As Reston Association’s board of directors finalize the budget for next year, a proposal by a board member to shift nearly $550,000 from the upkeep of baseball, softball and soccer fields to tennis projects is drawing ire from some Restonians.
Mike Sanio, board secretary and at-large board member is seeking to move $551,780 in funds to help fund eight tennis capital projects, including $514,700 in currently proposed funding for baseball, softball and soccer fields. The remaining $37,080 would come from last year’s deferred dollars.
Sanio urged RA to reprogram funds to fully address “the historic shortage of money” to maintain RA’s tennis courts, noting that the program provided a nearly 74 percent recovery rate for operating costs this year. In an Oct. 30 email, he questioned why RA subsidizes programs that it does not operate, including $155,000 for backstops and fencing at Browns Chapel. The current $127,000 two-year capital budget for tennis largely covers color coating.
“Our core recreational responsibilities are to sufficiently fund swimming, tennis, pathways, playgrounds, multipurpose courts, and lakes. It is not to fund sports run by independent organizations that have their own sources of revenue,” he wrote.
Local community groups, including the Reston-Herndon Little League, plan to oppose the recommendation.
“We are very concerned over the potential motion to reprogram funds from baseball, softball and soccer entirely over to tennis. We strongly believe there is enough funds to make sure members of our community can play on safe playing surfaces no matter which activity they choose to partake in. While we have always advocated for baseball fields to be improved, we would never do so at the complete expense of another activity that so many children and members of our community enjoy. We are hopeful that the RA board feels the same way,” said Tim Jones, the league’s president.
The board will meet on Thursday at 6:30 p.m. to discuss the proposal, which is a fraction of RA’s overall capital and operating budgets. The board is also set to pass those budgets this Thursday.
The board will formally decide on a motion to review each of Sanio’s requests and provide a report to the board about the feasibility of funding prioritized projects to the board by February. Staff noted RA’s capital projects team has not yet reviewed projects suggested by Sanio.
Mike Leone, RA’s director of communications and community engagement, said the board aware of the community’s concerns and noted that final versions of the motions, the draft versions of which are available online, have not been finalized.
By a 3-2 vote in late October, the board approved up to $295,000 in improvements for North Hills tennis courts in response to concerns like limited lightning in the evenings and major cracks that run along the court. White and Bowman voted against the line item.
The board will meet at 6:30 p.m. Thursday at RA headquarters (12001 Sunrise Valley Drive). The meeting will also be streamed on Reston Association’s YouTube channel.
Olivia Beckner, a senior at South Lakes High School and state champion in the Liberty District, Region D and CA in cross country, signed with Syracuse University this week.
Beckner led the SLHS girls cross country team to its first district championship since 2001 earlier this year. She also helped the team finish third in the regional games and advance to the state championship.
Just last week, Beckner won the state title after finishing second last year. Beckner has also competed in SLHS indoor and outdoor track and field teams. There, she was named an 11-time All-State competition and was also named to the Washington Post All-Met team.
Beckner’s skill is well-documented in the record books of SLHS. In January, Beckner capped off the regular season with a school record in the mile at the Virginia Showcase Invitational indoor track and field meet in Lynchburg. She ran a 4:45.30 mile.
Photo courtesy of SLHS/Valerie Lister
Fairfax County police arrested a 40-year-old resident of Sterling on Thursday night after a car chase.
An officer attempted to stop the man’s vehicle for driving in a reckless manner around 9:45 p.m., according to police. When the driver did not stop, police pursued the car.
Several miles later, the driver stopped and police arrested and charged him with driving while intoxicated, driving on a revoked license, misdemeanor speed to elude and reckless driving, police said.
The incident took place near the Fairfax County Parkway and Stringfellow Court.
The department’s Reston District Police Station also reported the following incidents in its daily crime report:
LARCENIES
2300 block of Antiqua Court, tools from vehicle
2100 block of Astoria Circle, gun from vehicle
11300 block of Baron Cameron Avenue, purse from vehicle
12900 block of Centre Park Circle, suitcase from residence
11300 block of Fairway Court, license plate from vehicle
2300 block of Glade Bank Way, bag from residence
12900 block of Highland Crossing Drive, liquor from business
12200 block of Laurel Glade Court, packages from residence
13100 block of Marcey Creek Road, jewelry from residence
11900 block of Market Street, merchandise from business
11900 block of Market Street, cash from business
2300 block of Soapstone Drive, merchandise from business
11500 block of Pine Cone Court, wallet from business
2600 block of William Short Circle, license plates from vehicle
STOLEN VEHICLES
None reported.
