Reston’s own Beverly Cosham, an entertainer known for her work in the local theatre and cabaret scene, returns to Reston Community Center’s stage tomorrow (Saturday).
Cosham presents her personal interpretation of the Great American Songbook at 8 p.m. Tickets are $15 for Reston residents and $20 for all others.
Tomorrow (Saturday)
- Hispanic Heritage Literary and Culture Fair (1-5 p.m.) — Celebrate Hispanic heritage month at this festival at Reston Regional Library, which features local authors who share selections of poetry and stories.
- STEM Club (10:30 a.m. to noon) — Children between ages 5 and 10 can enjoy hands-on engineering activities at Reston Regional Library. Registration is required online.
Sunday (Oct. 6)
- Picture This! (1-4 p.m.) — Children between ages 6 and 11 can drop in and create an illustration inspired by an excerpt provided by the library. Supplies are available at Reston Regional Library.
- History of World War II (2-4 p.m.) — Hatty Butowsky of George Mason University kicks off his six-part lecture series on the war at Reston Regional Library.
- Fall Favorites (2-3 p.m.) — Families, couples and individuals can complete hands-on activities at the Walker Nature Center. Registration is $8 for Reston Association members and $10 for all others.
The Herndon Town Council is hosting a community roundtable later this month.
The roundtable, which is set for Oct. 23 from 7-9 p.m., is designed to give councilmembers and residents a chance to engage in an informal way.
Councilmembers will be available to answer questions about the redevelopment of downtown Herndon and listen to feedback.
The event takes place at the Trinity Presbyterian Church (651 Dranesville Road). It is made possible with a partnership with the church and Cornerstones, a local nonprofit organization.
Image via Town of Herndon
Commemorative Bricks Available for Purchase — The Reston Historic Trust & Museum is selling commemorative bricks, which are installed at Lake Anne Plaza, for up to $250. Bricks are ordered and installed one time per year. [Reston Historic Trust & Museum]
Dominion Energy to Build Northern Virginia’s Largest Solar Facility — “Dominion Energy Virginia and the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority announced Thursday that they will jointly study the possibility of developing a large-scale, 100-megawatt solar energy project at Dulles International Airpor. The project would encompass 1,200 acres at Dulles, and could power 25,000 homes at peak output. Dominion Energy said this project would be one of the largest solar facilities in Northern Virginia.” [WUSA 9]
Herndon Man Charged with Drunkenness and Sexual Battery — Jose Luis Hernandez, 45, was arrested after a juvenile victim reported that the suspect touched him in the genital area, according to police. [Herndon Police Department]
Photo via vantagehill/Flickr
LA Fitness plans to open in Herndon by early 2020, according to a company representative.
The gym, which has more than 700 clubs around the country and Canada, is set to open on Feb. 1 in the Herndon Centre. A company representative told Reston Now the gym could open earlier depending on the speediness of construction and weather.
A number of new businesses are opening in the redeveloped center. Sprouts Farmers Market, an organic grocer, opened its doors earlier this week and IHOP plans to open on Oct. 10. No word yet on when MOD Pizza is expected to open.
The gym is currently seeking partnerships with local businesses to promote the new club. Members can enroll online to take advantage of pre-opening rates.
Staff photo by Jay Westcott
A new global performance marketing agency is expanding its US-based operations by opening its fourth global site in Reston.
Sandstorm Digital LLC plans to take up office space at Comstock’s Reston Station.
The company, which has offices in the Middle East and Europe, is expanding its global footprint to cater to the North American market, company officials wrote in a statement. The location is the company’s first in the United States.
Sandstorm Digital’s clients include Ferrari, Pizza Hut, First Abu Dhabi Bank, Al-Jalila Foundation, FedEx and Sky News.
“The strategic expansion into the US market marks a new milestone in our growth story. The area has a thriving and innovative tech community and a workforce that is second to none,” wrote Omar Kattan, the company’s global chief strategy officer.
Reston is uniquely positioned to help the country grow in the Dulles Technology Corridor, said Tala Kattan, managing partner of U.S. operations.
Sandstorm offers digital marketing services, including Search Engine Optimization, Search Engine Marketing, paid advertising, and content development.
The company will be located at 1900 Reston Metro Plaza, suite 600.
Photo via Sandstorm/Facebook
A portion of the Silver Line will be closed between the Wiehle-Reston East and Spring Hill Station this weekend (Oct. 5-6).
The closure is one effect as crews work on connections between phase one and two of the Silver Line project.
Metrobus plans to provide free shuttles during regular Metrorail hours for commuters.
Trains will operate on regular weekend intervals between every 12 and 15 minutes between the Spring Hill and New Carrolton stations.
