October is drawing to a close, but Tysons Corner Center still has a few new retailers to unveil this month, just before the holiday shopping rush gets underway.
On the mall’s second level next to Brooks Brothers, the online clothing company Everlane will open its 11th brick-and-mortar location — and its second in the D.C. area — on Thursday (Oct. 27).
The store will sell men’s and women’s clothes. Unsurprisingly, given its online origins, the business offers some digital services intended to save customers’ time, including a “Save My Spot” feature that will save their spot in the line for a fitting room and text them when it’s available.
Throughout its opening weekend, Everlane will have “fun treats” from Northside Social Coffee & Wine, the non-alcoholic drink vendor Kin Euphorics, and D.C.-based Fluffness Cotton Candy. DJ Adrian Loving will provide a soundtrack on Saturday (Oct. 29), according to a public relations representative.
Also expected to open in late October, per a Tysons Corner Center press release:
Oak + Fort – is a Canadian-based woman-owned fashion & lifestyle brand, offering versatile clothing and home essentials. Since its first brick-and-mortar in Vancouver, Canada, Oak + Fort offers one-stop shopping experience at affordable prices. As the brand appeals to a modern style, Oak + Fork stays true to the design of every collection, with a focus on fashion-forward collections and using sustainable products.
Purple – For over 30 years, Purple specializes in mattresses and becoming the first innovative sleep brand that significantly reduces pressure on areas of the back and neck. The brand offers an array of bedroom essentials including pillows, sheets, bed frames, and more. The online digitally native brand has been growing its permanent brick-and-mortar footprint in several key markets across the country.
Purple has had a presence in Tysons Corner Center since late 2020, opening a pop-up in the mall’s BrandBox hub. However, the mattress company will now have a permanent space near Macy’s.
A Day & Night Cereal Bar is also on the way, though it’s unclear when it’s expected to open.
The mall welcomed the Italian chocolate and gelato shop Venchi last Wednesday (Oct. 19). Other recent arrivals include Third Love, a lingerie retailer that markets itself as inclusive of all sizes, and The Lexus Experience, a limited-time showroom for the Japanese car manufacturer that will be around through Jan. 2.
For those still in need of a costume, Spirit Halloween is now open in the former Lord & Taylor space.
This biweekly column is sponsored by The Mather in Tysons, Virginia, a forward-thinking Life Plan Community for those 62 and better.
Research has shown that older adults who engage with the arts in a group setting — anything from dancing to a poetry group to singing in a choir — enjoy tangible benefits in multiple areas of health. This has to do with feelings of mastery, and with social connection.
“This research, combined with Dr. Gene Cohen’s description of life after 50 as a time of potential and inner growth known as the Creative Age, forms a foundation for using creativity to support personal wellness,” says Caroline Edasis, director of community engagement for Mather. Mather is the organization that’s bringing The Mather, a forward-thinking Life Plan Community for those 62 and better, to Tysons, Virginia, in 2024.
Susan Fine agrees. An artist with a studio and gallery in Washington, D.C., she plans to move to The Mather. She explains that, after a successful career in health care, “I went to Glassell School of Art at the Museum of Fine Art Houston when I was 60. And I so enjoyed the experience! You can be more creative the older you get — child-rearing responsibilities and traditional work may recede, and you open up to other things. There are so many directions you can go in art; I focus on painting and mixed media.”
Midge Scelzo, who is also planning to move to The Mather, has a similar story: “I worked in banking for 25 years, then as CFO for tech startups. In 2009, we moved to Florida and I started a new CFO job… but I realized I wanted to get back to art. I wanted to challenge myself.” She joined a group of artists and started painting. “I’m loving it. It uses a different part of my brain. I’m still that finance person — detail-oriented and organized — but art relaxes me, and I can tune out the world.”
