El Tio Tex-Mex Grill has been ordered by a federal court to properly compensate workers at all its restaurants, including its locations in McLean (1433 Center Street) and Falls Church (7630 Lee Highway).

Federal investigators found that Mejia Corporation, the company that operates El Tio, had violated labor laws by not paying minimum wage and overtime to tipped employees, particularly bussers and food runners, the U.S. Department of Labor reported yesterday (Wednesday).

A consent judgment filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia requires El Tio to pay $848,006 in back wages and liquidated damages to 209 employees for violating the Fair Labor Standards Act, which sets rules for minimum wage, overtime pay, recordkeeping, and child labor in the U.S.

“This employer failed to pay workers the wages they had legally earned, and then attempted to conceal that violation,” DOL Wage and Hour Baltimore District Director Nicholas Fiorello said.

Investigators in the DOL’s Wage and Hour Division determined that El Tio did not pay wages to tipped employees when they worked more than 80 hours in a pay period, forcing them to depend entirely on tips for those hours.

El Tio also paid kitchen staff standard rates instead of overtime when they worked more than 40 hours in a week. Federal investigators say that the restaurant chain falsified payroll records to suggest it had paid overtime.

The violations encompassed all four of the El Tio restaurants that Mejia Corp. currently runs, all of them in Northern Virginia. Fairfax County has three El Tio venues, with a Great Falls location (9835 Georgetown Pike) in addition to the ones in McLean and Falls Church. The original El Tio is in Gainesville.

A fifth El Tio in downtown Washington, D.C., was also included in the investigation and court judgment, but that location permanently closed its doors in November 2019.

This is the second time in three years that El Tio has come under federal investigation. Mejia Corp. agreed to pay $40,000 in 2019 to settle an Equal Employment Opportunity Commission lawsuit that alleged at least three male servers at the Gainesville El Tio had been subjected to harassment and discrimination on the basis of sex.

On top of requiring the employer to pay back wages and damages, the judgment issued by the Baltimore-based U.S. District Court in the labor case prohibits El Tio from violating any FLSA provisions in the future.

“Other employers in this industry should use the resolution of this case as an opportunity to review their own pay practices to ensure they comply with the law and avoid such violations,” Fiorello said. “Workers who face similar circumstances or anyone with questions should call us to speak confidentially with a trained hour and wage professional.”

The DOL Wage and Hour Division has a toll-free helpline at 866-4US-WAGE (487-9243), and more information on the division’s work can be found at www.dol.gov/whd.

Photo via Google Maps

The Falls Plaza Shopping Center in Falls Church is about to get a new look.

Property owner Federal Realty Investment Trust announced today (Thursday) that the 144,000 square-foot shopping center will undergo renovations intended to update its physical appearance and enhance amenities next year.

“Federal is a long-term holder of real estate and has been part of the Falls Church community for over 50 years,” Federal Realty Vice President of Asset Management Deirdre M. Johnson said. “The new amenities and conveniences coming to Falls Plaza…reflect the evolving needs of the community that we serve.”

Scheduled to start in the spring of 2021 and conclude prior to Thanksgiving, the redesign will include new building façades that fuse “a modern farmhouse design with industrial elements” as well as new decorative lighting and signage, according to a Federal Realty press release.

The project will also introduce parking spaces for curbside pick-ups, expand the sidewalks with outdoor dining and gathering space, augment the plaza’s landscaping, and add a fireplace.

Federal Realty first acquired ownership of Falls Plaza in 1967. Anchored by Giant Food, the center features a Staples, Conte’s Bike Shop, CVS Pharmacy, Starbucks, and a variety of other retail, dining, and services venues.

Most recently, Falls Plaza added the restaurants Plaka Grill, Tasty Dumplings, and Jersey Mike’s.

“We are appreciative of the continued support that both the city residents and officials have provided us over the past 50 years, and we look forward to the next 50,” Johnson said.

With the emergency approval of a COVID-19 vaccine expected before 2021, county officials are one step closer to getting ready for mass vaccination planning.

