Great message. Time for Ward 2 to step up and enter the 21st century, as Ward 6 has.

by oboe on Oct 27, 2011 10:33 am • link • report

Generally I agree, but I think the analysis of retaining families is not quite right. I don't think many families move out of DC because it's not liveable and walkable enough. I think the main reason families move out far and away is because of schools. Parks might be a small part of it but I think the issue of "space" is a big factor. The problem is you can't really solve the "space" issue legislatively (as it's more of a problem of changing people's perceptions of how much and what kind of space one needs to raise a child).

by Steven Yates on Oct 27, 2011 10:52 am • link • report

No one cares about Ward 2's problems because everyone knows that Ward 2 residents, on average, are the richest people in the city. Ward 2 isn't where young people with families are moving. Young people with families are moving to the recently deghettofied neighborhoods that are *affordable* for early to mid career professionals. People who can afford to move to Ward 2 are bright enough and wealthy enough to make smart decisions without having to ask for "help" from the city Government. The biggest issue Ward 2 has is out of boundary kids taking up space in their local classrooms. That's a problem that's fixed by continuing the Williams/Fenty school reforms in other wards.

You could elect Gandhi and no one would care about the needs of Ward 2 residents.

by eb on Oct 27, 2011 11:24 am • link • report

eb - you might need to haul out your ward boundary map, because a lot of said people are moving to neighborhoods like Shaw, Logan Circle, Chinatown, and Southwest, which are in Ward 2. (Were you maybe thinking of Ward 3?)

by pagodat on Oct 27, 2011 11:37 am • link • report

@pagodat

Southwest (at least the part people live in) is in Ward 6.

by Steven Yates on Oct 27, 2011 11:40 am • link • report

I don't live in Ward 2, but I lost all faith in Jack Evans over his flip flop on the 15th Street cycletrack. One month he was calling for it to be ripped out to return a 4th vehicle travel lane to 15th st, then Shane Farthing from WABA takes him on a bike ride of it and he wants to not only keep it, but expand the cycletrack network elsewhere.

I'm a supporter of cycletracks, so the about face was welcome to me. However, it was clear that Evans does not do his own legwork or form his own opinions before making calls for drastic changes or roll-backs of progressive initiatives. He was responding to the cries of a minority of well-connected residents who were irrationally furious about the change in their neighborhood, despite its many tangible and obvious benefits.

Even a cursory visit to see the cycletrack in action would have demonstrated its value, but he only bothered to do that after he'd made a huge issue of calling for it to be torn out, and only then because WABA went to him about reconsidering his ill-informed position. Not what we need in elected leaders.

I hope Ward 2 goes in a different direction than Evans.

by Will on Oct 27, 2011 11:42 am • link • report

What do you believe the strategic issues are that the council must address?

I would be interested how the Council is preparing for the potential reduction in Federal funding that in large part sustains our economy. Will that be addressed through further reduction in services? Greater increases in revenue? Where will that revenue come from?

by DCster on Oct 27, 2011 12:01 pm • link • report

Wow. A whole piece about the lack of attention for education in ward 2 and not a word about the largest educational institution and employer in the ward? Wow.

My statement from a couple of posts ago stands.

by Jasper on Oct 27, 2011 12:04 pm • link • report

I'm a big fan of term limits, so on that basis alone I won't be voting for Jack again this time. Besides, I've been part of a big group of neighbors in Shaw who've been in constant contact with him for months over what should be a simple constituent services issue that's going nowhere. I'm going to do my best to get to Stoney's tonight to hear your ideas!

by shaw guy on Oct 27, 2011 12:05 pm • link • report

whuuuut? fiona is not even a candidate. just called OCF to confirm. why in the world is she calling herself one and GGW running this piece?

god, david and ken - be a little more obvious......

by Left4Dead on Oct 27, 2011 12:05 pm • link • report

@Left4Dead, Did you notice this little gem at the end of the article:

Fiona Grieg is a prospective candidate for DC Council in Ward 2.

