The petty politics of ANCs: "The Line Must be Drawn Here!"

Patrick Stewart as Captain Jean-Luc Picard. Paramount Television Image.

Remember that great line from the Star Trek Next Generation Movie, "First Contact?"

Of course, it's hard to execute in practice, especially in neighborhood politics and civic life, where like college campus politics, the local politics are "so vicious, because the stakes are for so little."

Something I just wrote in an email discussion (slightly edited):

Many ANC Commissioners think and act as if the great weight provisions are open-ended. According to the standard reading of the law by DC Government employees, the law is pretty straight-forward:

In addition, the regulations require 30-business-day notice to allow the ANCs the opportunity to discuss the matter.

It doesn't say that a government agency must kow-tow to a bunch of little dictators or ignore law and regulations and the processes created withn them. Furthermore, the great weight provision expects that ANCs will not attempt to create and apply their own interpretations of the procedures under the law, that the processes should be interpreted and acted upon in the same way by every ANC in the city.

That many ANC Commissioners think otherwise is a serious problem--I can't tell you how many times I've heard ANC Commissioners say "That's not how we do things in our ANC..."--one that DC Government agencies and the City Council have not adequately addressed.

Now, if an ANC for various reasons, finds the 30 day period to be inadequate to have a thorough community-wide discussion of the matter, one that is not limited only to the residents in the area immediately impacted, personally I think it's reasonable to ask for a delay. And I have said all along a delay for this particular matter could be a good thing.

But I think the ANC needs to demonstrate (provide) a plan to provide for the kind of deliberative (fair, transparent, open) process to achieve such. And such a plan should be included as an attachment to any such motion where an ANC requests a delay in pending proceedings before a DC Government agency.

I commented about the motion duly passed the other night, and the contingent didn't want to hear it and refused to discuss it, because the motion included statements about notice that were clearly erroneous. Furthermore, one Commissioner made comments that denigrated the standing of the applicant generally, and also in terms of even having standing to make presentations about the issue/application--and they conducted the research and prepared the application!

I don't think that at the Full ANC Commission level, that a majority of Commissioners have indicated their commitment to a fair, open, transparent process with regard to this matter.

If I were on the board hearing the application, as a result I would assume that the ANC isn't acting in good faith. And that would make me question granting a delay.

If the agency decides to go forward with the hearing (and I could see them doing so, but holding a decision open pending communication from the ANC) I am certain that the particular ANC Commissioners I have in mind would refuse to take responsibility for their failure to adhere to how the great weight provisions are supposed to work in practice under the law, and instead would take this as but one more instance of "preservation advocates doing stuff to them."

They want all of the privileges of being "elected officials" without any of the responsibilities.

Index Keywords: civic-engagement