At a meeting on Tuesday (Dec. 1), the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors voted unanimously to accept a $500,000 state grant for the county’s mass vaccination program. Funds will be available through the state’s $22 million Coronavirus Relief Fund, which will be used to create a statewide program to distribute the vaccine once it is available.

Two companies — Pfizer and Moderna — are awaiting emergency authorizations of their vaccines in the United States.  The U.S. Food and Drug and Administration is expected to authorize the approvals in mid-December.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s advisory committee on immunization practices voted earlier this week to make the first priority group health care workers and long-term care residents.

The county’s program also allocates roughly $14 million to help local health districts like the Fairfax Health District prepare for mass vaccination efforts. The grant must be used for facility rental costs, hiring for temporary positions, travel costs, printing, signage, and other expenses related to operating vaccination clinics.

Fairfax County Executive Brian Hill said his health department is actively working on a vaccination plan for the county “as we speak.” He noted that the county’s plan will depend heavily on the state’s strategy and other conditions, including who will receive the vaccine first.

“Once we know the particulars, we will have a plan in place per the Virginia Department of Health guidelines,” Hill said.

A county-based mass vaccination workgroup has been meeting since mid-June to discuss vaccination plans.

Hunter Mill District Supervisor Walter Alcorn urged the county to provide information on how the plan would be administered. He added that lines for the H1N1 vaccine program rivaled the lines the county recently saw for early voting.

“I just want to make sure we see what the plan is particularly as it relates to logistics,” he said.

Funds from the state grant must be spent by the end of the month, after which point unspent dollars will revert back to the state. However, county staff noted that the federal government could extend the date for the overall program. Acceptance of the grant requires no local match.

State officials are also considering other funding sources to support next year’s vaccination program. The Virginia Department of Health estimates that the program will cost $120 million.

Virginia is expected to get a little over 70,000 doses in the first shipment from Pfizer.

“When our turn comes, my family and I will have no hesitancy about getting vaccinated, and I strongly encourage every Virginian to get the vaccine. That is our only path to getting back to that near normal,” Gov. Ralph Northam said in a press briefing yesterday (Wednesday).

Image via Hyttalo Souza/Unsplash

The Fairfax County School Board will select a new name for Mosby Woods Elementary School in Fairfax around 8 p.m. during its regular meeting tonight.

The board voted on Oct. 8 to rename Mosby Woods after at-large member Karen Keys-Gamarra and Providence District Representative Karl Frisch proposed replacing the moniker of Col. John S. Mosby, who led a Virginia calvary battalion for the Confederacy during the U.S. Civil War.

Feedback collected from a community meeting on Oct. 1 suggests the renaming has widespread support, as commenters said Mosby’s role as a Confederate officer clashes with Fairfax County Public Schools’ current values of diversity and inclusivity. Some descendants of Mosby also wrote a letter to the school board advocating for a change.

Here are the possible names that FCPS Superintendent Scott Brabrand recommended on Oct. 22:

• Five Oaks — the name of the road where the school is located
• Mosaic — a nod to the school’s proximity to the Mosaic District
• Mary McBride — a teacher who helped start a school near Fairfax Court House for the children of freed slaves after the Civil War
• Barbara Rose Johns — a student civil rights activist who led a strike in protest of conditions at the all-black Moton High School in Farmville, Va., paving the way for Brown v. Board of Education

Brabrand also suggested the late NASA mathematician Katherine Johnson, but that has presumably been taken out of the running after the City of Fairfax got to it first for Lanier Middle School.

The school board held a public hearing on the possible new name yesterday (Wednesday).

Which of the recommendations would you prefer to replace Mosby Woods? Do you think the board should choose an entirely different name, or do you object to changing the school’s name in the first place?

Photo via FCPS

Blend 111 is now offering express, to-go lunch options.

Launched yesterday (Tuesday), the CasArepa menu features Latin-inspired street food, including arepas in a variety of flavors, tequenos, and patacones. These are all popular dishes throughout Colombia and Venezuela.

The food is intended to be paired with a range of new Latin American “refresher” juices, including flavors like black currant, papaya, passion fruit and guava.

The lunch carryout options are available from noon to 2 p.m. on Tuesdays through Fridays.

