Breakfast links: With Maryland’s “yes,” Metro is on track for full funding
Image by Jordan Barab licensed under Creative Commons.
Maryland joins DC and Virginia in committing to its full portion of Metro funding
On Thursday, Maryland lawmakers came to an agreement to fund Maryland’s full $167 million per year share of Metro dedicated funding. On the heels of legislation in Virginia and a DC commitment by Mayor Bower in her State of the District speech last week — barring last-minute hitches — Metro is on track for a historic regional deal to support it. (Robert McCartney / Post)
A new fund aims to protect important African-American historic sites
A new fund aims to protect sites important to African-Americans and African-American history across the country. The African American Cultural Heritage Fund, launched by the National Trust for Historic Preservation, seeks to raise $25 million to preserve these sites. (Brianna Rhodes / Afro)
DC’s Housing Authority is under scrutiny for conflict of interest
Activists in DC are concerned that the city Housing Authority, an independent government agency that oversees housing vouchers for residents, is not truly independent. Affordable housing advocates note that political appointees sit on the board, presenting a conflict of interest. (Morgan Baskin / City Paper)
DCPS teachers are looking for guidance and resources
Fewer than half of this year's seniors are eligible to graduate, but DC Public Schools teachers say they are left to deal with stricter enforcement with no clear options for failing students. The teachers say they need direction and resources. (Kate McGee / WAMU)
Neighborhoods that invest in their community see less crime
For communities undergoing economic distress, active neighborhood participation in cleanup and maintenance efforts could be far more effective in lowering crime and revitalizing the area than more traditional methods of policing. (Marc Zimmerman / City Lab)
DC is preparing to nominate ‘opportunity zones’
One often overlooked portion of last year's tax reform bill created “opportunity zones,” areas that cities can designate to spur job creation and investment via lower taxes and other incentives. DC will nominate 25 zones in April. (Nena Perry-Brown / Urban Turf)
Do artists signal gentrification or cause gentrification? It’s tricky
Tale as old as time: artists move in, and the neighborhood gentrifies. Not so, argues a new paper, showing that artists and art spaces often move into neighborhoods that are already gentrified or gentrifying and not, in fact, initiating that gentrification. (Richard Florida / City Lab)
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