Reston Now Reader Survey — Please help us make Reston Now even better by taking our 2017 reader survey! This year, we’re partnering with the University of Kansas journalism school, which is studying sites like ours. The results of the survey will help us improve the site and will help researchers better understand our role in informing the Reston community. [Reston Now/KU]

Design-Build Firm Marks Grand Opening — Home remodeling company Synergy Design & Construction officially opened its new showroom (11501 Sunset Hills Road, Suite 250) last week. The business began in 2008 and has about a dozen employees. [Press Release]

Police Show Solidarity with Muslim Community — Reston patrol officers of the Fairfax County Police Department visited the All Dulles Area Muslim Society and the Al Fatih Academy to show their support following this weekend’s mass shooting at a mosque in Quebec. [Fairfax County Police Department/Facebook]

RTC Parking ‘Uninviting and Confusing’ — Reston resident Peter Carlivati has visited Bowtie Cinemas at Reston Town Center twice in the last month, and has left with a bad taste in his mouth after trying to pay for parking with cash. [Fairfax Times]

(This article was edited on Jan. 31 at 1:45 p.m. to better contextualize a statement made by CEO Cate Fulkerson.)

No public hearing on the proposed Lake Anne dock project was agreed upon by Reston Association Board of Directors at its meeting last week, following spirited discussion about the plan.

Bridget Hill of the Fairfax County Office of Community Revitalization addressed the board with a number of ideas for the future of the Lake Anne Village Center, which were the results of a 2015 community charrette. Ideas ranged from enhanced lighting and concrete pavers to the addition of kiosks or even a floating restaurant.

Garrett Skinner, RA’s new director for capital improvements, made his suggestion to the board — to proceed with a direct replacement of the dock and set a public hearing for community input on the future phase of the project.

Multiple board members took umbrage with the second part of that recommendation. Director Lucinda Shannon said she could not understand why discussion of another potential capital improvement plan would be scheduled while others have already been placed on hold.

“Let’s take care of what we already have, and not keep adding more,” Shannon said.

Shannon was referring to the Pony Barn and Central Services projects, which are both on hold until the review of the Lake House project is complete.

CEO Cate Fulkerson said the board was approached by representatives of the Lake Anne Merchants Association and Lake Anne of Reston Condominium Association regarding the project.

“We wanted to make sure the board had an opportunity to learn about the charrette and have a public input session before you decided what you wanted to do,” she said. “We’re going to move ahead with the other piece, because it’s really important to maintain what we have, but this was a community request.”

Direct replacement of the existing dock, which RA Parks and Recreation Director Larry Butler said has had no major refurbishment in about 20 years, is scheduled to cost about $400,000. Those funds have already been allocated. Additional changes would require review by RA’s Design Review Board and Fairfax County’s Architectural Review Board, which considers changes to Historic Overlay Districts such as Lake Anne Plaza.

When Eve Thompson, the board’s secretary, joined the conversation, Shannon cut her off by saying she has a “serious conflict of interests” regarding the project. Thompson and her husband are Lake Anne residents and own the Lake Anne Coffee House. Board President Ellen Graves asked Shannon to “be respectful” of her fellow directors.

“The fact that I own a coffee house and an apartment, I don’t believe is a conflict,” Thompson said. “I’m a community member who has an opinion about the dock.”

Thompson asked the board why they would not consider the opportunity of improving a facility when it arises, as they would with a baseball park.

“[Do we replace an amenity] exactly as it is, or do you look at it and say, ‘Let’s improve it?'” she said.

Fulkerson said the issue was being brought to the board’s attention only so they could learn about the ideas on the table and determine what they want to do going forward.

“I want to be respectful of the fact that you’ve had a member request,” Fulkerson said. “We just need to know what to do next. That’s why we’re here.”

Director Ray Wedell said it was “crazy” that the board was spending so much time talking about the project at its January meeting. He said with as many as four new directors arriving in this year’s election, it would make more sense to allow the new board to make such a decision.

“This is an important project, and I’m not going to rush in and say, ‘This is going to look cool,’ and ‘Wow, wouldn’t Lake Anne look neat?'” he said. “I don’t know why we’re spending time putting an agenda together that goes till midnight on stuff we don’t have to deal with right now.”

No motion was made on advancing the project.

Timeline chart via Reston Association

Amid a political climate growing more divided by the day, a local group looking to stand up for what they believe is reporting big growth.

