Arlington-based Rooney Properties has plans for a large residential project at 11111 Sunset Hills Road, the Washington Business Journal reports.

Unlike other development Rooney has planned in the area, however, this will not include destruction of the current property. According to the report, Rooney will buy only a portion of the 222,000-square foot office building, owned by The Meridian Group, which it plans to redevelop into living spaces.

The site is currently zoned industrial, and is the home of businesses including IBM and Akamai Technologies. Rooney has filed to rezone it to planned district commercial, for a mixed-use development to include the construction of up to 175 multi-family units and 13 townhouses.

The residences are planned for the western portion of the existing site, according to the statement of justification, “closest to the Wiehle-Reston East Metro Station and proximate to the residences planned just to the west.”

The adjacent property to the west is 1831 Michael Faraday Drive, also owned by Rooney Properties. The firm is seeking rezoning of that property, which currently is home to a single-story office building it has plans to demolish to make room for new residences there as well.

The Fairfax Newsletter recently reported that the plans for the Sunset Hills Road property propose “an urban, walkable” development while “retaining and incorporating the existing office building and an extension of Reston Station Boulevard through the site to Sunset Hills.”

The statement of justification also reports that public open space planned for the property would integrate with public open space on the Michael Faraday Drive property “to create a large combined public park.”

Meridian purchased the property in 2015. According to its investment strategy, it “intends to benefit from the nearby redevelopments to the neighborhood, which will connect the property to the Metro via retail-oriented, pedestrian-friendly streetscapes as the area transitions to a mixed-use, 18-hour environment.”

Rooney Properties is also the owner of the property where Sekas Homes is developing Sunrise Square, as well as the Sunrise Valley Drive property where a six-story office building is scheduled for demolition to make way for residential development.

Photo via The Meridian Group

A home in the 1000 block of Harriman Street in Great Falls was burglarized last week.

According to the Fairfax County Police Department, the report was made at 5:20 p.m. Friday. A resident reported that someone had entered the home and taken property.

Other incidents reported by the FCPD’s Reston District Station in the past week include:

LARCENIES:

12000 block of Edgemere Circle, coat and sunglasses from vehicle

1800 block of Jonathan Way, medication from residence

13600 block of McLearen Road, cell phone from school

11800 block of Triple Crown Road, wallet from residence

2300 block of Hunters Woods Plaza, alcohol from business

1100 block of Walker Road, credit cards from business

1800 block of Cameron Glen Drive, bicycle from residence

STOLEN VEHICLES:

None reported

Anyone with information about any of these incidents should call 703-691-2131 or 1-866-411-TIPS(8477), or text “TIP187” plus the message to CRIMES(274637).

Citizens Advisory Committee Meets Tonight — Fairfax County Police Chief Edwin Roessler is scheduled to speak at the Reston District Station’s Citizens Advisory Committee meeting tonight. The committee will meet at 7 p.m. at the Reston Regional Library (11925 Bowman Towne Drive). [Fairfax County Police Department/Twitter]

SLHS Indoor Track Records Set — Senior Devyn Jones (pictured) set a school record in the 55-meter hurdles (8.31 seconds) during the state indoor championships last weekend in Hampton. In addition, the team of Sophie Halkett, Aly Rayle, Jordan Anderson and Olivia Beckner set a school record in the 4×800 meter relay (9 minutes, 20.2 seconds). All five record-setters earned All-State honors, as did Sean Casey, Jack Eggeman, Mary Gregory, Stevie Jones, Alex Loukili, Timiebi Ogobri, Peter Sepulveda, Jack Watkins and Don’ta Whitley. [South Lakes High School]

Magnet Program Lottery Registration Underway — Parents wishing to enroll their students in the magnet program at Hunters Woods Elementary School for the Arts and Sciences, or other magnet programs in the county, must register their intention online. The lottery process began Monday and will end March 27, with the lottery itself to be held in early April. [Fairfax County Public Schools]

Running Women Welcome in Group — Registration is now underway for the 2017 Reston Runners Women’s Training Program. The group will meet every Monday from April 24 to June 12. The Reston Runners Women’s 5K is set for June 17. [Reston Runners]

Photo of Devyn Jones courtesy South Lakes High School track and field/Mary Ann Magnant

At its meeting Thursday, the Reston Association Board of Directors unanimously approved the release of just over $200,000 in funds previously allocated to the Central Services Facility renovation, to begin the architecture and engineering phase of the project.

According to Garrett Skinner, RA’s capital projects director, the funds will be used to develop detailed design and construction plans, further “value engineer” the project for cost savings, prepare permit application documents, receive detailed construction bids, and prepare the report for the Board of Directors to consider for the project’s next phase.

