As construction kicks off on renovating the Mary Riley Styles Public Library, the library will temporarily move to trailers near Thomas Jefferson Elementary School.
The library (120 N. Virginia Avenue) is set to close on Monday (Feb. 17), according to a press release from the city. The temporary library is set to reopen in mid-March at trailers at 601 S. Oak Street.
According to the press release, the temporary library will be open:
- Monday-Tuesday, Thursday: 9:30 a.m.-9 p.m.
- Wednesdays: 1-9 p.m.
- Fridays: 9:30 a.m.-5 p.m.
- Saturdays: 9 a.m.-5 p.m.
- Sundays: 1-5 p.m.
“Visitors may park on the street while minding the posted street signs,” the press release says. “Visitors should be mindful of the surrounding neighborhood and respect private property.”
More from the press release:
The temporary location will host a good selection of books, periodicals, and other media. Programming like book discussion groups, ESL Conversation Groups, and storytime will continue, with some changes; visitors should check the library’s website for exact details.
All due dates for books and other media are extended into March. Once the temporary location opens, books may only be returned there (601. S. Oak Street). No books or media may be returned at the N. Virginia location, including the drive-through book drop, after Friday, February 28.
New interlibrary loan (ILL) requests are not accepted until the library opens in the temporary location (in early March). Starting February 11, patrons will not be able to place new holds until the temporary location opens in March. Previously placed holds will still be available for pick up at 120 N. Virginia Avenue until February 17. Holds will then not be available for pick-up until the temporary location opens.
The Falls Church City Council approved the construction contract for the project on Monday (Feb. 10).
The renovation is set to revamp the aging library, move the Local History Room and improve safety. The project is scheduled to be completed by May 2021, according to the press release.
Map via Google Maps
Here are the latest stories about the Tysons area that the Tysons Reporter team has been reading:
Library Displays History of St. John’s Episcopal Church — “Throughout the month of February, a display at Dolley Madison Library in McLean is featuring St. John’s Episcopal Church. The display illustrates the church’s history and close relationship with the community of McLean and presents a newly published book recounting the church’s first 150 years.” [Patch]
Falls Church Facing Cardboard Congestion — “A cardboard pile up at the Gordon Road recycling center has more to do with the excesses of the holiday season than negligence on the part of City of Falls Church residents. The City will also soon test out moving glass recyclables from the curb to a central location as it joins the regional effort to dispose of the waste in a more effective manner.” [Falls Church News-Press]
Pedestrian Gets Foot Run Over — “A pedestrian was walking westbound on the sidewalk in front of the entrance of a parking lot at 431 Maple Ave., W., on Feb. 1 at 5:50 p.m. when a vehicle approached the entrance and the driver motioned for the pedestrian to walk across, police said.” [Inside NoVA]
Final countdown until @ShowPlaceICON opens their doors and we can enjoy these heated recliners! We are just weeks away!📽️ 🍿 pic.twitter.com/Fn7mIzcFvN
— The Boro (@TheBoroTysons) January 27, 2020
Have a great Tuesday and look out for Morning Notes again on Friday.
Updated 2/11/2020 — City of Falls Church Fire Official Henry Lane determined the house fire was accidental and caused roughly $150,000 in damages, according to a press release from the city.
Earlier: A house fire that broke out earlier today in the City of Falls Church near the Thomas Jefferson Elementary School is under investigation.
Firefighters from Arlington County responded to the fire in a single-family house in the 400 block of S. Oak Street shortly before noon today.
One person in the house self-evacuated and was taken to a local hospital, according to a press release from the city. “Their condition is not known at this time,” the cit said.
Parents are asked to use the rear entrance of the school until further notice, according to the city, which noted that the fire did not threaten the school building.
Lane closures around S. Oak Street near West Broad Street and Seaton Avenue were resolved shortly after 2 p.m.
The Arlington County Fire Department is investigating the cause of the fire, according to a tweet.
S Oak St. has reopened to traffic. Thank you to both @ArlingtonVaFD & @ffxfirerescue for responding to the scene! https://t.co/rqLQLo5P5m
— City of Falls Church (@FallsChurchGov) February 10, 2020
Images via City of Falls Church
The Weekly Planner is a roundup of interesting events coming up over the next week in the Tysons area.
We’ve scoured the web for events of note in Tysons, Vienna, Merrifield, McLean and Falls Church. Know of any we’ve missed? Tell us!
Tysons Reporter also complied a list of events to celebrate Valentine’s Day.