Customers traveling to and from Benning Road, Capitol Heights, Addison Road, Morgan Boulevard and largo Town Center must use Blue Line trains to commute.
Other service changes throughout the system are listed online.
Photo via Fairfax Connector
Reston Newcomers’ Bus Tour Coming Soon — Reston Association will offer a bus tour for newcomers to Reston on Oct. 19 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. The event includes a tour, which is limited to new Reston Association property owners within the last year, and an open house. [Reston Association]
Bollywood Dance Fitness Tonight — Enjoy a free Bollywood dance fitness class inspired by popular music and Indian movies. No experience is necessary. The class runs from 6:30-8 p.m. at Reston Regional Library. [Reston Regional Library]
Absentee Voting Underway — In-person absentee-voting is available at various locations in the county. Several satellite locations are also available. [Fairfax County Government]
Photo by Jay Westcott
Fairfax County residents are no longer required to place glass bottles, jars, and other glass items in curbside recycling bins.
The change, which went into effect on Tuesday (Oct. 1), was made at the request of private recycling sorting centers and Covanta Fairfax, Inc., which operates the area’s waste-to-energy plant.
In the past, county officials say single-stream recycling has caused major problems. Glass recyclables often break during collection and transport to recycling centers, contaminating other more valuable recycled items like cardboard and metals.
In recent years, China, the largest customer of recycled materials, has begun imposing strict standards on the quality of accepted recycled materials.
County officials also say glass has damaged machinery and is often heavy, adding costs to transporting recyclables to centers.
Residents can deliver glass containers to one of 21 purple recycling bins in the county. Recently, a new bin was added to the Reston South Park and Ride lot.
All colors of clean glass bottles and jars are accepted at purple containers. Light bulbs, lamps, ceramics, porcelain, mirrors, window, and sheet glass cannot be recycled at the sites.
Collected glass will be processed by the region’s only glass processing plant in Lorton. Recycled materials will be used for pipe bedding, filter material, and other purposes.
Photo via Fairfax County Government
The Fairfax County Planning Commission will take on Campus Commons, a proposal to redevelop property near the Wiehe-Reston East Metro Station, later this month after nearly 50 residents voiced concerns about the controversial project at a meeting last month.
TF Cornerstone plans to bring 630 residential units spread across a mid-rise and high-rise building, an office building, and urban parks to the southeastern corner of Wiehle Avenue and the Dulles Toll Road.
The project is the last major mixed-use development in the pipeline immediately around he Wiehe-Reston East Metro Station.
In a Sept. 25 proposal for amendments, TFC Cornerstones reduced the height of a 14-story office building to 12 stories and the height of a 29-story residential tower to 25 stories. The developer also added an amphitheater to the development and added language to explore the possibility of a grade-separated pedestrian bridge.
But concerns about the project remain. The project heads to the commission for a vote on Oct. 10.
At a commission meeting in late September, planning commissioners stressed the need for the developer to ensure the project provided strong pedestrian and bicyclist connections to allow people to get to the Metro Station.
Others were unconvinced the project — and prior approvals — have done a good job maintaining synergy with other adjacent projects.
Planning Commissioner Mary Cortina said she was surprised the county’s overall process did not have a strong vision to get people to the station.
An on-grade crosswalk proposed at the intersection of Wiehle Avenue and the Dulles Toll Road has piqued major concerns in the community.
Cortina said she was unconvinced the proposed sidewalk was designed in a safe manner.
“This transition is not at a point where anyone will feel safe going across that many lanes of traffic with all the moving cars coming off [the] ramp,” Cortina said. “They’re going to take the shortest route.”
Residents say the proposed crosswalk, which takes pedestrians to a concrete island in the middle of the toll road’s western exit ramp, poses a major safety risk in an already busy intersection with frequent back-ups.
The project has prompted residents to launch a community grassroots campaign called “Rescue Sunrise Valley.”
Residents also raised concerns about a 25-story office tower on the corner of the site, among other issues. The building would be located immediately next to residential neighborhoods with single-family homes and low-rise townhouses — a mix of uses that residents say is incompatible with the area.
Planning commissioners also urged TF Cornerstones to preserve trees and ensure its renderings — which include significant tree canopy and greenery — will reflect reality. Hunter Mill District Planning Commissioner John Carter noted that greenery and trees depicted in renderings of recently approved projects disappeared when the projects were built. Instead of trees, developers left utility polls and a row of mud.
A man walked into a hotel in Herndon on Monday and demanded cash, police said.
The man entered Candlewood Suites (13485 Sunrise Valley Drive at around 3:42 p.m. on Sept. 30. He implied he had a gun, according to the Fairfax County Police Department.
Police described the suspect as a white man in his 40s, 5’10” and 160 pounds.
No other information about the incident was released.
