ISSUES
I believe in: raising the voices of neighbors on the issues you care about; ensuring that the ANC is accessible, responsive, and accountable to neighbors; and building community. As Commissioner, I have focused on ending chronic homelessness and expanding affordable housing; infrastructure and the environment (including supporting solar and stormwater management); and government accountability and ethics; among other issues.
You can view ANC 4B resolutions that have been approved here (including the more than 80 resolutions and letters I introduced over the course of my two terms). And you can read ANC 4B's 2019, 2020, and 2021 Annual Reports (including key issues faced by the Commission and our actions in response) here.
CHRONIC HOMELESSNESS & AFFORDABLE HOUSING
Housing is a human right, and all District residents are entitled to the dignity of a home. During my first term as Commissioner, I have worked hard to support efforts to end chronic homelessness and expand affordable housing. Under my leadership, ANC 4B has unanimously supported several resolutions regarding homelessness and affordable housing, including resolutions calling for additional funding in the District’s budget to address chronic homelessness, calling for urgent public housing repairs and commitment to maintaining and expanding public housing stock, calling for expansion and improvement of rent control, and calling for more deeply affordable housing and consideration of additional affordable housing tools via the District's Comprehensive Plan (a 20-year framework that guides future growth and development). I have worked at the neighborhood level, sending letters of support for an affordable housing preservation project in the neighborhood, which received local government funding, and sharing resources with neighbors regarding affordable housing.
In an effort to expand and improve ANC 4B's efforts on these important issues, I have started a Housing Justice Committee, which (1) considers proposed developments within ANC 4B's boundaries for purposes of determining how best to maximize affordable housing, including deeply affordable housing; (2) analyzes and provide feedback on proposed legislation and policy affecting affordable housing and homelessness with a goal of increasing and expanding deeply affordable housing; and (3) hosts and supports educational events on topics related to affordable housing and homelessness. Information regarding the Committee's membership and work is available here.
INFRASTRUCTURE & ENVIRONMENT
Bold, holistic, and expansive measures are necessary to address climate change and to meet the District's sustainability goals. Residents in Takoma face the unique situation of being in a historic district, which has presented additional challenges for residents seeking to install solar panels. To address these challenges, ANC 4B successfully advocated for more flexibility with regard to front-facing, visible solar panels in historic districts. You can read more about the Commission's efforts here. In addition to solar panels, I have worked with neighbors on successful grant applications to design and implement block-wide (and not just individual property) solutions to stormwater management issues.
Traffic safety is a consistent concern among residents in the neighborhood, and I have worked diligently to provide support for DC Department of Transportation traffic calming measures. ANC 4B has pushed for broader traffic safety measures and accountability from the Department of Transportation, including through changes to their traffic safety assessment / traffic safety investigation process to make requests for traffic calming easier and more transparent; Commission wide traffic calming through speed humps, four-way stop signs, raised crosswalks and other pedestrian crossing improvements, and more; and establishing a Vision Zero Committee (co-Chaired by Commissioner Alison Brooks, 4B08 and Commissioner Evan Yeats, 4B04 (previously 4B01).
GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTABILITY & ETHICS
Learn more about what I have accomplished as an Advisory Neighborhood Commissioner over the last four years, including my work as the Commission's Secretary and as Chair of the Commission's Housing Justice Committee.
Learn about the role of an Advisory Neighborhood Commission, including my views on what Commissioners can accomplish through public service.
Good governments benefits residents and elected officials alike. I firmly believe in working to uphold the institutional integrity of the government entities I support. That includes accountability for those with the most power, as well as those who are volunteer public servants, like ANCs. To serve these goals, I led ANC 4B in calling for an investigation into former Ward 2 Councilmember Jack Evans's pattern and practice of ethical misconduct. Former Councilmember Evans resigned after the DC Council conducted just such an investigation and found serious misconduct. I also testified regarding procedural challenges at the Office of Government Ethics and best practices for ethics complaints. The Director of that Office subsequently stepped down. You can read more here.
I have pursued other good government measures, including a resolution encouraging best practices to assure broad inclusivity and robust participation in DC government hearings, a resolution encouraging candidates to opt into the District’s public financing of elections program, a resolution supporting funding for anti-bias training for Advisory Neighborhood Commissions, and feedback and suggestions - following communications with dozens of residents - regarding the Board of Elections' performance in the conducting the November 3, 2020, general election and the June 2, 2020, primary election and best practices for mail-in ballots and in-person voting.
At the ANC level, our Commission has worked toward accessible, inclusive, and transparent operations. We now comply with our statutory obligation to publish Annual Reports, as well as to file timely financial reports. As a Commission we have advocated persistently and over years for better and more robust centralized supports for ANCs to allow all Commissions across the city to better serve neighbors, and we've seen DC budget changes in response to our advocacy. You can read more about the improvements we have advocated for and instituted here and here. Within SMD 4B02, I work hard to be transparent, including by keeping neighbors informed through detailed monthly email newsletters and monthly office hours.