May 1 coronavirus response -- student loan help, extended deadline to appeal your property tax assessment, and Brookland's Finest is back

> Sorry for the corrupted images in the message below.

From: Councilmember Kenyan R. McDuffie <kmcduffie@dccouncil.us>
Sent: Friday, May 1, 2020 6:28 PM
Subject: May 1 Coronavirus Response - Student loan help, extended deadlines to appeal your property tax assessment, and Brookland's Finest is BACK!

View this email in your browser Below are today's updates on the District's response to the coronavirus pandemic. For the latest and most comprehensive information always visit http://coronavirus.dc.gov. Relief for Residents Struggling with Student Loan Payments Due to COVID-19 Pandemic Property Tax Appeals and Other Deadlines Extended Mayor Announces Deal to Build a New East End Hospital and Expand Howard University Hospital Comcast Offering Two Months of Free Internet Service Small Business Spotlight: Brookland's Finest is Back! Relief for Residents Struggling with Student Loan Payments Due to COVID-19 Pandemic Mayor Bowser announced expanded financial relief options for District residents who are struggling to pay private education loans due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) public health emergency. The initiative, launched by the District and several states, will provide qualifying District residents with loan forbearance and other financial protections. Residents with commercially-owned Federal Family Education Loan Program (FFELP) loans or privately-held student loans who are struggling to make their payments will be eligible for expanded relief. Twelve private education loan servicers have backed the initiative. Relief options under the initiative include: Providing a minimum of 90 days of forbearance Waiving late payment fees Ensuring that no borrower is subject to negative credit reporting Ceasing debt collection lawsuits for 90 days Working with borrower to enroll them in other borrower assistance programs, such as income-based repayment  If regulated student loan servicers are limited in their ability to take these actions due to investor restrictions or contractual obligations, they should proactively work with loan holders to relax those restrictions or obligations. The new initiative will help fill a gap by the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act. That law provides relief for borrowers with federal loans, including the suspension of monthly payments, interest, and involuntary collection activity through September 30, 2020. However, the CARES Act left out millions of student loan borrowers with federal loans that are not owned by the federal government, as well as loans made by private lenders. Borrowers in need of assistance must immediately contact their student loan servicer to identify their best options. To get details on their federal loans and servicers, they may visit the U.S. Department of Education’s (DOE) National Student Loan Data System at nslds.ed.gov, or call DOE’s Federal Student Aid Information Center at 1-800-433-3243 or 1-800-730-8913 (TDD). Borrowers with private student loans may check the contact information on their monthly billing statements. States joining the District in this effort include California, Colorado, Connecticut, Illinois, Massachusetts, New Jersey, Vermont, Virginia, and Washington. The 12 private student loan servicers providing relief are: Aspire Resources, Inc. College Ave Student Loan Servicing, LLC Earnest Operations Edfinancial Kentucky Higher Education Student Loan Corporation MOHELA Navient Nelnet Rhode Island Student Loan Authority SoFi Lending Corp. Tuition Options Utah Higher Education Assistance Authority Vermont Student Assistance Corporation For additional resources regarding student loans, borrowers can contact: disb.dc.gov/studentloanhelp DISB Student Loan Ombudsman: 202-727-8000 or DCLoanHelp@dc.gov disb.dc.gov/service/file-complaint-or-report-fraud to file a complaint with DISB The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau: consumerfinance.gov/complaint/ Property Tax Appeals and Other Deadlines Extended In order to assist those impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, the Office of Tax and Revenue (OTR) is further extending three important deadlines for property owners in the District of Columbia. Please see above for the new deadlines for property owners who wish to appeal their TY 2021 real property tax assessment, file an Exempt Property Annual Use report, as well as file an Income & Expense (I&E) report. Mayor Announces Deal to Build a New East End Hospital and Expand Howard University Hospital Yesterday, Mayor Bowser announced two agreements which include the construction of two new, state-of-the-art hospitals in DC: a 136-bed hospital at St. Elizabeths East in Ward 8, operated by Universal Health Services in conjunction with George Washington University and George Washington Medical Faculty Associates (GWMFA); and a 225-bed Howard University Hospital on Georgia Avenue NW in Ward 1. View Mayor Bowser's presentation from her remarks or read her press release here. Comcast Offering Two Months of Free Internet Service Small Business Spotlight: Brookland's Finest is Back! 12th Street staple Brookland's Finest has been closed since March but has just announced a re-opening with a 'Greatest Hits' menu for online ordering and delivery through Uber Eats on Thursday and Friday from 4 pm - 9 pm, Saturday from noon - 9 pm, and Sunday from noon - 7 pm.

