DMV at Georgetown Park Closes
• June 8, 2012

The neighborhood’s uber-convenient office of D.C.’s Department of Motor Vehicles, located in the lower level of the Shops at Georgetown Park, closed May 19 because of the mall’s construction. (The DMV had sought a lease in Northwest D.C., but, so far, there has been no announcement on any new permanent office.) On June 4, the DMV will open a temporary service center at 301 C Street, NW For locations and hours of operations, visit DMV.DC.gov. For our part, we would like to give a special shout-out to Mrs. Rivers, who worked there and retired in November: Thank you for your optimism, assistance and advice!

DMV to Return to Georgetown Park
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The Georgetown office of D.C.’s Department of Motor Vehicles, formerly located in the lower level of the Shops at Georgetown Park, that closed May 19 will return to the M Street shopping mall, Ward 2 Councilmember Jack Evans announced at the May 30 annual awards and election meeting of the Citizens Association of Georgetown.

At the time of the DMV’s closure, it was not certain that an office would return to Georgetown. Evans said that there would be a new DMV office in the mall in less than a year, when renovations are completed, in agreement with the Georgetown Park landlord. Mayor Vincent Gray, who also addressed the meeting, called the future return of the DMV to the neighborhood as showing how the District government provides “customer service” to its citizens.

On June 4, the DMV will open a temporary service center at 301 C Street, N.W., where its Office of Adjudication Services is also located; hours of operations are Monday through Friday, 8:15 a.m. to 4 p.m. For other locations and questions, visit DMV.DC.gov.

ANC Meets Tonight at 6:30 p.m.
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The Advisory Neighborhood Commission 2E monthly public meeting will be held this evening, 6:30 p.m., at Georgetown Visitation Prep, 35th Street and Volta Place, Heritage Room, first building on left by gatehouse, second floor. All are invited to attend.

The agenda is as followed:

Administrative

Approval of April 30, 2012, Meeting Minutes

Public Safety and Police Report

Financial Report

Transportation Report

DPW Report

Community Comment

Update for Hyde-Addison Elementary School development

New Business

Georgetown Presbyterian Church Picnic at Volta Park, September 23, 2012

• DDOT procedures for issuing permits for block parties

• Georgetown University Campus Plan update

Zoning

1215 31st Street, NW, BZA Application No. 18382, Georgetown Post Office, Application for use variance to permit the renovation and expansion of an existing conforming structure devoted to non-conforming use and area variances from minimum percentage of lot occupancy, rear yard, and side yard requirements

ABC

3236 Prospect Street, NW, ABRA-087240, t/a M Café, Voluntary Agreement

Rolling Thunder Celebrates its 25th Year (photos)
• June 4, 2012

For the 25th year, the Rolling Thunder Motorcycle Rally thundered through Washington calling attention to veterans and those missing in action, on Sunday May 28. View our photos from the National Mall by clicking on the icons below. [gallery ids="100831,125650,125659,125667,125677,125685,125695,125705,125713,125641,125633,125748,125742,125735,125597,125729,125605,125614,125623,125722" nav="thumbs"]

Weekend Roundup May 31, 2012
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Saturday Morning at the National

June 2nd, 2012 at 09:30 AM | Free | information@nationaltheatre.org | Tel: (202) 783-3372 | Event Website

Michael Rosman: Amazing Feats of Comedy. Picture a jaw-dropping juggler tossing a dozen cigar boxes, a bowling ball, a chain-saw, or a bunch of bananas while balancing atop a unicycle. Add audience participation, magic and non-stop chaotic klutziness. Michael is a whirlwind of mystery and madness: outrageous, zany, off-beat and totally irresistible. Performances 9:30 and 11 a.m.

