Posts by Ken Archer — Contributor
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G2 bus to Georgetown U won’t resume until spring semester
When DDOT’s renovation of O and P Streets in Georgetown completed last month, students expected the main Metrobus serving Georgetown University to resume its route to campus. To their surprise, WMATA announced last week that the G2 route will not resume its normal route until December. Under normal circumstances, the G2 follows O and P Streets through the neighborhood… Keep reading…
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Closed pools, communication snafus dismay children
Sometimes a public pool or other facility just can’t be open when everyone hopes, but when the DC Department of Parks and Recreation (DPR) isn’t able to keep its website and voicemail up to date, sudden changes leave children crying and parents frustrated. OnLabor Day weekend Saturday, September 8, I told my 3-year-old that we would go swim together at Wilson Pool… Keep reading…
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A tech investor tax cut won’t help the tech sector
Tomorrow, the DC Council will vote on a bill to give investors in tech companies a huge tax break. Taking steps to build the tech sector and diversify our economy makes sense, but this tax break will simply not actually stimulate more technology investment. The Gray administration proposed the bill, the Technology Sector Enhancement Act, this past spring. It has some good… Keep reading…
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As employers ban phone use while driving, long car commutes mean lower productivity
More and more companies ban employee use of cell phones while driving. Will these companies begin to view employees with long car commutes as less available and productive than other employees? Will this push more workers to take advantage of transit options? Some companies still have a 9-to-5 culture and don’t expect employees to be available outside those hours. … Keep reading…
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Visitor parking passes won’t go citywide, yet
The District’s pilot program of visitor parking passes recently expanded to Ward 1 and the Howard Theatre area of Ward 6, but contrary to some recent press reports, it isn’t yet expanding the program citywide. DDOT is, however, currently studying what to do for the long term with visitor parking and other parking policy questions. A few years ago, DDOT tried a pilot… Keep reading…
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DC DPR wants feedback on parks. Give them yours
Do you use your local park, rec center or pool? Have you encountered any problems? If you don’t use them, why not? The Department of Parks and Recreation needs to hear from you to make its facilities better. Most complaints I hear about DPR facilities concern upkeep or the attitude of park employees. But there are a lot of parks and a lot of staff, many short-term, running… Keep reading…
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DC Council needs permanent education policy office
When Chairman Kwame Brown resigned from the DC Council earlier this year, 2 of his 3 committee staff members overseeing education left with him, causing an all-too-common “brain drain” of Council committee staff. Until committee staff members are hired centrally by policy professionals, and not directly by councilmembers, the council will be unable to effectively… Keep reading…
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Steny Hoyer spreads myths about the District’s budget
One of the predominant myths about the District is that the federal government fully compensates any costs or lost revenue it incurs as the Federal District. In reality, DC residents bear a heavy fiscal burden — to the tune of about $1 billion a year — because of a structural deficit that Congress could fix. Keep reading…
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What is a tech company? How do you build a tech sector?
How do you build a tech sector when there is no such thing as a tech company or tech sector anymore? That’s the challenge that DC faces as it seeks to support the recent rise of a tech sector in the District. There is unquestionably a cluster of related technology firms growing organically in the District. The challenge is to find ways to support them that are targeted… Keep reading…
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DC tech execs ask for better spaces for startups
7 owners of DC technology companies sent a letter to the DC Council and Deputy Mayor Victor Hoskins today proposing aggressive new initiatives to build the DC tech sector. The executives ask DC to prioritize helping startups find space and to create vision like New York’s Innovation Island. Keep reading…