Ads on Supercans Are Coming

I thought that list members would like to know about this great way we can all get a little extra money. It's clever and a win-win for residents and the District's coffers.

Here's the information from DPW about the new supercan advertising program.

Bill Adler

Publisher

All Life Is Local

Cleveland Park Listserv

www.cleveland-park.com

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The District of Columbia will put ads on supercans and share the ad revenue with homeowners. In what's being called a triple win for the city and its residents, Washington, DC will become the first city in the nation to put ads on its supercan trash cans.

"This is a bold move, one that will bring added revenue to the District and its residents," announced Mayor Vincent Gray after the City Council passed legislation authorizing the ads. "Residents and the District will split the ad revenue for each supercan 50-50. Not only will this give our city and its citizens some extra pocket change, but colorful ads will be more attractive than plain, green cans." The mayor added, "We'll have a richer city and a more attractive city, too."

The city has already lined up several major businesses that are interested in advertising on DC supercans, including Microsoft, Harley-Davidson, Jacobson & Lewin Law Offices, Verizon, and Colt Firearms. More advertisers will be coming on board soon, according to DPW's new advertising director.

Accompanying this advertising program is a change in the law that will allow residents to leave their cans out as long as they want. Currently, residents must not put cans out much before or after their scheduled pickup time, or face a fine. "We know that residents flout this law all the time. Well, now if you have an ad on your supercan, the law doesn't apply to you." Advertisement-adorned cans can be left out 24/7.

Initially, supercan ad packages can only be purchased in groups of 1,000. Advertisers provide their own art which will cover three sides of a supercan. Once the advertising program has been operational for a while, the city hopes to open up supercan advertising to smaller purchases so that local merchants can advertise, too. The advertising program is expected to bring in $6 million during its first year of operation alone.

District homeowners can expect to earn $25/month from supercan advertising.

For more information about this program, visit http://tinyurl.com/cmqa52t.

DC DPW's In-home Concierge Trash & Recycling Collection Service

Originally reported on the Cleveland Park Listserv:

I thought DC residents would be interested in hearing about this new service from the Department of Public Works. I'm looking forward to not having to deal with gathering the trash and recycling in my home every week. I hope they keep this service. Here's more information about it from DPW.

Bill Adler

All Life Is Local
The Cleveland Park Listserv

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DC DPW's In-home Concierge Trash & Recycling Collection Service

As part of its continuing program to provide beyond-excellent service to District of Columbia residents, the Department of Public Works is pleased to announce in-home trash collection. For residents who don't have the time or desire to bring their trash out for weekly or bi-weekly collection, DPW will do it for you.

We know that taking out the trash is a chore. Otherwise, why would parents give an allowance to their kids? We know that you'd rather be talking a walk on a warm spring night than taking out the trash. We know that in the dead of winter, sorting recycling from household rubbish can't compare to reading a good book in bed.

Here's how the Department of Public Works Trash and Recycling Concierge Service works:

1. The fee is $25 per week for houses, and $15 per week for apartments. The fee includes both trash and recycling collection.
2. You need to be home during a two hour window between 7pm and 9pm on the night before your scheduled trash pickup. If you're going to be away, log in to your DPW Concierge Account and let us know at least 48 hours in advance.
3. Trash will be collected from up to 5 containers per household.
4. DPW will provide you with RFID (radio frequency identification) stickers to affix to your trash cans so that we can locate the trash cans when we arrive in your home. Using handheld receivers, DPW's Trash Collection Agents will swiftly find and remove your trash, without your having to point out each trash and recycling receptacle.
5. If you own an aggressive dog or cat please have your pet leashed on locked in a room.
6. There is a $5 surcharge per diaper can.

DPW's Concierge Trash Collection Agents are gloved and wear sanitary, earth-tone uniforms that go with the decor of any home. DPW's Trash Collection Agents will not use their cell phones while in your home. If your trashcan uses a standard white or gray plastic liner, we will replace it with a stylish magenta liner
embossed with DPW's logo. As professional trash collectors, we will handle the job faster than you can, too. And remember, tipping isn't permitted!

This first-in-the-nation program is part of the "DC Is a Great City" Initiative. For more information and to sign up for DPW's Trash and Recycling Concierge Service visit http://tinyurl.com/cmqa52t .  

Is It News? Pet Hotel and Brothel Coming to Cleveland Park

Photo by Michele Walters

A San Francisco Pet Hotel company, Day 'n' Night Pet Hotels, is going to be moving into the space currently occupied by the McDonald's on Connecticut Avenue and Newark Street.  As far as I can tell, unlike restaurants, there's no zoning against a pet hotel.  (But the pet hotel will apparently have a restaurant for pets and this may be an issue -- more about that when I have more information.)

Not that a pet hotel is a bad idea.  But Day 'n' Night Pet Hotels appears to be both a pet hotel and brothel.  That's pretty clear from reading their website:

Is it News? Gray Campaign Blasts Metro For Using Fenty's Voice

City Council Chair Vincent Gray condemned "as cheating" Metro's decision to use Mayor Adrien Fenty's voice for recorded Metro announcements. "This is patently unfair, and the Metro board should never have approved the change," Gray said in a news conference this morning. "People are going to hear Fenty say 'doors closing' multiple times day, and that gives Fenty an unfair and possibly illegal advantage. It's free political advertising."