The project was put on hold in June 2016 when the board recommended such large-scale projects be paused until the Tetra/Lake House independent review was conducted. The board approved in December the release of funds to have staff work with project managers on an updated estimate of project cost.

Before the project was placed on hold, $87,000 was expended in the planning and design phase.

The project will include upgrades to the facility’s main building, shop area and warehouse:

• bathroom in warehouse building for environmental staff
• additional exit and ADA accessibility for warehouse office area
• replace all windows in main building
• add to bathroom capacity in main building to meet volume needs
• address leaking roof
• improve reception area for staff and RA members
• provide HVAC system for shop area
• install security system
• upgrade LAN connectivity
• provide adequate workspaces
• provide modular training space

RA staff says the cost of the project may increase by about 10 percent because it has been on hold, owed to increased demand for construction in the Dulles Corridor and greater Washington region. Skinner said at Thursday’s meeting that staff is “working hard” to try to stay within the projected cost of the renovation, which had been set at $1,553,185.

In an email to Reston Association directors last week, CEO Cate Fulkerson said a new policy requiring photos to be submitted with pool-pass applications is being altered.

A number of RA members have spelled out their concerns about providing photos, particularly of children, that would be stored in an online database to verify membership when using a pool. In response, RA will make exceptions to the requirement.

In the email, Fulkerson said RA is “absolutely sensitive” to residents’ concerns:

“For those who do not wish to have their photo on file, for example, due to custody-related matters or other concerns, we ask that they contact our Member Services Department so that we may assist them. Persons without a photo on file will be required to present a current state or other government-issued photo identification evidencing a physical address matching their household information each time they visit a facility.”

The new entrance system works similarly to that of a membership-based gym, Fulkerson said. Photos would not appear on the physical pass; rather, they would solely be on the WebTrac account accessible by staff members with scanning devices at the entrances to each facility. In her email, the CEO said only two pools will be equipped with the scanning technology this year; others will be upgraded “in the future.”

The photo requirement was added to the policy in the attempt to stop people from sharing their passes, Fulkerson said.

“Unfortunately in the past, we have had individuals give their pass to a neighbor or friend in lieu of purchasing their own,” she said in the email. “We believe [requiring photos] will better protect the value of our members’ assessments by improving the way in which we verify the identities of patrons using RA pools.”

Fulkerson said she plans to provide an overview of the new pass system during the March 23 meeting of the Reston Association Board of Directors.

At its meeting last week, the RA Board of Directors unanimously approved the addition of a planned Sunrise Valley Drive community into Reston Association.

Sunrise Square, at the site of the former American Press Institute headquarters (11690 Sunrise Valley Drive), is being developed by Sekas Homes. Its plans consist of 34 townhouses and 10 condos.

A public hearing on the addition of property request was held Jan. 26, at which time the board determined comments from the community warranted further discussion.

With its membership in RA, Sunrise Square will be subject to various terms and conditions, including:

• The entire property will be subject to the Reston Deed
• The establishment of a cluster association — Sunrise Square
• Full payment, per unit of the RA annual assessment
• The grant of a fee simple dedication for RA common area or easement for RA common area (use and maintenance)

“I think this is a no-brainer,” said Jeff Thomas, At-Large director, prior to the vote. “I think it’s a good investment in Reston, because it provides us a foothold in all the development that’s going to happen around there, and it’s going to help create more contiguous properties that we can tie amenities into.”

The property is located in the corridor that was originally part of the Reston Center for Industry and Government (RCIG).

“We’re injecting residential where it was never planned,” said John McBride, RA’s land-use attorney. “In order to keep Reston Reston, it needs to be subjected to the Reston covenants through a supplemental declaration, and the new residents should be RA members.”

Sunrise Square plan illustration via Reston Association

Officer’s Name to Be Made Public — The Fairfax County Police Department has been informed by the FBI that there is no credible threat to the officer who shot and killed a Herndon man Jan. 16, ending a chaotic barricade/hostage situation. Police Chief Edwin Roessler says the officer’s name will be released. [Fairfax County Police Department]

Community Council on Land Use Meets Tonight — The group, chaired by former county planning commissioner Walter Alcorn, aims to produce a set of recommendations that would improve Fairfax County’s public outreach and community engagement in the land use and development process. It plans to meet every other Monday at 7:30 p.m., through April 24, at the Fairfax County Government Center. [Fairfax County]

