An Important New Player Gets to Work

ANC7D, Chaired by Commissioner Wendell Felder, met Monday night to hear from DDOT Director Everett Lott.

The new ANC7D sprawls from Hill East on the south to the Maryland line on the north.

An Important New Player Gets to Work

By Hilary Russell

Posted February 15, 2003

Advisory Neighborhood Commission (ANC) 7D emerged in 2022 from a contentious redistricting process, required by DC law, to ensure populations of all wards are relatively equal in size.  The epicenter was Ward 6’s explosive growth, which necessitated reducing its population by some 20,000 residents.  As the map shows, voters on the west side of 19th Street were relocated to Ward 7, now represented by Councilmember Vincent Gray.  The new ward’s 10 ANC commissioners will thus tackle a host of new challenges flowing from the demolition of RFK Stadium, plans for the jail, the ongoing development of Reservation 13, and extant PEPCO facilities along the Anacostia River.

The February 13 ANC 7D meeting seemed to augur harmonious and productive working relationships.  The main feature was a presentation by Everett Lott, Director of the District Department of Transportation (DDOT), who referenced plans for a streetcar extension along Benning Road; a new Circulator route from Union Station to Deanwood; more car-free lanes and bikeshare stations; and plans to install traffic cameras on buses to support the enforcement of bus-only “red-paint” lanes.  The question period included a critique by Commissioner Brett Astmann of DDOT’s Traffic Safety Input dashboard, along with Commissioner Ebony Payne’s concern that the recent “no-left-turn” sign on Oklahoma Avenue is funneling more traffic onto D and 19th Streets.

Perhaps the most salient part of this meeting was Commissioner Marc Friend’s announcement about five committees to be formed that will directly engage community members across ANC 7D:

• Housing; economic development; economic justice
• Transportation; public space
• Grants; community outreach
• Environment
• Public safety

Capitol Hill Corner will endeavor to report on the work of these committees, whose names may be adjusted.  Of particular interest is how they develop priorities and tackle overlapping issues—for example, the demolition of RFK Stadium. Throughout, the hope is that the 10 new commissioners and these committees will help to negate the thesis that a ward divided by a river or other geographic boundary will not work well.