A couple of thoughts:

Do parents making let's say, 100k combined income, mostly send their kids to DCPS or private schools? Conversely, is the practice of parents fleeing (postkids) as prevalent as it has been in years past?

Is the city's fiscal position really in a bad place? How do parks help that?

Forget the Councilmember, why is Natwar still there and why have DC residents not called for his head?

Also, voting for a specific candidate won't move us past the ethics scandals. Amending/implementing the current rules will likely work better. Talking about ethics (or lack thereof) is fun. Let's pass/enforce laws.

by HogWash on Oct 27, 2011 12:42 pm • link • report

"No one cares about Ward 2's problems because everyone knows that Ward 2 residents, on average, are the richest people in the city. "

Well presumably Ward 2 residents care about Ward 2's problems, and since Ward 2 residents are the ones choosing who is going to be the Ward 2 councilmember, then I would think bringing up Ward 2 problems is in fact quite germain.

Also, Ward 3 is much more wealthy than Ward 2, as a matter of average and median wealth/income. Ward 4 might be more wealthy than Ward 2 as well, but I'm not sure of that.

by TM on Oct 27, 2011 12:55 pm • link • report

"20 years ago the city was mired in bloated, slow-moving agencies that couldn't deliver basic government services. Today, DC agencies generally deliver the services that residents pay for with their taxes."

This woman definitely isn't living in the same city I live in. Were it not for Jack Evans and his capable staff, it would be even harder to get the basics done around here.

An example in my case was my ordering of a new trash can and new recycling bin. I'd been alerted by neighbors that if I was going to replace my cracked can and broken bin that I'd better do it before the cut-off for no-charge replacements. (Which was something like Monday, April 25.) I put my order in on line on April 24th .... and then the wait began. I gave it 2 months and called 311 and was referred to the person responsible for delivering the new cans ... and told they'd just arrived at their warehouse and that I'd be getting mine 'within the week'. Well, another 4 weeks went by and I still hadn't gotten them. I called again and this time I was told that I 'have to wait my turn' ... with a side remark being that since I'd ordered before the cut-off date for free replacements, they'd fill mine only after they'd filled the paid requests. I waited a couple more months ... and decided to contact Jack Evans constituent services person for Ward 2, Andrew Huff ... This was on a weekday afternoon ... a Monday. The next morning my two new cans were sitting by my front door ... " Problem solved ... but only by calling Jack Evan's Office.

YES, the executive branch should get their act together and make the system work. But it doesn't. And until such time that it works we are fortunate to have a Councilmember like Jack Evans who knows that his constituents are looking for service and aren't looking for words.

Now if Fiona Greig really believes "DC agencies generally deliver the services that residents pay for with their taxes, she's either not lived here very long or maybe doesn't need to deal directly with the city on a daily basis. Although I don't know who anyone who owns a car in the District or has to deal with getting city services for their houses (including getting permits) wouldn't understand we still have a real problem here in terms of city services.

Maybe she thinks because we have a couple bike paths around that "DC agencies generally deliver the services that residents pay for with their taxes. I dunno, but I have to seriously question her capabilities for running for this office if she doesn't understand the problems.

by Lance on Oct 27, 2011 1:00 pm • link • report

Lance,

What issues have you had with owning a car in the District? We have a car, and have actually been thrilled at the improvements (over 10 years, so I can't pin them to a specific Mayoral administration) in automating the license and registration renewal with online services. And even the inspection center in Southwest seems to operate much more smoothly than it used to. Same thing with online payment of parking tickets.

In 6+ years, we haven't come across a single issue.

So now you know "someone who owns a car in the District" who doesn't see any problem with those services.

Other agencies still have some issues, but we've actually gotten pretty decent responses from DPW as well, when we were dealing with recycling collection issues (stemming, I think from confusion about houses in our alley that have private trash collection vs. those that have public collection).

by Jacques on Oct 27, 2011 1:41 pm • link • report

Yes, what is she going to do about garbage cans? That's what most people want to know.

by aaa on Oct 27, 2011 1:55 pm • link • report

Sounds like a bunch of complaints about Jack Evans and no ideas or recommendations for improvements. Should get her far on the campaign trail. That and supporting the Georgetown campus plan.

by FoggyRez on Oct 27, 2011 2:05 pm • link • report

Okay, so Greig sounds pretty reasonable, but her opponent has @Lance's endorsement...because Evans expedited the delivery of his replacement trash can.