Anyone with information about any of the crimes reported by FCPD should call 703-691-2131 or 1-866-411-TIPS(8477), or text “TIP187” plus the message to CRIMES(274637).
Herndon’s Police Department reported one major crime on Friday.
Reston’s ongoing impassioned debate on a move by county officials to change zoning rules to allow for more development will come to The Kojo Nnamdi Show today.
Hundreds of Restonians packed a public meeting earlier in late October to oppose the change, which many said opens up the area to further development without ensuring adequate infrastructure is already in place for current residents. Roughly 900 residents packed the meeting room after the first meeting was postponed due to an overwhelming outcry and burgeoning attendance from the community.
The show, which is on WAMI 88.5, a NPR member-station in Washington, will air at noon today. The segment is titled, “Growing Pains: Reston, Virginia Debates New Limit on Population Density.” The show issued the following description, which paints Reston’s debate as a microcosm of national development issues:
Developers and new residents are eying Reston, Virginia, and Fairfax County officials want to change zoning rules to allow them to move in. But in a trend that is playing out across the region, many long-time residents say their community is becoming too urban too fast. Critics are opposing a proposed change to a zoning ordinance that would raise the current population cap of 13 persons per acre to 16. And so many residents showed up to a meeting to discuss the change that it had to be rescheduled. Kojo explores Reston, Virginia’s growing pains and the difficulty of maintaining a suburban feel in a highly desirable, rapidly-growing region.
Restonians can listen to the program when it is live on the radio at 88.5 FM or online at kojoshow.org. Listeners can also participate by calling 1-800-433-8850, emailing [email protected], or tweeting at @kojoshow.
Reston's officials want to raise its residents-per-acre limit. Many residents don't. What say you?https://t.co/tBD5L6YYr2.
— The Politics Hour with Kojo Nnamdi (@politicshour) November 15, 2017
Reston-based Federal Contractor Sold to Private Equity Firm — Whitney, Bradley & Brown, Inc., a contractor with ties to defense agencies, was sold to an affiliate of global private equity firm H.I.G. Capital. The terms of the deal were not disclosed, but H.I.G. manages $24 billion in equity capital worldwide. [Washington Business Journal]
Parenting Talk Tonight to Focus on Sexuality Education for Children — Unitarian Universalist Church in Reston and Cornerstones are hosting Dr. Debra Haffner for a talk about sexuality education. Haffner will discuss her award-winning book, “From Diapers to Dating: A Parenting Guide to Sexually Healthy Children.” The book is a step-by-step guide on how to provide accurate information to children and convey values about sexuality to children. [UUCR]
Registration for Reston-Herndon Little League Now Open — Interested applicants can submit registration online. Applications are due by January 1. The league is open to children between 4 and 12. [Reston Herndon Little League]
Discussion on Sue Wrbican’s ‘Well Past the Echo’ Exhibition Tomorrow Night — Molly Donovan, curator of contemporary for the National Gallery of Art, will give a talk on the exhibition and the overlap between surrealism and contemporary art. The event will take place from 6 – 7 p.m. at the Greater Reston Arts Center. [Greater Reston Arts Center via Facebook]
File photo.
The Belgian bakery and restaurant Le Pain Quotidien will celebrate its opening earlier this month at Reston Town Center today through a grand opening and ribbon cutting ceremony.
Light refreshments will be served from 5 – 7 p.m. The formal ribbon cutting ceremony will take place at 6 p.m. Complimentary garage parking is available after 5 p.m.
The cafe opened on Nov. 2 at 11909 Democracy Drive. It is open from 7 am. to 9 p.m. daily. It will offer special seasonal items throughout the year. For the fall, they plan to offer treats such as a turmeric latte, spiced apple cider, Turkey Bánh Mì, a roasted pear and spinach salad, chicken “zoodle” soup and “Speculoos Tiramisu,” which the cafe describes as “a Belgian twist on the classic Italian treat.”
According to promotional material, LPQ is a privately-held company with headquarters in New York City and more than 200 locations on five continents. Its signature loaves come from the experiment of Alain Coumont, a young chef in Brussels, who opened a small bakery where he could knead flour, salt and water in 1990. Coumount struggled to find the right bread to serve at his restaurant.
For more information, visit the cafe’s website.
The 27th annual Northern Virginia Fine Arts Festival will be bigger than ever this year. The festival, which is the largest annual fundraiser for the Greater Reston Arts Center, will become a three-day event instead of a two-day event.
