DC MUNICIPAL SERVICES: KEY PHONE NUMBERS Last updated 6/24/04. This document is regularly updated; the most current version is always available at www.panix.com/~eck/dcphones Please send comments, updates, corrections, suggestions, plaudits, or brickbats to Mark Eckenwiler (dcphones @ datagram.org). Spam me at your peril. (Note: all email addresses have been broken apart to thwart spammers' automated address-harvesting webcrawlers.) Specific to PSA 102 (former PSA 106) ==================================== Police: Emergency 911 MPD dispatcher (citywide) 727-1010 or 311 1st District substation: -1D1 Captain Robert Shelton 727-1414 202 409-5341 (cell) 877 805-1089 (pager) -Front desk 727-4660 or -4661 -Substation fax machine 727-4028 -1D1 general e-mail substation1d1 @ juno.com -Lt. Ed Butler 727-4610 1st Dist. Cmdr. FNU McGuire 727-4586 1D fax 727-4026 City Council: Sharon Ambrose (ward 6 rep.) 724-8072 David Catania (at-large rep.) 724-7772 Office of the City Administrator Ward 6 Neighborhood Services Coordinator: Peter Jones 698-5620 - fax 698-4537 - email peter.jones @ dc.gov Citywide ======== Abandoned vehicle removal -Complaints/service requests 727-1000 -Investigations Division 576-6605 or 541-6068 (was 645-6287 or -6289) -Steven Chisley, supervisor, Blue Plains impound lot 645-6100 or schisley @ dpw.dcgov.org Civilian Complaint Review Board 727-3838 DCRA (Dept. of Consumer and Regulatory Affairs) -Director David Clark 442-8947 or davida.clark @ dc.gov see also "Housing" Historic Preservation Division, Office of Planning: -Inspector Toni Cherry 442-8844 or hp_inspector @ hotmail.com -HPD front desk 442-8818 -HPD fax machine 442-7637/7638 Housing inspectors (nuisance properties, vermin/trash on inhabited private property, etc.) 442-4610 -PSA106 Neighborhood Stabili- zation Officer Michael Brown 645-8289 -Eastern Sector Manager Bernard Ferguson 645-8299 -Eastern Sector desk 645-8285 -List of all inspectors by PSA: www.cleancity.washingtondc.gov/neighborhood_officers.htm [as of 6/13/02, this list is 22 months out of date] -Citywide manager Henry Howze 442-4317 Housing violation abatement (after violation notice issued): -Ronald Duke (ward 6) 442-4321 -Supervisor James Alldridge 442-4600 Motor vehicles (DMV) -customer service 727-5000 (for a live person, dial 1, then 0) -Director Anne Witt 724-2034 - email anne.witt @ dc.gov - fax 727-5017 Director, Neighborhood Services Coordinator Program -Dr. Patrick Canavan 727-5146 Parking enforcement: -dispatcher effective 11/01, dispatcher will not take complaints; you must call 727-1000 -report broken parking meters 541-6030 -public space violations (Bennie Peterson) 541-6040 -supervisor George Carr 541-6031 -supervisor Lamont Russell 541-6055 -section head Norma Mapp 541-6029 Pothole/sidewalk repair: -Repair requests 727-1000 (Citywide Call Center) or 645-7055 -Foreman (call to escalate if original repair request not acted on) 645-7056 -Chief foreman DeWayne Jackson 727-5809 or -5810 -John Fleming, acting head of street/sidewalk maintenance 645-6132 -Dan Tangherlini, acting DC Chief of Transportation 673-6813 or dan.tangherlini @ dc.gov Public Advocate, Office of the - Lawrence Hemphill, Director 442-8150 or lawrence.hemphill @ dc.gov Rodent control (Rid A Rat program; will not enter nuisance property to abate; call Housing instead) 535-1952 or -1954 Signs (parking, stop signs, etc.): -requests for new signs (admin) 541-6030 -repair (workshop) 698-3620 -repair supervisor Mr. Haque 698-3600 Street light repair: -maintenance contractor 269-0855 -DPW (major repairs) 671-2710 -DPW supervisor Mr. Jama Abdi 671-0581 -Architect of the Capitol (for lamps on AOC-controlled property across Capitol Hill) 226-3473 or 225-5348 (fax) or Marsh Bldg Management@ Thurgood Marshall Bldg 842-4117 Tax & Revenue: -general information line 727-4TAX (4829) -tax sale unit 727-6748 -tipline to report tax fraud, bogus "homestead" exemptions on real property, etc. 800-380-3495 or taxfraudhotline @ otrtax.dcgov.org Traffic signals: -Repair requests (manned 24/7) 671-1486/1490 - Thomas Jackson, supervisor 698-3666 -Repair workshop 698-3660 -Admin office (for repair requests or new/improved signals & signage) 671-2610 Trash/sanitation: -Enforcement (violations) 645-7190 or -5066 (fax) -list of all city inspectors http://cleancity.dc.gov/sweep.htm -Ward 6 inspector James Lyles (handles Ward 6 SE) 645-7953 or 438-8141 (cell) -Ward 6 inspector Harold Beckham (Ward 6 NE) 645-7957 -supervisor B.A. Russell 645-9610 -Recorded information 727-4600 -Recycling collection 645-8245 (press 5 when prompted) -Trash collection 645-7160 -Street & alley cleaning/ curbside litter can pickup 645-3900 Trees & landscape (aka Urban Forestry Administration, Department of Transportation): -Admin. offices 645-6140 or ufa.ddot @ dc.gov -Supervisor Bill Beck 645-6149 -fax 645-0168 Water leaks/open hydrants 612-3400 Neighborhood Services Coordinators for all 8 wards: http://cleancity.washingtondc.gov/neighborhood_service.htm Some opinionated (but informed) tips on whom to call, when to call, what to say, how to say it, and what information to ask for ============================================ 1) Always start by calling the agency most directly responsible for the issue involved. If your problem involves a request for services, you may *also* want to call the Citywide Call Center (727-1000), which promises to route requests to the right agency. In my experience, it is not a good idea to rely on the Call Center alone. It adds another layer of bureaucracy, introduces some additional delay, and makes it harder to push for results if you're calling for a second or third time about the problem. Call the Call Center *in addition to* the relevant agency, if you feel like it. 2) If possible, call between 9 a.m. and 4:15 p.m. Some agencies (street light repair, for example) staff the phones after hours as well, but this is not the norm. If your matter is urgent -- e.g., a nonfunctioning traffic light -- and you cannot reach the primary agency, call the Mayor's Emergency Command Center at 727-6161 on nights or weekends. 