Tysons Corner Center Gets Post-Holiday Boost — “Thousands of shoppers visited Tysons Corner Center on Tuesday to make holiday returns and to take advantage of some post-holiday sales. Some people who spoke with WTOP at the mall say an annual post-Christmas trip to the shopping center is a tradition.” [WTOP]
ICYMI: Man Charged After Herndon Barricade Incident — “Police identified 66-year-old Paul Graves of Herndon as the man who barricaded himself inside a townhouse and held a person hostage on Tuesday night…[He] was cited on three felony charges, one for abduction, one for use of a firearm in the commission of a felony, and one for shooting in an occupied building.” [Patch]
Local Congressman Goes Back to School — “It seemed study time would have to wait. That’s been the story of the year for [Rep. Don] Beyer (D-Va.), who has been moonlighting as a student at George Mason University in pursuit of a master’s degree in machine learning while balancing his duties as a congressman.” [The Washington Post]
Two Charged With Brandishing Gun in Fairfax — “City of Fairfax Police were summoned around 2:09 p.m., on Dec. 20, for the report of a man and woman pointing and waving a firearm in the 10800 block of Fairchester Drive. After locating the two subjects of the report, officers determined that the woman had a firearm and the man was intoxicated, according to the report.” [Patch]
County Pension Investments in Cryptocurrency Questioned — The CIO of Fairfax County’s Uniformed Retirement System says “the County Employees pension had over 10% of its assets invested in crypto at its peak and an even greater amount committed, yet-to-be invested. The County Police pension had over 13% invested at its peak” [Forbes]
Traffic Gardens Grow in Northern Virginia — “How can parents and teachers safely introduce kids to the rules of the road? In Northern Virginia and across the country, one solution has been gaining popularity: traffic gardens. Traffic gardens are small-scale models of streets, that allow kids to practice following traffic patterns in a safe, fun environment.” [Northern Virginia Magazine]
Vienna Payment Portal Goes Offline — “The Town’s online payment portal is down until Jan. 2 for a system upgrade. When the system is back online, utility customers must create a new online account to access the system. Payments can also be made in person at the Town Hall, 127 Center St. S, Vienna.” [Town of Vienna/Twitter]
Workshop for Aspiring Business Owners Coming — “If starting a business is on top of your list for 2023, Fairfax County Economic Development Authority (FCEDA) is ready to assist you! Ashley Chen, founder and CEO of Fairfax County-based ActioNet will be the featured guest speaker during FCEDA’s next Entrepreneurship 101 (E-101) workshop scheduled for January 10, 2023, in Tysons.” [FCEDA]
It’s Thursday — Clear throughout the day. High of 46 and low of 30. Sunrise at 7:28 am and sunset at 4:56 pm. [Weather.gov]
The Fairfax County Police Department has revised how its officers respond to “swatting” after seeing a noticeable uptick in such incidents in recent years.
“Swatting” is a form of harassment involving false 911 calls that are intended to draw a heavy law enforcement response, such as a SWAT team, putting the target in a potentially life-threatening situation.
As of Dec. 6, the FCPD had recorded 12 swatting incidents this year, a decline from the 30 seen in 2021 but still significantly higher than the three reported in 2018 and five in 2019, according to data provided to FFXnow. Incidents have climbed into the double digits since 2020, when there were 11.
“As you can tell they have risen over the years,” said Sgt. Lance Hamilton with the police department’s public affairs bureau. “As a result, we have updated our General Orders regarding the response to ‘Swatting’ events in August of this year.”
Effective Aug. 11, the department’s hostage and barricade procedures now includes a specific subsection on potential swatting incidents:
Officers should factor in, prior to attempting to make contact with any individual at a location where a report of a hostage or barricade incident has been communicated through the Department of Public Safety Communications (DPSC), whether or not the incident constitutes a false “swatting” incident. Officers should consider whether the scene matches the 9-1-1 call description and follow-up with criminal investigations of making a false report to police whenever possible.
Officers should consider “if they have legal authority, what are the potential dangers posed to the community/officers, and is there a need for additional specialized resources from our Operations Support Bureau,” Hamilton said.
“In most cases, this is handled by the department’s de-escalation techniques of using time and distance to slow things down,” Hamilton said. “As you can imagine this is a difficult balance when someone calls 911 regarding an active event.”
