As I've said before, Rob can start measuring the drapes, picking what color he wants his office to be painted, and ordering furniture. He has won the 45th, tonight. Tim McGhee doesn't have a shot and it's embarrassing to the Republicans to even have him on the ballot. What a waste of time and money! The Alexandria Republican City Committee should be ashamed of themselves! Congrats to Rob, though! He'll still need support, money, and votes to win in September!

Rob Krupicka - yay - glad so many of us take voting so seriously!
And also a shout-out to Drew at the Patch: you are amazing - keeping Del Ray informed of everything happening here - true Internet real-time news! Thanks.

Congratulations to Krupicka, but how did he lose almost four out of ten voters? He had total name recognition against an unknown in a short campaign with the entire Democratic machine behind him. Adam Ebbin, Jim Moran, Del Pepper, Paul Smedberg, Bill Euille and the rest. They should have kept Karen below 10%. What happened?

Karen is popular and she took the LGBT vote. I told her yesterday that I'd like to see her run for city council in three years. So did others. She ran a good race.

Karen was an outstanding candidate. I had a long talk with her about gun control and education, was blown away by her knowledge. It was sad to see a new voice snuffed out by the same old crowd. It used to be that Democrats welcomed new blood, but they all worked hard to defeat her.

I think Krupicka didn't do as well as might have been expected because he has has a credibility problem. (Notably, he said he was stepping down from city council to spend more time with his family - but apparently the opportunity to go to Richmond was more important than his family. As a political matter, I get it, but it looks bad.)

At the same time, Gautney has her own credibility gap which will haunt her if she runs for office again, since she accepted the embrace of the adulterer and California-bound David Englin (presumably only metaphorically). A reputation as a poor judge of character isn't a good thing.

It would have been an interesting race if there was a third "clean" Democratic choice. (Or if Fannon was the Republican nominee.) But as long as he keeps his pants on, the 45th district presumably will be Krupicka's as long as he wants it.

Yes, and Obama has a credibility problem because he accepted the embrace of the adulterer Clinton. Forget that both Englin and Clinton were excellent and popular legislators, and either would easily be reelected if they ran again. Clinton would beat Obama and Englin would handily beat Krupicka. Why not question Krupicka's credibility because of the adulterers on his list of endorsers?

Congratulations to Rob! I will be happy to have him serving as our Representative in Richmond.

Actually, when Rob was last elected to council, he said THEN that it would be his last term on council because he believes in having new people on council every few terms. Council requires members to put in long weekend hours on hearings, many weeknights, etc. When I spoke with Rob yesterday, he mentioned how state delegate actually requires less time away from family than council. State legislature is only in session for two months out of the year, two very intense months, but it's not year round in Richmond and it doesn't usually require long weekend hearings. Rob never said he wouldn't run again, he somewhat jokingly said "this might be the end of my political career" in the speech he gave the night he lost to Adam. Some people may have misconstrued his words back then. I also spoke with Karen yesterday and congratulated her on a well run first race and encouraged her to run for council in three years. Justin Wilson also encouraged Karen to run. Point is - Dems most certainly do welcome new blood. Rob will be good new blood in Richmond, and Karen can be elected someday too if she wants it. The ADC is meeting Monday night at 7:30 at Minnie Howard. Please attend if you'd like to be new blood.

You're not telling the full story, Gail. After Krupicka was defeated by Ebbin, he specifically said: "This is my last race for a very long time."

Yes, it can be explained away. But he said it. So let's not delude ourselves: Like most (all?) politicians, he looking out for his own interests first, his family second, and his constituents last. The best case scenario is that he's less self-centered than Englin.

Krupicka constantly dismisses the comments of citizens with whom he disagrees. He is clever at making an audience feel that he understands their position, as he maneuvers the argument to his PR advantage. His claim that he is an environmentalist is just one of the many stories fabricated on his Council watch.

I was very pleased to see Ms. Gautney run. I hope that she will consider running for City Council in a future election.

Rob will be a terrific Delegate. His service on City Council and work with the state's Board of Education have given him a strong basis for knowing what our district needs and how Richmond works.

