Fairfax County is reducing the hours for some waste collection services at the I-66 Transfer Station (4618 West Ox Road) and I-95 Landfill Complex (9850 Furnace Road).
Beginning May 1, the facilities will reduce hours for dropping off household hazardous waste (HHW) and electronics waste. The changes are ushered in by staffing shortages and are intended to maintain a “consistent quality service,” according to the county.
Currently, four of the seven total positions for environmental technology are vacant — positions that are hard to fill internally and externally, says Sharon North, a spokesperson for the county’s Department of Public Works and Environmental Services (DPWES).
“They require specific training and knowledge to work with such materials, per federal and state regulation,” North told FFXnow. “The training is focused on packaging, labeling, and marking shipping containers and drums, as well as basic knowledge of chemical, environmental and health hazards, plus hazardous waste emergency response methods, procedures and regulations.”
Private contractors that the county typically relies on to supply field chemists and other staff have also been hit by similar labor problems.
“These challenges are not unlike what we are seeing throughout our DPWES operations with regard to frontline field personnel,” North said. “The most challenging positions are drivers, operators, technicians, maintenance and trades personnel, safety specialists and general labor.”
A breakdown of the new hours is below:
*The new I-66 HHW drop-off hours will be:
Monday and Friday: 7 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Tuesday and Thursday: noon to 5 p.m.
Saturday and Sunday: 7 a.m. to 4 p.m.
*There are no HHW drop-offs hours on Wednesday.*The new I-95 HHW drop-off hours will be:
Wednesday: 7 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Saturday: 7 a.m. to 4 p.m.*There are no HHW drop-offs hours on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday or Sunday.
*The new I-66 electronics waste drop-off hours will be:
Monday: 7 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Tuesday: noon to 5 p.m. (half day)Thursday: noon to 5 p.m. (half day)
Friday: 7 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Saturday and Sunday: 7 a.m. to 4 p.m.*There are no electronics drop-off hours on Wednesday.
*The new I-95 electronics drop-off hours will be:
Wednesday: 7 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Saturday: 7 a.m. to 4 p.m.*There are no electronics drop-off hours on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday or Sunday
Metro will assemble an armada of shuttles this summer to support travelers during its multi-week shutdowns of several stations on the Orange, Silver and Green lines.
The Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) announced yesterday that free shuttle buses will be available throughout the closures, which will begin on May 12 and roll out to Fairfax County’s Orange Line stations starting June 3.
During the closures, the agency will conduct maintenance work at each of the stations and modernize their facilities.
“Continued maintenance work is essential to safe and reliable rail service,” WMATA Chief of Infrastructure Andy Off said in the press release. “We are working strategically to target maintenance locations and minimize the impacts on customers as we conduct this critical work to upgrade systems, improve reliability, and modernize station facilities.”
In Fairfax County, the closures will take place in two phases.
First, the Vienna, Dunn Loring, West Falls Church and East Falls Church stations will close from June 3 to 25 so that Metro can replace the 40-year-old train rails and add fiber-optic cables.
“Replacing the track in this section is a top priority to ensure safety and increase reliability,” WMATA said.
A combination of local, express and limited-stop shuttle service will be offered:
Orange Line Shuttle: Local service between Vienna, Dunn Loring, West Falls Church, East Falls Church, and Ballston-MU stations.
- Local service between McLean, East Falls Church, and Ballston-MU stations.
- Every 5 minutes during rush hours. (6- 9 a.m., 3-7 p.m.)
Orange Line Express: Express service between Vienna and Rosslyn stations.
- Service every 5 minutes during rush hours. (6-9 a.m., 3-7 p.m.)
- Service every 10 minutes during non-rush hours. (9 a.m.-3 p.m., 7-9 p.m.)
Silver Line Limited: Limited-stop service between Washington Dulles International Airport, McLean, and Rosslyn.
- Service every 5 minutes during rush hours. (6-9 a.m., 3-7 p.m.)
- Service every 10 minutes during non-rush hours. (9 a.m.-3 p.m., 7-9 p.m.)
Silver Line riders will need to take a shuttle to bypass the East Falls Church transfer station. Trains between Ashburn and McLean will run every eight minutes, except after 9:30 p.m., when they will operate every 10 minutes.
