New Firm Helping Businesses With COVID-19 Rules — “The Tysons firm [Covidless Workplace Services], founded in June, aims to provide businesses with a set of recommendations and guidelines that not only help them comply with regulations but also implement best practices, said co-founder Dirar Hakeem.” [Washington Business Journal]

Koenigsegg Hypercar Will Be Sold in Tysons — “The manufacturer of one of the world’s most exclusive ‘hypercars’ has made it official and announced Tysons-based Exclusive Automotive Group as its only local dealer… The models will only be on site for special events, and even if you choose to acquire one, it’ll take one to two years to get it.” [Washington Business Journal]

Book Demand High — “Local libraries’ physical doors may be shut since the Covid-19 pandemic hit, but their virtual doors are seeing plenty of ‘foot traffic’ at all hours of the day in the City of Falls Church and surrounding areas.” [Falls Church News-Press]

Mask Campaign — “Four of Northern Virginia’s top health care organizations started a campaign Wednesday with a simple message about fighting the coronavirus pandemic: Wear a mask.” [Patch]

The Tysons Corner Center theater is among the more than 100 locations AMC Theatres plans to reopen next week with one-day-only 15-cent tickets.

The movie theater chain announced the plans today, saying that the steeply-discounted ticket prices will celebrate AMC’s 100th anniversary by giving audience-goers ticket prices from the 1920s.

The more than 100 locations will offer the 15-cent tickets for their reopening on Thursday (Aug. 20).

“We are thrilled to once again open our doors to American moviegoers who are looking for an opportunity to get out of their houses and apartments and escape into the magic of the movies,” Adam Aron, the president and CEO of AMC Theatres, said in the announcement.

Roughly 300 other AMC locations are slated to reopen within the following two weeks — in time for Disney’s “The New Mutants,” which is expected to get released on Aug. 28, and Warner Bros.’ “Tenet” on Sept. 3, the announcement said.

The remaining one-third of the theaters will reopen “only after authorized to do so by state and local officials,” the announcement said.

Photo by Corina Rainer/Unsplash

A lightning strike sparked the fire yesterday morning that caused roughly $55,000 worth of damage to the roof of a Vienna church, firefighters say.

Fairfax County Fire and Rescue shared today that the lightning strike hit a metal part of the church’s skylight.

A person near the building called 9-1-1 after smelling smoke and hearing the fire alarm, the fire department said.

Firefighters from Fairfax and Arlington counties responded to the fire in the 1000 block of Country Club Drive shortly after 6 a.m. and quickly extinguished the fire, which was contained to the attic.

No injuries were reported and no one was in the building at the time of the fire, according to the fire department.

Photos via Fairfax County Fire and Rescue

LB Food market and Wooden Bakery in Vienna kicked off a fundraising effort to help support relief efforts in Beirut after a massive explosion.

Lebanon was already struggling with hyperinflation and economic turmoil before the explosion killed more than 170 people and injured thousands in the country’s capital city last Tuesday.

Rami El-Hasrouni, the owner of Wooden Bakery, told Tysons Reporter that he helped start the GoFundMe to raise $10,000 for two organizations helping people in Beirut: the Lebanese Red Cross and Beit El Baraka. So far, the fundraiser has received $170.

“Everybody is asking, ‘How can we help?'” El-Hasrouni said.

The market, which now sells Mediterranean food in the former spot of Bey Lounge, and the Lebanese bakery are both operated by D.C.-based Woodfire Brands.

In addition to the fundraiser, the bakery and market are looking for clothing and medical supply donations and will donate 30% of the pita bread and pita chips sales through next week.

Our Lady of Lebanon Church in D.C. is filling up cargo containers with clothes, food and medical supplies to send to Lebanon, El-Hasrouni said, adding that clothes, bandages and medicine are especially needed. El-Hasrouni said that if people bring donations to the bakery, he will make sure they get the items to the church.

Several Lebanese restaurants in the Tysons area, including Lebanese Taverna and Zenola, are raising money to help Beirut.

“Restaurants are barely breaking even but we’re trying to do something,” El-Hasrouni said. “It’s amazing how people are coming together.”

Photo via LB Food Market/Facebook

The police department in Falls Church says scammers are calling people, threatening them with arrests to get their money and personal information.

The city sent out an alert yesterday (Wednesday) about the scam after several residents reported callers said the residents had outstanding arrest warrants.

“The caller claims to be an officer with the City of Falls Church Police Department and demands immediate payment for an alleged fine,” the city’s announcement said. “Through threats and intimidation, the caller attempts to convince residents to purchase prepaid debit cards and provide the identification numbers which allows the scammers to obtain the money from the cards.”

A survey by Provision Living, which offers senior living, found that robocalls are becoming more common for seniors. COVID-19 scams and robocalls are reportedly on the rise around the country.

The alert said that people who get a call from someone claiming to be from the city’s police department should hang up and call the police non-emergency line at 703-241-5053 (TTY 711).

“The City of Falls Church Police Department is reminding citizens that agency representatives have never and will never call to solicit funds or collect fines,” the alert said.

