Drivers can expect delays this morning from a crash along Route 123 between I-495 and the Dulles Connector Road in Tysons.

A traffic camera showed what appeared to be the front end of a red vehicle rammed into the back of a white vehicle around 9 a.m. Police are on scene.

Traffic was backed up connecting the Dulles Connector Road to Route 123, according to Google Maps.

Image via Virginia 511, map via Google Maps

The Tysons area is under a Severe Thunderstorm Warning, which includes the D.C. area.

The warning will last until 5:45 p.m. People can expect winds up to 60 miles per hour with “quarter size hail.”

More from the National Weather Service:

At 4:57 PM EDT, severe thunderstorms were located along a line extending from near Great Falls to Fairfax to near Bull Run, moving east at 25 mph…

IMPACT…Damaging winds will cause some trees and large branches to fall. This could injure those outdoors, as well as damage homes and vehicles. Roadways may become blocked by downed trees. Localized power outages are possible. Unsecured light objects may become projectiles.

Severe Thunderstorm Warning including Washington DC, Arlington VA, Alexandria VA until 5:45 PM EDT pic.twitter.com/tLVjgUjhhY

— NWS Baltimore-Washington (@NWS_BaltWash) September 11, 2019

A young Vienna resident is the recipient of a national honor recognizing upcoming leaders in the scientific community.

Siona Prasad recently won the Davidson Fellow Scholarship for her work in environmental science and climate change, which included $25,000 in college tuition assistance at Harvard University, where she began studies this fall.

Leading up to this moment, Prasad said she applied for this award several times in the past and was thrilled when she finally became a recipient.

“My family was very proud and we were all excited about the scholarship,” she said. “It means the world to be recognized for my work.”

She added that being included in the network of other fellows and alumni network is also an honor. Prasad will attend a ceremonial dinner for the award on Sept. 27 in D.C.

The Davidson Scholarship awards young adults age 18 or younger with scholarship money who demonstrate outstanding achievements in the scientific community. Applicants must be either the lead student scientist on a project or conduct it independently, according to the scholarship website.

Throughout her high school career at Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology, she worked with researchers and professors at the University of Maryland to develop low-cost CO2 sensors that were easy to scale and implement in cities.

These sensors can detect where greenhouse gasses are emitted from within city limits and allow the government and environmental research agencies to ultimately combat the effects of climate change, according to a Davidson Institute press release.

“We have less than a decade to solve the biggest environmental crisis we have ever faced,” she said.

Across D.C., Prasad said she was able to install nine sensors on places like telephone polls and collect data that is now in the hands of University of Maryland professors.

Before the project, Prasad said she was always interested in the environment and was particularly motivated when former President Barack Obama’s asked if this generation is doing all they can to prepare a better future in his 2016 State of the Union address. Prasad said she wanted to answer his query with an honest “yes.”

Prasad said she plans to study computer science and environmental science at Harvard, adding that she’s also interested in entrepreneurship and startup companies.

“Technology is one of the most powerful weapons we have against climate change,” Prasad said.

Photo via Davidson Institute

Updated at 9:15 a.m. — A Dominion Energy spokesperson said at 10:25 p.m. Wednesday night that all of the power outages have been resolved.

Updated at 3:40 p.m. — Dominion Energy’s power outage map now shows five power outages affecting a total of 4,049 customers from Glyndon Street NE to I-66.

Earlier: Widespread power outages hit the Vienna area, leaving more than 4,000 Dominion Energy customers without power today (Wednesday).

An outage affecting 3,601 customers stretches from Glyndon Street NE in Vienna past the Vienna/Fairfax-GMU Metro station to Fairhill Elementary School, according to Dominion Energy’s power outage map.

Four other power outages affecting roughly 1,400 customers are also reported in the Vienna area.

The causes of the outages are pending investigation. Dominion expects power to be restored between 4-9 p.m.

A downed power line caused S. Center Street between Locust Street SE and E. Maple Avenue to close, the Town of Vienna tweeted at 3 p.m.

The Town of Vienna tweeted at 3:32 p.m. that activities at the Vienna Community Center have been canceled due to the power outage, which is expected to be resolved in two to four hours.

Update: Town phones are offline. Power expected to be repaired in 2-4 hrs. Please do not call police for power-related issues. Call 911 in case of an emergency.