Both of the Falls Church stations will reopen on June 26, but the Vienna and Dunn Loring stations will stay closed through July 16 to finish the rail replacement and cable installation.
Free local shuttle service will be provided betwen the Vienna, Dunn Loring and West Falls Church stations, operating every 5 to 10 minutes on weekdays and every 10 minutes on weekends while Metrorail is open.
Beacon Center Wendy’s Misses Opening — “Dozens of excited people lined up outside the restaurant’s doors located at 6634 Richmond Highway in the Beacon Center shopping center for the Wendy’s location’s opening. However, no one from the restaurant showed up to open the doors, leaving everyone quite disappointed.” [ABC7]
Northern Virginia Losing Economic “Mojo,” Researcher Says — “[Terry] Clower, director of the Center for Regional Analysis at George Mason University, provided an overview of the region’s economy for the more than 100 attendees at the breakfast, at Belle Haven Country Club. He noted that while the Northern Virginia economy is resilient and the unemployment rate is low, there are headwinds.” [Inside NoVA]
Three Displaced by Centreville House Fire — Investigators have determined that fire pit ashes discarded in a plastic trash can caused a two-alarm house fire in the 15400 block of Eagle Tavern Lane on Saturday (April 15). The fire caused an estimated $110,000 in property damages and displaced three residents. [FCFRD]
Old Dominion Pizza Opens in Fairfax — The Arlington-based business opened its new Fairfax City location yesterday (Monday), marking its first expansion. The restaurant’s most popular pizza — a pepperoni pie with oregano and chili-infused hot honey — is called “The Patriot” in honor of George Mason University. [Patch]
Contract for New Louise Archer Playground Approved — “Fairfax County School Board members on April 13 unanimously approved a consent-agenda item to purchase playground equipment for Louise Archer Elementary School in Vienna, using a $400,750 contract with Centennial Contractors Enterprises Inc.” [Gazette Leader]
Mason District School Board Rep Kicks Off Campaign — “School board member Ricardy Anderson told the crowd at her re-election campaign kickoff on April 16 that she will work hard to ensure Mason District schools get enough resources. Anderson is one of just four members of the Fairfax County School Board running for re-election.” [Annandale Today]
Reston Woman Quits Job to Hike Appalachian Trail — “A couple weeks ago, Cris Howard was living in Reston and in her 33rd year of an executive-level biopharmaceutical career…On Good Friday quit her longtime job. Two days later, she was in Springer Mountain, Georgia, starting her trek on the 2,200-mile trail.” [WTOP]
New Vendors Line Up for Mount Vernon Farmer’s Markets — “The 2023 season for Fairfax County Farmers Markets kicks off Wednesday, April 19 with the opening of the McCutcheon/Mount Vernon Farmers Market. Several new vendors will make their debut there this season, according to farmers market coordinator Caroline Hockenberry.” [On the MoVe]
It’s Tuesday — Mostly sunny. High of 67 and low of 46. Sunrise at 6:28 a.m. and sunset at 7:47 pm. [Weather.gov]
(Updated at 9:35 a.m. on 4/18/2023) A Fairfax County grand jury opted not to indict the police officer accused of shooting and killing Timothy Johnson outside Tysons Corner Center in February.
The Fairfax County Office of the Commonwealth’s Attorney was scheduled to share an update in the case with a press conference at noon, but the event was canceled after the grand jury’s decision came out. The news was first reported by NBC4 Northern Virginia Bureau Chief Julie Carey.
Commonwealth’s Attorney Steve Descano said in a statement that he had anticipated the grand jury to come through with an indictment, to the point where he told Johnson’s family this morning that they could expect one.
“I can only imagine their pain and shock when they received the news that the officer — who shot and killed their unarmed son — was not indicted,” Descano said. “Since, by law, no prosecutors were permitted to be present in the room when the investigating officers made their presentation to the grand jury, I can’t say for sure what information was conveyed to the grand jurors. In light of this outcome, I am evaluating all options on the path forward and continue to grieve Timothy’s loss.”
Prosecutors had sought charges for involuntary manslaughter and reckless discharge of a firearm.
