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Weekly Planner: Election Day, Basket Weaving and Pet Adoption Event

Updated at 9:30 a.m. on 11/4/2020 — The Weekly Planner is a roundup of interesting events coming up over the next week in the Tysons area.

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

Tuesday (Nov. 3)

  • Election Day —  6 a.m. to 7 p.m. — A seat on the Falls Church City Council is being contested, along with the U.S. presidential and Congressional races. To find your polling location, use this link. Voters must be in line by 7 p.m. to vote. Voters must also wear a face covering inside the polling locations.

Wednesday (Nov. 4)

  • Basket Weaving Crafternoon (Online) — The Mary Riley Styles Public Library will go live on its Facebook page to discuss basketry from cultures around the world, the website said. Participants can pick up Grab and Go Kits until Tuesday (Nov. 3) while supplies last at the library at 120 N. Virginia Ave.

Thursday (Nov. 5)

Friday (Nov. 6)

  • Meet the Mayor — Meet and chat with Vienna Mayor Linda Colbert on a topic of your choosing on the first Friday each month at various times and locations around Town, the website said. This month’s meeting will take place at Meadow Lane Park from 9-10:30 a.m.

Sunday (Nov. 8)

  • Pet Adoption Event — 12-3 p.m. at Chico’s Natural Pet Market (6349 A Columbia Pike) — The store will host an adoption event for its pets. Potential adopters can meet  dogs who are searching for their new families, hear their stories, and talk with our volunteers who will be happy to answer your questions, the website said.

Photo via Chico’s Natural Pet Market/Facebook

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Local Restaurants Prepare for a Warm Outdoor Dining Experience

With colder weather approaching, Tysons-area restaurants are preparing for a warm, socially-distant eating experience for their guests.

Last week, Fairfax County Board of Supervisors voted to approve an ordinance amendment that allows enclosed tents with heaters, both inside and outside, for outdoor dining, fitness, and exercise activities, and a few local restaurants are planning to take advantage of the ordinance.

Founding Farmers (1800 Tysons Blvd.) is planning to follow the ordinance by creating an outdoor-dining space. Majority-owned by American family farmers, Founding Farmers serves American dishes, along with seasonal fruits and vegetables from Virginia farms.

“We’re working through the final details of our tents but we do plan on installing some soon,” Farmers Restaurant Group Vice President and Marketing and Communications Specialist Meaghan O’Shea said.

“What we’re hoping to achieve is to continue to offer safe dining options both inside and outside through the cooler weather months,” O’Shea said. “If you want to be outside, we want to be sure we can accommodate that request and that it’s an enjoyable experience for both the guests and our team.”

Tyson’s first annual Restaurant Week earlier this month (Oct. 12-18) was a huge success, according to many local restaurant owners and managers.

Urban Plates (1782M Galleria at Tysons II), which participated in Tyson’s Restaurant Week, currently has an outdoor heated patio, so no further accommodations need to be made, according to General Manager Tony Bass.

“We also always have inside seating available, following Fairfax County COVID-19 guidelines — less than 10 people at one table, sitting six feet apart,” Bass said.

The Town of Vienna has not yet permitted restaurants to use closed tents for outdoor dining. The town council most recently re-adopted an emergency ordinance allowing institutions and businesses to get temporary waivers from zoning regulations on outdoor activities on Oct. 5, but the measure still requires tents to “remain open on all sides.”

Still, that limitation has not stopped the town’s restaurants from proactively preparing for the winter months.

Vienna’s Blend 111 (111 Church St. NW), a food and wine bar that specializes in Latin dishes, has already began “winterizing” its patio, according to owner/sommelier Mike Biddick.

“We added gas heaters, pop-up tents for use when it is rainy, and blankets,” Biddick said. “We are also working with a firm to design eco-friendly, heated chair cushions for later into the winter.”

Biddick says over 90% of his customers choose to enjoy their meals outside, but the restaurant has still worked to create a safe, socially-distant dining experience for the customers that choose to sit inside.

“Inside, we set up only eight tables,” Biddick said. “…While our open kitchen required that we installed very robust air ventilation when we opened last year, we also installed air particle filters next to each of the tables for added airflow and circulation. Masks are mandatory, as are gloves for our staff.”

Photo courtesy Jennie Kuperstein

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Fairfax County Considers Pivoting Away from Plastic Bags for Yard Waste

(Updated at 2:25 p.m.) Fairfax County is considering adopting an ordinance banning the use of plastic bags for yard waste and instead encouraging residents to transition toward greener alternatives.