As I have said before, Rob and I do not always agree on issues, but contrary to others' opinions, he has been open to hearing my comments. Rather than complain about what he has or has not done, I suggest that democrats and others, recognize his experience, plan on talking with him about concerns and make our district stronger in Richmond.

I'm embarrassed at the way elected Dems behaved in this election. With the odds I am surprised Gautney finished as well as she did. Krupicka had a huge advantage against an unknown newcomer, but they acted like he was under threat by a powerful right wing Republican not another progressive Dem. It defies logic. They definitely mobilized to ice her. She was a good candidate, smart, impressive background, but I cannot believe she would be willing to run again.

Rob Krupicka may not have been the best liberal/progressive Democrat, between him and Karen Gautney, we all know that, but we have to take things as they are, which is that yesterday was a coronation, of sorts. Rob Krupicka, quite sadly, likes to think that he's waxing eloquently, but he quite often doesn't realize that he drones on, and on, and on, and on, and on, up to the point where he actually tunes people out. I've had a ton of other Democrats that I know all say the exact same thing, that what Rob does is akin to almost hearing himself speak. Rob's a good guy, he just needs to take his lengthy diatribes and reduce them down to a more concise time of about thirty seconds. That's what people are usually tuned in for anyways. But with Rob beating Karen, he's definitely assured of winning the seat to be our new delegate for the 45th District, despite the rather odd and quirky Republican candidate, Tim McGhee, who has absolutely no name recognition, no money, and, quite frankly, no respect even among large ranks of Republicans in his own party. The Alexandria Democratic Committee, which is very insular, and absolutely doesn't know how to think out of the box, is also at fault for cultivating a rather divisive 'good ole boy/girl network' in Alexandria, which is much more negative in public perception than they even realize. As a liberal/progressive Democrat, I am quite embarrassed at how the ADC acts like buffoons, too, so the ARCC aren't the only political stooges in town.

Rob Krupicka doesn't ask questions because he knows all the answers. He is an expert on everything and his experience as a city councilman means he is always right. He doesn't need to listen to you when his time would be better spent telling you what he knows.

I appreciate all the comments here. A few thoughts. First, I would love to see Karen run again. I have considered her a friend for a number of years and am hopefull I'll get a chance to work for her election some day. Second, I appreciate the constructive criticism. Jim, you are right that I talk too long sometimes. Thanks for the reminder. Third, many have commented on my statement last year that I didn't expect to campaign again for a long time. That statement was true. I wasn't running for Council and didn't expect another state opportunity to materialize anytime soon. But, my family still comes first. My wife was the first person to encourage me to run for Delegate and I have always made sure to focus time with my family; that means I can't and won't attend every event because the kids have more and more activities these days. I hope you understand. And lastly, If I am given the honor of representing you in Richmond, I will make every effort to listen to and work with everybody. As with Council issues, I don't expect everybody in the community to agree on everything. Our diversity of opinions and ideas is one of the things that makes this a great community. I love meeting with and hearing from you. This community is full of so many people with incredible knowledge about every issue. I learn a lot whenever I hear from you. I'll keep doing that and I'll strive to find as much common ground as I can as we work together for our community and our state.

Thanks for chiming in Rob. To everyone else - the Alexandria Democratic Committee is meeting tonight at Minne Howard at 7:30. I encourage all of to attend and consider joining. We are not an insular group. I only joined a little over three years ago. I was seen as an upstart interloper by some, but that is mostly the old guard. Ask for me by name if you wish, I will introduce you to some of the new people and help you find opportunities to volunteer for the candidates you like. You can also volunteer on behalf of the ADC itself, registering voters, etc. We welcome all newcomes. I hope to see you there.

West End Dem, there are some us in the ADC who are working hard to change the old ways and make way for new people. It won't happen overnight, but we're working on it. Join us and help make it happen faster.