According to information provided by Herndon-Reston Indivisible, about 300 people attended a meeting the group held Thursday night at Sunset Hills Montessori. Eileen Minarik, the school’s founder and owner, offered up the space.

“People are not just coming to meetings — they’re doing things,” Minarik said. “It’s been really gratifying to see the number of people who are out here, not to be anti-someone, but to be pro-social justice.”

The group is following the suggestions of the Indivisible Guide, developed by former congressional staffers as “a practical guide for resisting the Trump agenda.” Hundreds of such groups have formed across the nation, including more than 150 within a 100-mile radius of Reston.

Members of the group participated in the Women’s March on Washington earlier this month, as well as in a protest Sunday outside the White House. Now, as protests regarding President Donald Trump’s executive order on immigration continue at nearby Washington Dulles International Airport, members of the group’s base have taken part.

The executive order has prompted outrage from a number of the area’s representatives on Capitol Hill, including Rep. Gerry Connolly (D-Va.), who addressed protesters at the airport this weekend.

The Herndon-Reston group is also asking members to call Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) and Democratic Virginia Sens. Tim Kaine and Mark Warner to urge them to “publicly oppose and filibuster” any Trump nominee to the Supreme Court.

In the 2016 General Election, Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton took about two-thirds of the vote in Virginia’s 11th Congressional District, which includes Herndon and Reston.

Minarik said Herndon-Reston Indivisible’s meeting last week was its second, and the turnout was about twice as large as for the first. The group’s next meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, Feb. 21, at 6:30 p.m. at Sunset Hills Montessori (11180 Ridge Heights Road).

Photo via Herndon-Reston Indivisible

Fairfax County Public Schools are still growing, but they are not seeing nearly as many new enrollees as they have in recent years.

The district’s 2018-22 Capital Improvement Program, approved last week by the board, predicts an increase in enrollment of about 3,000 students in the next five years — from its current 187,202 to a projected 190,632. In the past decade, Fairfax County had been seeing that number of new enrollees each year.

South Lakes High School had an enrollment of 2,483 students at the beginning of the current school year, which is more than 300 above current capacity. A renovation project at the school is expected to increase capacity to 2,700 by the end of the 2018-19 school year, while enrollment is projected to remain relatively stable through 2021-22.

Enrollment had previously been expected to soar well above the 2,700 mark; however, in the CIP, Fairfax County Public Schools report a leveling-off due to changing demographics in the area:

“As the county approaches build-out, new housing is forecast to rise numerically in units, but its composition is likely to change. Forecasts of housing in Fairfax County and City of Fairfax include larger numbers and proportions of mid- and high-rise residential developments, which have typically drawn fewer families with school-aged children.”

The school’s ongoing addition project is scheduled to cost $14.5 million. That number breaks down to $8 million in FY2018, $5.8 million in FY 2019 and $300,000 in FY2020. About $500,000 has already gone into the project.

A new high school is proposed in the district’s most recent CIP; however, it is pencilled in for the middle of the next decade (FY2023-FY2027).

From the program proposal:

“Anticipation and completion of the Silver Line Metro has already spurred higher density residential growth along that corridor. This new residential growth, along with potential changes in families residing within existing residential areas adjacent to that corridor, may, in part, result in an increase in students within FCPS schools.”

The new high school, at a cost of $120 million, would be built in the western part of the county to provide relief for existing area high schools such as South Lakes and Herndon, as well as Centreville, Chantilly, Herndon, Oakton and Westfield.

Charts via Fairfax County Public Schools

Weather Changes Schedules for Kids — Schools in Fairfax County are on a two-hour delay today due to the winter weather that struck overnight. The weather is expected to continue to fluctuate throughout the week, with highs around 50s projected for the next two days, followed by a return of winter heading into the weekend. [Fairfax County Public Schools]

Governor to Be in Reston This Week — Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe is scheduled to travel to Reston on Wednesday morning. The governor’s official schedule for this week includes the visit to StreetShares, in Isaac Newton Square, to announce finalists for the Veteran Small Business Awards. [Governor’s Office]

Airport Protesters Decry Immigrant Ban — Washington Dulles International Airport saw a number of protesters at the international terminal over the weekend. The demonstrators were there to show their support for immigrants after President Donald Trump signed an executive order banning international travelers from a number of Muslim countries. [Washington Post]

The Reston Association Board of Directors decided at their Thursday meeting to hold off until next month on determining whether to add the future Sunrise Square cluster to RA.

