A new restaurant is getting ready to open at Capital One Center in Tysons.
Ometeo — a new Tex-Mex concept from a former “Top Chef” winner and the team behind The Salt Line — is expected to open in Capital One’s headquarters building at 1640 Capital One Drive next week, according to a sneak peek from Eater DC.
An exact opening date hasn’t been confirmed yet, but Ometeo spokesperson says to expect a reveal early next week.
Located near where Starbucks used to be, the new 11,000-square-foot restaurant will seat 240 people inside and 75 people outside, Eater DC reported. The “seafood-focused” menu includes fajitas, tacos, enchiladas and more made with ingredients sourced from the Gulf of Mexico.
Ometeo will also serve wine, cocktails, margaritas and frozen drinks, per the menu shared by Eater.
The concept was developed by chef Gabe Erales, who won the 18th season of “Top Chef” in 2021, and the D.C. restaurant group Long Shot Hospitality. Typically based in Austin, Texas, Erales was fired from a restaurant there in 2020 for alleged sexual harassment.
Erales issued an apology in July 2021 “for the impact that my poor decisions had on those involved.” He opened two new restaurants in downtown Austin this fall.
Planned for 6 million square feet of mixed-use development, Capital One Center is poised to add more food-and-drink options next year, including Sisters Thai, Stellina Pizzeria, Ox & Rye and Starr Hill Brewpub. An announced Spanish restaurant from Jiwa Singapura chef Pepe Moncayo was put on hold earlier this year.
The Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department is working on ways to improve service by reorganizing units and tackling recruitment and staffing challenges.
The changes were discussed at a Fairfax County Board of Supervisors’ safety and security committee meeting on Tuesday (Nov. 28).
The FCFRD is focused on using data to inform changes to operations, guiding how and when medics are converted to ambulances and where units are located, department officials told the committee.
According to a presentation delivered by Fairfax County Fire Chief John Butler and Operations Chief Dan Shaw, the department reorganized and reassessed its emergency medical services delivery between 2021 and 2022.
In January 2022, eight advanced life support units were converted to basic life support units. The following month, four more advanced life support units were converted.
The FCFRD has also studied ways to improve its EMS dispatch protocol and overall service delivery and deployment. In September, for example, the department implemented a new emergency medical protocol to ensure needs are properly understood as resources are dispatched to handle emergencies.
In January, the department plans to convert another eight advance life support units to basic life support. A paramedic will remain at each fire station.
The department also plans to introduce a new EMS specialist position that can offer a higher skill set and bring more advanced intervention and equipment to the incident. Shaw said the position is a big moment for the fire department.
“This allows the opportunity to employ a paramedic and deliver a higher level of service,” Shaw said.
Still, a national shortage of paramedics is a challenge due to a notable decrease in people pursuing public safety professions overall, officials said. To maintain its minimum staffing of 363 personnel, the FCFRD relies heavily on mandatory overtime.
The department has around 100 vacancies, according to FCFRD spokesperson Ashley Hildebrandt.
“While we are not immune to the recruitment challenges being experienced nationwide throughout the fire service, our department has worked, and continues to work, diligently to increase recruitment efforts to ensure the residents of Fairfax County continue to receive the high quality services the department is known for,” Hildebrandt said.
Springfield District Supervisor Pat Herrity said he continues to be concerned by the drop in the number of paramedics.
“Fairfax County needs to do better than the national trend and the national average,” he said.
The fire and rescue department is currently in the midst of analyzing its staffing model and hours of overtime recorded by personnel.
At the meeting, Board of Supervisors Chairman Jeff McKay countered Herrity’s assertion that the county needs to step up its efforts to address staffing challenges by stressing that the county and its public safety agencies are investing time and resources to tackle the issue.
“It is disgraceful to the people who are killing themselves recruiting people,” McKay said, adding that he’s “tired of this nonsense.”
McKay said repeating incorrect statistics about the number of vacancies — particularly in the police department — works against the county’s goal of recruiting more people and establishing the progress that has been made.
