The weekend is almost here. Before you start fretting about the omicron variant or head to bed for some much-needed sleep, let’s revisit news from the Tysons area that you might’ve missed.
These were the most-read stories on Tysons Reporter this week:
- Tysons Galleria department store builds holiday buzz with first Black Santa
- McLean’s Assaggi restaurant to close after lease negotiations with landlord fail
- JUST IN: Pedestrian hospitalized by Leesburg Pike crash
- Fairfax County board OKs agreement to settle tax dispute with Sheraton Tysons Hotel owner
- Estimated cost of I-495 pedestrian bridge climbs amid rising Tysons property values
Ideas for stories we should cover can be sent to [email protected] or submitted as an anonymous tip. Photos of scenes from around the community are welcome too, with credit always given to the photographer.
You can find previous rundowns of top stories on the site.
Changes to Virginia’s gas tax and transit fees will eventually bring savings to Fairfax County bus riders facing financial hardships.
Customized Fairfax Connector bus passes will cut fares in half for low-income riders with a new program that might begin this coming summer, county staff told the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors at a transportation committee meeting on Tuesday (Dec. 14).
The county plans to reduce fares for people with incomes up to 225% of the federal poverty level. That would put the eligibility cap around $29,000 for an individual or $59,625 for a family of four.
Residents of Fairfax County as well as the cities of Fairfax and Falls Church will be eligible.
The county’s transportation staff is working with the Department of Family Services and Housing and Community Development to get users of those services the discounted passes because they’ve already had their income screened. The county could later expand its outreach to others who qualify.
“I think this is going to be a great, great program once we get it piloted,” Lee District Supervisor Rodney Lusk said.
The county will receive $5.49 million in state funds to pilot the effort for three years as part of Virginia’s new Transit Ridership Incentive Program (TRIP), which supports projects that reduce barriers for low-income travelers or improve connectivity in urban areas, such as by creating dedicated bus lanes.
The grant program was created as part of a transit funding overhaul approved by Virginia General Assembly in 2020. The legislation also raised the gas tax by 5 cents per gallon on July 1, 2020 and again on July 1, 2021.
With about 30,000 daily riders, Fairfax Connector is the largest local bus system in Northern Virginia. It already offers free rides to middle and high school students, and the county temporarily suspended fares for all riders for part of 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
County staff are slated to update the board on the reduced fare effort this spring.
Board of Supervisors Chairman Jeff McKay asked staff to return with more information about the cost of implementing and administering the program compared to “the cost of just waiving fares, period,” noting that some neighboring localities are looking at eliminating fares.
“I support this needs-based one, given the size and complexity of ours,” McKay said. “But I do think we need to know what the administrative cost of this is and weigh that against a larger, maybe more aggressive way to provide transit as something that our residents in need can utilize.”
Human remains found near Route 1 earlier this week could be the victim of a possible serial killer, the Fairfax County Police Department says.
Police say the remains were found Wednesday (Dec. 15) in a container near a shopping cart in the 2400 block of Fairhaven Avenue in the Alexandria area. The surrounding area is described as isolated and wooded.
Fairfax County Police Chief Kevin Davis will share details this afternoon about evidence that police have gathered suggesting the dead individual is the victim of a serial killer, with four bodies discovered across the state since August, according to a media alert.
Kelley Warner, the chief of police for the City of Harrisonburg, will also be present at the news conference, which will be held at 1:15 p.m. today (Friday) in the Public Safety Headquarters (12099 Government Center Parkway).
The conference will be livestreamed on the FCPD’s Facebook page.
Cha Tea House has arrived at Tysons Corner Center, intent on sharing a love not just of Pakistan’s food, but also its people and culture.
Located between &Pizza and Cava Mezze Grill, the cafe will welcome customers for the first time with a soft opening at 10 a.m. today (Friday). This is Cha Tea House’s first brick-and-mortar location after it started in October 2020 as a food truck in Springfield.
“Excited and anxious,” co-owner Sofhia Qamar said yesterday (Thursday) when asked how she felt about the impending opening. “We think we’re ready, but you’re never actually ready until you’re in business and operating.”
Some passersby had already popped in, perhaps drawn by the colorful signage and chairs on the eatery’s outdoor patio. Qamar says it’s been hard turning those visitors away, so she’s eager to be able to tell people that they’re now open and serving.
In addition to tea and coffee, the menu features burgers, chicken sandwiches, and burrito rolls wrapped in paratha, a traditional South Asian flatbread, along with various sides like samosas.
