Inova Launches COVID-19 Testing Site — “Experiencing COVID-19 symptoms? An Inova COVID-19 Vehicle-Side Testing Clinic will open Dec 30. Open M-F, 8am-5pm. PCR testing only, no rapid antigen testing. Appointments are required, please contact call ctr: 571-472-6843. Open M-F, 8am-6pm.” [Inova Health/Twitter]
Fairfax County Public Schools Commits to In-Person Classes on Return — “We recognize that a lot has changed over the past two weeks, with the omicron variant causing an increase in COVID-19 cases nationwide. As we continue to live through this ever-changing pandemic, we are committed to keeping our schools safe and open for in-person instruction.” [FCPS]
Men Arrested for Local 7-Eleven Robberies — Fairfax County police have arrested two men who are allegedly connected to robberies of a 7-Eleven at 9511 Blake Lane in Fairfax on Dec. 6 and a 7-Eleven at 8110 Old Dominion Drive in McLean on Dec. 11. Police believe the suspects were also involved in other robberies in neighboring jurisdictions. [FCPD]
Fire Department Further Adjust Staffing Due to COVID-19 Cases — The Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department detailed additional staffing changes yesterday (Wednesday) on top of ones reported earlier that day by Tysons Reporter’s sister site FFXnow. The department now has 66 employees infected by COVID-19, with another 12 staff members required to quarantine. [FCFRD]
Langley Student Gets Perfect ACT Score — “Kaavya Radhakrishnan, a junior at Langley High School in McLean, scored a perfect 36 on her ACT exam this year…Only about a third of 1% of students who take the ACT earn the top score – or just 5,579 out of 1.67 million students who took the ACT in the United States in 2020, according to the nonprofit that administers the test.” [Inside NoVA]
Highline Office Buildings Refinanced — “Westbrook Partners and American Real Estate Partners (AREP) have landed a $148 million refinance from CIM Group for Highline at Greensboro District, a 460,851-square-foot, Class A office campus in Tysons Corner…Westbrook and AREP purchased the two-building Highline complex — at 8401 and 8405 Greensboro Drive in McLean, Va. — in 2017 for $132 million, and have invested a further $31 million to renovate and reposition it since.” [Commercial Observer]
The meter is running out on free street parking in Tysons.
Fairfax County shared plans on Tuesday (Dec. 14) to eventually install curbside parking meters throughout the area, with a managed parking program that could expand to other parts of the county, if successful.
Initially, the program will focus on the Tysons core, where a study identified 1,272 spaces along 22 miles of curb space on public roads surrounding the Greensboro, Spring Hill, Tysons, and McLean Metro stations.
While many details of the plan are still being worked out, including meter rates, county officials say it will encourage more turnover around the Metro stations and address complaints from businesses about commercial vehicles occupying spaces for extended periods of time.
However, drivers might be reluctant to pay for a resource that they’re accustomed to getting for free, as Reston Town Center learned a few years ago.
Metro also doesn’t have dedicated garages for its Tysons-area stations, with the idea that most people will travel using transit, but for local residents, getting to the stations means walking or cycling across congested, often unsafe roads.
How do you feel about the idea of paying for street parking in Tysons? Is it necessary for an increasingly urban and populous area, or does it seem like more of a hassle than it’s worth?
Photo via Mr.TinDC/Flickr
Parking meters are coming to Tysons streets.
The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors expressed support yesterday (Tuesday) for staff’s recommendation that the county introduce managed on-street parking to the Tysons core, potentially paving the way for the practice to expand to other areas later.
“I definitely support this,” Hunter Mill District Supervisor Walter Alcorn said at the transportation committee meeting. “I think this is an important step towards managed public parking, which I think will have a role in the future in Tysons and other places, I’m sure, around the county.”
Currently, the county doesn’t charge for on-street parking, allowing drivers to leave vehicles for unlimited amounts of time.
That has become a particular problem in Tysons, according to a two-year review that the Fairfax County Department of Transportation concluded in December 2020. The study found that commercial vehicles often take up spots for days, even weeks at a time, in addition to low parking turnover near Metro stops and other issues.
