Mary Cheh backs Tricia Duncan for Ward 3 Councilmember

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:She has said she was only supporting a woman.

And the release is that she is voting for Tricia, but she made it clear it is not an endorsement.

Is there a political science major in the house who can explain that distinction?

It is distinction that is meaningless but meant to make her friends that didn't receive her endorsement feel better. We can all parse this language.

This is the most Mary Cheh thing ever. Will anyone miss her?

I will. I fought with Mary from time to time, but she always had integrity. She has character and was fit for office. Never worrying that some slimy scandal would ensnare her is worth a future, as voters will soon learn if they elect Eric Goulet. Goulet comes from the wing of DC politics with little care for the legality of actions/behaviors.

I will as well. Same as you, I disagreed with her often, but also immensely respected her and the hard work she always put into her job. Being the CM from Ward 3 is not easy, as you have to balance the interests of your wealthy, white ward with what is best for all of DC. Her focus on improving public transit, making DC more sustainable and green, and supporting public schools was really amazing, and she will be missed.

I don't agree entirely with any of the Ward 3 candidates running (just like I didn't with Cheh), but there are clearly worse ones and better ones. It would be disastrous to have Goulet win the nomination. I think I will be voting for Duncan, but the primary is still a month away.

Cheh's aloofness on the Palisades Trolley Trail issue - and failure to deal with Georgetown University's concerns - was very frustrating. And, strangely, it's an issue that all candidates - including Goulet - seems to agree on. But on most other issues, she did well. Her staff is great and they are genuinely motivated in solving their constituents' problems. I would take Cheh not just over any of the contenders but the entire field combined.

What do you mean "failure to deal with Georgetown University's concerns?" It was Georgetown that got DDOT to scuttle the trail in their 2019 feasibility study.

Goulet's wife works for Georgetown and is part of the team that is working on the trail issues. I'm sure the university's "concerns" will be dealt with if he wins.

I know GU scuttled the trail. There is a case to be made that they did so shadily that Cheh could have done nothing about it, but she at least could have called GU out on their very shitty behavior. She hasn’t said a word about it.

I’ve Goulet propose the PTT as a solution to the access issues for MacArthur HS. I guess he’s waiting for their campaign donation.

So the trail he opposes is a solution for the high school he opposes?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I agree that Goulet is an outlier among his fellow candidates. Supporting a football stadium, and being a shill for the Chamber of Commerce is a horrible look.

I will be supporting Frumin, because I think he has the most organic support in the Ward and has the best chance of ensuring that Goulet doesn't win.

Frumin has solid credentials but his campaign has been disappointing to many who know him well and had higher hopes. He didn't lose a lot of time in pandering to the Foxhall NIMBYs by offering to pursue alternatives to Foxhall Elementary that he knows (or at least should know) have been tried and were found to be infeasible. The leader of the Save Hardy Park campaign had a Frumin sign on his yard before he replaced with a Goulet sign following their meet-and-greet last Friday. Then there's this silly stuff with the ice rink. Frumin's trying to be everyone to everybody, which makes it very hard to know what he would do if he was elected.

And I am not sure what is silly about an ice rink in Friendship Heights. The closest sheets are at Cabin John or ft Dupont. For the number of kids who play hockey or families who would like to skate, it would be very well supported. I don't see that being all things to all people. It is a single, concrete suggestion for an area that is going to be totally remade over the next decade.

Any land big enough to support an ice rink would be better utilized as a new school. According to the Crowding Working Group the area west of Rock Creek needs a new high school, a new middle school and two new elementary schools. Even if Foxhall and MacArthur both get built we're still down two schools.

You can put a rink underground. I don't think that works for a school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I agree that Goulet is an outlier among his fellow candidates. Supporting a football stadium, and being a shill for the Chamber of Commerce is a horrible look.

I will be supporting Frumin, because I think he has the most organic support in the Ward and has the best chance of ensuring that Goulet doesn't win.

Frumin has solid credentials but his campaign has been disappointing to many who know him well and had higher hopes. He didn't lose a lot of time in pandering to the Foxhall NIMBYs by offering to pursue alternatives to Foxhall Elementary that he knows (or at least should know) have been tried and were found to be infeasible. The leader of the Save Hardy Park campaign had a Frumin sign on his yard before he replaced with a Goulet sign following their meet-and-greet last Friday. Then there's this silly stuff with the ice rink. Frumin's trying to be everyone to everybody, which makes it very hard to know what he would do if he was elected.