Presented to the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors during its environmental committee meeting on Tuesday (Oct. 27), the proposed ordinance states:

Yard waste shall be set out in paper yard waste bags, reusable containers, other storage devices as approved by the Director, or bundled with string as instructed by the collection provider and shall not weigh more than fifty pounds. Yard waste shall not be placed in plastic bags.

The Board of Supervisors voted on Feb. 25 to begin phasing out the use of plastic bags by both customers of private companies contracted to collect yard waste and residents in the county’s solid waste collection areas.

County staff with the Solid Waste Management Program worked with community and private haulers to encourage customers to use compostable paper bags or reusable containers instead for this year’s yard waste season, which began in March and ends in December.

A survey of more than 5,500 homes in Fairfax County found that plastic bags were still utilized in 51% of yard waste set outs in the evaluated Census tracts. 31% of set outs were done with reusable containers, 11% with paper bags, 6% as an uncontained yard pile, and 1% with compostable plastic bags.

“It’s been a transition yard waste season, essentially, to help homeowners, and people that are generating yard waste that have properties get used to not being able to use plastic,” Fairfax County director of engineering and environmental compliance Eric Forbes said. “We didn’t have a ban. This yard waste season is really a transition year.”

Seven other jurisdictions in the Washington, D.C., metropolitan area already discourage or prohibit the use of plastic bags for yard waste collection. Loudoun County, for example, has required paper bags or reusable containers since 2002.

Fairfax County’s current ordinance regulating yard waste collection only dictates that it be “set out in bags, reusable containers, or in piles as instructed by the company which will be collecting them.”

Fairfax County staff anticipate formally requesting a public hearing on the proposal to amend and readopt the ordinance in January 2021, with an actual hearing expected to take place in February. If everything goes according to schedule, the new ordinance will be implemented in March in time for the next yard waste season.

“In March of 2021, as long as the ordinance change is adopted, implementation of the new ordinance will begin, basically banning plastic bags from the yard waste recycling stream,” Forbes said.

Forbes says homeowners should prepare their yard waste first by grasscycling, then composting if they have enough space, and finally compiling the waste in a reusable container or paper bag for curbside collection.

“Grasscycling is actually cutting the grass back into the lawn or mulching your leaves back in the lawn,” Forbes said. “And then backyard composting would be the next best alternative for those residents that have the space.”

If neither grasscycling or composting is an option, yard waste can be placed in reusable containers or paper yard waste bags for curbside collection, which are available at the big box stores like Home Depot, Lowe’s or Walmart, he said.

Additional information on yard waste management can be found on Fairfax County’s Public Works and Environmental Services website.

Photo via Fairfax County government

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Weekly Planner: Halloween Wave Parade, Craft Popups and Concert

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

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

Tuesday (Oct. 27)

Thursday (Oct. 29)

  • Falls Church Amateur Writers Group (Online) — 7-8 p.m. — A group for aspiring writers, the website said. Discussing and offering constructive criticism for each other’s work, the group will meet via Zoom. Email Pete Sullivan, [email protected], to request the Zoom link.

Friday (Oct. 30)

Saturday (Oct. 31)

  • Halloween Wave Parade — 10 a.m.-12 p.m. at all Town of Vienna quadrants — In order not to gather the usual ghoulish crowd for this beloved event, the Town is taking 10-15 floats in the way of a Halloween Wave Parade through Vienna neighborhoods, the website said.
  • Halloween Craft Popups — 10 a.m.-3:15 p.m. —  Enjoy pumpkin painting, birdhouse painting, or scarecrow-making at three different City of Falls Church parks, the website said.
  1. Pumpkin Painting Popup — 10 a.m.-3:15 p.m. at Cherry Hill Park (312 Park Ave.) — The cost is $6. To register, use this link.
  2. Birdhouse Painting — 10 a.m.-3:15 p.m. at Berman Park Picnic Shelter (236 Irving St.) — The cost is $4. To register, use this link.
  3. Scarecrow Making — 10 a.m.-3 p.m. at Frady Park Gazebo (311 E. Broad St.) — The cost is $10 per family. To register, use this link.

Photo by Michelle Goldchain

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Fairfax County Permits Closed Tents to Help Businesses This Winter

This week, Fairfax County businesses received clearance to continue outdoor dining, fitness, and exercise activities under social distancing rules with heated, enclosed tents this winter.

