Free Bike Rides on Earth Day — In celebration of Earth Day today (April 22), Capital Bikeshare wants to encourage more carbon-free transportation by offering a free 24 Hour Pass, which gives cyclists a full day of unlimited 30-minute rides. [Capital Bikeshare]
Restaurant Site Faces Redevelopment — “D.C.-based Northfield Investment and Development has acquired the former Marco Polo restaurant site in Vienna with plans to develop 44 condominium townhouses and 8,200 square feet of retail. The former Marco Polo restaurant at 245 Maple Ave. had already closed when it was heavily damaged by fire in October and later demolished.” [Washingtom Business Journal]
Virginia Tops Distracted Driving List — “April is Distracted Driving Awareness Month and this year, a new study ranked Virginia as the worst state for texting and driving… In 2019, Zendrive found that Virginia drivers use their phone an average of 9 percent of the time, which is a 3 percent increase from last year.” [Inside NoVa]
Pop-Up Fitness Class at Caboose Commons — People can lift, tone and drink brews at a free pop-up class by Falls Church Pure Barre at Caboose Commons tonight at 4 p.m. Happy hour will take place from 3:30-6 p.m. [Caboose Brewing]
Vienna Students Win National Merit Scholarships — “The National Merit Scholarship Corporation announced the first 1,000 corporate-sponsored scholarships Wednesday, April 17… Chloe E. Martin of Paul VI Catholic High School received a scholarship from the PwC Charitable Foundation. Martin plans to study business in college. The other winner, Richard H. Wang of Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology, got a scholarship from Northrop Grumman. Wang will likely study engineering.” [Vienna Patch]
It’s been a long time coming, but Vienna’s two existing Starbucks are closing down as the chain readies to open a drive-thru location a few blocks away at 367 Maple Ave E.
On Sunday, April 28, both of the Starbucks along Maple Avenue will be permanently closing.
“We would like to thank you for being a part of our store community,” Store Manager Jesus Torres said in a sign posted on the store’s front door. “You are the heart of who we are at Starbucks. It has been a great pleasure to connect with you every day. We are very thankful to have played a role in your daily routine and that you have shared these moments of your life with us.”
The new Starbucks location is planned to open Thursday, May 2.
If you absolutely, positively, cannot go four days without Starbucks, the closest nearby locations are one at 2930 Chain Bridge Road in Oakton and one at 8381 Leesburg Pike in Tysons.
A resident called Vienna police after she found unwanted bags of dog poop and trash in her yard last week.
The incidents took place in the 100 block of Dogwood Street, SW between 7 a.m. on Monday, April 8, and 6:07 p.m. on Friday, April 12, according to police.
“A resident reported that there have been a couple of occasions when someone as left bags of dog excrement and trash in her yard,” according to today’s Vienna crime report.
Elsewhere in Vienna, this week’s crime report includes a case of a Windover Avenue, NW resident who “reported she has received packages from Amazon that she never ordered” between last Wednesday, April 10, and Wednesday, April 17. “The person placing the order is using some of the resident’s personal information,” the report says.
Photo via Facebook
After losing Pier 1 Imports a few months, a shopping center near the Greensboro Metro station will soon have Burlington fill up one of its vacant spots with coats, clothes and home goods.
Formerly known as Burlington Coat Factory, the national off-price department store chain will set up shop in Sports Authority’s former spot at 8355 Leesburg Pike.
The store will help occupy one of the noticeable gaps in the shopping center. The space for Pier 1 Imports, which shuttered its doors at 8311 Leesburg Pike in January, currently has a “For Lease” sign.
A sign outside of the Greensboro Metro station says that the store is “coming soon” and asks people interested in jobs to text “RETAIL” to 97211.
Building permits indicate that work, including demolition and framing, is getting done on the site.
This summer, the Village Green Shopping Center is set to welcome in Dog World Pet Salon’s former spot a new spa for humans instead of furry friends.
A sign in the storefront window says that an “organic spa” called Soleil Beauty is “coming soon in July 2019” to 515 Maple Avenue W.