Orders should be submitted by smartphone and can be picked up from the restaurant’s front door at 111 Church Street. Guests are also welcome to eat on the restaurant’s outdoor back patio depending on the availability of space.

Blend 111 is a restaurant and wine bar that opened in the Town of Vienna in August 2019. It offers lunch and dinner menus with South American cuisine, wine from Spain and France, and coffee roasted in the store.

Photo courtesy Blend 111

A quartet of students from James Madison High School in Vienna have enlisted in the fight to find a cure for blood cancers.

Fairfax County Public Schools reported today (Wednesday) that Emery Stratman, Ella Stratman, Ainona Black-Planas, and Matthew Wilken have been accepted as candidates for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society’s 2021 Students of the Year campaign.

The LLS Students of the Year campaign is a leadership development program intended to support high school students as they prepare for college or a profession by teaching them skills in entrepreneurship, marketing, and project management.

Participants spend seven weeks working to raise funds for LLS and to increase awareness about blood cancers, including leukemia, lymphoma, Hodgkin’s disease, and myeloma.

The students who raise the most funds as either an individual or a team by the end of the seven-week competition will be named Student(s) of the Year.

“Students participating in the Mid-Atlantic Region’s annual scholarship and fundraising challenge have been nominated for their leadership, passion to find a cure for blood cancers, and involvement in the community,” FCPS said.

The 2020 Students of the Year campaign raised over $2.7 million with more than 240 students and 35 teams participating, according to the campaign’s website.

The 2021 campaign will launch on Jan. 23, 2021 with a grand finale on Mar. 13.

The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society has invested nearly $1.3 billion in blood cancer research. The nonprofit also provides free information and support services to patients and advocates for policies that would remove barriers to healthcare, according to the organization’s website.

According to Yale Medicine, blood cancers are caused by the excessive production of white blood cells in bone marrow. They account for about 10% of all cancers diagnosed in the U.S. annually, and childhood leukemia makes up about 25% of all cancers in children.

Photo via Google Maps

The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors voted unanimously and without discussion on Tuesday (Dec. 1) to begin the procurement process to find a contractor to build a new Tysons Fire and Rescue Station.

After occupying 1560 Spring Hill Road for 40 years, the new Fire Station 29 will be located at 8300 Jones Branch Drive in McLean, where it will share the site with the Tysons West Park Transit Station.

Constructed in 1978, the existing Fire Station 29 needs more apparatus bays to house fire trucks, major upgrades to its building systems, and enhanced living facilities for female personnel, according to Fairfax County Department of Public Works and Environmental Services Building Design Branch Chief Tiya Raju, who is managing the project.

The new station will be approximately 20,000 square feet in size with five bays. The current station only has three bays.

The two additional bays will enable the new station “to add emergency response units to meet future increased demand for emergency medical and fire suppression services to support population growth and high-density development in Tysons,” Raju says.

As part of the project, Fairfax County is planning to add a seven-bay bus transit facility to the Tysons West Park Transit Station. DPWES is also coordinating with the Fairfax County Department of Transportation on the construction of a future ramp through the site that will connect Jones Branch Drive with the Dulles Toll Road.

The county has approved a $15 million construction budget, estimating that the total cost of the project will be $20 million.

Plans to replace Tysons Fire Station 29 have been in the works for almost a decade since the county initially negotiated a proffer to move the station to the bottom floor of a mixed-use high-rise building in 2011.

After those plans fell through, Fairfax County opted to use an off-site alternative clause in 2016 that would allow it to construct a new station when needed instead of waiting for development. The Tysons West Park Transit Station emerged as the most appropriate location.

“The original fire station no longer meets the needs of the community or the Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department,” Providence District Supervisor Dalia Palchik said. “The larger replacement fire station will have the capacity to add emergency response units in order to best serve the Tysons region, which is one of the fastest growing areas in Fairfax County.”

Photo via Google Maps

Since COVID-19 arrived in Fairfax County in March, creativity and community support have become critical for the many local businesses hustling to survive in a world where crowds and social interactions carry public health risks.

The Caboose Brewing Company hopes to harness both forces – innovation and the loyalty of its regular customers – by introducing beer, soup, and coffee subscriptions in time for the holiday season.

