Reply to The Pandemic Hit Cities Hard And Then There's Washington, DC

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]I haven't read every single reply, but one issue is traffic. I work downtown and most of my colleagues do want to be back in person at least half-time. But we don't *have* to be back in person. And right now the traffic into DC is really lousy because the DC government is more concerned with bike lanes and giving NWDC residents free street parking than in winning back office workers.

As long as I have to sit in a nightmare of 2 lanes on Conn Ave to get home at night, why should I bother? I can just meet colleagues for lunch when we want to have informal opportunities to interact. Some degree of personal flexibility on telework is now the norm for a lot of people, including many more USG offices than was previously the case. So if DC wants to ensure businesses thrive downtown, they'll have to make it worth our while. Revert to pre-Covid commuter traffic (including re-opening Beach Drive and the 4-lane rush hour switch on Conn Ave) and you'll get more of us back in the office and spending money at DC restaurants and shops. [/quote]

DC resident here.  We don't care what you think.  You don't even pay DC taxes -- you don't own a home here and DC can't impose a commuter tax.  You're a drain on our resources, not a net gain, and we don't care if you or your stinking car ever come back.[/quote]
You're the perfect combination of a stubborn refusal to listen to any opposing viewpoints, and utmost certainty of your own.

I'm surprised you're not a Trump voter. [/quote]

The Trump voters live in the suburbs.   Now, tell me again why we should care about some commuter who doesn't set a foot into this city when she's not working and paying us zero dollars in taxes and doesn't know a thing about us other than her commute?[/quote]
Because, you simpleton, your image of commuters leaving DC as soon as their workday is done is not based on reality. You have no idea what you're talking about.

Commuters do things like go out to happy hours with co-workers, dinners with friends, sporting events etc. And, if their view of DC is positive, they'll come into the District on weekends.

I say this as somebody who worked for a DC government development agency. DC can't impose a commuter tax, so it needs to make the District an attractive place to work, shop, and play. The District's fiscal stability is heavily tied to commuters. We've seen what happens to the District when suburban residents decide that the District is not an attractive place to spend their time and money, and it ain't pretty.

If you were smart, you'd want people from outside of DC to spend as much of their time and money as possible in the District.  [/quote]

Oh, please.  How often does the average commuter living in the suburbs stay in town for happy hours and dinners or sporting events?  I lived in a close-in suburb for 20+ years and worked downtown and almost never did, and I'm social.  Most folks couldn't wait to get home.   [/quote]

Depends on your interests. It’s also about money spend on lunch, coffee, etc during the workday. Commuters spend plenty of money in DC and that’s revenue lost during telework. [/quote]

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