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

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This morning, Mayor Muriel Bowser discussed the deadly smoke incident on Metro in an appearance on Fox 5. She called the firefighter response time to L’Enfant Plaza station “pretty fast.” Bowser noted, “What we know less about is that time between when our firefighters arrived there and when they had access—when they were able to get to the train itself.”

LEADING THE MORNING NEWS:

  • D.C.’s fiercest neighborhood battle goes before its ultimate arbiter. [Housing Complex]
  • The Georgetown rabbi charged with voyeurism is due in court today. [Post]
  • How a drug-addicted FBI agent in D.C. was able to get heroin. [Post]
  • It seems like Capital Fringe just moved to Trinidad, but the new venue’s first performance is already on the books for Feb. 9. [Arts Desk]

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

Hard-Boiled: In this week’s cover story, novelist George Pelecanos talks about what D.C. restaurants mean to him and how he feels about the changing city.

New World Order: D.C. has become a magnet for food delivery companies.

It’s the Economy: The D.C. area economy looks to be in a slump.

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

  • Surprise! The streetcar won’t open the week of Jan. 19 after all. [WAMU]
  • Questions persist about fatal Metro incident. [LL, Post, WAMU, Times, Housing Complex]
  • Lawsuits coming for Metro. [WAMU, Times]
  • Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton will take Muriel Bowser to the State of the Union. [Roll Call]
  • How much is Jeff Thompson hurting voting rights? [WAMU]
  • D.C. area’s economic prospects look grim. [Housing Complex]
  • David Grosso lays out his education plans. [Post]
  • Four shot in Southeast. [Post]
  • Crowd confronts police after non-officer-involved shooting. [Post]

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

  • Surprise! The streetcar’s delayed again. [WAMU]
  • Gentrification is a myth (except in New York, Chicago, and D.C.). [Slate]
  • Dan Tangherlini, leaving GSA next month, reflects on federal real estate in D.C. [Post]
  • D.C. is disproportionately into Belgian food. [Huffington Post]
  • Buying a home now is a lot cheaper than buying one for the same price a year ago. [UrbanTurf]
  • Capitol Hill cyclist randomly stabbed by teenager. [WashCycle]
  • Why the LED displays don’t work on Metro. (Blame the old 1000-series cars, as usual.) [GGW]
  • All-cash home purchases are way down. [WBJ]
  • Design for controversial Anacostia project gets tweaked. [UrbanTurf]
  • Today on the market: Southwest 1BR—-$185,900

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

  • How Capital Fringe readied its new home (which had no wireless capacity, European outlets, and tiny toilets) for its first performance on Feb. 9. [Arts Desk]
  • The best places to stand in D.C.’s music venues [Post]
  • A giant inflatable cat head will shoot laser beams of art (?) out of its eyes at Yards Park [DCist]
  • The director of the Freer and Sackler galleries, Julian Raby, discusses the museum’s digitization of its collection. [The Kojo Nnamdi Show]
  • Thievery Corporation will be All Things Considered‘s house band today. [NPR]
  • Listen to local shoegaze outfit Swings‘ new track, inspired by DJ Rashad. [Bandwidth]
  • The National Museum of Women in the Arts gets an award and heightened scrutiny of its exhibit on the Virgin Mary. [The Kojo Nnamdi Show]

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

  • Mobile canning business grows along with D.C.’s beer industry. [WBJ]
  • Who uses the liquor lockers at Ivy & Coney? [Eater]
  • The 100 very best restaurants [Washingtonian]
  • Embassy Row Hotel plans to open Station Kitchen & Cocktails this spring. [Post]
  • The Passenger returns for a pop-up. [Post]
  • Astro Doughnuts & Fried Chicken now has a fried chicken and gravy doughnut sandwich. [DCist]
  • A look at four area distilleries [Thrillist]