New improvements recently completed are designed to make Idylwood Park (7715 Virginia Lane) in Falls Church a little more accessible.
The park is tucked into the northeast corner of the I-66 and I-495 interchange.
According to the Fairfax County Park Authority website:
The project included fully paving the parking lot, which had been comprised of compacted gravel that presented maintenance and accessibility issues. Contractors from Southern Asphalt improved the parking lot and drive to comply with [Americans with Disabilities Act] accessibility requirements. Additional striped parking spaces were added by reconfiguring the overall layout to be more efficient.
Renovations started in June 2018, during which the park was accessible only via foot traffic.
The total cost of the project was $309,732, provided through Fairfax County’s infrastructure project fund.
Photo via Fairfax County Park Authority
Could a desire for more park space make McLean less attractive to developers? That was the question residents pondered at a meeting earlier this week.
Currently, a task force made up of McLean residents and civic group members has been working with Fairfax County to revamp the McLean Commercial Business Center (CBC).
While the Fairfax County Park Authority pushed for more parks at the task force’s Monday (May 20) meeting, some of its members worried that an emphasis on more parks might push developers away.
Ryan Stewart, a senior planner for the Fairfax County Park Authority, said that a long-term vision for green space in McLean would move toward a mixed-use model, possibly emulating Fairfax Corner, Reston Town Center or the Mosaic District.
Population size determines countywide park facility service level standards, Stewart said.
With projected population changes that could have McLean see nearly 3,000 more residents and 1,500 fewer employees, the Park Authority recommends an additional 4.25 more acres of urban park space, a new playground and another sports court at full buildout in McLean.
“Any development scenario should consider how these needs will be met within the CBC or nearby,” a Park Authority presentation slide said.
The immediate area of the CBC has several parks, including McLean Central, Lewinsville, and Bryn Mawr.
Stewart stressed that urban parks provide a variety of benefits, including social connections, urban cooling and air and water quality improvement.
Kim Dorgan, the chair of the task force, supported a common sentiment among the task force members for more greenery.
“We all want trees,” she said, adding that McLean already has a green space deficit. “We are already 2.5 acres under where we ought to be in today’s standards in terms of green space,” Dorgan said.
While members of the task force said that adding more parks is important, they also expressed concern that developers might balk at more green space requirements.
“I’m all for green space, but stick it to a developer and say you need to give me an acre is going to be challenging,” one task force member that Tysons Reporter was unable to identify said.
Dorgan suggested finding a “creative” way to improve access to the McLean Central Park as a possible way to avoid the trade-off between more green space or more development.
“If we do nothing and there’s nothing that happens in McLean, we are still not where we want to be,” Dorgan said. “We need the change to get where we want to go.”
Update on 4/2/19 — Fairfax County Park Authority officials noted that the earlier development plans were out of date, and the current development area is much smaller than initially reported and only includes redeveloping one field into two lighted synthetic turf fields with additional parking.
After eight years of planning, Langley Fork Park is in the final stages of changing hands, clearing the way for two new fields.
Jenny Anzelmo-Sarles, a spokeswoman for the National Park Service (NPS), said the NPS is working through the final stages of a land-swap with Fairfax County. The NPS currently owns Langley Fork Park, which is a developed recreational property, while Fairfax County owns Langley Oaks — a more heavily wooded, natural parkland west of the Claude Moore farm area.
If the deal goes through, Anzelmo-Sarles said the property could change hands within the year.
“We are trying to increase facilities there, and we agreed to a land exchange,” David Bowden, director of the Park Planning and Development Division, said. “We have another piece of undeveloped property at Langley Oak. Our goal is to exchange Langley Oaks for ownership of Langley Fork Park.”
The Park Authority has managed Langley Fork Park since 1981, adding athletic fields, a fitness trail and more to the site since then, but the park remained on loan from the NPS.
The Park Authority and NPS began discussing the swap in Fall 2011. The swap was first approved by the Park Authority in 2016.
Since 1980, the population of McLean has more than doubled. In planning documents for Langley Fork Park, the Park Authority cited the increasing population of McLean — particularly for the population under age 19 — as an indicator of the need to reevaluate the plan for the park.
The new development plans involve redeveloping one field on the site into two lighted synthetic turf fields with additional parking.
As a side-note for history buffs: archaeological surveys of the property showed the first known use of the site was as a prehistoric quartz quarry, and a hearth was found that dated back to 300 B.C. An environmental assessment from the National Park Service noted that synthetic turf will not be used to improve the existing fields in the north and western portions of the site for archeological reasons.
Langley Oaks Park, meanwhile, is 102 acres of undeveloped land contiguous to the NPS’ Turkey Run Park along the Potomac. The NPS said it has no plans for any changes to the property.
The NPS is also currently in the very early stages of developing a plan for the Claude Moore Farm property east of Langley Oaks, which could include new trails connecting the two properties.
Image via National Park Service
As Tysons grows, Fairfax County officials say the plan is for the small Raglan Road Park between Tysons and Vienna to be repurposed into “active recreation uses.”
