‘Black squirrel’
courtesy of ‘Pianoman75’
When Matt Ashburn of Cap City Diner & DCRA had their public spat two years ago over permitting problems and an architect gone wild, it wasn’t hard to see that this was the future of Twitter: a way to engage with your city government that is totally public, two-way, and mostly transparent. Now The Black Squirrel in Adams Morgan is trying to do the same, albeit without any of the politeness and all the frustration. DCist’s Aaron Morrissey has the whole story, with quotes from DCRA’s spokesman about plans that were contradictory and not complete, but Black Squirrel is now saying that any reference to a problem with the plans is bunk, and that they submitted proper documentation under conflicting advice.
The whole thing is deliciously sordid, wholly full of the sort of rashomon storytelling that is present in many crises, and absolutely worth a bag of popcorn and a lawn chair as it all unfolds. At press time, The Black Squirrel says they’ve just done an interview with TBD, so I expect we’ll be hearing more.
I live and work in the District of Columbia. I write at We Love DC, a blog I helped start, I work at Technolutionary, a company I helped start, and I’m happy doing both. I enjoy watching baseball, cooking, and gardening. I grow a mean pepper, keep a clean scorebook, and wash the dishes when I’m done. Read Why I Love DC.
That’s some funny shit! I guess it’s not too funny if you’re getting screwed by DCRA, but that’s the way DC works. The public services are awful, led by the good people at DCRA. Give them hell Black Squirrel!