Wednesday (Feb. 12)
- Lovin’ Our Library Open House — 2 to 6 p.m. at The Mary Riley Styles Public Library (120 N. Virginia Ave) — This event invites people to play mini-golf through the adult fiction section and enjoy crafts for all ages in the children’s room. This event is free for the public.
Thursday (Feb. 13)
- 1Million Cups Fairfax 2 Year Anniversary — 6 to 9 p.m at Chima Steakhouse (8010 Towers Crescent Drive) — 1Million Cups, a networking opportunity for entrepreneurs, is hosting a dinner party. Appetizers will be complementary and a cash bar is available.
Friday (Feb. 14)
- Valentine’s Day Murder Mystery — 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. at Maggiano’s Little Italy (2001 International Drive) — Guests can enjoy a murder mystery party where they take part in a seated dinner and evening of activities. The tickets are $100 and include dinner and the event, which begins at 6 p.m.
- St. Valentine’s Day Release Party — 5 to 11:30 p.m. at Falls Church Distillers (442 S. Washington Street) — Falls Church Distillers is releasing their Churn Burn aged in habanero porter beer barrels. Attendees can enjoy live music and specials.
- Celtic Music Concert — 8 to 10 p.m. at Cherry Hills Farmhouse (223 Little Falls Street) — This event invites people to enjoy live Celtic music. Tickets are $15 ahead of time or $20 at the door.
Saturday (Feb. 15)
- $5 Comedy Night — 7 p.m. until midnight at The State Theatre (220 N. Washington Street) — This event will feature a variety of local talent. All are welcome but those under 18 need to be accompanied by a parent.
Photo via the City of Falls Church
To get ready for summer platform work, WMATA is closing several Orange Line stations this weekend, affecting riders in Vienna, Falls Church and Merrifield.
Riders can expect trains every 16 minutes between the West Falls Church and New Carrollton stations with additional trains between Ballston and New Carrollton from 10 a.m.-6 p.m. on Saturday (Feb. 8), according to WMATA’s website.
Free shuttle buses will replace trains at the Vienna, Dunn Loring and East Falls Church stations.
The bus routes will be:
- between East Falls Church and Ballston
- between Vienna, Dunn Loring and West Falls Church
- express bus between Vienna and West Falls Church
Riders can expect trains to single track through the East Falls Church station. The West Falls Church station will stay open.
“Customers on Ballston-bound Orange Line trains who are continuing on to West Falls Church should exit the train at Virginia Square for a same platform transfer,” according to the website.
More than 300 Dominion Energy customers are without power this morning (Friday) in Falls Church.
The power outage, which is affecting 327 customers, is between S. West and S. Washington streets, according to Dominion’s power outage map.
The map notes that a “broken pole” is the cause.
Dominion Energy does not have an estimate yet on when power will be restored.
Map via Dominion Energy
“Going green” will take on a new meaning in Falls Church as the city joins a larger initiative to separate glass products from the rest of the recyclables on the curb.
Beginning Feb. 19, the City of Falls Church asks that residents separate glass from their normal recyclables and instead bring them to the local recycling center (217 Gordon Road) — where items will go in special purple bins for processing, according to the city’s website.
Neighboring areas, including Arlington County, are also taking part in the initiative.
If residents do not want to make the extra trip to the recycling center, officials ask that people simply throw glass items in the trash — or better yet, find a way to reuse their glass jars for storage, vases, drinking glasses, planters, or craft projects.
Failure to remove glass items from a recycle batch will contaminate it, the website warned, and the whole recycle batch will have to be thrown away.
According to a press release from the city:
Glass is no longer economically or environmentally sustainable in a single-stream recycling system. Glass is heavy, which increases the cost of transporting recyclables to and from recycling centers. Glass containers placed in single-stream curbside bins tend to break during collection and transport to Material Recovery Facilities (MRFs), which can then damage machinery and contaminate bales of other more valuable items.
To encourage participation in the new recycling program, the city is participating in the “Purple Can Club Pilot Program” alongside other districts within Northern Virginia.
“I believe we are the last in the region to join. We were evaluating options, and the centralized Purple Can was chosen as the pilot program,” a city spokesperson said.
Officials are asking residents to thoroughly rinse out or wash items before recycling them.
For people living in an apartment or similar community, the website said to check with a landlord or property manager about the changes.
Anyone looking for other purple can recycling sites can check out the map below.
Map and photo via City of Falls Church
As WMATA looks ahead to summer Metro repairs, more details have been revealed about the Orange Line closures that will impact riders in Northern Virginia.
Beginning May 27, the Vienna, Dunn Loring and East Falls Church stations will be closed, according to a WMATA presentation at a Falls Church City Council meeting earlier this week, which added that the Silver Line from McLean to Wiehle-Reston East will also be affected.