Creativity as Wellness
Mather encourages residents in their existing communities — not just those who are established artists — to try creating new art forms in Open Art Studios. These studios, which position arts engagement as a vehicle for wellness, not just recreation, inviting both lifelong and new artists to explore their own Creative Age in a welcoming group setting.
“While working in diverse media including ceramics and mixed media/painting, participants often realize alongside their peers that they have an untapped expressive ability, a new love for a specific media, or a personal project to pursue,” says Caroline. “One of our master’s-level facilitators, trained in art and psychology, is present to support each individual’s creative journey, and that person helps transform the group into an uplifting community in which residents learn more about each other and themselves.”
Inquiry-Based Art Viewing
Mather also has a signature approach to art appreciation — one that mirrors how contemporary museum practices are evolving. Rather than teaching or encouraging art appreciation with lectures from an expert such as a docent, they focus on inclusive, inquiry-based art-viewing techniques.
“Did you know that the average person spends 17 seconds looking at a work of art in a museum?” asks Caroline. “In our visual literacy programs, we often spend a full hour describing an image, sharing stories conjured by the work of art, or even creating group poems in response to the work. These techniques focus on the interests, experiences, and curiosity of viewers to deliver intellectually stimulating content while challenging us to bring culture down from the pedestal and into our lives.”
“This method is a great way to improve people’s cognition, and their interest and engagement with life,” says Eileen Mandell, who plans to move to The Mather when it opens. Eileen, who is currently the community relations director at 1st Stage theater in Tysons, has been immersed in the world of theater as well as studied and practiced various art media. “I’m looking forward the creative arts programming that The Mather will offer,” she says. “I’m a creative person in general, and I want to act as an art maven there.”
The Mather has already formed relationships with local arts organizations, and plans to offer inquiry-based art experiences for residents on-site in museums, theaters, galleries, and more.
Mather recognizes that creativity is about much more than visual art. They encourage everyone to recognize aging as a time of great creative potential, whether through music, poetry, storytelling, dance and movement, or even gardening — the sky is truly the limit.
The Mather, projected to open in Tysons, VA, in 2024 for those 62 and better, is a forward-thinking Life Plan Community that defies expectations of what senior living is supposed to be.
The preceding sponsored post was also published on FFXnow.com
A new bridge for cyclists and pedestrians is connecting two parts of Tysons previously separated by the Beltway.
The new bridge helps provide a link between the residential communities east of the Beltway to the Tysons Corner Center mall.
“The new bicycle and pedestrian bridge over I-495 (Capital Beltway) between Route 7 (Leesburg Pike) and Route 123 (Chain Bridge Road/Dolley Madison Boulevard) opened this afternoon,” the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) said in a release, “greatly improving bicyclist and pedestrian accessibility, connectivity, and safety in the Tysons area.”
Construction started in August 2021 and was supposed to be finished this summer, but VDOT officials previously said the weather was uncooperative.
“Construction on the first phase of the Tysons/Old Meadow Road Bike/Ped Improvements project began in August 2021 and is now substantially complete, with minor work occurring in the coming weeks until final completion with minimal impacts,” the release said. “The project’s second phase will extend the new shared-use path by half a mile along Old Meadow Road from Provincial Drive to Route 123; final design and construction will occur on the second phase as additional funding becomes available.”
The bridge and related improvements cost $13.4 million, paid for with a mix of federal, state and Fairfax County funding.
The trail has already seem some use from enthusiastic locals. Timothy Barrett, President of the McLean Hills Condominium Board of Directors, emailed FFXnow to share some of the excitement from the neighborhood.
“Yesterday, I took a walk with my dog, Bobby, across the new pedestrian bridge,” Barrett wrote. “I’m president of the McLean Hills Condominium Board of Directors, and we are delighted to have immediate access to Tysons now without crossing any streets! Bobby Barrett was most excited, enjoying a puppuccino at Starbucks on the Plaza, previously out of reach for his little legs!”