After reporting 206 vacancies in early April, the Fairfax County Police Department welcomed over 100 new trainees across two academy classes this year. A cohort of 56 recruits this spring was trumpeted as the FCPD Academy’s largest class in almost 10 years, and it was followed in the summer by an even bigger session with 59 people.
According to McKay, the FCPD’s vacancy rate is now closer to 127 positions.
The county’s Department of Public Safety Communications, which operates the 911 center, has also chipped away at its vacancies to the point where the department anticipated reducing required overtime this fall.
Wells Fargo Office Building in Annandale Eyed for Housing — Nicholas Development “is in early discussions with Fairfax County planning staff about a residential conversion for 7620 Little River Turnpike, says Senior Vice President Timothy Sachs. The six-story building is vacant except for a Wells Fargo bank branch on the ground floor.” [Annandale Today]
Reston Robotics Team Heads to National Championships — “Students from Reston’s Ideaventions Academy for Mathematics and Science are traveling to Arlington, Texas on Thursday to compete in the Bell Advanced Vertical Robotics national championships. This is the second year in a row that the school’s robotics team has made it to the nationals.” [Patch]
Lorton Water-Cleaning Plant Opens for Tours — “For anyone who’s ever wondered what happens to our water after we’ve used it, you can find out on Saturday. From 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. on December 2 there will be an open house at the Noman Cole Pollution Control Plant…Visitors will learn how water is cleaned after it goes down the drain in homes and businesses, or even down sewers on County streets.” [DPWES]
Tex-Mex Grill Expanding to Hybla Valley — “El Fresco Tex-Mex Grill, whose first restaurant was opened by Iranian immigrant Steve Ganji in Chantilly, Virginia, in 2008, has turned to franchising for expansion, with a franchise-owned El Fresco opening in Alexandria next month.” The new restaurant will be at 7324 Richmond Highway. [WTOP]
Tysons Rental Rates Dip From Previous Month — “November apartment-seekers in Tysons ended up paying a little less than those on the hunt a month before, but more than those who were seeking leases a year ago. The median one-bedroom rent of $2,024 and median two-bedroom rent of $2,420 added up to a decrease of 1.1 percent month-over-month but an increase of 0.7 percent year-over-year.” [Gazette Leader]
Educational Center Now Open at Chantilly Park — “The Fairfax County Park Authority celebrated the completion of the new Woodlands Stewardship Education Center with a ribbon cutting on Saturday, Nov. 18. Designed to wow adults and children alike, this interpretive facility demonstrates principles of environmental stewardship that make a world of difference in the way we interact with and affect our natural environment.” [FCPA]
Oakton Students Craft and Launch Rocket — “Students at Oakton High School in Fairfax County, Virginia, have reached soaring heights through a student rocketry program, launching a high-powered rocket 34,195 feet into the sky…The team launched the rocket in September at a rocketry event in Kansas that included rocketeers from around the country.” [WTOP]
Holiday Artisan Market Set for Vienna Return — Dozens of local vendors will sell handmade gifts, food and art at the Town of Vienna’s Holiday Open Air Artisan Market on Sunday, Dec. 3. The market will be in the Vienna Arts Center’s parking lot at 243 Church Street NW from noon to 4 p.m. [Vienna Business Association]
It’s Thursday — The weather will be mostly sunny with temperatures reaching a high of 53, accompanied by a south wind at 5 to 9 mph. As the night progresses, expect partly cloudy skies and a low of around 37, with a southwest wind blowing at 6 to 10 mph. [Weather.gov]
Fairfax Connector will pull into the Fairfax County Government Center soon for its first-ever Winterfest.
Space is quickly disappearing for the public bus system’s holiday event, which will take place from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturday, Dec. 9 in parking lot B of the government center (12000 Government Center Parkway).
Featuring three holiday-themed buses, free food and other treats, Winterfest is free to attend, but a general admission ticket is required for entry. As of this afternoon (Wednesday), more than half of the 500 available slots had been taken, according to the sign-up page.
Separate tickets for a planned Santa Bus, where visitors can meet jolly St. Nick, sold out within hours of going online, a Fairfax County Department of Transportation spokesperson says. In response to the demand, a second bus where attendees can get a free cookie from Mrs. Claus has been added.
