Vietnamese American Community Service Center (VACSC) Hosting Crime Prevention Workshop in Vietnamese

Who: VACSC is hosting event for parents, community members, and youth.

What: A Crime Prevention Workshop

Where: At VACSC, located at 2437 15th Street, NW Washington, DC 20009. Phone: 202-667-0437. Website: http://www.vacsc.org/

When: Tuesday, November 24, 2009 at 3:00pm

Why: To assist people in being alert and safe during the winter season and as it gets dark outside much earlier.

How: Distribution of a fact sheet on Census 2010 in Vietnamese language.

VACSC, a non-profit organization in Ward One, helps Vietnamese-Americans in the DC Metropolitan area to assimilate and integrate in American socieity “without sacrificing their cultural heritage and identity.” VACSC also promotes “friendship and understanding” between people who are Vietnamese and American.

Did you know Pepco wants to increase residential rates?

Pepco has proposed an increase in rates and charges to residential electricity customers.   According to a June 2009 fact sheet,

Pepco’s proposal seeks an increase of nearly 6.1% in residential customers’ overall monthly bills.   The typical bill for a Standard Offer Service ("SOS") residential customer who does not choose an electric generation supplier using 750 kilowatt-hours of electricity per month would increase by about $6.00.

The Public Service Commission is holding community meetings to elicit resident feedback on the proposal.   Two meetings remain:

• Thursday, November 19 at 6:30 pm at Hillcrest Recreation Center (3100 Denver St SE)
• Friday, November 20 at 10:00 am at D.C. Public Service Commission (1333 H St NW, Hearing Room 7th Floor East Tower)

Green DMV has started a petition opposing the increases.

Finally, more about the rate increase and what service providers can do to comment on the proposal is here.

Help is out there for choosing a new Medicare Part D plan

Open season for Medicare Part D has started (November 15).   Medicare beneficiaries may need to choose a new Medicare prescription drug plan before December 31, 2009 to avoid cost increases or changes to their drug coverage that could happen beginning in January 2010.

The Legal Aid Society of the District of Columbia and the Whitman-Walker Clinic Legal Program have scheduled free walk-in clinics to help Medicare beneficiaries evaluate their current drug plans, and help them enroll in a new plan for 2010 if necessary.   Learn more about the Whitman-Walker open enrollment clinics here and the Legal Aid open enrollment clinic here.   Note that help from Whitman-Walker is available in Ward 1.

ANC vacancy bill hearing rescheduled

The hearing for B18-324, "Advisory Neighborhood Commission Vacancy Amendment Act of 2009", has been rescheduled by the Committee on Aging and Community Affairs (CM Alexander, Ward 7, chair).   The new date and time are November 19 at 6:00 pm in Room 412 of the JAWB.   This is rescheduled from an earlier date.   Details in hearing notice.

Those concerned with the work of these community-based elected officials and the role ANCs play in local democracy should comment on this bill.

November 11 ANC 1A meeting

Attend the November 11 ANC 1A meeting and you will be updated on the Park Morton development as well as a number of other issues that effect Park View.   The meeting will be held at 7:00 pm at Park Road Community Church at 1019 Park Road, NW (rather than the usual meeting place due to the holiday).

Community crime prevention meeting November 18

Interested in addressing crime and violence in your community?   This meeting may be one way.

Assistant Chief of Investigative Services Peter Newsham will attend a Fourth District (4D) crime meeting on Wednesday, November 18 at 7:00 pm at Emory Recreation Center (5701 Georgia Ave NW).   Chief Newsham is interested in hearing resident concerns.   Detectives will explain the investigative process including how residents can play an important role in helping the police solve cases.

Further, 4D officers will answer questions about social services and programs available to individuals and families.

Police district boundaries differ from Ward boundaries.   As a result, part of Ward 1 is in 4D.

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PEPCO proposes rate and fee increases; comment now to prevent these changes

The DC Public Service Commission has announced a series of public meetings to get feedback on the PEPCO proposal to increase rates and charges for electric service in the District.

The two remaining meetings are:

• Thursday, November 19 at 6:30 pm at Hillcrest Recreation Center (3100 Denver St SE)
• Friday, November 20 at 10:00 am at D.C. Public Service Commission (1333 H St NW, Hearing Room 7th Floor East Tower)

Organizations that provide emergency assistance, including for electric bills, should consider sharing aggregated data about client needs to demonstrate the negative impact a rate and fee increase would have on low- and moderate-income residents.   Residents should also consider submitting comments either in person or in writing to the Commission.