Owner of Caboose Tavern in Vienna and Caboose Commons in Merrifield, Caboose officially announced this morning (Wednesday) that customers who buy a Souper Sunday Subscription will get two quarts of soup delivered to them for free every Sunday for the next four weeks.

A subscription purchase will include discounts on packer and growler beer glasses. The soups will also be available for sale a la carte.

However, Caboose’s centerpiece offering is the 2021 Caboose Barrel Club, a year-long subscription that will give buyers access to eight brand-new barrel-aged or barrel-fermented beers developed by the brewery.

“We’ve been wanting to do more exciting releases and really cater towards kind of our number-one fans, the people that are buying all of our new releases and the real beer nerds out there,” Caboose Head Brewer Matt Furda said. “…This subscription really caters toward those people.”

Club subscribers will receive a four pack of beer roughly every other month throughout 2021, along with perks such as virtual tastings with Furda for each new release, 10% off dine-in draft beer at Caboose Commons and Caboose Tavern, and a fee waiver for a space reservation for a party of up to 30 people.

According to Caboose’s website, the eight beers in the series will be:

• Rum barrel-aged tiramisu stout
• Bourbon barrel-aged cherry pie Maibock
• Cognac barrel-aged barleywine
• Barrel-fermented mixed berry sour
• Wine barrel-aged caraway rye strong ale
• Scotch barrel-aged wee-heavy
• Bourbon barrel-aged coconut vanilla wheatwine
• Barrel-fermented Flanders red ale

The brews are all completely new for Caboose and will be produced in limited quantities. Barrel Club subscriptions will be available for purchase throughout December for $300.

According to Furda, the idea for the Barrel Club grew out of Caboose’s other efforts to adapt its business model to the restrictions imposed by the pandemic.

In addition to offering grocery deliveries and opening up its parking lots to allow for socially distanced seating, Caboose started hosting virtual happy hours and developed a community hops program where people helped grow hops that were then used in one of the brewery’s beers.

“This barrel club again is kind of a way to connect with our community, with our most dedicated fans,” Furda said.

Courtney Beazell, events and marketing manager for Caboose, says the brewery will also offer a coffee subscription that will run similarly to the Barrel Club with subscribers getting a certain amount of coffee delivered regularly.

The coffee subscriptions will roll out within the next week, according to Beazell.

“It’ll be another gift-able option for people,” she said. “…We have a lot coming up to keep people busy and keep everything running on our end.”

Photo courtesy Caboose Brewing Company

What if McLean became a city?

While the question is largely hypothetical at the moment, the McLean Citizens Association will consider whether it might be worth exploring more seriously during tonight’s board of directors meeting amid the usual committee and liaison updates.

The discussion will be led by MCA President Rob Jackson, who says the idea of McLean leaving Fairfax County and turning into a city has cropped up in casual conversations among members of MCA and other community nonprofits in the past.

“A number of people expressed the belief that Fairfax County is simply too large to respond to the needs and wishes of the million-plus people who live here and that smaller local government might better serve the diverse needs of the residents,” Jackson said in an email to MCA members.

Right now, the clearest obstacle to a City of McLean is state law, which has suspended the creation of new cities in Virginia since 1987.

Under Section 15.2-3201, the Code of Virginia states that “no city charter shall be granted or come into force and no suit or notice shall be filed to secure a city charter” until July 1, 2024 at the earliest. The statute also prohibits cities from pursuing annexation proceedings against counties.

A bill seeking to make an exception to the ban on new city charters for towns with more than 50,000 people died in committee during the Virginia General Assembly’s 2020 session.

Though the moratorium will be in place for another three years, Jackson says he thought it would be worthwhile to bring up the idea of McLean becoming a city again after previous discussions faded away once the COVID-19 pandemic took center stage.

For Jackson, the interest in exploring the possibility of forming a city stems mainly from a desire for McLean residents to have more control instead of having to compete for attention in a county with more than 1.1 million people, citing issues like overcrowding at McLean High School, land use decisions, and the upkeep of sidewalks and trails.

