New PPP Loan Guidance — “New guidance from the Small Business Administration changes the compensation limits for certain Paycheck Protection Program borrowers who are considered owner-employees.” [Washington Business Journal]
Here’s Where VA COVID-19 Cases Are Up — “Richmond, a city of over 230,000 people, recorded more new cases than Prince William County, which has over 470,000 people. Localities leading in new cases on Thursday were Fairfax County with 81, Richmond City with 73, Prince William County with 66, and Virginia Beach with 55.” [Patch]
Painted Rocks Share Positive Messages — “Local Girl Scouts met in person in the middle of last month, for the first time since the pandemic began, to paint stones for ‘Rock Your August with Kindness,’ the Vienna Arts Society’s (VAS) third summer project. The public may admire or even take home the approximately 150 rocks painted by the Scouts, said VAS member Mary Ellen Larkins, who co-chaired the project with MaryBeth Davis.” [Inside NoVa]
Families Living in Tysons High-Rises — “Tysons shows that high-rise housing can be an appealing home for all ages. In Tysons, 21.4% of residents are under 20 years old, an increase of about 20% since Tysons’ redevelopment plan for more housing was implemented in 2010. The majority of Tysons’ housing stock consists of mid- to high-rise, elevator buildings.” [Greater Greater Washington]
Photo by Michelle Goldchain
PLNT Burger has started serving up vegan burgers and beverages inside Whole Foods at The Boro development.
The new location, which an employee at the Tysons location (1635 Boro Place) said opened today, is the sixth one all located within Whole Foods stores for Chef Spike Mendelsohn.
PLNT Burger’s menu is vegan and features burgers, cheeseburgers, chili bowls, Beyond Meat sausage, oat milk-based soft serve, fries, Whisked cookies, a salad and more.
Mendelsohn, the D.C.-area restaurateur who competed during the fourth season of “Top Chef,” opened the first PLNT Burger in September 2019 in Silver Spring, Md. Mendelsohn also operates several other D.C. eateries, including Good Stuff Eatery; We, The Pizza; Béarnaise; and Santa Rosa Taqueria.
The employee said that the PLNT Burger location in Tysons is open from 11 a.m.-9 p.m. daily.
Hat tip Vernon Miles
Photo via PLNT Burger/Facebook
HAN Palace originally wanted to open its Tysons spot in April, but then the coronavirus pandemic hit Northern Virginia.
Now, the restaurant is looking to start serving its “traditional” Cantonese brunch and all-day dim sum in a few weeks. HAN Palace will have a bar, indoor dining and patio seating at the same building (7900 Westpark Drive) that houses Bourbon Coffee and Ahra Kitchen.
The restaurant recently shared on Facebook that it is aiming to open mid-September. Northern Virginia Magazine reported the opening date is Sept. 17.
Owner Chris Zhu, who also runs China Garden in Rockville, Md., told Tysons Reporter in March that the restaurant’s all-day dim sum will stand out because D.C. restaurants usually only offer dim sum for lunch.
Diners can get complimentary garage parking for two hours during the day or after 6 p.m. on weekdays and up to six hours on the weekends.
Photo courtesy Chris Zhu
Phoenix-based Eduvision, Inc. is looking to expand the Arizona College of Nursing into Virginia with a location in the Fairview Park development.
Eduvision wants to turn the eighth floor of the office building at 3130 Fairview Park Drive into seven classrooms, according to plans submitted to Fairfax County. The office is a part of the Fairview Park development, which is located at the southeastern intersection of Arlington Blvd (Route 50) and I-495.
Eduvision owns and operates the Arizona College of Nursing, which has locations in Arizona, Nevada, Texas and Florida, according to Walsh Colucci. This would be the nursing school’s first Virginia location.
Lynne Strobel with Walsh Colucci highlighted in a letter to county planners that the nursing school would be very close to both Inova Fairfax Hospital, which is on the other side of I-495, and the Dunn Loring Metro station.
“[Inova Fairfax] Hospital offers a number of training opportunities and is a potential employer of the applicant’s graduates,” Strobel wrote. In September 2019, the county approved the hospital’s land-use plan as Inova looks to expand and provide more research and academic space at its Merrifield campus.
The Arizona College of Nursing at Fairview Park would have roughly 200 students on-site at any one time and 10 full-time faculty members at full enrollment. Once open, the school would offer classes year-round without summer breaks, according to the plans.
