To listen to the meeting by phone Dial-in Phone Number: 301-715-8592 Meeting ID: 982 6429 4844 Passcode: 731215
View the LRCA February 2022 newsletter here. To view a map of LRCA’s boundaries click here.
February 8, 2022
Ward 5 ANC Redistricting Task Force Public Meeting 6:00 pm
Residents are invited to provide comments to the Ward 5 ANC Redistricting Task Force. Comments may be provided live in an online public meeting on Tuesday, February 8, 2022, at 6:00 pm. Written comments will also be accepted until Tuesday, February 22, 2022.
Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) Sector 2 Meeting with MPD Fourth District (4D) Captain John Terry 6:00 pm
*Sector 2 Monthly Crime Stats *Community Questions and answers *Community Outreach events and planning *Closing Comments
Occurs the second Tuesday of every month. This month’s meeting is on Tuesday, February 8, 2022, at 6:00 pm. When it’s time, join the Webex meeting here:
Join by meeting number: Meeting number (access code): 2318 987 9879 Meeting password: 4dsector2
Tap to join from a mobile device (attendees only) +1-202-860-2110,,23189879879## United States Toll (Washington D.C.) +1-650-479-3208,,23189879879## Call-in toll number (US/Canada)
Join by phone +1-202-860-2110 United States Toll (Washington D.C.) 1-650-479-3208 Call-in toll number (US/Canada) Global call-in numbers
You can also dial 173.243.2.68 and enter your meeting number
February 10, 2022
Ward 4 Councilmember Janeese Lewis George Listening Session for Lamond-Riggs 6:30 pm
Please join Councilmember Lewis George and your neighbors on Thursday, February 10 at 6:30 pm for your neighborhood’s community listening session over Zoom. Every neighbor will get the chance to discuss the change you want to see in our community and hear from other neighbors too. These events are shaping the work Councilmember Lewis George does when it comes to legislation, the DC budget, constituent services, and efforts in the community.
Ward 4 Councilmember Janeese Lewis George Budget Forum 3:30 pm
Join Councilmember Lewis George on Saturday, February 12 at 3:30 pm to discuss the upcoming budget process and share your priorities for funding that puts people first. Each Ward 4 resident will have the chance to share their budget priorities as we head into budget season. All RSVP’d attendees will be provided an opportunity to make brief remarks or provide 2 minutes of testimony.
Ward 4 Councilmember Janeese Lewis George is soliciting input on DC’s budget. She will hold a budget forum on February 12, 2022, at 3:30 pm. RSVP at the link.
As I mentioned in this post regarding Ward 5 Councilmember Kenyan McDuffie’s budget survey, it is really important that residents take advantage of the opportunity to chime in on what they would like to see in the budget. I always plug items in our neighborhood’s area development plan because that is a consensus document and why take the time to make a plan and not implement it. And because the commercial corridor along Riggs Road and South Dakota Avenue NE straddles Wards 4 and 5, I usually send my budget requests concerning this corridor to both Councilmembers. But people can ask for anything and you should!
Join Councilmember Lewis George to discuss the upcoming budget process and share your priorities for funding that puts people first. All RSVP’d attendees will be provided an opportunity to make brief remarks or provide 2 minutes of testimony.
There will be a Ward 4 ANC/SMD redistricting task force community hearing on February 6 at 2:00 pm. RSVP at the link by February 6 at 10:00 am to testify.
From Ward 4 Councilmember Janeese Lewis George’s Office
Ward 4 ANC/SMD Redistricting Public Meetings.
The Ward 4 Redistricting Task Force is holding two community hearings to receive public input (up to 3 minutes per resident) on what our ward’s ANC/SMD boundaries should be: on Sunday, February 6 at 2pm and on Tuesday, March 8 at 7pm. Community input from the first meeting will be used to draw proposed discussion maps, while the second community meeting will be an opportunity to share feedback on those proposed discussion maps. Both meetings will offer ASL and Spanish interpretation. You can also share your input with the Redistricting Task Force at any point by emailing Ward4Redistricting@dccouncil.us or leaving a voicemail at 202-642-5714. ANC and SMD boundaries matter because they provide equitable access to elected representation at the most local level of government.