“Businesses have been able to install open-sided tents outside their storefronts since May, which allowed them to operate while maintaining proper social distancing and thus reducing the spread of COVID-19,” Fairfax County said.

The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors voted on Oct. 20 to approve an ordinance amendment that will allow this trend to continue this winter with tents that have sides and heaters both inside and outside of the tents.

Previous permit requirements for heaters from fire officials have been relaxed to make the process much easier.

Under Fairfax County’s ongoing emergency ordinance, permits are not required for tents unless they are 900 square feet or larger in size.

“If an individual tent or a collection of tents is more than 900 square-feet, it needs to go to the fire marshal for a permit,” Fairfax County director of planning and development Barbara Byron said. “There is no fee for that permit.”

Tents must be fire-resistant, and heaters need to be rated, but there are otherwise no requirements, Byron told the county board.

Fairfax County says it made the decision to relax the permitting process “to reduce the stress on businesses working to revitalize the county’s economy while allowing county staff to devote their limited resources to maintaining continuity in government instead of processing an excessive number of applications.”

According to the county, this ordinance will last up to six months after the Board terminates the local declaration of emergency, which was issued on Mar. 17 by the Board of Supervisors and Fairfax County director of emergency management.

The county board adopted an emergency ordinance on May 28 that temporarily allows businesses to conduct outdoor dining and outdoor fitness or exercise activities without having to go through the lengthy application process that is normally required.

The original ordinance only permitted tents with all sides open. It was extended on July 14.

Tysons Regional Chamber of Commerce board chairman Andrew Clark applauded Fairfax County for recognizing the challenges that restaurants and other businesses could face as the weather gets colder and taking action before winter arrives.

“We appreciate the county for realizing the need at the moment and acting accordingly,” Clark said.

Clark says that, thanks to the increased flexibility for outdoor dining and other efforts to accommodate public health protocols during the COVID-19 pandemic, restaurants in the Tysons area have started to see improved business, particularly with the first-ever Tysons Restaurant Week.

“That’s happening because the way restaurants are approaching the situation. They haven’t dropped the ball. They’re adhering to all the guidelines,” Clark said. “So, I think from what the restaurants are doing to the guidance the government has given, it’s given a framework for people to safely engage.”

Photo via Tysons Regional Chamber of Commerce/Facebook

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Weekly Planner: Farmers Markets, Early Voting and Prescription Drug Take-Back Day

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

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

Tuesday (Oct. 20)

  • Preschool Story Time (Online) — 10:30-11 a.m. — Mary Riley Styles Public Library will go live with virtual songs, stories, and rhythms on its Facebook page.

Wednesday (Oct. 21)

  • Sugar Skull Magnets Crafternoon (Online) — 3-3:30 p.m. — Join the Mary Riley Styles Public Library’s Facebook page to learn about Día de los Muertos while crafting sugar skull magnets using a Grab & Go Craft Kit that can be picked up at curbside, the website said. Grab & Go Kits can be picked up until tomorrow (Oct. 20) while supplies last. The craft video will remain available on the MRSPL Facebook page in the Crafternoon playlist.

Thursday (Oct. 22)

  • Preschool Story Time (Online) — 10:30-11 a.m. — Mary Riley Styles Public Library will go live with virtual songs, stories, and rhythms on its Facebook page.
  • Middle School Book Club (Online) — 4-5 p.m. — For children in grades 6-8. Discussing Stargirl by Jerry Spinelli, the group will meet via Zoom. Email Laura Miller, [email protected], to request the Zoom link.

Friday (Oct. 23)

  • Virtual Family Fun Trivia Night — 7-9 p.m. — Gather the whole family around the computer or tablet and get ready for some socially distant trivia, according to the event website. The cost is $5 for resident families and $8 for non-resident families. To register, use this link.
  • Drive-Thru Drama (October 23-25), 6-8:15 p.m. — Drive-Thru Drama is a social-distance theatre format that brings people together for live theatre from the comfort of their own car, the website said.  Actors will perform one, cohesive story through short scenes across the McLean Community Center parking lot. Audience members will simply roll down their windows and drive the route from actor to actor. The entries will be timed in 15-minute increments.

