Breakfast links: Congress parks for free, and other facts about National Airport
National Airport by Ron Cogswell licensed under Creative Commons.
National Airport used to be part of DC—kinda
From 1938 to 1945 there was confusion about whether the new airport, which was built by filling in the Potomac, was part of DC or Virginia. Congress eventually changed the boundary, putting the airport squarely in Virginia. DCist has more fun facts about National Airport. (Morgan Voigt / DCist)
Baltimore County renters with housing vouchers get legal protection
In a narrow vote divided along party lines, the Baltimore County Council approved legislation Monday that prohibits landlords from rejecting renters solely because they use federal housing vouchers, commonly referred to as Section 8 vouchers. (Wilborn P. Nobles III / Baltimore Sun)
For some NoVa voters, Tuesday’s election is about traffic
Among the issues weighing on some Northern Virginia voters are gun laws, LGBTQ rights, minimum wage, and whether to give Democrats a majority in the state legislature. But there’s also the issue of how to fix persistent stop-and-go traffic affecting daily commuters. (Emily Badger / New York Times)
Virginia’s off-year elections historically help incumbents
Once an accident of history, Virginia’s state elections, which don’t coincide with presidential or congressional mid-term elections, routinely show lower voter turnout than during national elections and have a history of benefiting incumbent politicians and political machines. (Martin Austermuhle / WAMU)
DC contemplates new rules for scooters
At a DC Council hearing on Monday, advocates and critics of the popular e-scooters sounded off as the District Department of Transportation moves to establish new rules for the services next year and seeks to reduce the number of operators while doubling the number of scooters on city streets. (Luz Lazo / Post)
Hogan won’t raise taxes to expand transit
Maryland Governor Larry Hogan expressed no interest in raising taxes to expand transit options across the state and instead is holding out for federal spending, according to the Maryland Secretary of Transportation Pete K. Rahn. (Bruce DePuyt / Maryland Matters)
Jack Evans violated ethics rules multiple times, a report finds
A report from a law firm hired by the DC Council found that Council Member Jack Evans repeatedly used his office on behalf of his private consulting clients, earned an unreported $400,000 “doing little or no documented work for consulting clients,” and failed to recognize conflicts of interest. (Fenit Nirappil / Post)
Lots of housing is planned for the Old Soldier’s Home
The General Services Administration selected a development team to build 4.3 million square foot mixed-use redevelopment, including 2.2. million square feet of housing, on 80 acres of land within the 273-acre Old Soldier’s Home campus northwest of Irving and North Capitol streets. (Nena Perry-Brown / Urban Turf)
Do ‘Little Free Libraries’ hurt free big libraries?
DC Twitter lit up over a photo of an anonymous note fixed to a neighbor’s Little Free Library in Mt. Pleasant, which claimed the small, outdoor bookshelves cause “a host of problems” including reducing public library patronage and helping to gentrify neighborhoods. (Natalie Delgadillo / DCist)
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