CEO Cate Fulkerson had planned to ask for board consideration of the request following a public hearing at the meeting; however, that decision was postponed after a number of questions were raised by both board members and community residents.

The property is located at 11690 Sunrise Valley Drive, the former site of the American Press Institute headquarters. That building was demolished last fall.

Concerns raised Thursday regarding bringing the new development into Reston Association included a clause written into the agreement that would make RA responsible for maintaining a shared-use public space on the property; and the fact that as the property is not yet part of RA, development was not scheduled to be considered by the Design Review Board.

Director Ray Wedell said he didn’t feel comfortable making a decision one way or the other on the property until the board had fully considered what approval would mean.

“This is just one of many [new developments] coming up, and it’s going to be somewhat of a test case. Like it or not, it may set some kind of precedent — good and bad — on a lot of different issues here,” Wedell said. “I don’t want to open doors to give people a back doorway for getting things approved that shouldn’t be approved, nor do I want to set a precedent of us appearing to be obstructionist or over-regulatory.”

Eve Thompson, board secretary, said it is important for new developments in Reston’s Transportation Station Area corridor to become members of RA, but that the situation involves “walking a tightrope.”

“We want the membership — the property is going to get developed regardless of what we say or do,” she said. “So we’re trying to get them in the fold without [giving up too much].”

Director Sherri Hebert said the loophole created by allowing the development into RA before it goes down the channels required for existing properties would be “dangerous.”

“It’s not going to meet our standards, our Reston principles,” she said. “I’m not sure that I would want to create that loophole and precedent for anybody else on the TSA to do the same thing, come after the fact and say, ‘We want to be members, but we just bypassed everything that you value in Reston.'”

Citizen Irwin Flashman also addressed the board, saying he didn’t believe there had been enough notice of the public hearing.

“There needs to be much more time for the public to review the documents, think about them, discuss them and raise questions to the board as to whether this is appropriate or not,” he said. “Too often we have seen with the Reston Association a rush to judgment, and too often, the rush to judgment has been wrong.”

Fulkerson said information about the proposal was provided to the Board Operations Committee in November, and that proper public hearing announcements were made.

The board eventually decided to hold a second public hearing on the matter at its Feb. 23 meeting, with RA committees including the Design Review Board to examine the plan before that time.

Reston Community Players will have their productions all over the annual Washington Area Theatre Community Honors awards in March.

The troupe’s productions received 23 total nominations for the 2016 season, second-most among the 27 participating theater companies. Only the Little Theatre of Alexandria (26) received more.

Among the nominations are 17 for the Community Players’ performance of “Gypsy” last fall. The group also received five nominations for its performance of “Mary Poppins” (February-March) and one for its staging of “Master Class” (January).

Paul Tonden, artistic director, said the Community Players are humbled by and grateful for the recognition.

“We strive to offer our patrons high-quality productions, which would not be possible without so many talented volunteers,” Tonden said. “We consider ourselves lucky to be part of such a vibrant DC Metro-area theater community and congratulate all the nominees.”

The full list of RCP nominations is as follows:

• Outstanding Musical — “Gypsy”
• Outstanding Lead Actress in a Musical — Jennifer Lambert (“Rose”), “Gypsy”
• Outstanding Lead Actress in a Musical — Shaina Murphy (“Mary Poppins”), “Mary Poppins”
• Outstanding Lead Actress in a Play — Lisa Anne Bailey (“Mary Callas”), “Master Plan”
• Outstanding Featured Actor in a Musical — Erich DiCenzo (“Tulsa”), “Gypsy”
• Outstanding Direction of a Musical — Paul Tonden, “Gypsy”
• Outstanding Music Direction — Mitch Bassman, “Gypsy”
• Outstanding Choreography — Andrea Heininge, “Gypsy”
• Outstanding Choreography — Andrea Heininge, “Mary Poppins”
• Outstanding Costume Design in a Musical — Kathy Dunlap, “Gypsy”
• Outstanding Costume Design in a Musical — Charlotte Marson and Judy Whelihan, “Mary Poppins”
• Outstanding Hair Design in a Musical — Chris Dore, “Gypsy”
• Outstanding Light Design in a Musical — Ken and Patti Crowley, “Gypsy”
• Outstanding Makeup Design in a Musical — Chris Dore, “Gypsy”
• Outstanding Properties in a Musical — MaryJo Ford, “Gypsy”
• Outstanding Set Construction in a Musical — Dan Widerski, “Gypsy”
• Outstanding Set Design in a Musical — Bart Healy, “Gypsy”
• Outstanding Set Decoration in a Musical — Jerry and Bea Morse, “Gypsy”
• Outstanding Set Painting in a Musical — Cathy Rieder, “Gypsy”
• Outstanding Special Effects — Greg Steele, Sara Birkhead and Rich Bird, “Mary Poppins”
• Outstanding Sound Design in a Musical — Joshua Redford, “Gypsy”
• Outstanding Cameo in a Musical — Jaclyn Young (“Electra”), “Gypsy”
• Outstanding Cameo in a Musical — Phillip Scott-Cobbs (“Neleus”), “Mary Poppins”

