Posts by David Alpert — Founder
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“Green” features are okay with DC preservation, but only if they’re invisible
DC's Historic Preservation Office has a new, proposed guide for homeowners who want to make their buildings more environmentally friendly. Environmentalists may not be so pleased, though, with the way the guidelines still prioritize keeping buildings looking the same over enabling green features. Keep reading…
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We’re hiring a Development Director! Is that you or someone you know?
We're hiring! We want to keep bringing you great articles and discussion about urbanist issues around the Washington region, and to keep advocating for the priorities you identify around housing, transportation, and more. Now, we're looking for a great person to lead the process of putting those ideas and more into action. Keep reading…
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Why Marc Elrich is not the right choice for Montgomery County Executive
Marc Elrich is considered by many to be the front-runner in the Montgomery County Executive’s race. Greater Greater Washington has endorsed George Leventhal, but we know that many activists we agree with but for whom housing is not their top issue are supporting Marc Elrich. We wanted to explain why we believe he would be a dangerous choice for County Executive. Keep reading…
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We’re looking to grow Greater Greater Washington’s Board of Directors
We periodically recruit volunteers for various roles, like writing articles or serving on our Editorial Board. Now, we’re interested in finding folks with relevant experience and ability to support Greater Greater Washington to serve on our Board of Directors, particularly from Northern Virginia and Montgomery and Prince George’s counties in Maryland. Keep reading…
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DC may require ride-hailing companies to share data, but won’t encourage pooling
Cities have required taxis to give logs of their rides to regulators for a long time. New York, Toronto, Chicago, Seattle, and others ask for taxi-like data from ride-hailing companies such as Uber, Lyft, and Via. Now, DC might join them. However, it won't follow through on an earlier proposal to encourage carpooling on these ride-hailing services. Keep reading…
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To cut down on traffic, DC may encourage sharing Ubers, Lyfts, and Vias
Ride-hailing services like Uber, Lyft, and Via are growing rapidly. They are actually two kinds of service: private cars and shared, with shared cars much better for traffic, sustainability, and roadway efficiency. Now, the DC Council has taken a positive step to encourage sharing, relative to riding alone, in the tax code. Keep reading…
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Can this Mount Vernon Triangle, um, triangle be a great park?
In DC's triangular Mount Vernon Triangle neighborhood is a smaller triangle, known as Cobb Park. It's not much of a park right now, but it could be. A new study from the Mount Vernon Triangle Community Improvement District looked at what such a park could look like and other possible places for parks around the neighborhood. Keep reading…
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One area artist and the Post style section canonize unsafe or illegal parking
Neither artist Maggie O'Neill nor Washington Post style writer Lavanya Ramanathan give any acknowledgement that maybe parking illegally, regularly, “brazenly” has a downside. Keep reading…
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Upzone expensive areas to fund anti-displacement in poor ones? Should we push this?
Matthew Yglesias has a bold idea for DC housing and anti-displacement policy: Build a lot of new homes in areas like west of Rock Creek Park, Dupont/Logan, and Capitol Hill, and use some of the tax revenue to cut property taxes east of the Anacostia River. Keep reading…
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Happy birthday, Metro! Watch Metro’s evolution since 1976 in this slideshow
The Metro system opened on March 27,1976 with five stations on the Red Line. It now has 91 stations on six lines. In (slightly belated) honor of this birthday, we're reposting and updating our animated slideshow of Metro’s evolution over 42 years. Keep reading…