The review also examined Reston, but staff said they aren’t recommending any changes there at this time, citing the limited amount of public, curbside parking available in the area. FCDOT did not return Tysons Reporter’s request for further clarification by press time.
Paid parking isn’t new to the Tysons area, but it exists mostly on private streets and property, such as Avenir Place near the Dunn Loring-Merrifield Metro station. The Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority also has a metered surface parking lot at that station.
The Mosaic District in Merrifield has limits on how long people can park on the street and in some garage spaces, but parking remains free.
FCDOT senior transportation planner Henri McCartney said that, after examining jurisdictions that have parking programs in place, county staff found an average rate of $1.50 per hour.
The county could secure a third party to install and manage parking meters, conduct enforcement, process citation fines and schedule appeals.
“We do need to move forward with this,” Providence District Supervisor Dalia Palchik said, adding that it would make sense to work with a third party that drivers might already use when parking elsewhere in the D.C. region.
The vendor would be responsible for implementing the plan, overseeing day-to-day operations, and collecting revenue from the meters and parking citations that will go to the county, according to FCDOT staff.
Dranesville District Supervisor John Foust noted that the Tysons area also runs into problems with the limited amount of parking around its four Metro stops, none of which have dedicated, public garages. McCartney said the county is looking at ways to have longer term parking available so Metro riders could park nearby.
As part of the possible changes, McCartney suggested that the parking program include payment kiosks, signage limiting how long a vehicle could park in a spot, and a variety of ways for people to pay, from an app to text messaging or calling a number.
To develop the program, FCDOT will request one-time funding of $100,000 in the county’s next budget to hire a traffic design consultant, who would help determine what streets will be affected, possible hours of operations, and other factors.
“Since this is the very first implementation of managed parking in the county, we believe that we need the expertise of a consultant to…help us get it right,” McCartney said.
Anticipated recurring costs include $120,000 annually for a new transportation planner, with additional positions potentially needed if the program expands, and $250,000 annually for the parking services vendor. Staff hope that the parking revenue will eventually cover the program’s costs.
Any changes are still years away. The county’s tentative timeline for implementation has staff bringing a full managed parking plan, including meter rates, to the Board of Supervisors for its endorsement in the fall of 2023.
Photo via Google Maps
Man Arrested for Tysons BASE Jumping Incidents — A 70-year-old contractor faces trespassing charges after allegedly parachuting off one of the office towers currently under construction at Capital One Center on Oct. 11. Police believe Chuck Moeser has also jumped from other buildings in Tysons, including the Lumen Apartments building and the Capital One building that houses Wegmans. [The Washington Post]
Metro to Start Returning Some Trains to Service — The Washington Metrorail Safety Commission reported “no technical objections” to Metro’s plan to return up to 336 of its 7000-series railcars to passenger service. The transit agency says it will phase these trains in through the end of this year before pausing for 90 days to assess operations. [WMATA]
Taxicab Demand Declines in Fairfax County — “For a variety of factors — from the popularity of ride-sharing services to more housing being built near Metrorail stations to the ongoing COVID pandemic — the overall fleet of taxicabs in Fairfax County has fallen by more than two-thirds in recent years. The Board of Supervisors…voted unanimously Dec. 6 not to issue any additional taxicab certificates this year and keep the limit at the current 654.” [Sun Gazette]
Vienna Invites Families to Daytime New Year’s Eve Party — “Vienna will get its own New Year’s celebration, albeit 12 hours before the countdown to 2022. Noon Year’s Eve will be hosted on Friday, Dec. 31 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Cedar Park Shopping Center parking lot…There will be a live DJ, pop-up artisan market, games, giveaways, crafts, a noon countdown celebration and more.” [Patch]
Let speculation about the future of the Sheraton Tysons Hotel begin, as the conclusion of a tax dispute that ended up in court could allow the property to move forward.
The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors agreed to accept a settlement agreement following a closed-door meeting on Tuesday (Dec. 7) to resolve lawsuits filed by the owner of the 449-room hotel (8661 Leesburg Pike), which permanently closed in April 2020.
Constructed in the mid-1980s, the Sheraton was one of a handful of union-run hotels in the Commonwealth, which contributed to higher operating costs, including for employee benefits.