The National Theatre, 1321 Pennsylvania Ave., NW

Electric Car Rally at Woodrow Wilson House

June 2nd, 2012 at 10:00 AM | Free | Tel: (202) 387-4062 | Event Website

Woodrow Wilson House, in partnership with the Electric Vehicle Association of Greater Washington, DC, will host an electric car rally on Sat, June 2 from 10 AM to 4 PM in honor of Dupont-Kalorama Museum Walk Weekend. The event will include a parade of electric vehicles down Massachusetts Avenue to Dupont Circle at 11 AM followed by a display of historic and modern electric cars in Wilson House’s driveway and garage. Visitors will also enjoy free access to the museum and the exhibition.

Woodrow Wilson House, 2340 S Street NW

Taste of Georgetown

June 2nd, 2012 at 11:00 AM- 4:00 PM | $5(One Tasting Ticket ) | dyoung@georgetowndc.com | Tel: (202) 298-9222 | Event Website

The 19th Annual Taste of Georgetown will showcase the spectacular cuisine of thirty of Washington, D.C.’s finest restaurants, highlighting Georgetown’s culinary personalities and feature nearly sixty delectable dishes to sample, as well as wine pairings and the jazz talents of Blues Alley.

Intersection of Wisconsin Ave and M ST NW, heart of Georgetown

Glover Park Day

June 2nd, 2012 at 11:00 AM | Free | clmeyer202@yahoo.com | Tel: 202-550-7878 | Event Website

Glover Park Day, now in its 23rd year, is an annual outdoor festival that celebrates the Glover Park neighborhood of Washington, DC. It is co-sponsored by the Glover Park Citizens Association and the DC Department of Parks and Recreation. Glover Park Day 2012 will feature the best of Glover Park: good friends, great food from local restaurants, live music, crafters, a flea market, community organizations, local businesses, kids’ activities and much more.

Guy Mason Recreation Center, 3600 Calvert Street NW

The Gay Men’s Chorus of Washington Presents Heart Throbs

June 2nd, 2012 at 08:00 PM | $25 – $55 | MarketingDirector@gmcw.org | Tel: 202-293-1548 | Event Website

Find yourself star struck by 175 singers and dancers in HEART THROBS, the Gay Men’s Chorus of Washington tribute to men in music, boy bands and teen idols. Featuring songs including “Sexy Back” by Justin Timberlake, “Moves Like Jagger” by Maroon 5, along with songs from Boyz II Men, N Sync, Backstreet Boys, Ricky Martin, Elvis, The Beatles and many more, HEART THROBS presents a high energy montage of men in music that will appeal to a range of ages and musical tastes.

Lisner Auditorium, 730 21St Street NW, Washington, DC.

Steel Drum Sundays

June 3rd, 2012 at 12:00 PM | Free | info@thewashingtonharbour.com | Tel: 202-295-5007 | Event Website

Relax outdoors and enjoy live steel drum music at the waterfront, performed by Roger Greenidge from noon until 3 pm on Sundays, June 3 until October 16, at The Washington Harbour.

The Washington Harbour, 3050 K Street, NW

ANC 2E Public Meeting

June 4th, 2012 at 06:30 PM | Free | anc2e@dc.gov | Tel: (202) 724-7098 | Event Website

ANC2E’s Agenda for this meeting: ANC2E and the Georgetown University Campus Plan; ANC 2E redistricting material.

Georgetown Visitation, 35th and Volta Streets, Heritage Room, first building on left by gatehouse, 2nd floor

EuroAsia 2012 Film Festival

June 4th, 2012 at 07:00 PM | Free with reservation | Tel: (202) 234-7911 | Event Website

Short film festival comparing how Asian, European and U.S. cultures approach multiculturalism and diversity in their respective regions. Each evening features screening and panel discussion. June 4-8.

Leselier Theater, 3251 Prospect St., NW, Upper Courtyard

Mayor Gray Celebrates Completion of Energy-Efficient Alley Lighting Project
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Mayor Vincent Gray today joined officials from the District Department of Transportation (DDOT) and the District Department of the Environment (DDOE) to celebrate the completion of a project to replace alley lights with new energy-efficient, environmentally-friendly lighting fixtures. In a Mount Pleasant alley, Gray watched as DDOT contractors replaced an inefficient incandescent bulb with a new light-emitting diode (LED) light fixture. The installation was the last of 1,360 alley light replacements in a $1-million project that involved all of the District’s eight wards.