The policy change came after community members filed complaints about two separate incidents with the county’s Police Civilian Review Panel, which reviews FCPD investigations into abuse of authority and misconduct allegations.
In one case, police were called to an Annandale townhome at 4 a.m. on March 8, 2020 after a man who claimed to be a neighbor called 911 twice, saying the women who lived there were yelling and fighting. The women said the responsing officers knocked excessively and didn’t identify themselves, leading them to not answer the door right away.
In the other, the FCPD sent a full SWAT team to a home after a 911 caller reported shots being fired “during a likely domestic disturbance,” according to the panel’s 2021 annual report.
While the panel found no misconduct in either case, it expressed surprise at the lack of a follow-up investigation into the 911 caller in the first case and suggested that the FCPD reconsider its policies.
“While the Panel is aware that certain rules concerning 9-1-1 procedures are set at the Commonwealth-wide level, it is our hope that the FCPD and the county can work together to make sure that procedures and laws are in place such that the frequency of such dangerous incidents is greatly minimized,” the annual report said.
The haziness around when an unfounded call reaches the level of a criminal false report, necessitating a follow-up investigation, may get cleared up by a bill that’s expected to be introduced in the Virginia General Assembly’s upcoming 2023 session.
According to FFXnow’s sister site, ARLnow, Del. Angelia Williams Graves (D-Norfolk) will carry a bill that defines swatting and designates it as a specific crime.
Though the FBI has warned against swatting since at least 2008, Virginia only addresses it right now under a law against filing false police reports. California became the first state to implement an anti-swatting law in 2014.
Graves’s legislation was spurred by Arlington County officials who identified combatting swatting as a legislative priority after multiple hoax calls alleging an active shooter prompted school lockdowns.
The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors didn’t include any similar requests in its 2023 legislative package, but Chairman Jeff McKay says he’s been monitoring policy changes related to swatting made by the police department and recommended by the civilian review panel.
“Swatting is a serious offense and should be treated as such,” McKay said in a statement. “I will ask our legislative staff to review any bills that come up that address this through state law. I appreciate the efforts by the [panel] and FCPD to ensure that police practices continue to protect public safety at all times.”
The proposed route and stations for Route 7 bus rapid transit service from Tysons to Alexandria (via NVTC/Twitter)
(Updated at 4:25 p.m. on 1/3/2023) An ongoing study of the possibility of having bus rapid transit (BRT) service from Tysons to Alexandria can now proceed confident that the planning will be seen through to completion.
The $1.7 trillion federal spending bill that Congress approved on Friday (Dec. 23), just in time to avert a potential government shutdown, included $2 million to complete all planning and environmental studies needed for the project, known as Envision Route 7.
The Northern Virginia Transportation Commission — the recipient of the funds — has been studying whether and how to bring dedicated bus service to Route 7 between the Spring Hill Metro station in Tysons and the Mark Center in Alexandria since 2013.
The fourth and latest phase of the study — a mobility analysis evaluating the benefits and impacts of BRT — got underway in October 2021. Expected to finish in April, it will be followed by environmental and preliminary engineering design work.
Reps. Gerry Connolly and Don Beyer requested that funds for the project be included in the omnibus bill so it can “complete the planning and National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) analysis to prepare…for design and construction,” according to a press release from Beyer’s office.
The proposed BRT will provide “high-quality, frequent” bus service along a corridor that’s already the second busiest for buses in Virginia, Connolly said in a separate release:
This BRT project will provide a reliable and affordable transportation option for communities along this corridor; provide a green transportation option that will reduce greenhouse gas emissions and help in the battle against climate change; reduce congestion along a key transportation corridor in Northern Virginia already benefitting from significant economic development and investment; leverage a range of federal, Commonwealth, regional, and local transportation funds; connect major employment centers (U.S. Department of Defense Mark Center, Bailey’s Crossroads, Seven Corners, West Falls Church and Tysons); and further enhance a robust and growing transit system in Northern Virginia.
“The #EnvisionRoute7 BRT will provide as many as 42,000 daily transit trips giving people access to opportunities throughout our region with direct transit connections to Metro at Tysons and East Falls Church, as well as to the new Alexandria West End Transitway,” NVTC said on Twitter, thanking Connolly and Beyer for securing the funds.
