A ribbon-cutting ceremony was held Sept. 29 to celebrate the opening of the new Griffith Park playground in the Falls Church area.
The park was renovated in a project funded via park bonds. More from a Fairfax County press release:
Funded via voter-approved 2016 park bonds, the $80,000 project replaced outdated equipment with new play elements, interactive panels and swings for children ages 2 to 12. Safety surfacing and playground borders were also replaced and a new drainage system and fence installed. The project was part of a larger effort by the Park Authority to identify and replace playground equipment throughout Fairfax County that has exceeded its useful life.
Photos via Fairfax County/Flickr. Map via Google Maps.
Fairfax County Police are investigating an armed robbery near the Vienna/Fairfax GMU Metro station.
Police say a man was walking on a footpath to the station just before midnight this past Saturday, Oct. 6., when he was approached by a man who pointed a gun at him and demanded cash.
“The victim gave the man his wallet and then ran to his house to report the robbery,” FCPD said in a crime report. “The suspect was described as a black male, 6′, with a thick build.”
Map via Google Maps
Knife Fight in Vienna — “Arriving officers located a man with a laceration to his hand. Witnesses told police the man was trying to break up a fight when one of the combatants pulled a knife, cut the man, then ran off.” [InsideNova]
Fairfax Economic Indicators Look Good — Tax receipts and home prices are up in Fairfax County, while unemployment is down to 2.4 percent. [Fairfax County]
Tysons Company Makes Acquisition — Tysons-based communications firm W2 Communications is acquiring Mesh Omnimedia, a Loudoun County-based creative agency. “This acquisition transforms W2 Communications from a leading public relations and content creation firm, into a full-service communications and branding organization that delivers creative design and digital marketing services,” said a press release. [W2 Communications]
Drivers are being asked to pay extra attention on the roads tomorrow (Wednesday) morning as Fairfax County Public Schools participate in the annual International Walk to School Day.
The event is “an effort to promote physical activity and reduce traffic congestion and pollution near schools.”
“Students and employees are encouraged to bike or walk to school and work on October 10,” FCPS said in a press release. “Parents are encouraged to accompany their children to school, and to work with their school and PTA or PTO to assemble bike trains or walking groups for the event.”
“FCPS has compiled information on walking and biking to school, including information on applying for grants and safety tips, on its Safe Routes to School web page,” the press release adds.
The elementary schools participating in International Walk to School Day in the Tysons, McLean, Vienna and Falls Church areas include:
- Chesterbrook
- Churchill Road
- Colvin Run
- Cunningham Park
- Fairhill
- Haycock
- Kent Gardens
- Marshall Road
- Spring Hill
- Vienna
- Westgate
Zenola, a self-described “new Mediterranean concept restaurant in the heart of Vienna,” is hoping to open at some point this winter.
Located at 132 Branch Road SE near the Fresh Market, in the former Maplewood Grill space, Zenola will serve up Mediterranean cuisine along with beer, wine and cocktails, according to a liquor license application.
“With 25 years of dining experience, we’re bringing the warmth of the coast to our tables,” says the Zenola website, adding:
Our Founder and Executive Chef, Samer Zeitoun, was born on the shores of the Mediterranean. From childhood, olives and olive oil have been staples of his diet – his “comfort food.” He has spent a culinary career spanning more than 25 years in the pursuit and perfection of Mediterranean cuisine.
Interestingly, his last name literally translated means olive.
Photo (2) via Google Maps
Mom Has Daughter Arrested for Theft — “A woman living in the 600 block of Gibson Circle, S.W., told Vienna police on Sept. 27 at 12:30 a.m. that her juvenile daughter allegedly had stolen her cell phone and punched a hole in a wall. The resident advised police she wished to pursue charges.” [InsideNova]
Uptick in Sexual Harassment Reports at FCPS — “The 2017-2018 Fairfax County Youth Survey found that 14.2 percent of students reported being sexually harassed in the past year, an increase of a full percentage point from the 13.2 percent in the survey issued during the 2016-2017 school year. Female students are three times more likely than male students to report experiencing sexual harassment as 20.8 percent of girls said they had been harassed compared to 7.3 percent of boys.” [Fairfax County Times]
Hurricane Michael Could Soak Region — The remnants of Hurricane Michael, which is on a collision course with the Florida panhandle, could bring an inch or so of rain to Fairfax County between late Wednesday night and Friday. [Capital Weather Gang]
Tysons Firm Announces Merger — Tysons-based Telarix Inc. last week “announced its merger with Starhome Mach, the leading global provider of SaaS wholesale and retail roaming, clearing, settlement and fraud prevention solutions.” The combined company will be headquartered in Tysons. [Starhome Mach]
Domestic Violence Awareness Month in FFX — October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month and Fairfax County held an event to remind residents to “make the call to end domestic violence.” The county’s 24-hour domestic and sexual violence hotline is 703-360-7273. [YouTube]
It’s Columbus Day, which means that Fairfax County government offices are closed, along with local schools, and state and federal offices.
