Wrapping up
Celebrating the holidays and graceful exits
Dear friends and neighbors,
I hope you’re feeling cozy and have something wonderful planned for the holidays.
This will be the last newsletter of the year, and it’s the end of my first term as ANC Commissioner. One of the best things about the job has been meeting other ANC Commissioners. I didn’t know Roric McCorristin before joining the ANC, but we’ve become friends in the last two years.
Roric didn’t run for re-election, so he’ll be rotating off the ANC in January. I thought it would be interesting to do an “exit interview.”
Exit Interview: Roric McCorristin
What was the best thing about being an ANC Commissioner? What was the worst?
Getting to know more people in the neighborhood was the best part. I enjoyed meeting more of the community and hearing people’s ideas for Cleveland Park. I learned a lot about why people like living here.
The worst part was the time demands. I prioritized establishing boundaries around my parenting duties and family time, which I am proud of, but I feel like I missed out on some things. There were interesting committee meetings that I didn’t attend and I wasn’t immediately responsive to all emails. My constituents were very understanding about balancing parenting and my ANC duties, which I appreciate. And ANC 3C deserves a lot of credit for transparency and access — our committee meetings are recorded for YouTube and we keep each other updated with committee reports during our monthly meetings. So I didn’t feel uninformed. But you miss out. The role of Commissioner is an honor and a privilege, and I wish I could have dug in more.
Why did you run in the first place?
I started noticing every cracked sidewalk and dangerous crosswalk after becoming a parent, when I started pushing a stroller around. I became interested in how these things are addressed and wanted to help new parents be represented in that process. When the future of the Cleveland Park Promenade was being decided, the parents of little kids who I talked to were thrilled by the idea of keeping the strip open and having a little more space and safety when running errands. There was this big disconnect between what my neighbors were saying and needing, and what I had read about previously on places like the local listserv.
Why are you retiring after only one term in office? The neighborhood needs you!
My family needs a bigger living space sooner rather than later and, unfortunately, it became clear very quickly that it wouldn’t be feasible to stay in my single-member district. So I decided not to run for a second term. It’s frustrating. It’s a policy failure when families can’t stay in Cleveland Park, or any neighborhood for that matter, because of housing prices. We need to build more housing so that people can stay here, move here, live here. It’s vital for growing community. But people oppose even the idea of it because they fear it will bring their own property values down. That’s selfish and antithetical to growing community.
What’s your proudest accomplishment as a Commissioner?
I am proud that I set up the Environmental Justice Committee. We had some very good meetings with representatives from the District agencies who explained city services to us in detail to make residents better informed. I would like to thank Laura Moore and Madeleine Gauthier, our community members on the committee, for getting involved and helping to establish this platform. They brought more ideas to the table — specifically, the table at Dolan where we brainstormed over coffee — than we could act on. I hope ANC 3C will continue the committee’s work in the new term.
This is an excerpt. Read the full interview here.
Envisioning the neighborhood
With the start of a new year and a newly-elected ANC, I’d like to spend some time thinking about how we can build a better, safer, more inclusive, more joyful community. I’m working with some neighbors to do some informal consultations and visioning exercises. I’d like to include you, if you’re interested or have ideas.
Parties and events
Honey Sale at the Swiss Embassy on Saturday, December 14, from 9 AM to 12 PM. Local bees. Sales support relief efforts for Ukraine. The honey goes quick, so don’t be late. Ambassador Ralf Heckner will be meeting neighbors and giving tours of the grounds.
Cleveland Park Winter Market: Santa will be making an appearance! Arts and crafts and gift ideas. December 14, Noon to 5pm.
New Years Day 5k: The mayor usually hosts a fun 5k race to start the year off healthy. Starting from Anacostia Park at 10am. More info and sign up here.
Update on ANC activity
The next meeting of ANC3C will be December 16, 7pm. Agenda and registration posted here. There’s not too much on our agenda. It’s the last meeting of the year and before a new crop of commissioners come on board in early January. Let me know if you have issues or concerns to raise.
You can see the resolutions and letters we passed in November.
As always, I’d love your feedback. Even negative feedback is helpful to improve what we’re doing.
Other items of interest
I reported that some of the empty storefronts in front of the Zoo may be filled soon. The newest report is that a Jersey Mike’s sandwich shop will be coming. Is that good?
Please feel free to pass this newsletter along to friends and neighbors, especially if they live in the neighborhood.