Hello, Yupette,
After reading Post Staff Writer Patricia Sullivan's article in Sunday's Post Metro Section regarding redevelopment of the Alexandria waterfront, I am appalled that the Post is endorsing local candidates where development and redevelopment are major issues.
The Washington Post Corporation owns several large warehouses on the Alexandria waterfront, which it wants to massively redevelop. The Post also supported the massive gentrification of Washington D.C. by Adrian Fenty and has been waging an editorial jihad against Fenty's successor as Mayor, Vincent Gray.
Patricia Sullivan recently interviewed Audrey Clement, Mary Hynes, and Walter Tejada in preparation for the Post's endorsement later this week. According to sources within the three candidates' campaigns, Sullivan's interviews of Hynes and Tejada were cordial and friendly, but Sullivan treated Audrey Clement like a nuisance. This, apparently, is in accordance to the Post's news and editorial policy regarding third party and independent candidates in Northern Virginia.
If you feel, as I do, that the Post should not endorse County Board candidates, given the Post's conflicts of interest regarding redevelopment, you can send an e-mail to the Washington Post Company's CEO, Donald Graham, at grahamd at washpost dot com.
Julie
South Arlington
31 comments:
Washington Post Corporation was in a secret deal with the City of Alexandria to put huge hotels and conference centers on the Robinson Terminal warehouse site.
Sullivan also gave Audrey Clement the third degree over Clement's opposition to the Boeing steal.
As a matter of fact, Alexandria's Mayor, Bill Euille, IS a developer.
Ask Patricia Sullivan what happened to her predecessor, and why.
Robinson Terminal Warehouse Corporation is a wholly-owned subsidiary of The Washington Post Company and has been for decades.
Patricia Sullivan was disingenuous at best when reporting the secret wheeling and dealing between the City of Alexandria and the "Robinson Terminal Warehouse Corporation". It's obvious the Washington Post Company's Board of Directors (e.g., Melinda Gates and Warren Buffett) had to be knowledgeable about a proposed large-scale redevelopment involving Washington Post Company real estate.
"Warren, how are we going to suppress the information about the Post's Board engaging in all the secret negotiations with Alexandria?"
"It's simple, Don, just report that it was Robinson Terminal Warehouse that was doing the negotiating".
Post should not endorse anyone for anything.
Post is also in the pockets of developers.
I took the Sunday Post out of thr recycle pile and read Sullivan's Metro Section article. What a charade.
All we are is a damn land rush for every damn developer in America.
I do not believe or trust the Post. Google 'Citizens for an Alternative Alexandria'.
Same Washington Post that's been waging a 3-year editorial jihad against Vince Gray because he opposes 'resegregation through gentrification'?
Arlington, Alexandria, totally corrupt. They make secret deals with developers and then initiate planning charades with the sheeple based upon the parameters of the deal. Post does a rubber stamp report when the City County and County Board approve the site plans.
Why would anyone vote to re-elect these lying politricksters who are out to totally destroy our suburban quality of life?
Does anyone know if any corporation controlled by Post Director Warren Buffett is involved in Alexandria waterfront redevelopment?
Patricia Sullivan did not attend the County Board meeting last night regarding density issues, she attended the Civic Federation meeting.
Here is a recent Green Party press release:
At the recent debate sponsored by the Fort Myer/Radnor Citizens Association, Arlington, incumbent board member Mary Hynes asserted that a central housing agency to address the crisis in housing in Arlington would be “more expensive than the present system of giving grants to non-profits for housing”. This statement is disingenuous, and dishonest, given the breadth of the housing problem Arlington is experiencing. It is typical of the red herrings thrown out by the board.
It’s widely known, and admitted by county officials, that Arlington is not appropriating sufficient funds to address the lack of housing. The limited effort Arlington has made is little more than window dressing to appear to address the issue, and there is no real effort to preserve existing affordable units. In 10 years, Arlington has lost over 13,000 units of affordable housing. Every single year, the county board has failed to achieve its stated goal of 400 committed affordable units annually. In a number of cases, the county has actually double counted as new previously existing refurbished units. The new units are hardly affordable at a base rent of $1,100 per unit.
