Why Greater Greater Washington is important to me

Greater Greater Washington is holding a reader drive to fund our Associate Editor, who makes sure we get high-quality posts up every day. Some members of the Greater Greater Washington family have written accounts of why this community is important to them and to the region. Please support us today!

I don’t recall the first Greater Greater Washington article that I read, but I do recall the first one that I contributed to: a post about reworking the traffic flow around Mount Vernon Square and on 7th and 9th streets south of the convention center.

I had been reading and writing about public planning meetings in the city for years, and it finally became clear that I should be adding my voice to what, at that time, was quickly becoming the source for intelligent analysis of urban planning in the DC area.

Over the last 4+ years, I’ve watched the blog grow in scope and influence. The launch of Greater Greater Education may be the most consequential new addition to the local blogosphere, even if many don’t realize it yet.

For years, conversations about growth in DC have frequently hinged on this point: “If the DC school system was great, it would be impossible to keep people from flooding into the city.” In many ways, education is the only thing where DC doesn’t hold distinct advantages over surrounding communities.

The blog’s coverage of local politics is also a great strength. Local television news all but ignores the issues in local politics, and the Washington Post frequently goes for the horse-race story instead of the policy analysis. Greater Greater Washington fills an important gap, creating a place where smart discussion of local politics is a necessity, not a luxury.

I hope to see the blog continue to grow in its geographic and topical coverage. Even though I’m watching DC from the other side of the country now, I will continue to rely on Greater Greater Washington to keep me intelligently informed on important issues in a city I care deeply about.

In order to help the blog grow, we need to be able to ensure that an editorial team exists to keep the quality at a high level. If you value the quality of the content on the blog, please consider giving what you can so Greater Greater Washington can continue to provide smart pieces on planning, education, and all the related issues that make a growing region work.