Councilmembers for both Wards 4 and 5 now have dedicated webpages for the ANC redistricting process in their respective wards. The task forces have to recommend ANC boundaries within the ward so that each single member district (SMD) has 2,000 residents, plus or minus five percent, so between 1,900 and 2,100 residents in each SMD.
Find information on the Ward 5 ANC redistricting process at https://kenyanmcduffieward5.wpcomstaging.com/ward-5/ward5redistricting. Ward 5 Councilmember Kenyan McDuffie put together a redistricting task force comprised of current ANC commissioners, former ANC commissioners, and other Ward 5 residents. The task force held its first meeting on January 11, 2022. A recording is available on the redistricting page. From the recording, it is clear that a few folks on the Ward 5 task force have some experience with previous redistricting exercises.
Find information on the Ward 4 ANC redistricting process at https://janeeseward4.com/redistricting. Ward 4 Councilmember Janeese Lewis George put together a redistricting task force that does not have any current ANC commissioners or individuals who currently intend to run for ANC in this year’s general election. The task force held its first meeting on January 23, 2022. A recording and presentation are available on the redistricting page.
Ward 4 Councilmember Janeese Lewis George is holding a series of virtual listening sessions for Ward 4 neighborhoods in the upcoming weeks. CM Lewis George held a series of listening sessions when she was running for office and I do think they were useful and productive for her team. I encourage neighbors to register and attend and to use these sessions as an opportunity to put forth ideas for legislation and focused action from the Councilmember’s office.
The listening session for Riggs Park is on February 10, 2022, at 6:30 pm. Ward 5 Riggs Park residents should also sign up to share ideas applicable to the neighborhood.
From Ward 4 Councilmember Janeese Lewis George newsletter:
The Council is set to finalize DC’s redistricted Ward boundaries on Tuesday, which will move us to the next step of the process: redistricting ANC boundaries. As part of this process, each ward Councilmember appoints a ward task force to make recommendations for how the Council should adjust the ANC and single-member district (SMD) boundaries. The Chairman of the Council and each At-Large Councilmember also get to appoint one person to each ward redistricting task force. If you are a Ward 4 resident and a registered voter who is interested in serving as part of this task force, please email your name, contact information, and street address for consideration to my Legislative Director Joanna Blotner at jblotner@dccouncil.us. To prevent the potential of a conflict of interest, I plan for the Ward 4 task force to be independent from ANC-level elected office; please do not apply if you are a current ANC Commissioner or if you are considering running for an ANC position next year. Task force members will be dedicating a significant amount of time and serve without compensation. Their service will continue until the task force files its final report with the Council. ANC redistricting task forces will be finalized in early January, begin meeting on January 16, and submit their recommendations on ANC and SMD boundaries by April 2022.
Thanksgiving Turkey Giveaway Hosted by Ward 4 Councilmember Janeese Lewis Geoge and the Lamond-Riggs Citizens Association November 20, 2021 11:00 am Riggs-LaSalle Recreation Center 501 Riggs Road NE
Free turkey for Ward 4 families in need. First come, first served. One turkey per family. Proof of Ward 4 residency required.
Yesterday, the DC Council Redistricting Subcommittee released final recommendations for drawing new ward boundaries. The Subcommittee’s final map proposal makes no changes that would affect the Riggs Park neighborhood.
A “discussion map” under consideration (“Discussion Map 3”) would have redistricted some Ward 5 Riggs Park residents into Ward 4, leaving just a tiny sliver of the neighborhood in Ward 5, as discussed in theseposts. The Lamond-Riggs Citizens Association (LRCA) circulated a survey to impacted residents on the Ward 5 side of the neighborhood. According to LRCA president Barbara Rogers, a majority of residents who responded to the survey were not in favor of being redistricted to Ward 4. ANC Commissioner Damion McDuffie (5A01), who represents the area that would have been impacted by the changes proposed by Discussion Map 3, also submitted written testimony in opposition to the changes.