I think this says more about the dynamics of the race than two dozen debates or a thousand position papers ever could.

by oboe on Oct 27, 2011 2:09 pm • link • report

"What issues have you had with owning a car in the District? We have a car, and have actually been thrilled at the improvements (over 10 years, so I can't pin them to a specific Mayoral administration) in automating the license and registration renewal with online services. And even the inspection center in Southwest seems to operate much more smoothly than it used to. Same thing with online payment of parking tickets."

Overall my DMV experience hasn't been bad, but last time I went (on a Wednesday morning, not a typically busy time) I had to wait 45 minutes in line. Also, there seems to have been a policy change that allows employees to wear street clothes. That is unacceptable for taxpayer-facing jobs.

by Phil on Oct 27, 2011 3:05 pm • link • report

Incidentally, my example of driver issues was far broader than getting your license or even of the DMV itself. Do most readers on here realize that the Councilmembers have to devote staff time to 'getting to the bottom of wrongly issued parking tickets?' Every Councilmember I've known has a person on staff who is charged with going down in person to DMV to get wrongly issued tickets cleared.

Now should the Councilmembers be having to use their resources to make up for the shortcomings of the executive branch? Of course not. But the point is that for someone to say that 'DC agencies generally deliver the services that residents pay for with their taxes' is more than a little worrisome. A good chunk of a councilmember's time is spent making up for the problems in the executive branch ... possibly the majority of it when you take into account oversight hearings and the like which usually turn out to be much more than just 'oversight'.

by Lance on Oct 27, 2011 3:51 pm • link • report

Yes, constituent service is a major part of any legislator's responsibilities, usually around 50% or so. This is true in local, state, and national politics. Absolutely nothing unique about it.

by Phil on Oct 27, 2011 4:05 pm • link • report

I'd better do it before the cut-off for no-charge replacements. (Which was something like Monday, April 25.) I put my order in on line on April 24th

Nothing like waiting until the last minute and then wondering why things don't go smoothly...

by Marian Berry on Oct 27, 2011 4:14 pm • link • report

McKinsey consultants make terrible politicans. You write an entire post without once mentioning Jack Evans?

Constituency service is everything. That keeps you in office for a long, long time. Any evidence Jack is slacking?

by charlie on Oct 27, 2011 4:53 pm • link • report

Yes, constituent service is a major part of any legislator's responsibilities, usually around 50% or so. This is true in local, state, and national politics. Absolutely nothing unique about it.

Bingo. These are the sorts of issues that any councilmember (or Congressperson, for that matter) who cares even a little about being reelected stays on top of. Not sure why @Lance thinks Evans' eventual (hopefully soon) replacement would ignore these issues.

by oboe on Oct 27, 2011 4:54 pm • link • report

Too little (big time) and too late. No way in God's green earth can Greig unseat Evans this late in the game, even with the GGW crowd behind her. Good for her givin it the ole college try though.

Evans has generally served Ward 2 well. He takes care of the constituent issues that keeps him in office. I suppose his staff is largely to thank for that.

In any case, it seems that Fiona has already peaked and said hardly a thing.

by Fred Phelps on Oct 27, 2011 8:11 pm • link • report

@Oboe, "Not sure why @Lance thinks Evans' eventual (hopefully soon) replacement would ignore these issues."

I never said she would ignore them, I said that by her own words:

""DC agencies generally deliver the services that residents pay for with their taxes"

it's obvious she doesn't understand the formidable obstacles the residents of this city face on a daily basis when trying to navigate the bloated and inefficient bureaucracy we call 'City Hall'.