I actually read Frumin's description of the Foxhall situation, and my sense is that he feels there are alternatives to wasting money on boondoggle facilities and splitting up Glover Park. If the Foxhall people, who all appear to be going to the Goulet camp, feel that is aligned, that is their perrogative, but in talking to him, it is clear Frumin was at that place long before Cheh even pulled out of the race. You can ask others in the Ward 3 education community, many of them oppose this solution.

Saying there are alternatives without naming them is like Nixon's "secret plan" to end the Vietnam War.

In the debate over Foxhall, you have people on one side who say, "there must be a better location." These are people who haven't spent any time looking at alternatives, and many of whom have only the barest notion of how DCPS works or even what a neighborhood public school is. On the other side you have people saying "this location may not be great but it's the best we have." Those tend to be people who have spend years and in some cases decades working on public education issues.

How are you getting 1000 high school students and the 400 staff and faculty, as well as another 500 elementary school kids into and out of a 2 block area that is already over congested with cars, every morning and afternoon, when there is no real public transportation and no other safe passage?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I agree that Goulet is an outlier among his fellow candidates. Supporting a football stadium, and being a shill for the Chamber of Commerce is a horrible look.

I will be supporting Frumin, because I think he has the most organic support in the Ward and has the best chance of ensuring that Goulet doesn't win.

Frumin has solid credentials but his campaign has been disappointing to many who know him well and had higher hopes. He didn't lose a lot of time in pandering to the Foxhall NIMBYs by offering to pursue alternatives to Foxhall Elementary that he knows (or at least should know) have been tried and were found to be infeasible. The leader of the Save Hardy Park campaign had a Frumin sign on his yard before he replaced with a Goulet sign following their meet-and-greet last Friday. Then there's this silly stuff with the ice rink. Frumin's trying to be everyone to everybody, which makes it very hard to know what he would do if he was elected.

I actually read Frumin's description of the Foxhall situation, and my sense is that he feels there are alternatives to wasting money on boondoggle facilities and splitting up Glover Park. If the Foxhall people, who all appear to be going to the Goulet camp, feel that is aligned, that is their perrogative, but in talking to him, it is clear Frumin was at that place long before Cheh even pulled out of the race. You can ask others in the Ward 3 education community, many of them oppose this solution.

Saying there are alternatives without naming them is like Nixon's "secret plan" to end the Vietnam War.

In the debate over Foxhall, you have people on one side who say, "there must be a better location." These are people who haven't spent any time looking at alternatives, and many of whom have only the barest notion of how DCPS works or even what a neighborhood public school is. On the other side you have people saying "this location may not be great but it's the best we have." Those tend to be people who have spend years and in some cases decades working on public education issues.

How are you getting 1000 high school students and the 400 staff and faculty, as well as another 500 elementary school kids into and out of a 2 block area that is already over congested with cars, every morning and afternoon, when there is no real public transportation and no other safe passage?

By adding bus routes. Metro runs bus routes specifically for DCPS schools. For example, I'd run a bus route from Farragut North to the school. Google Maps says it's a 6-minute drive over the Whitehurst Freeway. According to Metro it's a 12 minute train ride from Farragut to Tenleytown, so for anyone coming from the east on the Red Line that's a shorter trip than going to Deal or Jackson Reed. Now, it's going to take more than one bus to move that many kids, which is good because it means you can have multiple bus lines. Run another from the Cleveland Park Metro, across Newark to Wisconsin, down Wisconsin to Reservoir and across on Reservoir. Then beef up the D6 on MacArthur.

I'd also fix up the Trolley Trail so that would be an option for kids coming from the east or west.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I agree that Goulet is an outlier among his fellow candidates. Supporting a football stadium, and being a shill for the Chamber of Commerce is a horrible look.

I will be supporting Frumin, because I think he has the most organic support in the Ward and has the best chance of ensuring that Goulet doesn't win.

Frumin has solid credentials but his campaign has been disappointing to many who know him well and had higher hopes. He didn't lose a lot of time in pandering to the Foxhall NIMBYs by offering to pursue alternatives to Foxhall Elementary that he knows (or at least should know) have been tried and were found to be infeasible. The leader of the Save Hardy Park campaign had a Frumin sign on his yard before he replaced with a Goulet sign following their meet-and-greet last Friday. Then there's this silly stuff with the ice rink. Frumin's trying to be everyone to everybody, which makes it very hard to know what he would do if he was elected.