Saturday (Oct. 24)

  • Falls Church Farmers Market — 8 a.m.-12 p.m. at City Hall Parking Lot (300 Park Avenue) — Enjoy fresh, local produce, meat, dairy, flowers & plants, honey, music, and so much more at the Falls Church Farmers Market, the website said.
  • Vienna Farmers Market — 8 a.m.-12 p.m. at Vienna Community Center Parking Lot (120 Cherry Street SE ) — Sponsored by the Optimist Club of Greater Vienna, the Vienna Farmers Market features approximately 30 vendors from across the region offering locally sourced fruits, vegetables, and homemade eats, the website said.
  • In-Person Early Voting — 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. at City Hall (300 Park Ave.) — Early voting is available to all registered voters, the website said. Voters must wear a mask and bring acceptable voter ID.
  • Prescription Drug Take-Back Day — 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Falls Church Community Center (223 Little Falls St.) — Drop off any expired, unused, or unwanted pills and patches free and anonymously with the Falls Church Police Department, the website said. Vape pens and eCigarettes are also accepted as long as the battery is removed. Liquids, needles and other sharp items will not be accepted.

Photo by Jakub Kapusnak/Unsplash

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Weekly Planner: Drive-Thru Drama, Farmers Market and Virtual Magic Show

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

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

Tuesday (Oct. 13)

  • On Deck with Mercury, 6-8 p.m. — Southside Room of Vienna Community Center — (120 Cherry Street SE) — Monthly community forum for information-sharing and engagement on a variety of topics of interest, the website said.
  • Great Books Discussion (Online), 7-8:30 p.m. — “Great Books” Book Club meets on the 2nd and 4th Tuesday of most months. Discussing The Second Sex by Simone de Beauvoir, the group will meet via Zoom. Email Marshall Webster, [email protected], to request the Zoom link.

Wednesday (Oct. 14)

Thursday (Oct. 15)

Friday (Oct. 16)

  • Drive-Thru Drama (October 16-18), 6-8:15 p.m. — Drive-Thru Drama is a social-distance theatre format that brings people together for live theatre from the comfort of their own car, the website said.  Actors will perform one, cohesive story through short scenes across the McLean Community Center parking lot. Audience members will simply roll down their windows and drive the route from actor to actor. The entries will be timed in 15-minute increments.

Saturday (Oct. 17)

  • Falls Church Farmers Market, 8 a.m.-12 p.m. at City Hall Parking Lot (300 Park Avenue) — Enjoy fresh, local produce, meat, dairy, flowers & plants, honey, music, and so much more at the Falls Church Farmers Market, the website said.
  • Vienna Farmers Market, 8 a.m.-12 p.m. at Vienna Community Center Parking Lot (120 Cherry Street SE ) — Sponsored by the Optimist Club of Greater Vienna, the Vienna Farmers Market features approximately 30 vendors from across the region offering locally sourced fruits, vegetables, and homemade eats, the website said.
  • Lorenzo the Great Magic Show, 11-11:30 a.m. — Local magician Lorenzo the Great visits the Mary Styles Public Library just in time for a spooky magic show, the website said. The video will be available from Saturday (Oct. 17) through Saturday (Oct. 31) on its Facebook page.

Photo via Lorenzo the Great/Facebook

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Falls Church City Declares Columbus Day as Indigenous Peoples’ Day

The Falls Church City Council issued a proclamation on Oct. 7 declaring next Monday (Oct. 12) to be Indigenous Peoples’ Day in lieu of Columbus Day.

To commemorate the occasion, the City of Falls Church is asking residents to “reflect upon the many contributions as well as the continuing struggles of Indigenous Peoples,” according to the city’s press release.

City Hall and all government offices, including the Commissioner of the Revenue, the Treasurer’s Office, and the Elections Office will be closed for Indigenous Peoples’ Day. Falls Church will also not have any in-person early voting on Monday.

Curbside pickup from the Mary Riley Styles Public Library will not be available Sunday (Oct. 11) or Monday (Oct. 12). The library is already otherwise closed to the public due to COVID-19, as is the Falls Church Community Center.

In honor of this day, Falls Church will hold its third annual Indigenous Peoples’ Coat Drive at City Hall starting today (Oct. 9) until next Friday (Oct. 16). Donations will again go to support the Oglala-Lakota Nation.

Items requested for donation include new or gently worn winter coats and hooded sweatshirts of all sizes, baby blankets, new socks of all sizes, and bars of soap.

Once collected, they will be shipped to Re-Member, a nonprofit on the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota.

The donation drop box is located near the elevator of the West Wing entrance of City Hall (300 Park Ave.), the press release said. All visitors must also wear a face covering before entering the building.

