Stomping Ground, the go-to coffee and southern-style biscuits eatery in the Tysons Galleria, opened today (Tuesday) with a new mix of cocktails and more to come.

Becca Leisch, general manager for the Tysons location of Stomping Ground, said the eatery currently has both Bloody Marys and Mimosas — in keeping with the brunch vibe — as well as classics like Dark ‘n’ Stormys and a collection of sipping bourbons.

For Leisch, the pride and joy of the new menu is Oban Scotch, a fine single-malt whiskey from a Scottish distillery that dates back to the late 18th century.

Other offerings include a white cranberry hibiscus cocktail with a live flower in the drink and an Earl Grey-egg white cocktail. The bourbons and cocktails average around $10 each.

In addition to the whiskeys and cocktails, Leisch said the location will have a small selection of beer and wine. For Stomping Ground, the focus is going to be on going as weird as possible, with gluten-free options and a collection of pineapple or blood orange ciders, she said.

“Andy’s Pizza has the lock on the craft beer scene,” said Leisch. “We’re going strange.”

Stomping Ground oversees a large seating and sofa section of the Taste of Urbanspace Food Hall, and Leisch said the restaurant is embracing that to cater the menu towards a lounge atmosphere.

“Come sip some bourbon and catch up with friends,” said Leisch. “It’s a reclined atmosphere here, good for dates.”

The restaurant is currently open until 7 p.m. on most nights, or around 8 p.m. on Fridays or Saturdays. Leisch said those hours might creep slightly later, but that the general target for the evening menu is local workers who aren’t quite ready to go home yet or want to avoid rush hour traffic.

Last week, Tysons Reporter examined the importance of sidewalk design as Tysons expands its pedestrian infrastructure network.

But no matter how well-designed a sidewalk might be, what matters most is that it’s in the right place.

There are three guidelines that Tysons can follow to make its pedestrian infrastructure more complete.  The first is simply to find where people are already walking. The second is to connect sidewalks to public transit. The third is to provide cut-throughs in large blocks, connecting up the network.

Find the demand

An old architecture-school anecdote mentions a designer who was hired to lay out paths across a new college campus.

For the first months of the year, she left the entire campus unpaved, and students walked across the grass to their classes.  

After the first snowfall, she took pictures of the quad from the bell tower, and then laid out the paths wherever she saw footprints in the snow.

In just the same way, dead grass and bootprints in Tysons reveals pedestrian activity. These are called “desire paths.”

They’re useful for transportation planners because they can prove, no speculation needed, that there really is demand for a sidewalk in a particular place. Even Tysons Plaza, connecting the mall to the Metro station, shows desire paths.

Desire paths can easily be paved over by the owner of the land, whether that is Fairfax County, the Virginia Department of Transportation, or a private interest. According to VDOT’s Project Cost Estimating System, a sidewalk costs only $25.15 per linear foot to install in Northern Virginia — it’s hard to think of a more affordable investment in transportation.

You can find desire paths all over Tysons at the ground level, especially near transit stations — which leads us to the next guideline.

Follow the transit

Public transportation and walkability have a symbiotic relationship. Unlike cars, buses and trains rarely drop passengers off right at their destination, meaning that they generally have to walk the final fraction of a mile. But in Tysons, that final stroll can be made circuitous, dangerous or uncomfortable by poor or disconnected pedestrian infrastructure.

As Jeff Speck, author of Walkable City, puts it: “while walkability benefits from good transit, good transit relies absolutely on walkability.” Since its opening in 2014, Silver Line ridership has been less than half of what was anticipated — perhaps because of Tysons’ slower-than-expected transformation into the kind of walkable area promised by ongoing development.

Pedestrian infrastructure is just as important to buses as it is to trains, particularly when a large number of bus stops in Tysons — like one pictured above — are located at neither crosswalks nor sidewalks. Crosswalks, including those in the middle of blocks, are essential to safety; according to VDOT, 51 percent of pedestrian injury crashes occurred at mid-block crossing locations and 86 percent of pedestrian fatal crashes occurred at locations without a marked crosswalk.

