McLean is getting its own independent bookstore, filling a geographical gap in between Vienna’s Bards Alley and One More Page Books in Arlington.
In fact, Fonts Books & Gifts owner Amber Taylor prepared to launch her own business by working as a bookseller and events manager at One More Page.
Taylor says opening her own store was her goal when she met with One More Page owner Eileen McGervey for coffee and a chat about four years ago. McGervey mentioned that she was hiring and suggested working at the Arlington shop would give Taylor useful experience.
“I immediately took her up on her offer (while still running my consulting business),” Taylor told FFXnow by email. “I truly believe the education she and her whole team gave me will be a key to my success. I’m excited to add another bookstore to the growing family of stores in Northern Virginia.”
Located at 6262B Old Dominion Drive in Chesterbrook Plaza, Fonts Books & Gifts will officially open its doors in October, but McLean residents can already support the business with purchases online through Bookshop.org and Libro.fm, for those inclined toward audiobooks.
In addition to books, the store will sell “unique gifts, greeting cards, journaling supplies, candles, stickers, ‘dry’ spirits and non-alcoholic beer, and more,” according to a press release.
Fonts also plans to host author events and book signings, book club meetings, journaling classes, comedy nights, and other activities, including fundraiser evenings to benefit local schools and nonprofits.
Some events could be held in a small outdoor reading area behind the 1,045-square-foot store that can accommodate eight to 10 people.
“One of my favorite things about local bookstores is the community they nurture,” Taylor said. “Customers and booksellers develop long relationships, driven by a shared love of books and stories. They help each other explore unknown worlds and topics. And, there is always something new coming in the door.”
Though originally from Ohio, Taylor says she has been an Arlington resident for 25 years, 10 of them in a neighborhood right on the McLean border. She notes that her daughter attended the Montessori School of McLean, which is directly behind Chesterbrook Plaza.
While this is her first attempt to run her own bookstore, Taylor says “books have always been an important part of my life and that of my family.” An avid reader, she has aunts and cousins who’ve worked as librarians and publishers.
She’s eager for Fonts to join Fairfax County’s growing independent bookstore scene, which also includes the kid-focused toy and book store Child’s Play at 6645 Old Dominion Drive.
“The importance of books and stories has just always been part of me,” Taylor said. “I am thrilled to now be a member of the independent bookstore community, especially at a time when it is more important than ever to support diverse and creative voices.”
Some broken lights have unexpected challenges for Fairfax County’s speed camera pilot program, which appears to be having an effect on drivers, based on early data.
For about a week in mid-July, the Winko-Matics — flashing lights that signal when a school zone is in effect — failed to turn on at three of the eight sites involved in the pilot, according to the Fairfax County Police Department.
As a result, the cameras at Irving Middle School in West Springfield and London Towne Elementary School in Centreville stopped issuing citations, the police department announced on Aug. 16. The lights for both school zones ceased functioning correctly on July 17 to July 28.
In an Aug. 21 update, the department reported that the Winko-Matics on Franconia Road for Key Middle School in Springfield also encountered issues during that time frame.
“The cameras correctly issued citations during summer school operations, but the Winko-Matics did not function properly,” the FCPD said, stating that any citations issued while the lights were broken will be voided or reimbursed.
As of last Thursday (Aug. 24), the department’s vendor was still conducting a review to determine exactly when the lights weren’t working, so it’ll take some time to figure out how many citations were affected, FCPD public information officer Sgt. Jacob Pearce told FFXnow.
The westbound camera on Franconia Road remains offline after construction work on a private property accidentally severed an electrical connection, but the other cameras and Winko-Matics are now functioning properly, according to Pearce.
Despite those technical issues, speed surveys conducted before and during the pilot suggest the new cameras have been effective at slowing down drivers, according to FCPD Sgt. Ian Yost.
Average speeds decreased between last fall and this past May at all but one of the six evaluated sites — London Towne, Irving, Key, South County High School, and Chesterbrook Elementary School.
The only outlier was northbound Soapstone Drive near Terraset Elementary School in Reston, which saw a 3% uptick to 24.4 mph, but the average speed recorded before the pilot (23.8 mph) was already below Virginia’s 25-mph speed limit for school zones.