In or

by Lance on Oct 27, 2011 10:46 pm • link • report

And without getting to the specific of each area where this statement is woefully wrong ... Oboe, do you think we are getting the services we pay for with regards to our schools? (We spend the most per capita but get among the worst results of any jurisdiction.) And something like one third of our budget goes to paying that! Do you think we are getting the services we pay for with regards to where the other 2/3 are spent? Even if you do, that 1/3 in of itself makes her statement seem generally ignorant of the lay of the land she's wanting to come into to serve in a capacity of CM over.

by Lance on Oct 27, 2011 10:51 pm • link • report

Evans' is long past his pull date. He's the developer interests' best friends. Whether this woman or someone else is the best candidate to replace him is open to debate and hopefully, we'll have other opportunities to make that choice.

by Rich on Oct 27, 2011 11:09 pm • link • report

Is it just me, does the use of "that woman" seem like a sexist remark? When I wrote about Sam Zimbabwe nobody referred to him as "that man."

On could just as easily (and in fewer characters) call this candidate Fiona, or Grieg, just as we call "that man she's running against" Jack, or Evans.

by David Alpert on Oct 28, 2011 8:54 am • link • report

Strong opening, Ms. Grieg. And you smoked out Lance, whose endorsement of your opponent pushes your stock even higher. Well played!

On a substantive note, as a parent (not in Ward 2, obviously) I agree 1000% about schools, parks, and walkable communities. If you can convince voters you can deliver on these priorities, you will be a shoo-in. The problem is that the incumbent is very powerful and can deliver. It's just that he'll probably deliver more reliably for developers than for parents/homeowners.

Not trying to discourage her, but Evans is a good politician. This is an uphill battle. Just ask Councilmember Weaver.

by Ward 1 Guy on Oct 28, 2011 9:14 am • link • report

BTW: Is Grieg running as a democrat, so that the election is limited to registered democrats, or is she running as an independent or republican so that actually *all* ward 2 residents can have a say?

by Jasper on Oct 28, 2011 10:09 am • link • report

I've known Jack my whole life through my family as business owners on 17th Street. I've worked with him and his staff a great deal the past few years on issues regarding rats in alleys between Corcorcan and Ross ES, the 17th Street Festival, and business development. I'm the first to say he hasn't dealt with the educational issues and needs to. I met Fiona for the first time last night and was able to talk for about 20 minutes with her. She is a very articulate and smart woman and I hope to learn more about her.

Retaining families is a city issue and very much a Ward 2 issue. Wards 5 & 6 have made a great deal of progress over the past year and a half and others need to learn from them and follow suite. Like his kids, I attended private schools in the 80's and 90's. That was the 'only option' he and my parents saw for us (and for those that don't know, he was a single dad of three for numerous years before his recent marriage. He did his best as a fulltime single parent as any parent would). But my kids are DCPS students and I'm not backing down on holding anyone accountable. I live in Ward 2 because I'm fortunate that I live in the house I grew up in. I can't afford private schools and I refuse to look towards charters. I choose to invest in my community and the schools.

I offered to hold educational forums for Evans and Grieg in my house and invited a broad spectrum of people that included parents and non-parents (GGW included). As President of the Urban Neighborhood Alliance we have also offered to hold open forums on all topics to Evans and Greig (I met her last night and extended the offer).

People can argue all over the forums and infer the better candidate, or they can hold both accountable and start asking the hard questions at public venues. I see to many people in this city jump the gun without being well informed or researching the history of their neighborhoods and communities. Do you know who your ANC is? Do you know what they do? Do you know what your neighborhood was like 5, 10, 15 years ago? Do you know that Georgetown and Anacostia were at times the wealthiest African American neighborhoods in DC? Take a gues which was first before that population was forced to move out. See a parrallell in gentrification or the flee to the burbs for many ethnic groups?

Loyalities should lie with the best option in a candidate ready to lead in a progressive way to bring DC back to the rich city it once was decades ago. I welcome all to stop personal attacks on each other and direct the energies towards the questions that need to be asked.