I actually read Frumin's description of the Foxhall situation, and my sense is that he feels there are alternatives to wasting money on boondoggle facilities and splitting up Glover Park. If the Foxhall people, who all appear to be going to the Goulet camp, feel that is aligned, that is their perrogative, but in talking to him, it is clear Frumin was at that place long before Cheh even pulled out of the race. You can ask others in the Ward 3 education community, many of them oppose this solution.

Saying there are alternatives without naming them is like Nixon's "secret plan" to end the Vietnam War.

In the debate over Foxhall, you have people on one side who say, "there must be a better location." These are people who haven't spent any time looking at alternatives, and many of whom have only the barest notion of how DCPS works or even what a neighborhood public school is. On the other side you have people saying "this location may not be great but it's the best we have." Those tend to be people who have spend years and in some cases decades working on public education issues.

How are you getting 1000 high school students and the 400 staff and faculty, as well as another 500 elementary school kids into and out of a 2 block area that is already over congested with cars, every morning and afternoon, when there is no real public transportation and no other safe passage?

Where are you proposing a school be built where transportation isn't an issue?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:She has said she was only supporting a woman.

And the release is that she is voting for Tricia, but she made it clear it is not an endorsement.

Is there a political science major in the house who can explain that distinction?

It is distinction that is meaningless but meant to make her friends that didn't receive her endorsement feel better. We can all parse this language.

This is the most Mary Cheh thing ever. Will anyone miss her?

I will. I fought with Mary from time to time, but she always had integrity. She has character and was fit for office. Never worrying that some slimy scandal would ensnare her is worth a future, as voters will soon learn if they elect Eric Goulet. Goulet comes from the wing of DC politics with little care for the legality of actions/behaviors.

I will as well. Same as you, I disagreed with her often, but also immensely respected her and the hard work she always put into her job. Being the CM from Ward 3 is not easy, as you have to balance the interests of your wealthy, white ward with what is best for all of DC. Her focus on improving public transit, making DC more sustainable and green, and supporting public schools was really amazing, and she will be missed.

I don't agree entirely with any of the Ward 3 candidates running (just like I didn't with Cheh), but there are clearly worse ones and better ones. It would be disastrous to have Goulet win the nomination. I think I will be voting for Duncan, but the primary is still a month away.

Cheh's aloofness on the Palisades Trolley Trail issue - and failure to deal with Georgetown University's concerns - was very frustrating. And, strangely, it's an issue that all candidates - including Goulet - seems to agree on. But on most other issues, she did well. Her staff is great and they are genuinely motivated in solving their constituents' problems. I would take Cheh not just over any of the contenders but the entire field combined.

What do you mean "failure to deal with Georgetown University's concerns?" It was Georgetown that got DDOT to scuttle the trail in their 2019 feasibility study.

Goulet's wife works for Georgetown and is part of the team that is working on the trail issues. I'm sure the university's "concerns" will be dealt with if he wins.

I know GU scuttled the trail. There is a case to be made that they did so shadily that Cheh could have done nothing about it, but she at least could have called GU out on their very shitty behavior. She hasn’t said a word about it.

I’ve Goulet propose the PTT as a solution to the access issues for MacArthur HS. I guess he’s waiting for their campaign donation.

So the trail he opposes is a solution for the high school he opposes?

It was. He wasn’t sounding too crazy until a week or two ago. He seems to have been told that his path to victory now runs through NIMBY-land. Or maybe he’s dumb enough to believe the FCCA when they tell him that they are the true kingmakers of Ward 3 politics. We can expect him to come out against bike lanes any day.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I agree that Goulet is an outlier among his fellow candidates. Supporting a football stadium, and being a shill for the Chamber of Commerce is a horrible look.

I will be supporting Frumin, because I think he has the most organic support in the Ward and has the best chance of ensuring that Goulet doesn't win.

Frumin has solid credentials but his campaign has been disappointing to many who know him well and had higher hopes. He didn't lose a lot of time in pandering to the Foxhall NIMBYs by offering to pursue alternatives to Foxhall Elementary that he knows (or at least should know) have been tried and were found to be infeasible. The leader of the Save Hardy Park campaign had a Frumin sign on his yard before he replaced with a Goulet sign following their meet-and-greet last Friday. Then there's this silly stuff with the ice rink. Frumin's trying to be everyone to everybody, which makes it very hard to know what he would do if he was elected.