Eduvision is seeking approval from Fairfax County for a “college/university” use at the office building. Fairfax County’s website does not list public hearing dates for the proposal.
Strobel urged county planners to consider the application, saying that the proposed nursing school would fit in with the office building and the Fairview Park development.
“A diversification of the uses at Fairview Park will add to its vibrancy… The pond, open space, and trials in the office park are conducive to an educational setting,” Strobel wrote.
Image via Google Maps
SHOTTED Specialty Coffee is serving drinks from its new home in Tysons Corner Center.
The coffee shop originally had a kiosk on level two. Two weeks ago, SHOTTED held its grand opening for its kiosk on the first level outside Barnes and Noble.
The coffee shop has been active in the D.C. area, from supporting local Saudi student clubs to serving up pistachio lattes at the Embassy of Saudi Arabia, according to its Instagram.
People who stop by the new location in Tysons Corner Center can try a Spanish latte, which is usually sweeter than traditional lattes.
Photo via SHOTTED/Facebook
Work is officially underway to revamp the Washington & Old Dominion Trail in Falls Church by adding parallel pedestrian and bicycle trails.
The City of Falls Church, NOVA Parks and the Northern Virginia Transportation Authority (NVTA) celebrated the start of the project with a groundbreaking earlier today.
The W&OD Trail Enhancements Project aims to separate slow- and fast-moving users by creating an 11-foot-wide bicycle trail and an 8-foot-wide path for pedestrians. A 2-foot-wide textured surface will separate the two paths.
The “Dual Trails” portion will include most of the 1.5 miles of the trail in the city, while a separate portion is set to get designed for parts of the W&OD in Arlington, according to a press release.
“The W&OD Trail Enhancements Project is a significant step to encourage non-motorized transportation, increase capacity and reduce congestion for cyclists and pedestrians utilizing the busy pathway,” Erica Hawksworth, an NVTA spokesperson, told Tysons Reporter.
Additionally, the project also will promote carbon-free travel and more biodiversity, according to a NOVA Parks sign at the groundbreaking. The press release about the groundbreaking noted that the project will improve stormwater management along the trail.
During a review of the project proposal in December, Falls Church planners said that it fits the city’s vision for separate walking and biking trails.
Hawksworth noted that the project is especially noteworthy because trails have been busier than usual during the coronavirus pandemic.
“Upon completion of the W&OD Trail Enhancements project, trail users will notice reduced congestion, safer conditions and enhanced bike and pedestrian access to the two Metrorail stations within the I-66 corridor,” Hawksworth said.
NVTA provided $3.24 million of regional funding for the project, which is being built by NOVA Parks and the city. Construction is expected to last until June 2021.
“It is fitting that the new Dual Trail enhancements start in the City of Falls Church, as the first section of the trail began here in 1974,” Mayor David Tarter said. “The city is pleased to once again be at the forefront of better and healthier ways to move people.”
.@FallsChurchGov Council Member and Authority member, David Snyder, talks about critical enhancements on W&OD Trail. @NOVA_Parks pic.twitter.com/hk34M55A0t
— Northern Virginia's Transportation Authority (@NVTAuthority) August 26, 2020
It is so good to be out and about – socially distanced, of course! Today we are celebrating the groundbreaking on the W&OD Trail Enhancements in @FallsChurchGov in partnership w/ the City & @NOVA_Parks! #cyclinglife #northernva pic.twitter.com/dpmsqYSYOt
— Northern Virginia's Transportation Authority (@NVTAuthority) August 26, 2020
Photo courtesy NVTA, map via City of Falls Church
As the start date for Fairfax County Public Schools approaches, school officials are in the midst of developing metrics to guide how and when schools would reopen.
At a Fairfax County School Board meeting in late July, the board directed FCPS Superintendent Scott Brabrand to begin drafting preliminary metrics to inform decisions about school openings and closures.
School officials anticipate a spike in COVID-19 cases in the late fall during flu season. Another possibility is “recurring waves across many months until a vaccine is developed,” which could reflect a “loss of stamina” for strict social distancing precautions, according to FCPS documents.
The move comes in the absence of state or county level metrics on the issue. In a recent email, Melanie Meren, the school board member for the Hunter Mill District, said this step was taken due to lack of guidance from state officials on the issue.
“Therefore, the school board felt it was vital for FCPS to begin developing our own, because no one else was doing that for or with us,” Meren wrote.
The latest plan for reopening and closures notes that “multi-faceted metric and thresholds” will be used to guide decision-making.
