Some Northern Virginia commuter buses are experiencing delays trying to get to Tysons — or not going there at all.
OmniRide started operating fewer buses on Thursday (Aug. 1) after the union that represents its bus operators rejected to extend the contract, which expired last week, Inside NoVa reported.
While the bus system primarily serves the Prince William County and Manassas areas, some of its routes take riders to and from Tysons.
Five days later, the work stoppage is still impacting bus schedules today (Monday).
More from OmniRide’s modified plan for today:
Our service plan continues to evolve, as a result of the dynamic situation. We will continue to notify passengers of any further changes to service levels as soon as possible.
Ultimately, service levels depend on the number of operators who come to work, so please stay tuned for updates as we learn more, and keep in mind that the service frequencies listed below are approximate and dependent on anticipated operator attendance.
OmniRide will not have Express bus service for Mark Center and Tysons-Woodbridge today. Several other Express buses have also been changed. Fares are free today for OmniRide Express buses that are not running on a regular schedule today.
For people trying to get to Tysons, OmniRide is encouraging people to hop on a Metro Express bus or share a ride.
Let us know if the recent OmniRide bus service changes have impacted you.
Photo via Potomac and Rappahannock Transportation Commission/Facebook
Warehouse Fire in Tysons — A fire broke out in a warehouse in the 8400 block of Tyco Road in Tysons Sunday (Aug. 4) evening, which firefighters “quickly extinguished.” No injuries have been reported. [Fairfax County Fire and Rescue/Twitter]
Behind the Scenes of Cirque du Soleil — Pawel Walczewski shared what it’s like being one of the aerial artists who plays Waz in Cirque du Soleil’s “VOLTA.” The show is currently in Tysons until Sept. 29 [DC Metro Theater Arts]
Woman Struck, Killed by Car in Falls Church — “Fairfax County police arrested a man who allegedly struck and killed a Falls Church woman who was walking with a child in the West Falls Church area Saturday afternoon.” [Tysons Reporter]
Visions for Vienna — The Washington Business Journal dove into the town’s “crippling clash between supporters of Vienna’s small-town history and businesses with an eye on the future.” [Washington Business Journal]
Out With the Old, In With the New (Lightbulbs) — Back in July, the Board of Supervisors voted to “require LEDs instead of less-efficient high-pressure sodium streetlights in new developments. This relatively simple change marks a significant step forward in the county’s pursuit of policies that benefit the environment and reduce greenhouse gas emissions.” [Fort Hunt Herald]
Falls Church Holding Flash Flood Forum — “The City of Falls Church announced Tuesday that it has organized a public forum for Wednesday, Aug. 7, at 7 p.m. at the Council Chambers of City Hall for a “July 8 Flood, Impact, Recovery and Response” forum. Citizens are invited to attend as City staff and elected officials review the impact of the flash flood last month.” [Falls Church News-Press]
Falls Church Expands Senior Tax Program — “Measures to better enable older Falls Church residents to “age in place” rather than move out of their homes that were approved by the F.C. City Council last month will benefit all City taxpayers, F.C. Treasurer Jody Acosta [said].” [Falls Church News-Press]
Photo via Fairfax County Fire and Rescue/Twitter
What started as a Jewish bagel market in Tysons now serves up bagels and breakfast with a Korean twist.
The family-owned Tysons Bagel Market (8137 Leesburg Pike) began serving customers in 1994. Though ownership switched hands throughout the years, it is currently run by couple Nari Ha and Sang Sun Han, along with their daughter Jisoo.
The family acquired the business back in 2001 after the then-owner decided to sell the market and move onto another venture, according to Jisoo, who took on the role of company spokesperson.
Since then, they’ve incorporated their Korean heritage into their recipes, Jisoo said, adding that they are always trying out new things and making cultural changes to the menu, like their omelets.
Prior to the family’s acquisition of Tysons Bagel Market, her father always wanted to run a business, Jisoo said, but wasn’t sure how.
When they acquired the bagel market, the family “went in without knowing anything about bagels” — they were not even sure how to make a bagel or run a bakery, she said, adding that the previous owner gave them tips and tricks on how to be successful.
