Tysons’ new school board member supports efforts to have Fairfax County Public Schools go green, but has concerns about how the goals are being met.

Karl Frisch, the newly elected school board representative for the Providence District, held office hours with community members last Friday (Feb. 13) in Merrifield to discuss the progress of ongoing initiatives.

The changes include Dominion Energy testing eight electric school buses around Fairfax County and the county installing solar panels at roughly two dozen schools in the Providence District, according to Frisch.

The decision to install solar panels was made possible by Fairfax County’s new Solar Power Purchase Agreement (PPA), according to Frisch’s newsletter.

Around 60% of Providence District public schools have cleared the first step to receive solar panels, Frisch said.

As for the school buses, Frisch said while running for office that they were one of his top goals. (The initiative also supported by Del. Mark Keam (D-35th District) and groups like Mothers Out Front Fairfax.)

Now, as the program is becoming a reality, he said it is a “fantastic” opportunity for the district.

“Dominion Energy will cover the difference in cost so that school districts pay no more for electric buses than they would for diesel models,” according to the FCPS website, which added that the company will also cover the cost of the charging stations.

For the news buses, FCPS will only be paying around $150,000 of the $325,000 for an electric school bus, plus the added cost of seat belts and the cost of electricity to run the buses in place of diesel fuel, Peggy Fox, a Dominion Energy spokesperson, said.

By replacing diesel school buses with an electric option, FCPS will save 60% on maintenance costs, according to Fox.

But, Frisch also told Tysons Reporter that he is hesitant about Dominion’s potential long-term control over the bus program and said he would prefer to see a competitive bidding process before FCPS agrees to work with the energy company to electrify the school’s remaining 1,600 bus fleet.

Fox said that Dominion approached FCPS with the initial opportunity and those within the district were enthusiastic to accept the offer. “We are doing it on our dime because we think it is so great,” she said.

An electric bus bill that was originally sponsored by Keam was shut down — the bill that would have allocated more state funds toward this initiative and eased the pressure to involve Dominion Energy, according to Frisch.

“The bill that made it through the House [of Delegates] was a different bill,” Frisch said. “If that’s what ends up becoming law, then our electric school buses will be tied to the hip to Dominion.”

Despite the concern over the cost, Frisch said he still supports the initiative and wants to move forward toward carbon-neutrality.

“If this is the only way we can get it done — fine,” he said. “But it is not the best way to do it.”

By 2030, Dominion wants 100% of the school buses in the company’s service zone in Virginia to be transitioned into an electric fleet, according to Fox. “We are thrilled the legislature is helping to move this forward,” she said.

Both Frisch and Fox agree that electric buses will be healthier for the school kids who depend on them and will help ease the carbon imprint on the environment.

Going forward, Frisch said he isn’t sure when the electric school buses will officially join the fleet, but Fairfax County said they’d likely hit the road by the end of the year.

Bloggers and social media gurus have an opportunity to network at an upcoming event at Tysons Corner Center later this week.

From 6-8 p.m. on Thursday (Feb. 20), entrepreneurial women from the area are invited to attend a gathering sponsored by BrandBox where they can meet Alison Barker from the Babes Who Create Executive Team.

The event is celebrating the launch of Babes Who Create DC — a branch of the California-based marketing and media company that operates regional communities of content creators across the U.S.

Attendees can play with puppies, drink and eat appetizers, take photos and try out a variety of services including hair and makeup touchup stations, according to the event page.

The first 75 women to attend will also receive a goodie bag full of sports items and beauty products, according to the event page.

The event is free and will be held on level two of the mall next to Old Navy and Urban Outfitters.

Anyone who wants to learn more about the D.C. chapter of Babes Who Create can check out the group’s Instagram.

Image via Babes Who Create/Facebook

The Weekly Planner is a roundup of interesting events coming up over the next week in the Tysons area.

We’ve scoured the web for events of note in Tysons, Vienna, Merrifield, McLean and Falls Church. Know of any we’ve missed? Tell us!