— Town of Vienna, VA (@TownofViennaVA) September 11, 2019

Due to the power outage all classes and activities at the Vienna Community Center are closed for the rest of the day. Power will be restored in approximately 2-4 hours.

— Town of Vienna, VA (@TownofViennaVA) September 11, 2019

Due to a downed power line, Center Street S is closed between Locust Street SE and Maple Avenue E. pic.twitter.com/yQuMIiIrRy

— Town of Vienna, VA (@TownofViennaVA) September 11, 2019

First map via Dominion Energy, second map via Google Maps

Updated at 2:15 p.m. — Includes new information from Marshall High School. 

A smell of burnt material prompted students to evacuate from Marshall High School this afternoon (Wednesday).

Fighterfighters from Fairfax and Arlington counties responded to the Tysons area school (7731 Leesburg Pike) for an “odor of burnt material,” Fairfax County Fire and Rescue tweeted at 1:35 p.m.

“Believed to be an HVAC unit. There is NO fire or smoke,” the tweet said.

All of the students have been evacuated from the school and the “situation is under control,” according to Fairfax County Fire and Rescue.

In an email to the “Marshall Family,” Principal Jeffrey Litz said that everyone went back inside the school around 1:50 p.m. after fire department personnel conducted air quality tests.

“The facilities department of Fairfax County Public Schools will continue to investigate the cause of the alarm,” Litz wrote.

Here’s the entire letter:

Dear Marshall Family,

Today, the students and staff of Marshall High School were evacuated from the building at approximately 1:25 PM when the fire alarm rang as a result of some smoke in a classroom from a rooftop air conditioning unit. All students and staff members left the building in an orderly fashion, and everyone was immediately determined to be safe and accounted for.

The fire department responded promptly and determined that there was no fire and no safety risk existed. Fire department personnel conducted air quality tests and subsequently allowed everyone to return to the building. The facilities department of Fairfax County Public Schools will continue to investigate the cause of the alarm.

While the fire department was investigating to determine the cause of the alarm, all students and staff were outside until students were allowed back in their classrooms at approximately 1:50 PM. All of this was done in an organized fashion, and students were always under adult supervision.

Thank you to everyone who cooperated during our dismissal procedures. We are pleased that no real problem was detected, and our emergency plans were effective. We will still hold Back to School Night this evening and look forward to seeing you soon.

Regards,

Jeffrey D. Litz

Principal

The building was evacuated following a fire from an air conditioning unit on the roof that caused smoke to fill certain C200 classrooms. More information to come later. pic.twitter.com/uHJeylEz5W

— rank&file (@GCMranknfile) September 11, 2019

Units on scene 7700 block of Leesburg Pike, Marshall High School, with a odor of burnt material. Believed to be an HVAC unit. There is NO fire or smoke. All students safely evacuated. Crews working to narrow down HVAC unit. Situation under control. @fcpsnews @MStatesmen pic.twitter.com/b7kLSibiez

— Fairfax County Fire/Rescue (@ffxfirerescue) September 11, 2019

Chick-fil-A is now looking to hire workers as the restaurant chain prepares to open in the Town of Vienna.

The restaurant will be on the ground floor of an enormous castle-looking building that will also house a Flagship Carwash on the second floor at 540 W. Maple Avenue.

Franchise owner Jeff Hubley is looking to hire up to 100 people for full- and part-time positions, including leadership development, hospitality and training, according to a press release. Employees can expect to have Sundays off and scholarship opportunities for continuing education.

The Chick-fil-A is slated to open in November.

Construction is still in progress on the project, which was one of several new projects approved under the town’s contentious Maple Avenue Commercial (MAC) zoning process.

The site has faced a series of delays and public backlash.

Last image via Town of Vienna Planning and Zoning 

As Merrifield and Falls Church continue to urbanize, an office park east of I-495 may get transformed into a mixed-use development.

Last July, the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors OK’d considering changes to parts of the Merrifield Suburban Center, which aims for two high-density, “core areas” located between I-66 and Woodburn Road.

Merrifield has already seen some major transformations — from developments like Halstead Square and Avenir Place to the new commercial area known as the Mosaic District.

Now, a proposed change to the plan would have an area surrounded by I-495, Lee Hwy and Route 50 become “an amenity-rich office park and mixed-use neighborhood.”

Directly to the east of I-495, Fairview Park currently has offices — including the four-story-tall HIIT Contracting building — by a lake and residential communities. A tributary of Holmes Run runs along the southern edge of the area.