Access to the “Cookies with Mrs. Claus” bus is included with general admission.
Winterfest will also feature free hot chocolate and kettle corn, games, music, a “Letters to Santa” station, and Duck donuts and Grill Cheese food trucks. Fairfax Connector will hand out coupons for free rides and other “goodies” throughout the event, according to a news release.
Following in the tracks of Metro, which has decorated a train and buses to resemble gingerbread houses, Fairfax Connector’s holiday buses hit the road earlier this week. They’re wrapped in plaid Christmas tree, Santa gnome and cookie designs.
“These buses are sure to bring a smile to your face,” the news release said. “If you spot one, safely take a picture and share with us on Facebook or Twitter. Use the hashtag #HolidayBus or #FairfaxConnector.”
People who share a photo of the buses on social media will be entered into a drawing for a $50 SmarTrip card, which can be used for Connector buses as well as Metro, Fairfax CUE buses and other local transit systems. The winner will be announced the week of Jan. 1, 2024.
During Winterfest, the tree-decorated bus will serve as the Santa bus, while Mrs. Claus will be in the cookie bus. The gnome bus will host a Stuff-a-Bus donation drive.
“To support our community, Fairfax County Department of Transportation, Fairfax Connector & Transdev are collecting new, unwrapped toys and coats for children ages 5 to 10 years old,” FCDOT said in its news release. “…The toys and coats collected will be delivered to children at three Fairfax County public schools the week of December 11, 2023.”
In a separate charitable effort, today (Thursday) marks the last day of Fairfax County’s virtual Stuff the Bus campaign, which encourages community members to make monetary donations to local nonprofits that provide food assistance.
(Updated at 4:05 p.m.) A coffee shop inspired by Saudi Arabia’s cafe culture is now bringing that hip energy to both Tysons malls.
Shotted has gained a loyal following, especially within the D.C. area’s Muslim community, since opening a kiosk at Tysons Corner Center in 2020. Three years later, Shotted has expanded for the first time with a new branch in Tysons Galleria.
In its soft-opening phase since Nov. 16, the new shop can be found in the mall’s third-floor food hall, replacing Twelve Twenty Coffee. Seeking to rebuild after the departure of former operator Urbanspace, the hall is still home to Andy’s Pizza and Empanadas De Mendoza.
“We’re very happy to be here and happy to be part of this community,” Shotted founder and CEO Bandar Alhenaki said. “We want people to come in and enjoy their time shopping at the Galleria and also enjoy quality coffee and quality dessert with their family and friends.”
While it seems unusual for a business to open two locations within walking distance of each other, Shotted’s Tysons Galleria shop diverges in several ways from its predecessor.
To start with, it’s envisioned as more of a dine-in experience to take advantage of the food hall’s more extensive seating, while the heavily trafficked Tysons Corner Center location is designed for quick service, Alhenaki says.
The Galleria shop also opens earlier — at 7:30 a.m. instead of 10 a.m. — so it can serve morning commuters, including workers at nearby office buildings. Accordingly, it has an expanded menu with sandwiches, hot croissants and other breakfast food as well as additional desserts, such as date pudding and soft-serve ice cream.
“We’re excited to serve them…during their morning coffee and also be a business hub for them to bring in clients and take to meetings in the Galleria in this amazing space,” Alhenkai said.
Shotted currently closes at 10 p.m. at Tysons Galleria, but its goal is to eventually extend that to 11 p.m., which would be the same weekday closing time as the Tysons Corner Center location.
Rich Dinning, Tysons Galleria’s senior general manager, calls Shotted “a great addition” to the mall for “bringing a new warm community feel” as well as “a wide variety of premium drinks and desserts.”
“Our customers can enjoy their favorite cup of coffee with a friend or while they shop our iconic collection of tenants,” Dinning said in a statement.
The addition of a second location is just the start of Alhenaki’s plans to expand Shotted, first to other parts of the D.C. area, and then, nationwide. Though no specific sites have been identified yet, he says the business is “aiming for the Arlington area, D.C., and such.”
“We are working on that expansion strategy to make it happen in 2024,” he said.