The #EnvisionRoute7 BRT will provide as many as 42,000 daily transit trips giving people access to opportunities throughout our region with direct transit connections to Metro at Tysons and East Falls Church, as well as to the new Alexandria West End Transitway.
— NVTC (@NoVaTransit) December 23, 2022
The Tysons segment of the BRT will include six stops, traveling up International Drive and looping around the Spring Hill Metro before taking International back down to Route 7 (Leesburg Pike).
The service will use two transit-only lanes that Fairfax County plans to build by widening Route 7 from Route 123 to the Capital Beltway.
From Tysons, the route continues through Falls Church City, into the Seven Corners and Bailey’s Crossroads area, and down to Alexandria. NVTC held a community meeting to discuss the Falls Church portion in October.
Other Fairfax County projects that got funding from the federal spending package include a cycle track on Sunrise Valley Drive to the Innovation Center Metro station, pedestrian and bicycle upgrades near the Vienna Metro station, and a renovation of the Little River Glen Senior Center near Fairfax City.
There are only a few days left before fee increases go into effect on the Dulles Toll Road.
Beginning Jan. 1, at the main line plaza, tolls will rise from $3.25 to $4 for two-axle vehicles, $6.50 to $8 for three-axle vehicles, $7.75 to $9.25 for four-axle vehicles, and $9 to $10.50 for five-axle vehicles.
The increase was approved by the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority Board of Directors earlier this year. This is the first fee increase since 2019.
“Strategic debt management and refinancing efforts have kept toll rates lower than original projections through the years,” MWAA wrote in a statement.
The next toll increase will go into effect on 2028. Overall, hikes are expected every five years, according to MWAA. Increases are expected to continue through 2058.
At the ramps, tolls will increase from $1.25 to $2 for two-axle vehicles, $3 to $4 for three-axle vehicles, $3.50 to $4.50 for four-axle vehicles, and $4 to $5 for five-axle vehicles.
Toll booths will also be eliminated in the coming months, with the system switching to fully electronic payments.
Revenue from the tolls funds operating and maintenance costs, along with a portion of the construction costs for Silver Line. Service for the extension began in mid-November.
Efforts to alleviate crowding issues at Kent Gardens Elementary School are starting to pick up steam, but Fairfax County Public Schools is still working to identify and pursue specific solutions.
With 1,023 students, the McLean school is at 121% of its building capacity, per a proposed capital improvement program (CIP) for fiscal years 2023-2027. That makes it one of the most crowded schools in FCPS, second only to Wakefield Forest Elementary School and tied with Centreville High School.
Wakefield Forest in Annandale is at 135% capacity, but construction is underway on a renovation, which will reduce its capacity utilization to 80%. Centreville High is in line for an expansion as part of the FCPS renovation queue, which was last updated in 2009.
Kent Gardens, however, has yet to join the queue, despite overcrowding complaints persisting in the McLean High School pyramid for a decade now.
That may change after FCPS staff hosted a community meeting on Oct. 7 to discuss the challenges facing the elementary school and gather feedback on potential solutions.
“The upcoming CIP will highlight Kent Gardens as a priority site for a full scoping of options by staff and community engagement to determine the best way forward,” said Elaine Tholen, who represents McLean as the school board’s Dranesville District member. “Staff is also investigating short term improvements that can be done at the Kent Gardens site as longer term solutions are implemented over the next several years.”
Short-term options could include building maintenance or improvements to the on-site trailers, Tholen told FFXnow. Temporary classrooms were added in the 2019-2020 school year and this current year “to accommodate short-term capacity deficit,” according to the CIP.
In addition to a renovation, long-term solutions could include programming or boundary changes, which would be phased in over multiple years, Tholen said.
The school board approved a boundary adjustment in 2021 that shifted some McLean High students to Langley High School, though Kent Gardens wasn’t affected.
According to FCPS, the capacity issues stem from a combination of population growth in McLean — which could continue if development progresses as the county hopes — and high demand for its programs.
“The capacity challenges at Kent Gardens ES are complex as the school not only serves a growing community within its boundaries, but also incorporates students outside the boundary for the popular French Immersion program,” an FCPS spokesperson said by email.