Crews will update slip-resistant tiles, LED lighting, add new large digital displays and build new shelters on the platforms during the closures, WMATA representatives said at the meeting.
WMATA representatives also said free buses will replace trains at each of the affected stations and riders can expect the closures to last through Sept. 7.
Summer was chosen as the ideal time for the project because ridership is down slightly during that time of the year, the representatives said.
“We found it was really much more efficient when we use longer extended periods (of closures),” one representative added, compared to completing updates at night or over weekends.
During closures, four bus routes will offer riders alternative options:
- from Vienna to West Falls Church
- from Dunn Loring to West Falls Church
- from East Falls Church to Ballston
- from Rosslyn, then to Courthouse before stopping at Ballston and finally to Vienna
There will also be added on-demand shuttles from Vienna to Dunn Loring and West Falls Church to East Falls Church.
The presentation also mentioned that Silver Line trains from McLean to Wiehle-Reston will stop at each station but run on a reduced schedule.
Riders can expect the West Falls Church station to remain open but with single-tracking and for trains to go through — but not stop at — the East Falls Church station.
There will also be a variety of Metro Buses, ART Buses and Fairfax Connector Buses that will also be affected, according to the presentation.
Image (2) via City of Falls Church
A developer wants a proposed retail building in Falls Church to house a kids’ play center.
Bob Young, the developer, told the Falls Church Planning Commission Monday night that Scramble, a self-described “European-style play center” in Alexandria, would be a tenant.
“It’s what I would call a high-end, indoor children’s playground,” he said. “It will have a cafe. It will have an area for parents to work on their computers.”
Fairfax One LLC wants to redevelop the lot, which is across from the Protestant Episcopal Church and currently being used as a surface parking lot for the church, under a land lease agreement with the church, according to city documents.
Called Southgate II, the development would add a 12,000-square-foot retail building at 130 E. Fairfax Street. (Southgate I is at 116 E. Jefferson Street.)
While the redevelopment would remove parking spaces, the developers told the commissioners that churchgoers will be able to use the parking at the redevelopment and at an adjacent property on Sunday mornings.
“[The church] would have exclusive use of parking 8:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m. on Sundays,” Young said. “Scramble would be closed.”
The project includes solar panels on the roof, which would provide roughly 25-30% of the electricity use, Young said.
Discussion of the proposed building and kids’ play center was mostly limited to comments from a handful of commissioners.
Vice-Chair Brent Krasner was the most vocal with his concerns, calling building a “very suburban, strip mall feel.”
Krasner also questioned if Scramble would be the best tenant, saying that the kids’ center seems to be better suited to “industrial” areas.
“I’m not saying there’s no use for it here,” Krasner said, adding that he doesn’t know if the space would “translate” well to a future tenant if Scramble were to close.
In response to Kranser’s comments, Young said that the building is “probably a step in the right direction,” emphasizing that the “filthy parking lot” could add tax revenue to the city as a commercial building.
“There’s good and then there’s best,” Krasner quipped back.
Not all of the feedback from the commissioners focused on concerns. Commissioner Cory Weiss, who described herself as a “semi-young mother,” called the building “a great opportunity.”
When Weiss asked the developer if the project could be more pedestrian-friendly, Young said that constraints on the site, like being “dense with underground utilities,” would make that difficult.
The site also has some restrictions from the church, although Young did not elaborate much on what those restrictions entail.
“We have a lot of constraints that are put on us by the church itself,” Young said. “We had to work through a lot of issues with the church.”
A public hearing is tentatively scheduled for March 2, according to the documents.
Image via Google Maps
Bakeshop in Falls Chuch will host its first weekly happy hour tomorrow (Feb. 5), offering guests deals on sweet treats.
The eatery, located at 100 E. Fairfax Street, will offer two for $4 cupcakes and classic cookies, $3 lattes and $2 espresso or drip coffee from 3-5 p.m. every Wednesday, according to its Facebook page.
An employee said the location hopes the deals will drive more traffic towards the shop.
“We’re still growing in the Falls Church community and we thought this would be a fun way to get to know more of our neighbors,” a spokesperson for the shop said. “If the community enjoys it, we’ll expand the items offered and perhaps have it more days in the week.”
Foodies can only find the specials at the Falls Church location, not the Arlington spot, according to the employee.
“If it goes really well, we plan to do something similar in the Arlington location as well,” the spokesperson said.
Typically, cupcakes cost about $2.75 each, according to the website. The bakery also offers various types of bread, pies and vegan options.
Photo via Bakeshop/Facebook