The spa will join several hair salons and spas currently at the shopping center. Soleil Beauty will neighbor the Village Green Hair Salon and Nail Design on one side and Avivo Salon and Day Spa on the other side a couple of doors down. People can also get pampered at the Moonlake Massage Spa and get a hair cut at the Dogan and John Hair Salon above Cupcakes and More.
The shopping center is also home to the Vienna Arts Society and the Italian Gourmet Deli, a family-owned business that has been in Vienna for more than 35 years.
A building permit indicates that work is getting done now on the newcomer’s spot.
Update 1 p.m. — The National Weather Service has issued a Tornado Watch for the region until midnight with Flash Flood Watch remaining in effect.
Hope you brought a rain jacket, Tysons, because the region is expected to get soaked this afternoon (Friday) through tomorrow morning.
A Flash Flood Watch has been issued for the region, including Fairfax County, with 1.5-2 inches of rain expected but even more possible. More from the National Weather Service:
…FLASH FLOOD WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT FROM NOON EDT TODAY THROUGH LATE TONIGHT… SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS WITH HEAVY RAIN ARE EXPECTED TO OVERSPREAD THE REGION BY THIS AFTERNOON AND CONTINUE THROUGH THIS EVENING BEFORE DEPARTING LATE TONIGHT. REPETITIVE STORMS AND MULTIPLE ROUNDS OF HEAVY RAIN MAY RESULT IN RAINFALL AMOUNTS WHICH COULD EXCEED 3 INCHES LOCALLY. FLASH FLOODING IS POSSIBLE, PARTICULARLY IN URBAN AREAS AND IN AREAS OF STEEP TERRAIN. PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS… A FLASH FLOOD WATCH MEANS THAT CONDITIONS MAY DEVELOP THAT LEAD TO FLASH FLOODING. FLASH FLOODING IS A VERY DANGEROUS SITUATION. YOU SHOULD MONITOR LATER FORECASTS AND BE PREPARED TO TAKE ACTION SHOULD FLASH FLOOD WARNINGS BE ISSUED. &&
The flooding potential is of particular concern to parts of the Tysons, McLean and Vienna area that are flood prone.
The potential for severe weather has also prompted some airlines to waive change fees for travel Friday. Forecasters say damaging storms are possible later today.
Severe thunderstorms with considerable potential for producing DAMAGING WIND gusts and a few tornadoes are LIKELY across much of the southern through mid Atlantic Coast region, particularly across the Carolinas into southern/central Virginia, THIS AFTERNOON and EVENING. @NWSSPC pic.twitter.com/3GItR4Z0Rg
— National Weather Service (@NWS) April 19, 2019
With storms in the forecast, several airlines, including @united & @Delta, are offering change fee waivers for travel today. Contact the airline directly if travel plans are impacted by weather & be sure to double check the status of your flight before coming to the airport. pic.twitter.com/HaFHwIWP50
— Reagan Airport (@Reagan_Airport) April 19, 2019
Updated at 9:55 a.m. on April 23 — Gary Bowman, a senior real estate representative for 7-Eleven, told Tysons Reporter that the store plans to open this fall.
Tysons Corner Center has said on its website that 7-Eleven is “coming soon” for at least a month, but now there’s a sign outside the store — an indication that shoppers might be sipping Slurpees soon.
“We’re working on something BIG,” the sign says with a picture of a crane lifting a 7-Eleven sign. “Check back soon!”
The Japanese-owned convenience store chain will fill the former Starbucks spot next to GNC Live Well, a health product store, on the first level across from the Gap and H&M.
A spokesman for Tysons Corner Center said that he does not know when the store will open. Tysons Reporter has not heard back from media inquiries to 7-Eleven about the expected opening date and the size of the store.
If the store isn’t open by early July, customers can see if the four 7-Eleven stores in McLean and the six in Vienna will give out Slurpees, the chain’s slushie-type beverage, on July 11 — “Free Slurpee Day” on “7-11.”
The 7-Eleven website lists 724 locations in Virginia. Currently, the closest one to Tysons Corner Center is directly south of the mall at 1931 Old Gallows Road.
After the franchise owner for the Huntington Learning Centers in Tysons and Springfield was arrested yesterday for sexual abuse of children, the company announced the locations will close.
Jeffrey Cummins, a local music teacher, was arrested at Dulles International Airport yesterday and faces eight felony counts of indecent liberties by a custodian against children.