Currently, Fairfax County Park Authority owns 11.82 acres of Raglan Road Park, a forested area adjacent to the Old Courthouse Spring Branch Stream Valley. The area recently saw some construction with the opening of the new Vesper Trail, but more amenities could be on the way.
David Bowden, director of the Park Planning and Development Division, said the park is one of the only properties the Park Authority owned prior to the widespread redevelopment of Tysons.
“Expansion of that park property is an area identified as [a priority] to support Tysons,” Bowden said.
“What we need in Tysons is an athletic field,” Bowden added. “We need multi-use spaces for basketball or tennis courts, or even pickleball now.”
Raglan Road Park and the Freedom Hill Park to the south are both identified in the 2014 Tysons Park System Conception Plan as locations for some active recreation facilities. According to the plan:
The park is mostly forested upland, with a small clearing of about half an acre. Raglan Road Park is contiguous with the Old Courthouse Spring Branch Stream Valley, though the park does not have any regulatory Resource Protection Area (RPA) land on it. Prior to construction of any recreational uses at Raglan Road Park, additional land will need to be acquired to complete the park. This is due to the irregular shape of the park, and the land area needed to construct facilities.
But Judy Pedersen, public information officer for the Park Authority, noted that active recreation uses don’t have to be incompatible with preserving natural spaces.
“There are combinations uses of active natural areas and streams,” said Pedersen. “The urban park model tries to do a little bit of both. But the reality is we do need active recreation facilities in this area.”
Any moves towards redeveloping the park as an active space are still in the formative stages. As part of their proffers for The View project, the Clemente Development Company plans to contribute $750,000 to construct an athletic field at Raglan Road Park.
Pedersen said that other priorities for creating active use spaces in the area include trails to connect to nearby neighborhoods and playgrounds.
“This is all very conceptual,” said Bowden. “It all depends on how much land we ultimately acquire as part of that park. But eventually, it’s going to be more than it is today. It will provide for the park network in Tysons.”
Photo via Facebook
The long-awaited Tysons Technology Park near Leesburg Pike is about a month away from opening.
The athletic field just south of the intersection of Leesburg Pike and the Beltway will replace a surface parking lot with a five-level parking garage and a full-sized athletic field. The athletic field includes amenities like LED lighting, bleachers and bicycle racks.
The project was built as part of a proffer — an accommodation from a developer to qualify for zoning exemptions — from the Meridian Group for the nearby Boro project. Once opened, the field will be operated and maintained by the Fairfax County Park Authority.
Mike Killelea, a communications manager with construction contractor L.F. Jennings, said the project is a few weeks from completion.
“We should be turning it over to the Park Authority by the middle of May,” said Killelea “We should be done with construction by May 1.”
Killelea said after the handover to the Park Authority, the project will likely have to go through some paperwork and review before the it opens. Staff at the Park Authority said that until the park is handed over, it would be difficult to determine exactly how long that process will take, but that ribbon-cutting for the park is still tentatively planned for mid-late May.
Image courtesy L.F. Jennings
After a weather-related delay in February, the new half-mile Vesper Trail connecting Vienna and the Spring Hill Metro station is now open.
The new trail runs through the Old Courthouse Spring Branch Stream Valley Park, sometimes called “Tysons’ Last Forest.”
The trail is part of a series of necessary transportation improvements identified in the Tysons Metrorail Station Access Management Study. The trail is federally funded.
At the grand opening this morning (Tuesday), Board of Supervisors Chair Sharon Bulova and Hunter Mill Supervisor Cathy Hudgins spoke at the grand opening and emphasized the new trail’s crucial role in connecting Vienna residents to Tysons transit and retail.
New Vesper Trail makes it easier for residents to walk and bike to Spring Hill Metro and other shops in Tysons! @ffxconnector pic.twitter.com/gcjOLBHJg1
— Sharon Bulova (@SharonBulova) April 16, 2019
Photo via Twitter
A new 28-home subdivision could be coming to Lee Highway just west of Merrifield, replacing a private, heavily forested plot on the Bear Branch stream.
Today, the 10-acre lot is mainly forested with a few small buildings. A narrow gravel road is closed off with a fence, but maps show it leads to a small clearing at the center of the property.
The new development will replace that woodland with new houses, with 1.8 acres preserved and dedicated to the Fairfax County Park Authority. The application notes that 86 percent of the current vegetation on the property will be destroyed.
The new homes would be located on the northern border of Armistead Park, an 11-acre public park. A six-foot-wide trail would also connect the existing trail in Armistead Park to Lee Highway.
The application says an existing pond on the property will be rehabilitated as an amenity for residents, with a dock and seating area for fishing or community gatherings.
An application for the subdivision was filed in December, with pre-staffing for the project scheduled for next Monday (March 18). The subdivision is tentatively scheduled for a Planning Commission hearing in July.
