News

By Courtney Curtis, Marymanita Mensah, Johnathan Morales, Daniel Oloju, Shaunavahn Reid, Janae Wilson and Anthony Yang Global warming is a worldwide problem, but it is felt more acutely in some places than others. Maranda Ward says…
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Thousands more District residents who are behind on rent will get help this year than previously expected. DC will put an extra $20.6 million into the Emergency Rental Assistance Program (ERAP) in 2024, the Department of Human…
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It’s no secret that it’s expensive to rent in DC, especially for people who make below the city’s median income of $152,000 for a family of four. Despite DC investing hundreds of thousands of dollars each year in building and preserving…
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By Winnie Chan, Michelle Collins, Shane Gomez and Emily Hawkins On a brisk spring morning, more than a hundred people snake their way around a group of semitrailers in the shabby parking lot at Lakeforest Mall in Gaithersburg, Maryland.…
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The need for rental assistance in the city is high. DC's Emergency Rental Assistance Program (ERAP) reopened on Oct. 1 after closing in March due to the volume of applications. But by Oct. 10, the program closed again, due to high demand,…
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After years of letting federally funded housing vouchers for people leaving foster care and facing homelessness go to waste, DC is implementing a new law to ensure every young person who needs a voucher gets one. The federal…
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The DC government is making progress in housing people with its record number of vouchers, but people familiar with the process say the wait is still far too long. DC began fiscal year 2022 with 2,400 new Permanent Supportive…
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At its last meeting before the summer recess, the DC Council voted unanimously to pass two bills related to housing. The first reforms a major housing program for people exiting homelessness. The second builds on existing tenant…
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Contrary to earlier expectations, DC’s Emergency Rental Assistance Program (ERAP) won’t reopen for new applications this year even after an infusion of $33 million in new federal funding announced in the spring. Instead, about…
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As debate kicked off on his rent control measure, at-large DC Councilmember Robert White issued a warning to his colleagues. “There is an absolute lack of data here. We are working today on a pile of assumptions,” White said on…
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DC returned over $10 million in federal grants intended to fund programs aimed at ending homelessness from 2017 through 2021, according to data from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and The Community Partnership…
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DC is poised to implement new protections for domestic workers, street vendors and young people in foster care, thanks to funding in the fiscal year 2024 budget. Over the last year, the DC Council has voted to create a domestic…
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Getachew Gurumu became homeless for the first time after he received an eviction notice from his landlord during the pandemic. Then, without warning, he lost his job. Unsure what to do or where to go, Gurumu moved to McPherson Square in…
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Makia never thought moving in with her mother was going to work. Makia, who’s using a pseudonym to protect her safety, entered foster care when she was 2 years old. She lived in at least a dozen places over 20 years, and ran away from…
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When Ronnie Harris first entered foster care at 12 years old, she was certain she would be adopted. But, in what felt like no time at all, foster care swallowed her teenage years. The system jerked Harris across the city. Each time she…
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Reports of mismanagement and voucher fraud at the DC Housing Authority (DCHA) continue to pile up, At-large Council member Robert White insisted at a press conference on March 30. White, who has chaired the council’s Housing…
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In a major reversal from recent years, Mayor Muriel Bowser’s proposed fiscal year 2024 budget slashes funding for eviction prevention and includes few increases for homeless services and housing. The biggest win, advocates say, is funding…
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When Jeff Reinbold, the National Park Service’s superintendent of the National Mall and Memorial Parks, unveiled on March 1 this year’s prediction for cherry blossom peak bloom, he prefaced the announcement with a note of caution. …
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On a Saturday night in Georgetown, Josh Blocker and his electric guitar take center stage near the intersection of Wisconsin Avenue and M Street NW. The faint wail of Jimi Hendrix’s “Voodoo Child” struggles to rise above the ambient noise…
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Amina Washington has heard it said many ways — when she’s working, sitting on sidewalks, going to get dinner or grabbing groceries. She heard it when she was sleeping outside, and she still hears it now, even though she’s been living in…
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