(I live in the area that would have been impacted by Map 3’s proposal. I also submitted written testimony against that proposal.)
Discussion of the Subcommittee’s final map proposal is available at https://www.elissasilverman.com/redistricting. The Subcommittee noted again in its draft report that current parking zones will not change for the time being. The Subcommittee is scheduled to formally vote on the final map proposal today at 3:00 pm. The full Council will hold a first vote on December 7, 2021, and a second vote on December 21, 2021.
The ANC redistricting process will start in December. Each Ward councilmember will establish a task force to provide recommendations for drawing ANC boundaries.
As noted in this post, the DC Council is undertaking a redistricting process to adjust the ward boundaries. Find information at https://www.elissasilverman.com/redistricting. The Redistricting Subcommittee consists of At-large Councilmembers Elissa Silverman (chair), Anita Bonds, and Christina Henderson. Today, the subcommittee released three “‘discussion maps,’ to foster a productive dialogue on the choices facing the Subcommittee.” You can read about the discussion maps here. Two of the maps make no adjustment to the northern Ward 5 boundary, while one map, Map 3, does. And not in a way that makes sense.
Redistricting Discussion Map 3
Map 3 shifts the Ward 5 boundary east of South Dakota Avenue NE from Kennedy Street NE to Galloway Street NE. The boundary west of South Dakota Avenue would remain at Riggs Road NE. My first concern about tinkering with the northern boundary in this way is that it is clearly being done as an afterthought without intentionality. This is clear from the fact that a description of this change was not even provided in the discussion points for the map until I reached out CM Silverman’s office earlier today. They then updated the discussion points, but the discussion points stated the change would shift residents from Ward 5 to Ward 1, which is obviously not correct. It is also clear that Map 3 is an update from a map presented during the Ward 5 roundtable that shifted the boundary to Hamilton Street NE, discussed in this post. So now it moves the boundary to Galloway Street after the point was made that the census tract boundary is not at Hamilton Street.
Second, this change still leaves the neighborhood split between Wards 4 and 5, except with this proposal, the split would be even more incongruous than it currently is. For reference, below is a map of Lamond-Riggs.
LRCA Boundaries
So for those who think Map 3 somehow unifies Lamond-Riggs, it does not. And this change would split census tract 95.08. If for some reason, the subcommittee really really feels like it has to adjust the northern boundary, to me it makes a lot more sense to use the park as the boundary, both east and west of South Dakota Avenue, as I noted in this post. That way, everyone north of Galloway both east and west of South Dakota Avenue would shift to Ward 4 and Riggs Park would actually be intact. The one thing I did not fully appreciate when first thinking about the neighborhood split is that while students on the Ward 5 side of Riggs Park (both east and west of South Dakota Avenue) are zoned for Ward 4 schools, these families are still voting for the Ward 5 State Board of Education representative, which probably does not make a ton of sense. That would be the one argument to support shifting the boundary so that these families are in Ward 4. But school boundaries are not aligned with ward boundaries because as we see ward boundaries can shift with some regularity especially around the edges of the ward, so this electoral feature is always a possibility (not to mention we barely have a functioning school boundary system as it is).
This whole exercise though leads me to think that the subcommittee should just leave the northern boundary alone. It is not necessary to adjust it. Changing it in the way being contemplated by this discussion map serves no purpose and seems to be a complete afterthought with no regard to either neighborhood boundaries or census tracts. People are already trying to do too much with this redistricting process as it is. This is one change that does not need to be made in my view.
Next Steps
The citywide hearing is on November 5. Sign up to testify at that hearing by 5:00 pm on November 3.
Written testimony can be submitted by Friday, November 12 at 5 p.m. to redistricting@dccouncil.us. Testimony can also be transcribed by calling (202) 350-1521. Map proposals can also be submitted to the subcommittee through dcredistricting.esriemcs.com.
CM Silverman’s office will be present at tonight’s LRCA meeting to discuss the redistricting process.