“Already, results show these new light fixtures are saving energy – 57 to 60 percent – compared to the old incandescent, mercury vapor, and high-pressure sodium lights,” said Gray, who has spearheaded the Sustainable DC effort to make the District the most sustainable city in the United States. “Imagine how much energy we could save if we expand this program to all 70,000 street and alley lights across the District. That would be a great down payment on a truly Sustainable DC.”

The LED lights have a longer life expectancy than the District’s existing lights and will reduce maintenance and energy costs as well as greenhouse-gas emissions. For example, a 189-watt incandescent bulb has a lamp life of 6-12 months; by comparison, a 54-watt LED light has a life expectancy of 12-15 years.

They also use the least amount of energy compared to other fixtures while offering less glare and better illumination, uniformity, safety, color and aesthetics.

“This is just one example of how we are reducing our footprint at DDOT through the use of green construction techniques, technology and infrastructure,” said DDOT Director Terry Bellamy. “We’re also fostering environmentally friendly forms of transportation and expanding our tree canopy. The Mayor’s vision for a Sustainable DC is achievable with this type of investment, and with our partners at DDOE and other agencies, we will continue to do our part.”

The District Department of Energy (DDOE) is supporting and funding the LED lighting project, under the U.S. Department of Energy’s Energy Efficient and Conservation Block Grant program.

“An initiative like this that saves the city money, improves residents’ safety, and reduces our energy appetite is certainly worthy of our investment,” says Christophe A.G. Tulou, director of DDOE. “This is a great example of how involvement of many departments across the city will make Sustainable DC a reality.”

It’s estimated that the 1,360 new LED alley lights will save the District approximately 591,000 KWH in electricity annually, and as a result will cut CO2 emissions by 719 tons.

Before the start of this project, in conjunction with the Howard University Transportation Research Center, DDOT conducted a study and analysis of light-emitting diode (LED) lighting products from a variety of vendors and manufacturers. The study involved the evaluation and analysis of photometric readings, fixture life, efficacy, aesthetics, color temperature, dimmability and compatibility with remote monitoring and control systems. At the conclusion of the study, DDOT selected Lighting Science Group’s (LSG) LSR-2 LED fixture as the preferred choice to replace the District’s existing alley lights.

“When it comes to city planning, smart infrastructure save lives and dollars,” said Jim Haworth, chairman and chief executive officer of Lighting Science Group of Lighting Science Group. “The Mayor, DDOT and DDOE are clearly united in their commitment to promoting both the safety and financial interests of District residents with their vision for a Sustainable DC, and Lighting Science Group is proud to do its part to bring that vision to life. Our roadway solutions offer notably longer-life expectancies than the District’s existing lights and real reductions in maintenance and energy costs, as well as greenhouse gas emissions. With less glare and better illumination, uniformity, and color, the new LED street lights signal a true improvement for the nation’s capital.”

In 2005, the District became the largest city in the United States to convert all of its traffic signals to LED fixtures.

DDOT plans to install energy-efficient light fixtures throughout the city – including all District alleys, streets, bridges, tunnels and underpasses, pedestrian walkways, and bike and running trails by the end of 2015. DDOT is also exploring the use of solar and wind power as alternative power sources to reduce its dependency on the electrical grid.

For more information about Mayor Gray’s Sustainable DC vision, visit the Sustainable DC website. More details about DDOT’s Energy Saving Initiatives are also posted online at ddot.dc.gov.

Federal Investigation of Gray Throttles Up
•

Just when you thought it was safe to go to Las Vegas, up comes news—from local television and local newspaper reports—that Thomas W. Gore, a key aide and confidante of Mayor Vincent Gray had pleaded guilty to three D.C. election law misdemeanors and a federal charge of obstruction of justice, all charges relating to the ongoing federal investigation into the mayor’s election campaign and campaign contributions.