It is scheduled to take place on May 19 through 20 from 10 a.m. – 5 p.m. GRACE added Friday to the event in order to open up the festival to the 10,000-person workforce in Reston Town Center and make it “bigger and better than ever,” GRACE says.
“Making the very significant logistical investment in a Friday opening provides a new, built-in, affluent buying audience looking for world-class art for their offices, homes, for gifts, and more,” according to a statement by the center.
The competitive, juried event is consistently rated as one of the best outdoor art festivals in the country, both for the quality of the artwork presented and for its artist hospitality.
GRACE also plans to move its Festival Party, which is sponsored by M Group and The Counter, to Saturday night from 7 to 9:30 p.m. Artist awards, sponsored by Boston Properties, will be announced during the party.
Last year’s festival raised about $275,000 for GRACE’s operating budget, executive director and curator Lily Siegel told Reston Now. It attracts an estimated 30,000 visitors a year, GRACE says.
Anyone interested in applying to submit art for the festival can do so online. Applications can be submitted in 16 different categories, including painting, photography, ceramics, jewelry, glass, sculpture and more. Artist applications for juror review must be submitted by Dec. 10.
Free garage parking is available each day.
Photo courtesy of GRACE
Herndon police are searching for a suspect in connection with a robbery at the Burger King (598 Elden St.) on Friday.
Just as the store opened around 6:15 a.m., the suspect confronted staff with a gun and demanded money. Staff filled a bag the suspect gave them with an undisclosed amount of money, according to police, according to police. The suspect then left by foot. No injuries were reported.
Anyone with information should contact Detective Jeffrey Lange at 703-435-6881, extension 2304 or via email at [email protected]. Individuals can also call the police department’s non-emergency number at 703-435-6846.
This story will be updated as more information becomes available.
Images courtesy of Herndon Police.
Bicyclists no longer have to visit The Bike Lane, a Springfield-based company with locations in Springfield and Reston, for repairs. The company has partnered with San Fransisco-based Beeline Bikes, to bring bike repairs to the road.
The service, which will operate for the first time on the East Coast, will be available in Reston, Ashburn, Tysons Corner and Herndon later this month.
Both natives of Northern Virginia, Todd and Anne Mader launched The Bike Lane 17 years ago in Springfield. The couple opened another location in Reston (11943 Democracy Drive) seven years later.
“We have been serving cyclists in this area for almost two decades and know that they lead busy, active lives and are very tech-savvy. With Beeline‘s unique ‘We Come to You’ service, we will now be able to meet their needs in their homes or at work, in addition to our brick-and-mortar business,” said Todd Mader.
Anne Mader said the partnership with the franchise leverage the largest mobile bike service’s customer service and local support from their bike company.
“Beeline Bikes has the innovative technology and manufacturer partnerships needed to meet our customers’ needs wherever and however they shop and wherever they ride, and at The Bike Lane, we can also provide expanded services such as advanced fittings, group rides, classes, clinics and more,” she said.
The service will operate under the name Beeline Bikes Northern Virginia Powered by The Bike Lane. Any new bike purchased through the websites of Diamondback Bikes and Raleigh Bikes USA will also be delivered for no additional cost.
Customers can schedule a request for repairs online or by calling 855-58-BIKES. Prices for services, which range from a full tune-up to flat tire fixes, differ based on the customer’s location.
Photo courtesy of Fish Consulting
Save the Date: Reston Christmas Tree Market — The market, which begins Nov. 18 through Dec. 24, will bring winter season’s celebrations to hearts and homes. It takes place at 10800 Baron Cameron Avenue. [Reston Farm Market]
As Craft Beer Industry Grows, Fairfax County Hopes to Catch Up to Loudoun County — The roster of breweries that have opened in the county has grown since 2015, including Reston-based Lake Anne Brew House. Changes to zoning laws could make room for many more. Nationally, breweries have opened as anchors of mixed-used developments and communities. [Bisnow]
Virginia State Bar Publicly Reprimands Herndon-based Attorney — The state bar’s fifth district subcommittee issued a public reprimand with terms to Amy Wilson for what they said was violating professional rules that govern diligence, communication, fees, safekeeping of property and declining or terminating representation. [Virginia State Bar]
Nationally Televised FOX News Town Hall Comes to Herndon — The program, which will be hosted by FOX news and House Speaker Paul Ryan Tuesday night will take place at the Hilton Washington Dulles. [Reston Patch]
Streams at Brown’s Chapel Park and Vantage Hill are under construction through the end of the year. As part of the construction effort, tree clearing near Lake Anne has begun and will continue for three weeks.