Mid-block crossings aren’t new to Fairfax, and they’re approved by VDOT and encouraged by the National Association of City Transportation Officials.

Connect the network

There are two main things that can get in the way of someone walking in Tysons, and they both tend to be larger here than in America’s older cities: streets and buildings.

The single block containing Tysons Corner Center measures almost half a mile, equivalent to about half a dozen blocks of downtown D.C. To walk around Tysons’ ‘superblocks’ is a long journey, but if paths are carved through them, these paths multiply the number of five- or ten-minute trips available to pedestrians.

Similarly, bridges and crosswalks also function as multipliers by connecting sidewalk networks. When a pedestrian bridge connected the Towers Crescent office building to Tysons Corner Center, it not only meant that 3,000 employees could walk to a variety of food options for their lunch hour, taking their cars off the road, it connected them to an expanding network of comfortable pedestrian infrastructure reaching beyond the Metro station.

A successful project

When sidewalks opened last month along Leesburg Pike under the Chain Bridge Road overpass, the project was successful because it observed all three of these guidelines.

First, there was demand. As one reader, Ryan, observed in the comments section, “Commuters were walking in the street for a few years, before we had this new sidewalk.”

Second, it was near transit, adjacent to the Greensboro Metro station.

Third, it provided a link between two previously-disconnected sidewalks, meaning that it didn’t only add pedestrian potential but multiplied it.

Updated at 4:45 p.m. — Police identified the pedestrian at 72-year-old Chandra Bhandari, of Falls Church. According to police, Bhandari was found dead at the scene.

“Preliminarily, detectives believe Bhandari was crossing the on-ramp from eastbound Leesburg Pike to southbound I-495 between 6 and 6:30 a.m. and was hit by a vehicle,” police said in a press release. “The motorist did not stop and drove away from the scene. Speed appears to be a factor for the driver. Neither alcohol nor drugs appear to be factors for Bhandari.”

Earlier: Police are investigating after a driver struck and killed a pedestrian at the ramp from eastbound Leesburg Pike onto southbound I-495.

Fairfax County Police believe the crash happened around 7 a.m. this morning (Tuesday).

The vehicle involved fled the scene shortly after the incident, they say.

Police briefly closed a section of the highway to account for the investigation, but most of Leesburg Pike has since reopened to traffic. The eastbound ramp to southbound I-495 remains closed.

Our Crash Reconstruction Unit is investigating after a pedestrian was hit and killed at the ramp from eastbound Leesburg Pike to southbound I495. The vehicle involved left the scene. Eastbound Leesburg Pike remains closed for the investigation. Please avoid the area. #FCPD pic.twitter.com/xvfCAPKdPM

— Fairfax County Police (@FairfaxCountyPD) February 26, 2019

Photo via VDOT

The Weekly Planner is a roundup of the most 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!

Monday (Feb. 25)

• Vienna Town Council Meeting — 8 p.m. at Town Hall Council Chambers (127 Center St. S) — At tonight’s meeting, the Town Council will review public input on the ongoing effort to revise the town’s Maple Avenue zoning guidelines. Most of the feedback so far indicates Vienna residents prefer a rustic brick look to the sleek, modern design popular in new developments.

Wednesday (Feb. 27)

• ‘The Color Purple’ Screening — 7-10 p.m. at Angelika Film Center (2911 District Ave) — As part of the theater’s “Black is the New Black” film series, the Angelika Film Center will show the coming-of-age story about an African-American woman growing up in rural Georgia. Tickets are $14.50.
• State of the Chesapeake Bay — 7:30-9 p.m. at the Vienna Fire House (400 Center St. S) — The Potomac River Smallmouth Club is hosting a discussion with Captain John Page Williams, a senior naturalist at the Chesapeake Bay Foundation. Williams is scheduled to discuss the state of the Chesapeake Bay, including issues related to climate and agricultural changes underway.