Should the county close for the holiday, though?
Anecdotal evidence — traffic levels and otherwise — suggests it is the least observed federal holiday. Next door, Arlington County offices remain open on Columbus Day. And Columbus’s legacy remains controversial.
For some companies, including ours, Columbus Day is a work day and, in exchange, our employees get the Friday after Thanksgiving off by default.
So what do you think? Should Fairfax County keep the status quo or consider keeping its offices open on Columbus Day?
Photo via Wikipedia
Fairfax County is under a Dense Fog Advisory this morning.
From the National Weather Service:
…DENSE FOG ADVISORY REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 10 AM EDT THIS MORNING…
* VISIBILITIES…One quarter mile or less at times.
* IMPACTS…Areas of dense fog will cause sudden reductions in visibility and rapidly changing conditions.
PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS…
A Dense Fog Advisory means visibilities will frequently be reduced to less than one quarter mile. If driving, slow down, use your headlights, and leave plenty of distance ahead of you.
Fairfax County Fire and Rescue published the following tips for driving in foggy weather this morning.
A foggy start to Columbus Day this morning! There is a Dense Fog Advisory in effect until 10 a.m. Drive safely out there as our firefighters and paramedics do not want to meet you by “accident” this morning.
When driving this morning, please keep the following driving in fog safety tips, from the National Weather Service, in mind:
- Slow down and allow extra time to reach your destination.
- Make your vehicle visible to others both ahead of you and behind you by using your low-beam headlights since this means your taillights will also be on. Use fog lights if you have them.
- Never use your high-beam lights. Using high beam lights causes glare, making it more difficult for you to see what’s ahead of you on the road.
- Leave plenty of distance between you and the vehicle in front of you to account for sudden stops or changes in the traffic pattern.
- To ensure you are staying in the proper lane, follow the lines on the road with your eyes.
- In extremely dense fog where visibility is near zero, the best course of action is to first turn on your hazard lights, then simply pull into a safe location such as a parking lot of a local business and stop.
Since Tysons Reporter launched last week, more than 10,000 visitors have come to the site for local news about Tysons, McLean and Vienna.
Thank you for exceeding our readership expectations! To make sure you’re getting all of our local headlines, be sure to subscribe to our email newsletter.
In case you missed any of them, here are the top 10 most-read articles on the site over the past two weeks:
- A Look Inside The Boro, the Massive New Development in Tysons
- Arhontiko Taking Greek Food From Mediterranean to McLean
- Morning Notes – Sept. 25
- Competition and Challenges Ahead for Tysons
- Father and Son Opening Tex-Mex Restaurant in Tysons
- New Shoe Store Hits Tysons Corner Center With $5,000 Kicks
- MoMo House Nepalese Restaurant Coming to Vienna
- Virtual Reality Entertainment Center Coming to Tysons
- Controversial Development Returning to Vienna Town Council
- BREAKING: Man Killed in McLean Pedestrian Crash
Todd Hitt, the founder of Falls Church-based Kiddar Capital and a member of the prominent construction family, has been arrested by the FBI and charged with securities fraud.
Earlier this year Kiddar made several announcements to some fanfare in the local business press: bringing on the son of a well-known local real estate developer to head the company’s venture capital group, making plans to invest significantly in homebuilding projects, and planning to relocate to a new office building in Falls Church.
Today, however, Hitt is due to appear in federal court in Alexandria, facing charges that come with a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison.
The company’s Twitter and Instagram accounts have been shut down. Its Facebook page remains active but has not posted new content since August.
More on the charges via a press release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia:
A Fairfax man surrendered to the FBI on an outstanding arrest warrant today in connection with being charged with having committed securities fraud.
According to court documents, Todd Elliott Hitt, 53, is alleged to have committed securities fraud in connection with his ownership and operation of Kiddar Capital, a self-described asset management firm based in Falls Church. According to the allegations, Hitt falsely claimed that Kiddar Capital managed $1.4 billion in assets and had offices located in Houston, Palm Springs, and London. The complaint further alleges that Hitt raised more than $16 million from investors by misrepresenting that Hitt would invest $6 million as a general partner as part of a planned $33 million purchase of a Herndon building adjacent to a future stop on the Silver Line of the Washington, D.C., Metro. According to the complaint, Hitt further failed to disclose to investors his extravagant spending, which included the leasing of private jets and the purchase of sports tickets and jewelry, among other things.
Hitt, who will make his initial appearance today at 2 p.m. at the federal courthouse in Alexandria, is charged with securities fraud, and faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison if convicted. Actual sentences for federal crimes are typically less than the maximum penalties. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after taking into account the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
G. Zachary Terwilliger, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, and Nancy McNamara, Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Washington Field Office, made the announcement after the charges were unsealed. Assistant U.S. Attorney Mark D. Lytle is prosecuting the case.
The case is being investigated by the FBI’s Washington Field Office, with significant assistance provided by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.