I actually read Frumin's description of the Foxhall situation, and my sense is that he feels there are alternatives to wasting money on boondoggle facilities and splitting up Glover Park. If the Foxhall people, who all appear to be going to the Goulet camp, feel that is aligned, that is their perrogative, but in talking to him, it is clear Frumin was at that place long before Cheh even pulled out of the race. You can ask others in the Ward 3 education community, many of them oppose this solution.

Saying there are alternatives without naming them is like Nixon's "secret plan" to end the Vietnam War.

In the debate over Foxhall, you have people on one side who say, "there must be a better location." These are people who haven't spent any time looking at alternatives, and many of whom have only the barest notion of how DCPS works or even what a neighborhood public school is. On the other side you have people saying "this location may not be great but it's the best we have." Those tend to be people who have spend years and in some cases decades working on public education issues.

How are you getting 1000 high school students and the 400 staff and faculty, as well as another 500 elementary school kids into and out of a 2 block area that is already over congested with cars, every morning and afternoon, when there is no real public transportation and no other safe passage?

By adding bus routes. Metro runs bus routes specifically for DCPS schools. For example, I'd run a bus route from Farragut North to the school. Google Maps says it's a 6-minute drive over the Whitehurst Freeway. According to Metro it's a 12 minute train ride from Farragut to Tenleytown, so for anyone coming from the east on the Red Line that's a shorter trip than going to Deal or Jackson Reed. Now, it's going to take more than one bus to move that many kids, which is good because it means you can have multiple bus lines. Run another from the Cleveland Park Metro, across Newark to Wisconsin, down Wisconsin to Reservoir and across on Reservoir. Then beef up the D6 on MacArthur.

I'd also fix up the Trolley Trail so that would be an option for kids coming from the east or west.

Foggy Bottom, I think you mean. It’s indeed a 6 min drive via Whitehurst. Whether going to the school in the morning or coming back in the afternoon, the route is not congested. You end up with a shorter trip to a Metro than Hardy students have.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I agree that Goulet is an outlier among his fellow candidates. Supporting a football stadium, and being a shill for the Chamber of Commerce is a horrible look.

I will be supporting Frumin, because I think he has the most organic support in the Ward and has the best chance of ensuring that Goulet doesn't win.

Frumin has solid credentials but his campaign has been disappointing to many who know him well and had higher hopes. He didn't lose a lot of time in pandering to the Foxhall NIMBYs by offering to pursue alternatives to Foxhall Elementary that he knows (or at least should know) have been tried and were found to be infeasible. The leader of the Save Hardy Park campaign had a Frumin sign on his yard before he replaced with a Goulet sign following their meet-and-greet last Friday. Then there's this silly stuff with the ice rink. Frumin's trying to be everyone to everybody, which makes it very hard to know what he would do if he was elected.

I actually read Frumin's description of the Foxhall situation, and my sense is that he feels there are alternatives to wasting money on boondoggle facilities and splitting up Glover Park. If the Foxhall people, who all appear to be going to the Goulet camp, feel that is aligned, that is their perrogative, but in talking to him, it is clear Frumin was at that place long before Cheh even pulled out of the race. You can ask others in the Ward 3 education community, many of them oppose this solution.

Saying there are alternatives without naming them is like Nixon's "secret plan" to end the Vietnam War.

In the debate over Foxhall, you have people on one side who say, "there must be a better location." These are people who haven't spent any time looking at alternatives, and many of whom have only the barest notion of how DCPS works or even what a neighborhood public school is. On the other side you have people saying "this location may not be great but it's the best we have." Those tend to be people who have spend years and in some cases decades working on public education issues.

How are you getting 1000 high school students and the 400 staff and faculty, as well as another 500 elementary school kids into and out of a 2 block area that is already over congested with cars, every morning and afternoon, when there is no real public transportation and no other safe passage?

By adding bus routes. Metro runs bus routes specifically for DCPS schools. For example, I'd run a bus route from Farragut North to the school. Google Maps says it's a 6-minute drive over the Whitehurst Freeway. According to Metro it's a 12 minute train ride from Farragut to Tenleytown, so for anyone coming from the east on the Red Line that's a shorter trip than going to Deal or Jackson Reed. Now, it's going to take more than one bus to move that many kids, which is good because it means you can have multiple bus lines. Run another from the Cleveland Park Metro, across Newark to Wisconsin, down Wisconsin to Reservoir and across on Reservoir. Then beef up the D6 on MacArthur.

