Chairperson:
Commissioner Anthony Thomas-Davis, SMD 1A06
Committee Members:
John Henderson (SMD 1A04)
William Jordan (SMD 1A04)
Darrell Foster (SMD 1A06)
Amber Morgan (SMD 1A08)
Priscilla Phelps (SMD 1A10)
Subcommittees:
Subcommittee on Parks and Recreation – John Henderson, Chair
Subcommittee on Neighborhood Branding & Design – Commissioner Anthony Thomas-Davis, Chair
Task Forces & Working Groups:
Task Force on Senior Resources and Age-Friendly Communities, TBA, Co-Chairs
“A successful city neighborhood is a place that keeps sufficiently abreast of its problems so it is not destroyed by them. An unsuccessful neighborhood is a place that is overwhelmed by its defects and problems and is progressively more helpless before them.“
Jane Jacobs, The Death and Life of Great American Cities
Committee Purpose
The Permanent Special Committee on Public Life & Neighborhood Planning (“SCPL”) seeks to develop Columbia Heights by promoting and undertaking integrated, long-range, community-based planning and analysis to continually improve policy outcomes and enhance quality of life for all, yielding a stronger, healthier, and more resilient neighborhood.
This mission drives our vision of a thriving and connected Columbia Heights where everyone feels a sense of belonging in a dynamic environment that values and prioritizes the well-being of all. Our mission and vision will be supported by ongoing stakeholder outreach and engagement that builds partnerships and consensus around a unified vision for the future. This will ensure our work reflects community goals and expectations as we identify neighborhood plans and promote active plan implementation.
Read the Special Committee’s enabling resolution here. On September 11, 2024, the Commission approved amendments to the resolution.
Committee Purview
Pursuant to section 2 of the Special Committee’s enabling resolution, it shall be the duty of the Special Committee to oversee and conduct continuing studies of all matters pertaining to:
- Problems and opportunities of the Columbia Heights neighborhood, including the management, development, and preservation of public spaces and neighborhood life.
- Engaging with a range of neighborhood constituencies and stakeholders to enhance the quality of life for residents and visitors.
- Ensuring that public space and the public realm, including parks, plazas, and streetscapes, are well-maintained, accessible, and reflective of the neighborhood expectations and values, and consistent with District service delivery levels.
- Serve as a strategic body for guiding neighborhood planning initiatives that align with long-term community goals while ensuring sustainable and equitable community development. Some of the current neighborhood planning initiatives include:
- Coordination of the Columbia Heights-Mt. Pleasant Public Life Study and ongoing oversight of the implementation of the Study’s findings and recommendations.
- Coordination of the Comprehensive Plan 2050 rewrite.
- Relevant small area plans and other neighborhood planning and community development documents.
- Reviewing conceptual review and permit applications pending before the Historic Preservation Review Board (HPRB) to offer recommendation(s) to the Commission.
Agencies and their actions on which the committees provide recommendations include:
- Office of Planning (OP)
- Office of the Deputy Mayor for Education (DME), for oversight of DPR
- Office of the Deputy Mayor for Planning and Economic Development (DMPED)
- Historic Preservation Review Board (HPRB)
- Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD)
- Department of Parks and Recreation (DPR)
- Department of General Services (DGS)
- Department of Licensing and Consumer Protection (DLCP), for sidewalk vending matters
- Department of Public Works (DPW)
- Department of Small and Local Business Development (DSLBD), for Clean Team and Main Street support
- District Department of Transportation (DDOT), for public space matters, including permits, and the Urban Forestry Division
- Department of Energy and Environment (DOEE)
- Department of Behavioral Health (DBH)
Meeting Agendas,* Recordings & Transcripts
March 31, 2026 Regular Meeting – Recording – Agenda – Minutes – Presentation
October 22, 2025 Regular Meeting – Recording – Agenda – Minutes
July 23, 2025 Regular Meeting – Recording – Agenda – Minutes
April 23, 2025 Regular Meeting – Recording – Agenda – Minutes
February 26, 2025 Organizational Meeting – Recording – Agenda – Transcript
September 25, 2024 Regular Meeting – Recording – Agenda – Transcript
September 5, 2024 Public Hearing – Notice – Recording – Hearing Record
July 22, 2024 Regular Meeting – Recording1 – Agenda – Transcript
May 22, 2024 Regular Meeting – Recording – Agenda – Transcript
April 24, 2024 Regular Meeting (Field Hearing) – Agenda
March 27, 2024 Regular Meeting – Recording – Agenda – Presentation – Transcript
February 28, 2024 Administrative Meeting – Recording – Agenda – Presentation – Transcript
1 Recording was ended due to a security breach during the livestream.
REP25-0005, Report of Permanent Special Committee on Public Life and Neighborhood Planning, concerning Case No. 25-06 from the District of Columbia Historic Preservation Board (HPRB), which reports favorably thereon
Primary Resources
- For a map of the Columbia Heights neighborhood and public life assets and amenities, click here.
- For more information on the ongoing Public Life Study led by the DC Office of Planning, click here.
- To view the Public Hearing on the Columbia Heights Civic Plaza, click here. A transcript is available here. View the final hearing record and recommendations for government action here.
- For information on the Comprehensive Plan 2050 rewrite, click here.
Secondary Resources
- DC Department of Licensing and Consumer Protection Request for Proposal for Vending Zone Manager
- Committee Report of the DC Council Committee of the Whole for B25-0068, Street Vendor Advancement Amendment Act of 2023
- February 24, 2026 hearing on B26-0332, Vending Modernization Amendment Act of 2025, and B26-0370, Vending Compliance and Modernization Amendment Act of 2025 (testimony presented from ANC 1A, including SCPL chairperson; available for download)
- Office of Planning’s Elements of Urban Design: A Visual Guide, published in 2023, is a reference manual that informs conversations about physical planning and design, provides ideas for enhancing the design in your community, and helps shape recommendations that encourage good urban design principles.
- District Bridges’s The Columbia Heights Civic Plaza Connective Services Pilot Report, published in 2023, provides recommendations for activating and sustaining public uses of the Civic Plaza along with social and human services outreach
- Central 14th Street Vision Plan and Revitalization Strategy, published in 2012, to identify opportunities for northern Columbia Heights’s 14th Street business district (Spring Rd. to Shepherd Rd.)
- Columbia Heights Neighborhood Investment Fund Plan, published in 2008, this plan identifies priority investment needed in Columbia Heights
- Columbia Heights Public Realm Framework Plan, published in 2004, identified the blueprint for development across Columbia Heights following the opening of the Metro stations
- Mid-City Area Element Plan, published in 2000 before the 2006 Comprehensive Plan, captures neighborhood-level characteristics that define Columbia Heights and other communities
- Columbia Heights Community-Based Plan for Metro Station Area, published in 1997, created the first scalable community-driven public life designs for the neighborhood
Contact
To join the committee’s email list, contact Commissioner Thomas-Davis at 1A06@anc.dc.gov or 202-855-8550. The email list is used for:
- Periodic updates on the public life study and community planning news
- Reminder and follow-up summary emails of committee meetings