually extends. So yesterday I circumnavigated it and drew one. For scale, that’s more than three miles of fencing. (more…)
While admiring the chalk art awesomeness I also stumbled on this welcoming gesture in Mount Pleasant:
“The Mount Pleasant Mini Park Project is an effort to create more shared spaces (benches) where we can more easily meet our neighbors and be outside in our neighborhood. It is also, well…a bench on your block. Get your official bench plaque today!” (more…)
“Dear PoPville,
A guy frequently walks his two dogs around Logan Circle. I have never seen the dogs on leash. One of them ran up to my dog, and the guy did nothing. What if my dog were anxious or reactive? It’s impossible to walk a dog past them because they take up the entire sidewalk. If you want to walk your dogs off leash, move to a farm.”
From the Department of Health: “No person owning, keeping, or having custody of a dog in the District shall permit the dog to be on any public space in the District, other than a dog park established by section 9a of the Animal Control Act of 1979, passed on 2nd reading on September 20, 2005 (Enrolled version of Bill 16-28), unless the dog is firmly secured by a substantial leash. The leash shall be held by a person capable of managing the dog.”
Photo by Ted Eytan
From DC Office of Planning:
“The Office of Planning (OP) invites you to complete a short survey, designed to assess the experience of patrons of outdoor dining and retail establishments in Washington, DC during the COVID-19 public health emergency. (more…)
Photo by Eric P.
The Bidens are visiting the baby panda or I’m not interested https://t.co/GaHSuVU1eG
— PoPville (@PoPville) January 24, 2021
We never did find out what that was about but here’s an update from Friday on helicopter issues in the area from the office of Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton:
“Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC) and Representatives Gerry Connolly (D-VA), Don Beyer (D-VA), Jamie Raskin (D-MD), Anthony Brown (D-MD), and David Trone (D-MD) today announced that they would introduce legislation to implement the recommendation from the Government Accountability Office’s (GAO) recently released report on helicopter noise in the National Capital Region (NCR). In January 2019, the Members wrote GAO requesting it conduct a study of helicopter noise in the NCR. GAO announced in June 2019 that it would conduct the study.
The report recommended that the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) direct its Office of Environment and Energy to develop a mechanism to exchange helicopter noise information with operators in the D.C. area. The FAA’s current ability to work with helicopter operators in the D.C. area is limited because of the absence of effective information sharing mechanisms. Creating a more effective information sharing mechanism would also allow for better, more comprehensive data on helicopter noise complaints that would help develop solutions in the future.
“As residents of the District and the region can attest, helicopter noise from police and military helicopters continue to plague many of our neighborhoods,” Norton said. “Our residents need to know what can be done to reduce helicopter noise. This study’s recommendations are an important step toward getting much-needed information to deliver relief to our communities and making sure we minimize disruptions to neighborhoods and families.” (more…)
1625 P Street, NW
“Dear PoPville,
We live about a block from Stead Park. There’s always a lot of activity going on there, especially as fitness classes have moved outside. We’ve never been bothered by the noise, but recently there have been almost nightly dance fitness classes. The music is extremely loud. Like so loud it it feels like we are blasting music in our house- and it’s almost every night. Plus, we are almost a block from the park on a high floor- we can’t be the only people affected by this. We’ve tried to find the name of the class so we can reach out and request that they follow the local noise ordinances, but haven’t been able to find anything. Can you help?“
From an email:
“This is DC’s cathartic scream!
*This event is VIRTUAL and open to anyone, anywhere!*
This is DC’s cathartic scream! DC seems to endure one challenging, painful event after the next and we could all benefit from a little socially distanced and unified catharsis. This city is a special place filled with amazing people and my hope is we can take a minute to collectively recognize the challenges many have recently faced. (more…)