I'd also fix up the Trolley Trail so that would be an option for kids coming from the east or west.

Foggy Bottom, I think you mean. It’s indeed a 6 min drive via Whitehurst. Whether going to the school in the morning or coming back in the afternoon, the route is not congested. You end up with a shorter trip to a Metro than Hardy students have.

I did mean Farragut, it's only three blocks further east than Foggy Bottom and is on the Red Line. But it doesn't matter, the point is this isn't an unsolvable problem.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I agree that Goulet is an outlier among his fellow candidates. Supporting a football stadium, and being a shill for the Chamber of Commerce is a horrible look.

I will be supporting Frumin, because I think he has the most organic support in the Ward and has the best chance of ensuring that Goulet doesn't win.

Frumin has solid credentials but his campaign has been disappointing to many who know him well and had higher hopes. He didn't lose a lot of time in pandering to the Foxhall NIMBYs by offering to pursue alternatives to Foxhall Elementary that he knows (or at least should know) have been tried and were found to be infeasible. The leader of the Save Hardy Park campaign had a Frumin sign on his yard before he replaced with a Goulet sign following their meet-and-greet last Friday. Then there's this silly stuff with the ice rink. Frumin's trying to be everyone to everybody, which makes it very hard to know what he would do if he was elected.

I actually read Frumin's description of the Foxhall situation, and my sense is that he feels there are alternatives to wasting money on boondoggle facilities and splitting up Glover Park. If the Foxhall people, who all appear to be going to the Goulet camp, feel that is aligned, that is their perrogative, but in talking to him, it is clear Frumin was at that place long before Cheh even pulled out of the race. You can ask others in the Ward 3 education community, many of them oppose this solution.

Saying there are alternatives without naming them is like Nixon's "secret plan" to end the Vietnam War.

In the debate over Foxhall, you have people on one side who say, "there must be a better location." These are people who haven't spent any time looking at alternatives, and many of whom have only the barest notion of how DCPS works or even what a neighborhood public school is. On the other side you have people saying "this location may not be great but it's the best we have." Those tend to be people who have spend years and in some cases decades working on public education issues.

How are you getting 1000 high school students and the 400 staff and faculty, as well as another 500 elementary school kids into and out of a 2 block area that is already over congested with cars, every morning and afternoon, when there is no real public transportation and no other safe passage?

By adding bus routes. Metro runs bus routes specifically for DCPS schools. For example, I'd run a bus route from Farragut North to the school. Google Maps says it's a 6-minute drive over the Whitehurst Freeway. According to Metro it's a 12 minute train ride from Farragut to Tenleytown, so for anyone coming from the east on the Red Line that's a shorter trip than going to Deal or Jackson Reed. Now, it's going to take more than one bus to move that many kids, which is good because it means you can have multiple bus lines. Run another from the Cleveland Park Metro, across Newark to Wisconsin, down Wisconsin to Reservoir and across on Reservoir. Then beef up the D6 on MacArthur.

I'd also fix up the Trolley Trail so that would be an option for kids coming from the east or west.

Georgetown University opposes the trolley trail and NIMBY neighbors oppose it too. Good luck getting those reversed. And the roads are already a mess - adding buses just adds to the mess. It will take a significiant re-work of public road space to create a program that would work for what you are suggesting.

[Anonymous]

This is totally unfair of me, but it's sticking the back of my head. I don't trust the Palisades candidates to represent the Ward as a whole. After all, they chose to live in the Palisades which is not like the rest of the city/ward at all.

They want to live in a house on a large plot of land, away from neighbors, not use public transit, and drive all the time. It's also true about some of the further reaches of NW far away from Connecticut and Wisconsin. Do they understand what the rest of us want? The average ward 3 person lives near one of the main drags in an apartment or small house, possibly attached.

Again, unfair. Why are there so many candidates from the Palisades!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:This is totally unfair of me, but it's sticking the back of my head. I don't trust the Palisades candidates to represent the Ward as a whole. After all, they chose to live in the Palisades which is not like the rest of the city/ward at all.

They want to live in a house on a large plot of land, away from neighbors, not use public transit, and drive all the time. It's also true about some of the further reaches of NW far away from Connecticut and Wisconsin. Do they understand what the rest of us want? The average ward 3 person lives near one of the main drags in an apartment or small house, possibly attached.

