Breakfast links: It costs more to rent in DC than almost anywhere else in the US
Apartments in DC by BeyondDC licensed under Creative Commons.
Only NYC and San Francisco have more expensive rents than DC
A report from financial advice firm SmartAsset used Zillow data to estimate that the average rent for a two-bedroom apartment in DC is $3,100. A household would need to make $132,000 to spend a third or less of their income on rent, but the median household income in DC is $82,000. (Andrew Giambrone / Curbed)
Alexandria has seen more traffic and more biking this summer
Alexandria found that during this summer’s Blue and Yellow line shutdown, travel time increased 4% on major corridors. About 60% of rail riders surveyed experienced delays of over 30 minutes, and the number of cyclists on the Potomac Yard Trail doubled. (Danya AbdelHameid / DCist)
An Open Streets event is coming to Georgia Avenue NW
On October 5, DC will close three miles of Georgia Avenue NW, between Barry Place and Missouri Avenue, to all vehicles for the day. This will be DC’s first open streets event. (Andrew Giambrone / Curbed)
Maryland may cut MARC service to the Eastern Panhandle of West Virginia
The West Virginia legislature only approved $1 million of the $3 million needed to maintain MARC service, and now Maryland may cut the number of MARC trains to the Eastern Panhandle down to one in the morning and one at night. This would reduce Panhandle residents’ ability to work in Maryland cities or the Washington region. (Phil Kabler / Mass Transit Mag)
Metro wants Maryland to stop withholding transit funds
Metro GM Paul Wiedefeld asked Maryland to pay $56 million that the state has held back since July before it impacts the system. Both DC and Virginia have paid their regional contributions, but Maryland wants to renegotiate the agreement, saying that Metro needs to be more transparent and accountable. (Robert McCartney / Post)
MoCo public school face chronic absenteeism
Nearly 2,000 students have dropped out of Montgomery County schools in the past two and a half years, and 28,000, or nearly 19%, have missed at least 15 days of school, which counts as chronic absence. (Donna St. George / Post)
The DC Council opposes changing DC’s disability services provider
A letter from all 13 councilmembers asked Mayor Muriel Bowser to rethink ending the city’s longtime contract with Georgetown University for developmentally disabled residents, or at least extend the transition period. (Mitch Ryals / City Paper)
Amazon’s HQ2 offices could mean more affordable housing in Northern Virginia
Amazon is planning to build a two million square foot office in Pentagon City, 580,000 square feet more than the parcel allows. Arlington will allow Amazon the extra density in exchange for community benefits, one of which could be a major payment for Arlington’s Affordable Housing Investment Fund (Jonathan Capriel / WBJ)
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