Sheraton property owner JBG Smith, a Maryland-based real estate development and investment firm, filed lawsuits against Fairfax County in 2019 and 2020, contesting years-old property tax assessments.
The company’s lawyers argued that the county’s mass appraisal process failed to take the site’s higher operating costs into account. The suits had been headed for trials in 2022.
The county declined to comment on whether it has changed any appraisal policies or procedures due to the error. Board of Supervisors Chairman Jeff McKay’s office deferred questions to a county attorney, who cited a tax law, arguing settlement details couldn’t be released due to confidentiality.
The county also said the matter “remains in litigation.” The county suggested yesterday (Thursday) that the property’s assessments in 2016 and 2017 would be modified.
A county property database has stated the owner’s annual real estate taxes were around $252,092 for 2021.
Court records indicate that JBG Smith, identified as JBG Tysons Hotel LLC, sought compensation between $100,000 and $500,000 for each case.
Crescent Hotels & Resorts, which managed the Sheraton, issued a layoff notice for 171 workers, effective April 3, 2020, as the COVID-19 pandemic rocked the U.S. hospitality industry. Later that year, the hotel launched a liquidation sale of furniture and other items.
John Boardman, a representative for Unite Here Local 25, a union for D.C. area hospitality workers, said employees received closing pay as part of their now-expired collective bargaining agreement around six months ago.
“Our contract also provides that if all or part of the property is reopened as a hotel operation, then individuals who were formerly employed have a right to return to work in their previously held jobs,” Boardman said, adding that while the contract is no longer in force, the return-to-work provision runs in perpetuity.
The former Sheraton building occupies 5.8 acres of prime real estate off of Route 7 in Tysons West. JBG Smith has not publicly shared its future plans for the site, but rising property values could make it ripe for redevelopment.
Photo via Google Maps
(Updated at 11 a.m. on 12/10/2021) This coming spring, Tysons residents and visitors will be able to scale a rock wall, host a Zoom meeting, and grab their morning coffee all in one place.
The Manassas-based Vertical Rock Climbing and Fitness plans to open a second gym in the Best Buy-anchored shopping center at 8461 Leesburg Pike, near The Boro and the Spring Hill Metro station, as the Washington Business Journal reported in August.
The new, 12,000 square-foot facility will contain not only rock walls for bouldering, a form of rock climbing that doesn’t use ropes, but also a ground-floor coffee shop and coworking space that will be open to both gym members and the general public.
“Coffee and climbing go together,” Vertical Rock co-owner and CEO Ian Colton told Tysons Reporter. “A lot of climbers like coffee, and we personally have a huge affection for coffee. We want to make sure we come up with a premium coffee shop, and it’s reflected in the layout and design we’re bringing to the table.”
Called Basecamp Coffee Roasters, the coffee shop will essentially operate like a separate business that just happens to share the same building.
While options like online ordering will be available for those looking to grab a cup of coffee on the go, Colton envisions a Central Perk-like hangout spot that encourages people to linger, catching up with friends or on work — possibly after breaking a sweat at the gym upstairs.
“We want to make this atmosphere as friendly, inviting, and engaging as we possibly can,” he said. “…With the new normal of not necessarily working in an office and a lot of remote school, where the new norm is to be able to kind of social distance but also be there and present, this facility can give you all of that.”
The inclusion of a coffee shop is one way that Vertical Rock is adapting its concept to the more urban environment that drew the company to Tysons after launching in Manassas in 2012.
Where the Manassas center features 55-foot-tall rock walls with ropes for climbing, the smaller Tysons facility will focus exclusively on bouldering, with walls ranging from 14 to 16 feet in height and 14 inches of floor padding for protection.
The shift reflects the more limited amount of space available in an increasingly dense area like Tysons. Vertical Rock spent about five years looking for a location in the Fairfax County area before finding the Leesburg Pike space, according to Colton.
Bouldering also gives users more flexibility since, unlike rope-based rock climbing, it can be done solo, requires minimal equipment, and allows participants to move at their own pace, Colton says.
