WASHINGTON, DC BRIEFING February 2005

News this month

Passing the buck

City officials say the Bush administration is refusing to cover the costs of its gala presidential inauguration. The District of Columbia may have to spend $11.9m on security. Such costs are usually borne by the federal government, but the Bush administration has asked the District to cover it with some of the $240m in Homeland Security grants it has received since 2001 (owing to its designation as a high-risk target).

Anthony Williams, the mayor of DC, has said that the grants are already earmarked for other District security programmes, and has demanded more money for the inauguration. Last year, the District unsuccessfully tried to boost its federal security reimbursements from $15m to $25m. (New York City and Boston each got $50m for security costs related to the national political conventions.) Thomas Davis, a Republican congressman from Virginia who chairs the House Government Reform Committee, which disburses funds to the District, has sided with Mr Williams, so money may be forthcoming. Non-security costs for the four-day inauguration—including fireworks, a parade and nine balls—are expected to run to $40m, with private donors paying.

Finding the money

After the initial jubilation in September over Washington, DC's new baseball team, the city has been struggling to find the necessary funds. The Nationals (formerly the Montreal Expos) are expected to be in Washington in time for the 2005 season, but the city still has not yet decided how to finance a new stadium. Final city council approval for a new publicly-funded stadium on the south-east waterfront was expected to be easy, but the council passed a last-minute amendment in late November, sponsored by Linda Cropp, its chairwoman, mandating that half the costs of the stadium should come from private sources.

Major League Baseball shut down the Nationals' operations until the city council softened its stance. Now the city is still looking for private funds, but has agreed to cover the entire cost if a good plan isn't available. Eight groups have submitted bids to fund the stadium in exchange for a range of privileges, including charging for parking and building on adjacent land. The city's chief financial officer must decide by March 15th whether any of the plans are feasible.

Anti-terror think tank

The University of Maryland got a three-year, $12m grant from the Department of Homeland Security to figure out why people become terrorists. The funding was announced on January 10th, along with the new academic department's hideously long title: Centre of Excellence for Behavioral and Social Research on Terrorism and Counter-Terrorism.

Five American schools, and experts from other countries (including Israel and Kazakhstan), are also in line for funding, as part of the Department of Homeland Security's “Centres of Excellence” programme. Psychologists, sociologists, and other academics at the University of Maryland centre have several projects planned, including studies of fundamentalist attitudes, terrorist recruitment and the impact of terrorism on the American public. Meanwhile, a programme at the University of Southern California will explore the economics of terrorism, and centres at the University of Minnesota and Texas A&M University will study issues of terrorism and agriculture. The Department of Homeland security is now seeking proposals for the fifth and final American Centre of Excellence, which will explore how to prepare for and react to “high-consequence events”.

Ease on down the road

During commuter rush hours, Virginia law mandates that portions of highly travelled highways in northern Virginia are only for High Occupancy Vehicles (HOVs), with at least two passengers. The law has an exemption, however, for gas-electric hybrid vehicles, which has drawn vocal complaints from non-hybrid owners who say they are clogging the lanes.

Virginia’s HOV Enforcement Task Force recommended in early January that the exemption not be renewed when it lapses on July 1st, 2006. According to the task force, the number of hybrid cars registered in Northern Virginia increased from 2,500 in April 2003 to 6,800 at the end of 2004. The number of hybrids in HOV lanes trebled in the spring of 2004 alone. The group has proposed allowing only the most fuel-efficient hybrid vehicles to use HOV lanes.

Tighten your belts

Locals continue to battle over a roadway that would connect two important highways. At issue is an 18-mile toll highway linking Montgomery and Prince George's counties. The Intercounty Connector, as it would be called, is the top transportation priority of Maryland's governor, Robert Ehrlich. Proponents argue the road will create jobs and ease congestion on DC's Beltway, but critics complain that it is expensive (costing an estimated $2.1 billion) and may generate more traffic. Mr Ehrlich hopes to break ground in 2006, an election year.

On January 4th, Maryland began public hearings to address an environmental impact statement drafted by the state's transportation department. It gave ammunition to both sides: supporters say its benefits have been confirmed, while opponents argue that the statement underestimates its negative environmental impact.

Standing room only

The Washington Metro system is considering removing seats to alleviate overcrowding on trains. In recent years the ever-expanding suburbs have swamped the 28-year old system's capacity: it was originally designed to carry relatively small numbers of commuters in comfort. Metro trains currently have 56 seats and are designed to hold 186 passengers per car. Removing some seats may deter people from congregating at the train’s doors, easing congestion. The proposals range from 40-seat cars which would accommodate 194 passengers to 16-seat cars that would hold 206 passengers. The Metro system had been encouraging people to vote on a range of proposals on their website.

Catch if you can

February 2005

Cai Guo-Qiang: Traveler

Until April 24th 2005

Cai Guo-Qiang was among the first Chinese-born artists to break into the American art world. He's known mainly for his drawings from exploded gunpowder, and lately for his massive public fireworks displays. Last year, he created a giant blazing ring over New York's Central Park. (He now lives in New York.) In the Hirschhorn, as part of a two-part installation called “Traveler”, there is a room dedicated to his dreamy ambitions for large-scale pieces, called “Unlucky Year: Unrealized Projects from 2003-2004”. One aborted idea is for a fireworks explosion in Paris, in the shape of a pagoda.

Mr Cai is also a bold sculptor, and the second part of “Traveler” is a large installation at the Sackler Gallery called “Reflection”. It is made from the 50-foot hull of a wrecked Japanese fishing boat, with mounds of broken porcelain curios piled inside and around it like shifting dunes. Like many of his sculptures, the piece has a mournful air that seems to pine for the artist's unmoored, broken past.

Arthur M. Sackler Gallery at the Smithsonian, National Mall, 1050 Independence Ave, and the Hirschhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, National Mall, Corner of 7th St and Independence Ave. Tel: +1 (202) 633-1000. See the show's website.