Again, unfair. Why are there so many candidates from the Palisades!

Not unfair at all. For me, the people who chose to live in Palisades chose to live on an island. Minimal public transportation, no public/subisidized housing - totally insulated from the rest of the city. Frankly, I think it takes a lot of hubris to be a Palisades resident, and think "oh hey, I head the Palisades Citizens Association so I am qualified to be a Councilmember: or "Hey I did my job for the city so I deserve to be a Councilmember" - NFW, these people have no tangible relevance to what the rest of us in the Ward or city want with city functions. Zero.

So for me, it is a matter of picking among the most viable of who remains. From there, the choice is easy, even if he isn't my top choice in the race.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This is totally unfair of me, but it's sticking the back of my head. I don't trust the Palisades candidates to represent the Ward as a whole. After all, they chose to live in the Palisades which is not like the rest of the city/ward at all.

They want to live in a house on a large plot of land, away from neighbors, not use public transit, and drive all the time. It's also true about some of the further reaches of NW far away from Connecticut and Wisconsin. Do they understand what the rest of us want? The average ward 3 person lives near one of the main drags in an apartment or small house, possibly attached.

Again, unfair. Why are there so many candidates from the Palisades!

Not unfair at all. For me, the people who chose to live in Palisades chose to live on an island. Minimal public transportation, no public/subisidized housing - totally insulated from the rest of the city. Frankly, I think it takes a lot of hubris to be a Palisades resident, and think "oh hey, I head the Palisades Citizens Association so I am qualified to be a Councilmember: or "Hey I did my job for the city so I deserve to be a Councilmember" - NFW, these people have no tangible relevance to what the rest of us in the Ward or city want with city functions. Zero.

So for me, it is a matter of picking among the most viable of who remains. From there, the choice is easy, even if he isn't my top choice in the race.

This is silly. Tricia has done a lot as PCA President and through previous advocacy to address the issues you are complaining about. If she was a NIMBY, I’d agree with you, but she’s not. Only by progressive people moving into these areas and taking leadership roles can things change. For her efforts, Tricia has endured plenty of abuse from the NIMBYs. If you somehow believe that this makes her less qualified than someone who happens - by virtue of whatever circumstances - to live in a neighborhood where there is less scope to effect progressive change, then I’d encourage you to reevaluate your priorities.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:This is totally unfair of me, but it's sticking the back of my head. I don't trust the Palisades candidates to represent the Ward as a whole. After all, they chose to live in the Palisades which is not like the rest of the city/ward at all.

They want to live in a house on a large plot of land, away from neighbors, not use public transit, and drive all the time. It's also true about some of the further reaches of NW far away from Connecticut and Wisconsin. Do they understand what the rest of us want? The average ward 3 person lives near one of the main drags in an apartment or small house, possibly attached.

Again, unfair. Why are there so many candidates from the Palisades!

Do you get that having many Palisades candidates makes it less likely, not more, that someone from there wins?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I agree that Goulet is an outlier among his fellow candidates. Supporting a football stadium, and being a shill for the Chamber of Commerce is a horrible look.

I will be supporting Frumin, because I think he has the most organic support in the Ward and has the best chance of ensuring that Goulet doesn't win.

Frumin has solid credentials but his campaign has been disappointing to many who know him well and had higher hopes. He didn't lose a lot of time in pandering to the Foxhall NIMBYs by offering to pursue alternatives to Foxhall Elementary that he knows (or at least should know) have been tried and were found to be infeasible. The leader of the Save Hardy Park campaign had a Frumin sign on his yard before he replaced with a Goulet sign following their meet-and-greet last Friday. Then there's this silly stuff with the ice rink. Frumin's trying to be everyone to everybody, which makes it very hard to know what he would do if he was elected.

I actually read Frumin's description of the Foxhall situation, and my sense is that he feels there are alternatives to wasting money on boondoggle facilities and splitting up Glover Park. If the Foxhall people, who all appear to be going to the Goulet camp, feel that is aligned, that is their perrogative, but in talking to him, it is clear Frumin was at that place long before Cheh even pulled out of the race. You can ask others in the Ward 3 education community, many of them oppose this solution.

Saying there are alternatives without naming them is like Nixon's "secret plan" to end the Vietnam War.

