Mathews Will Run to Succeed Gibbons on ANC
By • June 8, 2020 0 1310
Topher Mathews, who launched the neighborhood blog the Georgetown Metropolitan in 2008, will seek to replace Joe Gibbons on Advisory Neighborhood Commission 2E. He made the announcement in a June 8 blog post headlined: “I’m Running For ANC.”
Under a photo of Mathews, his wife and his daughter in Washington Nationals caps, he begins: “Over the weekend, Joe Gibbons announced that he will not seek reelection to serve on the ANC representing SMD 2E02.” Noting that he has “been neighbors with Joe since he moved here with his wife Hillary from Chicago,” Mathews writes that Gibbons has “been as fantastic a Commissioner as he’s been a neighbor.”
Gibbons has served two two-year terms on ANC 2E, including one as chair. In a June 7 email to constituents, he explained his decision not to run again: “When I started I had 2 children living in the Georgetown area and now I have 4 and 3 grandchildren (all under the of age 3). Frankly speaking, Hilary and I are joyously outnumbered. Planning our day is like a defensive coaches meeting.”
In the blog post, Mathews refers to the “one-two punch of coronavirus and a spurt of violent looting” as “a possibly existential threat” to the neighborhood. Commenting that residents have “got to stop fighting the fights of the past,” he goes on: “And I know the fights of the past because I’ve been in them. I’ve lived in Georgetown for seventeen years. I’ve been on the board of the Citizens Association of Georgetown for ten years, including as chair of the Transportation committee. I previously served on the board of the Friends of Volta Park. And I’ve been on countless ad hoc working groups like the Georgetown 2028 effort or the Georgetown Community Partnership.”
Gibbons represents ANC 2E’s single-member district — 02 — which borders Volta Place, 32nd Street, S Street and Visitation Prep. Mathews lives on 33rd Street.
Elections for advisory neighborhood commissioners take place in November of even-numbered years. ANC 2E, covering Georgetown, Burleith and Hillandale, is chaired by Rick Murphy. There are six commissioners in addition to Gibbons and Murphy: Matias Burdman, Anna Landre, Gwendolyn Lohse, Elizabeth Miller, Lisa Palmer and Kishan Putta.