Prior to getting the photo speed cameras, the other schools were all seeing average speeds over 30 mph, led by nearly 37 mph on southbound Stone Road near London Towne. In May, speeds dropped to 24-28 mph, with South County seeing the biggest change at 37%.
“The speed cameras is just a piece of the puzzle, but it does help as our…data did show that it did have an effect in slowing down speeds of drivers in and around schools,” Yost said. “So, I do think it does fit with our overall idea and implementation of traffic safety here in Fairfax County.”
As of last Wednesday (Aug. 23), the speed camera program has produced 13,762 citations since it started issuing them on April 10, resulting in $343,641 collected from fines, according to the FCPD.
Key Middle School has seen the most citations, because it has cameras covering both eastbound and westbound lanes, whereas the other locations just have cameras facing one direction, police said.
Throughout the pilot, police have been conducting other traffic safety efforts, including a countywide “Road Shark” campaign aimed at cracking down on aggressive driving and targeted enforcement on Fairfax County Parkway and Burke Centre Parkway.
During the “Road Shark” campaign, which unfolded over four separate weeks starting in March, police issued nearly 25,000 citations and warnings — more than 1,300 of them for reckless driving, the FCPD reported on Aug. 9.
“We are taking seriously and focused on not only enforcing traffic [safety], but also the education portion of it too, to let our drivers know we just want them to drive safer,” Yost said.
Approved by the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors in December, the pilot is expected to expand to as many as 50 locations this fiscal year, which lasts until June 30, 2024, but an exact timeline for the rollout is still in flux.
According to Yost, the FCPD has been working with Fairfax County Public Schools to identify 40 more locations. The county has previously said that Oakton High School, which saw two students killed by an allegedly speeding driver on June 7, 2022, is a candidate.
Yost says the department collaborates with FCPS on appropriate camera locations, since school officials are more familiar with the traffic and pedestrian patterns in their areas.
“Ideally, we would like to spread them out throughout the county, make sure they’re not concentrated in one section, target busier roads with higher speed limits, so something on a busier road versus a school that’s tucked away into a neighborhood,” he said. “Those are really some of the factors that we look at, and also just taking to effect any known problems that we might need to address, we can adjust and put the cameras at those schools.”
(Updated at 9:55 a.m.) A man from Falls Church has been arrested for allegedly firing a gun into a crowd outside Taco Baja (7716 Lee Highway) in Merrifield.
Police say their investigation indicates that Jorge Armando Melendez Gonzalez, 25, approached a group of men standing outside the restaurant early in the morning on Saturday (Aug. 26).
“During the encounter, the suspect was assaulted by one of the men and the suspect opened fire into a crowd of people who were standing in front of the business,” the Fairfax County Police Department said. “The suspect then fled the area on foot.”
Police were called to 7716 Lee Highway at 1:51 a.m. for the reported shooting, according to scanner traffic on Open MHz.
Upon arriving, officers found two adult men in the parking lot with gunshot wounds. One of the men had been shot in the arm, while the other was shot in the abdomen, the FCPD says. Both men were taken to a hospital, one of them with injuries that police initially said were life-threatening.
Police identified a third victim when Inova Fairfax Hospital called 911 at 3:39 a.m. to report that a man had walked in with a gunshot wound to the arm, according to FCPD and the police scanner.
“Officers were able to determine the victim was related to the earlier shooting,” the FCPD said. “The victim’s injuries were considered non-life threatening and he was treated and released from the hospital.”
Gonzalez was arrested late Sunday (Aug. 27) night by detectives from the FCPD’s violent crimes division with the assistance of the Arlington County Police Department’s robbery and homicide unit and SWAT team, according to the news release.
He has been charged with three felony counts of malicious wounding and three counts of using a firearm in the commission of a felony. He’s currently being held at the Fairfax County Adult Detention Center with no bond.
“Detectives are still investigating if there’s any connection amongst all parties involved in this incident,” an FCPD spokesperson said.
