At its meeting tonight (Monday), the Vienna Town Council is set to vote on a funding agreements for two major environmental restoration projects.

The larger project is the next phase of the Hunter Branch Stream restoration project, estimated to cost $1.92 million.

The project will restore 1,800 feet of the stream along Nutley Street SW. The first phase of the project, completed in 2016, worked to combat the erosion of another part of the stream and add native plant species. The stream is located within the Chesapeake Bay, Accotink Creek and Potomac River watersheds, with the ultimate goal of the project being the reduction of sediments and pollutants flowing into those larger bodies of water.

Design work is expected to take place throughout fiscal year 2019 with an estimated cost of $400,000.

The other funding agreement is for the Tapawingo/Kingsley Urban Bioretention Project, will build bioretention along Meadow Lane SW where it intersects Tapawingo and Kingsley roads. The new bioretention areas will extend the curb and add new environmental control measures aimed at treating storm runoff from the street.

The bioretention project is expected to cost $200,000.

The funding for the projects come from an agreement with Fairfax County.

Photo via Facebook

The former Marco Polo restaurant in Vienna went up in flames Sunday afternoon.

A fire broke out in the vacant building at 245 Maple Avenue W. shortly before 2 p.m. A second alarm was sounded as firefighters worked for around an hour to get the blaze under control.

Firefighters from around Fairfax County and as far away as Arlington battled the flames. The Vienna Volunteer Fire Department also assisted at the scene.

Photos posted online show firefighters using ladder trucks and water cannons as heavy smoke billowed from the restaurant’s roof.

It’s unclear what caused the fire as the building was reportedly vacant. No injuries were reported.

The building has been discussed as a possible site for redevelopment, though thus far no solid plans have been revealed.

https://twitter.com/Windows95C/status/1051550180519174145

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UPDATE 200 block Maple Avenue West: The fire is under control. The structure was vacant at the time of the fire. pic.twitter.com/9J0PMOcdg7

— Fairfax County Fire/Rescue (@ffxfirerescue) October 14, 2018

Photo (top) via Vienna Volunteer Fire Department/Facebook

If you didn’t know it was there, it would be easy to miss A.J.’s Sports Stop. The tiny shop is a slightly removed from Maple Avenue, and overshadowed by the larger abandoned Marco Polo Restaurant next door.

But for any lover of sports cards or tabletop games, inside is a treasure trove — and one that could disappear within a year.

Rick Lucian, one of the owners, said that the store has been tucked away off Maple Avenue since 1980. Lucian joined the store ten years ago, having grown up with a love of sports cards.

The store is an assortment of odds and ends related to all sorts of sports or geeky memorabilia. There’s Warhammer figures on a front shelf and comics nearby, plus board games.

“Magic: The Gathering is the biggest item that we sell,” said Lucian. “Magic has grown a lot over the years.”

But the real focus of the store is trading sports cards, baseball in particular.

Lucian says the store makes a special effort to be friendly to new card collectors. To those who are just starting out, Lucian says to just pick your favorite team and start collecting, like grabbing a packet of Nationals cards.

The arrival of eBay and overproduction of sports cards has hurt the collecting industry since its heyday prior to the turn of the century. Lucian says the store has adapted to keep up with the times, but the plans for changes along Maple Avenue could mean the end of A.J.’s, at least in its current location.

Lucian said developers are working on a plan to redevelop the Marco Polo site, and it seems inevitable that their store will get caught up in that.

“Most likely we’ll only be here for another year,” said Lucian. “They’re looking to demolish and build something new here. So we’re looking around for a new storefront and we would like to stay in Vienna, but the rents are high.”

In the meantime, Lucian says the store will continue to be Vienna’s one-stop shop for cards and tabletop games.

In an era of constant electronic stimulus, Lucian said there’s still something special about a kid opening up a pack of baseball cards.

Photo (2) via Google Maps

Halloween on the Green, a free family-friendly halloween celebration, is coming to Vienna this Saturday (Oct 13).