In the debate over Foxhall, you have people on one side who say, "there must be a better location." These are people who haven't spent any time looking at alternatives, and many of whom have only the barest notion of how DCPS works or even what a neighborhood public school is. On the other side you have people saying "this location may not be great but it's the best we have." Those tend to be people who have spend years and in some cases decades working on public education issues.

How are you getting 1000 high school students and the 400 staff and faculty, as well as another 500 elementary school kids into and out of a 2 block area that is already over congested with cars, every morning and afternoon, when there is no real public transportation and no other safe passage?

By adding bus routes. Metro runs bus routes specifically for DCPS schools. For example, I'd run a bus route from Farragut North to the school. Google Maps says it's a 6-minute drive over the Whitehurst Freeway. According to Metro it's a 12 minute train ride from Farragut to Tenleytown, so for anyone coming from the east on the Red Line that's a shorter trip than going to Deal or Jackson Reed. Now, it's going to take more than one bus to move that many kids, which is good because it means you can have multiple bus lines. Run another from the Cleveland Park Metro, across Newark to Wisconsin, down Wisconsin to Reservoir and across on Reservoir. Then beef up the D6 on MacArthur.

I'd also fix up the Trolley Trail so that would be an option for kids coming from the east or west.

Georgetown University opposes the trolley trail and NIMBY neighbors oppose it too. Good luck getting those reversed. And the roads are already a mess - adding buses just adds to the mess. It will take a significiant re-work of public road space to create a program that would work for what you are suggesting.

The NIMBY opposition to the schools is much larger than to the trail, so if the schools get built the trail should be a breeze.

I disagree that buses add to the mess. Buses are a way out of the mess, not just for students but for the whole neighborhood. I know there are people in Palisades who are deeply afraid of being more connected to the rest of the city, but I'm not one of them, I think it's a good thing. And new schools would be a way of making it happen.

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Anonymous wrote:She has said she was only supporting a woman.

And the release is that she is voting for Tricia, but she made it clear it is not an endorsement.

Is there a political science major in the house who can explain that distinction?

It is distinction that is meaningless but meant to make her friends that didn't receive her endorsement feel better. We can all parse this language.

This is the most Mary Cheh thing ever. Will anyone miss her?

I will. I fought with Mary from time to time, but she always had integrity. She has character and was fit for office. Never worrying that some slimy scandal would ensnare her is worth a future, as voters will soon learn if they elect Eric Goulet. Goulet comes from the wing of DC politics with little care for the legality of actions/behaviors.

I will as well. Same as you, I disagreed with her often, but also immensely respected her and the hard work she always put into her job. Being the CM from Ward 3 is not easy, as you have to balance the interests of your wealthy, white ward with what is best for all of DC. Her focus on improving public transit, making DC more sustainable and green, and supporting public schools was really amazing, and she will be missed.

I don't agree entirely with any of the Ward 3 candidates running (just like I didn't with Cheh), but there are clearly worse ones and better ones. It would be disastrous to have Goulet win the nomination. I think I will be voting for Duncan, but the primary is still a month away.

Cheh's aloofness on the Palisades Trolley Trail issue - and failure to deal with Georgetown University's concerns - was very frustrating. And, strangely, it's an issue that all candidates - including Goulet - seems to agree on. But on most other issues, she did well. Her staff is great and they are genuinely motivated in solving their constituents' problems. I would take Cheh not just over any of the contenders but the entire field combined.

What do you mean "failure to deal with Georgetown University's concerns?" It was Georgetown that got DDOT to scuttle the trail in their 2019 feasibility study.

Goulet's wife works for Georgetown and is part of the team that is working on the trail issues. I'm sure the university's "concerns" will be dealt with if he wins.

I know GU scuttled the trail. There is a case to be made that they did so shadily that Cheh could have done nothing about it, but she at least could have called GU out on their very shitty behavior. She hasn’t said a word about it.

I’ve Goulet propose the PTT as a solution to the access issues for MacArthur HS. I guess he’s waiting for their campaign donation.

So the trail he opposes is a solution for the high school he opposes?

It was. He wasn’t sounding too crazy until a week or two ago. He seems to have been told that his path to victory now runs through NIMBY-land. Or maybe he’s dumb enough to believe the FCCA when they tell him that they are the true kingmakers of Ward 3 politics. We can expect him to come out against bike lanes any day.

Except he has already come out for bike lanes. So he would confirm his political opportunism and lack of conviction, much less cede to the loss of environmental benefits.