FCPS data indicates that the school’s base population has actually declined over the past three years, dropping from 924 students in 2019-2020 to 869 students in 2021-2022. Students transferring in, particularly for language immersion, have pushed enrollment over the 1,000 mark.
Though FCPS revised its registration process last year to accept more students at Kent Gardens, among the options proposed at the October community meeting was dropping one of the three French immersion classes.
With the application period opening on Jan. 23, FCPS says no changes to the program will occur for the 2023-2024 school year.
“Since October, our instructional and facilities staff have continued to meet, look at community input and determine next steps,” Tholen said.
The school board’s ad-hoc Comprehensive Planning and Development Committee (CPDC) discussed possible long-term options for Kent Gardens at a meeting on Dec. 8. The committee will develop “a recommendation for a comprehensive planning process,” FCPS said.
“Discussion on the capacity challenges at the school will continue during the School Board Work Session on the CIP,” the FCPS spokesperson said. “Staff will prepare highlights for the January 2023 CPDC meeting of options by staff and a path for community engagement to determine the best way forward.”
Regional Airports Hit by Flight Cancellations — “Hundreds of Southwest Airlines flights have been canceled at Eastern airports Tuesday as the fallout from the pre-Christmas storm continues. At Reagan National Airport…89 flights were canceled in the past 24 hours as of Tuesday morning, according to the tracker site FlightAware. Dulles Airport said 30 flights were canceled in the past day.” [Patch]
Mount Vernon Post Office Sued — The U.S. Postal Service has defaulted on more than $71,000 in rent payments and must vacate its 21,392-square-foot space in Mount Vernon Plaza by Feb. 28, the property owner claims. Federal Realty filed a federal lawsuit on Thursday (Dec. 22), stating that the agency hasn’t responded to repeated notices, including a default letter sent by USPS in September. [Washington Business Journal]
Franconia Wegmans Reportedly Robbed on Christmas — “Police are searching for four men who forced their way into a Wegmans store in Fairfax County early Christmas morning, according to the Fairfax County Police Department (FCPD). At 3:05 a.m., four men dressed in dark clothing and masks forced entry into the Wegmans at 7905 Hilltop Village Center Drive, police said.” [ABC7]
Local NAACP Pushes for Literacy Education — “The Fairfax group, and its neighboring chapter in Arlington, Virginia, are among a growing number of NAACP organizations that have in recent years turned their attention to how reading is taught in school. They are part of a nationwide movement to embrace what cognitive science shows us about how students learn to read, particularly about the role of phonics — and they see this as a path toward social justice.” [The Hechinger Report]
New Electoral Board Member Appointed — “Jeffrey K. Shapiro was recently appointed and sworn in by the Fairfax Circuit Court as a member of the Fairfax County Electoral Board for a three-year term that begins on Jan. 1. He replaces Bettina Lawton, whose term will end on Dec. 31.” [Fairfax County Government]
McLean Theater Offers Behind-the-Scenes Look — “A program exploring how productions are put on at the Alden Theatre of the McLean Community Center will be presented on Thursday, Jan. 12 at 6:30 p.m…The event is designed to ‘take the mystery out of what goes on behind the curtain,’ MCC officials said.” [Sun Gazette]
Critic Recommends Tysons Korean Steakhouse — Ingle Korean Steakhouse, a recent arrival at Pike 7 Plaza in Tysons, was named among food critic Tom Sietsema’s top seven favorite restaurants to eat for December. He says the restaurant offers “some memorable dishes and, in combination with the service and setting, plenty of bang for your buck.” [The Washington Post]
It’s Wednesday — Clear throughout the day. High of 41 and low of 26. Sunrise at 7:27 am and sunset at 4:55 pm. [Weather.gov]
Moby Dick’s time in McLean may be running out.
The kabob house and two nearby office buildings, including one that’s currently home to the McLean Medical Center, are being eyed for redevelopment, continuing a trend of commercial sites turning into housing.
In a rezoning application filed with Fairfax County on Friday (Dec. 23), property owner JAG Partners LLC has proposed replacing the restaurant at 6854 Old Dominion Drive and the office buildings at 6858 Old Dominion and 6861 Elm Street with a mid-rise, mixed-use residential building.
Named Astoria, the development will “create synergy and connection” with Mars Inc.’s pending global headquarters expansion next door on Elm Street, the application says.