To all of you who have read my comments about the Alexandria Democratic Committee, and how it's full of the 'good old boy/girl network', and how it is run inefficiently, and so forth. I am a liberal/progressive Democrat who knows, as well as a ton of other Democrats in Alexandria, that despite their good intentions, and despite the good work that they might do 'for the cause', that the Alexandria Democratic Committee has to really make some wholesale changes to refocus itself from the 'my way or the highway' mentality that is currently being engaged by the leadership. I found it disgusting, as well as did so many other Democrats, for instance, that people supported Sean Holihan's campaign, without vetting him out, with due diligence, so that his background and history could be exposed, along with Danny Barefoot's, as to just how much of a mean-spirited and divisive campaigners they both are. Google either Sean or Danny and you'll quickly see a pattern of just bad politics which we absolutely don't need in the City of Alexandria. But the ADC, once again, accepted Sean, and Danny, with open arms, thinking that while they both talked the talk of the party line, no one did a background check on either one of them. That is just not only ignorant, it is also unforgivable, especially if you're in the leadership of the Alexandria Democratic Committee. I will add that neither Sean or Danny have broken any laws, but they each push the envelope enough to come close. Shame on the ADC!

Congrats, Rob.
I've been a critic of the rampant overdevelopment in Alexandria under your tenure on the Council. I hope that you will be able to secure some more state dollars to address the horrendous transportation woes that will only get worse once the BRAC-impacted personnel fully staff the Mark Center, and thousands and thousands of new families move into Potomac Yards and the looming condo/townhouse developments around Braddock Metro. At least you'll have intimate knowledge of the development projects that are overrunning Alexandria.

I really enjoy the misinformed discussions about the Alexandria Democratic Committee’s perceived short-fallings, and I would dare any reader to compare the openness, energy, diversity and aptitude of the ADC with the City’s Republican counterpart (a party that can’t find three candidates to field a full slate for city council, and can only muster up shadowy figures to run in state and federal races – is this also the fault of the ADC?).

As an on-and-off again member of the ADC for the past decade, each successive two-year term of committee membership is full of many new and dynamic people. The membership is comprised of some of our community’s most active folks, who work tirelessly to improve the City’s quality of life for all citizens and who serve on a variety of boards and commissions.

If the ADC is as monolithic as some suggest, certainly 14 candidates would not have run in this spring’s city council primary. Does anyone doubt that had Karen Gautney won the primary, she would have overwhelmingly defeated the Republican candidate in the general election?

The fact of the matter is that the Republican Party isn’t even on life-support in Alexandria, and its stale ideas have been rejected time and again in our progressive and generally well-run city. This development leaves the only debate of legitimate ideas to be discussed among Democrats – thankfully; the party is a diverse one of varying ideas and visions.

Yep, and don't forget the open-space to development ratio is woefully inadequate. I recall a few years back the city approved a developer's open space plan that was an interior court yard. How are neighborhood kids going to play there? And what open space can be seen is apparently is off limits to the public. That nice big field across the street from the old Gold Crust Bread Co. lies empty most days. I tried to go there with my girls the other day to toss a Frisbee around and couldn't get past the locked gates. What's up with that!?

Doug - try following the trail of comments and you can answer your own question.

If any of you think that the Alexandria Democratic Committee is doing a great job, because the Alexandria Republican City Committee is a complete basket case of an organization, barely on life support, and a breath from going out of existence, than you've got blinders on, and, as usual, you're living in your own make believe dream world. I know of many Democrats in Alexandria who absolutely will not have anything to do with the Alexandria Democratic Committee, and would never be associated with it just because of the 'good old boy/girl network' perception, real or not, that they're known for. David Englin's 'Tiger Woods' antics, of 'playing the back nines' of every woman he met on the campaign trail was very apparent, years ago, yet the ADC stuck their heads in the sand. Once again, not checking out the background of Sean Holihan, who outed himself (no pun intended) as being a negative campaigner, by dumping on Frank Fannon as being against gay marriage, when Frank never voiced his opinion one way or another. Sean going against a guy like Frank Fannon, that most Democrats actually like, shows that the ADC had no control over a guy who would embarrass the party in the City of Alexandria. Democrats would win in Alexandria, especially without an entity like the Alexandria Democratic Committee being in place, so the ADC shouldn't be crowing on their heels as to how good they are, because that's an absolute joke. The ARCC is a real train wreck, but the ADC is also pretty bad, too

Pretty bad, indeed. At the ADC meeting tonight Del Pepper announced to the party that she wished Rob had beaten fellow Democrat Gautney (who was in the room) by a wider margin. WOW! I've never seen this kind of public attack of a Democrat by other Democrats. This speaks volumes about the climate of the ADC.

