The Math, 51 for 464,000,000

 

The Math, 51 for 464,000,000

 

On Monday April 27^th Mayor Bowser broke ground on 3825 Georgia Avenue a Deputy Mayor for Planning and Economic Development (DMPED) negotiated deal.  With this deal, conservatively doing the Math on back a napkin, Donatelli Development would have paid $51 for public-private deals valued at $464,000,000.  This is on just 6 DMPED negotiated public-private partnerships.  If that was not enough, to reduce Donatelli Development’s risks, DMPED has provided Donatelli Development over 27 years’ worth of tax free land banking.   In other words, DMPED allowed Donatelli Development to sit-on keep of the market publicly owned land during the city’s prime development years. On top of this the city has provided 20 years of tax abatements which will have a value of over $10,000,000 to Donatelli Development.  All sites sit within 2 blocks of prime Metro site locations 5 literally atop their respective Metro Stations.  Of course Donatelli Development actually paid more than $51 for deals worth $464,000,000 but I’m not including contributions to the political campaigns of D.C. Mayors and Council Members, my focus here is primarily on DMPED.

These “51 for 464,000,000” deals were overseen and managed by DMPED’s Real Estate Development Office.   This office is typically made up of 25 to 35 real estate professionals, project managers and supervisors who draw salaries between $120,000 - $190,000 per year each or about $4,000,000 per year for the last 9 years or $37,000,000.   Another way to link about this math is that tax payers paid DMPED $37,000,000 over the last 9 years to give Donatelli Development deals worth $464,000,000 for $51.   As well, in the last 9 years DMPED’s Office of Real Estate Development has left 4 New Communities Projects mathematical undefined or the same is when you divide a whole number or any number by “0” in this case 4/0. 

At 10AM Monday morning April 27^th, I’m at the ground breaking ceremony for Donatelli Development’s 3825 Georgia Avenue project in Petworth doing the math. I Use my phone to video and photograph the ceremony to capture the continued shameful looting of our neighborhoods and communities by Donatelli Development and DMPED.   That evening I watched a video and photographs of a different type looting in Baltimore.   I pondered irony of D.C. sending police officers to protect Baltimore’s Inner-Harbor from looters.  I read Facebook posts and listened to new commentary about whether Baltimore could come to D.C.. Then I started to do the math, “51 for 464,000,000” and “4/0”.   Looting had already come to D.C. and I had it on video.