Local
Gay former Councilman considered front-runner for Metro board chair
Smedberg served 5 terms on Alexandria Council
Paul Smedberg, a five-term former member of the Alexandria City Council who’s gay, has emerged as the strong front-runner to succeed D.C. Council member Jack Evans (D-Ward 2) as chair of the Metro board, according to the Washington Post.
The Post reported on Sunday that multiple sources close to the Metro board said Smedberg was emerging as a consensus candidate to replace Evans, who announced last week that he would not run for re-election as chair of the Metro board after his term expires on June 30.
Evans has been the subject of ethics investigations in D.C., by the federal government, and by the Metro board over allegations that he used his position on the board and on the DC Council to advance his private legal and consulting work.
He said he plans to remain as a member of the Metro board. A spokesperson for the board’s ethics committee, which investigated Evans’s alleged ethics breach, angered Evans’s critics last week when he said the committee would not publicly disclose the results of its investigation other than to say it had been concluded.
Smedberg served five terms on the Alexandria City Council before losing his re-election bid last June in the Democratic primary. He has also served as chair of the Virginia Railway Express operations board and the Northern Virginia Transportation Commission.
“Smedberg is a good choice,” the Post quoted a Metro board member who asked not to be identified as saying. “After three years of Jack, I think it’s a good time for the board to step back and let Wiederfeld be the face of Metro,” the Post quoted the board member as saying. He was referring to Paul Wiederfeld, Metro’s General Manager, who is in charge of the regional rail system’s day-to-day operations.
The Post said Smedberg has declined to comment on the news that he’s a lead candidate for the Metro board chair position.
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Congratulations to Yadiel Meléndez, on their new role as Community Associate, with the Wanda Alston Foundation. Meléndez is piloting a new role as a Community Associate at the Wanda Alston Foundation, where they support queer and trans young people in finding their footing, building independence, and experiencing a housing community where they are seen, valued, and affirmed. They are coming into this role with more than a decade of experience as a community organizer and operations specialist, supporting diverse communities through service, advocacy, and program coordination.
Previously they worked for Right Proper Brewing Shaw as a server and bartender and at Sephora, Washington, DC, and at FreshFarm, DC, in bilingual food access. They also worked freelance to build foundational structures for local queer BIPOC performance art coalitions, producing variety shows to curate space for marginalized performance artists in the community. They were a production manager for Haus of Hart Productions, a BIPOC centric performance art production. They also worked as field staff with the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention in Stafford, Va.
Meléndez is bilingual, Spanish and English. Their work is guided by a commitment to dignity, safety, and trauma-informed engagement, particularly within LGBTQ and BIPOC communities.
Congratulations also to Ben Rosen LICSW, on his new role as program director, with the Wanda Alston Foundation. Rosen previously worked with Fountain House’s OnRamps program, helping to build a new, innovative outreach program for individuals considered chronically homeless, and living with serious mental illness, in the Times Square area of New York. Rosen is a Psychotherapist, having worked with SG Psychotherapy, and as the psychotherapist with the Nest Community Health Center (URAM).
Rosen has a B.F.A. in Theatre Arts: Musical Theatre, Minor in Psychology (Cum Laude) from Malloy University Conservatory; and his M.S.W. in Clinical Practice with Individuals, Families, and Groups, from The Silberman School of Social Work, Hunter College, N.Y. He is independently licensed in New York and Washington, D.C.
Rehoboth Beach
BLUF leather social set for April 10 in Rehoboth
Attendees encouraged to wear appropriate gear
Diego’s in Rehoboth Beach hosts a monthly leather happy hour. April’s edition is scheduled for Friday, April 10, 5-7 p.m. Attendees are encouraged to wear appropriate gear. The event is billed as an official event of BLUF, the free community group for men interested in leather. After happy hour, the attendees are encouraged to reconvene at Local Bootlegging Company for dinner, which allows cigar smoking. There’s no cover charge for either event.
District of Columbia
Celebrations of life planned for Sean Bartel
Two memorial events scheduled in D.C.
Two celebrations of life are planned for Sean Christopher Bartel, 48, who was found deceased on a hiking trail in Argentina on or around March 15. Bartel began his career as a television news reporter and news anchor at stations in Louisville, Ky., and Evansville, Ind., before serving as Senior Video Producer for the D.C.-based International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers union from 2013 to 2024.
A memorial gathering is planned for Friday, April 10, 11:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m. at the IBEW International Office (900 7th St., N.W.), according to a statement by the DC Gay Flag Football League, where Bartel was a longtime member. A celebration of life is planned that same evening, 6-8 p.m. at Trade (1410 14th St., N.W.).
Minimal version of ‘Streetcar Named Desire’ heading to Dupont Underground
Comings & Goings
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Calendar: April 10-16
BLUF leather social set for April 10 in Rehoboth
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