THE NEWS:

The District has some of the most ambitious climate goals in the country. They make sense seeing as the United Nations’ Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change says we just have over a decade to get our collective act together in the face of catastrophe.

So how is D.C. doing? 

City Paperchecked in with government officials and climate activists to see if the city is meeting its goalposts for solar energy because there have been plenty of mediareports that suggest historic preservation officials are denying solar panel applications, or at least making the process arduous. 

By way of background: D.C. commits that 5 percent of clean electricity will come from solar by 2032 and 10 percent of its clean energy will come from solar by 2042.  

“We’ve seen an acceleration and increase in the number of people pulling permits to install solar,” says Department of Energy & Environment Director Tommy Wells. “We’re trying to deploy solar throughout the city in a built-out city and there’s not a lot of real estate available for solar.”

“10 percent of all our energy to come from solar power—it’s just not realistic. We may be able to get to 7 [percent],” Wells tells City Paper. “We’re working with folks like DC Water, where we’re looking at things like can you float solar panels on the reservoirs … We’re being as creative as we can.” 

Ward 3 Councilmember Mary Cheh, who ushered the bill that set D.C.’s climate goals, is confident that D.C. can hit 10 percent by 2042, while climate activists are doing what they can to keep the city on track. Read the full story online. —Amanda Michelle Gomez (tips? Email agomez@washingtoncitypaper.com)  

CITY DESK LINKS, by Amanda Michelle Gomez:

  • The DC Board of Elections told at least 5,000 D.C. voters the wrong primary election date via mail. (FYI: The election is June 2.) [WAMU]

  • Ten people shot in six different shootings over the weekend. [WUSA9]

  • Transport for London reached out to WMATA General Manager Paul Wiedefeld for a possible job, but he doesn’t sound ready to leave his post in the DMV area. [NBC4]

  • University of the District of Columbia launches a campaign to set itself apart from private universities and to get more students to apply. [Post]  

LOOSE LIPS LINKS, by Mitch Ryals (tips? mryals@washingtoncitypaper.com) 

  • ICYMI: Mayor Muriel Bowser’s interview with the Post about her support for Mike Bloomberg. [Post]

  • Pete Buttigieg stops in Arlington [WJLA, The Hill]

  • Why former US Attorney Jessie Liu didn’t get the top Treasury job. [Axios]

  • Casinos coming to Virginia? [Post]

YOUNG & HUNGRY LINKS, by Laura Hayes(tips? lhayes@washingtoncitypaper.com) 

  • Former minibar Chef Josh Hermias is opening a D.C. restaurant that combines fine dining with live classical music performances. [WCP]

  • The legal battle between Hakan Ilhan and Chef Frank Ruta is over. [Washingtonian]

  • Beloved beer garden Garden Districtreopens for the season. [PoPville] 

  • Critic Tom Sietsema tries Cafe Riggs. [Post]

  • The best coffee shops for working remotely. [Thrillist]

ARTS LINKS, by Kayla Randall(tips? krandall@washingtoncitypaper.com)

  • On Taphas become District Fray Magazine. [WCP]

  • At Arena Stage, Mother Road revisits The Grapes of Wrath. [WCP]

  • A Virginia 9-year-old is changing hearts and minds about how crayons relate to skin color—and the Virginia Museum of History & Culture noticed. [Post]

SPORTS LINKS, by Kelyn Soong (tips? ksoong@washingtoncitypaper.com)

  • Wayne Gretzky congratulates Alex Ovechkin on reaching 700 career goals: “See you at 800.” Ovi scored his 700th goal on Saturday in a 3-2 loss to the New Jersey Devils, and helped the Caps beat the Penguins, 5-3, on Sunday. He is the second-fastest player to reach that milestone, behind only—you guessed it—Gretzky. [NBC Sports Washington, Post] 

  • The Caps also exchanged a 2020 third-round pick to the Montreal Canadiens for forward Ilya Kovalchuk. [Sportsnet]

  • This past weekend, The Anthem turned into an esports venue as it hosted the Washington Justice’s debut D.C. homestand. (The Justice is owned by Mark Ein, who also ownsCity Paper.) Washington lost its first match, 3-1, to Paris Eternal and its second on Sunday against the London Spitfire, 3-2, in front of an energetic home crowd. [WCP]

  • Fans booed the Astros throughout their first spring training game against the defending World Series champ Nats—Houston’s first competitive game since the sign stealing scandal broke. [CBS Sports]

  • The Maryland men’s basketball team’s win streak ends at nine games. [Testudo Times]

  • Speaking of win streaks, the DC Defenders ended theirs as well, losing their first game of the XFL season, 39-9, to the previously winless Los Angeles Wildcats. [NFL.com]

CITY LIGHTS, by Emma Sarappo (Love this section? Get the full To Do This Week newsletter here. Tips? esarappo@washingtoncitypaper.com)

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