Here’s advice from the police department on how to spot spam calls:

• be suspicious of unsolicited calls
• never use the phone number from the caller to verify their credibility
• never give money or personal information to the caller
• if a call makes you suspicious, hang up

Photo by Jonah Pettrich on Unsplash

Updated 9:50 a.m. — Aas a Flood Warning is in effect for the area until 3:30 p.m. today. NWS said that Vienna, Falls Church, Tysons and Merrifield may experience flooding. 

Earlier: People can expect more thunderstorms and possibly heavy rain.

The National Weather Service issued a Flash Flood Watch for today (Thursday).

More from NWS:

Slow moving thunderstorms capable of producing heavy rainfall may develop today. Heavy rainfall from thunderstorms may lead to flash flooding.

Potential impacts include rapid rises of water, flooded roads and flooding of structures in low lying areas near streams. Landslides and washouts are also possible.

People are advised to not drive through water they don’t know the depth.

Another flash flood watch is in effect for today. Multiple rounds of thunderstorms with heavy rain will be possible. pic.twitter.com/w40WR0SEvU

— NWS Baltimore-Washington (@NWS_BaltWash) August 13, 2020

Flash Flood Watch In Effect until midnight tonight (8/13)! If you must be on roads, never drive through a flooded roadway! PLEASE #TurnAroundDontDrown! Plan alternate routes around flooded roads. Don't put you, any passengers AND #FCFRD firefighters/paramedics in harm’s way! pic.twitter.com/xhoUAocquH

— Fairfax County Fire/Rescue (@ffxfirerescue) August 13, 2020

Like many small businesses, the Clock Tower Thrift Shop in Falls Church took a major financial hit during the pandemic. But unlike other businesses, the store supports the Northern Virginia Family Service (NVFS), a nonprofit that serves 35,000 people.

The thrift store lost roughly $120,000 during its three-month closure in the spring, Leyla Alijani, the director of NVFS Ventures, told Tysons Reporter. The store started to slowly reopen in late June and is now looking for ways to reach new shoppers and recoup its losses as the pandemic continues.

“It was hard,” Alijani said. “It was super, super hard. We’re just grateful, really grateful to be open again.”

The tiny store (2860 Annandale Road) is the last remaining one supporting NVFS programs after the other four stores closed over the years due to rising rents and online shopping, Alijani said. The 4,500-square-foot store in Falls Church opened 20 years ago and has remained profitable, she said.

The shop is run by three staffers and volunteers, who clean and refurbish the donations — often from private estate sales and people who are downsizing.

The store caters to thrifters, first-time home buyers, collectors and resellers. Shoppers can find art, furniture, $2 t-shirts, vintage items, lamps, rugs, clothing, sporting equipment and more. To be extra cautious during the pandemic, however, the store is no longer selling beauty items, pillows, bedding and dolls for kids.

“The purpose of it is to provide below-market rates so that it’s accessible to everyone’s budget,” Alijani said.

Home items have gained popularity at the shop as more people look for work from home desks, smaller pieces of furniture, games and school supplies. “We have more of a demand than we have supply,” Alijani said.

All of the sales fund NVFS programs, which range from a shelter for people experiencing homelessness to early childhood education to workforce development. Previously, the sales have benefitted mental health support and foster care kids, Alijani said. It’s unclear at the moment how much the financial loss from the spring will impact NVFS programs, she said.

Alijani said the Clock Tower Thrift Shop needs more donations, especially since fewer people have been dropping items off lately.

She also wants to erase any stigma attached to coming to a thrift store and expand the customer base beyond the regulars. “There’s no shame in going to a thrift store, because it supports the community,” Alijani said. “It’s cool, one-of-a-kind stuff.”

The store’s exterior likely won’t catch drivers’ attention, especially since they might be disappointed that the store is not as big as it appears outside, Alijani said, noting the store only occupies the first level of the two-story building.

“It kind of looks like a dive from the outside,” Alijani said.

To make it more well known in the area, Alijani said plans are in the works to launch an online presence for the store so people can see more of the available items.

Shoppers can visit the store from 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Wednesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays and Sundays. Face coverings are required.

Drop-off donations are accepted from 10 a.m.-5 p.m. on Mondays and from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. on Saturdays. On Tuesday, the staff schedules pick-ups at people’s homes for bulky donations.

“It looks like a cube, but once you go in, it’s like a little jewel box,” Alijani said.

Photos courtesy Leyla Alijani

Fairfax County NAACP President Sean Perryman wasn’t planning to explore the possibility of running for public office earlier this year.

Pressing issues from the ongoing pandemic and Black Lives Matter Movement after police killed George Floyd inspired Perryman to explore jumping into Virginia’s lieutenant governor race.

“It was really born out of the crisis we are seeing,” Perryman said. “This was not something that was in the cards for me when I first started this year.”

Already familiar with how to elect local Democrats from his work for Virginia’s Democratic Party, Perryman said that the lieutenant governor position would give him the most leverage to advocate change.

