• Valerie Santos, whose resumé includes managing Ernst & Young’s real estate division, has been appointed the city’s new Deputy Mayor for Planning and Economic Development. [DcMud]
• The city council passed an “economic interest tax” for sales of co-op properties. [Urban Turf]
• The latest rumors about MTV’s The Real World speculate that the show is coming to DC and that the group house will be near Dupont Circle. Haven’t we heard this before? [Borderstan]
• The Convention Center could finally get its own hotel. [WaPo via Housing Complex]
• We’re no Philadelphia when it comes to murals, but interesting, colorful artwork occasionally sprouts around the city—like this painting in the Bloomingdale neighborhood. [Bloomingdale (for now)]
• Some of this week’s more interesting open houses include a three-bedroom home in the Atlas District and a renovated two-bedroom condo in Mount Pleasant. [UrbanTurf]
• A favorite haunt of ours, The Raven, is under renovation and some fans of the hole-in-the-wall bar are worried about the spot’s new “look.” [PoP]
