Reporter Steve Behrens of the public-broadcasting trade publication Current reports that National Public Radio’s work force expanded so much it needed new space, and the District of Columbia and Montgomery County, Maryland sunk into a bidding war over who could grant the most tax relief to the government-subsidized system:

In 2012, when NPR moves to its recently acquired headquarters site seven blocks east of its present home, it will have much more room for growth than it had after its last move, with as much as four times the floor space. In 1994, when the network moved into its present home, 635 Massachusetts Ave. N.W., it had about 400 employees. The building, with less than 150,000 square feet, could accommodate just 480, NPR said at the time. The space was soon outgrown. Since then, the NPR staff has grown by half to about 600, overflowing into rented space… To win the high-profile network, D.C. pledged to levy no property taxes for 20 years, worth an estimated $40 million, according to city spokesperson Sean Madigan. In the meantime, the city agreed to limit tax increases on NPR’s present site to no more than 3 percent a year, he said. Montgomery County offered a similar package, including property tax exemption worth $32 million and construction of a parking garage worth $15 million to $18 million, the Gazette newspaper reported.

If the prospect of a taxpayer-funded liberal sandbox enjoying a two-decade tax holiday doesn’t smell enough like hypocrisy, there’s also this. NPR’s tower of a building will also have better scenery across the street as the lower-income residents take a hike.

Across North Capitol Street, a developer will replace the troubled low-income Sursum Corda housing complex with a mix of housing for present residents plus an influx of higher-income residents, according to the city.