From 10:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m., activities sponsored by Vienna Parks and Recreation will fill the Vienna Town Green (144 Maple Ave E). Activities include:

• Crafts and games
• Storytelling with Patrick Henry librarians
• Moon bounces
• A petting zoo
• A visit from the Vienna Singing Princesses
• An applesauce-making demo, courtesy of Historic Vienna, Inc.
• Pumpkin carving and painting.

The event is aimed at children ages two through ten. In the event of inclement weather, call 703-255-7842 for updates on the status of the celebration.

Photo via Facebook

Carpet House Design Center, a interior decoration and design store based in Fredericksburg, is opening a location in Vienna (352 Maple Ave W).

According to general manager Bob Poole, the new location will have three distinct areas inside: one catering to builders, one that’s open to the public for retail sales, and a commercial area for architects and designers.

Poole said the store is anticipating opening by the end of the year or early in 2019.

The site formerly housed Kitchen and Bath Floors USA. The exterior of the building will remain intact, but Poole said the interior will be demolished and completely remodeled.

“We’ve got architects, engineers… the [demolition] is about to happen,” said Poole. “We just got occupancy permits. We’re waiting on the building permit right now.”

Maple Avenue in Vienna may be home to a number of vacant storefronts, but some of those vacancies are in the process of being filled.

In addition to MoMo House (131-A Maple Avenue W.) and Shin Se Kai Ramen (234 Maple Avenue E.), another new eatery is on the way. Nothing Bundt Cakes, a national bakery chain, is coming to Vienna at 129 Maple Avenue W.

The bakery chain specializes in circular bundt cakes, offering ten flavors and forty unique designs, as well as merchandise like gifts and decor.

The interior of the location is currently undergoing renovations. The owners of the Vienna franchise were not available for comment, but a sign on the exterior of the store said Nothing Bundt Cakes will be opening this fall.

An employee at the nearby Dulles location said the Vienna store hopes to be open sometime early next year.

Fairfax County Police are investigating an armed robbery near the Vienna/Fairfax GMU Metro station.

Police say a man was walking on a footpath to the station just before midnight this past Saturday, Oct. 6., when he was approached by a man who pointed a gun at him and demanded cash.

“The victim gave the man his wallet and then ran to his house to report the robbery,” FCPD said in a crime report. “The suspect was described as a black male, 6′, with a thick build.”

Map via Google Maps

A new ramen restaurant is coming to Maple Avenue in Vienna.

Signs are up for Shin Se Kai Ramen at 234 Maple Avenue E. in the former Pro Feed Pet Nutrition Center space. In addition to presumably serving ramen noodle soup, the restaurant has applied for a permit to serve wine and beer on premises.

Neither a website nor social media accounts for the restaurant could not be located. A man who answered a phone number associated with restaurant said he was busy and referred Tysons Reporter to the phone number of a manager, who did not answer the phone.

Shinsekai is a neighborhood of Osaka, Japan noted for its low-cost restaurants. The name translates to “New World” in English.

The application for a controversial redevelopment on Maple Avenue will be coming back to the Vienna Town Council later this week.

On paper, the rezoning application for 430, 440 and 444 Maple Ave. W. is a simple redevelopment issue, but over the last months the application has ignited questions about how Vienna adapts to a marketplace swiftly leaving it behind.

On Thursday, Oct. 4 at 7:30 p.m., project developer Vienna Development Associates LLC will return to the town hall for a work session to try to convince Vienna the project is right for Maple Avenue.

The site is currently occupied by the Vienna Wolf Trap Hotel, but the developer hopes to convince the Vienna Town Council to approve rezoning of the site to let them build a new four-story mixed use development. The project would have 160 multi-family residential units and 22,000 square feet of retail space.

The project attracted controversy in the community from the start, with 53 residents speaking mostly against the project at a July 9 public hearing on the project. The Vienna Town Council received 99 written comments by the time the comment period closed in August.

Many of these comments expressed concerns about the validity of traffic studies paid for by the developer. The traffic studies showed that the project would not have more of a traffic impact on Maple Avenue than any development not-requiring rezoning approval would have.

But public comments and emails to the council said citizens were still concerned the new development would add to the congestion at an already busy intersection and make traffic worse in close proximity to two nearby schools.