Police Say Man Bites Another’s Face in ‘Bias-Related’ Attack — Robin McGreer (pictured), 35, of McLean, faces a charge of maliciously causing bodily injury after police say he used racial slurs while threatening a man before biting him, resulting in a “significant facial wound.” The incident took place in a Tysons Corner Center parking lot. [Fairfax County Police Department]

Australian Company Takes Full Ownership of Greenway — Macquarie Atlas Roads last week became full owner of the Dulles Greenway. The company’s chief executive said he hopes to boost revenues by improving entry and exit points. [Australian Financial Review]

Reston Native Working to Defend Against Cyber Threats — Cmdr. Nick Shur is serving in the U.S. Navy Reserves as a member of Space and Warfare Systems Command, which works to improve cyber war-fighting capability and enhances technology on surface ships, aircraft and submarines. [Fairfax Times]

Herndon High Grad Is a Diamond Star — Ky Parrott, of the Herndon High School Class of 2013, has been named to the preseason first-team all-conference baseball team in the Colonial Athletic Association. A senior at James Madison University, Parrott has started the season strong as well. [JMU Breeze]

Looking for something to do this weekend? Here is a sampling of what’s available in Reston:

• At the Walker Nature Center (11450 Glade Road), children can learn about gourmet treats for birds on Saturday from 11 a.m.-noon. For the grown-ups, a “Wine and Design” painting event is slated for Saturday night, 6:30-9.
• Events at Reston Town Center this weekend include Girl Scout cookie sales, a cooking class at Il Fornaio (11990 Market St.) and special skating events at the ice pavilion.
• At the Reston Community Center’s Jo Ann Rose Gallery (1609A Washington Plaza N.), “For the Love of Color” remains on display.
• At CenterStage (2310 Colts Neck Road), Irish musicians Lúnasa return to the stage tonight at 8. This show is sold out, but patrons are invited to the box office after 7 p.m. to get on the waiting list.
• Reston Regional Library (11925 Bowman Towne Drive) will host events for kids including a “Minute to Win It” game show event (Saturday, 11 a.m.), chess club (Saturday, 2:30 p.m.) and YA book club (Sunday, 2:30 p.m.). For adults, cinema classic “Il Postino” will be shown Saturday (2 p.m.) and the lecture series on World War I continues Sunday (2 p.m.).
• Reston Community Center (2310 Colts Neck Road) will have the reception for its February art exhibit, “From the Heart,” on Saturday from noon-1 p.m.
• Kalypso’s (1617 Washington Plaza N.) will have music from the Holly Montgomery Band tonight and DJ Kram on Saturday night.
• Spectrum will be performing tonight at World of Beer (1888 Explorer St.) beginning at 10 p.m.
• Dewey Animals is planning an animal adoption event at Pet Valu (11160 South Lakes Drive) Saturday from 1-3 pm.

A complaint from a community member asking for a director to be removed from the Reston Association board was the source of lengthy debate during the board’s Thursday meeting.

Ed Abbott filed a Common Interest Community Board Complaint against At-Large Director Eve Thompson on Feb. 4. In his complaint, Abbott pointed out that Thompson’s Conflict of Interest form on record does not disclose her ownership of the Lake Anne Coffee House and Wine Bar, as well as her husband’s status as president of the Lake Anne of Reston Condominium Association. Because of this, he said, Thompson’s actions during the board’s Jan. 22 meeting — where her husband presented on Lake Anne capital improvements and she spoke in favor of them — were imprudent.

Board general counsel Ken Chadwick said he did not believe there was any violation of COI policy because no action was taken on the subject at the meeting. He cited Virginia law in adding that even if it wanted to, the board does not have authority to remove Thompson, as Abbott requested.

Chadwick recommended to the board that they vote to deny Abbott’s complaint, at which time he would be able to take it to the Virginia state ombudsman for further review. That motion was made, but it failed after directors Lucinda Shannon and Sherri Hebert voted against it. Shannon said she wanted the board to go against Chadwick’s recommendation and ask Thompson to resign.

Shannon said that as Thompson checked a box on her COI statement saying falsifying information would result in resignation from the board, that is what should happen.

“If we don’t follow what we say we’re going to do in writing on our policy documents that we sign, then what good is our word?” Shannon said.

A vote on Shannon’s motion to ask Thompson to resign also failed, with Shannon casting the only assenting vote.

In response to the discussion on the matter, Thompson said it was never her intent to deceive anyone.

