Three Contests and a Recall in ANC6A Election

Three Contests and a Recall in ANC6A Election

By Larry Janezich

Posted October 14, 2022

This is the second in a series of profiles of ANC candidates from Single Member Districts on or near Capitol Hill. 

Redistricting reduced the size of ANC6A by one single member district and thus the size of the commission from 8 members to 7.  Three of these seats are being contested:  ANC6A01, 6A03, and 6A04. 

This ANC is losing four commissioners with long records of service:  Commissioners Toomajian and Soderman are retiring, and the districts of Commissioners Phillips-Gilbert and Alcorn will be in Ward 7 on January 1.  Only Alcorn is seeking election to the new Single Member District in Ward 7.   

The other issue in 6A is an effort to recall ANC6A04 commissioner and ANC6A chair Amber Gove by residents who are unhappy with her support for a DDOT plan making the 1300 block of North Carolina Avenue, NE, one-way with a protected bike lane.  Recall supporters, led by resident Alexandra Kelly, claim Gove did not give enough weight to the concerns of the affected residents when she supported DDOT’s proposed change for the street.  The full commission subsequently voted unanimously to support the proposal.  The vote on whether to recall Gove will occur in person on Sunday, October 23, from 1-5 PM at Northeast Library or Maury Elementary School.  All registered voters residing in the current 6A04 district are eligible to vote.  Gove’s bid for re-election keeps her name on the ballot for the November 8 election, regardless of the outcome of the recall vote.  Kelly is also a candidate for Gove’s 6A04 seat in the general election. 

If you are not sure if redistricting changed which single member district you’re in, go here:  https://bit.ly/3V3002Z

Here’s a list of ANC6A candidates and profiles based on information supplied by the candidate – incumbents are designated by an asterisk:

*6A01 KEYA CHATTERJEE  (Did not provide candidate profile info)

6A01 CHRISTINA GOODLANDER (Did not provide candidate profile info)

6A02 MIKE VELASQUEZ.  Mike Velasquez and his family are longtime G Street NE fixtures.  For years, Mike has helped bring his neighbors together for an annual block party, on-going for 13 years, and works closely with neighbors to build community and engage the District agencies, the ANC, and the Council to help bring attention to community concerns.  Mike has been engaged on H Street issues, street safety, traffic calming, housing, and development.  He’s been a parent leader at local schools Ludlow-Taylor and Stuart Hobson and has been a volunteer in Capitol Hill Little League.  Mike serves on the ANC’s Alcohol and Beverage Licensing Committee where he helps support navigate good relationships between the businesses and neighborhood residents.  Mike’s goals moving forward include focusing on making our streets safer by slowing down speeding cars, especially commuter traffic, and  making sure that DC government is responsive, especially regarding services such as consistent trash pickup, parking enforcement, and rodent control. 

6A03 NICOLE “NIKKI” DELCASALE.  Nikki Delcasale demands that our government is inclusive and accessible so that more of our neighbors can participate.  She is active in her neighborhood and across DC, whether she’s walking dogs or advocating for tenants’ rights.  Nikki helped create a system for eviction prevention canvassing throughout DC. When she is not working for tenants, she is assisting restaurant workers recovering from the effects of the pandemic, serving our unhoused neighbors, and encouraging measures to increase safety on our streets.  Nikki serves as an adoption counselor with City Dogs & City Kitties Rescue and is passionate about keeping our pets safe.  Nikki will listen to the community and be a voice for their concerns, including advocating for safer streets via traffic calming measures.

6A03 ROBERTA SHAPIRO Roberta Shapiro is a longtime F Street, NE, resident who currently serves on ANC6A’s Economic Development and Zoning Committee.  She has an extensive record of volunteer work in the community and is a fixture on F Street NE where she works to bring neighbors together to address community issues.  Shapiro has helped address street safety, pedestrian and cyclist concerns, residential parking, construction and housing affordability.  She’s previously been a leader with the Capitol Hill Village where she helped coordinate services and assist seniors with aging in place.  She is a retired health care and not-for-profit manager, having served stints at non-profit hospital, Ronald McDonald Charities of Alabama, and CommunityHealth, a Chicago free clinic.   She also held executive positions in several health insurance entities.   Since moving to DC in 2013, Shapiro worked with non-profits, both as an employee and volunteer, including Capitol Hill Village, the Association of American Medical Colleges, Compass Pro Bono, Good Neighbors Capitol Hill and Washington English Center. She serves on ANC6A’s Economic Development and Zoning (EDZ) Committee.