Wednesday (Feb. 19)

• Ribbon Cutting for Periodontics and Implant Center of Northern Virginia — 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. at Periodontics and Implant Center of Northern Virginia (243 Church Street NW) — People are welcome to celebrate the introduction of a new business in Vienna. This event is free and light refreshments will be served, according to the event listing.

Thursday (Feb. 20)

• b8ta Grand Opening — 7 to 9 p.m. at b8ta Tysons Corner (8086 Tysons Corner Center) —  A new store in Tysons Corner Center offers people the change to celebrate b8ta’s grand opening with champagne and appetizers. This event is free but RSVP is suggested.
• WIT Connect — 6 to 8:30 p.m. at Valo Park Drive (7950 Jones Branch Drive) — This event from Women in Technology will allow people to learn about how technology is changing healthcare. Networking begins at 6 p.m. and the conference starts at 6:45 p.m. Tickets start at $45.

Friday (Feb. 21)

• Storytime and Crafts with Local Children’s Author, Shelby! — 10 to 10:30 a.m. at Famille Cafe (700A W. Broad Street) — Families and kids can come and meet Shelby Hoefling, the author of recently published “Grandma’s in the Phone!” After the meet and greet, kids will be able to make crafts as well.

Saturday (Feb. 22)

• Black History Forum — 2 p.m. at Justice High School (3301 Peace Valley Lane) —  This event will feature Alexandria’s first African-American Poet Laureate, KaNikki Jakarta. People will also be able to watch a trivia competition highlighting African-American Achievements in history, according to the website.

Sunday (Feb. 23)

• Live Music with Blue Book Value — 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Famille Cafe (700A W. Broad Street) — This NoVA band is known for their rock n’ roll, according to the event listing. They’ll be hosting a free performance for people hoping to enjoy some live entertainment.
• Jazz Worship & Pancake Brunch — 10 a.m. Lewinsville Presbyterian Church (1724 Chain Bridge Road) — Everyone, regardless of church affiliation, is welcome to enjoy Jazz Worship Service and a Shrove Pancake Brunch. Breakfast quiches, casseroles and crepes will also be served.

Photo via Famille Cafe/Facebook

When people walk into Fava Pot in Falls Church, they’re greeted with the smell of freshly baked pita bread made in a traditional wooden, along with a dozen menu options for traditional Egyptian cuisine.

Dina Daniel, the restaurant’s owner, opened the Falls Church Fava Pot back in 2017 after owning an Arlington food truck and has been serving up a variety of fare since, including vegan and vegetarian options.

Daniel said her favorite item is the Táamya, which she considers to be the eatery’s specialty. She called it an “Egyptian falafel” — the tiny ball has a crunchy exterior with a soft, veggie-filled inside. Unlike other types of falafels, the snack is made with fava beans instead of chickpeas.

Other best-sellers include Baba Ganoush, a tangy dip that comes covered in pomegranate seeds, combination platters that include lamb, chicken and veal and a variety of bowls and snacks.

When people stop by the restaurant, Daniel said she wants people to feel at home — comfortable, welcome and well-fed with wholesome fare with fresh veggies and whole wheat grains.

Daniel said that she wants people to feel as if they’re “having a feast at grandma’s house,” when they eat at Fava Pot. She added that many of the meals made at the Falls Church location are unique to that specific location and take more than 12 hours to prepare.

Unlike Fava Pot’s food truck or new pop-up in Union Market, the Falls Church location offers guests sit down meals with the help of Stephen Samuels, the area manager, and Elmer Ramos, the head chef. Fava Pot is also planning on expanding to Rosslyn later this year.

“Our business isn’t only about the back area, it’s about how you interact with the customer,” she said while waving to a regular customer across the room. 

When Daniel first opened the restaurant, she said she worried that people’s unfamiliarity with Egyptian food would scare away potential customers, so she spent time in Tysons handing out free samples for several weeks.