* UNA is a newly formed group and our website is still under conctruction. If you would like to attend one of our open and public forums for Evans and (hopefully) Greig in January or February, please go to the following link for updates: http://www.unadc.org/una/Events_Get_Involved.html

by Lee Granados on Oct 28, 2011 12:04 pm • link • report

Ugh.
While I strongly believe that incumbents need to be challenged and should never run unopposed, I also think that candidates should not run just for the sake of running.
I don't question Ms. Greig's commitment to public service, but I find this "manifesto" to be shallow. If she is truly interested in making substantive changes, then running for At-Large would be a better venue. Ideally she ought to leave the cushy comfort of georgetown and move to ward 5 and unseat a truly unfit politician, but I realize that that is too much to ask.

by petardimmy on Oct 28, 2011 1:14 pm • link • report

Those of us that have been around for more than the last couple of years know what Jack has done for education in Ward 2. My family has been here for 30 years and we know how bad it was and how far we have come.

He was the first Councilmember to call for a Mayoral takeover of the schools and was by far the strongest supporter of Michelle Rhee. The School Modernization Act, which we can thank for our recent renovations came directly from Evans. Bottom line is that he knows how to get things done and maneuver the DC bureaucracy. Greig most certainly does not.

Look up the voter records for 2008 and 2010. Ms. Greig, despite being a registered Dem in Georgetown, did not even vote! How is that for community involvement?

by William Folk on Oct 28, 2011 2:01 pm • link • report

"Look up the voter records for 2008 and 2010. Ms. Greig, despite being a registered Dem in Georgetown, did not even vote! How is that for community involvement?"

Voting is so last century. Did she comment on blogs?

by charlie on Oct 28, 2011 2:10 pm • link • report

Did she comment on blogs?

Has she commented under her own post?

by Jasper on Oct 28, 2011 3:22 pm • link • report

He says, "My job is to do oversight. It's not to catch people who are stealing."

Evans has done neither despite plenty of opportunity. Over $100 million has gone missing from DC coffers under Evans' chairmanship of council's Finance and Revenue committee.

by LongTimeRez on Oct 28, 2011 4:43 pm • link • report

If you want families in the communities, then she would not support campus plans that result in high populations of students move in and trash them.

by fiona will lose if she supports campus plan on Oct 29, 2011 7:54 am • link • report

If Grieg truly has not voted in any election since she's lived in DC, that's really not good. It would be nice if she or any of her supporters would respond to that issue.

It would also be useful to hear if she had been meeting with a Councilmember's staffer and an employee of a non-profit group before she decided to run for the Ward 2 seat. Was that what motivated her to run for office since she's never played any previous role in the public sphere?

by Fritz on Oct 29, 2011 1:53 pm • link • report

@ Fritz: Was that what motivated her to run for office since she's never played any previous role in the public sphere?

What does that matter?

If Grieg truly has not voted in any election since she's lived in DC, that's really not good.

Are there relevant elections in DC then? Most go unopposed - even in the primaries. In the last election a council member got voted in by less than 2% of Washingtonians. Honestly, the Chinese even try to get people to show up for their single-option elections. In DC, even that goes too far.

by Jasper on Oct 30, 2011 10:09 pm • link • report

I agree that the "this woman" comment sounds at least mildly sexist. It's certainly using her gender to be dismissive of her.

by Geoffrey Hatchard on Nov 1, 2011 6:51 am • link • report

Is "this woman" more or less offensive than her use of "Homosexual McKinsey" in reference to a campaign donor:
http://www.washingtoncitypaper.com/blogs/looselips/2011/11/04/who-will-ward-2-candidate-fiona-greig-raise-money-from/

by ontarioroader on Nov 5, 2011 5:37 pm • link • report

I now see why no one cares about ward 2 residents, but they should, I live among condos but I aso am a resident of DCHA on 4th and H street n.w. and we are not rich we are forgottten about there are no services for us and they are forever putting up exspensive dinning place come on now if I am receiveing SSA how can I aford a &18.00 hamburger. Jack Evans doesn't care

by Sandra Brooks on Mar 20, 2012 10:48 am • link • report