An obviously furious and determined Gray declared, "This is a dangerous precedent. From the schools to streetcars and now Metro, the mayor always gets his way." Gray wagged his finger as he said, "He's not going to get away with this."

Is it News? Area Businesses Go to Night Schedule Due to Heat

With the relentless heat wave forecast to last until Halloween, area businesses and government agencies are switching to a nighttime schedule.

The first to make the switch will the be US Postal Service, which will start its mail delivery rounds at 10pm. "It's unbelievably hot, and when you're carrying several Amazon boxes, you're near collapse," said letter carrier Jim Doyle, who delivers mail in 20016. "And by the time I've gotten to two or three houses, I've dripped sweat on a lot of people's mail."

Is it News? Bagel Manufacturers Sued Over Fraudulent "Everything Bagel"

The National Law Institute has sued the DC based American Bagel Association, over fraud in the "Everything Bagel."

"It's a sham," said Bernard I. Williams, president of the National Law Institute, and former counsel to the Senate Subcommittee on Postal Operations.  "So-called 'Everything Bagels' do not contain 'everything' and the bagel manufacturers can't be allowed to get away with deceiving consumers any longer."

The National Law Institute has filed a $55 million suit against four bagel manufacturers and the American Bagel Association.

"Not only do bagels not contain 'everything,'" Williams pointed out.  "But they don't even contain a lot of things.  There's no dill, no caraway seeds, and often no garlic.  You simply can't call that 'everything.'"

All fifty states and the District of Columbia have statutes against fraud, as does Federal law.

The National Law Institute is also considering an additional suit for false advertising.  "We'll see about that," Williams said.

Last year, under the Clean Air Act, the Institute won a $10 million judgment against diaper manufacturers for not containing the odor within their diapers.

The American Bagel Association issued a response to lawsuit.  Jennifer McAluff, a lawyer representing the Association and four bagel manufactures said, "We have not had the opportunity to review the documents.  But I'd say, off the cuff, that this is about as crazy a lawsuit as I've ever seen.  This is really a case of lawyers run amok.  There are obvious holes in their case."

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Is it News?, written by Bill Adler, is All Life is Local's humor column.

Is It News? Reno Road to Become a Toll Road

Starting October 1, Reno Road (also named 34th Street at the southern end) will become a toll road, the District of Columbia Department of Transportation announced today.

"We're turning Reno Road into a toll road for two main reasons," said William Wheat, DDOT's spokesperson. "First, this will reduce the amount of traffic on this major thoroughfare. If people have to pay to travel on Reno, they're going to drive less, making Reno less congested and safer. Second, this will also reduce the amount of traffic on Reno Road, enabling cars to move faster."

Is It News? DC Switches to Celsius to Cope With Heat

In an emergency effort to reduce electricity consumption during this extraordinarily hot summer, the Washington Metropolitan Council of Governments will be making all future weather announcements and forecasts in Celsius rather than Fahrenheit, Maxine Roberts, WMCOG spokesperson announced today.

This is the hottest summer in 50 years and electricity use is at an all-time high.  "By converting to Celsius, people will perceive a lower temperature and not feel like they have to turn their air conditioning up so high," Roberts said.  "97F is 37.1C, for example.  Even 90F, which often feels hot, especially if you're a transplant from New Hampshire, is only 32.2 Celsius.  'Mind over matter' matters when it comes to heat and humidity.  Everyone here knows that visualizing icebergs, thinking about cool waterfalls, and seeing a lower thermometer reading in your mind's eye is all you need to feel better in this heat."

Is It News?: The Washington Post Bars Its Newspaper Bags for Dog Poop

The Washington Post announced today that it is prohibiting the use of its
plastic newspaper bags for the collection of dog poop.  The Washington Post is
taking this action because it believes that using its bags for dog poop harms
its reputation and image.  "We're in the news business," Post executive editor
Nathan Aldridge said.  "We are not a dog poop disposal service."  Aldridge
added, "People are free to use The New York Times' plastic bags for Fido and
Fluffy."

The Post noted that plastic bags that have been used to collect dog poop cannot
then be recycled.  "This new policy is also a green policy," Aldridge said.

Beginning next month, Post newspaper bags will have a license agreement on them
that says, "Readers and subscribers agree not to use this bag for the collection
of dog feces or other animal waste, and they further agree not to use this bag
in any way that degrades, harms or damages the reputation of the Washington Post
or its subsidiaries."

When asked what would actually happen to people who violated the Post's new
license agreement, Aldridge said, "Probably the same thing that happens to
people who remove mattress tags.  They have to live with the worry that one day
they'll be found out and punished."

The Post will be making a separate announcement next month regarding the use of
its paper as the lining for bird cages.

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Is It News?, written by Bill Adler, is the Cleveland Park Listserv's humor
column. You can read Is It News? at www.cleveland-park.com and
www.alllifeislocal.com.