3) Describe the problem clearly and in detail. Know the closest street address, corner of the intersection (in compass terms), make/model/color/tag of illegally parked vehicle, type of street light pole (metal? wood?) with the burned-out bulb, etc. A block may have dozens of similar houses; an intersection may have many, many traffic signals. Some repairs -- defective street lights, for example -- will be made during the day when the repairperson can't see for himself/herself which one has gone bad. If the agency can't find your problem item, they can't fix it. If the situation is too complex/confusing to put into words, draw a diagram and fax it. 4) Be patient. Be polite. It's unlikely that the person who answers the phone is the one who caused the problem. Yes, you will sometimes encounter rude, stupid, uninterested District employees. More often, you will encounter someone making a genuine effort to solve your problem or to direct you to someone who can. Don't alienate him or her (or even the rude, stupid ones) with insults, threats, or rants, all of which are counterproductive. Yes, you may have good reason to be mad as hell about the lack of action on a longstanding request for service, but hold the vitriol. If you're frustrated, say so, and explain why; I often say "and I know this isn't your fault personally, but...." If someone is rude to you, insist on speaking to a supervisor/manager. 5) Make a record of every call, including date, time, and number called. Note the name of the person(s) you speak with; if you missed it at the start of the call (or they didn't say their names), ask at the end. If you came in through a switchboard or were transfered from another desk, get the direct telephone number. If the agency assigns a tracking/service number (as Sanitation Enforcement and the Citywide Call Center do), write it down. Keep copies of all written correspondence. 6) If your problem isn't resolved within a reasonable time, follow up. Even the most dedicated public servants sometimes misplace papers, get sidetracked by other urgent matters, or simply forget. Call back, explain the complaint history briefly, and ask for the status of the matter (including an estimate of when it will be resolved). If the new deadline passes without results, call again. (Bear in mind that agencies differ widely in their responsiveness (and even ability to respond). Some, such as street light repair and traffic signal repair, will usually fix the problem (and fix it right) within a few days. Others -- DPW Trees and Landscape is a notable example -- have a backlog of several months' work. You will have to follow up repeatedly and push hard to get results from the latter category.) 7) If necessary, go up the chain of command. This is a gradual process, one where rapid escalation is usually unnecessary and often counterproductive. Do not call your city councilmember if a pothole isn't fixed within 48 hours, unless you want to be regarded as a hothead or a kook. Save the "nuclear option" for the cases where you most need it. In the majority of cases, talking even to a low-level manager will get results. If it doesn't, push upward through the hierarchy. Your mottos are twofold: "Endeavor to persevere" and "Illegitimis non carborundum" (don't let the bastards wear you down). At a certain level, it will make sense to start sending written correspondence, both to make the complaint more concrete and to save having to re-explain orally the whole gory history of how your prior efforts have gone unrewarded. 8) Voice your gratitude to those who earn it. If a civil servant goes the extra mile for you, cuts through a forest of red tape, or helps you in a nonroutine way, say thank you. Put it in a letter for extra effect. If he or she doesn't drop dead of astonishment, you'll reap several benefits. First, you will have reinforced desirable behavior, most likely in a valuable District employee who never gets an iota of encouragement from the public. Second, the next time you call about a different problem, your earlier gesture won't be forgotten. Useful websites =============== PSA106: psa106.org DCWatch: www.dcwatch.com This is a fabulous resource, especially the directory at www.dcwatch.com/govern/telephon.htm Voice of the Hill city services directory: voiceofthehill.com/dcdir.htm District gov't links: http://dc.gov/serv_directory/index.htm [Note: Many of the District agency phone numbers on these sites are out of date. Many aren't, however.] Mail/phone/fax contact info for members of Mayor's Cabinet: http://os.dc.gov/about/abouts/cabinet.asp