Northrop Grumman Federal Credit Union and the 2941 restaurant are nearby.

The proposed plan amendment wants infill development to add more office space, multi-family homes, a hotel, retail and recreational uses to Fairview Park.

“The justification for the nomination states that the existing single-use office park model that was successful in the 1980s is no longer competitive with mixed-use work environments that provide retail and service amenities, as well as the opportunity to live near work,” according to a staff report on the proposed amendment.

More from the staff report:

The most intense activity area would be located just north of Route 50 and would include an outdoor plaza, and residential uses with first floor retail uses. At either end of the plaza, the concept would provide for social and cultural amenities such as waterfront recreation, an amphitheater, free-standing retail pavilions, and an indoor community space. Midrise residential buildings with first floor retail uses would frame the plaza and infill elsewhere in the sub-unit.

An enhanced network of sidewalks and trails with a more suburban, naturalistic streetscape appearance would link the existing and new development and the natural areas of the office park, including the Holmes Run tributary and the shore of Fairview Lake.

On the east side of Fairview Park Drive, the nomination proposed to develop a residential building on a man-made peninsula in order to capitalize on the natural setting and the proximity of the lake.

The staff report notes that demand for office space has declined as options like teleworking become more popular and that workers want access to public transit and shopping and dining options.

The proposed amendment to the Merrifield Suburban Center plan would also alter an area catty-corner to Fairview Park near the Inova Fairfax Hospital.

Both areas would incorporate residential uses. The staff report recommends that the plans for those areas include affordable dwelling units or workforce dwelling units to add to the county’s Housing Trust Fund and “create an inclusive community”, along with senior living options and housing for college students.

The Fairfax County Planning Commission is scheduled to hold a public hearing on the proposed changes today (Sept. 11) before they head to the Board of Supervisors for a hearing on Tuesday, Sept. 24.

Image via Fairfax County 

The City of Falls Church will host their annual festival this coming Saturday (Sept. 14).

This year’s 44th annual festival will feature a Biergarten, local food vendors, pony rides, live entertainment, amusement rides and booths from businesses. The event will run from 10 a.m. until 4 p.m. outside City Hall (223 Little Falls Street).

Admission to the event is free, but attendees can purchase tickets for food and drink from more than 15 vendors, along with tickets for the rides.

Throughout the day, visitors can enjoy live entertainment. Noland the Magician will perform a live magic show for onlookers featuring puppets at 10 a.m. Sudden M Pac Band, an R&B soul band, will perform at 12:15 p.m.

The Biergarten will be open from 11:30 a.m. until 3:30 p.m. While everyone is welcome to hang out in the space, anyone wishing to purchase or consume alcohol must be 21 or older. There will be beers on tap from Audacious Aleworks and assorted cocktails with liquor from Falls Church Distillers.

For kids, there will be a crafting tent in Cherry Hill Park.

Photo via the City of Falls Church

What’s in a name? Tysons is no stranger to name debates.

The growing city was founded as Tysons Corner before a rebranding shortened the name to Tysons to shed the area’s image as a small urban community.

Much like Arlington residents call themselves Arlingtonians and people who live in Maryland are referred to as Marylanders, Tysons Reporter wants to know how Tysons residents refer to themselves.

Let us know in the poll and comment section below.

More bus routes may come to Tysons in the future.

Fairfax County is currently conducting a study on bus rapid transit options along Route 7 in Tysons.

Sean Schweitzer and Nanditha Paradkar from the Fairfax County Department of Transportation gave the Board of Supervisors an update on the proposal at the Transportation Committee meeting today (Tuesday).

FCDOT Director Tom Biesiadny said that this project is a subset of a larger Northern Virginia Transportation Commission’s Envision Route 7 project. Fairfax County took over the part in Tysons because it overlaps with other projects in the area, Biesiadny said.

Schweitzer said that a study about the bus alternatives was initiated last October. Now, FCDOT has the proposed bus system divided into three segments:

• segment 1: Spring Hill Metro station to International Drive
• segment 2: International Drive to I-495
• segment 3: I-495 to I-66

So far, FCDOT is considering several alternatives for each of those segments. Fairfax County has the funding to complete the study, Biesiadny said.

Schweitzer said that the alternatives will be put through simulations this fall before seeking feedback from civic associations.

Image via Fairfax County