“This is so dismaying, not to be called out on incomplete documentation, but to have that used to basically be accused of integrity issues,” she said. “I most definitely, last month at the board meeting, should have re-disclosed — I have disclosed it before — my interests in Lake Anne. It’s been so well-documented that it’s always a surprise to me [that people don’t know]. … That doesn’t mean that I’m excluded from filling out the paperwork completely, and for that I do apologize. I should have been more careful.”

Thompson’s ownership of the coffee house along with her husband was reported in the media, including on Reston Now.

Director Ray Wedell said he is concerned that directors will begin to take a “defensive mentality” when they face continued attacks from the community.

“We need to be proactive, we need to take more chances, we need to address community issues without fear of somebody coming behind us with all sorts of ‘You did this, and I want you fired, and you’re a terrible person,'” he said. “Everybody in here lives in glass houses, everybody in here has flaws.”

Thompson said she is discouraged that discussion on a proposal that would be beneficial to all the residents of Lake Anne devolved into personal attacks against her.

“Instead of, ‘Wow, here’s an opportunity to do something awesome in the community that would benefit the entire community,’ it became a personal vendetta,” she said. “That’s really tragic [and] I feel really badly about that.”

After a spirited member-comment session, the Reston Association Board of Directors decided at their meeting Thursday to indefinitely table a proposal from Reston Soccer to renovate the Lake Newport soccer fields.

About a dozen members of three clusters adjacent to the fields — Bayfield Station, Arbor Glen and Concord Green — spoke before the board to express their concerns about the project. The issues at hand include the worries about lighting, artificial turf’s effect on the environment, and increased disruption to the community due to field use at later hours, year-round.

“Neighbors from the most affected clusters are united in our opposition to Reston Soccer’s proposal and are angered at the manner in which the Reston Association has mismanaged this project,” said Eric McErlain, Bayfield Station homeowners’ president and organizer of a community coalition called Preserve Newport Fields. “In our view, the proposal violates RA covenants concerning the conservation of green space, and we believe it amounts to a taking of a shared community resource for the private gain of Reston Soccer.”

Similar issues were brought up during a community meeting on the proposal earlier this month. After that meeting, Reston Soccer requested a Design Review Board session on the proposal that had been scheduled for Feb. 21 be postponed.

Residents expressing their concern about the proposal pointed to Reston Soccer’s ongoing fundraisers as proof that the project’s approval by the board was a foregone conclusion. Director Julie Bitzer (South Lakes District) said the proposal’s timeline remains in its early stages.

“To think the horse is out of the barn, and that we put the cart before the horse, is jumping to a conclusion,” she said. “We’re not there yet.”

In their decision to table the proposal, the board also directed CEO Cate Fulkerson to work in collaboration with the Parks & Recreation Advisory Committee and other strategic partners to develop a five-year strategic plan describing future amenities and facilities to serve RA and its members.

A number of residents of the communities around the fields stated they did not feel they were properly alerted to proposal and to each stage of the process. The board voted to direct Fulkerson to work with the Community Engagement Advisory Committee to develop a member-notification process — similar to the 21-day notice requirement established for design review applications — to gather community input when considering major recreation amenity proposals.

“Our communication out to the community of some of the changes is not perfect,” Bitzer said. “We have a lot of work to do to make sure we get the message out… [and] we need to do better on that.”

At-Large Director Ray Wedell cast the lone opposition vote on the decision to table the proposal, saying he believes it should be scrapped altogether.

“We can push the can down the road and say, ‘Let’s look at it later on and analyze it further,’ [but] we have a lot of other things to look at,” he said. “I don’t see this ever happening; I think the objection from the people is too strong, too organized.”

Saying Reston Association cannot continue on its current path in collecting assessments, At-Large Director Ray Wedell is presenting ideas for modifying the system.

“This has been a scuttlebutt for many years,” Wedell said as he delivered his presentation Thursday night at the Reston Association Board of Directors meeting. “We have a proposal on the table — it can be altered, can be changed, can be ignored if you want to ignore it. But something has to be out to start the discussion.”

Three separate options were provided by Wedell. In each, the highest-value properties would pay one and a half times the assessment rate, while lowest-value properties would pay only half the rate. The largest amount of units would continue to pay the average rate.

With an assessment rate of $704, that would create tiered payments of $352, $704 and $1,056.

In the three options presented by Wedell, the lowest-valued property that could fall into the 150 percent rate category is $550,000. The highest-valued property that could fall into the half-rate category is $275,000.

Wedell said under the current system, 3.1 percent of units do not pay the flat rate, as subsidized properties are already offered a 50 percent assessment reduction. The director said those units would not be part of any policy change and would continue to pay their current rate.