Construction crews from Total Development Solutions have begun working in the stream from the top near Sunderbriar cluster and on the tributary near the Waterhaven cluster. Construction is expected to be completed by Jan. 30,.
Improvements at Buttermilk and Tall Oaks streams are scheduled for early 2018. The wood will either be used in the stream or split into fire wood for residents at Brown’s Chapel Park in the lot near the upper ball fields.
Trees and shrubs will be planted along the stream once construction is complete. Trails at Brown’s Chapel Park are closed during working hours.
For information, email [email protected].
Photo courtesy of Reston Association
The Reston Historic Trust & Museum will host a discussion on present-day challenges in preserving pieces of the past. The program, led by John Burns, chief appeals officer for the National Park Service, will examine several significant local structures including Lake Anne Village Center, the demolished American Press Institute building and a building in Herndon under threat.
The event will take place on Thursday at 7 p.m. in the JoAnn Rose Gallery at Reston Community Center. The presentation will include an explanation about the National Register of Historic Places, the government’s official list of sites worthy of preservation.
Burns will discuss current issues in preserving the former API building, which was demolished last year to make way for a townhouse development project in Reston. The building was designed by 20th Century architect Marcel Breuer. The demolition effort drew vocal opposition from preservation activists and residents.
The program will also include a discussion on the Center for Innovative Technology campus, a 26-acre sprawl of land in Herndon that is being pitched for Amazon’s HQ2. Loudoun and Fairfax counties are pushing to propose the site.
Burns makes decisions about appeals of projects denied certification for federal rehabilitation tax incentives. He has also worked as the assistant director of heritage preservation assistance programs for the NPS. He currently serves as chairman of the Fairfax County Architectural Review Board.
The event is free, but seating is limited. To make a reservation, call 703-709-7700 or email [email protected].
Fairfax County police plan to reschedule a sobriety checkpoint soon. A checkpoint planned for late Friday was cancelled due to freezing temperatures and a high wind chill. The checkpoint was scheduled to run from 11 p.m. to 2 a.m.
FCPD regularly holds checkpoints in various parts of the county in order to monitor for intoxicated drivers. The 56-mile Reston District covers Reston, Great Falls, and parts of Vienna, Oak Hill and Herndon.
Along with publicity and awareness, checkpoints have proven to be effective in the fight against drunk driving, police say.
File photo.
Nando’s PERi-PERi restaurant opened today at 11 a.m. on 12120 Sunset Hills Road in Reston Town Center. The Portuguese restaurant will host a grand opening on Saturday to support music programs at South Lakes High School and Herndon High School.
All sales on Saturday will be donated to the schools, according to a press release. The funds will be directed to help fund Herndon High School’s marching band as the team goes to Normandy, France to represent the United States at the 75th commemoration of D-Day in 2019. South Lakes High School will use the donations to send their band to Hawaii to perform at the Pearl Harbor Memorial Parade this year and other program needs.
According to the SLHS Parent Teacher Association, raffle prizes will be up for grabs at noon, 2 p.m., 5 p.m. and 8 p.m.
“This is all about being good neighbors, and Nando’s looks forward to becoming an integral part of the Reston community,” said Sepanta Bagherpour, the restaurant’s vice president of marketing. “We are proud to support musical programs at two of the most impressive public high schools in Virginia.”
Nando’s has 40 locations in the country and nine in Virginia. The chain made its U.S. debut in 2008 with its first location in the Chinatown neighborhood of Washington, D.C. According to promotional information, the chain has about 1,200 restaurants in 23 countries on five continents. It was founded in 1987 in South Africa. Other area restaurants include at One Loudoun and in the Mosaic District.
Photos courtesy of Seven Oaks Media. For more photos, visit the online album.
A man in serious condition at Reston Hospital was identified this morning after Fairfax County Police issued an announcement asking for the public’s help to identify the patient Saturday afternoon.
Family members have been contacted, according to a statement by the police department.
Fairfax County Fire and Rescue found the unconscious man on Saturday at 12:42 p.m. on the Washington and Old Dominion Trail. He had no identification. He was taken to Reston Hospital Center.
SEEKING INFO UPDATE: Patient at Reston Hospital has been identified. Thank you all for the retweets! https://t.co/hDoi6fsqpV pic.twitter.com/ZCxmlpBT7U
— Fairfax County Police (@FairfaxCountyPD) November 13, 2017
Police issued the following description on Saturday:
The man, a white man in his 30s, weighing around 180 to 200 pounds, was wearing a gray sweatshirt, black running pants, a black skull cap, and white and blue Asics running shoes. He had an iPod and a smartwatch with him.