A Tysons man who got arrested for allegedly possessing illegal guns is now also facing child pornography charges.
The Fairfax County Police Department announced yesterday (Tuesday) that its detectives have obtained warrants charging 31-year-old Craig Strasbourger with three counts of possessing child sexual abuse material, one count of soliciting a minor, and one count of possessing animal sexual abuse material.
Police say they started investigating Strasbourger after getting a tip in September from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children about “sexual communication with an underage individual from Kentucky.”
The communications came from an internet provider address that was traced to Strasbourger’s home on Robin Way Court, according to the FCPD.
Strasbourger was first arrested on Nov. 16 after police found four rifles that had been “unlawfully modified” while searching his residence. He was charged with four counts of unlawful possession of the firearms, which were described as “illegal machine guns” in the FCPD’s initial news release.
During the search, detectives also found “various computer devices” that were evaluated, leading to the new porn charges, according to police.
After the gun charges, Strasbourger was released on a $4,000 secured bond, but he was arrested again on Monday (Nov. 27) and is now in custody at the Fairfax County Adult Detention Center. A preliminary court hearing on all charges has been scheduled for Feb. 20, 2024.
Dulles Airport in Record-Long Snowless Streak — “From southern Virginia to New York City, nearly two years have elapsed since the last time an inch or more of snow fell on a calendar day. In several locations, the snow drought is the longest on record. The lack of snow has occurred during abnormally warm winters and amid a trend toward declining amounts of snow — both probable consequences of human-caused climate change.” [Washington Post]
Attack on Rep. Connolly Staff Gets Court Hearing — “A Congressional staff member who was struck in the head with a baseball bat in May continues to undergo therapy for the aftereffects of the concussion she suffered in the attack at Rep. Gerry Connolly’s city of Fairfax district office, the staffer testified Monday.” [Patch]
Three Men Arrested for Stealing From Tysons Galleria Stores — “At approximately 4:45 p.m. [Monday], detectives received a call from loss prevention at Sak’s Fifth Avenue for suspects actively involved in credit card fraud…Through the investigation, detectives uncovered that the suspects successfully made purchases at Neiman Marcus for over $8,000 before attempting to use stolen credit cards at Sak’s Fifth Avenue.” [FCPD]
First Reston Winterfest Starts Tomorrow — “A new holiday tradition is about to begin in Northern Virginia. Check out the inaugural ‘Winterfest’ in Reston this Thursday through Saturday from 5 to 9 p.m. ‘This is a brand new event for Reston and we are really excited,’ Cara O’Donnell of the Reston Association told WTOP.” [WTOP]
Health Food Restaurant Opens Early in Hybla Valley — “The new honeygrow restaurant at Mount Vernon Plaza…opened its doors to the public Nov. 27 after a private ribbon-cutting ceremony with company management. Originally scheduled to open in early 2024, the restaurant got a jump start thanks to an accelerated construction timeline.” [On the MoVe]
McLean Book Store Plans Grand Opening — “Fonts Books & Gifts is holding a grand opening celebration on Dec. 2 at its location in Chesterbrook Plaza in McLean. The celebration begins at 10 a.m. on Saturday…The store’s website is open for online orders for in-store pickup only. Fonts plans to start shipping books in January.” [Patch]
County Library Adds Air Quality Monitors to Stock — Fairfax County Public Library launched a new service on Monday (Nov. 27), offering air quality monitors, battery testers and other meters and readers that can be used to measure everything from carbon monoxide levels to soil acidity. The free devices can be checked out for three-week periods from any branch. [FCPL]
Metro Rolls Out Gingerbread-Themed Train — “Tis the season for holiday joy! We come bearing gifts. Check out our wrapped train that entered service early. Don’t worry, there’s more where that came from! Metrobus up next, starting Dec. 1. Happy holidays!” [WMATA/Twitter]
It’s Wednesday — Expect sunshine and a high around 39 degrees, accompanied by a south wind blowing at 7 to 10 mph. The night will be mostly clear and cooler with a low temperature of 28 degrees, while the southwest wind continues at 6 to 10 mph. [Weather.gov]
Fairfax County Public Schools has settled on a path forward for its plan to construct a new elementary school in Dunn Loring.
