It’s the tale of two cities,” Ward 5 D.C. Councilman Harry Thomas Jr. declared Friday during an eight-hour hearing on the nomination of Ximena Hartsock as director of the Department of Parks and Recreation.
His assessment came as mostly African-American residents of east Washington talked about deplorable conditions at recreation facilities in their communities — including toilets at the physical therapy center that can’t be used by the wheelchairbound.
Their stories raised questions about the priorities of an agency that has allocated thousands to construct dog parks and may spend millions more on a Chevy Chase playground to install an unsightly fence and stadium-style lights neighbors decry as too expensive.
An inequitable distribution of resources isn’t the only issue the committee must grapple with as it decides Monday whether to onfirm Hartsock. Before her appointment as acting director in April, she had no direct experience managing parks or recreation facilities.
She has never managed a budget or staff as large as DPR. There also are concerns shemay have violated the city’s personnel rules. She allegedly hired individuals who worked for her when she was deputy chief of D.C. Public Schools’ Office of Teaching and
Learning without allowing existing DPR employees to apply for those positions. Further, she dramatically increased the salaries of the people she brought in, even as other DPR workers were terminated because of a “budget shortfall.”
Hartsock is receiving $30,000 more annually than the previous director, Clark E. Ray. Then, there is the matter of her citizenship. Born in Chile, Hartsock has been a “permanent resident” for 13 years. She could have applied to become a U.S. citizen after her fifth year. She said she only recently began the process.
“We’ve never had anyone who has not been a U.S. citizen to come before us,” Thomas said, adding he must consult the council general counsel about the legality of such an appointment. Perhaps citizenship isn’t required for these jobs—but it should be. Hartsock has developed a loyal fan club from her days at DCPS.
Many of those individuals praised her and shared their stories of interaction with the nominee. Some people — mostly associated with sports teams — and a few nonprofit organizations, using DPR facilities, also offered favorable testimony and urged her confirmation.
Mayor Adrian M. Fenty was effusive during a recent breakfast meeting with me, calling Hartsock “fantastic” and asserting that “management is her strongest attribute. She is focused on results and unafraid to make tough decisions.”
Citizen concerns and laudatory comments aside, there is another factor thatmay tip the committee toward confirmation. Fenty knows council members will think twice about the message a vote against the only high level Latina in his administration might send to the Hispanic community.
So, the council can vote no and take heat fromHispanic constituents. Or, it can approve Hartsock and hope she won’t wreck the agency. Either way, it’s risky business.
Jonetta Rose Barras, host of
WPFW’s “D.C. Politics With Jonetta,”
can be reached at [email protected].