DC Water NEBT message: Florida Avenue NW construction site update

Sorry for the corrupted links in the message below.

From: Andy Galli <news@dcwater.com>
Sent: Friday, May 1, 2020 3:58 PM
Subject: NEBT: Florida Avenue NW Construction Site Update

View this email in your browser To reply to this email: dccleanrivers@dcwater.com Northeast Boundary Tunnel Project Florida Avenue NW Construction Site Update May 1, 2020 Greetings Neighbors. Here is a follow-up to a previous notice regarding some scheduled work as part of the Florida Avenue NW Construction Site that will take place on Rhode Island Avenue NW, between 3rd Street NW and Florida Avenue NW. Median Removal on Rhode Island Avenue Starting on the week of May 4, 2020, DC Water’s contractor will begin removing portions of the medians on Rhode Island Avenue between 2nd Street NW and 3rd Street NW and between 3rd Street and Florida Avenue NW. It is necessary to remove the median portions to allow for lane shifts and create a work area on Rhode Island Avenue to support of the Florida Avenue Construction Site. Once median removal is complete, DC Water’s contractor will begin the mobilization of a construction work area on Rhode Island Avenue, between 3rd Street and Florida Avenue.  At this site, the contractor will install vertical soil-freeze pipes, a construction method used to stabilize the soil around an excavation area. Aerial view of the Florida Ave NW Construction Site. Areas in yellow indicate where construction will be conducted. White arrows show how traffic will flow around the site. Blue lines reflect parking restrictions. Travel and Parking Restrictions Travel lanes in each direction of Rhode Island Avenue between North Capitol Street NW and Florida Avenue will be reduced to two lanes. Parking restrictions will be in place on each side of Rhode Island Avenue between Florida Avenue and North Capitol Street. Southbound traffic on the 1800-block of 3rd Street will be limited to right turns only onto Rhode Island Avenue. Pedestrian Detours The west crosswalk at Rhode Island Avenue NW and 3rd Street NW will be closed. Please follow pedestrian detour signs. Project Details The Northeast Boundary Tunnel is the largest component of the Clean Rivers Project. It begins south of RFK Stadium and will extend north to Rhode Island Avenue, NE and west to 6th Street NW. When finished, the approximately five-mile long tunnel segment will complete the Anacostia River Tunnel, a 13.1-mile-long tunnel that ends at the Blue Plains Advanced Wastewater Treatment Plant. This project will significantly reduce chronic flooding in the areas it serves, as well as reduce the amount of combined sewer overflows into the Anacostia River. For More Information To receive email updates about NEBT construction, please send an email to dccleanrivers@dcwater.com 24/7 Northeast Boundary Tunnel Project Hotline: (800) 988-6151 Public Outreach Coordinator: Andy Galli, agalli@dcwater.com Public Outreach dccleanrivers@dcwater.com Northeast Boundary Tunnel Project: dcwater.com/NEBT DC Clean Rivers Project: dcwater.com/clean-rivers-project Copyright © 2020 DC Clean Rivers, All rights reserved. Your contact information is listed on the Northeast Boundary Tunnel Stakeholder Database to receive project updates. Our mailing address is: DC Clean Rivers 5000 Overlook Avenue SW Washington, Dc 20032 Add us to your address book

Common Good City Farm distributing free breakfast-bags-to-go > St. George's Episcopal Church Kwanzaa Kitchen -- Saturday, 05-02-2020

See this Common Good City Farm Facebook message:

We will be distributing free bags of produce tomorrow from 9 to 10 am at St. George’s Church Kwanzaa Kitchen.
           
This is open to everyone and feel free to share widely.