The Tysons facility will accommodate different ages and levels of experience, from beginners to athletes training for the Olympics, which featured sport climbing as an official event for the first time this year.
“All you need really is a chalk bag and a pair of climbing shoes, and you can get in and you can climb,” Colton said, noting that those items and other climbing gear will be available for rental or purchase.
Vertical Rock Tysons started pre-sales for its gym passes in November. It will offer one-day, monthly, annual, and flex passes.
Colton anticipates starting occupancy in mid-April, though the COVID-19 pandemic has had “a huge impact” on getting the facility in place. A sign posted to the site door still suggests that it will open this December.
Aware that people may still be wary of exercising indoors, Colton says Vertical Rock is designing the site to be spacious and making equipment and operational investments to create the safest possible environment.
“I think the biggest thing we’re really trying to bring to the table is a community-focused facility, and that being something that caters to local Fairfax County,” Colton said. “We want to continue the engagement for healthy and new ways of staying physically fit and connecting you to the outdoors, and that’s really been our mantra since we opened up.”
Man Dies in Forklift Accident in Merrifield — “Officers are on scene of a workplace accident at Home Depot, 2815 Merrilee Dr, Fairfax. Preliminarily, a man was fatally injured by a forklift he was operating & pronounced dead on scene.” [FCPD/Twitter]
Reduced Metro Service Sticks Around — “The Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority said Monday that rail service will continue at reduced levels through December 31. In a news release, WMATA said there is a delay getting parts for 6000-series rail cars because of global supply chain challenges. The 7000-series rail cars are still offline due to safety issues.” [Patch]
County Adjusts COVID-19 Hospitalization Numbers — “During a recent review process, the Health Department identified approximately 200 reported COVID-19 cases, primarily from 2020, that were incorrectly marked as ‘hospitalized.’ While these patients were seen at emergency departments for COVID-19 illness, they were not admitted to the hospital.” [FCHD]
Fire Department to Engage Frontline Personnel With Upcoming Strategic Plan — “The Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department is preparing for the future by bolstering recruitment, building community partnerships and enhancing service in Tysons, Fire Chief John Butler told the McLean Citizens Association (MCA) in an online discussion Nov. 17 with Fairfax County Police Chief Kevin Davis.” [Sun Gazette/Inside NoVA]
The Boro Is Centerpiece of Transforming Tysons — “Change has indeed come to the north side of Leesburg Pike along Westpark and Greensboro drives in Tysons since the arrival of the Silver Line in 2014. Once dominated by office structures and the landmark West Park Hotel — which has been demolished and serves as a parking area while awaiting redevelopment — the area is quickly becoming a strong example of transit-oriented development.” [Viva Tysons]
Just a few months after starting operations at the new Scotts Run Fire Station 44, Fairfax County is turning its attention to another project intended to boost emergency services in Tysons.
Supervisors John Foust and Dalia Palchik, who represent the Dranesville and Providence districts, respectively, hosted a virtual public meeting on Tuesday (Nov. 16) to discuss the Fire and Rescue Department’s Station 29 and bus transit facility project.
The goal of the meeting was to gather community feedback so it can be integrated into the project design, Jun Li, a project manager with the public works department’s building design branch, said.
The effort to replace Fire Station 29 has now stretched on for a full decade after an initial plan from 2011 to put the new station in the bottom floor of a mixed-use high-rise fell through.
With a total estimated cost of $20 million, the project will include an approximately $16 million fire station and a $4 million bus transit center for the Tysons West Park Transit Station at 8300 Jones Branch Drive in McLean.
According to the county, Station 29’s current site at 1560 Spring Hill Road has no room to expand the 9,500 square-foot building, which was built in 1978 and has just one story and three bays. It will remain in operation, however, during the course of the project.
The 4.2-acre site on Jones Branch Drive will allow for an approximately 20,000 square-foot station with five bays and two stories.
The first floor will include separate areas for “hot zone” working area and administrative living areas, as well as decontamination and gear storage. It will also have a battalion chief suite, offices, an open kitchen, dining and day room, and a training tower.
The second floor will include an open locker area, 20 single bunk rooms, gender-neutral locker rooms and individual bathrooms, and an exercise room.