Any policy change would be revenue-neutral, Wedell said, meaning the same total amount would be collected. He also added that altering the structure would “adhere to Reston’s time-honored principle to be fair and equitable to all members.”

Wedell has taken the idea upon himself as a personal initiative. It is not a current priority of the board, Vice President Michael Sanio clarified for meeting attendees.

“We appreciate our members pursuing various issues,” Sanio said. “This particular one is something that Ray has had a real interest in.”

The data provided Thursday by Wedell were only in the form of a presentation to the board; no action was taken.

Changing the assessment formula would require an amendment to the Reston Deed. That would require approval from the Board of Directors, at least 30 percent voter turnout on a referendum, and at least two-thirds approval on that vote.

“These are high hurdles, but it’s not something we should run away from,” Wedell said. “I think it’s time for us to put this on the table.”

Reston Community Center recently bid a fond farewell to a woman who has been documenting its history for more than three decades.

Staff photographer Linda Rutledge, who had been with RCC since 1981, retired from the position last week. Leila Gordon, RCC’s executive director, said the impact Rutledge has had on the organization over the years has been practically immeasurable.

“We have a massive and fabulous photo archive from RCC’s very earliest years,” Gordon said. “We’ve been very close, and her history with RCC is very much intertwined with the history of this agency, this institution itself.”

Reston Community Center opened in 1979.

Gordon said Rutledge has not only a keen eye for photography, but a “tremendous degree of institutional memory” that made her an extremely valuable employee.

“We will be very hard-pressed to replace, and we’ll just have to grow again, Linda’s tremendous knowledge of Reston,” Gordon said. “You didn’t have to give her instructions or a shoot list, or say ‘Be sure that you get so-and-so.’ She just knew, she just absolutely knew where the people she needed to shoot were.”

Rutledge’s ability to capture a moment in a photo, showing the emotion of a situation, was another quality Gordon praised.

“[She could] focus on a spontaneous humanity of a setting, not taking pictures at an event that are just people standing and smiling for the camera,” the executive director said. “Her photographs are beautiful because they show people doing things and engrossed in those things that were part of their RCC experience.”

Gordon said she fully expects that Rutledge will not be able to completely separate herself and her camera from Reston Community Center.

“She loves the Multicultural Festival, and she loves our [Dr. Martin Luther] King celebration events, so there are some things like that I imagine she’ll still want to contribute photographs to,” Gordon said. “There are some things that Linda says she just wouldn’t feel she is alive if she missed.”

Photos courtesy Reston Community Center/Linda Rutledge

Lake House/Tetra Review On Schedule: Michael Sanio, RA Board of Directors vice president, said at Thursday night’s meeting that the independent review of the Tetra/Lake House purchase remains on track to be submitted by StoneTurn Group by midnight Tuesday. Sanio said RA’s Tetra Review Committee is “very pleased with the progress” that has been made, and that the review will be made public once it has been seen by all board members. [Reston Association]

South Lakes High Student Government Honored — The South Lakes High School SGA is one of 21 statewide that have been recognized with the Virginia Student Councils Achievement Award for 2016-17. [Fairfax County Public Schools]

SLHS Sophomore Selected for IT Award — Anika Kumar has been selected as a 2017 Virginia affiliate winner of the National Center for Women and Information Technology Award for Aspirations in Computing. Kumar, who became interested in computers when she took a class in middle school, has produced her own video game. [Fairfax County Public Schools]

Teen Job Fairs Slated for March, April — The 2017 Fairfax County Teen Job Fairs and Resume Building Workshops will be held at Chantilly High School, Oakton High School, West Springfield High School and South County Secondary School. [Fairfax County]

Photo of Lake Anne sunrise this morning via Instagram user @annemusicmarkets

Fairfax County Police have identified the victim in a fatal pedestrian incident Thursday evening in Reston.

Police say 57-year-old Asress Gobena Lakew, of Reston, was attempting to cross Reston Parkway near South Lakes Drive at about 6:20 p.m. when she was struck by a southbound 2016 Jeep Wrangler. Lakew was not within a crosswalk when the collision took place, police say.

The 30-year-old driver of the Jeep remained on scene and she was treated by medics. Police say the Crash Reconstruction Unit responded to investigate, and they determined neither speed nor alcohol appear to have been contributing factors to the crash.

Anyone who witnessed this crash is asked to call the CRU witness line at 703-280-0543 or contact Crime Solvers. Tips can also be made by texting “TIP187” plus a message to CRIMES(274637), or by calling 1-866-411-TIPS(8477) or 703-691-2131.

Photo courtesy Fairfax County Police Department