Times for donating will vary depending on the day:

  • Friday (Oct. 9) – 9:00 a.m.-4:00 p.m.
  • Tuesday (Oct. 13) – 1:00-4:00 p.m.
  • Wednesday (Oct. 14) – 1:00-4:00 p.m.
  • Thursday (Oct. 15) — 9:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.
  • Friday (Oct. 16) — 9:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.

Photo via City of Falls Church Government/Facebook

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Weekly Planner: Virtual Improv Show, Preschool Story Time, and Oktoberfest

(Updated at 12:15 p.m. on 10/6/20)

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

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

Monday (Oct. 5)

  • Tysons Virtual Game Night (Online) — 7 -10 p.m. — Trivia, Charades, and drawing over video, the event description said. To register, use this link.

Tuesday (Oct. 6)

  • Preschool Story Time (Online) — 10:30-11 a.m. — Mary Riley Styles Public Library will go live with virtual songs, stories, and rhythms on its Facebook page.

Wednesday (Oct. 7)

Thursday (Oct. 8)

Friday (Oct. 9)

  • Oktoberfest — 3:30-8 p.m. — The Boro Tysons (8350 Broad St.) — The Boro is partnering with URBNmarket for a festively fall and socially distant Oktoberfest (maximum 6 people per registration), the event description said.

Saturday (Oct. 10)

  • Oktoberfest — 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. — The Boro Tysons (8350 Broad St.) — The Boro is partnering with URBNmarket for a festively fall and socially distant Oktoberfest (maximum 6 people per registration), the event description said.
  • Falls Church Farmers Market — 8 a.m. to 12 p.m. at City Hall Parking Lot (300 Park Ave.) — Enjoy fresh, local produce, meat, dairy, flowers & plants, honey, music, and so much more at the Falls Church Farmers Market, the website said.
  • Vienna Farmers Market — 8 a.m. to 12 p.m. at Vienna Community Center Parking Lot (120 Cherry Street SE) — Sponsored by the Optimist Club of Greater Vienna, the Vienna Farmers Market features approximately 30 vendors from across the region offering locally sourced fruits, vegetables, and homemade eats, the website said.

Photo courtesy Hilde Kahn

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Weekly Planner: Recycling Extravaganza, Virtual 5K and Farmers Markets

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

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

Tuesday (Sept. 29)

  • Preschool Story Time (Online) — 10:30-11 a.m. — Mary Riley Styles Public Library will go live with virtual songs, stories, and rhythms on its Facebook page.

Thursday (Oct. 1)

Friday (Oct. 2)

  • Meet the Mayor — 9 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. at Glyndon Park (300 Glyndon Street NE) — Meet and chat with Mayor Linda Colbert on the topic of your choosing, the website said.
  • Sunset Cinema: Remember the Titans (Reservation Required) — 7:45 p.m. at Cherry Hill Park (312 Park Avenue) — Sunset Cinema returns with the showing of “Remember the Titans.” This event is limited to 20 families in a reservation system, the website said. To register, use this website.

Saturday (Oct. 3)

  • Falls Church Farmers Market — 8 a.m.-12 p.m. at City Hall Parking Lot (300 Park Avenue) — Enjoy fresh, local produce, meat, dairy, flowers & plants, honey, music, and so much more at the Falls Church Farmers Market, the website said.
  • Vienna Farmers Market — 8 a.m.-12 p.m. at Vienna Community Center Parking Lot (120 Cherry Street SE ) — Sponsored by the Optimist Club of Greater Vienna, the Vienna Farmers Market features approximately 30 vendors from across the region offering locally sourced fruits, vegetables, and homemade eats, the website said.
  • Recycling Extravaganza (City of Falls Church residents only) — 9 a.m to 2 p.m. at Recycling Center (217 Gordon Road) — Recycle electronics, computers, eye glasses, bikes, clothing, textiles, batteries and more. Shred up to three boxes of documents. And, properly dispose of consumer products that are either toxic, ignitable, corrosive, or reactive, the website said. A list of recyclables that will be accepted can be found on this website.
  • McLeans 5K (Online) — Hosted by McLean Community Center with the support of event sponsors Century 21 New Millennium and The Greater McLean Chamber of Commerce, this year’s McLean 5k is going virtual, the website said. Registration ends Saturday (Oct. 3). To register use this website.

Photo via McLean Community Center 

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