Last year, Reston Community Players took home four awards on 17 nominations.

The Community Players are currently presenting “Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike” through Feb. 4.

This year’s awards ceremony is scheduled for Sunday, March 5 at The Birchmere in Alexandria.

The Reston Association Board of Directors has agreed to a $45,000 independent review of its Lake House project, to be conducted by the StoneTurn Group. Terms of the review require the work to be completed by Feb. 28.

According to information provided by the Reston Association board about the deal:

StoneTurn was one of the original finalists chosen by the Tetra Review Committee to conduct the impartial study. After a local company, Mediaworld Ventures LLC, terminated contract negotiations with the Reston Association earlier this month, the board moved to enter into negotiations with StoneTurn immediately during its regular monthly meeting Thursday.

Several concerned residents addressed the board Thursday evening, following the announcement by Vice President Michael Sanio, to share their thoughts about the ongoing saga. Karen Wilkens, of Waterview Cluster, said she is frustrated about what she sees as continued overspending on the project.

“I’ve lost a lot of faith in Reston Association, and I’m stunned to hear that you’re contemplating signing a contract that would spend an additional $45,000 on that property,” she said. “The amount of money that was overspent, it’s gross negligence.”

The Lake House property was purchased from Tetra in 2015, for a cost nearly double its tax assessment. Renovations on the property to transform it into a community building have cost three times more than expected. An independent audit was requested.

Mediaworld Ventures LLC came together and announced they would do the work for a $1 fee. After months of negotiations with the RA board over the details, that proposal fell through with finger-pointing from both sides.

Reston resident Jill Gallagher, a management consultant and former budget analyst, was a member of the Mediaworld committee. She addressed the board Thursday night and expressed her sorrow over the fact that the hard work the committee did was, they view, stonewalled by the RA board.

“I was very disappointed that we didn’t get the contract,” Gallagher said. “We had worked very hard from August until the end to try to understand what happened.”

Gallagher provided board members, for the record, with the assessment the committee had drawn up regarding the meeting at which the board voted on a referendum to purchase the property.

“We had many, many questions, including a two-hour executive session that occurred before the project was even presented. To members, it looks like a lot of the decisions were made before you even heard about the project,” Gallagher said. “A lot of things happened at that meeting that your members are not aware of. I think that is the source of this problem.”

Ed Abbott, representing Reston Recall, provided the board with a report on what his group — which has the expressed goal of having board members involved in the Tetra/Lake House purchase removed — has analyzed about the deal.

“The only way Reston gets back to its purpose as defined in the deed, articles of incorporation and bylaws, is to elect a board with a majority of members who will undertake a thorough evaluation of RA’s organization including but not limited to the senior staff leadership team,” Abbott said. “Reston Recall will be reaching out to the candidates in the upcoming election and supporting those that agree.”

Concerns about the quality of the board’s minutes were also brought up during the meeting — first by a director, Sherri Hebert, who questioned the report from a Dec. 7 special meeting with the Mediaworld committee.

“[The minutes] lacked any substance, meaning there was nothing in the minutes that even talked about why the meeting was happening, nor what some of the major concerns were within the discussions,” Hebert said. “I’d like to see the minutes be added to… to add some of that context to the minutes. Minutes should be written so that if we want to reflect on them at some future time, we know what happened.”

Board Secretary Eve Thompson said the board’s standard for minute-taking is not to try to capture the dialogue, but rather just to capture topics and decisions.