An attorney representing Johnson’s family said the family had no comment for the time being. The Fairfax County Police Department didn’t immediately return a request for comment.
Two police officers shot and killed Johnson, a 37-year-old man from Maryland, after pursuing him by foot across a parking lot at Tysons Corner Center on Feb. 22. He had allegedly tried to shoplift sunglasses from Nordstrom.
Fairfax County Police Chief Kevin Davis fired one of the officers involved in the shooting last month. While the officer’s name wasn’t mentioned, the Washington Post reported that he was Sgt. Wesley Shifflett, a seven-year veteran of the department who was believed to have fired the fatal shots.
The second officer — previously identified as eight-year veteran James Sadler — was kept on modified restricted duty but remains employed by the FCPD.
In the wake of the shooting, Johnson’s parents and the Fairfax County NAACP have questioned the uptick in shootings by county police under Davis’s tenure, particularly in 2022, and the department’s lack of a policy dictating when officers should engage in a foot pursuit, despite one being recommended.
The FCPD announced on March 3 that it had agreed to let the nonprofit Police Executive Research Forum (PERF) study the recent shootings for broad trends, though the study won’t specifically focus on Johnson’s death.
PERF will also provide guidance to the department for a potential foot pursuit policy.
A local Navy reserve officer has been sentenced to prison for having unregistered gun silencers that he bought after participating in the Jan. 6, 2021 Capitol insurrection.
Hatchet Speed, a 41-year-old Falls Church resident who once worked for a defense contractor in Vienna, was handed a three-year prison sentence by U.S. District Judge Michael S. Nachmanoff, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia announced Thursday (April 13).
According to prosecutors, Speed bought three silencers from a Georgia company in March 2021 while “panic buying” at least a dozen guns in the wake of the attack on the U.S. Capitol by Trump supporters seeking to stop Congress from certifying the results of the 2020 presidential election.
From February to May 2021, Speed purchased at least twelve firearms and spent more than $40,000 at stores that sold firearms, firearm accessories, and ammunition. According to court documents, the defendant began stockpiling weapons after participating in the incursion at the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021, a time when he anticipated civil war and spoke of the need for political violence.
In March 2021, during the midst of his firearm purchases, Speed purchased three silencers from a company in Georgia. While the silencers were marketed as “solvent traps” ostensibly to be used in cleaning the barrel of a firearm, they were actually designed to serve as silencers. The silencers were not registered to Speed in the National Firearms Registration and Transfer Record, as required by law. By circumventing the registration requirements for silencers, Speed was able to take possession of the silencers within a week of purchasing them.
Speed told an undercover FBI agent in early 2022 that he believed the “solvent traps,” or silencers, “would come in handy” for fulfilling his vision of targeting and killing “the opposition,” meaning Jewish people, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
A federal grand jury in Alexandria indicted Speed on three counts of possessing unregistered silencers — one for each of the devices — on Sept. 14, 2022 and he was convicted on Jan. 20. He faced a maximum potential sentence of 30 years in prison.
Last month, a federal judge in D.C. convicted Speed for felony obstruction and four misdemeanor crimes related to the Capitol insurrection. Spotted in security footage wearing a red “Make America Great Again” hat, Speed spent just over 40 minutes wandering the Capitol building halls before exiting through a window, an FBI agent said in a statement of facts.
Speed is scheduled to be sentenced in that case on May 8, according to the Washington Post.
According to the FBI agent’s statement, Speed is a petty first-class officer in the U.S. Naval Reserves assigned to the Naval Warfare Space Field Activity at the National Reconnaissance Office in Chantilly.
He previously worked a software developer for a defense contractor in Vienna before resigning “as he delved deeper into fringe ideologies,” the Post reported.
Speed isn’t the only Fairfax County resident to face criminal charges related to the Capitol attack. Springfield resident Joseph Brody was charged in September after allegedly assaulting a police officer with a barricade.
