Breakfast links: How should DC tax and regulate ride-hailing services?
Both Uber and Mayor Bowser push back on new ride-hailing laws for DC
Mayor Muriel Bowser wants the DC Council to rethink the flat 6% tax hike for ride-hailing services and only raise taxes on private rides, not on trips with UberPool, Lyft Line, and Via. The Council also proposed new data sharing requirements, which both Uber and Lyft have opposed. (Faiz Siddiqui / Post)
Can Dupont Circle be “cool” again?
A new Business Improvement District for Dupont Circle hopes to make the area “cool again.” Can it? And for that matter, is chasing “cool” the right move for Dupont? (Ally Schweitzer / WAMU)
Federal inspectors find that SafeTrack didn’t go far enough
The FTA's last oversight report on a year of SafeTrack found that WMATA successfully hit goals like replacing 95% of bad rail ties, but leadership had also severely underestimated the scope of the rail and engineering issues. That means major problems persist. (Max Smith / WTOP)
Howard University has big plans for an empty stretch of Georgia Avenue
Howard University wants to turn the currently-vacant Bond Bread Factory and neighboring Washington Railway and Electric Company garage into a mixed use “destination,” and eight major developers are ready to draw up plans. (Nena Perry-Brown / Urban Turf)
Construction on a mixed-use Dupont church can resume after legal wrangling
The city lifted a “stop work” order on the new St. Thomas building which is set to house the church and 56 apartments. The parish challenged the court ruling that first questioned their zoning approvals, and filed an additional suit in DC Superior Court to prevent more work stoppages. (Lou Chibbaro Jr / Washington Blade)
A candidate for Maryland governor demands that his opponent be put on the ballot
Gubernatorial candidate Alec Ross asked the Maryland Board of Elections to reprint the state's primary ballots which leave off his new opponent, Valerie Ervin. Ervin had been running for lieutenant governor, but changed her candidacy after her running mate Kevin Kamenetz died two weeks ago. (Ovetta Wiggins / Post)
Memorial Bridge will be partially closed for repairs starting this fall
The National Park Service will perform major repairs on the 86-year-old bridge starting this fall, ending in October 2020. Commuters will need to find a new way to cross the Potomac, as NPS will close traffic lanes and one of the sidewalks. (Michael Neibauer / WBJ)
Duke Ellington parents file a lawsuit against claims of residency fraud
A lawsuit filed by 164 Duke Ellington families claims that DC has not allowed them to contest claims of residency fraud made in a bombshell report, and that students in non-traditional family and living situations were unfairly misrepresented. (Martin Austermuhle / WAMU)
Prince George’s County will re-audit its schools
Maryland will re-hire the firm that reviewed problems with grade changing and graduation elegibility last year in order to do a longer review of the county school system and implement fixes found in the first audit. (Donna St. George / Post)
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