Mary Hynes’ reasoning compares apples and oranges. An Arlington housing authority would have to work on a larger scale than currently exists to address the lack of housing. To do this, it would replace the advisory housing commission that currently exists but is ineffective, and it would use the current county housing staff. In Fairfax, the county government obtained federal grants for its program under its housing authority (over several million dollars annually). Arlington cannot access these federal funds because it has no housing authority. The few affordable units that have been made available in Arlington have cost taxpayers $300,000 - 500,000 per unit. Under a housing authority, nonprofits would compete for dollars, prompting more units at a lower cost.
If the county really wished to establish an option that is less expensive than other options, a regional housing authority is the best option for everyone in Northern Virginia. The economies of scale are obvious in administration, acquisition of existing housing, refurbishing, construction, and maintenance. The county has never worked toward achieving this, although it is explicitly authorized by law. And remember that the goal and the opportunity of any housing authority is eventual self-funding.
If the county goes instead with the current non-profits, they will have to expand to meet the real need and to address the problem in any effective way. Funding will need to be expanded. If the county wishes to continue to do almost nothing, and to fail to address the problem, then their current policy is more expensive than funding nothing, eliminating the housing commission, and the housing staff. That is the logic in Mary Hynes' reasoning.
The county board is fully dedicated to the urbanization of Arlington County, with high density, high rise development. This means the elimination of affordable and market rate housing. It also means the eventual disappearance of single family neighborhoods from Arlington. When we talk about the loss of housing and the intense urbanization of Arlington, we are talking about the inability of the middle class to continue to afford our own homes; to find a place to rent, to find a place for our children, for our older relatives, our senior citizens, our teachers and our public servants. The increase in homeless in Arlington represents people who were formerly renting when units were available.
How do Mary Hynes' incessant platitudes resolve the problem? How does not spending any money resolve it? What's her solution? Is Prince William County her solution? Does she even understand the problem? Why is she here?
The Post and other local print media are incredibly biased. There is no Republican in the County Board race this year. Rather than informing the public about the Green candidate they are suppressing information about the Green candidate.
Let me guess...after ignoring Audrey Clement for six months, including not attending even one candidate forum, the Post will print an interview with more negatives than positives that conforms to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, National Association of Realtors, and the Washington Post Company Board of Directors positions regarding development and re-development.
Something is very wrong with journalism when Republicans fail to nominate candidates to oppose Democrats and third party candidates who do oppose Democrats are labelled "nuisances" and ignored by the media, year after year.
Did your read Postie Pig Patricia Sullivan's article in the Metro Section today. Not only did Audrey Clement have the audacity to oppose the County Board's mega development give-away to Boeing, she had the audacity to raise $7800 for campaign signs and literature.
Ted, your prediction was 100% right on.
Audrey Clement also had the audacity to mop the floor with Mary Hynes and Walter Tejada during candidate debates.
Post is in the business of providing information, right? So why go after people who contribute to a candidate's purchase of informational material? Is the Post THAT corrupt?
YES
Ted is either clairvoyant or works for the Post.
Postie Pig Patricia Sullivan? No fooling. Takes some kind of 'journalist' to trash a third party candidate for receiving a few thousand dollars from one contributor to buy palm cards and campaign signs.
Patricia Sullivan and other Post "journalists" can engage in name-calling and other malicious behavior as they please...however let it be noted that THEIR personal lives and activities are totally off-limits.
Why doesn't Patricia Sullivan investigate the crony capitalist deals Don Graham and the Washington Post Corporation are engaging in with elected officials around the Beltway?
Post is PO'd that its crony capitalist redevelopment deals are under scrutiny by citizens, e.g., Citizens for an Aletrnative Alexandria.
Post a Comment