The Tysons facility operates in the Centennial Plaza shopping center at 8290 Old Courthouse Road. According to the company’s website, the facility has been open for 23 years.
The Huntington Learning Center was quick to note that the abuse did not occur inside the centers, but will close the facilities regardless. According to a statement from CEO Eileen Huntington:
“Today we were made aware of allegations of abuse that occurred inside the home of one of our franchise owners in the Washington, DC area. We are shocked and appalled by this alleged behavior and are actively cooperating with police and investigators to the fullest extent possible. Our mission has always been to provide a safe and supportive environment for students, and although the alleged abuse did not occur inside one of our centers, we have nevertheless made the decision to close these two centers until further notice.”
Police say the nearly year-long investigation started when a juvenile disclosed that he had been inappropriately touched by Cummins over several years. A second victim came forward in January and said he too had been abused, police said in a press release.
When the locations will close and how many students will be affected by the closure remains unknown.
Photo via Fairfax County Police Department
(Updated) Two months before the Fairfax County Democratic Primary, the race for the Providence District seat at the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors is shaping up to be an expensive race.
Since July, the Virginia Department of Elections reports that the candidates have raised:
- Dalia Palchik: $92,041
- Phillip Niedzielski-Eichner: $59,700
- Erika Yalowitz: $35,718
- Edythe Kelleher: $33,609
- Linh Hoang: $15,941
While the campaign finance reports would show Palchik with a substantial fundraising lead, according to the report a $39,450 contribution was made on Jan. 15 from the “Friends of Dalia Palchik” campaign committee.
“As with some other races, I transferred funds I was raising under my prior account to my new account for Supervisor,” Palchik wrote in an email. “This was done after consultation with the Board of Elections as to the best way file my records. Therefore, all funds for my campaign are now under the new account, but the transfer reflects all of my funds raised to date, including those raised prior to Jan 15.”
If the funds shuffled from one campaign committee to another are excluded, Palchik’s fundraising total would be $52,591 — putting her in second place behind Niedzielski-Eichner.
The reports also show campaign contributions from several prominent local Democrats. On Dec. 21, Niedzielski-Eichner received an early Christmas gift from the ‘Friends of Linda Smyth’ — the campaign fund for outgoing Providence District Supervisor Linda Smyth — in the form of a $23,325 contribution.
Palchik has also raked in funding from other Democrats, though, like a $500 contribution from outgoing County Board Chair Sharon Bulova’s election campaign on March 11. Palchik also received funding from Alexandria City Councilman Canek Aguirre.
Kelleher received $500 in support from Mason District Supervisor Penelope Gross. Nearly two-thirds of Kelleher’s fundraising total — $20,000 of the $33,609 total — is from Kelleher.
No incumbent members of the Board of Supervisors show up in Yalowitz’s fundraising tally, but there is a $650 contribution from the local PAC Brass Ovaries and a $200 contribution from former lieutenant governor candidate Gene Rossi, who has recently raised the topic of running for office again in the wake of the scandals in Richmond. Yalowitz has also spent a total of $5,502 on her own campaign.
Hoang trails the other candidates in fundraising. Hoang entered the race late, and “Friends of Linh Hoang” doesn’t report any contributions prior to March 26.
The primary will be held on June 11.
Diners will have to wait a bit longer for Mediterranean restaurant Zenola to open in Vienna.
Zenola pushed its expected opening from the winter to this summer. The restaurant is currently hiring and posted jobs last week for wait staff, bushboys, bartenders, managers and kitchen staff.
Located in the former Maplewood Grill space (132 Branch Road SE) near the Fresh Market, the restaurant plans to serve Mediterranean cuisine along with beer, wine and cocktails, according to a liquor license application.
While the menu hasn’t been posted online yet, diners can expect this small fruit: olives. “Food is our passion and the olive is our inspiration,” Zenola says on its website, adding:
Olives are a foundational ingredient in each of the five great cuisines of the Mediterranean. Italian, Greek, Lebanese, Moroccan and Spanish cuisines each uniquely pay homage to the olive in their savory offerings. Which is best? We couldn’t decide so we give you the opportunity to determine for yourself by offering exquisite dishes from each.