“The proposed Astoria McLean redevelopment is mindfully designed to implement the vision expressed in the McLean CBC Plan for a more walkable, welcoming and functional downtown, with a more vibrant mix of uses that will add color and life while retaining the convenience of the legacy McLean Community Business Center,” Holland & Knight partner Michelle Rosati wrote in a statement of justification on the developer’s behalf.
Adopted by the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors in June 2021, the McLean CBC plan is intended to revitalize the downtown area by creating a core where taller, more intense buildings would be allowed compared to the strip shopping centers that dominate now.
The plan also calls for a network of green spaces, a shift from surface to garage parking, public art and housing that’s affordable to different income levels.
While some projects are in the works, such as the Mars expansion and Giant shopping center redesign, the plan hasn’t yet invited the surge in developer activity that the county sought and some residents feared.
JAG believes the proposed Astoria redevelopment could be a “catalyst” for making that vision become more of a reality, according to its application.
The developer bought the Moby Dick building, which dates back to 1968, for more than $1.8 million in 2018, according to county property records, which say the “price reflects anticipated redevelopment.” The Old Dominion office building was built in 1980 and purchased for $12.1 million in 2017.
The Elm Street property, which features a four-story office building built in 1979, is still owned by the Ramay Family Partnership, which has given its endorsement and consent to the redevelopment.
The redevelopment would demolish those existing buildings and construct a 287,042-square-foot, six-story residential building with 130 units and ground-floor commercial space, possibly an office and coffee shop or co-working space, per the submitted plan.
The office is intended to serve as a new home for McLean Medical Center’s primary and urgent care site, Rosati told FFXnow. While no large restaurant component is planned, it’s too early to know what exactly might go into the retail space.
A total of 12 units will be designated as workforce dwelling units. Eighteen units will be on the ground floor “to activate the ground plane with residential activity and energy,” according to the application.
“This proposal is unique in that it combines some ground-floor non-residential uses with ground-floor units, so that first floor space is not entirely retail or commercial,” Rosati said. “We believe that this mix will give the residents in the building a feeling of being more connected to the neighborhood.”
As part of the redevelopment, JAG has proposed a mid-block, paved pedestrian walkway to connect Old Dominion and Elm Street. Adjacent to the Mars property, the connection would feature outdoor seating, landscaping and a wall open for public art.
Residential amenities could include a courtyard with a swimming pool and lounge patio designed to mimic “the elegance of a boutique hotel.” Up to 254 parking spaces will be provided in underground garages, a “paradigm shift” from the existing surface parking lots.
“Overall, the proposed redevelopment will shift the Subject Property toward the greener, more pedestrian-oriented vision that is at the heart of the McLean CBC Plan,” Rosati wrote.
Photo via Google Maps
Empower founder and CEO Joshua Sear is the kind of ride-share passenger who likes to talk to his drivers.
It was through those casual conversations that he came up with an idea in 2018 for an app that would offer a viable alternative to the country’s top ride-hailing services — Uber and Lyft — by letting drivers keep all the money they make in exchange for a subscription fee.
“Consistently, they were saying how they weren’t able to make a living, particularly full-time or near full-time drivers, and then, also…they felt voiceless, like they weren’t heard, that they didn’t feel like they were a customer,” Sear told FFXnow in a recent interview. “…The rider is the customer for Uber and Lyft, and the more I thought about, I started to wonder, ‘Well, what would it look like if drivers were customers?’”
Since launching service in the D.C. region two years ago, the McLean-based startup has supported over 2.5 million rides given by about 10,000 drivers, who have collectively earned more than $40 million, Sear says.
Once touted as better-paying options than taxis, both Uber and Lyft have been dogged by questions about driver pay for years, even after the former paid $20 million to settle federal claims that it was misleading drivers in 2017.
Reports indicate that drivers only receive about half of what riders pay and that the companies take a bigger chunk of fares than the 20 to 25% advertised, discrepancies that have persisted despite soaring prices and led drivers in Denver to strike last month.
Where those ride-sharing companies take a portion of each fare, which is calculated based on trip length and duration, demand and other factors, Empower charges drivers a flat subscription rate for use of its app and other services, including customer support for both driver and rider complaints, according to Sear.
