Aswani on the Tower Records CVS Plan: "I do support seeing a CVS there"

As part of The Hatchet's coverage of the decision to make the old Tower Records space into Foggy Bottom's tenth CVS, newly-elected SA President Vishal Aswani, when asked about his thoughts on the matter, told the paper:

"I do support seeing a CVS there just because as a GWorld vendor - as a partner in the GWorld program - it's just a significant opportunity for students to use their Colonial Cash there at a resource that is kind of multi-purpose," Aswani said.

He added that this CVS would be more convenient than other locations in the area because of its proximity to GW's non-undergraduate population, including law school students and the Marvin Center staff.

"What's going to be a great thing about having that CVS there, because it's a GWorld partner, it will help educate the graduate school population on the advantages of using GWorld," Aswani said.

While I recognize that Aswani represents all students, including law school students, and while I think he is right for praising the GWorld-friendliness of the new store, he fails to address the following:

A) There are two GWorld-accepting CVSs within three blocks of the law school - at 1901 Pennsylvania Avenue, and at 1900 K St.

As a visual, here are directions from the Law School (2000 H St. NW) to those CVSs:


View Larger Map



View Larger Map

B) The CVS aside, Aswani makes no mention of the fact that GW administrators bascially dismissed GW students in their comments on the matter:

"Will we actively seek input from the student body? No. Are there mechanisms for student input? Yes." [University Spokesperson Tracy] Schario said." ("CVS may occupy vacant space in Shops at 2000 Penn," The Hatchet, January 28, 2008)

"University spokesperson Tracy Schario said Monday that the CVS would benefit both the campus and the businesses housed in 2000 Penn.

'I think you have to look at the context of that particular space,' Schario said. 'It's in an office building, and while it's in a GW-owned building and in a campus environment, it's a heavy mix of business customers first and students second.'" ("CVS to open in 2000 Penn.," The Hatchet, March 27, 2008)

While it may be too late to do anything about this issue, I am hopeful that in the future Aswani will recognize that in some cases, standing up for students means standing up to administrators.

In the meantime, all those opposed to the construction of another CVS in Foggy Bottom can join the "We Don't Need Another CVS!!!" Facebook group.

Our worst fears realized: CVS No. 10 is on it's way

As first reported by James back in January, as one of the options for filling the empty Tower Records space, GW was considering leasing the building to CVS, making the spot the tenth CVS within walking distance of the GW campus.

Yesterday, word came from The Hatchet's blog that CVS had signed the lease and would be moving into the spot. A story on the deal is expected to run in tomorrow's Hatchet.

Since it was apparent that the school's administration sought no student imput on putting up another CVS, and since many people I spoke with were and still are opposed to the idea (with many more to surely follow once this story hits The Hatchet tomorrow), I propose the following calls to action to counter the "red menace":

1) Join the newly-created anti-CVS in the Tower Records space Facebook group.

2) Write a letter to the editor of The Hatchet and express your displeasure with not only the CVS, but with the GW administrators failure to take student input into account.

3) If and when it opens, boycott the CVS!!!

Lower Metro Fares? Completely Unfair and Unnecessary

This week, the Hatchet reported that the GW Student Association, in cooperation with 11 other DC-area colleges and universities, would be asking Metro to give college students discounted fares on Metro. Okay really? According to the Hatchet article, 145,000 college students ride Metro, and could benefit from the discounted student rates. Great, that's 145,000 students who can now pay a discounted rate to go to the movies or the MCI Center.

"(Our 11 schools) represent over 145,000 full time and part-time collegiate students who have made a conscious decision to study in the DC metropolitan area," the letter said. "As the representatives of those who reside in and pay taxes in the District, we encourage WMATA to support a student (Metro) discount."

But is it necessary? And furthermore, who is going to cover the cost for all these college kids to ride Metro at a discounted rate?

First, let's consider to necessity of discounted Metro fare. There are only two reason why people ride Metro - to get to work, or to get to where ever they are going to have fun. If students are riding Metro to get to work or an internship, then let's give students the same benefits that the average DC worker gets - a pre-tax deduction from your paycheck that can be used to pay Metro fare. GW could give this to its hundreds of student employees. Most internships in this city are either paid or for credit; the students receiving paychecks can work with their internship's HR office to get Metro deductions, and those receiving credit can pay regular fare (just because you chose to go off campus for class credit doesn't mean I should subsidize your ride). And if you're just riding Metro to go out and have a good time, the $1.65 is nothing compared to what your probably going to pay anyway.

Speaking of subsidizing rides, who is going to pay for all these discounted Metro fares? Metro fares were just increased to $1.65 for rush hour fares, meaning that the hard-working citizens of DC now pay, on average, almost $70 a month just to go to and from work. According to Metro, these fare increases were necessary in order to fix some of Metro's biggest problems, like elevator outages and track maintenance. If 145,000 riders were to suddenly pay a discounted rate, then the rest of Metro riders will inevitably see their fares go up in order to cover the discounted cost.

Also, the SA should realize that no one is forced to ride Metro. GW is so centrally located that students can walk (or ride the bus and take advantage of the lower fares that all DC residents get). DC was voted the most walkable region.

Overall, reduced Metro fare is a great initiative for the Student Association to campaign on, but it's unfair to DC residents. Anyone who can afford to go to school at GW or American or Georgetown or Catholic and chooses to attend those universities can also afford to pay full Metro fare.