Long post warning; updated 10/27/2021 to add information about not diluting minority voting strength
DC is undergoing a redistricting process following the release of the 2020 Census numbers. A subcommittee of the DC Council Committee of the Whole is responsible for making recommendations for redrawing the boundaries. The redistricting subcommittee consists of At-large Councilmembers Elissa Silverman (chair), Anita Bonds, and Christina Henderson. The subcommittee set up a handy website to explain the process and how to participate at https://www.elissasilverman.com/redistricting. One way to participate is to draw your own map boundaries using the DC Office of Planning’s online redistricting tool and submit it to the subcommittee.
The Council will establish the ward boundaries first and deal with the ANC boundaries later. The subcommittee is currently holding ward-focused roundtables to address the ward boundaries. The Ward 5 hearing was on October 20, 2021. You can view the video on CM Silverman’s facebook page at this link. Recordings of other ward redistricting hearings are also available on CM Silverman’s facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/CMElissaSilverman.
The Ward 4 hearing will be on October 28, 2021, starting at 10:00 am. The deadline to sign up to testify for the Ward 4 hearing is Tuesday, October 26, 2021. Follow the instructions in the hearing notice to sign up.
Key dates from this point forward:
October 2021: Subcommittee will hold eight hearings on ward redistricting, one specific to each ward November 5, 2021: City-wide hearing. Sign up to testify by November 3. See hearing notice. November 12, 2021: Deadline for submitting written testimony. Submit written testimony to redistricting@dccouncil.us Mid-November 2021: Redistricting Subcommittee markup of ward redistricting bill December 7, 2021: First vote by the full Council on the ward redistricting bill December 21, 2021: Second vote on the ward redistricting bill December 2021: Ward Task Forces (which provide recommendations on ANC redistricting) start meeting February 2022: Ward Task Forces report out recommendations May 2022: Subcommittee mark-up of the ANC redistricting bill June 2022: Full Council votes on the ANC redistricting bill
Principles of Redistricting
The redistricting process happens every 10 years following release of the Census numbers. The subcommittee is guided by a few principles. One is the principle of one person/one vote. That means each ward should have roughly the same number of residents so that no ward is either too big or too small and each resident’s vote has roughly the same amount of power. Following the 2020 Census, the magic number is 86,193 residents. Each ward can be within plus or minus five percent of this number, so each ward can legally have between 81,883 and 90,503 residents. Based on this range, Ward 6 needs to shrink and Wards 7 and 8 need to grow. All of the other wards are within the legal range, but Ward 5 is knocking at the top of the range with 89,425 residents.
Another principle is to not dilute the power of “minority” voters. The DC Council interprets this to mean not diluting the power of Black and Latino residents in DC, according to CM Silverman.
Another principle is keeping what is called “communities of interest” together. This is a nebulous concept not defined in the DC Code. But the idea is to keep communities that have common legislative concerns together. Historically, this has meant keeping neighborhoods together, but over time we have seen that sometimes it is necessary to split up neighborhoods and to cross natural boundaries. CM Silverman has made it a point to note several times that the subcommittee will be looking at factors such as race and income. This has led to some interesting discussions, with people making diametrically opposed points during the hearings I have listened to so far, but I will save that for another post.
The ward lines must also be contiguous, and CM Silverman stated that the subcommittee cannot split census tracts.
The Council is supposed to abide by all of these principles while somehow minimizing disruption. During a previous subcommittee hearing in September, there was some discussion about whether the subcommittee should try to get all of the wards as close to the average as possible. That could mean moving some residents out of Ward 5, for example. Or the committee could just focus on making sure that the wards are within the legal limits. Theoretically, the subcommittee could redraw the boundaries for Wards 6, 7, and 8 so that each is within the permissible range, and leave the rest of the ward boundaries alone. But the subcommittee has stated that just changing Wards 6, 7, and 8 would lead to some funky maps so they are looking at adjustments to other wards as well.
One factor the subcommittee stated they will not address is parking because there is a good argument for decoupling parking zone boundaries from ward boundaries (and in my mind political boundaries altogether).