As a city, McLean would be responsible for developing its own comprehensive plan and zoning ordinance. It would also maintain road infrastructure within its boundaries and have independent governance over public services like law enforcement and schools.

“It’s about controlling your own destiny,” Jackson said. “There’s a lot of frustration in some areas with the county maybe is not as responsive as it needs to be on some things to meet local needs…I think just the ability to have more self-determination, more ability and responsibility to make decisions would probably be attractive to a lot of people.”

Tonight’s MCA discussion will focus on whether to work with other community groups, such as the Greater McLean Chamber of Commerce or local parent-teacher associations, to form an ad hoc committee that would study the benefits and challenges of establishing a city. The meeting will be streamed live on Facebook starting at 7:30 p.m.

“It’s just kind of exploring things, reaching out to other groups and begin to explore, to get some information,” Jackson said. “This may turn out to be something that just wouldn’t work, but until you look at it, you never know.”

Staff photo by Catherine Douglas Moran

With Thanksgiving over and Christmas music on the airwaves debate-free, local nonprofits and nurseries are starting their annual sales of Christmas trees and other holiday greenery.

People getting into the festive spirit can choose from many local organizations, which will use the money to fund everything from scholarships and Boy Scout Troop outings to youth ministry programs and community health programming.

Trinity United Methodist Church in McLean (1205 Dolley Madison Blvd) kicked off its sales right after Thanksgiving Day, and they will continue through mid-December. The sales benefit Trinity youth ministries and Boy Scout Troop 869.

Hours for the sales vary depending on the day:

• Thursday & Friday: 4-6 p.m.
• Saturday: 9 a.m.-5 p.m.
• Sunday: 12-5 p.m.

St. John Academy in McLean (6422 Linway Terrace) is launching its Christmas tree sales this Thursday (Dec. 3). A tree lot will be set up in the school’s lower-level parking lot through Dec. 20.

Trees start at $50, and garlands and wreaths are also available. Sale hours are 4-7 p.m. on Wednesday through Friday and 10 a.m.-7 p.m. on Saturdays and Sundays.

The Optimist Club of Greater Virginia is selling Christmas trees, wreathes, roping, and tree stands at the corner of Maple Avenue and Branch Road near PNC Bank and Giant in Vienna. Weekday hours go from 4-8 p.m., and weekend hours are from 10 a.m.-7 p.m.

Tree sales fund awards, scholarships, and honoraria for students from James Madison, George Marshall, and Oakton High Schools, as well as their school pyramid, scout troops, sports teams and youth groups, according to the Vienna Business Association website.

The Vienna Lions Club has Fraser Firs for sale with costs ranging from $65 to $115. The club will also be selling wreaths, ropage and related holiday goods in the Walgreens parking lot at 225 Maple Ave.

Hours are:

• Weekdays: 2 to 8 p.m.
• Saturday: 9 a.m. to 8 p.m.
• Sunday: 11 a.m. to 7 p.m.

According to its website, the Vienna Lions Club expects items to be gone before Dec. 13.

“We will remain open until we sell out,” the club said. “We anticipate a strong and brisk tree sale and remind our loyal customers of just how quickly our inventory can diminish.”

Proceeds from the sale benefit local, national, and international LIONS Sight and Hearing Foundation activities, along with several organizations, community, and individual betterment activities.

Local nurseries in Fairfax County have also decked out their socially distanced halls with greenery to buy.

In Vienna, shoppers can stop by DePaul’s Urban Farm (2599 Chain Bridge Rd) for trees and a holiday market.

The Merrifield Christmas shop looks more spread out this year to allow for safe social distancing, but it is still offering the same selection of Christmas decor, plants, and greens.

Orders must be placed before arriving at one of the store’s three locations in Falls Church, Fair Oaks, and Gainsville. Once shoppers arrive at the loading station, they can remain in their vehicles while staff loads their purchases.

Meadows Farms has trees, poinsettias and wreaths galore, with locations in Chantilly, Falls Church, Annandale, Vienna and Herndon, and 16 other shops. It also has an online library with decorating tips and care instructions.

If you know of any other location, please let Tysons Reporter know!

Staff photo by Jay Westcott