Person Trapped in Car in Annandale — “Approximately 10:45 a.m., [Sunday] units were on the scene of a car overturned in the 5000 block of Backlick Road. One occupant was trapped. Extricated by Rescue Squad 426, Edsall Road, and transported to hospital with minor injuries.” [FCFRD/Twitter]
Innovation Station Development Nears Vote — Loudoun County supervisors discussed the latest draft of the Rivana at Innovation Station project last week, scheduling a vote for May 16. Straddling the Fairfax County border, the development “could include more than 2,700 apartments or condominiums, 450 hotel rooms, 2.4 million square feet of office space, 347,000 square feet of commercial space and 127,000 square feet of ‘civic uses,’ the last of which could include a performing arts center.” [Loudoun Times-Mirror]
Students Adapt to FCPS Ban on Cellphones — “A new report from the Fairfax County, Virginia, school system, reveals 459 students were written up for cellphone violations during the first semester of the current school year…[The new policy] was initially met with backlash, but students have since conceded that it helps them focus on their work.” [WTOP]
FCPS Hires Neurodiversity Specialist — “Fairfax County Public Schools added three specialists to its roster in an effort to better meet the needs of neurodivergent students. One of the new hires, Kristen Haynor, ‘is believed to be the first Neurodiversity Specialist in a U.S. K-12 public schools setting,’ the system said” [Northern Virginia Magazine]
Four Cybersecurity Companies Become One in McLean — “The New York investment firm Achieve Partners acquired two local firms — McLean-based W@tchTower and Stage 2 Security in Lanham — along with Phoenix-based Mosaic451 and Metmox in Schaumberg, Illinois, over the course of 2022 and has merged them into a new, McLean-based company called UltraViolet Cyber.” [DC Inno]
Tysons Nail Salon Considers Expansion — “Nothing in Between is a nail salon founded by Jade Kim Trusso in 2016 in Falls Church — with a second, larger location, complete with massage services, that opened mid-pandemic at Capital One Center…Trusso plans to open additional corporate locations in Northern Virginia, perhaps near Amazon.com Inc.’s second headquarters, and she said the franchising of Nothing in Between could begin as soon as June.” [Washington Business Journal]
Police Chief Highlights Pets Up for Adoption — “We’re excited to announce that each month, Fairfax County Police Department’s Chief Davis will select an adoptable pet to feature. We’re calling it ‘Chief’s Choice.’ This month’s Chief’s Choice is Despacito, who has been in our care since last September.” [Fairfax County Animal Shelter/Facebook]
Skateboarding Event Planned at Wakefield Park — “You’re not going to want to miss this year’s Skate the Wake at the newly redesigned Wakefield Skate Park! Join the Park Authority on May 13, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., for a full day of fun and entertainment, featuring celebrity guests, music, food, door prizes, local vendors and more.” [FCPA]
It’s Monday — Light rain. Mostly cloudy. Mild. High of 66 and low of 56. Sunrise at 6:29 am and sunset at 7:47 pm. [Weather.gov]
A Reston woman who teaches at James Madison High School was arrested yesterday (Thursday) for reportedly having a sexual relationship with a student.
The student “disclosed an inappropriate sexual relationship” to school administrators, who notified law enforcement on Wednesday (April 12), the Fairfax County Police Department said in a news release today (Friday).
“Detectives were notified and assumed the investigation,” the FCPD said. “Detectives determined Allieh Kheradmand, 33, of Reston had unlawful contact with a student over the past several months.”
Kheradmand works at Madison as a learning disabilities teacher. She has been employed by Fairfax County Public Schools since 2016, according to police.
She has been charged with four counts of indecent liberties by a custodian of a student, a felony offense in Virginia. She’s currently being held without bond at the Fairfax County Adult Detention Center, per the FCPD.
Kheradmand has been placed on administrative leave, FCPS Superintendent Michelle Reid and Madison principal Liz Calvert said in a message to families and staff.
“In Madison and across FCPS, our primary responsibility is the safety and security of everyone who enters our doors,” Reid and Calvert wrote. “This is something we take very seriously. As educators, we are entrusted with the wellbeing of the children in our care every day. It deeply affects us when someone appears to have broken that trust.”
The FCPD advises anyone with information about this case, or other possibly related incidents, to contact its detectives at 703-246-7800, option “4.” The department also accepts anonymous tips by phone (1-866-411-TIPS) and online.
The full message from FCPS is below.
Madison High School Families and Staff,
We need to inform you that Fairfax County police have announced that a teacher at Madison High School has been arrested and charged with four counts of indecent liberties by a custodian of a student. The employee has been placed on administrative leave.