Though the company provides recommended rates, drivers set their own fares and keep everything that riders pay, an approach that Sear says has proven appealing to both parties.
“We do a lot of surveys and get feedback from both riders and drivers, and our surveys as to why do you use Empower for riders, the second most prevalent answer is because drivers get 100% of the fare,” Sear said, adding that the top answer is that the rides are generally less expensive.
He says Empower also aims to provide more transparency to drivers, who can see pick-up and drop-off locations and the rate for each ride before they choose to accept it, and more options for riders, who can “favorite” drivers and limit matches to drivers of the same gender.
A former lawyer with experience in both business and politics, Sear has been a longtime resident of the D.C. area, but he decided to introduce Empower first in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, seeking a mid-sized city with a college that could provide a reliable base for riders.
One week later, though, COVID-19 arrived, and the target audience of college students left the city. Still, the platform found some customers in frontline workers unable to stay at home, and those initial months provided enough data to suggest the concept could work in a larger market.
“We kind of figured, hey, maybe the dynamic is flipped, and it may actually now make more sense to be in a city that has a bunch of public transportation, but that isn’t going to be used as much because of Covid,” Sear said.
Empower launched in the D.C. area in October 2020, and its drivers are now providing about 4,000 to 5,000 rides a day, according to Sear. While demand has been heaviest in downtown D.C., the company is seeing growth in the Virginia and Maryland suburbs, including Silver Springs, Arlington and Alexandria.
Sear says they’re starting to see more demand in the Tysons area and hope to also get more traction in Reston.
The startup’s rise hasn’t been obstacle-free, however. According to a press release, a woman filed a class action lawsuit against Empower earlier this month alleging that the business is violating D.C. law by not providing or requiring insurance for its drivers and not conducting background checks.
Noting that the company hasn’t been served any legal papers yet, Sear told FFXnow that Empower does require background checks for drivers and confirms that they have up-to-date auto insurance, though it doesn’t provide any coverage.
Because the business model means Empower is selling its software to drivers, rather than the actual ride-sharing services, the risk in crashes falls on the individual drivers, not the company, he argues.
“It’s without merit, it’s defamatory,” Sear said of the lawsuit. “We intend not to sue the complainant, but to sue the law firm frankly for defamation, for publishing something in a press release that any reasonable diligence would’ve determined is just absolutely false and is defamatory.”
While Empower currently refers drivers to brokers if they’re looking to expand or change their coverage, it could potentially provide insurance and other services, such as tax or accounting assistance, directly in the future. It’s also working to expand into new areas and in its established markets, including New York, where it launched last year.
“We want to be able to provide a comprehensive suite of support and services that helps [drivers] be independent, sole proprietors that have control of their own financial future,” Sear said.
Don’t Dump Your Christmas Tree in a Park — “The Fairfax County Park Authority is asking the public to respect both common courtesy and the law, and not dump disused Christmas trees on county parkland…All licensed trash collectors in Fairfax County are required to collect and recycle live Christmas trees less than 8 feet tall that have been separately set out…during the first two weeks of January.” [Sun Gazette]
Springfield House Fire Displaces 11 — A gas water heater contributed to a fire at a house in the 6300 block of Abilene Street in the Springfield area on Dec. 8, the Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department says. The blaze displaced 11 people, injured one, and caused approximately $175,000 in damages. [FCFRD]
Fertility Clinic Coming to Annandale — “Mate Fertility, a Los Angeles company, has teamed up with Annandale OB-GYN — which has offices in McLean, Annandale, Alexandria and Falls Church — to bring its model to Fairfax County, starting with a new lab at 2810 Old Lee Highway.” [Washington Business Journal]
Tysons Apartment Community Purchased — “Avalon Park Crest…has changed hands for nearly $146 million. Bethesda-based Combined Properties Inc. bought the 354-unit, 364,000-square-foot mid-rise at 8250 Westpark Drive from AvalonBay Communities Inc…Redevelopment doesn’t appear to be in the cards, Avalon Park Crest having been built only a decade ago. But Combined looks forward to ‘future opportunities to creatively enhance the property,’ Hill said.” [Washington Business Journal]
