Good morning Georgetown, here’s the latest:

• Two purse-snatches in Georgetown yesterday: one on Wisconsin near R and the other on M St. Few details released yet, but MPD has warned about the spike in iPhone snatches, which these could be. So be careful when fiddling with your smartphones.
• That sweet sound of dings and springs will soon be here.
• Funny article, hilarious title.

Crime in Georgetown continued to stay low for the second quarter of this year versus last year, although it was up significantly from the first quarter’s sharp decline.

The total number of crime incidents for the second quarter was 229, down just 3.38% from last year’s second quarter total of 237. The 229 total was up sharply against the first quarter’s total of 171, but that quarter was unusually quiet, most likely a result of the snow storms. As you can see from the chart of total crime incidences over the past 10 quarters, this last quarter was part of a long term gradual decline:

Looking at the individual categories for the second quarter versus last spring’s numbers, there are some things to be somewhat concerned over:

• Robbery ticked up a bit at 15 incidences versus 12 during spring 2009
• Stolen autos more than doubled to 17 from eight
• Theft from autos also ticked up from 34 to 40

These increases were offset mostly by a decline in thefts from 156 to 141.

Reader Michael Kessler sent in the above photo. Apparently thieves targeted an Escalade on O St. for its rims. The thieves jacked the car up, shoved cinder blocks under the hub and took the wheels right off.

According to Michael “The police said it’s been happening all week, but first one in this area.Tow driver just now said it was the ninth one this past evening. The owner’s mother who was with the tow truck driver said they are going after the original factory installed rims, not special ones, since they’re easier to sell. Crazy!”

Crazy indeed.

Good morning Georgetown, here’s the latest:

• “Georgetown area” security guard in identity theft scheme. Who wants to bet “Georgetown area” means just about anywhere in NW DC?
• Speaking of crime, there were apparently two separate robberies on M St. yesterday.
• Gift to Tudor Place highlights connection with Transatlantic cable.

Good morning Georgetown, here’s the latest:

• Artist’s rendering of suspect in Georgetown sexual assault released.
• First weekend of the new Safeway, what did you think? GM heard word that traffic was pretty bad since the lights do not appear to have been adjusted. Hopefully when the hoopla dies down, the crowds will be smaller.

Good morning Georgetown, here’s the latest:

• Last community meetings on GU’s ten year plan coming up.
• MPD reports that the robbers who hit Cafe Bonaparte Monday night didn’t actually get any money.

Good morning Georgetown, here’s the latest:

• Student sexually assaulted at gunpoint.
• Where the house tour homes at?

Good morning Georgetown, here’s the latest:

• WaPo reviews Morso.
• Good Samaritan beaten up on M St.

This would entail creating some sort of a special taxing district for Georgetown. The funds would be set aside to be spent by an elected board on projects and items strictly in Georgetown. The list of things that this money could be spent on is endless, but GM speculates that the consensus first candidate for funds would be an increase in reimbursable details from MPD.

A reimbursable detail is an MPD police officer who works overtime and is paid from a private source. Both CAG and the BID support reimbursable details in Georgetown already. However, the officers are primarily focused on the main corridors, not the back streets. A Citizens’ Improvement District could pay for more of a police presence in the residential parts of Georgetown.

Which brings GM to the question of the day: What would you be willing to pay in order to fund a Citizens’ Improvement District? For reference, the BID’s budget is over $3 million, but they only spend $150,000 on a reimbursable detail.

There are roughly 4,500 households in Georgetown, containing about 8,500 people. We could double the BID’s reimbursable detail budget with merely a $33 per household or a $17 per person surcharge. (GM thinks, for a variety of reasons, it would be more practical to levy the tax on real estate, not on income, so the per household number is a more apt figure).

If we bumped that surcharge up to $100 per home, the CID would have $450,000 to spread around to various projects around Georgetown including the reimbursable detail. We could match the BID’s overall budget with a $600 per household surtax, although even GM thinks that’s too much.

There are a variety of likely critiques to this proposal. The most salient, in GM’s opinion, is the idea that any dollar spent by Georgetowners on Georgetowners would be offset by the District government simply short-changing us. Any authorizing legislation would have to address this head on. In the case of the reimbursable detail, we’d have to get measurable guarantees from the Second District that they wouldn’t pull back non-overtime officers (for what it’s worth, the BID and CAG have been happy with the reimbursable detail so far). This concern is less strong for other potential candidates. For instance, GM would support giving some money to Hyde-Addison’s PTA. The PTA budget at schools like Janney and Murch dwarf Hyde’s, yet they don’t get short-changed from the District government.

Another critique is that these objectives could be met with fundraising, not taxing. In fact, they already are met in some ways by fundraising through CAG. But this creates a free-rider problem. We all benefit from an increased police presence, shouldn’t everyone kick in?

So what do you think? Would you support a program like this, and how much?

Good morning Georgetown, here’s the latest:

• GU student attacked in dorm room.
• Jackson Art Studios open studios coming up again.
• A little more detail on the water taxi.