In addition to his role as Fairfax County NAACP’s president, Perryman works for the Internet Association. Previously, he served as counsel for the House of Representatives Committee on Oversight and Government Reform. He practiced civil litigation in Texas and D.C. after attending Vanderbilt University.

Current Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax, a Democrat, is eyeing a run for governor in 2021. The election for Fairfax’s seat will be held next November.

So far, Del. Hala Ayala (D-51st) and Paul Goldman, the former chair of Virginia’s Democratic Party, and have announced they will vie for Fairfax’s seat. In addition to Perryman, Del. Elizabeth Guzman (D-31st) and Norfolk Councilmember Andria McClellan are considering running for the position.

Currently, Perryman said he is working with his team to figure out how they can best “serve Virginians” and that they haven’t set a date to officially announce his candidacy. Perryman shared with Tysons Reporter what some of his top issues are.

Perryman said that extending the eviction moratorium is one of his main priorities, noting that he’s already been advocating for the extension in Virginia with the NAACP since the pandemic started. 

“The federal government did not provide enough assistance to get people through this crisis and now I think, rather cruelly, allowing people to be evicted when all they did was adhere to what the government told them to do,” Perryman told Tysons Reporter.

Though the Virginia Supreme Court extended the eviction moratorium through early September, Perryman said this isn’t enough time for people to recover from the pandemic’s economic fallout.

“It really depends on how long it takes the federal government to get financial assistance to those people in need,” he said.

Allocation of the CARES Act funding, which allows states to extend unemployment benefits to independent contractors, is yet another area that needs work, according to Perryman. “Here in Virginia, what we can do better is the unemployment insurance that is available.”

People had to wait weeks for Virginia to sort out the delays with unemployment payments. Virginia’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate was 2.7 percent in January before skyrocketing in the spring due to the pandemic.

Perryman said that unemployment benefits should be more widely accessible for all kinds of workers as long as they can prove their income was interrupted by the pandemic.

Perryman attributed Virginia’s unemployment office being short-staffed — “It wasn’t up to par for what was coming” — as a reason for the delays and suggested that there is an opportunity to revamp the department and hire new people.

Right now, Perryman is focused on grassroots fundraising. He managed to raise over $80,000, all of which came from individuals — not corporations or political action committees — in the first 10 days of the campaign, Perryman tweeted.

“I’m relying on small-dollar donations from the community,” he said.

His next steps include meeting with community activists and elected officials. No matter what happens in the next few months, Perryman said it’s crucial that voters pay attention to state elections.

While voter fatigue is possible with the tensions around the upcoming elections this fall, Perryman said people need to think about the changes they want to see both locally and nationally.

“People understand we are in unprecedented times,” Perryman said. “None of us thought we’d be sanitizing our groceries, wearing masks and talking only via Zoom. We can’t give up or get tired. We have to essentially rebuild the society we are living in.”

THREAD: I’m excited to share that I’m exploring a run for Lieutenant Governor of Virginia. Over the next few months, I’m looking forward to meeting with people across the Commonwealth to hear about the issues that are important to them.
https://t.co/IISMXItOhP

— Sean Perryman (@SeanPerrymanVA) July 27, 2020

Photo courtesy Sean Perryman

Fairfax County is pushing ahead with work on its new climate plan in an effort to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions.

Fairfax County officials are seeking the public’s feedback on the Community-wide Energy and Climate Action Plan (CECAP) through a series of virtual public meetings. The three upcoming meetings will facilitate conversations on the county’s climate change management goals.

People can register for the meetings through the links below:

• Thursday, August 27: 7-9 p.m.
• Tuesday, September 1: 10 a.m. to noon
• Wednesday, September 2, 2020: 7-9 p.m.

The CECAP Task Force, which is composed of representatives from associations and businesses, will incorporate the public’s feedback into their final draft of the policy. 

Here’s more from the county on the plan:

The Fairfax County Community-wide Energy and Climate Action Plan (CECAP) development process is administered by the Office of Environmental and Energy Coordination with support from the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments and the Fairfax County-based management consulting firm ICF. The plan, which will be the first of its kind for the county, will include a greenhouse gas inventory as well as targets for greenhouse gas reduction in the coming years.

The CECAP will also include actions and strategies to help mitigate climate change and to reduce the impact of climate-related events on county residents and businesses. At the conclusion of the development process, a final plan will be presented to the Board of Supervisors for adoption. 

Get ready for another summer thunderstorm. A Flash Flood Watch will be in effect in Fairfax County this afternoon and evening.

The National Weather Service says that thunderstorms and showers could bring 1-2 inches of rain with some areas possibly getting up to 4 inches.

“A cold front will move into the area Wednesday and then stall out,” according to NWS. “Numerous slow-moving showers and thunderstorms will pose a risk of flash flooding.”

Flash Flood Watch expanded westward for today and tonight. pic.twitter.com/8DUzrASBwL

— NWS Baltimore-Washington (@NWS_BaltWash) August 12, 2020