Today, Tysons Bagel Market operates seven days a week from 5 a.m.-4 p.m. on weekdays and 6 a.m.-4 p.m. on weekends. Jisoo said they bake thousands of bagels every week in a variety of flavors — her favorites are the blueberry and jalapeno ones.
The business continues to grow as they now offer wholesale production and see people from “different regions” frequenting their restaurant.
Jisoo said her family wants to continue serving the community with their fresh bagels made with wholesome ingredients.
Jim Koons Automotive is expanding its car dealership near the Spring Hill Metro station.
The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors approved the expansion plans on Tuesday (July 30) on the north side of Leesburg Pike right below the Dulles Toll Road.
The two-phase development would convert a 73,000-square-foot warehouse into vehicle storage and offices for the dealership, reconfigure a parking lot and allow for a second dealership franchise.
“The warehouse was once showroom space for an Ourisman dealership on the site, but Koons acquired the property in a $19.4 million land deal in 2016, according to county records,” the Washington Business Journal reported.
Koons is one of the D.C. area’s largest car dealers and has two other Tysons locations in addition to the Koons Tysons Toyota at the 8600 block of Leesburg Pike, WBJ noted.
According to the county’s staff report:
Auto sales and retail uses are the predominant land uses along Leesburg Pike, along with one high-rise office building. This area is developed and planned for auto sales and retail uses, as well as portions developed and planned for office use with support [from existing] retail and service uses.
“This proposal will improve the appearance and repurpose an aged building that is located along Leesburg Pike in Tysons with minimal site disturbance,” Lynne Strobel, an attorney representing Koons, told the board.
Image via Fairfax County
Tysons may soon get a rebranding to encourage economic growth.
The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors is considering investing up to $1 million dollars in the Tysons Partnership, which plans to rebrand the area while establishing a “sustainable business and funding model” for the nonprofit association.
Providence District Supervisor Linda Smyth introduced the proposal, which also is backed by Hunter Mill District Supervisor Cathy Hudgins and Dranesville District Supervisor John Foust, to the board on Tuesday, July 30.
“The Tysons Partnership is implementing a multi-year, place branding strategy and campaign for Tysons. They have engaged with a design firm to develop a place branding strategy to elevate Tysons and create a shared message for the diverse range of stakeholders,” according to the proposal.
Tysons Partnership hopes to have the strategy development done by December, so that it executed next year, according to the proposal.
The board tasked County Executive Bryan Hill to examine the potential use of these funds between $500,000-$1 million before it decides if the investment would be worthwhile.
Any funds granted by the board would also be matched by private donors, according to the proposal.
Image via Fairfax County
A new casual restaurant may open in Tysons as B.GOOD considers expansion to the area.
Though the new location or opening date has not been announced, a press release noted. In addition to the new Tysons location, the company is looking for people to open new franchise locations.
“People shouldn’t feel bad about going out to eat, and B.GOOD is a breath of fresh air to people who want to know exactly what they are eating. We are thrilled to bring our ‘Food with Roots’ to Tysons,” said Ed Yancey, the B.GOOD vice president of franchise development.
The eatery originated in Boston around 2003, and all locations offer a variety of grain bowls, salads, burgers, milkshakes and smoothies. They also have a kids menu, takeout, catering options as well as an on-site dining room.
The company updates its menu seasonally and do not use artificial flavors, colors or preservatives. They also claim to use locally sourced ingredients, according to the press release.
The company is looking for franchise owners who have restaurant management experience and embrace the “farm-to-table” concept.
Currently, there are 80 locations around the world — including a few others already in the Virginia area.
Photo via B.GOOD/Facebook
Did you know Tysons is divided into eight districts?
The 2010 comprehensive plan for Tysons outlined that “the transformed Tysons will be organized around eight districts, each with a mix of land uses.” Four are transit-oriented, while the remaining four are not.
Here’s where the districts are:
- West Side is a residential area hugging Vienna between Route 123 and the Dulles Toll Road.
- Old Courthouse, in the southwestern part of Tysons, is below Route 123 and to the west of Leesburg Pike.
- North Central is the portion sandwiched below the Dulles Airport Access Road and above Tysons Galleria.
- East Side connects Tysons to Pimmit Hills with a residential area.
- Tysons West covers the area around the Spring Hill Metro station.
- Tysons Central 7 surrounds the Greensboro Metro.
