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March 12, 2026

Should DC Get Rid of Its ANCs?

City Cast DC

Should DC Get Rid of Its ANCs?

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Should DC get rid of Advisory Neighborhood Commissions, the closest-to-the-ground level of local democracy? That’s one of the implications of an essay published this month by Wesley Sturhan in Greater Greater Washington. Sturhan writes about all of the different hurdles DC has erected that get in the way of building the kinds of neighborhoods most of us would agree are nice places to live. He’s here to explain that maybe it’s time to take a hard look at a lot of the choke points — including one that a lot of local activists consider sacred.

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Learn more about the sponsors of this March 12th episode:

Johns Hopkins University

Folger Shakespeare Library

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