Exactly, West End Dem, that's my whole point, about how the Alexandria Democratic Committee, is almost as bad as the Alexandria Republican City Committee, but in a different way. Del Pepper, God love her, she needs to be out of office, coming this fall. She's not with it when she says stuff like that, especially with Karen in the room. Dak Hardwick appears to be a very nice, likable guy, but he clearly doesn't have control of the Alexandria Democratic Committee, and his lack of firm leadership shows. I know of a ton of Democrats in the City of Alexandria, all who range from very liberal, moderate, to, yes, even conservative, and the wide spectrum of the party faithful that I know, and there are quite a few, will have absolutely nothing to do with the Alexandria Democratic Committee. I'm waiting for someone to form a new Democratic Party of Alexandria Committee, or something with a new name, to get Democrats in the city who are sitting on the sideline reengaged in politics. Most of my friends, who are Democrats in the City of Alexandria, and I know quite a few, all have also chimed in that they thought it would be a great idea to have someone form a new group, clean and fresh, energized to make great things happen for people throughout, to be inviting, welcoming and to have someone to give it firm direction, strong leadership, and a commitment to actively bringing in more members than the current Alexandria Democratic Committee could ever do, as dysfunctional as they are now.

What Del Pepper actually said was that she had THOUGHT that Rob would take the caucus by a wider margin, not that she WISHED he had, and her point, however awkwardly made, was that Dems to came out to vote even on short notice when the Governor tried to put one past us. I agree with the sentiment that Del should make room for a newcomer, but she got through the primary so she must have a stronger constituency than I thought. There were so many candidates in the council primary with friends bullet voting that it was unsurprising that the more well known names got through. I think it actually hurt us to have 14 candidates. 10 would have been a more manageable number to effect change.

Nice try, Gail. Del Pepper actually said, "He won by a huge margin...63%...I was HOPING for 70%." She was not referring to the overall total. She used actual percentages and was comparing the spread between Krupicka and Gautney. It was a shocking moment and very offensive.

Pepper was clearly gloating about the percentage of the win, not the turnout, and she did say she would like for it to have been even bigger. 70% is what she said. Karen has been extremely gracious and that was a classless move by Pepper.

Maybe Del had a huge bet on Rob getting seventy percent of the vote, or more. Who knows, but it sounds like it was an awkward, yet equally classic 'Del Pepper' moment. The comments made by me, and others here, are only a very small percentage of the huge resentment that thousands of Democrats have, throughout the City of Alexandria, regarding how the Alexandria Democratic Committee is so poorly run, coupled with how low the organization is truly regarded. As a liberal/progressive Democrat, I must confess that I absolutely take no joy in bashing people within my own party, but when a very token few have taken the ADC to the edge of a cliff, and those in a position of leadership there don't realize how bad things are, or how worse their lack of strong leadership has made the organization, than wholesale changes apparantly need to be made. I'm actually very much an advocate of having a large group of Democrats form what for all intents and purposes would be an alternative to the ADC, a brand new Democratic Party of Alexandria Committee, or something like that, so that there is no baggage brought on by the change. Once a new Democratic committee in the City of Alexandria is firmly in place, the ADC needs to simply fold up their rag-tag carnival act and go away. Forming a new committee for Democrats in the City of Alexandria won't be easy, and probably will never happen, but it could be the panacea that can and will evoke those in our party to wake up. The ADC is broken. It's bad.

Ma Tee Bell - Based on your logic it seems that most citizens are pretty pleased with the direction of how the City is run, especially since the two incumbents were both re-elected in the primary and will easily win again in the fall. Justin and Tim should also win this time around, which will further augment the notion of general satisfaction with city council. With the additions of John Chapman and Allison Silberberg, new and productive view points will further improve on an already great place to live.