The snack and dessert offerings are more extensive than what Cha Tea House is able to provide at its Springfield location. Some items, like a paan milkshake, are being reintroduced after proving popular there but too challenging to make in a food truck.
Once the initial frenzy of opening a new tea shop subsides, the team plans to expand the menu further with salads, rice bowls, and other dishes, adding one new item each month, Qamar says.
Though a brick-and-mortar cafe can’t replicate the roadside dhabas that inspired Cha Tea House as closely as a food truck, Qamar and her fellow owners incorporated touches of their parents’ native Pakistan throughout the space.
A hall lined by flower boxes suggests “an outdoor vibe,” as Qamar put it, even though it’s inside, and the walls are decorated with paintings done by Pakistani artists and shipped over to the U.S. There is also a Cha Market in the back that will sell mugs, water bottles, and other products handcrafted by artists in Pakistan.
“We really want to kind of educate people about how amazing Pakistan is and how rich the culture is,” said Qamar, who was born in the U.S. to parents who immigrated from Pakistan. “We’re really proud of it, and we want to share that pride with other people and let them enjoy it as well.”
Cha Tea House is open from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. on Mondays through Thursdays, 10 a.m. to midnight on Fridays, 9 a.m. to midnight on Saturdays, and 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. on Sundays.
The cafe is preparing to hold a bigger grand opening in January that Qamar says will include musical performances. After that, there will be musicians and other kinds of entertainment every weekend.
“We’re just really happy to be part of Tysons,” she said. “It’s a very up-and-coming area. It’s always been an up-and-coming area, but [we want] to bring a bit more diversity and introduce Pakistani food to a very, I think, adventurous group at Tysons.”
Fairfax High Students Walk Out in Protest — “Hundreds of students from Fairfax High School…walked out in protest Thursday morning to show their support for a student they say was attacked in an Islamophobic incident. A Change.org petition calling on Fairfax school administrators to do more about the incident, which happened Tuesday, has garnered more than 3,600 signatures.” [WTOP]
Virginia Budget Plan Unveiled — For the 2022-2024 state budget, his final as governor, Gov. Ralph Northam has proposed about $2.1 billion in tax cuts, including an elimination of the 1.5% state grocery tax. Expenditures include pay raises for public school teachers, state employees, and law enforcement and corrections officers, along with $2.8 billion for capital improvement projects. [The Washington Post]
Program Offers Free Lyft Rides Over Holidays — “The SoberRide program offering free Lyft rides to keep would-be drunk drivers off the roads will kick off on Friday, Dec. 17. The nonprofit Washington Regional Alcohol Program holds the SoberRide in partnership with Lyft during the winter holiday season as well as St. Patrick’s Day, Cinco de Mayo, Independence Day and Halloween, other high-risk holidays for drunk driving.” [Patch]
Vienna Theatre Company Cancels Shows — “Due to illness, the cast and crew for ‘A Child’s Christmas in Wales’ is regrettably cancelling this weekend’s performances (Dec. 17, Dec. 18 and Dec. 19). All tickets for cancelled shows will be fully refunded. If you have any questions, please call 703-255-6360.” [Town of Vienna/Twitter]
As Fairfax County prepares for a “likely” wave of omicron infections, officials are cautiously optimistic that vaccination rates and the potentially less-severe illness caused by the variant may prevent a surge like what was seen last winter.
Fairfax County Health Department Director Dr. Gloria Addo-Ayensu and epidemiologist Dr. Ben Schwartz lauded the county’s vaccination rates in a status update for the Board of Supervisors’ health and human services committee on Tuesday (Dec. 14).
At the same time, the officials urged residents to get their booster shots in anticipation of already-rising case rates getting accelerated by the omnicron variant that’s quickly spreading around the globe.
While early research suggests the variant is more transmissible and has an increased ability to infect those who are already vaccinated, officials remain hopeful that Fairfax County can avoid a winter surge as drastic as the one seen a year ago.
“We are likely to have an omicron wave here,” said Schwartz. “[But] what we are hearing so far about omicron is that there are fewer hospitalizations.”
The COVID-19 vaccines, particularly booster shots, help prevent severe illness, the experts note. As of yesterday (Wednesday), nearly 69% of all Fairfax Health District residents were considered fully vaccinated, one of the highest rates in the D.C. area.
But that doesn’t mean residents no longer need to be cautious or careful during the holiday season.