All of the members of the subcommitee, along with Ward 5 Councilmember Kenyan McDuffie, were present for the Ward 5 hearing on October 20. At the top of her remarks, CM Silverman stated that although Ward 5 is within the legal limit, that does not mean that the subcommittee will leave the Ward 5 boundaries as they are. CM Silverman said the subcommittee is specifically looking at both the southeast area of the ward around Carver-Langston and the northern portion of the ward, which includes the Riggs Park and Fort Totten neighborhoods.
(For clarity, to me the boundaries of the Riggs Park neighborhood are New Hampshire Avenue to the north, the DC/MD line to the east, Galloway Street NE to the south, and the Metro red line tracks to the west. The Fort Totten neighborhood is west of the Metro red line tracks.)
A handful of residents testified during the hearing. ANC Commissioner Gordon Fletcher (5A08), who is also chair of the Ward 5 Democrats, testified in support of keeping Fort Lincoln in Ward 5. He also advocated for having two ANC commissioners for that neighborhood. It was not clear to me in what capacity he was testifying. Commissioner Fletcher represents parts of the Riggs Park and North Michigan Park neighborhoods, but his testimony focused solely on the Fort Lincoln neighborhood. No other ANC 5A commissioners testified. A couple of other commissioners and residents near the Fort Lincoln area also testified in support of keeping Fort Lincoln in Ward 5. All of these witnesses and CM McDuffie recommended leaving the Ward 5 boundaries as they are because Ward 5’s population is within the legal limit.
One Ward 5 resident, Geoffrey Hatchard, who CM Silverman noted is a cartographer and geographer, advocated shifting the Ward 5 boundaries. He submitted a map recommendation that adjusted the southern part of the ward (moving part of Ward 6 to Ward 5). His recommendation also included moving the northern border of Ward 5 east of South Dakota Avenue NE from Kennedy Street NE to Hamilton Street NE (moving part of Ward 5 to Ward 4). This northern boundary recommendation does not make sense to me. It sounded like Mr. Hatchard said the census tract boundary is Hamilton Street NE, but as CM McDuffie noted during the hearing, that is not correct. And according to CM Silverman, census tract boundaries are sacrosanct. There are already census tracts across the city that are split between wards, but the one thing this subcommittee will try really really hard not to do is split census tracts.
So to me, that means if the subcommittee really wants to adjust the northern boundary, they could move everyone in census tract 95.08 (shown in the image above) into Ward 4. That would keep Riggs Park intact, but split the Fort Totten neighborhood. Or if they are fine with breaking their census tract rule, they could split the census tract along the Fort Totten Park boudary to the west and south and move residents east and north of that natural boundary into Ward 4. Doing this would keep both the Riggs Park and Ft. Totten neighborhoods intact. Looking at previous redistricting committee reports, it looks like part or all of census tract 95.08 was part of Ward 4 at one point and was moved to Ward 5 following the 2000 Census. Currently this census tract consists of the entirety of ANC single member district (SMD) 5A01 and parts of SMDs 5A07 and 5A08. Also Fort Circle Park east of South Dakota Avenue NE is technically part of SMD 5A02, even though it is partly in census tract 95.08. While the subcommittee specifically said they want to only focus on the ward boundaries right now and get those solidified before discussing the ANC boundaries, looking at the current ANC boundaries also shows how difficult this task is.
CM Henderson also stated she was looking at the Ward 5 boundary near Fort Totten Metro station. Unfortunately she ran out of time before the witnesses could answer her question about adjusting the northern boundary. CM Silverman asked the panel what part of Ward 5 should shift if the subcommittee decided the boundary had to change if for example, the subcommittee wanted to move part of Ward 6 or Ward 7 to Ward 5. Some suggestions from the panel included the Benning Road area, Bloomingdale area, Bates area, or the McMillan Park area. But most of the witnesses and CM McDuffie reiterated that Ward 5 does not need to change.