I was in the far back row so I guess I misheard or misinterpreted what Del said and if what is posted here is true, I am also unhappy with her comments. I've never been a big Del supporter. She ticked me off over parking restrictions in the 90s at the townhouse development where I used to live and I've never voted for her, but that doesn't mean I'd vote for a Republican. I bullet vote for Dems. I also agree that the state party is a "hot mess" as WestEndDem pointed out above - I'm one of the DPVA's biggest critics. Lastly, I don't do all the work I do to be "close" to the insiders. Some of them are okay, but there are plently I don't like and I'm not shy about showing it. I volunteer to register voters and get the word out on Dems I like. When I sit at an ADC table, I have to be neutral about Dems, but when I canvas or make calls on my own time, it's for those Dems that I truly respect and believe in. I got burned badly by David Englin, and so did a lot of other people he disappointed. We'll all be more careful from now on about who we give our time to.

Gail, the Alexandria Democratic Committee left you out flailing in the wind during the whole anti Boyd Walker PAC fiasco that was brought on by the 'stellar' brain trust of Shayna Englin, Sean Holihan and Danny Barefoot, from what has been now exposed. And while David 'Tiger Woods' Englin was out playing '18 holes', he too was a part of the overall problem and perception that has many, many, many Democrats in Alexandria absolutely giving up on the Alexandria Democratic Committee. The problem with the ADC, as is with many volunteer organizations, is that there aren't any mechanisms for individuals to be vetted out, for background checks to be conducted, all which could very easily be done and should have been done, especially when it comes to the backgrounds of both Sean Holihan and Danny Barefoot, who while not being actual 'criminals', acted within the party as being very devious and divisive, as well. Much of that though was also brought on by Shayna Englin, who while knowing that her husband, David, was on 'tour' with his group of 'David's Daisies', she was also on edge herself, trying to be the loyal political wife, while he was checking out the thread count of many beds in the 45th. Sure, the state party is a "hot mess", which we'll all agree to, but so is the ADC, as well. That's why I think that if wholesale changes aren't made, your little band of followers, or volunteers, will continue to get smaller and smaller, with each election and that's not good for Alexandria.

I'd like to thank Drew Hansen of the Patch for allowing this thread of comments to be active for as long as possible, because I feel it is serving as a useful tool to let Democrats in our city voice their frustrations of the overall bad management of the Alexandria Democratic Committee.

I would like to echo the sentiments of people complaining about the Alexandria Democratic Committee, which is an organization that has become insular, very clickish, and seemingly arrogant in how they represent themselves in Alexandria. I too am a very liberal Democrat who is equally disgusted with how the Alexandria Democratic Committee has shamefully conducted themselves for many years now. I am quite sure that they see that they've done nothing wrong, that how they act is perfectly fine, and that Democrats, overall, in Alexandria, are very pleased with their organization. That assertation couldn't be further from the truth. I also know of many other Democrats who laugh and shake their heads when I bring up the subject of the Alexandria Democratic Committee, of how much of a shallow-minded joke it has now become. It is sad, because as a Democrat I would like to see quite the opposite from the ADC, but we as Alexandria Democrats continue to get the same failed leadership, year-after-year, with no hope in sight for any positive change. I'm quite sure that those in a leadership position of the ADC, or any of the lemmings who follow them, see nothing wrong, which is so obvious on how they run operations. I would be very happy to see a new Democratic committee be formed to represent ALL Alexandrians, instead of the nimcompoops who have wrecked and ruined the reputation of the ADC. I know that in their heart of hearts, they meant no harm, but the ADC needs to close shop for good.

Sherry and others, what specific complaints do you have about the ADC? Yes, some people can be cliqueish, but certainly not everyone in the ADC is like that. I only joined a little over three years ago and I've made many friends. The executive board has some relative newcomers this year. I'd love to see some of you join the party and work for change. The bylaws require that the ADC basically dissolve and reorganize itself every two years, and that's what has been happening. If you have any questions or concerns, contact Dak or any other member of the executive board and we'll work to address those concerns. Contact info is on the ADC website. You may remain confidential if you wish.

The state of Alexandria schools should be enough of an indictment of the local Democrat cabal. How could we possibly not have enough schools, and have them perform so badly? It's not like we don't have a sufficient base of tax revenue. Maybe a little real competition is finally in order? This is a classic example of a town that's in the can for one party, and can't understand why things don't work well.

