We know D.C. Get our free newsletter to stay in the know.

Unsubscribe any time.

A morning roundup of news, opinion, and links from Washington 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.

Our cover this week: Washington City Paper‘s guide to this year’s Filmfest DC, which almost didn’t happen.

LEADING THE MORNING NEWS:

  • Marion C. Barry alerts media to rumor that he’s dropping out of the Ward 8 race by holding a press conference to say he’s not dropping out. [LL]
  • Florida mailman lands gyrocopter on Capitol grounds to send message about corruption. [Post]
  • Service on Metro’s Green Line restored after portion of a collapsed pedestrian bridge is removed from the tracks near College Park. [NBC4]
  • D.C. will mark Emancipation Day today with a smaller budget. [WAMU]
  • Jim Graham: From councilmember to special events director at a strip club. [Blade]

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

Poets and They Know It: Members of DC Youth Slam Team confront racism, homophobia, and teen pregnancy.

Invest Egg:  Crowdfunding platform EquityEats rethinks its business, opens a “pop-up megaplex.” 

I Am Waiting: Location drives public-school demand.

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

  • Ballot initiative seeks a $15 hourly minimum wage. [WAMU, Post]
  • Marion C. Barry calls a press conference to say he isn’t dropping out. [LL, Post]
  • Listen to the LL Ward 4 debate. [LL]
  • Eugene D. Kinlow mailer blasts rival LaRuby May. [LL]
  • Tom Sherwood looks at the budget. [NBC4]
  • Medical marijuana cultivation gets a boost from the D.C. Council. [WAMU]
  • Where are the tax cuts, asks Mark Lee. [Blade]
  • What Emancipation Day means for traffic. [Post]
  • On body cameras, Muriel Bowser should take a cue from Washington state. [Route 50]
  • Potsters start statehood protest with a pole. [Post]
  • Economic Growth D.C. isn’t happy about economic numbers. [EGDC]
  • Where Metro makes the most money. [Housing Complex]
  • Location makes public schools attractive. [Housing Complex]

HOUSING COMPLEX LINKS, by Aaron Wiener (tips? awiener@washingtoncitypaper.com)

  • Six storefronts on Columbia Road NW face the wrecking ball. [WBJ]
  • 1776 takes over Arlington tech hub. [Post]
  • In which I “perpetuate a noxious myth” on economic growth. [Economic Growth DC]
  • The story behind those cheery sidewalk-chalk messages. [Post]
  • Metro contractor screws up; part of Green Line shuts down. [WTOP]
  • Mandatory helmet laws just allow drivers to pass the blame on to cyclists. [Post]

ARTS LINKS, by Christina Cauterucci (tips? ccauterucci@washingtoncitypaper.com)

  • These D.C. youth confront the racism, homophobia, and other struggles in their lives through slam poetry. [Arts Desk]
  • Local electro act Den-Mate says, as a kid, she wanted to be Gwen Stefani when she grew up (and maybe still does). [Arts Desk]
  • A Q&A with Thomas Orgren of Persona Non Grata, an Arlington recording studio that’s worked with some of D.C.’s raddest bands [D.C. Music Download]
  • Was Artisphere doomed from the start? [Post]
  • A roundup of D.C. murals [BYT]

YOUNG & HUNGRY LINKS, by Jessica Sidman (tips? jsidman@washingtoncitypaper.com)

  • A guide to Community Supported Agriculture [DCist]
  • Takoda restaurant and rooftop beer garden coming to Shaw. [Washingtonian]
  • The original Beau Thai will become BKK Cookshop next month. [Eater]
  • Back-to-back food truck festivals are happening April 24 and 25. [Post]
  • New details on the Royal, a bar from Vinoteca’s owner [Express]
  • Taste of the Nation recap [BYT]
  • Food truck owner to open Sweetbites Cafe and Bakery in McLean, Va. [NoVa Mag]