Let there be light…
On (and leading up to) our new bike/ped bridge over the Beltway in Tysons! pic.twitter.com/SDdXmqPmTT
— VDOT Northern VA (@VaDOTNOVA) October 22, 2022
A Dive into the World’s Data Center Capital — “Most people don’t give data centers a second thought — or even know what they are — until one affects their lives. In Northern Virginia, though, a lot of people do a lot of thinking about data centers.” [WTOP]
County Seeks Proposals for Land Use — “Fairfax County is now accepting nominations or proposals for land-use changes within the county to give people a more hands-on approach to shaping land use. ccording to a news release, the site-specific plan amendment process allows people to propose a land use change in the county’s comprehensive plan.” [Inside NOVA]
Reston Steakhouse to Open Nov.1 — “Renowned chef and restauranteur Steve DiFillippo’s will be celebrating the debut of Davio’s Northern Italian Steakhouse at Reston Station with a grand opening event on Monday, Nov. 1.” [Patch]
New FCPS Superintendent Fields Questions — “Michelle Reid, the new superintendent of Fairfax County Public Schools, met with students and families Wednesday night at the McLean Community Center where she took questions on a variety of school-related topics, including planned renovations at McLean High School.” [Patch]
It’s Wednesday — Mostly cloudy throughout the day. High of 67 and low of 58. Sunrise at 7:31 am and sunset at 6:17 pm. [Weather.gov]
The Fairfax County School Board passed a resolution on inclusive education at its meeting Thursday (Oct. 20), leaving aside an earlier version that included references to social justice, equity and antiracism.
The 7-4 vote came with much back and forth about topics including board procedure and the resolution’s timeline.
The four members who voted against the amended resolution — Mason District Representative Ricardy Anderson, Hunter Mill District Representative Melanie Meren and members-at-large Abrar Omeish and Karen Keys-Gamarra — had expressed support for its original iteration. Providence District Representative Karl Frisch was not at the meeting.
As passed, the resolution affirms the county’s support for teachers and administrators when it comes to “inclusive curriculum and instruction.” The resolution is symbolic and does not change county policy.
“….the School Board commits to protect and support teachers and administrators as they deliver FCPS-approved curriculum and classroom resources that are inclusive, and meet the high aspirations of our students, families, and the Fairfax County community.”
Amendments also left out a reference to “recent events” that have “caused many FCPS educators and school-based administrators to fear that implementing these necessary curricular improvements could lead to personal or professional harm,” according to the text of the original resolution.
Anderson, who introduced the original resolution, said the amended version would not adequately support teachers and cited the removal of the words truth, antiracist, equity and justice as among the reasons she would not support it.
“There are some essential components that are missing from the version being provided that I just cannot support not including in this kind of resolution,” she said.
The school board’s student representative, Michele Togbe, opposed the amendments.
“Amending it to the weak and hollow statements and words, where originally it was strong and clear, it doesn’t make sense to me, and I don’t see the progress that can be made by going forward with it,” Togbe said.
Dranesville District Representative Elaine Tholen, who brought the amendment with Braddock District Representative Megan McLaughlin, said she believed the amended version was “more inclusive of our board member views and less divisive for our broad community.”
Tholen added that she thought the message of support for educators should have been conveyed with “a simple statement,” but maintained the resolution format.
While the resolution is symbolic, the board has a controversial issues policy that outlines guidelines for administrators, teachers and students dealing with controversial topics. That policy, mentioned in the amended resolution, has been discussed at multiple governance committee meetings this calendar year, according to minutes from those meetings.
After the revision passed, several people spoke about the resolution during the community participation portion of the meeting. These included representatives from Free and Antiracist Minds (FAM) and the Fairfax County Council PTA, two of the many advocacy organizations Anderson said had been involved with the original resolution.
The amended resolution “was a great way of not having to vote no but also completely undermining the substance of the actual message,” said Kweli Zukeri, representing FAM. FAM called the vote a “craven display of systemic racism” in an Oct. 21 press release.