I only joined the Alexandria Democratic Committee this year. Having seen local Dems all over, I can't agree one bit with the assertions in this thread that the ADC is just weakly-led inside-baseball. It isn't; in fact, it's not even close. ADC leadership has always (and I mean always) been available for info and ideas, and this year's crop of ADC-supported candidates generally seems to be engaged, competent and progressive -- that is, the candidates mirror the Committee and the Party, which is the way it's supposed to work in a partisan system. ADC's leadership is incredibly dedicated, and I don't believe that the criticism I've seen in this thread is at all merited. If anyone feels excluded from ADC participation, contact the relevant precinct or committee/division leader, and please remember that leadership changes every two years (and it indeed does) under the local-committee reorganization rule adopted by the State committee.

I have been an active Democratic donor at the national level for twenty years, and was raised in a local Democratic organization in New York City, where I grew up. I'm not an ADC officer, or candidate, and I'm not even a full voting member. I am posting this because what I've seen in a few of the comments simply isn't accurate, and works an insult to a number of people who have been nothing short of selfless during what is the most intense two-year cycle for a local Dem committee that I've ever seen. Ever.

Matthew, I agree with you 100% about our failing schools, but the school board is to blame for that, and the school board is entirely non-partisan. There are both Dems and Republicans on it, and until recently, the chair was a Republican. City council sets the budget for the school as a whole, but the rest of it is up to our do nothing school board, which only serves to worship the almighty Superintedent Mort Sherman. Fortunately, we have some very good new people running for school board this year. I will be supporting them. D or R, I think many of us on both sides of the political spectrum can agree that the ACPS adminsitration is doing a terrible job. That is NOT a criticism of the teachers. The blame falls squarely on the overpaid, bloated administration and the rubber stamping school board.

Thanks everybody for this thread. We have a diversity of opinion in Alexandria, and it is good to be heard. Alexandria is the best place I have ever called home in my 56 years of life! Perfection in our civic leaders and politicians is and will be impossible to attain.

pvogel - I couldn't agree more with your statement that 'perfection in our civic leaders and politicians is and will be impossible to attain. You are so correct. That is why, for me as a liberal/progressive Democrat, that I want to see the left leaning moderate Republican, Frank Fannon, get reelected, because I feel that if all the power is employed to just one party, then there won't be any checks and balances, because everyone will be trying to cover any messes that they get into. For instance, the BRAC-133 building on Seminary Road. Rob Krupicka, Paul Smedberg, Del Pepper, Tim Lovain and Justin Wilson, along with Bill Euille, all were responsible for getting hoodwinked by the Department of Defense's Washington Headquarters Services division. All of them stuck their heads in the sand, and when the building got finished, they all acted completely dumbfounded. "Say what? Building? What building?" As a Democrat, I'm embarrassed when other Democrats make mistakes, but BRAC-133 wasn't a small error in judgment, it was HUGE! It clearly brought out the fact that the aforementioned members of the city council had no idea of what they were doing, and it still shows today, by how puzzled all of them act when BRAC-133 is mentioned in front of them. They talk out of the sides of their mouths and blame someone else, but, no, the then all-Democrat Alexandria City Council wasn't at fault, or so they'd like people to think. That's why I firmly support Frank Fannon for reelection this fall.

Sigh. I don't know exactly how this thread morphed into a BRAC building discussion, but the comments to the effect that the Alexandria City Council is at fault are simply inaccurate. The Inspector General's report made clear that in 2007-08 communications, DoD simply lied to City staff. I don't mean shaded, or advocated, I mean that DoD made false statements on which reliance was invited. So the City didn't object, but precisely because the City got fibbed to. The matter was public at the time, and I recall no one from any party or faction objecting. That's because, again, DoD made false statements that invited reliance. The BRAC building is terrible for everyone (including DoD employees), but setting the arrow towards City Council simply is not correct as a factual matter.

