Get our free newsletter

A morning roundup of news, opinion, and links from City Paper and around the District. Send tips and ideas to citydesk@washingtoncitypaper.com.

Sign up: To get District Line Daily—or any of our other email newsletters—sent straight to your mailbox, click here.

If the District ever becomes a state, it may not be called “New Columbia” after all. On Tuesday, the D.C. Council approved a proposed constitution for a “State of Washington, D.C.,” where the “D.C.” would stand for “Douglass Commonwealth,” after abolitionist Frederick Douglass. More significantly, the Council voted to require a constitutional convention of elected delegates within two years of any would-be state’s admission to the Union, which could settle governance issues.

LEADING THE MORNING NEWS:

  • D.C. police arrested an 18-year-old who allegedly killed a teen. [WUSA9, FOX5, NBC4]

  • Authorities are searching for a suspect who burned a D.C. ambulance. [WTOP, WUSA9]

  • A former high-ranking official under Mayor Vincent Gray faces prison time. [Loose Lips]

  • Is Metro’s SafeTrack maintenance plan really improving the hapless rail system? [Post]

  • The District’s black women are more likely to be discriminated against while looking for housing. [Housing Complex]

  • D.C. food pioneer Nora Pouillon will sell her Dupont Circle establishment. [Post, DCist]

RECENT CITY PAPER STORIES TO HELP YOU MAKE SENSE OF YOUR DAY:

LOOSE LIPS LINKS, by Will Sommer (tips? wsommer@washingtoncitypaper.com)

  • Right-to-die legislation moves forward. [Post]

  • Talkin’ McMillan. [InTowner]

  • More tax cuts for the District. [WBJ]

  • More about changes to MLK Library. [WAMU]

  • Downtown shooting was purportedly over drug turf. [Post]

ARTS LINKS, by Matt Cohen (tips? mcohen@washingtoncitypaper.com)

  • Bad Brainsamong the nominees for the 2017 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction class. [Bandwidth]

  • Listen to a new Title Trackssong, from its forthcoming new album—its first in five years. [Stereogum]

  • The Smithsonian needs $300,000 to preserve Dorothy’s ruby slippers from the Wizard of Oz. [Washingtonian]

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

  • Try a salad bowl from Erik Bruner-Yang at Sweetgreen. [Washingtonian]

  • Which Dupont Circle burger joint had a rat visitor? [Borderstan]

  • Play debate bingo at Ventnors tonight. [Eater]

  • Building a taco wall around Trump’s Las Vegas hotel. [Thrillist]

HOUSING COMPLEX LINKS, by Andrew Giambrone (tips? agiambrone@washingtoncitypaper.com)

  • Low-income residents could get free legal help for housing under a new bill. [Next City]

  • A strip club in an industrial part of Ward 5 takes a hit after a zoning decision. [WAMU]

  • REI’s flagship D.C. store will open Friday at the historic Uline Arena in NoMa. [FOX5]

  • Smart-growthers excited about changing the “Comp Plan.” [Greater Greater Washington]

  • A vacant office building in Adams Morgan is being converted into condos. [UrbanTurf]