“Even if most infections are mild, a highly transmissible variant could result in enough cases to overwhelm the health care systems,” Schwartz said.
Booster shots are being highly recommended as well as continuing to mask indoors, even if it’s technically no longer required.
“We’ve got to stay with the mitigation efforts,” Board of Supervisors Chairman Jeff McKay said. “I know everyone is exhausted with them, but now is no time to let our guard down.”
Omicron aside, hospitalizations and deaths are currently down across the county, with officials crediting vaccinations.
In addition, while infections were once higher among communities of color compared to the county’s white population, those rates have since more or less evened out.
“This is…a consequence of vaccination, where Hispanics in Fairfax County have a higher vaccination coverage rate than other racial and ethnic groups,” Schwartz said.
Children between the ages of 5 and 9 currently have the highest rate of infection, likely due to that age group just being approved for vaccines a little over a month ago.
Cases within Fairfax County Public Schools, though, have remained very low, according to county health department statistics. Just 0.76% of all students have contracted COVID-19 since late September. The rate is highest among elementary school students, likely due to the delay in vaccination approval.
To this point, 40 school outbreaks have occurred, which are classified as three or more cases within a class or group, but no schools have had to close due to COVID-19.
“This should be proclaimed very widely to the community. These school numbers…are a massive success,” McKay said.
Planning for a new elementary school in Dunn Loring could begin as soon as the second half of 2022, Fairfax County Public Schools projects in its proposed Capital Improvement Program (CIP) for fiscal years 2023-2024.
As approved by the Fairfax County School Board back in January, the new school will take over the Dunn Loring Administrative Center at 2334 Gallows Road, which started as an elementary school before being repurposed in 1978. The building is now being used for some special education and parent programs.
The project’s estimated $36.7 million budget is already fully funded by money from 2017 and 2019 school bonds that were originally destined for a new school in Oakton High School area.
Funding for the new school was welcomed by parents at Shrevewood Elementary School, which was at 118% capacity in the 2019-2020 school year. The CIP says its capacity dropped to 99% this year after an enrollment decline and minor facility modifications.
However, the boundaries for the Dunn Loring school have yet to be determined beyond it being “intended to relieve overcrowding in the Dunn Loring/Falls Church/Tysons area,” as stated in the CIP.
“School assignments for the repurposed Dunn Loring Elementary School will be determined as part of any boundary study for the school,” FCPS said in a statement. “The boundary study is currently estimated to begin toward the end of construction in 2026.”
The CIP indicates that planning for Dunn Loring Elementary will begin in fiscal year 2023, which starts on July 1. Permitting could start in FY 2024, followed by construction in FY 2025. The project is expected to be complete in FY 2027.
Other Tysons-area projects addressed by the proposed CIP include:
- Madison High School: a 35,000 square-foot addition, currently under construction and expected to finish by the end of 2022 ($18 million)
- Louise Archer Elementary School: renovation adding over 50,000 square feet to the building. The voter-approved 2021 school bond included funds for construction, which is expected to start this fiscal year and finish in FY 2024. ($39.9 million)
- Cooper Middle School: renovation expanding the building by approximately 65,000 square feet. Construction is underway and set to finish in summer 2023. ($54.4 million)
- Falls Church High School: approximately 126,000 square-foot renovation, in the permitting process with an anticipated construction finish in FY 2026 ($136 million)
FCPS staff will present the proposed CIP to the school board tonight (Thursday). The board will hold a public hearing on Jan. 4 and a work session on Jan. 11, with a final vote scheduled for Feb. 10.
A coalition that tried to recall school board member Elaine Tholen has filed another recall petition, this time for school board member Laura Jane Cohen.
Open FCPS Coalition says it’s seeking to remove the Springfield District representative over Fairfax County Public Schools’ pandemic response. Dee O’Neal Jackson, the group’s founder, said in a statement that the school board has failed students during the pandemic, especially those with learning disabilities.
“We hope the Court recognizes the concerns of these 8,000 residents and requires Ms. Cohen to explain why the concerns of these parents are invalid,” the group said in a statement, stating that it filed the 8,000-plus signatures collected for the petition on Friday (Dec. 10) at the Fairfax County Courthouse.
Open FCPS Coalition has gathered signatures against multiple school board members and previously noted concerns with school closings during the COVID-19 pandemic. The Open FCPS Coalition formed in fall 2020 to protest Fairfax County Public Schools going virtual during the pandemic and campaigned to recall Tholen, who represents Dranesville District, and Member-at-Large Abrar Omeish.