Mark, sigh, the then all-Democrat Alexandria City Council got 'jobbed'. They didn't get lied to, because if they did, as you so assertively claim, then they certainly had the mechanisms in place to potentially correct BRAC-133 from ever being built. To put the blame solely on DoD/WHS is laughable, when every citizen in the City of Alexandria would think that the city staff, along with the Alexandria City Council, would be right on top of a project of that size being built, every single step of the way. Did BRAC-133 just spring up out of nowhere like a weed? Do you have any 'factual' proof of the 'factual' matter, as you claim, that the Alexandria City Council got lied to, and hoodwinked, by DoD/WHS? No. But the building is now built, so the aspect of who allowed it to happen under their watch, does go back to the then Alexandria City Council. Did the Federal Government seize the property as eminent domain? No. You seem quite eager to try to say that everything is rosy with the ADC, when it's not, or that no one is ever at fault for anything that goes wrong in the City of Alexandria. The 'see no evil - speak no evil - hear no evil' mentality of the Alexandria Democratic Committee is what continues to have so many ardent Democrats completely turned off to local city politics. I know of many people, such as yourself, from out of town, who are local Democrats who would have liked to have been a part of the ADC, but have passed seeing bumbling and stumbling going on all the time.

The City Council was more interested in encouraging BRAC-133 to relocate to Alexandria than they were in doing anything else. I think the City Council (i.e., the Mayor) knew exactly what they were saying when they asked Mark Jinks to write that letter to the Army saying that they had no real problem with the DOD building this monstrosity overlooking the Winkler Nature (formerly, Botanical) Preserve.

The fact that the IG later found out that basic traffic assumptions were flawed is simply not a justification for the earlier decision by Council to give the green light to the project and not to say CLEARLY that Alexandria would welcome BRAC ONLY if it agreed to locate to certain locations, near a metro for instance.

We should not be electing, or reelecting, people to the City Council that didn't have had the foresight to oppose this project. Officials should have known better than to rubber stamp BRAC, and the fact that they didn't say no to it—Mr. Williams’ obfuscation aside—is reason enough not to put them in positions of authority. The City felt BRAC would accelerate the redevelopment of the West End. The fact that BRAC is a net drain on the City's budget doesn't seem to matter to elected officials.

Any Alexandria citizen, even those of us who do not live on the West End, reading that DOD description of minimal traffic impacts from a facility planned for 6,000 employees in a location far from Metro and with only a few major roadways, could have said that the DOD study was not just flawed, it was pure fantasy. We have a right to expect our elected leaders, Mayor Euille and all the Council members whose names appeared on the BRAC-is-welcome-anywhere letter, to be more knowledgeable about our home town than to accept some fantasy scenario from some Federal bureaucrats. It is unlikely we will ever know why some power in DOD chose that location. We know beyond all doubt that our elected City leaders in 2008 chose not to do their due diligence by getting to the truth of the potential traffic nightmare on the West End. They did not protect us nor did they consult us. Few citizens ever knew the welcome to BRAC letter had been sent until after the 2009 election. Not consulting the citizens by holding a public hearing on preferences for a BRAC location is a scandal in itself.

Mr. Williams, am I to believe, as you state, that the city staff, and the Alexandria City Council, are absolutely completely absolved from any issues of the BRAC-133 building being built on Seminary Road? You know, and I know, and the public knows, that if that is the case, if the then Alexandria City Council, got the wool pulled over their eyes, and got 'lied' to, as you put it, then why would anyone who is a voter, right now, want to reelect anyone who was apparently asleep at the wheel during that time period. You seem to easily point out that DoD/WHS lied to those in power then, but one can equally make the assumption that those in power who could have had firm checks and balances in place, did not do so, they did not have their hands on the wheel as the proverbial BRAC-133 building went over the cliff, and right onto the current site it sits today. Rob Krupicka, Tim Lovain, Justin Wilson, Paul Smedberg, Del Pepper and Bill Euille, now want voters to vote for them on their past records in office. BRAC-133, mind you, is a huge blight on all of their records, and each and every one of them, quite frankly, shies away from talking about it because they are rightfully embarrassed for screwing up. I don't think any of them did it on purpose, but the incompetence that has been brought about by their collective actions is shameful, and each of them needs to 'man up', yes, even Del, and tell exactly how they made an error in judgment and apologize to voters for their mistake.