Anyone with information about any the incident should call 703-691-2131 or 1-866-411-TIPS(8477), or text “TIP187” plus the message to CRIMES(274637).
Photo via Google Maps
Two incoming county board members who won the Democratic nomination launched a policy platform on Tuesday (Oct. 1) to attract and increase technology development in the county.
Walter Alcorn, the Democratic nominee for Hunter Mill District Supervisor, and Rodney Lusk, the Democratic nominee for Lee District Supervisor, pitched the plan at a public event in Tysons.
In their first year of office, both Democrats say they want to establish a technology accelerator on the historic Richmond Highway Corridor that focuses on creating technology for governments and commercial markets.
They also want to forge partnerships with colleges, universities and governmental research firms to identify emerging technology markets.
By doing so, they hope Fairfax County will become a “test bed” for demonstrating new technologies like last mile delivery systems and self-driving cars.
“Over the years we have done a terrific job of diversifying our economy and ensuring that we remain on the cutting edge of innovation. However, as new technologies continue to emerge at an ever-increasing rate, it’s critical that as a county we not only work to keep pace, but also leverage the economic opportunities created by these developments to address the many needs and challenges that still exist in our region,” Alcorn said.
Sen. Mark Warner (D-VA) and Rep. Gerry Connolly (D-VA) lauded the incoming supervisors for their work.
“This is an area that’s new, it’s exciting, and my hope is that through partnering with Walter and Rodney my office can help move this forward,” Warner said.
Both Alcorn and Lusk are running unopposed in the Nov. 5 general election. They expect to release more details on their plans early next year.
Photo via Walter Alcorn
Boat Rental Season Extended — Reston Association has extended boat rental season through Oct. 15. Hours are from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturdays, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Sundays, and 11 a.m. to 5 p.m on Oct. 14. [Reston Association]
County Seeks Comment on High School Science Resources — “Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS) is soliciting public review and comment on basal instructional resources under consideration for high school science. A basal resource review committee composed of community members, administrators, and teachers will meet this fall to review and recommend new high school science instructional resources to the Fairfax County School Board.” [Fairfax County Public Schools]
Lake Thoreau Pool Structural Analysis Update — Reston Association has received preliminary findings from engineers about the pool’s concrete decking and shell. A complete analysis and recommendations is expected in October. [Reston Association]
Photo via vantagehill/Flickr
Sprouts Farmers Market will open its first store in Virginia in Herndon tomorrow (Wednesday). The new market, which offers natural and organic products, will open at Herndon Centre (494 Elden Street).
A ribbon-cutting ceremony before doors open is planned for 7 a.m.
The first 200 shoppers will receive 20 percent off of their first purchase. Muffin and coffee samples will also be available to serve guests in line before doors open. All customers who make a purchase on the grand opening day will receive a free reusable bag.
To celebrate the opening, Sprouts Health Communities Foundation will donate $5,000 to the YMCA of Reston and Food for Neighbors, which gives nutritious food to youth who are food insecure.
Sprouts also plans to donate unsold and edible groceries to Capital Area Food Bank. Last year, the business donated 27 million pounds of food across the country.
The store is expected to bring 140 jobs to Herndon.
IHOP is slated to open on Oct. 14. No word yet on when LA Fitness and MOD Pizza are expected to open in the center.
Photos by Jay Westcott
A Herndon apartment fire that displaced 20 people was caused by improperly discarded smoking items, investigators said.
The fire happened on the fourth floor of an apartment building on the 2400 block of Masons Ferry Drive on Sunday (Sept. 29) at around 7:50 p.m, according to the Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department.
No firefighter or civilian injuries were reported. The fire caused $76,000 in damages
So far, county fire and rescue personnel said improperly discarded smoking materials caused nearly $2.2 million in damages this year.
So far, there have been 30 major incidents in the county, causing one death and one burn injury.
FRFRD launched a public campaign, “Got to Smoke? Sink It or Soak It?” to remind residents to properly dispose of smoking materials.
Photo by Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department
In honor of National Coffee with a Cop Day tomorrow (Wednesday), police officers from the Herndon Police Department will host Coffee with a Cop.
The event is a national program that is designed to help officers interact more successfully with citizens they serve. Police meet up with members of the public for casual, one-on-one conversations between residents and district station officers.
The Herndon event will take place from 8-10 a.m. tomorrow at Starbucks, which is located at 1140 Elden Street.
Members of the Fairfax County Sheriff’s Office are also expected o be present at the event tomorrow.
Coffee with a Cop launched in Hawthorne, California as the Hawthorne Police Department sought to effectively engaged with local residents. Since its launch in 2011, the program has been hosted nationwide as part of the framework of community policing, a strategy that aims to establish trust between the community and police.