In Madison and across FCPS, our primary responsibility is the safety and security of everyone who enters our doors. This is something we take very seriously. As educators, we are entrusted with the wellbeing of the children in our care every day. It deeply affects us when someone appears to have broken that trust. Please contact Fairfax County Police Major Crimes Bureau if you have any information you would like to share at 703-246-7800, option 3.
If you have specific concerns about your student, please contact our main office or your child’s school counselor. You can find your child’s school counselor on our website. School staff will support students in any way they need.
Sincerely,
Liz Calvert
Principal
Madison High School
Dr. Michelle C. Reid
Superintendent
Fairfax County Public Schools
The Fairfax County Government Center (staff photo by Jay Westcott)
Fairfax County is currently set to keep its real estate tax rate the same as last year, but some local residents accused county leadership of trying to disguise a tax hike for local residents.
During a meeting on Tuesday (April 11), the Board of Supervisors held a public hearing for the fiscal year 2024 tax rate, which is likely to hold steady at $1.11 per $100 of assessed value.
The staff report notes, however, that holding the tax rate steady is effectively an increase in the tax bill for most residents. According to the report:
It should be noted that the total increase in assessed value of existing properties is expected to be 5.68 percent, including an increase of 6.97 percent for residential real property and an increase of 1.65 percent for non-residential real property. As a result, most property owners would experience an increase in their real estate tax bill even if the tax rate remains unchanged.
The tax rate drew the ire of some locals in the public comments, who said the relatively low attendance at the meeting was another sign that the public didn’t fully understand what the tax rate would mean for their bills.
“In his March 7 email, the Chairman said the advertised rate of $1.11 is unchanged from last year,” said Arthur Purves, president of the Fairfax County Taxpayers’ Alliance. “That statement is in violation of the Virginia Code, which states that previous years’ rate must be lowered to offset an increase in assessments.”
He claimed that the rate should be lowered to $1.05 and accused the County leadership of underhanded dealing when it came to the tax rate.
“A good rule of thumb for homeowners is that when supervisors say they are reducing the tax rate, expect a tax hike,” Purves said. “This is because the Supervisors only reduce the rate when there is an assessment increase and the rate is never reduced enough to offset the assessment increase.”
Purves said that, even as someone aware of the ins and outs of the budget process, it was still frustratingly difficult to find out when the public hearing on the proposed tax rate was being held. Others said they had similar challenges finding out when the budget hearings would be held.
“These taxes are a significant financial burden for businesses and homeowners alike,” said Justin Mastrangelo. “While I understand what you’re trying to do behind the increase, it can be difficult for many of us to absorb the cost.”
Board of Supervisors Chairman Jeff McKay previously called the budget forecast a “real mixed bag” and indicated to FFXnow that he would support a reduction in the tax rate, though the board hasn’t signaled how much of a drop is under consideration.
Others at the public hearing noted that inflation and changing real estate markets would, as Mastrangelo said, put much of the costs onto county residents.
The tax rate is open to feedback until May 2, 2023. The Board of Supervisors is scheduled to vote and adopt the FY 2024 budget on May 9.
Rabia and her sister, Remsha, say Shotted is usually a “midnight move” with friends since prayers during Ramadan can last until 11 p.m., but when they visited around 8:30 p.m. this past Tuesday (April 11), a consistent line was already forming.
Some patrons were first-timers, like one group who said they’d learned about Shotted on TikTok, while others are regulars — all of them drawn as much by the buzz of community as the coffee.
“It’s about getting the community together, like I get to see people I haven’t seen in years at Shotted,” Rabia said. “So, it’s become a little tradition.”
Of course, it doesn’t hurt that the drinks are “high quality,” in the words of one patron.
“I don’t think it has to do with anything about being a religious thing,” another man said when asked about Shotted’s appeal. “I think they just offer good coffee, nice pastries. I feel like it’s comparable or even better than Starbucks.”
The favorable comparison to Starbucks would likely please Alhenaki, who says he wants “to take the typical coffee shop experience to the next level.”
Inspired by Saudi Arabia’s booming cafe scene, Shotted started in 2019 as a pop-up at festivals and universities around the D.C. area before landing its kiosk at Tysons Corner Center in 2020.