In a video testimony, Kara Danner, a member of the FCCPTA’s executive board, said the organization supported the original resolution for the sake of students’ mental health.
Other speakers accused the board of having political motivations and questioned its priorities.
Board chair and member-at-large Rachna Sizemore Heizer said she was glad to have the resolution to support teachers, but looked ahead before adjourning the meeting.
“At the end of the day I’m excited to get into budget season and looking at our strategic plan, because that’s really where we show our values,” she said.
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The preceding sponsored post was also published on FFXnow.com
The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors is formally opposing Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s proposed model policies that would limit the rights of transgender and other gender-nonconforming students.
In a letter approved at a board meeting today (Tuesday), board chairman Jeff McKay said that the policies would have a negative effect on the county’s economic position and cites the human impact on students. Springfield District Supervisor Pat Herrity voted against the proposal.
“Your model policies – and the discrimination inherent to them – will have a chilling effect on our continued ability to attract the world’s most innovative companies to Fairfax County. To put it bluntly, discrimination is bad for business,” the letter, which is addressed to the Virginia Department of Education, states.
Braddock District Supervisor James Walkinshaw noted that the proposal policy is contradicted by U.S. Supreme Court decisions and other legal precedent.
“Thankfully, many school system in the Commonwealth don’t intend to adopt them,” Walkinshaw said.
When voting against the proposal, Herrity questioned why the county was weighing in on a proposal related to the school system when other issues — like declining enrollment, learning loss, and the achievement gap — need exploration as well.
“My biggest problem with the letter, I don’t see any staff working on this at all,” Herrity said. He also said parents need to be involved in “critical decisions of this magnitude,” adding that parental permission to give a child an aspirin in schools.
McKay responded by stating that the board’s letter is part of the state’s education department call for public comment on the proposal — a comment period that ends tomorrow.
His letter also says that the policies put the county’s children at risk by denying support and affirmation to transgender students.
“A young LGBTQ person attempts suicide every 45 seconds in the United States. Key drivers of high rates of depression, anxiety, and suicide among transgender youth are the lack of social support and affirming experiences that they often face,” the letter states.
The proposed policies are at odds with the school system’s current policies that affirm students’ rights to accessing restrooms based on their gender identity and being called by their chosen names and pronouns. FCPS moved to update its previous policy — last amended in 2020 — based on state recommendations.
A spokesperson told FFXnow that the school system did not have more information to share about its position on the state’s policies. FCPS Superintendent Michelle Reid sent to families last month, stating that FCPS was reviewing the draft policies.
This is not the first time McKay has publicly questioned the draft policy. Earlier this month, McKay told FFXnow that the school system may have legal grounds to go against the model policies.
Police Investigate Shooting in Annandale — One individual was shot on the 6200 block of Little River Turnpike yesterday evening. Preliminarily, police believe the incident was isolated. [Fairfax County Police Department]
School Board Supports Inclusive Teaching with Key Caveat — “The Fairfax County school board adopted last-minute changes to a resolution on Thursday evening focused on a commitment to “protect and support educators” in their work delivering inclusive classroom instruction. The final version softened earlier language and deleted a reference to a fractured political climate around Northern Virginia schools.” [DCist]
Woman Suffers Life-threatening Injuries in Springfield Hit-and-Run — A woman was taken to the hospital with life-threatening injuries after a car hit her at the intersection of Gainsborough Drive and Wheatstone Drive. The drier was eventually detained. [FCPD]
Youngkin: County Schools Should Address Learning Loss — “In Richmond, Gov. Youngkin announced a seven-point action plan to address learning loss. Leaders at the Virginia Department of Education said learning loss was worsened by the COVID-19 pandemic due to school closures and virtual learning.” [WJLA]
Witches Descend in Reston — Lake Anne Plaza is hosting this year’s flashmob paddle, which features witches and warlocks, on Monday. Wiccan attire is highly encouraged. [Lake Anne Plaza]
More Tysons Data Available — “The Tysons Tracker has been updated with new land use and development data from August 2021 through July 2022. The interactive online platform was launched last year to better showcase the monitoring data included in past Tysons Annual Reports.” [Fairfax County Government]
It’s Tuesday — Partly cloudy throughout the day. High of 69 and low of 57. Sunrise at 7:29 am and sunset at 6:18 pm. [Weather.gov]
The Fairfax County Park Authority will celebrate the importance of protecting the night sky on Saturday, Nov. 12.