Photo via Google Maps
Emergency Task Force Called for Florida Hurricane — “VA-TF1 has been activated by @fema
as an 80-person Type I urban search and rescue team in response to #Hurricane #Idalia. The team will leave to assist the affected region [Monday] evening.” [Virginia Task Force 1/Twitter]
Senior Housing Complex Opens in Kingstowne — Fairfax County and developer Arlington Partnership for Affordable Housing recently celebrated the grand opening of Oakwood Meadow Senior Residences, a 150-unit apartment building for low-income adults aged 62 and older. Located at 5815 South Van Dorn Street, the development is aimed at seniors earning 60% of the area median income or less. [FCRHA]
Northern Virginia Gets Creative With Office Conversions — “There are no aromatherapy rooms or saunas at Bailey’s Upper Elementary School, which occupies a five-story brick complex near a busy highway next to Fairfax County’s Seven Corners area. But just like the spa down the road, this magnet school serving third- through fifth-graders was carved out of a former office building.” [Washington Post]
Fairfax Senator Has Unexpected Ties to Roanoke Star — “While [Scott] Surovell is very much a product of Fairfax County, he has long-standing family ties to Franklin County and the Roanoke Valley. He says those connections make him more sensitive to a part of the state where Democrats sometimes can’t even field candidates.” [Cardinal News]
County Board Candidates Weigh in on “Missing Middle” Policies — “Several candidates running for the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors in November favor taking steps to make housing more affordable in the county, but no candidate has expressed support for duplicating Arlington County’s Missing Middle Housing plan that went into effect July 1.” [Patch]
Car Wash Offers Free Services to Local Educators — “‘Mr Wash Car Wash is celebrating Back To School month with Free Express Signature+ Extra Shine Car Washes for all teachers, school staff, and administrators through Aug. 31,’ the company announced on Instagram. That includes the Mr Wash locations at 5901 Columbia Pike in Bailey’s Crossroads and 3031 Gallows Road in Merrifield.” [Annandale Today]
GMU Reports Record Numbers of Students — “George Mason University’s total student enrollment has surpassed 40,000 this year, a first for the Commonwealth of Virginia, including the largest freshman class in school history with 4,500 students.” The university says it has defied statewide trends, with enrollment numbers at other colleges “dropping across Virginia.” [GMU]
Providence Community Center Gets New Farmers Market — “Residents living near the Vienna-Fairfax-GMU Metro station will have a new place to buy fresh fruit and vegetables thanks to the weekly Providence Produce with Potomac Market. Every Wednesday, from 3-7 p.m., Potomac Farm Market will be setting up a stand and selling fresh local produce, agricultural and jarred goods, and local honey in the parking lot of the Providence Community Center.” [Patch]
It’s Tuesday — There is a 50% chance of showers with mostly cloudy skies and a high of 83°F. Tuesday night, showers and possible thunderstorms are likely, with a low of 69°F and a 70% chance of precipitation. [Weather.gov]
Four people — all teenagers — now face charges in connection to a fatal stabbing and shooting at the Tysons View Apartments in Idylwood on Memorial Day (May 29).
The Fairfax County Police Department announced today (Monday) that detectives have arrested a 17-year-old and an 18-year-old man from Falls Church as well as an 18-year-old from Vienna as suspects in the double homicide, which left 20-year-old Ashburn resident Jonas Skinner and 18-year-old Braden Deahl from Arlington County dead.
The Vienna teen had already been charged with robbery resulting in death in May. A juvenile at the time of the crime, he has now also been charged with felony murder and conspiracy to commit robbery “for his involvement” in Skinner’s fatal shooting, police say.
The 17-year-old Falls Church resident has been charged with second-degree murder, felony murder, conspiracy to commit murder and four firearms-related charges.
The 18-year-old from Falls Church, who was a juvenile at the time, faces the same firearms charges as well as robbery causing death, principle in the second-degree murder, felony murder and conspiracy to commit robbery.
Back on May 30, the FCPD announced that Vladimir Garcia Montes, 18, of Falls Church had been arrested and charged with robbery causing death. As the only person who was an adult when the homicides occurred, he is the only one of the four suspects who has been publicly named.
Police have said the incident started as an attempted drug robbery, stating that “a significant amount of marijuana” was found near the scene by K9 officers.
Skinner was found with gunshot wounds to his upper body in the laundry room of the Tysons View Apartments, where officers were called at 3:37 p.m. on May 29. Police then found Deahl with stab wounds in the apartment complex’s parking lot.
