Breakfast links: DC home-purchase assistance program runs out of funding
Rowhouses in Capitol Hill by deckerme licensed under Creative Commons.
Funds depleted for DC’s home purchase assistance program
The Department of Housing and Community Development notified qualified constituents that due to insufficient funds, they cannot support individuals whose housing contracts haven’t been ratified. This announcement comes one year after the Bowser administration increased the amount of assistance individuals would be eligible to receive from $80,000 to $202,000. (Morgan Baskin / DCist)
Portions of Anacostia River swimmable for first time in 50 years
After decades of pollution concerns, more areas of the Anacostia River are swimmable thanks to the progress of DC Water’s $2.7 billion project to curb sewage overflows. They’ve been curbed by over 80% in several spots, allowing the Anacostia Riverkeeper to organize a free splash day near Kingman Island on July 8. (Jacob Fenston / DCist)
Price of essential items increased faster than minimum wage in Maryland in each of past 15 years
The cost of esssential items has gone up 3.1% in each of the past 15 years according to the newly released ALICE Essentials Index, developed by the United Way of Central Maryland. The report, releaased Wednesday, also noted that minimum wage salaries have only risen by 2.7% in the same period, creating an affordability gap. (Danielle J. Brown / Maryland Matters)
MoCo Council caps developer taxes intended for transportation and public school improvement projects
Montgomery County Council put a limit on development impact tax rate, which generates funding for transportation and school projects. The new cap, set at 20%, aims to balance funding needs with the financial impact on developers. The decision sparked discussions about housing affordability and equitable distribution of resources. (Ginny Bixby / moco360)
Removal of prosecutors from Arlington traffic court blamed for lack of prosecutions in pedestrian, cyclist road crash cases
Arlington’s Commonwealths Attorney, Parisa Dehghani-Tafti, removed prosecutors from traffic court to move the burden of reviewing and disclosing evidence to the officers involved in the cases, noting staff constraints and that the prosecutor’s presence falls outside standard practice. However, some argue that this has led to cases involving pedestrian and cyclist crashes being dropped or released due to administrative error. (Jo DeVoe / ARLnow)
Whole Foods, three new residential buildings now open at Walter Reed redevelopment
The opening of the Whole Foods store and three adjacent residential buildings marks a milestone in the $700 million development, which includes over 1,670 residential units and approximately 100,000 square feet of retail space. The developers anticipate attracting more retail tenants as the project progresses. (This article is behind a paywall) (Tristan Navera / Washington Business Journal)
Alexandria City Council considering, but cautious of, affordable housing height bonuses for new buildings
In a joint meeting with the Alexandria Planning Commission, several members of the Alexandria City Council expressed support for allowing developers of new buildings height bonuses if they provide an extra percentage of affordable housing units. However, several members expressed caution not just around height in certain neighborhoods that are traditionally low-rise, but if the number of extra market-rate units would cancel out existing affordability when developing on sites of older, currently affordable, but less dense garden apartment buildings. City staff will make recommendations for the proposal this summer. (James Cullum / ALXNow)
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