Thursday (Feb. 28)

• Transform 66 Update — 7:30 p.m. at Providence Community Room (3001 Vaden Dr.) — The Fairfax Alliance for Better Bicycling is hosting a meeting with the Virginia Department of Transportation for an update on train alignment, access points, barrier design and construction timing on the ongoing Transform 66 program.
• A Tribute to Dave Grohl — 8 p.m. at Jammin’ Java (227 Maple Ave E) — Jammin’ Java is hosting a musical tribute to Northern Virginia native Dave Grohl with a series of bands covering the music of Nirvana, Food Fighters and Queens of the Stone Age. Tickets are $12 in advance or $15 at the door.

Friday (March 1)

• Vesper Trail Ribbon Cutting — 10 a.m. at Vesper Street — A new half-mile bike and pedestrian trail is set to officially open this Friday. A ribbon-cutting ceremony is planned for the Vienna end of the trail, followed by refreshments and a bicycle mechanic available for free tune-ups.
• Mardi Gras Party — 9 p.m.-2 a.m. at Tysons Biergarten (8346 Leesburg Pike) — Citing difficulties with partying all night on a Tuesday, the Tysons Biergarten is hosting its “Fat Tuesday” party on Friday. The celebration will include beads and live music, with guests encouraged to bring masks and feather boas.

Saturday (March 2)

• SHARE Food Drive — 9 a.m.-3 p.m. at Safeway (1688 Anderson Road) — The SHARE Food Pantry is in need of food and supplies. The food pantry benefits around 40 local families or older adults per week. The pantry is in need of volunteers and non-perishable food.
• McLean Project for the Arts Spring Open House — 10 a.m.-2 p.m. at MPA (1446 Chain Bridge Road) — At the open house, the McLean Project for the Arts (MPA) will host information sessions about the all-ages spring art classes and summer camps. Art activities will also be available for children. No registration is required.
• 11th Annual Capital Princess Ball — 6-10 p.m. at Westwood Country Club (800 Maple Ave E) — A musical dinner and dance in Vienna will celebrate fathers and daughters. The event is a fundraiser for organizations promoting adoption, orphanages and foster care. The event is black tie optional and includes a silent auction and raffle.

Photo via Facebook

The Vesper Trail, a new half-mile bike and pedestrian trail between Vesper Street in Vienna and the Spring Hill Metro station, officially opens Friday (March 1).

The trail links the residential neighborhoods in northeast Vienna to the area around the Metro station, which is the site of several redevelopments with significant new retail and residential planned for the area.

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.

The trail passes through Raglan Road Park, a small forested area separating Vienna and Tysons.

A ribbon-cutting ceremony is planned for 10 a.m. at the Vienna entrance to the trail.

The Fairfax Alliance for Better Bicycling will be hosting a ride from the Vienna Community Center (120 Cherry St) at 9:30 a.m. to the trail in time for the opening. After the event, light refreshments will be served and a bike mechanic is scheduled to be available for free tune-ups.

Photo via Fairfax County Department of Transportation

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

A panel of local businesswomen will lead a discussion next week in Tysons on communication and leadership as a woman.

The “Taking the Lead with No Apologies” event is hosted by the Tysons Regional Chamber of Commerce Women’s Leadership Committee. The event’s description says it will offer simple, easy-to-use tips to help women communicate effectively in the workplace.

The event will be held at Embassy Suites Tysons (8517 Leesburg Pike) on Wednesday (Feb. 27) from 5-7 p.m.

The panel is scheduled to be moderated by Virginia Case, a strategist for Falls Church-based marketing agency Strategic Tactical Marketing, LLC. The panelists will be:

• Nicole Geller, senior director of Springer Lawson & Associates
• Michelle Walker, founder of Trebla Consulting
• Danielle Turcola, president of Professionalism International, Inc.

Tickets are $35 for members, $45 for non-members, or $65 for a two-ticket pack.

Photo via Facebook

The Tysons branch of Republik Coffee, which opened last June near Tysons Galleria, could face eviction within the week.