*6A04 AMBER GOVE  Gove says:  Since 2017, I’ve been honored to serve as your volunteer Advisory Neighborhood Commissioner. I’ve prioritized the safety of our streets and sidewalks for all users, whether they walk, roll or drive.  I’ve served on the Eliot-Hine and Maury school modernization teams, successfully securing additional funding and expanded play and field space.  I’ve increased our Commission’s community grants program, supported affordable housing projects, and partnered with DC Police on a balanced approach to public safety and community engagement.  And I am excited to run to represent our neighborhood again!  I am experienced, knowledgeable, and passionate about helping our entire community.  I ask for your vote to spend two more years advocating on your behalf.  This election is particularly important because rather than simply running against me, my opponent is also leading a campaign to recall me for the remainder of my 2021-22 term.  Please be sure to vote at the in-person only special election on Sunday, October 23 from 1-5 PM at Northeast Library or Maury ES.  Thank you for your support. For more: https://bit.ly/3rVBzXM

6A04 ALEXANDRA KELLY Kelly says:  I have an extensive background in work for non-profit organizations that prioritize people, families and communities, and I want to use those skills to benefit this community where I live.  I am an attorney.  I was the general counsel and daily advisor to a consortium of 50 elementary schools.  I also handled hundreds of property transactions, the construction of hundreds of units of affordable family housing, and the financing and construction of three new full service residential shelters.  I was a director and the lead counsel of an organization that planned, funded and built three brand new high schools in Southern California.  I handled all the land acquisitions, construction contracts, and corporate structure of that half-billion-dollar project.  As a volunteer, I have supported Mother Teresa’s Missionaries of Charity in their work along the border.  I was a mentor for a teen attending a high school for unhomed students.  I assisted that school in the development of a permanent, custom-built facility.  In my work as a trustee for our neighborhood high school I was part of a complete redesign and expansion, which included adding required parking, new classrooms, technology and labs.  I am most fulfilled by problem solving at a group and individual level, mediating and negotiating compromises, and clearing obstacles to allow others to do their best work. For more:  https://www.alexlistens.com/

*6A05 LAURA L GENTILE  Laura Gentile has lived in the neighborhood since 2007 and is completing her first term as ANC 6A05 commissioner.  She currently serves as ANC6A Secretary and, during her first year, led the effort to substantially overhaul the Commission’s bylaws – for the first time in ten years – to ensure meetings and activities are inclusive, efficient, and effective in supporting the community.  Laura has advocated for constituents with DC agencies on a range of issues including trash, illegal construction, public health, traffic calming, vacant properties, and crime.  Laura has worked to improve communications by creating a google group which includes hundreds of constituents.  She shares periodic updates with residents about local issues and how they can weigh in on proposed actions that could impact the quality of life in our community.  Laura has worked for the U.S. EPA for over 25 years and, early in her career, served as a Peace Corps Volunteer.

*6A06 ROBB DOOLING Robb Dooling is the current Advisory Neighborhood Commissioner for 6A06, representing the eastern end of the H Street Corridor.  He previously won ANC elections in 2018 and 2020 and is seeking re-election this year.  Robb advocates for housing as a human right, safe streets, and humane solutions to public safety.  In the 2020-2022 term, Robb’s largest accomplishment was securing $819,000 in DC’s annual budget for a new government agency, the Office for Deaf, Deaf Blind, and Hard of Hearing.  Robb also convinced the District Department of Transportation to propose DC’s first 24/7 transit-only lane for H Street NE, which would begin construction in 2024.  Finally, Robb helped small businesses expand outdoors to survive the pandemic and brought multiple agencies to 6A06 for public safety walks in a whole-of-government approach to reducing gun violence.  Robb is Deaf, queer, and originally from Nebraska. 

6A07 STEPHEN MOILANEN  Moilanen says:  My wife Daphne, our three-year-old son Emory, and I have lived at 211 10th Street, NE, since September 2021.  My wife and I have both spent considerable time in DC as we have grown up – my wife was raised in the area and we’ve both lived in DC for more than five years as adults.  I’m currently the Chief of Staff to the CTO at Embark, a leading developer of autonomous vehicle technology.  I come to the tech industry after having worked in clean energy policy for Columbia University, the United Nations, and the White House.  When I’m not chasing my toddler, I love trying my hand at improv comedy, testing out nerdy board games, and taking in non-fiction books.