Wednesday, March 16, 2011
Serving Burleith, Foxhall, Georgetown, Georgetown Reservoir & Glover Park
Vol. XX, No. 34
THE GEORGETOWN CURRENT Probe clears Fenty over park deals
Schools clamor for full funding levels
I M A G I N AT I O N S TAT I O N
■ Budget: Extra funds reduce
By ELIZABETH WIENER
cuts but don’t eliminate them
Current Staff Writer
An 18-month investigation into contracts for city parks and recreation projects is winding down much the way it started — with rancor, and some questions still unanswered. Special counsel Robert Trout last Friday delivered his long-awaited written report on the case, finding “no wrongdoing” by former Mayor Adrian Fenty, and no intent by his administration to circumvent the D.C. Council’s role in approving multimillion-dollar contracts. But Trout also found that the layered contracting process resulted in approval of “grossly inflated” bills and “significant waste of taxpayer funds.” In answer to the thornier question of criminal culpability, Trout recommended that U.S. Attorney Ronald Machen investigate allegations of contracting irregularities by two firms, Banneker Ventures and Liberty Engineering and Design, and their owners, Omar Karim and Sinclair Skinner, both friends of Fenty who benefited from the fat park contracts. At a hastily called news conferSee Contracts/Page 23
By JESSICA GOULD Current Staff Writer
Dozens of parents, students and advocates lobbied against proposed cuts to their school budgets Monday evening, while Mayor Vincent Gray emphasized that he has done his best to protect the schools during this tough time. “When I ran for mayor, I said it was my top priority to provide an
Alley remedy may be on the way at long last ■ Maintenance: Repairs may
come within next 90 days Bill Petros/The Current
Seven year-old Emma Bort played with blocks Sunday at the House of Sweden's new “Imagination Station.” The embassy also offers “Zero to One,” a room for babies and their parents to bond. See story, page 15.
Service road would harm park, some say The road would therefore satisfy Current Staff Writer the requests of Georgetowners who want the school to make better use of its Canal Road entrance. While much of the debate over But some of the school’s Foxhall Georgetown University’s campus neighbors and several local environplan has centered on housing and mentalists have raised the alarm enrollment growth, some neighbors about potential damage to the park are focusing their opposition on a and the park experience. The different matter altogether: the proBill Petros/The Current Foxhall-Palisades advisory neighposed construction of a roadway borhood commission cited the issue along the western edge of campus Mary Cheh said buses could turn around near the Lombardi center. as a major reason for voting 8-0 to near Glover Archbold Park. oppose the plan; the Georgetown The university decided on the path as part of an internal “loop road” that would “reori- commission referenced the environmental concern in its ent [university] buses away from neighborhood streets,” own resolution, also in opposition. Last week, Ward 3 Council member Mary Cheh according to the school’s submission to the Zoning See Road/Page 25 Commission. By CAROL BUCKLEY
NEWS Officials mull adding waterfront stairs to Kennedy Center. Page 3. ■ Potential tax hikes spawn early debate. Page 5. ■
excellent education to the children of the District of Columbia,” Gray said. But, he added, “We’re facing a huge budget deficit.” Gray said he was able to soften the blow to the schools after chief financial officer Natwar Gandhi announced an unexpected increase in the District’s projected revenue for fiscal year 2012. Of the $105 million in additional funds, Gray directed $76 million toward the schools, resulting in a $50 million budget gap. The school system’s total proposed local budgSee Schools/Page 32
SPORTS ■ Boys, girls lacrosse teams kick off season. Page 13. ■ School Without Walls becomes a school with lacrosse. Page 13.
By CAROL BUCKLEY Current Staff Writer
Almost-spring showers may be a sign of some wonderful things to come, but for some Georgetown residents, rain presages a less pleasant scenario than crocuses and daffodils: a flooded, pockmarked, muddy alley that runs behind about 20 homes on 31st and 32nd streets south of R Street. “My family has owned our property since 1965, and we cannot recall the alley ever having been maintained,” resident Joan Larrea wrote to The Current. On a recent rainy afternoon, that neglect was obvious. Mud had nearly erased what asphalt remained, and pools both small and very large marked the lane’s ruts and depressions. Residents’ years of complaints may finally bear fruit: A District Department of Transportation spokesperson said re-grading and repaving could happen in 60 to 90 days — as residents also heard
PA S S A G E S ■ Exhibit offers kids’ space for playing, relaxing. Page 15. ■ GDS debate team charges ahead without coach. Page 15 .
Carol Buckley/The Current
Basements and garages along the alley have flooded during rains. recently — but noted that a drainage issue could require collaboration with the city water authority beforehand. “We are hoping we can complete [the upgrade] using local capital funds,” said spokesperson John Lisle. “I’ll believe it when I see it happen. … I’ve been complaining for years,” said neighbor Dale Curtis, surveying the muddy mess from beneath an umbrella last week. Curtis has owned his 32nd Street home since 1998. Neighbors have periodically tried to take care of the matter themSee Alley/Page 25
INDEX Business/9 Calendar/26 Classifieds/37 District Digest/4 Exhibits/31 In Your Neighborhood/22 Opinion/10
Passages/15 Police Report/6 School Dispatches/16 Real Estate/21 Service Directory/33 Sports/13 Theater/31