A rezoning application recently submitted to the county proposes demolishing the existing Dunn Loring Administrative Center at 2334 Gallows Road and replacing it with a four-level school building that will be accompanied by athletic fields and playgrounds.
Allowed a maximum height of 65 feet, the four-story building appears to have triumphed over an alternate design that would’ve resulted in a shorter but more sprawling building of two to three stories.
The two-story administrative center started life as an elementary school in 1938, but it got repurposed in the 1970s after declining enrollment led FCPS to close the school, the school system’s legal agent in the case, Hunton Andrews Kurth associate Jessica Vara, wrote in a statement of justification.
“Now, the surrounding community is again in need of a new elementary school in the Dunn Loring area to relieve overcrowded schools in the Dunn Loring/Falls Church/Tysons area,” Vara wrote.
According to the submitted plan, the new school building will be approximately 125,905 square feet in size and be constructed at the corner of Idylwood and Gallows Road, occupying roughly the same footprint as the current building.
The building’s ground level will include music classrooms, workrooms, a cafeteria, a staff lounge and a reception area at the main entrance. The second floor will have kindergarten, third grade and special education classrooms, followed by art, first grade and second grade classrooms on the third floor, and fourth and fifth grade classrooms on the top floor.
FCPS has proposed replacing Murphy Field — the soccer field that currently covers the western portion of the nearly 10-acre site — with a dual soccer/softball field that will be supplemented by four playgrounds:
- An approximately 8,295-square-foot modular playground
- A 2,009-square-foot paved play area for kindergarteners
- A 3,318-square-foot “creative” playground for pre-kindergarten students
- An approximately 11,373-square-foot paved play area
Two new vehicle access points will be constructed on Idylwood Road, replacing the existing driveway off of Gallows Road. The school will have separate drop-off locations for buses and the kiss-and-ride “to minimize the potential for traffic issues,” according to the application.
The school’s parking lot will have 116 spaces, and bicycle racks will be provided. FCPS also plans to construct a new 5-foot-wide sidewalk to connect with the existing concrete path along Idylwood Road.
The application hasn’t been officially accepted for review by Fairfax County planners yet. Per its website, FCPS estimates the project will be completed in 2027.
The Virginia Department of Education is launching a pilot program to help support new and inexperienced principals at federally designated at-risk schools in an effort to address what officials call a “crucial need.”
“We are excited about it. Mentoring principals has been a long time coming to the commonwealth,” said Randy Barrack, CEO of the Virginia Association of Secondary School Principals, which along with the Virginia Association of Elementary School Principals is partnering with VDOE, in an email to the Mercury.
Nationally, 80% of all public school principals remained at the same school in 2020-21 where they had been the year prior, according to National Center for Education Statistics data. The remaining 20% moved to a different school or left the principal role altogether.
In Virginia, according to reporting by WTOP, Fairfax County has lost dozens of principals since the COVID-19 pandemic. Those who spoke with the news station cited pandemic-related burnout and growing pressures to overcome learning loss as reasons for leaving the profession. Some also said their departures were due to a disconnect with and lack of transparency from administrative offices.
Virginia’s principal vacancy rate is less than 2% for each of the three school levels — elementary, middle and secondary, according to VDOE data from 2021 to 2023.
Under state law, new principals serve a three-year probationary period before acquiring continuing contract status.
Krista Arnold, executive director of the Virginia Association of Elementary School Principals, said many principals accept leadership positions with limited years of experience because of the growing national shortage of educators. Mentors, she said, will be able to provide management and instructional tips.
“This is going to give new principals a highly skilled, experienced veteran who’s not within their division, who is a safe person for them to talk to, who could be a sounding board because the principalship is really lonely and can be isolating,” said Arnold, who spent 20 years as an elementary school principal.
Besides shaping instruction, Arnold said principals have a significant influence on student achievement, attendance, teacher retention and community involvement.