My thoughts
I live on the Ward 5 side of Riggs Park, and I really do not have strong feelings about the possibility of being part of Ward 4. Hard to believe I know, because I have lots of opinions about lots of things. But this is just one of those topics that I feel like I have already spent too much time thinking about for something I am not too concerned about. Simply because random suggestions are being made to move the northern boundary of Ward 5 to accommodate random suggestions about moving part of Ward 6 into Ward 5, when Ward 5 can only add another 1,000 residents before exceeding the legal limit.
Moving the Ward 5 side of Riggs Park, which sits at the tip of the ward, to Ward 4 would reunite the neighborhood in one ward. Right now the neighborhood is split between Wards 4 and 5 in kind of a ridiculous way because of the way the census tracts are drawn. The northern boundary of Ward 5 is Kennedy Street NE east of South Dakota Avenue NE and Riggs Road NE west of South Dakota Avenue. Having the neighborhood split between two wards can be a bit of an annoyance when advocating for neighborhood interests because we have to deal with two Council offices, two ANCs, and two sets of mayor’s office/DC agency ward liaisons. But it’s just that, a bit of an annoyance, not the end of the world. School boundaries and police district boundaries are not ward-based. Children in Ward 5 in Riggs Park attend Ward 4 schools. It makes advocating for schools interesting if you live in Ward 5, but again I do not think that it is a super big deal to have to talk to the Ward 4 councilmember when discussing schools (I also do not have children though so maybe parents feel differently).
That said, inertia is real. I really do not mind remaining part of Ward 5, and I cannot say I am yearning to be in ANC 4B (no shade, seriously). I have heard an argument about public safety in certain parts of Ward 4 that currently requires a lot of attention from the Ward 4 councilmember. The idea is that this need leaves less time for addressing issues in other parts of Ward 4, so moving part of Ward 5 into Ward 4 would leave the new Ward 4 areas feeling overshadowed. That may have some merit, but I am not sure. I realize I can afford to be sort of unbothered about being in either Ward 4 or Ward 5 because I do not think the councilmember for either ward is terrible. I do realize the Ward 5 councilmember will change with the November 2022 election so maybe I will end up eating my words. As of right now though, my reaction is a bit of a shrug. I would probably feel differently if there were a possibility of moving to a ward with a terrible councilmember who is not up for election until 2024. I just personally care more about the ANC boundaries (I realize the ANC boundaries go hand in hand with the ward boundaries).
The one thing I would strongly advocate for is not splitting up the neighborhood in a way that is more ridiculous than it is now, so to me that would mean not following that Hamilton Street NE boundary recommendation. I watched a recording of the Ward 3 hearing. During that hearing, CM Silverman stated she thought there was one good map that was presented during the Ward 5 hearing that generally abided by the redistricting principles. I do not know which map she was referring to, but I hope the subcommittee is not seriously considering shifting part of the northern boundary to Hamilton Street NE east of South Dakota Avenue. I happen to live on the south side of Hamilton Street, so I would still remain in Ward 5, but it still does not make sense to me. Also, during the Ward 3 hearing, there was some discussion about moving a few of the split neighborhoods in the northwest part of Ward 4 (Chevy Chase, Barnaby Woods, Hawthorne) back into Ward 3. Doing so could free up some space to move all of of Riggs Park into Ward 4, but then Ward 3 would be over the legal limit and adjustments would have to be made elsewhere to make Ward 3’s population size legal.
I do not know how serious the discussion about adjusting the northern Ward 5 boundary is. Neither CM McDuffie nor any of the ANC 5A commissioners have discussed the issue with residents or the leadership of the Lamond-Riggs Citizens Association (LRCA). Compare that silence to plenty of discussion taking place with residents of and near the Ft. Lincoln and Carver-Langston neighborhoods. CM McDuffie dropped in on the Ward 7 hearing that took place on October 23 to recommend not extending Ward 7 into the Ft. Lincoln neighborhood (apparently more than one person in Ward 7 thinks making Ft. Lincoln part of Ward 7 is a good idea and makes sense).
If you care about this issue, consider signing up to testify at the upcoming Ward 4 hearing or submitting written testimony. Be sure to send a copy of your testimony to your councilmember.
