by Cesse Ip

The DC Council recently voted on the final new Advisory Neighborhood Commissions and Single Member Districts map proposed by the Ward 4 Redistricting Task Force. The new map includes the creation of a new ANC 4E which encompasses Crestwood and much of 16th Street Heights. ANC 4D grew to include Missouri Avenue NW as a northern border and expands to 8 SMDs. ANC 4C was redrawn to span both sides of Georgia Ave NW to include the southernmost area of Ward 4.

Councilmember Janeese Lewis George announced a call for volunteers to serve on the Ward 4 Redistricting Task Force in December 2021. To prevent potential conflicts of interest, no task force member was a current ANC Commissioner and they all promised to not run for an ANC position this year. The Task Force met every week in the beginning of the year and heard from dozens of Ward 4 residents and listened to their input about boundaries.

Redistricting the current SMD/ANC boundaries was necessary because over the last 10 years Ward 4 grew by almost 10,000 residents. Each SMD consists of about 2,000 people, so new SMDs were required to be drawn to rebalance the map. You can find a detailed map of the new SMD boundaries to find out your new SMD.

Map of Petworth area ANCs and SMDs. See the full map.

Each SMD is represented by a single ANC Commissioner who is elected in November. ANC Commissioners play an important role in bridging the gap between District residents and government officials. According to DC’s ANC website, the ANCs' main job is to be their neighborhood's official voice in advising the District government (and Federal agencies) on things that affect their neighborhoods.

If you are interested in serving your community and acting as an advocate for your neighbors, then you should consider running for ANC Commissioner.

Candidates will have three weeks between July 20th and August 10th to gather 25 signatures of their neighbors to appear on the November ballot. ANC Commissioners serve a two-year term, which means that those elected this November will serve from January 2nd 2023 to January 2nd 2025.

Petworth News talked to several current and former ANC Commissioners about what they would say to encourage residents to run for ANC Commissioner. Former SMD 4C05 Commissioner Zach Teutsch said that serving as his ANC Commissioner significantly changed the course of his life for the better. He would encourage anyone who wanted to serve their community, help their neighbors, and deepen their connections with fellow residents to run for Commissioner.

Zach Israel, current SMD 4D04 Commissioner told Petworth News that it’s deeply rewarding when you can see tangible success of your advocacy. For example, back in March, a 4-way stop sign was installed at Illinois Ave NW and Farragut St NW, which will increase safety for his Petworth neighbors.

New stop sign at 8th and Farragut Streets NW

Clara Haskell Botstein, current SMD 4C08 Commissioner, said that one of the most fulfilling parts of serving as an ANC Commissioner is “getting to know more neighbors and fellow commissioners and working with the many people who are actively engaged in strengthening DC neighborhoods in a variety of ways.”

The effects of a SMD without an active ANC Commissioner can also be detrimental to the neighborhood. Commissioner Israel gave the example of how Truesdell Elementary School is up for modernization starting in 2023.

Without an active ANC Commissioner during this area, the neighborhood will not have a public advocate for all the issues that is bound to occur with a large active construction zone for two years. He said that while Councilmember Lewis George and her office and other nearby Commissioners are available to help, having total representation when it comes to hyperlocal issues matters.

The DC Board of Elections will make ANC petitions available on July 20th. You can find more official information on their website.

Current ANC 4C10 Commissioner Jonah Goodman has put together an excellent unofficial FAQ guide to running for ANC. Want to help make a difference in your community?

Run for Advisory Neighborhood Commissioner!