Photo via Google Maps
Tickets are rapidly disappearing for the 5th Annual Fishing Rodeo in Vienna on March 30. So if you’re interested in the trout fishing extravaganza, you may want to hook a ticket reel soon.
At the annual event in Wildwood Park (700 block of Follin Lane SE), hundreds of trout are dumped into Wolftrap Creek to swim right through banks packed to the gills with local fishers. Tickets are $3 per fisher.
Volunteers will provide instruction on fishing and stream education, as well as offering fish-cleaning demonstrations.
Half of the time slots have sold out. The remaining slots are:
- 9:30 a.m. — 12 tickets
- 10:30 a.m. — 41 tickets
- 11 a.m. — 16 tickets
Attendees are encouraged to bring their own fishing rod, bucket, plastic bag and ice A limited number of fishing rods are available to borrow. Bait will be supplied and fish marked with special tags can earn the fisher a gift card from a local merchant. All participants over 16 must possess a fishing license.
Tickets were available on sale to Vienna residents in January, but have since opened up to the public.
Photo via Facebook
A new project is underway to make Tysons East a little more walkable.
The Scott’s Run Trail will provide a half-mile trail connecting Westgate Elementary School to the McLean Metro Station. The planned trail runs through the heart of Tysons East.
The path is planned to have an eight-foot-wide pedestrian walkway and two pedestrian bridges over the stream. The project’s aim is to facilitate pedestrian access to the McLean Metro for residents in the southern section of Tysons East, like the Pimmit Hills neighborhood.
Plans for the project date back to the Tysons Metrorail Station Access Management Study in 2011, and it was approved by the Board of Supervisors as part of a transportation priorities plan in 2014. The project recently opened for construction bids, which will be collected until March 5 and opened publicly that same day.
The total estimated cost of the project is $3.3 million funded by the Federal Regional Surface Transportation Program (RSTP).
Another trail pedestrian-bicycle trail is planned nearby to connect Tysons East with Tysons Corner Center.
Photo via Fairfax County Department of Transportation
Bamboo may be a favorite of pandas and homeowners looking for a screen around their property — but it’s also an invasive species that can quickly grow out of control, and Fairfax County is struggling to figure out what to do about it.
An effort led in part by Providence District Supervisor Linda Smyth is examining what to do about bamboo in Fairfax County. According to Jack Weyant, director of the Department of Code Compliance, the county is putting together an educational flyer to let homeowners know about the risks of bamboo, but is also in the first stages of considering more stringent ordinances.
The plant was first introduced to the Mid-Atlantic region in 1882 as an ornamental decoration. Sprouts of the plant can grow 12 inches a day and roots can travel 20 feet away from the original clump, according to the Master Gardeners of Northern Virginia.
Patches of wild bamboo can be found throughout the county, including the Pimmit Run Trail in McLean.
The plants can dominate sites, creating a monoculture that can crowd out and ultimately displace native vegetation. The plant can cause extensive property damage to decks, pool liners or even building foundations.
Getting rid of bamboo is far more difficult than growing it. Justin Roberson with the Fairfax County Park Authority said the best way of eliminating bamboo is to cut down the shoots and treat the stumps with herbicide, a process that needs to be repeated over multiple growing seasons. Digging into the ground and breaking up the roots could make the problem worse and spread the plant even further.
In 2017, the Virginia General Assembly passed legislation authorizing localities to regulate bamboo to existing ordinances regulating grass. The code specifies that the bamboo being regulated is any type characterized by “aggressive spreading behavior.”
Current Fairfax County code regulates grass height to not exceed 12 inches, but whether or not Fairfax County opts to regulate bamboo the same way is still up for consideration.
At an environmental committee meeting on Feb. 12, Weyant said locations around the country have a variety of approaches, from requiring property owners to maintain or contain bamboo to a full-on ban that requires owners of existing bamboo to get rid of it.
So far, Weyant said Fairfax has focused on education and has a flyer in the works explaining the hazards of the plant that will be ready for release sometime within a month. But the county is looking at how a hypothetical bamboo ordinance could be put into place.
“Any potential ordinance would be complaint-driven,” said Weyant. “We need to talk about whether or not to prohibit the planting of new bamboo and how to enforce that. We could allow it to remain but require the property owner to maintain it and we could issue violations to someone who we did get a complaint.”
Running enforcement for bamboo complaints could be complicated and costly, and according to staff documents, there are concerns the fines imposed as penalties to violators would not be significant enough to support the inspection and enforcement process. There are also risks that control of bamboo could lead to unintended damage to the nearby trees, which efforts to remove invasive plants are designed to protect in the first place.
“The last thing we want to make clear is that don’t want to get the county into taking measures to remove bamboo such as we do with a grass ordinance,” said Weyant.
Mason District Supervisor Penelope Gross, chair of the environmental committee, said the county would continue with education and move into regulations only if necessary.
“This is a thorny one to try and address,” said Gross. “Going to education is often the first and least onerous approach. Let’s do the education and see what happens.”
Photo via City of Fairfax