Replacing Fairfax Connector’s existing 2,700 square-foot Tysons West building from 1997, the new bus transit facility will be approximately 2,100 square feet in size with a multi-function commuter waiting area, a commuter store, and offices.
From an architectural view, the current proposal uses red and gray metal panels, along with gray brick.
The project is designed to achieve at least LEED Gold for sustainability and includes a proposal for enhanced stormwater management. It will also have renewable on-site energy with solar panels on the roof, electric vehicle charging stations.
The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors voted unanimously on Dec. 1, 2020 to begin the procurement process for a contractor to build the new station. Officials said on Tuesday that they hope to have a construction manager in place for the beginning of the new year.
The project is also going through the zoning application process, and public works staff are coordinating with Fairfax County Department of Transportation on a ramp that will eventually connect Jones Branch Drive with the Dulles Toll Road through the site.
Construction will be phased so the bus transit center can remain open and operational while work is ongoing.
Currently, the project is set to be completed by summer 2025.
A Tysons runner who partially tore her ankle during a Marine Corps Marathon last year had been working with Kaiser Permanente to get a surgery until she was told the procedure would be delayed.
She’s just one of the patients who will need to wait for relief while Kaiser upgrades the sterile processing equipment at its Tysons Corner Medical Center (8008 Westpark Drive), which is currently operating its ambulatory surgery center at reduced capacity, according to the health care company.
Kaiser Permanente spokesperson Marisa Lavine said in an email that the medical center is temporarily using four out of its six operating rooms, along with one of two outpatient procedure rooms. She said the updates will be completed by the end of December.
“Currently, cases that we are unable to accommodate at Tysons are being scheduled at one of our other medical centers or at our partner hospitals,” Lavine said.
The Virginia Department of Health’s Office of Licensure and Certification received notification on Sept. 7 that the Tysons Corner Medical Center would have limited operational status due to replacing equipment and other updates.
The runner’s husband, Jeff Weisman, said his wife went to a foot specialist, but because she’s still able to walk, the surgery was deemed elective. When she heard from a colleague experiencing a similar scheduling issue, they learned more about why surgeries were being delayed.
“My wife really enjoys running so I was a bit let down that this delay in getting her surgery scheduled would cause her to miss out on months of running and training for another marathon,” Weisman said in an email.
He added that they’ve both had positive experiences with Kaiser Permanente but felt disappointed by the communication from the health care network in handling the situation.
“We apologize to our members for any inconvenience they experience as we make these important upgrades,” Lavine wrote.
Tysons Leads D.C. Suburbs’ Growth — “Tysons…is growing in almost every area, from population to office space to hotel rooms. While the area’s development boom started before the pandemic, the ability to work from home and the desire for more space have only helped areas such as Tysons.” [Axios]
Vienna Church Sponsors Charity Effort for Afghan Refugees — “Vienna Presbyterian is seeking volunteers to sign up and donate items for Welcome Backpacks for Afghan refugees as well as unaccompanied minors at the border. The church is working with Church World Service, one of the largest faith-based organizations assisting with refugee resettlement.” [Patch]
Tysons Defies Office Space Trends — “In the late innings of the COVID-19 pandemic, demand for office space in Tysons appears to be bucking some trends, according to local developers and brokers. In a market environment characterized by lease renewals, Tysons saw the only new lease in Northern Virginia over 50,000 square feet during the second quarter of 2021, according to CBRE’s second quarter research.” [Commercial Observer]
School Board Renames McLean HS Dressing Rooms — “The theater dressing rooms at McLean High School were renamed after Janie Strauss, a School Board member for the Dranesville District from 1993 to 2019, an avid former educator, and director of the nationally acclaimed Critics Awards Program for High School Theater, known as the Cappies. Her three children graduated from McLean where they were active in the arts and athletics.” [FCPS]
Local Arts Groups Receive Funding — “Twelve Fairfax County arts organizations will share just over $100,000 in funding through ArtFairfax’s ‘Arts Ignite Recovery’ (AIR) initiative. The organization established the AIR grant program to support arts groups as they emerge from the pandemic and restart their programming.” [Sun Gazette]