School officials will take several factors into consideration based on community transmission and disease trends, which will determine if the level of community transmissions creates conditions for face-to-face transmission.
Other factors include operational metrics like the school system’s capacity to support in-person instruction, personal protective equipment and cleaning supplies. Finally, school officials will also consider school metrics.
Until then, FCPS students are set to return to virtual classes on Tuesday, Sept. 8, right after Labor Day.
Lidl’s recently announced expansion along the East Coast includes a new store in Merrifield Plaza.
Lidl announced yesterday that it plans to open 50 stores stretching from Delaware to South Carolina by the end of 2021 and close two stores in North Carolina. The Merrifield Plaza location, which Rosenthal Properties announced in June, is among the seven new stores coming to Virginia.
Lidl will take over the 30,000 square-foot space (2901 Gallows Road) currently occupied by Office Depot when the office supply retailer’s lease ends on Dec. 31, Billy Orlove, Rosenthal’s leasing director, told Tysons Reporter.
In addition to the upcoming exit from Merrifield, Office Depot is shuttering dozens of locations through the end of 2021. Lidl will join Korean-American supermarket chain H Mart at the shopping center at the intersection of Gallows Road and Lee Hwy.
“Lidl will bring additional fresh choices, convenient shopping and great savings to the community,” Jane Le, one of the leasing associates who represented Rosenthal in bringing Lidl to Merrifield Plaza, said.
Originally established in Germany, Lidl has grown its international footprint since the 1970s and now has more than 11,000 stores in 32 countries. In 2015, the discount grocery chain opened its U.S. headquarters in Arlington.
With the expansion, Lidl said in the announcement that it plans to invest more than $500 million in the new stores and create 2,000 new jobs.
Currently, Lidl’s closest stores to the Tysons area include ones in Fairfax and Springfield.
Photo by K. Mitch Hodge/Unsplash
The wait is almost over for the opening of Viva Sol Juice Company, a new smoothie and juice bar along Maple Avenue.
Viva Sol Juice plans to have a soft opening starting tomorrow (Thursday) before its official debut on Saturday (Aug. 29) at 124 Maple Ave W. in the Vienna Shopping Center, owner Kelly Hartranft told Tysons Reporter.
Hartranft grew up in Vienna and graduated from Madison High School. She opened a cafe in Delaware in 2017 after finding dairy-free bowls helped ease symptoms from her autoimmune condition, according to Viva Sol Juice’s website. “With the opening of Viva Sol Juice Co., the evolution of Viva Bowls, a larger and more extensive menu is now available to the local community,” according to the website.
Self-described as “Vienna’s original superfood cafe,” the business focuses on offering plant-based, gluten-free food and drinks. Customers can expect to find 100% cold-pressed juice, bowls, smoothies, doughnuts, and brunch at the new spot.
The online menu includes bowls, smoothies, all-day brunch, cold-pressed juice, an espresso bar and season menu items.
For the soft opening, Viva Sol Juice will offer “sneak peek” ordering through UberEats from 9 a.m.-3 p.m. on Thursday and Friday. On Friday and Saturday, people will be able to come to the new location between 9 a.m.-3 p.m. Once fully open, the regular hours will be from 8 a.m.-7 p.m. on weekdays and 9 a.m.-5 p.m. on weekends.
Photo courtesy Kelly Hartranft
Hybrid Learning — “BASIS Independent McLean, which like all Virginia schools switched to online-only classes this spring because of the public-health emergency, on Aug. 25 reopened under a hybrid plan combining in-person and online learning.” [Inside NoVa]
Food Insecurity High — “Share of McLean is seeing twice its usual demand for food assistance, and several times its usual demand for emergency financial assistance, as the economic fallout of the COVID-19 pandemic continues to exact a heavy toll on the country’s most vulnerable populations.” [Connection Newspapers]
Calls to Remove Library Trustee — “A Fairfax County Library Board of Trustees member is facing criticism for comments about the diverse titles featured on the library’s online catalog. The Virginia Library Association expressed opposition to Phillip Rosenthal’s comments in a letter, while the NOVA Equity Agenda Coalition took it a step further and called for his resignation or removal.” [Patch]
Work Completed Along Route 7 — “The Dulles Corridor Metrorail Project Phase 1 crews have completed all work along eastbound and westbound Route 7 in Tysons.” [Dulles Corridor Metrorail Project]
Photo by Michelle Goldchain