A representative of CM Silverman’s office is on the agenda to discuss redistricting at ANC 4B’s meeting tonight.
The topic is not on ANC 5A’s agenda for the meeting on October 27, but the ANC tends to add items to the agenda during the meeting, so it very well could end up being discussed at the meeting.
A representative from CM Silverman’s office is scheduled to appear at the LRCA meeting on November 1, 2021.
If you are interested in serving on the ANC redistricting taskforce, contact your councilmember.
As we head into budget season at the Council I want to invite you to my virtual Ward 4 Community Meeting on the DC Budget this Saturday, March 6 at 1pm – 2:30pm to discuss Ward 4 budget priorities. At the event we will explain DC’s budget process, share how you can plug in, and gather your ideas on what should be included in the budget.
DC is in the midst of a pandemic that has been devastating to our communities and continues to pose big risks, particularly to our most vulnerable residents. At the same time, our fiscal forecast is improving and we could receive nearly $2 billion in federal aid from the next stimulus bill. We can also consider new targeted, responsible taxes to provide greater equity and support to our most impacted residents and small businesses. The budget gives us an opportunity to address the profound impact that COVID has had on public health, housing, health, education, jobs, businesses, community safety, and social services in Ward 4 and across DC.
Last month I shared my budget priorities letter outlining some key investments I believe we need to ensure a just recovery in the District and lift up working families in our Ward. This is just the start of our budget engagement. I want to build on and expand these recommendations with your input. The DC Council will receive the Mayor’s proposed budget on April 22, when we will officially begin our budget hearing, markup and vote process.
DC has a nearly $17 billion budget that impacts so many aspects of our lives. My team and I will work to ensure these funds address the needs of our communities, but I’m also encouraging all of you to get involved directly with the budget process by testifying at a budget hearing, submitting public comment, or sharing your budget input directly with us and other Councilmembers.
So join us this Saturday at 1pm – 2:30pm to share what you want to see in next year’s budget. Please RSVP at this link to receive the Zoom link and dial-in information: bit.ly/Ward4BudgetMeeting
Mayor Muriel Bowser is holding four budget engagement forums this month, including one specifically for seniors. For more information, visit budget.dc.gov.
I attended one of these exercises several years ago. I think it was informative insofar as providing a snapshot of how resources are allocated in the budget and how budget decisions get made. The pandemic presents a huge challenge, so it will be interesting to see what the mayor’s budget ends up looking like.
In addition, remember to fill out Councilmember Kenyan McDuffie’s Ward 5 budget survey by February 19 to provide input on his budget requests to the mayor.
This virtual event, hosted by Ward 4 Councilmember Janeese Lewis George, will bring together a panel of medical professionals, District government representatives, and community health practitioners to discuss the COVID-19 vaccine, the District’s vaccination plan, and all the ways we can keep ourselves, and each other, safe.
The town hall will take place via Zoom Webinar. As such, please submit questions or recommendations for discussion in advance to MLandrieu@DCCouncil.us.
The best way to watch the webinar is by Zoom, but you can also dial in by phone at 877-853-5257with Meeting ID 943 3934 7136# and access code439 266 5338#. Please register for the event to receive log in information and a reminder to tune in on Friday.
We have a new team of mayor office liaisons (known as MOCRS) for Ward 4 and Ward 5. MOCRS are community outreach specialists typically seen at community meetings. They are helpful when residents need assistance with receiving services from District agencies. Some issues can be resolved through submission of 311 service requests, so it is helpful to go that route first and then follow up with the MOCRs if the issue has not been satisfactorily resolved. MOCRS can work long hours–late night shootings they’re there, late night fires they’re there, the dozens of community meetings they’re there –and in my experience they are quite patient and pleasant to work with. On that note, I have to give a shout out to the previous Ward 4 MOCR KeShawn Harris because he was just fantastic. Below is contact information for the new MOCRS.
Janeese Lewis George won the Democratic primary nomination to represent Ward 4 on the DC Council. Ahead of the general election in November, she is holding a series of virtual listening sessions throughout Ward 4. The first will be geared towards Lamond-Riggs residents on July 15, 2020, at 7:00 pm. RSVP at the link.