A third-party review initiated by Vienna Town Council staff verified the findings of the initial traffic studies, but Vienna Development Associates LLC deferred its application at the Aug. 20 Town Council meeting to take into account feedback from the council and from public comments.

Now, the developer has said the traffic concerns about the project have been addressed. Along with a series of project changes that the company says will reduce residential traffic by 25 percent, the developer has identified several transportation improvements that it hopes will make the project more palatable, including:

• Extending turn lanes on the nearby Nutley Street and Maple Avenue
• Widening the Maple Avenue exit to allow right and left turn lanes
• Pedestrian and bus stop improvements
• A shuttle running from the site to the Metro

But transportation concerns are only one part of the opposition to the project. For many who oppose the project, the development is too large and out of character for the small-town feel of Vienna.

“If we’re going to have a project there, this one is not ready for primetime,” said Councilmember Howard Springsteen at the August meeting. “I think the developer has done a horrible [public relations] job and has created a firestorm of concerns around town. This is probably one of the most divisive things that has come to this town in 20 years.”

In addition to traffic concerns, Springsteen said he and many Vienna residents were concerned that the building was too large and lacked substantial green space.

“People are upset about this around town,” said Springsteen. “Some are in favor, but the majority are opposed. This project needs to be reworked.”

But for others on the Vienna Town Council there are concerns that pushback on projects like the mixed-use development on Maple Avenue will lead to developers passing Vienna by. While residents are concerned about Vienna losing its unique small town character as more of its neighbors become rapidly urbanized, Maple Avenue is plagued with chronic vacancies.

Nearly every block on Maple Avenue has a vacancy of some kind. Traveling west on Maple Avenue, Vienna starts to look like a ghost town. Some whole blocks, like the former Marco Polo Restaurant at 245 Maple Ave., are completely abandoned and showing signs of overgrowth.

“Maple Avenue is a terrific location, but there are concerns with vacancies and commercial corridor perception,” said Councilmember Carey Sienicki. “Relying on the traditional model of neighborhoods separated from strip malls may no longer be justifiable to meet those needs. It’s important to see the benefits of mixed use options.”

Sienicki said that she believed that the additional height of the building won’t negatively impact the character of the town.

“There has been a citizen insurgency precipitated from what has happened in surrounding jurisdictions,” said Sienicki. “Town must react to those external concerns for Vienna. We are not looking to be like other jurisdictions. We are Vienna.”

Concept renderings via Vienna Development Associates LLC. Hotel photo via Vienna Wolf Trap Hotel.

MoMo House, a restaurant serving Nepali cuisine, is coming to Maple Avenue in Vienna.

The new restaurant is located in the former Sweet City Desserts space at 131-A Maple Avenue W. Construction is currently wrapping up and the restaurant is hiring staff, according to signs posted in the papered-over doors and windows.

Reached via phone, MoMo House’s Roju Basnet said it will be a “full-fledged, family-run restaurant,” with a full-time staff that will include her dad, mom and two brothers. Basnet said her dad recently moved to Northern Virginia from Massachusetts and has spent more than 20 years in the restaurant industry, while the rest of the family — including her and her husband, who will be working at the restaurant part-time — have service industry backgrounds.

The family, Basnet said, is originally from Nepal and is fulfilling a longtime dream of opening their own Nepalese restaurant.

MoMo House will feature a variety of Nepali dishes including various types of momos (dumplings), thali (platters) and sekuwa (kebabs), along with street food items like noodle and potato dishes.

Basnet said the Vienna storefront is “a perfect spot for us.”

“We’ve been looking for a perfect space for almost two years now, this has been a long-term plan,” she told Tysons Reporter. “We’ve looked at a ton of space and when we came across this space in Vienna, it was just ideal. It’s right on Maple Avenue, there’s a lot of potential to serve different communities.”

She said the restaurant will serve a “big Nepali community” that lives in the area, but it also expects to serve locals of all stripes.

“Vienna is a beautiful town,” said Basnet. “It’s so open to different ethnic groups and different communities.”

The restaurant is hoping to hold its grand opening on Tuesday, Oct. 16, though it is still working on its final permits and, as with all restaurant openings, the date is subject to change.