(Updated 5/20/2020) Before Orange and Silver line stations temporarily close this Saturday (May 23), Fairfax County officials for the Tysons and Vienna areas want to know more about the closures’ impact.
Providence District Supervisor Dalia Palchik and Hunter Mill District Supervisor Walter Alcorn plan to hold a virtual town hall on Thursday (May 21), according to staff from Palchik’s office.
The discussion will include representatives from WMATA and the county’s transportation department.
All Orange and Silver line stations west of the Ballston station will be closed through the fall for platform reconstruction at the four Orange Line stations and work to connect the Silver Line with the upcoming stations running from Reston to Ashburn.
The town hall is set to start at 6:30 p.m. People can register online.
Locals will soon have the chance to join a virtual town hall and ask questions to Fairfax County representatives for the Providence District.
Dalia Palchik with the Board of Supervisors and Karl Frisch with the Fairfax County School Board announced that they will host the meeting at 2:30 p.m. this Saturday (May 9).
The meeting will be held on Facebook Live, according to the event page.
Palchik and Frisch are expected to lead a discussion surrounding topics brought up by community members in attendance.
Though there doesn’t seem to be a pre-set agenda, people can email to inquire about the meeting.
Tune in this Saturday May, 9th for a discussion with @KarlFrischFCPS and @SupvPalchik!
Email any questions with the subject line TownHall to: [email protected] pic.twitter.com/hY5uwigLDF
— Dalia Palchik (@SupvPalchik) May 5, 2020
Editor’s note: Starting March 24, Tysons Reporter will have “Morning Notes” every weekday instead of twice a week to accommodate more news.
Here are the latest stories about the Tysons area that the Tysons Reporter team has been reading:
FCPD Makes Changes Due to Coronavirus — “The department has added staff and is available to take certain police reports over the phone. Community members are also encouraged to utilize the online reporting system.” [Fairfax County Police Department]
AP, IB Info for Students — “Traditional face-to-face [AP] exam administrations will not take place. Students will take a 45-minute online free-response exam at home…Â The May 2020 IB examinations for Diploma Programme and Career-related Programme students will no longer be held.” [Fairfax County Public Schools]
Local Couple 3-D Printing Mask Shields — “As protective gear shortages put our frontline medical workers at risk, Vienna couple Amy and Jeremy Filko are 3D-printing shields to protect N95 masks. For each request received, the Filkos are covering shipping costs and sending four free masks to doctors, nurses, and other healthcare workers.” [Washingtonian]
Dalia Palchik, Del. Marcus Simon (D-53rd) Host Virtual Town Hall — “In an audience that ranged up to 44 viewers, the two responded to questions both about the current pandemic and, for Simon, the recently-concluded legislative session in Richmond.” [Falls Church News-Press]
Capital One Ups Pay for Workers Not Teleworking — “Capital One Financial Corp. is hiking the salaries of its employees who work directly with customers as the novel coronavirus continues to spread across the country, the company announced internally and confirmed to the Washington Business Journal.” [Washington Business Journal]
Metro Cuts Back Service This Week — “Trains will be operating every 20 minutes on all lines except the Red Line, which will run every 15 minutes, according to a news release.” [Inside Nova]
Beginning Tuesday, March 24, 2020, Fairfax Connector customers will be required to enter and exit the bus using the rear doors. This does not apply to customers who need to use a wheelchair ramp. Fare collection on buses will also be temporarily suspended.https://t.co/wVHrkCaTbp pic.twitter.com/ignjpBRKgU
— Fairfax Connector (@ffxconnector) March 23, 2020
COVID19 BUS BOARDING CHANGE
Starting today: Use rear door when getting on or off the bus, except if you use wheelchair ramp or kneeling. Fares waived.
SERVICE IS VERY LIMITED. Let's keep it available for hospital staff & other critical workers. Essential travel only. #wmata pic.twitter.com/AqzOKVJKFy
— Metro (@wmata) March 24, 2020
This is Thomas Jefferson Elementary in Falls Church, but sign is from Fairfax County. I didn’t think the city and county shared parks services, but maybe they’re working together during the pandemic?
— Falls Church Views (@falls_views) March 22, 2020
An upcoming digital town hall will give Tysons-area residents the chance to ask questions to Del. Marcus Simon (D-53rd District) and Providence District Supervisor Dalia Palchik.
The event, which was previously set to be held at the Providence Community Center, will now be held as a Facebook Live event from 2-3:30 p.m. next Saturday (March 21).
Efforts to combat the coronavirus prompted the switch from an in-person meeting to an online event.
“We want to do our part to decrease the spread of COVID-19,” the event description said.
Online attendees will have the chance to ask about issues or topics around the area from the location of their choosing, according to the event page.
Topics of discussion are not pre-set, a spokesperson from Simon’s office told Tysons Reporter, adding that both Simon and Palchik will begin the meeting by giving a short address of what they think are important updates around the area.
All are welcome to attend the digital meeting, and the link will be accessible through the event’s Facebook page roughly a week before the meeting, the spokesperson said.
People unfamiliar with Facebook Live events can ask questions in real-time. Palchik and Simon will receive notifications when people submit a comment and will then be able to address questions.
For troubleshooting tips, people can check out Facebook’s website.