Deahl was transported to a hospital, where he died.
Two other juveniles were taken to a hospital with non-fatal stab wounds. The FCPD didn’t immediately respond when asked if either of those individuals have now been identified as suspects.
All four teens are in custody at the Fairfax County Adult Detention Center without bond.
Image via Google Maps
Vienna’s proposed new zoning code got a critical vote of confidence last week.
At its meeting on Wednesday (Aug. 23), the Vienna Planning Commission unanimously approved a letter to the town council recommending that it adopt the latest draft of a document three years in the making, one that will guide everything from development on Maple Avenue to the amount of space a backyard deck can occupy for the foreseeable future.
“I really appreciate all the work that everyone has put into reviewing this over the last year, and staff cannot be thanked enough for the immense lift,” Planning Commission Chair Jessica Plowgian said after more than three hours of discussion. “…We would not have done any of this without all of your efforts.”
The commission’s support did come with a number of caveats, as members identified issues in the 323-page draft that they feel should be reviewed either before or shortly after the council votes on Oct. 23.
One of the biggest unresolved questions is how the town will handle parking, which has long been a challenge for residents, visitors and business owners. With a separate study of parking supply and demand already underway, the draft code makes “minimal changes” to the existing requirements, the planning commission noted in its Aug. 24 letter to the town council.
“Parking is a significant concern for [the] Planning Commissioners,” the letter said. “…Planning Commissioners requested that parking requirements be reevaluated and Chapter 18 [of the town code] be amended as soon as possible after completion of the parking study.”
The commission also suggested that the town further evaluate comments from community members on outdoor lighting standards for residential and commercial properties as well as signs, potentially by hiring a consultant.
On some sections, the commission offered more specific critiques, suggesting, for instance, that driveways for single-family houses have at least a 5-foot radius.
Several commissioners questioned whether a 30% open space requirement is sufficient for multifamily residential uses, though two were “neutral” on the issue and one thought that standard seems adequate.
The commission was also split on whether to remove an eight-seat limit on temporary outdoor dining areas that are within 60 to 75 feet of a residential property. Part of an ordinance adopted in May 2022 to allow more flexibility for outdoor dining, the cap prohibited a patio for two Church Street restaurants that had drawn noise complaints.
One of those restaurants, Blend 111, closed permanently on Aug. 12.
While a majority of planning commissioners supported removing the seating limit, two members “raised concerns about an increase in the number of tables resulting in noise complaints,” according to the letter.
A section addressing ground-floor uses in residential or mixed-use buildings provoked a strong reaction. The current draft says only that a “lobby and similar areas which serve upper-story residential uses may be located on the ground floor but may not occupy the entire ground floor.”
“That’s wholly inadequate in my view,” Commissioner Matthew Glassman said.
To ensure mixed-use residential buildings provide “meaningful commercial space open to the public on the ground floor,” the commission recommended that more than half of the ground floor be dedicated to non-residential uses and the remaining space can be used for a lobby or other amenities for residents.
Some commissioners proposed going even further and requiring 75% of the ground floor be non-residential uses.
“There does seem to be pretty strong support for this particular issue, that everybody wants at least this change, if not a stronger change to what’s there,” Plowgian said.
The Vienna Town Council will review the planning commission’s recommendations, along with almost 700 pages of public comments, during its 8 p.m. meeting tonight (Monday).
(Updated at 1:15 p.m.) District Taco is wrapping up its time at Tysons West.
The last day of business for the Mexican street food chain’s Tysons location will come on Oct. 1, the company’s chief operating officer, Chris Medhurst, confirmed to FFXnow.
As District Taco’s 10th location, the restaurant’s opening at 1500-C Cornerside Blvd on May 26, 2017 was a notable milestone for the business, which began in 2011 as a humble food cart working the streets of Rosslyn.
“This means a lot for the company considering the dream started with just a taco stand,” District Taco CEO and co-owner Osiris Hoil said in a press release at the time. “Everything is possible when you work with smart and enthusiastic people and that’s what District Taco has, plus delicious food.”
In recent years, the company has turned its focus to expansion, reaching 15 locations across the D.C. area and Pennsylvania with an opening in McLean — its first franchise — and a pending arrival at Old Keene Mill Shopping Center in West Springfield.