A second charge come down May 23: Howard Brooks, a former Gray campaign consultant, was hit with a single count of making a false statement to the FBI. Brooks will likely plead guilty. (Gore’s attorney had told media reporters that more charges would be coming.)

More important perhaps than the news of Gore’s admission of guilt to the charges is the fact that Gore—he was a critical role-player as treasurer in Gray’s election to the Ward 7 council seat and his election to become city council chairman as well as being assistant treasurer of the successful 2012 mayoral campaign—appeared to have been talking to federal prosecutors about his role in the campaign. Most damaging—in the light of the Solaiman Brown’s contentions that he had been paid by the Gray campaign to keep his minor candidate campaign against Fenty alive—was Gore admitting that he had helped facilitate keeping Brown’s campaign alive through payments, by an unnamed intermediary, via money orders to Brown’s campaign.

Brown, considered by many as something of a loose cannon, gained some credibility with the events in federal court this week. The mayor has repeatedly said he was innocent of any wrongdoing in the campaign. Other than that, Gray has generally been silent on the matter which has engulfed many of his closest friends and political associates in the aftermath of election victory including long-time friend Lorraine Green—who ran the campaign and was named chief of staff until resigning.

The investigation remains ongoing. If the Gore revelations are not the other shoe dropping, they’re a sure sign of the laces being untied. Gore also admitted shredding a ledger that kept track of money and money orders after the Brown charges broke in the local media in early 2011.

Brown at the time charged that he was paid to keep his campaign—focused mainly on attacking incumbent Mayor Adrian Fenty, and even urging people to vote for Gray at candidate forums if they wouldn’t vote for him-and was promised a job in the government, which he did initially get before being fire. After he was fired, Brown went to the media, specifically the Washington Post.
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D.C.’s Unique GI Film Festival Brings Our Warriors Close to Us
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The GI Film Festival (GIFF), the nation’s only military film festival, begins Tuesday, May 15, and runs through Sunday, May 20. The festival of “Reel Stories, Real Heroes” commemorates, depicts and celebrates those of our citizenry who go to war in defense of our nation and of us. One big attraction will the May 17 advance screening of the action movie, “Battleship.”

Tonight, the festival opens at the Newseum with a dinner honoring H. Ross Perot. Most movies will be shown at the Navy Heritage Center at the Navy Memorial on Pennsylvania Avenue; other sites include the U.S. Capitol Visitors Center and the Canadian Embassy. On May 15, Actor Joe Mantegna will be given the GI Spirit Award by Rep. Loretta Sanchez (D-Calif.) and Rep. Geoff Davis (R-Ky.). International Warrior Night will headlined by television personality Pat Sajak at the Canadian Embassy on Wednesday, May 16. On Saturday, May 19, there is a “Salute to Military Spouses Night” with the “Army Wives” cast.

The sixth annual GIFF film line-up offers 42 film screenings, movies that represent every branch of the military and span five wars. Over the course of the six-day event, the festival will offer 23 narrative films and 19 documentaries covering every genre conceivable – from action and adventure to drama and romance. With at least a dozen world-premiere screenings, GIFF offers plenty of opportunities to discover emerging directors, producers and actors.

Films include “The Red Rose of Normandy,” “From Philadelphia to Fallujah,” “Memorial Day,” the graphic novel, “Bridges,” “The Red Machine,” “Least Among Saints” and “If I Should Fall.”

The full program, including times and locations, is available on the festival’s website, GIFilmFestival.com/2012films.

“More than 200 films were submitted to GIFF this year. We were overwhelmed by the raw talent and emotion expressed in every film,” said Brandon Millett, co-founder and president of the GI Film Festival. “Our mission is to educate the public about the successes and sacrifices of the American military and there has never been a better festival line-up to more perfectly exemplify that mission.”

