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Friday, November 20, 2009
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October 06, 2008 - Starting today, residents of D.C. will be able to recycle a whole lot more of their garbage. D.C. mayor Adrian Fenty announced what products can now be recycled. Fenty noted a recent national recycling study that says District residents recycle better than most. D.C.'s Department of the Environment Director George Hawkins says this doesn't just help the environment. Fenty says he now wants to purchase bigger blue recycling bins for district residents so they can put all the new recyclable products into them.
Matt Bush reports...
October 06, 2008 - (Oct 25) HAUNTING SAAM There's a "haunting" going on...online, courtesy of the Smithsonian American Art Museum. Getting on-board with the internet gaming craze, and competing with the likes of Imperium, Ninja Glove and Free Rider 2, the esteemed historical institution is offering its own online reality game Ghosts of a Chance, through October 25th. In this international challenge, players discover clues on the museum's website and submit virtual "artifacts" to complete the task. The winners will be on display for museum visitors.
(Oct 6) ANYONE CAN WHISTLE The music and lyrics of Stephen Sondheim fill the stage at Signature Theatre for one performance with Anyone Can Whistle tonight at 8pm. Wacky, intelligent and highly unconventional, this show is a celebrated cult classic. An absurdist and fantastical political satire, it tells the tale of a corrupt mayor who fakes a miracle to revitalize her bankrupt town; a nurse determined to expose the fraud; and a patient pretending he's a doctor, who just sits back and revels in the chaos. With its poignant message about the perils of selfishness, this musical is a must-see for any Sondheimaniac.
(Oct 7) HOMESTEADING AMERICA The film Land of Dreams: Homesteading America will be screened tomorrow (Tuesday, October 7th) at American University's Wechsler Theater at 7pm. From Alaska to Nebraska, homesteading has always been a hallmark of America's pioneering panorama. Filmmaker Charles Dunkerly will be on hand to present and discuss his work, exploring the 130-year history of the Homestead Act through a collection of personal stories of struggle and success, loss and reclamation, unraveling how the Wild Wild West was ultimately tamed and settled.
Example of an "artifact" submitted for the Smithsonian's online game.
courtesy of: Smithsonian American Art Museum
October 06, 2008 - In Virginia, Fairfax County's Elections Office is urging residents, who haven't received their voter registration card, to call and verify they are in the system. Rokey Suleman, the General Registrar for Fairfax County's Elections Office, says about 70,000 voters registered in the County this year, more than half of those are new voters. With thousands of applications to process, it can be problematic.
"We have had some people who claim they've registered to vote at certain places and we don't have their registration in the system yet," Suleman says.
He is urging residents who haven't received their voter registration card in the mail to call the elections office.
Jessica Forres has more...
October 06, 2008 - Leaders of a new group VOICE, or Virginians Organized for Interfaith Community Engagement, is promising they'll use their clout to bring about change for those who need it most. Religious leaders representing 40 faith-based institutions in Northern Virginia say their mission is to serve the "least, lost, lonely and leftout." And with a combined membership of 120,000 residents, they say they will hold elected officials accountable.
Kavitha Cardoza reports...
October 06, 2008 - Officials in Virginia's Loudoun County are drafting plans to help public employees buy foreclosed homes. The program would provide $5,000 grants to county and school system workers to use in purchasing a foreclosed property in the county. Officials are working on the proposal, which a Board of Supervisors committee is expected to take up next month.
The move comes as foreclosures have increased in the area, resulting in zoning and law enforcement challenges. Officials also say many public workers live outside of Loudoun, because there's been a shortage of affordable housing. Last month, the county board approved a program that would allow people making up to $99,000 a year to receive low-interest loans when buying a foreclosed home.
Patrick Madden reports
October 06, 2008 - In Maryland, more than 20 group homes in Montgomery County still don't have sprinkler systems to protect young, disabled and elderly residents, despite $250,000 spent and a year of work.
Officials say the county has completed 18 sprinkler systems since fire code violations were discovered last year, but 24 group homes still need upgrades. Senior Housing and Community Affairs Planner Alan Hepler says the money ran out after negotiations delayed the bidding process for some of the work. Hepler tells the Washington Examiner the county is still finding group homes that violate fire codes. County Council Vice President Phil Andrews is encouraging council members to authorize another $150,000 for the project, saying no one wants to evict people from the homes because there is no where else for them to go.
Erin Stamper reports...
October 06, 2008 - The financial rescue plan has passed, but the work the bill will fund it just beginning.
Todd Zwillich reports on the fallout from the bailout...