- Tysons Central 123 encompasses Tysons Corner Center and Tysons Galleria.
- Tysons East surrounds the McLean Metro station
Tysons Reporter wants to know if these eight districts have the “neighborhood feel” planned for or if they seem more like arbitrary partitions.
What about the names? Do you like them?
Fairfax County police arrested a kid for allegedly stealing someone’s phone near the Tysons Corner Metro station.
The incident occurred shortly after 10 p.m. on Tuesday (July 30) at 7902 Tysons One Plaza.
“The victim was sitting on the steps to the plaza when the suspect took the victim’s phone and ran away,” according to a police report.
Police said that they found and arrested the suspect.
https://twitter.com/cbweber521/status/1156392116270108672?s=20
Separate incidents on Tuesday included three home burglaries in McLean and one attempted commercial burglary in Tysons.
Police said that someone entered a home in the 7900 block of Old Cedar Court overnight through an unlocked door and took personal documents and jewelry.
Around 9 a.m., a homeowner reported to police that someone damaged a door, entered the home in the 7300 block of Hooking Road overnight and stole electronics.
Police said someone entered a home in the 11000 block of Old Stage Court through an unlocked door and took jewelry around 4:15 p.m.
An employee at Shiraz Market (8486 Tyco Roa) reported to the police that someone damaged the windows and door of the building, but nothing was taken.
Fairfax County police arrested a 39-year-old man on Sunday (July 28) after he allegedly displayed a knife and resisted arrest.
The incident occurred around 12:30 a.m. in the 8600 block of Leesburg Pike between Koons Tysons Toyota and the Audi Tysons Corner Service Department.
More from FCOD:
Officers saw a man who appeared to be intoxicated walking toward oncoming traffic. The man took an aggressive stance toward officers and displayed a knife. Officers were able to de-escalate the situation and convince the man to drop the knife. The man began to resist arrest by pulling his arms away and trying to break free.
Police arrested and charged Jon Lincoln of no fixed address with assault on law enforcement, resisting arrest and disorderly conduct.
Image via Google Maps
YetiCloud in Tysons recently received a facelift after the owners decided to rework their business model.
When co-founders Tim Marcinowski and Peter Fraedrich began the company, previously called TaskFit.io, they aimed to solve information technology problems for companies using the cloud with assistance from artificial intelligence (AI). But Marcinowski said that their market research showed many potential clients were risk-averse and not comfortable relying on AI.
Instead of giving up on their venture, they decided to switch tactics and rethink how they cater to the needs of clients. They decided to edge away from solutions using AI and instead focused on offering consultations, training and a 24/7 platform support for customers.
“We monitor in real-time and take action in two ways,” Marcinowski told Tysons Reporter.
When an issue arises, the company gives clients an option to either direct YetiCloud on how they want an issue solved or allow YetiCloud to handle the problem as it best sees fit.
When rebranding, the founders tried to synthesize the passion of their customer base and their target goal — which is to simplify and help troubleshoot cloud use.
Marcinowski told Tysons Reporter when renaming the brand, the company began to play with names of a fictional character and settled on a Yeti because “we thought it was funny we could say we solved the big hairy problem of the cloud.”
Currently, YetiCloud works with about 15 clients, four of which are paying customers, according to Marcinowski. The company offers a free version of the software to establish relationships with potential customers to build a brand alliance and product trust.
In the beginning, the company was entirely funded through profits and personal capital from the co-founders. “We had an early potential investor but the terms didn’t match up,” Marcinowski said. He told Tysons Reporter that the investor wanted 6% of all the profits, but he and his co-founder decided to turn down the opportunity.
Since October 2018, the company brought on several new employees and plans to keep expanding. For the time being YetiCloud will remain at the WeWork location in Tysons Corner.
“We definitely have the ability to flip the perception of this area,” he said when discussing the possibility of Tysons becoming the next technology hub, especially with the new Amazon HQ2 and other companies coming to Northern Virginia.
By 2024, Marcinowski wants to have $20 million yearly reoccurring revenue, which he said would help legitimize the company by building a solid financial foundation.
YetiCloud also has a new goal to raise $600,000 from new investors within the next six months.
New companies like YetiCloud must find “alternative solutions to problems that didn’t exist 10 years ago,” he said.
Photo courtesy of Tim Marcinowski