GIFF will also preview Peter Berg’s “Battleship” from Universal Pictures on Thursday, May 17. The screening will take place during the festival’s Wounded Warrior Appreciation Night, where wounded warriors from the D.C. metro area will serve as the festival’s guests of honor.

“One of the best parts of the festival is every day is so different. Whether our guests are honoring the contributions of wounded warriors or walking the red carpet with famous actors, there’s a unique experience every night,” said GIFF co-founder and director Laura Law-Millett. Ticket prices range from $12 for a single film to $250 for a week-long VIP pass.

According to the GI Film Festival, it is “the only film festival in the nation to exclusively celebrate the successes and sacrifices of the service member through the medium of film” and is “a 501 c(3) non-profit educational organization dedicated to sharing the military experience in and out of the arena of war.” [gallery ids="100793,124378,124368,124374" nav="thumbs"]

Reflecting on 21 Years on the Council
• May 30, 2012

This month, I passed a personal milestone. On April 30, it was the 21st anniversary of my being elected to the City Council as the representative for Ward 2. May 13 was the 21st anniversary of my being sworn in as the Ward 2 Councilmember. I became the longest serving current Councilmember a year ago, and when I finish my current term, I will be the longest serving Councilmember in our history. I find this annual milestone to be a good time to stop and reflect on both our past achievements and our future goals.

The first Ward 2 Councilmember was John Wilson, who took office in January 1975 and served until December 31, 1990. He was sworn in January 2, 1991, as Chairman of the Council, which created a vacancy in the Ward 2 post. The special election to fill the Ward 2 Council seat had 15 candidates. I won the election with 2,926 votes, 360 more than Jim Zais. Bill Cochran and Clarene Martin each received 1,050 votes.

I came on the Council at a different time. Sharon Pratt Kelly had just been elected mayor and had taken office in January 1991. The finances of the city were not good. Two weeks before my swearing-in were the riots by the Latino community in Mt. Pleasant.

Things in the District went from bad to worse. Mayor Kelly did not have a good working relationship with Chairman Wilson and the Council. Then, in 1993, Chairman Wilson died. By 1994, the District’s finances had further deteriorated and Mayor Kelly had become very unpopular. The mayoral election in 1994 saw the return of Marion Barry as mayor. By the end of 1995, Congress had imposed a control board.

As you can see, my early days were quite turbulent. However, beginning in 1996, we saw a resurgence in our city. With Mayor Tony Williams’s election in 1998, he joined Chairman Linda Cropp, me, as Finance and Revenue Chairman, and Chief Financial Officer Natwar Gandhi to lead our city’s comeback. As I look back, I remember great challenges and great progress. Our city stands today as one of the most dynamic in the country with strong finances and a AAA-bond rating.

I hope we continue to build on these past achievements. Our financial picture is good, but we must continue to aggressively restrain our spending and practice fiscal discipline, as we are always just one bad budget away from the possible return of a control board. A balanced Budget Request Act passed the Council earlier this month, and I plan to provide a full budget update after passage of the Budget Support Act in early June.

It has been quite a journey and one I wouldn’t trade for anything. There is still much work to be done, however, and I look forward to a great future representing the residents of Ward 2.

The Lessons of J.P. Morgan: Defining Oligopoly
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J.P. Morgan’s $2-4 billion trading blunder has reignited the debate of whether our banking industry should remain the oligopoly that it is, or be subject to a broader array of regulatory reforms and restructuring.

The media’s focus on the several billion dollars in bad derivative trades, while replete with shock value, misses the real lessons of the incident. While significant, the losses were hardly catastrophic for the bank. With $2.3 trillion in assets, J.P. Morgan’s loss represents only .1 percent of its total assets and 1 percent of its equity. Clearly, the bad trades represent a failure of risk management, yet the fact remains that J.P. Morgan remains fundamentally well managed. Chances are, the bank will still be profitable in the second quarter.