Virginia’s new mentorship program, she said, will hopefully end the outdated notion that principals should be left to “sink or swim” and instead offer essential aid and support, “providing a partner in what too often can often be an isolating role.”
The program’s focus on principals in at-risk schools, whose populations include students from low-income families with a higher than average probability of dropping out or failing school, will also help improve teacher performance and student learning, Barrack and Arnold said in a joint statement with the Department of Education.
The pilot program is expected to be rolled out before the start of the next school year.
“Principals are the leaders in their school buildings. They set the tone and are the ones looked to establish a vision for high standards and success,” said Superintendent of Public Instruction Lisa Coons in a statement. “For many new principals, it can be tough, on-the-job training. With this mentoring pilot project, we are focusing on supporting our new principals leading in some of our most challenged schools and equipping them with support that can help them and their schools be successful.”
Photo via Virginia Department of Education/Facebook. This article was reported and written by the Virginia Mercury, and has been reprinted with permission.
Fairfax Connector’s operator and workers remain far apart in their negotiations for a new labor contract, says the union representing drivers and other employees of Northern Virginia’s largest public bus system.
Amalgamated Transit Union (ATU) Local 689 accused contractor Transdev of “clearly not [being] serious about bargaining in good faith” in a strongly worded statement issued last Wednesday (Nov. 22), just before Thanksgiving.
Representing 546 employees of Fairfax Connector, which serves about 26,000 daily passengers across 93 different routes, the union confirmed that it got Transdev’s latest contract offer a day earlier. Exact details of the proposal weren’t shared, but the union says workers would still be paid “well below other transit workers” in the D.C. area.
“Transdev’s latest wage offer was a slap in the face since its insulting lowball offer is contingent on the Union withdrawing all of its other economic proposals which include better sick leave, reduced healthcare costs, and retirement security,” ATU Local 689 said in its statement.
The union also claimed that Transdev has “continuously dragged their feet” when responding to requests for meeting dates since the collective bargaining process began in October.
Transdev, a French company that took over Fairfax Connector’s operations and maintenance in 2019, disputed the union’s characterization of the ongoing contract talks, stating that it’s “committed to continuing negotiations in good faith.”
“We value our partnership with the ATU and remain hopeful that we can come to a mutually-agreeable resolution quickly,” a Transdev spokesperson said by email. “We have mutually agreed with ATU to schedule our next bargaining session on 12/1.”
The Dec. 1 bargaining session will come after the existing, five-year contract expires on Nov. 30 at 11:59 p.m.
According to Local 689 spokesperson Ben Lynn, both sides will continue to operate under the current contract even after it expires. Determining worker pay, benefits, working conditions and other issues, the contract was secured in early 2020 after a four-day strike upended bus service throughout the county.
The union could call for a strike authorization vote at any time, but Lynn says nothing has been scheduled so far.
Transdev says it doesn’t anticipate any service disruptions as a result of the agreement expiring.
In its statement, ATU Local 689 said it has “reached tentative agreements on a variety of issues,” but on several of its top concerns, which include wage increases, improved sick leave, retirement security and standardized schedules, the union has been met with “abysmally low numbers” or outright rejection.
“Local 689 members worked on the front line throughout the pandemic to move thousands of people every day across the region,” the union said. “Transdev’s employees deserve to have their dedication and hardwork respected by the company. They have refused to offer a realistic economic proposal that would account for the intense economic pressures impacting its employees over the past three years while continuing to profit off the backs of their workers.”
Fairfax Connector’s labor negotiations come at a challenging time for public transit in the D.C. area, as Metro faces a potential $750 million budget gap and declining fare revenue even as ridership starts to bounce back after the COVID-19 pandemic.
Without significant additional funding, the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority said in October that it could be forced to drastically reduce rail and bus service starting July 2024, raise fares and lay off up to 4,700 workers.
ATU Local 689, which also represents Metro workers, warned WMATA against “balancing Metro’s budget on the backs of workers,” arguing that cutting service levels and worker compensation “simply will not solve the systemic funding issues plaguing” the transit agency.
According to Axios DC, Metro General Manager and CEO Randy Clarke will present an official budget proposal to the agency’s board of directors on Dec. 14.