Since the restaurant is a “travel destination,” Daniel said she was concerned before the grand opening in 2017 that people might not want to make their way to Falls Church to eat at the restaurant. But she said that concern has turned out to be unfounded.

Several days ago, Voice of America Asia featured Fava Pot on its YouTube channel as part of its “Food Bites” mini-series.

“I believe America has misconceptions of Egyptians,” she told Tysons Reporter, noting that Egypt has a distinctive cultural identity from the rest of the Middle East.

The walls of the Falls Church location are covered with the stories of famous Egyptians, including athletes, academics and musicians. To give back to her home country, some of the money made from Fava Pot goes directly to benefit a group called Coptic Orphans, which assists underprovided kids in Egypt.

As for the location’s clientele, she said that about only 20% have Egyptian heritage, which gives her a chance to act as a cultural ambassador for the community.

Part of her breakfast customer base originally came from overflow from the adjacent pancake house, until people got over their hesitation about Egyptian breakfast and decided to give the cuisine a shot.

“After God’s grace, it is what made our business stay,” she said.

Within the last weeks, there have been several changes at the Mosaic District.

After Neiman Marcus closed in the Mosaic District, home goods store Great Gatherings decided to take over the vacant spot at 2905 District Ave.

The store’s new location opened a couple of weeks ago, according to the manager, who added that the business decided to switch spots because it is a slightly smaller space and more visible to traffic.

Employees were in the process of putting finishing touches on the store when Tysons Reporter stopped by yesterday (Feb. 13).

Down the street at the former spot of Brine (2985 District Ave, Suite 120), it appears that crews are doing work at the location. It is unclear what will move into the unoccupied space.

Nearby, Black Dog Beer Shop (2672 Avenir Place, Suite M) opened for business today (Feb. 14).

The location offers a variety of brews for consumption off-site and will be open from 9:30 a.m. until 9:30 p.m. Monday-Thursday, Fridays and Saturdays from 9:30 a.m. until 10 p.m. and Sundays from 10 a.m. until 6 p.m., according to the website.

Customers can purchase specialty brews not found anywhere else except the breweries themselves, Jeff Kirkland, the store manager, told Tysons Reporter, adding that there are almost 300 varieties of beer at the shop.

(Updated 11 a.m.) Presidents’ Day is almost here and there will be closures around the area.

All Fairfax County government offices, public schools and public libraries will be closed, according to the county website.

Trash and recycling will be collected on a regular schedule if community members are customers of Fairfax County, the website said, which added that people with a private company should contact the company directly.

The Fairfax Connector will be running on a Holiday Weekend Schedule on Monday.

The Metro will be running on a Saturday schedule from 5 a.m. until 11:30 p.m., according to the WMATA website.

The Mary Riley Styles Library in Falls Church (120 N. Virginia Ave) will be closed, according to the website, along with all city offices.

Since waste collection falls on a Wednesday in Falls Church, it will not be affected by the holiday.

In the Town of Vienna, all government offices will be closed but waste collection will run on a regular schedule, according to the website.

The McLean Community Center will be closed on Monday.

Tysons Reporter will also have the day off on Monday.

Photo by Lucas Sankey via Unsplash

Don Beyer Volvo in Falls Church is about to move and set up shop just down the street.

The car dealership plans to move from its location at 1231 W. Broad Street to an adjacent property, an employee said.

Though it is unclear when the construction will be complete, the employee said the company hopes to move into its new spot by June or July.

One person on Twitter spotted construction and signs for the new dealership.

Tysons Reporter reached out to a manager for more information and is awaiting a response.

New car dealership on Broad Street is coming up quickly pic.twitter.com/a08RyGqf91

— Falls Church Views (@fallschurchview) February 2, 2020

Image via Google Maps

Two new Baddpizza locations are expected to open in McLean and Falls Church a little later than expected.

Although the location in Falls Church (346 W. Broad Street) was supposed to open in November, according to the owner, a store manager said yesterday (Feb. 12) that it will instead open in about two weeks.