In the midst of the ongoing media feeding frenzy, J.P. Morgan will do what any well-run organization would do: analyze what went wrong and fix it. Ina Drew, the J.P. Morgan chief investment officer who ran the department behind the massive trading loss, has left the bank with a $32 Million severance package. Other heads will roll in the coming weeks as the forensics behind the bad trades become more apparent.

Jaime Dimon, J.P. Morgan’s chairman and chief executive once praised for adeptly navigating the bank through the 2008 financial crisis shares the blame. His biggest mistake, perhaps, was his lack of humility and his reflexive—if not extreme—resistance to enhanced regulation of the banking industry. On April 13, Dimon downplayed the rumors of the massive losses by referring to it as “a tempest in a teapot.” But after the extent of the losses became clear, and when Dimon was forced to announce the losses on May 10, he explained, “In hindsight, the new strategy was flawed, complex, poorly reviewed, poorly executed and poorly monitored.”

To even a passive observer, the incident highlights that Dimon and other megabank CEOs, supported by a government sanctioned and licensed oligopoly, dominate trading flows and market making, particularly in the “over the counter” (OTC) markets.

What exactly does that mean?

The term, “Oligopoly” comes from the Greek, “Oligos” and “Polein.” “Oligos” translates to “few”; “Polein” means “to sell.” Simply defined, an oligopoly is an economic condition where there are few sellers and many buyers. The few sellers who dominate a market exert control over their competitors’ prices or their ability to freely compete. In an oligopoly, the market is also particularly vulnerable to the mistakes and fates of those few dominant influences.

When Citigroup or Bank of America experience massive losses, the government invariably comes to their rescue with billions in taxpayer dollars quite literally because they are “too big to fail.”

The 2008 financial crisis was largely caused by an overconcentration of derivative instruments in the hands of a few banks. Today, the top six megabanks hold 95 percent of the entire $1.2 quadrillion derivatives market. J.P. Morgan has 44 percent of that market. Those statistics alone constitute an oligopoly in that particular market. Alarming? Now, consider this: today, those same banks have assets that exceed 60 percent of our national GDP.

While the CEOs of the megabank club know the risks of overconcentration well, those whispered conversations normally occur behind closed doors or on the back nine. Their interest, understandably, is in turning massive profits for their shareholders. Each bank, therefore, contributes millions to both political parties, and employs an army of Capitol Hill’s best lobbyists to ensure their advantages are preserved.

Over a century ago, President Theodore Roosevelt confronted the financiers (J.P. Morgan among them) and industrialists head-on with antitrust suits. Despite the accusations of his critics, Roosevelt’s objective was to regulate the giants, not to destroy them. Roosevelt’s direct approach was politically courageous and effective in 1907. Created to safeguard against undo risks by improving accountability and transparency in the financial system, the Dodd-Frank Act was the closest we’ve come to TR’s method yet. But even that “big stick”has, by most accounts, fallen short.
The lessons should be abundantly clear. Mitigating against risk requires sufficient capital. Because J.P. Morgan is a healthy bank, the losses they announced last month, while uncomfortable, were nonetheless manageable. Banks should, therefore be required, by law, to hold ample equity capital to cover any potential losses. That is something regulations can’t do.

Second, the Department of Justice as well as federal regulators should both be empowered and instructed to preemptively break up large financial institutions that pose a threat to the nation’s financial stability. Currently, Dodd-Frank empowers regulators to intervene “only as a last resort.” Dodd-Frank also requires banks to have a “living will” to provide for a managed dissolution in the event of a bankruptcy. This provision remains ill-defined and untested, and offers little reassurance that our economy won’t be driven into the same kind of crisis we experienced in 2008.

Today, the banking system is even more concentrated than pre-2008. Because the largest banks have the implicit backing of U.S. taxpayers, their cost of capital is artificially low. As a result, the megabanks are incentivized to take outsized, irrational risks—and smaller banks are challenged to compete with them.

That is the textbook definition of an oligopoly.