Cohen noted Tholen’s case was summarily dismissed after a special prosecutor said he had investigated the allegations in the petition and found that none of them could be substantiated.
“Allowing public officials to be recalled over policy disagreements unnecessarily politicizes their work,” Cohen said in a statement. “Virginia law is clear: differences of opinion over matters of policy are simply not grounds for removal from office.”
While the Open FCPS Coalition describes itself as a grassroots, bipartisan group concerned with keeping politics out of schools, it’s received funding contributions from former Republican gubernatorial candidate Pete Snyder and N2 America, a nonprofit dedicated to advancing center-right policies in the suburbs.
Open FCPS Coalition previously said only one school board member, Braddock District representative Megan McLaughlin, advocated for reopening in a way it felt was consistent and a priority.
“The Board has worked hard to ensure the safety and health of our 180,000 students and tens of thousands of teachers and staff during the pandemic,” Cohen said in a statement. “I’m proud that we’ve been able to successfully return and keep students in our buildings this year and provide a much more normal school experience in spite of the pandemic related challenges all systems are facing.”
FCPS Superintendent Search Underway — The Fairfax County School Board discussed the process and timeline for hiring a new superintendent to replace Scott Brabrand, who will leave the position on June 30. The Fairfax County Public Schools community will be able to provide input in an emailed survey next week and focus groups scheduled for mid-January. [FCPS]
Vienna Refines Plans for ARPA Funds — “Vienna officials are leaning toward spending millions of dollars on capital-improvement projects to make the most of an infusion of federal COVID-relief funds…Town officials in the next three to six months will need to devise a final plan for the ARPA funds, which must be spent by 2024, Finance Director Marion Serfass told the Vienna Town Council at a Dec. 13 work session.” [Sun Gazette/Inside NoVA]
Local Hyatt House Officially Rebrands — “The Hyatt House in the Mosaic District of Merrifield officially changed hands Wednesday and donned its new Archer Hotel Falls Church name. As part of the acquisition, Archer Hotel will be conducting a design overhaul of the former Hyatt House Falls Church/Merrifield, with a spring unveiling of the luxury boutique hotel.” [Patch]
Pickleball Study Formally Endorsed — “The Fairfax County Park Authority Board endorsed the Park Authority Pickleball Study Report at their regular meeting on Dec. 8, 2021. The report will serve as a guiding document for Park Authority pickleball site planning criteria, design and operations of pickleball facilities.” [FCPA]
Annual Hiking Photo Contest to Return — “First Hike Fairfax returns with even more award categories, including a new Best in Show (Pets) award. This year, First Hike Fairfax will be a two-day weekend event (Jan. 1-2, 2022) to help promote social distancing and prevent crowding on the trails on one day.” [FCPA]
The groundwork is being laid for construction to begin next year on the Capital Beltway Express Lanes’ expansion into McLean.
A surveyor told Tysons Reporter yesterday (Tuesday) that a site boring crew has started collecting soil samples for the I-495 Extension (495 NEXT) project, which will add toll lanes on the interstate from the Dulles Toll Road in Tysons to just south of the American Legion Bridge.
The Virginia Department of Transportation confirmed that some preliminary activities have commenced, though the project’s design and construction contract are still in the process of being finalized.
“Early works are approved to proceed and are currently underway along the 495 NEXT project corridor,” VDOT spokesperson Michelle Holland said by email. “These activities include survey work, conducting a tree inventory (which involves marking trees), identifying utility locations, and doing geotechnical borings.”
GW Parkway Rehabilitation Announced
VDOT says it does not expect 495 NEXT to be affected by the National Park Service’s recently unveiled plans to revamp the George Washington Memorial Parkway, even though the projects literally intersect.
The U.S. Department of the Interior, which includes the park service, announced on Dec. 7 that it has awarded a $161 million contract to rehabilitate the parkway’s northern section from Sprout Run in Arlington to the I-495 interchange in McLean.
While the GW Parkway’s southern section has been upgraded in parts over the past three decades, this will be the first major rehabilitation of the eight-mile north section since it opened in 1962. It has been in the works since 1999, per an environmental assessment from March 2008.
After putting the project on hold “due to public and agency concerns,” the NPS restarted the planning process in 2016 and got a revised environmental assessment approved in September 2018, according to project documents. Read More