The coffee bar occupies a high visibility corner of Highgate at the Mile (7915 Jones Branch Drive), the first in a series of new mixed-use developments planned for the area.

Owner Talha Sarac said the eviction notice is part of a misunderstanding with Kettler, which owns Highgate at the Mile. Sarac said he met with Kettler representatives last week to discuss issues related to the building’s rent and believed everything had been settled.

Steven Tracy, property manager for Highgate, said he could not comment on an ongoing issue and the Kettler management office could not be reached for comment.

Sarac said he expected the issue to be cleared up imminently, but the eviction notice from the county sheriff’s office said the property must be vacated by Feb. 27.

Despite being tucked around the back of an office building at 8500 Leesburg Pike, Italian Gardens is already a popular local lunch spot.

But new plans to bring beer and wine to the store could make it a go-to spot for a midday drink.

The restaurant isn’t visible from the main street, but is frequently crowded around lunch. The relatively inexpensive menu offers a variety of subs, wraps and pizzas.

Italian Gardens filed an ABC permit last November. If the permit is approved, an employee at the restaurant said the current plans are to add wine and beer to the menu and hopefully develop a system to deliver beers like any other food delivery.

The ABC status is listed as pending, with no word yet on when beer delivery could start up.

When hackers try to break into a website, they probe the site for vulnerabilities.

Mohamoud Jibrell, CEO of Tysons-based startup NormShield, says that’s where his company comes in. NormShield searches a company’s website and infrastructure for those same vulnerabilities, so it can shore up defenses later.

Yesterday, the company announced that it had secured $3.5 million in seed funding that will allow the company to expand the scope of it’s operation and begin targeting sales.

“The majority of that funding is going to give us ability to scale,” said Jibrell. “None of our competitors in the market can do what I did. But our reach is limited, we didn’t have the sales people and engineers. So one way this is going to help us is expand our reach and we can sell to more customers.”

While NormShield isn’t the only company testing vulnerabilities, it’s a pretty standard part of the industry, Jibrell said NormShield’s strength is in combatting access through vendors or suppliers.

When Target was hacked in 2013 in one of the largest data breaches to ever hit a retailer, it wasn’t through the main company’s infrastructure. Jibrell said the hackers targeted a tiny company that handled heating and air conditioning service for the store. The hackers were able to access Target through a connected network and steal access to millions of credit cards.

Jibrell said larger companies often use hundreds or thousands of suppliers for various jobs, and NormShield is able to relatively quickly scan those websites and report back which ones are most vulnerable.

“Capital One, for instance, has thousands of suppliers,” said Jibrell. “It doesn’t make sense to run scorecards for all suppliers. But if they have 50,000 suppliers, with us we can run that every night and can only alert Capital One when there are [serious problems].”

Currently, Jibrell said the company is able to run anywhere between 10,000 to 15,000 checks overnight. But as the company grows, he says there are larger clients with larger needs.

“We need to expand our reach and improve our name recognition,” said Jibrell. “But at the same time, as customers increase, we don’t want to create a bottleneck. Today, 15,000 scorecards overnight. Want to be able to do 150,000 overnight or a million a week. So far, we’ve been trying to be frugal and didn’t want to spend on infrastructure for that level of scale. That money will allow us to create that so as we get more customers, we have the capacity to support.”

Jibrell said the company currently works with around 50 clients, ranging from small non-profits to larger banking and technology companies. But Jibrell also said it’s been the founders who have been making most of the sales calls, so the company is going to start looking to hire a new sales team and begin to exhibit at tech conferences.

Most of the half-dozen new jobs will be split between the company’s Tysons and Boston locations. Jibrell said they will be looking specifically for accountants and salespeople.

For Jibrell, Tysons is home, so it’s important to keep the company rooted here. But the location also gives NormShield access to talent at several local technology incubators, like MACH 37.

“[This area] has that community so that’s a big advantage,” said Jibrell. “That comes with talent, a lot of cyber talent in this area. It’s easier for us to grow and hire more technical people here than we would in Silicon Valley or New York.”

Image via NormShield