While establishing a business in the midst of the Covid pandemic was a challenge, Alhenaki says the support for the coffee shop “has been incredible” from not just the community, but also the mall, which agreed to the extended Ramadan hours.
“It is very important to us to support our local community,” said Tysons Corner Center Director of Property Management Jesse Benites. “During Ramadan, practicing members of the community value Shotted as a place to gather, socialize and connect with each other. Our decision to allow Shotted to extend their hours is a way that we are able to facilitate this connection.”
A regional shopping destination, Tysons Corner Center attracts businesses that serve international tastes like Shotted and Cha Tea House — a Pakistani cafe that gained a following as a food truck in Springfield — because of the area’s diversity and many universities and embassies, according to Alhenaki.
Muslim himself, he’s aware that, with alcohol off limits, nightlife options during Ramadan are limited. The Khalids, for instance, traveled 40 minutes to visit Shotted, a minor undertaking compared to the two hours Rabia says her friend will journey from Baltimore.
“We want to share something unique to the market and the community,” Alhenaki said. “We want to be able to have this brand start in the DMV and then expand nationally, and that’s our goal.”
Updated at 12:55 p.m. — The National Park Service has delayed the GW Parkway changes due to forecasts calling for inclement weather over the weekend. The lane shift is now expected to begin around April 21-24.
Earlier: Reminder: Southbound GW Parkway Closure Begins — “Starting Saturday, the National Park Service will begin making changes that will slow traffic on the northern part of the George Washington Memorial Parkway until December 2025…On the northbound side, there will be three lanes instead of the usual two, with the middle of the three being reversible.” [ABC7]
Man Killed in Chantilly by Falling Tree — “A man died while cutting trees in Chantilly, Virginia, when one fell on him Thursday afternoon. Fairfax County police said he and others were working in the area, cutting down trees behind homes on Pleasant Valley Road.” [WTOP]
Lake Accotink Boat Launch Closed for Now — “The boat launch at Lake Accotink Park will be closed until further notice. The water levels at the lake were lowered to facilitate the replacement of the flashboards at the top of the dam. Progress on this project is moving along smoothly, but the lowered water levels have created shallows that are not passable by boat.” [Walkinshaw Advisory]
Pajama Ban No Longer Proposed by FCPS — “Fairfax County Public Schools in Virginia is no longer considering a change to its dress code that would have prohibited students from wearing pajamas or sleepwear to school. Virginia’s largest school system unveiled the proposed change…last month. But in a statement, a county schools spokeswoman said the proposal is no longer included in the draft of the handbook.” [WTOP]
Thefts Have Increased in Mount Vernon District — “According to data from Fairfax County Police Department’s (FCPD) Crime Analysis Unit, the number of assault offenses, larceny/theft offenses — including larceny of motor vehicle parts — and motor vehicle thefts were higher from January to March 2023 than they were from January to March 2022.” [On the MoVe]
Falls Church Auctionhouse Pitches Development — The Falls Church City auctionhouse, Quinn Enterprises, has submitted a plan to redevelop three parcels at S. Washington starting at the Annandale Road intersection. The project would replace the auctionhouse and a nonprofit’s headquarters with a 10-story mixed-use building with senior housing and commercial space. [Falls Church News-Press]
Reston Cybersecurity Startup Raises Over $3 Million — “With the help of a recent seed round, Reston, Virginia-based trackd seeks to test a novel model for cybersecurity…The company anticipates raising another round later this year for further growth,” while developing a concept called “collective defense” that suggests organizations can work together “across different industries to defend against cyber threats.” [Technical.ly]
Hilton Repeats as Second Best Place to Work — “Tysons-based Hilton ranked at no. 2 in the nation on Fortune’s 100 Best Companies To Work For list. Three additional Fairfax County-headquartered companies placed on the list.” Hilton was also ranked second last year, but the second-highest Fairfax County company, Capital One, dropped to No. 15 after placing 10th in 2022. [Fairfax County EDA]
It’s Friday — Light rain. Overcast. Warm. High of 82 and low of 60. Sunrise at 6:33 am and sunset at 7:44 pm. [Weather.gov]