October 06, 2008 - Transportation officials in Virginia say they'll unveil plans later this month to widen Interstate 66 inside the Capital Beltway. The $75 million project would extend a third lane between on-ramps and off-ramps at three westbound stretches of the highway. Officials say giving motorists more time to merge into and out of through lanes would help improve the safety of the road.
Some residents of Arlington and Fairfax counties have criticized the project -- saying it will draw more cars to an already congested roadway. The Virginia Department of Transportation will hold a public hearing on the project's preliminary design at Washington and Lee High School in Arlington on Oct. 27.
Rebecca Blatt reports...
October 06, 2008 - The "Parade of Horrible." That's what Maryland's Governor Martin O'Malley is calling an upcoming meeting of the state spending board. The reason: more budget cuts.
Revenue estimates show Maryland will bring in $432 million less than previously estimated for the current fiscal year. O'Malley is asking state agencies to look at ways to balance the books. His administration says it has already made $1.8 billion in budget cuts since the Democratic governor took office in January 2007 -- though Republican critics dispute that figure. The Board of Public Works is expected to discuss cuts October 15th.
Rebecca Blatt reports...
October 06, 2008 - Officials in Maryland plan to review guidelines for deploying the state's medevac helicopters after a recent crash killed four people.
The head of Maryland's Shock Trauma Center and the director of the state's emergency medical services system are expected to announce the review today. Some critics of the state program say the current decision-making process about when to call a helicopter results in large numbers of unnecessary air rescues. One of those killed in the most recent crash, was a patient being transported after a traffic accident. Some lawmakers are claiming the crash has increased pressure to privatize the service or find money to replace the aging helicopter fleet. But, Maryland's chief of emergency medical response, says a private service would leave less-populated areas underserved.
Erin Stamper reports...
October 06, 2008 - Enrollment in D.C.'s public schools and public charter schools could grow by 20,000 students over the next 6 years. That's the conclusion of a new study.
Researchers say the key to boosting enrollment is raising confidence in the school system -- for current residents and those expected to move to the District. Projections estimate that D.C. could add more than 40,000 residents by 2015.
The report, which was a collaboration between the Brookings Institution, the 21st Century School Fund and the Urban Institute, suggests several factors could help reverse years of declining enrollment. Researchers say the District must offer the right mix of academic reform, affordable housing and neighborhood revitalization to attract new students. They also say public schools must strengthen ties with neighborhoods where the number of families with school age children is rising.
Rebecca Blatt reports...
October 06, 2008 - In Maryland, as police in Montgomery County continue to investigate a series of break-ins targeting the elderly, seniors there are learning what steps they can take to stay safe. Hundreds of senior citizens descended on Walter Johnson High School in Bethesda this afternoon for a seminar on residential safety.
There's been a string of home-invasions targeting senior citizens in recent months. Police have definitively linked three incidents and say three others could be connected as well. In all of the cases, the victims were bound and, in the last one, 63-year-old Mary Frances Havenstein was killed. Monday's event is not officially related to the break-ins, but some residents say that's why they came.
Later tonight, county leaders are holding a community meeting to update the investigation into the break-ins. That starts at 7:30 at Walt Whitman High School in Bethesda.
Patrick Madden reports...
October 06, 2008 - In Maryland, as police in Montgomery County continue to investigate a series of break-ins involving the elderly, more details are emerging about the attacker. At Monday night's community meeting about the home invasions, police shed light on the man they believe is targeting the county's senior citizens. In all but one of the cases, police say he wore a mask or bandanna, and in the last three, the suspect had a handgun. In two of the break-ins, the power was cut, and the phone line was disabled in another. In all six, the victims were bound, and in the latest one 63-year-old Mary Frances Havenstein was killed.
Police say residents should make sure their doors and windows are locked and to use an alarm system if they have one. So far, none of the victims had security systems. Police ask residents to call in anything that appears out of the ordinary. They say DNA definitively links the attacker to three of the break-ins, but the lead investigator says she believes that all six are related and raised the possibility of another robbery attempt last week.
Patrick Madden reports...
October 06, 2008 - A former professor at a university in Florida is closer to facing trial in northern Virginia. The Supreme Court is refusing to intervene in the case of Sami Al-Arian. He is involved in a case in northern Virgnia in which he faces charges of refusing to testify before a grand jury. Al-Arian made a deal with prosecutors and forged a plea bargain three years ago. He admitted he conspired to assist the Palestinian Islamic Jihad.
Al-Arian argues the terms of the plea bargain bar the government from demanding that he testify in other terror cases. A federal appeals court disagreed, and the nation's highest court turned away his appeal. A judge in Virginia wanted the appeal to be resolved before trying Al-Arian for contempt of court.
Bill Redlin reports...
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