“I believe I followed the standard as I understood it,” Thompson said. “What else would one put? That people were upset? That people were happy? … I don’t think it’s realistic and it’s not the standard of any of our minute capture to try to do that.”

The Dec. 7 meeting was also not video recorded and placed on YouTube, as regular meetings are.

The board eventually agreed to re-assess the minutes from the Dec. 7 and Dec. 13 meetings and bring them back for approval at February’s meeting.

Citizens who spoke later in the meeting also expressed their feelings about what they see as bare-bones minutes. Resident James Dean said given controversial actions such as the Lake House purchase, residents deserve more from the board’s meeting reports.

“It may be usual for you to just record votes and actions,” Dean said. “[But] your membership wants more information from you than just a recording of your actions and your votes.”

The next meeting of the Reston Association Board of Directors is scheduled for Thursday, Feb. 23.

Name of Officer in Herndon Shooting Not Released — Pending further investigation, the Fairfax County Police Department is not releasing the name of the officer who shot and killed Mohammad Azim Doudzai on Jan. 16 in Herndon, ending a hostage/barricade situation. Doudzai had earlier shot and injured his two brothers. [Fairfax County Police Department]

Reston’s Family Rankings Not Flattering — Personal finance website WalletHub recently released its rankings of Virginia’s 82 largest communities for their friendliness to families. Reston ranked middle of the road (37th) overall, and was particularly low (71st) in the “Family Life & Fun” category. The community did rank well in affordability (20th) and socioeconomics (23rd). Other Northern Virginia communities swept the Top 5 overall: Falls Church, Leesburg, Vienna, South Riding and Great Falls. [WalletHub]

Massive Mixed-Use Development Pitched in Herndon — MRP Development has filed for 650,000 square feet of office, 1,701 multifamily units, 112 townhouses and 44,000 square feet of retail near the future Innovation Center Metro Station. [Washington Business Journal]

A baker’s dozen of Edlin School students took top honors among 24 teams last weekend with their vision for making the world a better place.

The Future City project, according to its website, asks sixth-, seventh- and eighth-grade students to “imagine, research, design and build cities of the future that showcase their solution to a citywide sustainability issue.” The theme for the 2016-17 competition is the Power of Public Space.

The Edlin School team competed in the Mid-Atlantic Region Competition on Jan. 21 in Baltimore. In it, they took top honors among teams from Virginia, Maryland, Delaware and DC. In addition to the overall first-place award, they also won first place in the project plan and essay categories. They also received a Spirit Award trophy.

“The team assembled during the past summer and worked hard to plan, build and present their vision for this year’s competition,” said Linda Schreibstein, Edlin School director, in a letter.

Edlin School is a private K-8 school located on Sunset Hills Road in Reston.

Team members include the following:

• SIXTH GRADE: Pari Agarwala, Vinay Ayala, Will Ditmore, Barbara Heine, Katie Heine, Ethan Valentine, Ananya Yarlagadda
• SEVENTH GRADE: Armaan Ahluwalia, Arjun Giridhar, Ethan Qin
• EIGHTH GRADE: Logan Hyslop, Shadi Oveissi, Shaan Vardan

Parent coaches and mentors are Vasantha Ayala, Doug Hyslop and Paula Hyslop.

“After the competition is over, student participants are not only prepared to be citizens of today’s complex and technical world, they are poised to become the drivers of tomorrow,” the Future City project website proclaims.

The team now advances to the National Future City Competition, Feb. 18-21 in Washington.

Photos courtesy Indira Ahluwalia

Metro board members continue to probe the public for feedback as they address how to close their budget gap.

In a public forum Wednesday night in Reston, the Virginia members of the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority board discussed their $3.1 billion proposed FY2018 budget.

Board members estimate $17 billion will be needed over next decade “just to maintain a state of good repair,” but also acknowledge that the impact of delays associated with the SafeTrack program are significant.

DC CFO estimates Metro delays led to:

— lost productivity between $153 million and $235 million annually in the region

— ridership declines that reduce Metrorail’s fare box recovery

Like a 40 year old house, Metro maintenance cannot be deferred, notes WMATA board member Cathy Hudgins. Join us @RestonChamber now. pic.twitter.com/bmQuOffaad

— NVTC (@NoVaTransit) January 26, 2017

Proposed investments, totaling $1.25 billion, outlined by board members to help make Metro more safe and reliable include new 7000 Series railcars; replacement buses and paratransit vehicles; rehabilitation and maintenance of existing railcar and bus fleets; rehabilitation and replacement of track and structures, rail power, radio/wireless and bus garages; and reinvestment in station escalators, elevators, lighting and platforms.