District Taco says it decided to consolidate operations at the 2,063-square-foot McLean restaurant after seeing “a significant upwards trend” in online pickup and delivery orders after launching a new mobile app and loyalty program.
“The new, smaller floor plan in McLean has been optimized for carry-out ordering, but still maintains the same throughput capabilities, and allows us to serve the same great food with a more convenient customer experience,” District Taco said. “We are really excited about consolidating our Tysons location with McLean, which has its Grand Opening on August 30th.”
All of the Tysons employees will get the option to work at another District Taco location, and a bonus “for being a part of the transition,” the company added.
Medhurst says the majority of workers will likely relocate to the McLean restaurant, but others can go to different locations “depending on what is most convenient for their commute.”
As for what will replace District Taco, a site plan from Tysons West property manager Rappaport suggests a Japanese restaurant called Umai Ramen and Donburi is already in line to take over the ground-floor space at Cornerside Blvd and Westwood Center Drive.
It’s unclear if that restaurant is related to Umai Ramen and Rice Bowl in Herndon, which says it infuses Japanese cuisine with southeast Asian flavors. An employee directed FFXnow to the business owner, who didn’t respond by press time.
Anchored by Walmart, Tysons West is also home to Moby Dick Kabob and Roaming Rooster, among other retailers. A Club Studio Fitness is slated to fill the second-floor gym vacated by 24 Hour Fitness in 2020, though no opening timeline has been announced.
Fire Burns Down Wolf Trap Area Home — “The Fairfax County Fire Department responded to a massive fire at a home in McLean Friday night. The home, located in the 1100 block of Windrock Drive caught fire shortly before 7 p.m. The dispatcher for the incident said the caller believed the house was struck by lightning. However, firefighters told 7News it’s too early to verify that.” [ABC7]
CIA Trainee Convicted of Assault at HQ — “[Ashkan] Bayatpour was convicted Wednesday of a state misdemeanor charge of assault and battery in a case that was remarkable for breaking through the CIA’s veil of ultra-secrecy and playing out in a public courtroom where it has emboldened a sexual misconduct reckoning.” [Associated Press]
Man Arrested for Arson in Woodlawn — “On August 25, at 7:57 a.m., Fairfax County Fire and Rescue responded for reports of smoke and a sounding fire alarm in a garden-style apartment building in the 4200 block of Buckman Road…Fire investigators determined the fire was intentionally set. The suspect was quickly identified and taken into custody.” [FCFRD]
Herndon Road Closed for Pipe Replacement — “Bennett Road (Route 669) between Fox Mill Road (Route 665) and Leefield Drive (Route 5360) will be closed to through traffic, weather permitting, Monday, August 28 through Thursday, August 31 between 9 a.m. and 3 p.m. each day for stormwater pipe replacement.” [VDOT]
Ground Breaks on Lake Fairfax Skating Rink — “Groundbreaking on 8/22 for a new inline skate rink at Lake Fairfax. It’s a great partnership of @fairfaxparks and @Capitals next to existing skate park. The Capitals are donating the inline skating rink, which should be open next spring!” [Walter Alcorn/Twitter]
Virginia Lawmakers Reach Deal on Budget — “Top negotiators for Virginia’s House and Senate announced Friday that they had struck a long-delayed budget deal that dismisses Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s quest for $1 billion in recurring tax cuts and provides one-time tax rebates instead.” [Washington Post]
Cat With No Ears Adopted at County Shelter — “This is not a photoshop – Picassa doesn’t have ears. And she’s gorgeous and so friendly and really just wonderful! Picassa had to have a ‘bilateral pinnectomy due to squamous cell carcinoma,’ and since this sweet cat was formerly a stray, coming to us and getting this surgery probably saved her life!” [Fairfax County Animal Shelter/Facebook]
Artists Bring Work to Fort Hunt Gallery and Homes — “The Stone Bridge Artists Tour has expanded from nine artists displaying their work at three local homes back in 2021, to 18 artists showing their productions from Sept. 7-10 at four home venues and the Nepenthe Gallery — all located within two miles from each other in the vicinity of Fort Hunt Road.” [On the MoVe]
It’s Monday — There is a 40% chance of showers, mainly after 8 AM, with mostly cloudy skies and a high temperature near 78°F. The east wind will be between 6-8 mph. For Monday night, expect a 50% chance of showers, mostly cloudy skies, a low around 69°F, and an east wind of 5-7 mph. [Weather.gov]
The storage functions offered by Self Storage Plus in Tysons weren’t meant to extend to the parking lot, the Fairfax County Department of Code Compliance (DCC) says.