Tractor-Trailer Catches Fire on Beltway — “A tractor-trailer burst into flames Friday afternoon on Interstate 495 in Fairfax County, Virginia, the Virginia Department of Transportation confirmed. Lanes were closed off, causing major backup near the incident.” [ABC7]
Firefighters Visit Inova Hospital for Holidays — “We had very special visitors ‘drop-in’ to Inova L.J. Murphy Children’s Hospital [on Dec. 21] to spread holiday cheer! Thank you to @ffxfirerescue for bringing Santa and his elves, as well as their good friend Elsa, to visit the kids at our hospital.” [Inova/Twitter]
Thefts Reported in Vienna — “Vienna Police have received reports of stolen mail from a mailbox and theft of AirPods from a vehicle in the latest weekly crime report. The mail theft happened at the mailbox at the Vienna Post Office, 200 Lawyers Road NW. According to police, someone pried open the mailbox and stole the mail between 5 p.m. on Dec. 13 and 7 a.m. on Dec. 14.” [Patch]
Vienna Band Looking for Musicians — “The Vienna Community Band will resume rehearsals on Jan. 8 after a holiday break, with efforts culminating in the band’s next concert, slated for March 12. ‘We are recruiting enthusiastic new musicians in all sections,’ band leaders said. ‘We are especially looking for flutes, clarinets, saxophones, bassoons, oboes and tubas.'” [Sun Gazette]
It’s Tuesday — Clear throughout the day. High of 36 and low of 23. Sunrise at 7:27 am and sunset at 4:54 pm. [Weather.gov]
Fairfax County’s plan to develop Ruckstahl Park in Idylwood with new amenities came into clearer focus this month.
Building off a 2015 master plan, the Fairfax County Park Authority board approved a scope for the approximately $2 million project at its final 2022 meeting on Dec. 14, the agency announced on Wednesday (Dec. 21).
Staff recommended that the 7.2-acre site at 2445 Idylwood Road get a picnic pavilion, an open play area, an accessible loop trail, a nature-themed playground, a “fitness cluster” and vehicle access and parking improvements. The project will also fund invasive species management efforts at the park.
“This is a valuable parcel inside the Beltway that came to us at an exceptional bargain,” Ken Quincy, the board’s Providence District representative, said. “The community has been very energetic and engaged throughout the process of defining the vision for the future. We’re very excited to move this project forward.”
Located just north of I-66, the parcels that make up Ruckstahl Park were previously occupied by a residential farm owned by Dr. Lillian Ruckstahl, who gave the land to the Northern Virginia Conservation Trust in her will when she died in 2008.
The park authority acquired the property from the NVCT for $250,000 in 2011. The transfer established a conservation easement that prohibits athletic fields, among other conditions, according to the master plan.
Noting that it’s “increasingly rare” to find land suitable for a public park in Idylwood, the master plan envisioned Ruckstahl as a mostly neighborhood-serving park designed to “preserve a sense of the open landscape” and provide “low impact community recreation opportunities.”
The conceptual development plan shows a trail looping around the park with exits onto Dunford Drive and Idylwood Road. Placed to accommodate a potential, future widening of Idylwood Road, the trail could be connected to nearby Idylwood Park and the Washington & Old Dominion Trail with additional pedestrian and bicycle facilities, the plan says.
The proposed vehicular amenities include a new parking lot with up to 20 spaces. Access would be provided off Idylwood Road in the same location as the former residential driveway.
The plan also calls for an existing field to be retained as an open space for recreation and community gatherings, an educational nature playground for kids, a picnic area or outdoor classroom, benches and other furnishings, and intepretive signs about the site’s environment or history.
Well before Ruckstahl moved in during the 1950s, the land had been part of a plantation called “The Mount” that lasted from the mid-1700s to around 1900, when it was broken up and sold off for smaller farms in the Civil War’s wake, according to the FCPA.
The property also became one of the county’s first formally recorded archaeological sites in the 1960s after archaeologists found artifacts dating back to the Archaic Period, though the master plan says “little can be gleaned from the records about how the site was used.”
Funded by the county’s 2020 park bond, developing Ruckstahl Park could produce $7,000 in annual revenue for the park authority, while costing $4,000 a year to maintain with an estimated lifetime cost of $1 million after 20 years.
The FCPA says permitting will begin in “the first part” of 2023, and construction could start in the first quarter of 2024.