Meanwhile, the McLean location (6263 Old Dominion Drive), which was set to open in December or early 2020, will open in late March, according to the manager.

Opening dates for both of the locations are dependent on staffing, the manager said.

Both locations plan to serve a variety of pizzas, wings, salads, dessert and chicken tenders, according to the website.

Photo via Baddpizza/Facebook

After volunteering with Food for Others, Christine Kenny founded Fairfax Diapers in the Vienna area to help at-risk mothers in Fairfax County by supplying clean diapers.

Diaper insecurity is more prevalent than people realize, Kenny said. She hopes the organization will raise awareness and boost diaper donations.

“I have experienced people try to bargain with me at the food bank, willing to trade their food for diapers,” she said about her time spent volunteering with food banks around the area. “I have fielded calls from frantic new moms desperate for enough diapers to get them through the weekend.”

Organizations that offer diaper support for parents end up giving away roughly 10,000-12,000 diapers a month in Fairfax County, she told Tysons Reporter. Fairfax Diapers is run by Kenny, who is the director, and four other members.

Diapers collected through Fairfax Diapers will be given away locally through organizations such as Food for Others and the Fairfax County Visiting Nurses Association.

The Fairfax County Visiting Nurses Association will check in on around 300 new mothers per month, Kenny said.

Until Tuesday (Feb. 18), the group is hosting a drive at Crunch Fitness Tysons (8371 Leesburg Pike). Anyone who brings in a pack of diapers will receive a free day-pass to the studio and anyone who brings in a case will receive a complimentary pass for the week, according to Crunch’s Facebook page.

From March 2-6, the group will also be hosting a drive at Westbriar Elementary School in coordination with parents, teachers and the student council, according to Kenny.

Though the group does not have a website yet, since the project launched last June, Kenny said people can stay up-to-date by following Fairfax Diaper’s Facebook page.

Going forward, she is trying to find other organizations that want to host drives and form partnerships.

Photo via Fairfax Diapers/Facebook

The future home of the temporary police station was a hot-button topic at the Vienna Town Council meeting last Monday (Jan. 3).

Vienna Police Chief Jim Morris gave updates on proposed community impact and general plan details before the council voted unanimously to designate both town-owned properties at 114 Locust Street SW and 440 Beulah Road NE for public use.

At the meeting, Morris addressed concern from the public, quelling fears that traffic would increase on Locust Street since the facility will not be open to the public — therefore no added traffic will be coming to the area.

People arrested around the town will be brought to another facility, and people with walk-in complaints will be directed to another office.

Other major concerns about the property included stormwater management, which has historically been an issue on the property, according to councilmembers.

“I can never go on [the] record saying we are going to fix the issue,” Morris said, adding that the stormwater plan is a larger issue. Morris did say that they will do their best to manage the problem.

Michael Gallagher, the director of public works in Vienna, said at the meeting that improvements with the water drainage system at 114 Locust Street SW could also improve the stormwater management system for adjacent lots depending on the slant and placement.

Stormwater wasn’t the only issue — Councilmember Howard Springsteen expressed concerns over safety, especially for police car parking.

“Secure parking is critical — I know someone tried to bomb police cars years ago,” he said at the meeting.

Now, the police department will be meeting with the town’s Planning Commission to discuss plans before bringing finalized documents back to the council.

“We are already moving forward with planning and zoning,” Morris said, adding that representatives from the police station have a work session scheduled for tomorrow (Wednesday, Feb. 12). Morris said he also met with planners last Friday (Feb. 7).

Plans are already 80-90% complete, according to Morris, who added that there is still room for input from interest groups, such as neighbors to the property and councilmembers.

Town councilmembers, including Douglas Noble, expressed concern that the plans might be getting ahead of themselves before going through the proper public scrutiny.

“I want to make sure there is enough slack in the schedule,” Noble said.

Image via Town of Vienna