How do we make Metro safe & reliable? WMATA board member @Paul_Smedberg shares ideas. Learn more now @RestonChamber. Meeting open to public pic.twitter.com/dWF4iWpCKL

— NVTC (@NoVaTransit) January 26, 2017

Proposed capital funding from Fairfax County for the FY2018 Metro budget is $101 million, up $66 million from FY2017. Increased contributions in FY2018 include funds to repay short-term debt projected to be used in FY2017.

Proposed operational funding from Fairfax County in FY2018 is $138.6 million, a 17 percent increase from the current fiscal year.

The proposed budget also features fare hikes including:

• 10 cents on rush-hour rail fares, 25 cents on non-rush-hour fares
• 25 cents on regular and express Metrobus fares
• $2.75 on Dulles Airport Metrobus fares

Service frequency would also be adjusted in the following ways:

• 8-minute frequency on Silver Line during weekday rush hour (up from 6)
• 15-minute frequency on all lines all other times (up from 12)

Metro has planned an open house Monday from 4:30-6:30 p.m. to receive feedback on the budget. In addition, feedback can be provided via an online survey.

Photo via Northern Virginia Transportation Commission, charts via Metro FY2018 budget proposal

A Fairfax County Board of Supervisors public hearing on Reston transportation projects set for Feb. 28 will address the projects’ funding plan. Questions asked about the project Tuesday prior to the board’s vote to approve the hearing, however, concerned design issues.

Supervisor Pat Herrity (Springfield District) raised a number of questions for Tom Biesiadny, director of the Fairfax County Department of Transportation, regarding concerns he has with the plan itself.

“If you take some of the costs out of the project, the impact on both the citizens and the new businesses would be less,” Herrity said.

The overall project — which includes road widening and upgrades to intersections and interchanges, in addition to construction of new Dulles Toll Road crossings — is estimated to cost in excess of $2.2 billion.

Herrity asked Biesiadny about a proposed Town Center Parkway underpass of the Toll Road, projected to cost $170 million. Herrity inquired why an underpass was determined to be more cost-effective than an overpass.

“Because of the topography, the Toll Road actually sits above the intersection of Town Center Parkway and Sunset Hills,” Biesiadny explained. “You would be starting below the Toll Road and having to go up and over it, as opposed to tunneling under it.”

Herrity also had a number of concerns about the proposed Soapstone Drive overpass of the Toll Road, among them the structure of the lanes in the proposal. The plan calls for two driving lanes on each side of the bridge with a two-lane left-turn area, becoming four lanes of traffic across the overpass.

“The idea is that we would only want to go over the Toll Road once, so you would provide some additional capacity should you ever need it in the future,” Biesiadny said.

The four lanes over the Toll Road would be a total of 36 feet wide. The plan calls for 33 1/2 feet of space for pedestrians and bicyclists, another figure that Herrity questioned.

“So we’re going to have as much room on that bridge for bikes and pedestrians as we are for car traffic,” he said, asking for data to back up the need.

Biesiadny said projections have shown there will be a large amount of foot and pedal traffic across the connector.

“Given its location adjacent to the Wiehle-Reston East Metrorail Station, we do think there is going to be a significant number of people using bikes and pedestrians to access the station, as well as the development that will be occurring around there,” he said.

Supervisor Cathy Hudgins (Hunter Mill District) said the community has decided that increased walkability and access for bicyclists is important to the future of transportation.

“What you will see in this project, and I think what the community has been stressing, is the compactness of the transportation infrastructure. That is, you see fewer turn lanes because, guess what, pedestrians require attention from those on the road in order to safely traverse those areas and make the connectivity. I think the most important part about it is… the value that this returns to the overall community in the way that we build the transportation infrastructure and land owners can actually construct the development. If we make a mistake there, it becomes not well used and thus not a return in value to the community and those who own the land.”

The public hearing on project funding was approved by the board and scheduled for 4:30 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 28.

