Library News

The Examiner Letters: July 11, 2007

The Examiner
2007-07-11

WASHINGTON - D.C. maintains tradition of corruption, non transparency, cronyism, selective access, blatant manipulations of due process and gaming of legitimate public oversight continue at the D.C. Council. More public property is now up for grabs in the West End at 23rd and L/M streets NW, including a big firehouse, a public library and a police station on perhaps the choicest land in downtown D.C.

Council Member Jack Evans said in your newspaper on July 6 that “All of the conditions for a successful development now exist, and we should not hesitate to proceed.” You bet. On July 3, Evans and two committees ramrodded through a supposed “public roundtable” with just one day’s notice (or less). Not even the West End and Foggy Bottom Advisory Neighborhood Commissioners or the Foggy Bottom Citizens Association even knew of it to prepare any form of public comment, let alone average citizens.

I believe only Evans’ pre-selected developer and a few council members showed up. Of course, it’s hard to know for sure who attended or just what was said, since nearly a week later, the required video record of the testimony still does not exist online for the public to review. Nor has it been replayed on cable Channel 13, as is standard practice for all D.C. Council hearings.

Evans understated his success at manipulating public oversight in what is now oxymoronically called “D.C. good government.” The high art of preferential access, greased deals, sweetheart arrangements, lack of community input, opaque decision making, and syncopated information disclosure has been perfect.

David J. Mallof
Washington