The free event, which takes place in McLean at Lewinsville Park from 6:30-8:30 pm, will feature live demonstrations, hands-on activities, and opportunities for the public to learn how to fight light pollution.
Tammy Schwab, project manager, tells FFXnow that there will be stations for people to learn about artificial light’s effect on plants, animals, and people. If the weather permits, there will be telescopes and binoculars to view constellations.
“We will also have information about the small actions folks can take to help reverse light pollution in their neighborhood.”
Schwab said it’s essential to educate the public on light pollution because it causes harm to animals and plants that are adapted to dark nights.
“This artificial light at night, especially those with high color temperatures like bright white and blue, have been shown to cause harm in humans as well by interrupting our circadian rhythms. Additionally, light pollution is a waste of energy,” Schwab said, adding that unlike other forms of pollution, humans can easily reverse light pollution with a switch.
The park authority is partnering with the McLean Citizens Association, the Analemma Society, and Dark Sky Friends. Registration is encouraged but not required.
Photo via Mindaugas Vitkus/Unsplash
Developer EYA came to the Vienna Town Council with a plan to turn a long-vacant commercial into a new set of townhomes, but the Town Council warned that it isn’t willing to give up on office and commercial development just yet.
Tysons Edge, an office building at 901 Follin Lane, has gone through attempts to lease since 2013 and has been vacant since 2015. The 97,000 square foot office building has had $2 million worth of renovations poured into the building with little progress in attracting a new occupant.
The proposal from EYA tearing down the building and converting the property into a 115-unit townhome development — scaled down from 165 originally planned for the site.
The project would come with some added amenities, like a new small park attached to the Washington & Old Dominion Trail.
But when the project came forward for discussion at a Vienna Town Council meeting on Oct. 17, the Council was decidedly mixed on the prospect of replacing the office building an entirely new use.
Council member Howard Springsteen said the financial benefits of the project promised by EYA amount to roughly the cost of one police office — a “drop in the bucket” — and said the change required to allow the development was tantamount to spot zoning.
“I don’t think we have a responsibility to bail out a landowner who is losing money,” Springsteen said. “I’m sympathetic to demographics changing and maybe we revisit this, but right now it’s a bad idea and I can’t support this… We’ll have to do all this for a zoning change because your owner can’t make money.”
Council member Ray Brill expressed concerns about building a housing development with only one exit lane, saying it wasn’t a proper spot for a housing development.
A recurring argument from the council was that the change would essentially signal the town giving up on the idea of office development. Despite the dramatic downturn in the office market caused by the pandemic, the Vienna Town Council said they’re not ready to recognize defeat.
The Town Council wasn’t unanimous in their disapproval of the project, however. Council member Chuck Anderson said the Town will have to be more open to making zoning more flexible.
“I understand the argument for diversity [of use], but if diversity means hanging on to a rapidly depreciating suburban commercial property that has no use and that the market has not really grasped a use for, I think we need to relook at that and see if we need to, not do spot zoning, but move the boundaries,” Anderson said.
Mayor Linda Colbert ultimately told EYA that the Town Council — in the politest possible terms — was not particularly interested in approving the project.
“At this time, thank you, and I think in the future perhaps,” Colbert said, “but I think right now we’re not moving that forward.”