Screen capture of Supervisor Cathy Hudgins speaking at Jan. 24 meeting, via Fairfax County website

RA Summer Camp Registration Starts Soon — In its latest “Reston Today” video, Reston Association reminds residents that summer camp signups begin next week. [Reston Association/YouTube]

Foreign Policy to Be Topic of Community Library Event — The Reston Regional Library invites anyone with an interest in current events and U.S.-foreign relationships to take part in a roundtable discussion Friday. The topic of the day’s activities, which will also include a film, is “The Future of Europe.” [Fairfax County Public Library]

‘Party Time! Excellent!’ — It has been 25 years since “Wayne’s World” hit the big screens. Now, Wayne and Garth will be back in select theaters across the nation for two nights only, Feb. 7-8. Bowtie Cinemas at Reston Town Center will be among those showing the film, along a special introduction and a discussion among the film’s stars, on Feb. 8. [WaynesWorld25.com]

Hitchcock Classic to Be Shown at RCC — If “Wayne’s World” isn’t your idea of a classic, perhaps you’d be interested in an upcoming film presentation at Reston Community Center’s CenterStage instead. Alfred Hitchcock’s 1954 film “Rear Window” will be shown at 10 a.m. Monday, Feb. 6, preceded by a free continental breakfast. [Reston Community Center]

Women will gather in Reston this weekend for an event designed to take the intimidation out of networking.

Hub Dot aims to bring women together and help them communicate and connect. Those who attend do not get name tags or other status-defining labels, but rather colored dots that begin to tell their wearers’ stories and help guide the conversation.

Red dots are worn by women who are established in a field and can be a mentor. Yellow dots are for women seeking help with an idea. Green dots are for those looking for inspiration. Blue dots are for women who are socializing. Purple dots are for women with a particular passion or cause.

Founder and CEO Simona Barbieri explains:

“We’ve discovered that when you put together a group of like-minded women in the same space, and you put storytelling in the center of the way they communicate with each other, incredible things happen.”

Speakers at last year’s Hub Dot event in Reston included Amanda Tiede (a corporate executive who raised $100,000 in 10 weeks for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society), Anna Whitson-Donaldson (author of a book about struggling with the death of her 12-year-old son) and Kristina Anderson (a survivor of the Virginia Tech shooting who now works to prepare others).

Sunday’s event is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. at Kendra Scott (11924 Market St., in Reston Town Center). Tickets are $25. Attendees are asked to bring gently used bras to donate to Support the Girls, a charity for homeless women and girls.

For more information, visit the event’s Facebook page.

Summer may seem far in the distance, but the time to think about it — especially for kids — has arrived.

Reston Community Center will host its fourth annual Reston Camp Expo on Saturday. The event is an opportunity for parents and children to learn about all the opportunities available to them in the area once school is out, said Eileen Boone, RCC learning and leisure director.

“It’s nonprofit organizations and government agenices, so there’s a strong emphasis on programs that provide scholarships, transportation options, and even congregrate lunches and snacks for children,” she said. “There is definitely an emphasis on making sure that every child this summer will have an opportunity to stay engaged and active, even if they may not necessarily have the funds.”

Boone said the expo was originally the idea of Reston founder Bob Simon.

“He wanted to get all of the different rec agencies and community organizations together and he wanted us to really talk to each other and figure out where there were gaps in programming, wait lists in some camps,” she said. “[He wanted us] to share that information and try to help these kids get into camps in the area.”

In addition to RCC, many other organizations will be present at the expo to share their summertime offerings. Exhibitors will include Reston Association, Fairfax County Public Schools, the county Parks Authority, the county Department of Neighborhood and Community Services, Reston Regional Library, YMCA Fairfax County Reston and more.

On top of that, Boone said, representatives from area nonprofit youth sports organizations including Reston Soccer, Great Falls Youth Rugby Club, Herndon-Reston Youth Field Hockey and others will be at Saturday’s event.

“We’ve expanded it a little bit to try to feature other programs and organizations,” she said. “It’s just to let the parents and kids know what else is out there.”

Boone said many regional summer camps and clubs will begin enrollment soon, and they often fill up quickly.

“[This expo] is really like a one-stop shop,” she said. “It’s a great opportunity to see all of the different camp programs and learn all about the various scholarships and fee waivers that exist.”

Some organizations will be registering campers at the expo, Boone said. Attendees do not have to register on-site, however, as they will receive an updated Camp Resource Guide to help them research their decision for summertime fun.

The expo will be at RCC’s Hunters Woods location (2310 Colts Neck Road) beginning at 9 a.m. Saturday. For more information, call Boone at 703-390-6162.