The self-storage facility at 1764 Old Meadow Lane faces potentially hundreds of dollars in fines for keeping mobile storage units and other commercial vehicles in its parking lot, according to a notice of violation issued by a code compliance investigator for the county on July 26.
Self Storage Plus is seeking to fight or at least postpone the notice, stating that it opened the facility in 2020 “in good faith” under the assumption that commercial vehicle parking was permitted on the site.
“They were unaware that the storage of exterior storage units and the commercial parking of vehicles and trailers on the parking lot of the Subject Property was not in conformance with the approved proffers that govern the site,” Walsh, Colucci, Lubeley & Walsh partner Lynne Strobel wrote in an Aug. 23 appeal statement on behalf of Self Storage Plus.
According to the county’s notice, investigator Matthew Stengel found during a July 19 inspection that “exterior storage units, vehicles, and trailers [were] being stored in the parking lot” in violation of the site’s development conditions, which were approved in 2016.
The county’s Zoning Evaluation Division issued a letter on Jan. 24, 2018 confirming that the plan requires “that loading areas be fully enclosed…with no outward signs of storage bay doors, storage items or lighted hallways.”
“The use limitations further state there shall be amble [sic] circulation and parking on-site and that there must be no incidental parking and storage of trucks, trailers and/or moving vans,” the letter said.
Self Storage Plus was hit with a notice of violation for the same issue on Feb. 18, 2022. The county imposes a $200 fine for a first zoning proffer violation and $500 for each subsequent violation.
The notice directs the company to remove the vehicles from the parking lot or amend its development plan to allow the “incidental parking,” which requires the approval of the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors.
Noting that the property was previously used for self-storage by CubeSmart, Strobel says Self Storage Plus believed, based on feedback from industry consultants, that a portion could be used for off-street commercial parking, and the portable storage units were allowed as an accessory use, since they support the main storage establishment.
“Therefore, the Owners reasonably believed it was lawfully permitted to park commercial vehicles and trailers…as well as maintain exterior storage units,” Strobel wrote, arguing that the company would be unable to “effectively operate” its facility without the vehicles.
According to the appeal statement, the 2022 violation was also appealed and later voided by the Virginia Supreme Court’s strikedown of the county’s updated zoning ordinance, which got re-approved by the Board of Supervisors without significant changes on May 9.
The new appeal is intended to protect Self Storage Plus’ rights and stop any enforcement of the violation while the company conducts “additional research, investigation, and discussions with County staff.”
The company also plans to “explore possible legislative land use solutions,” such as an amendment, to legally allow the commercial vehicle and storage unit parking.
If accepted for review by the county, the appeal will go to the Board of Zoning Appeals, followed by the Board of Supervisors.
Image via Google Maps
Fairfax County is steadily making progress on efforts to cut its use of gas-powered leaf blowers.
By the end of June next year — the conclusion of the 2024 fiscal year — the county plans to ensure that the supply of electric blowers and string trimmers is nearly 50% electric, according to John Silcox, a spokesperson for the Fairfax County Office of Environmental and Energy Coordination.
That means that 105 of the 217 leaf blowers owned and operated by the county will be powered by electric batteries.
“As funding allows, agencies will continue to replace aging gas models with new electric equipment,” Silcox said.
The effort is part of a countywide initiative to shift toward eco-friendly practices that reduce the county government’s carbon footprint overall.
In the fiscal year 2024 budget, for example, the county will replace 55 gas-powered leaf blowers with electric ones.
The county says transitioning to electric-powered lawn equipment will help reduce carbon emissions, noise and costs.
“Even as Fairfax County’s facilities are making the switch to battery-powered blowers and other electric equipment, we encourage residents and contractors to do the same,” Silcox said.
The effort has been underway since at least November 2021.
Photo via Cbaile19/Wikimedia Commons