Lamond-Riggs is one of the few areas that Ms. George did not carry in the primary election, but it was close. This listening session is an official campaign event, so keep that in mind. This post is not an endorsement of Ms. George. I am posting it here for residents on the Ward 4 side of the neighborhood who might be interested in speaking with the candidate. To learn more about her platform, visit https://www.janeese4dc.com.
Perry Redd of the DC Statehood Green party will also appear on the ballot for the Ward 4 Council seat in November.
There was a DC primary election yesterday. There was no Ward 5 race on the ballot, but there was a competitive race for DC Council in Ward 4 (along with competitive races in Wards 2, 7, and 8). With 100 percent of precincts reporting, unofficial results as of early Wednesday morning show Ward 4 council candidate Janeese Lewis George leading incumbent Brandon Todd by over 1500 votes, 54.14% to 43.62%, for the Democratic nomination. So far, Brandon Todd is carrying the precincts covering Lamond-Riggs by not large margins–357 to 325 votes in Precinct 64 (Lamond and a tiny part of Takoma) and 469 to 328 votes in Precinct 65 (Riggs Park). Ballots postmarked by June 2, 2020, and received by the Board by June 912, 2020, will be counted, so the tally will change as ballots trickle in over the next week. Update: Brandon Todd conceded on June 4, 2020.
At-Large Councilmember Robert White (D) is seeking reelection and won the uncontested Democratic nomination.
DC officials made a big push to get people to vote by mail and closed the majority of precincts. Only problem is that many people did not receive the ballots they requested by mail. Because these residents were waiting to receive their mail-in ballots, they did not vote during the early voting period. When they never received their ballots, they ended up having to vote in person at one of roughly 20 voting centers on Election Day, waiting in line for up to 5 hours according to some reports.
It is too early to know what the process will be for the November general election, but hopefuly it will not be a disaster. For that election, it looks like there will be a very competitive At-Large council race.
2020 Ward 4 DC Council Democratic Candidate Virtual Forum April 28, 2020 7:00 pm Click the following link to join: https://zoom.us/j/95452323745 or dial 301-715-8592. The participant, meeting or webinar ID is 954 5232 3745
Hosted by the Chevy Chase Citizens Association, ANC 3/4G, and the Ward 4 Democrats. Questions will be accepted in advance until 5:00 pm on April 27, 2020, at nolantutor@yahoo.com.
The three Democratic primary candidates have all confirmed attendance: Marlena Edwards, Janeese Lewis George, Councilmember Brandon Todd.
Hard to believe, but there is a DC primary election scheduled for June 2, 2020. Greater Greater Washington has responses to a questionnaire from the Democratic candidates for the Ward 4 council seat. Marlena Edwards and Janeese Lewis George responded to the questionnaire; incumbent Brandon Todd did not.
This campaign season has been turned on its head with fewer opportunities to learn about the candidates. The Greater Greater Washington questionnaire covers issues such as building more housing, bus lanes and bike lanes, how to improve the process for planned unit developments, transit subsidies, and how to improve public housing. If you are interested in learning more about the candidates’ stances on these issues, check it out.
As a reminder, be sure to request your mail-in ballot by 4:45 pm on May 26, 2020. You can easily do so by downloading the Vote 4 DC app on your smartphone.
We have a new team of mayor office liaisons (also known as MOCRS) for Ward 4 and Ward 5. MOCRS are community outreach specialists typically seen at community meetings. They are helpful when residents need assistance with receiving services from District agencies. Some issues can be resolved through submission of 311 service requests, so it is helpful to go that route first and then follow up with the MOCRs if the issue has not been satisfactorily resolved. MOCRS can work long hours–late night shootings they’re there, late night fires they’re there, the dozens of community meetings they’re there –and in my experience they are quite patient and pleasant to work with. On that note, I have to give a shout out to the previous Ward 4 MOCR KeShawn Harris because he was just fantastic. Below is contact information for the new MOCRS.
Next Stop...Riggs Park 