This document is worth reading, http://www.hqda.army.mil/acsimweb/brac/EA_DOCS/EA_final/Belvoir_FNSIfinal.pdf, for anyone who is interested in the BRAC-133 building fiasco on Seminary Road. Apparently no one from the city staff, or the then Alexandria City Council, voiced any objection to DoD's Washington Headquarters Services to build at the Mark Center site, when the Victory Center was still very much in play. So, yes, Rob Krupicka, Tim Lovain, Justin Wilson, Paul Smedberg, Del Pepper and Bill Euille are all truly accountable, and should be on notice, in an election year, of how they could have so easily screwed up and stuck their heads in the sand on this issue. The Victory Center on Eisenhower Avenue, which sits as a vacant 'white elephant', could and should be where DoD/WHS moved to, and not the Mark Center. So while everyone who's in power with the Alexandria Democratic Committee says that leadership rolls over every two years, it's all coming from the same pool of incompetency, which is a great example of the 'The Peter Principle' coming into effect with their organization, for people to rise to their level of incompetence. This is not a perfect world, and there are mistakes made all the time, we all makes mistakes, I've made them, everyone makes them. But when you're in elected office, or working in a situation of public trust, then you have to be held accountable for your current and past actions. BRAC-133 shows the then Alexandria City Council asleep at the wheel!

I agree 100%. BRAC-133 was a litmus test for the competency of the leaders who were overseeing our city at the time. And people like Rob Krupicka, Tim Lovain, Justin Wilson, Paul Smedberg, Del Pepper and Bill Euille failed miserably. Ignorance is no excuse! Add to BRAC the other mammoth development projects underway at Potomac Yards and Braddock Metro and slated for the riverfront – projects that will bring thousands and thousands of more cars to our already choked streets and stressed infrastructure – and it’s clear these individuals need to go. They have put the interests of developers over citizens. Regardless of their other strengths, I’ll never be able to vote for pols like Krupicka or Euille again. That’s why I support Andrew MacDonald for mayor! It’s time for a change in City Hall.

I have been a Democrat since my youth and I am quite surprised at how the Alexandria Democratic Committee take people for granted, like every Democrat in Alexandria is going to follow them like lemmings. Not so with me and many other of my fellow Democrats who have absolutely given up with the little clique that runs the ADC. I will say that I too question the judgment, or lack there of, regarding how Rob Krupicka, Tim Lovain, Justin Wilson, Paul Smedberg, Del Pepper and Bill Euille were completely ignorant regarding BRAC-133, and none of them have apologized for making egregious miscalculations on dealing with the DoD at the time. Are we, as voters in Alexandria, supposed to believe that they are completely clean and had no knowledge whatsoever of the BRAC-133 disaster? Who's dumb enough to believe that? I'm sure there are a flock of lemmings who will all believe that not one of those good folks had anything to do with having BRAC-133 built on Seminary Road, but, wake up people, they all had a hand in creating the mess, and they all should own up to it. Of course, shamefully, none of them will own up to making grave errors in judgment for fear of casting doubts in voters mind before their elections. Rob Krupicka, he's a shoo-in over the Republican guy that no one knows, but he won't admit fault with BRAC-133, as well as Tim Lovain, Justin Wilson, Paul Smedberg, Del Pepper and Bill Euille all need to come clean, too. As a Democrat, I'm very embarrassed, and it is a shame.

There are many different topics on this particular thread (schools, BRAC, 45th special election, etc.) and I hope those reading and posting are getting some added value to these issues as a result of this online discussion.

As the current Chair of the Alexandria Democratic Committee, I wanted to briefly respond to some of the comments made by previous posters concerning the ADC. I certainly appreciate the feedback that I’m reading on this thread. My only request is to ask those who are posting and providing that feedback to sit with me, one-on-one, and talk about your concerns in a way that can be used to positively influence the organization. Every organization has its strengths and challenges and we are constantly looking for ways to improve.

On previous occasions in this forum, I have offered the opportunity for comment posters, including some in this thread, to contact me directly about any issues, concerns or challenges they have with the ADC. That offer still stands and my contact information (phone and email) is available on the ADC website at www.alexdems.org. In fact, if there are any Democrats in Alexandria that are reading this but not posting, please know that I personally welcome the opportunity to sit down with you and see how we can continue to improve our organization.

My door is always open and feedback is always welcome, but constructive, specific feedback is much more desirable.