After a much-needed vacation, we're back with our first newsletter of the year!
I’m feeling especially invigorated after attending our first all-team meeting yesterday. Our editorial, audience, and operations teams shared updates and ambitions for 2026 — including hiring another full-time reporter, launching new columns, expanding our outreach in Ward 7, and hosting more Ask a D.C. Native Live! shows and special events during this consequential 2026 election season.
What else should be on our radar? Let me know. And in the meantime, here's the rundown for this week:
You may be tempted to stay home and curl up under a blanket this weekend. But that would be a mistake when D.C. is alive — from a comedy show and clothing swap to hip-hop meditation.
A 2022 resolution requires that the Capitol publicly displays a plaque honoring the police who served on January 6, 2021. But House Speaker Mike Johnson still hasn’t done so. In response, two officers are suing and House Democrats are adding replicas of the plaque to their office doors. [WAMU]
The Ward 8 Education Council pushes for more social workers, counselors, and socio-emotional resources for DCPS students in response to the D.C. Department of Behavioral Health’s proposed changes to school-based behavior programming. [Informer]
Already embroiled in numerous lawsuits, local coffee chain Compass Coffee has filed for bankruptcy and plans to close 11 stores. [The Post]
The Wizards have won five out of seven games since Dec. 26. Their recipe for improvement? Stacking days, tightening bonds, and a benched player, says one analyst. [New York Times]
With your help, we pursue stories that hold leaders to account, demystify opaque city and civic processes, and celebrate the idiosyncrasies that make us proud to call D.C. home. Put simply, our mission is to make it easier — and more fun — to live in the District. Our members help keep local news free and independent for all:
