As the number of local students who vape soars,  Fairfax County Public Schools doubling down on how to decrease the use of e-cigarettes.

In September, Fairfax County Public Schools pursued more stringent measures if a student was caught vaping on campus.  Additionally, the school board also classified vaping as a prohibited activity in the school system’s student rights and responsibilities handbook last year.

Lucy Caldwell, the school system’s communication director, said that FCPS also works with the Fairfax County Health Department to develop a toolkit for students to provide educational information about the health impacts of e-cigarettes.

Stemming the rise of e-cigarettes — which some see as a safe alternative to smoking — is a nationwide challenge. The number of youth who are e-cigarette users jumped by 1.5 million between 2017 and 2018, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. No change was found in the use of other tobacco products during this time.

A recent survey administered by FCPS found that one in five students vaped recently.

South Lakes High School held four parent sessions through the Parent Teacher Student Administration or administration-sponsored meetings to help parents partner with the school on addressing this issue, according to SLHS Principal Kim Retzer.

The school also has a substance abuse prevention specialization who provides support for students and resources for parents, Retzer told Reston Now.

“South Lakes deals with students vaping as do other high schools in the area,” she said.

At Herndon High School, Principal Liz Noto says that the school is working with FCPS’s Student Safety and Wellness Office to educate the student body about the issue. Like other schools, HHS also finds ways for students seeking to quit vaping.

Photo via Unsplash/Tbel Abuseridze

The McDonald’s at the famed McTacoHut in Reston is closed for renovations until the end of the month, a company official told Reston Now.

The fast food restaurant, which is one of three businesses in the fast food block at 11265 Roger Bacon Drive, will likely reopen by Dec. 30. The date is dependent on the county’s inspection schedule.

The renovation project is part of a nationwide effort to modernize McDonald’s locations across the country. The Reston location will offer mobile ordering pay service and digital kiosks for ordering.

McDonald’s served up its last meal on Friday (Dec. 6).

Fast food junkies can get their McDonald’s fix at the Herndon location (2475 Centerville Road), which was recently renovated.

Photo submitted by wusaga

Solar energy panels will be coming to dozens of Fairfax County public schools and facilities following the launch of a large-scale renewable energy initiative this week.

In a Tuesday release, the county has unveiled multiple solar power purchasing agreements with service providers, an agreement that allows the government to purchase solar-generated electricity from companies that install, maintain and operate solar power generation systems on county property.

County officials expect the new initiative could result in more than $60 million in electricity cost avoidance over the terms of the contracts. They expect the contracts to generate around 1.7 million megawatt-hours of clean renewable energy — equivalent to electricity used by more than 213,000 homes annually.

In a statement, Fairfax County Executive Bryan Hill said the initiative was “a major step toward a more sustainable energy future.”

“Fairfax County is striving to promote and encourage the use of renewable energy as we reduce our carbon footprint. We are committed to making choices around energy resources that benefit the residents of Fairfax County now and in the future,” Hill wrote.

Here’s more from the Fairfax County Public School officials:

“The notification of the award is another successful point in our journey to move FCPS toward increased adoption of renewable energy sources,” according to FCPS School Board Chair Karen Corbett Sanders. “Our ongoing sustainability efforts are worthy of highlighting. FCPS has achieved an annual reduction of 14.5 percent in total energy use division-wide since 2014, a cost savings of more than $31 million. Our move toward solar reinforces the School Board’s commitment to our environmental stewardship responsibilities.  Pursuant to School Board policy, FCPS will continue to take bold, innovative and sustained actions to help our country achieve climate stabilization.  There are still many issues to navigate as we move forward with solar energy efforts that will require cooperation at all levels of government to ensure success.”

 “We’re excited to be partnering with the County in a movement that’s good for our students, families and our environment, “said Fairfax County Public Schools Superintendent Scott S. Brabrand.  “Lower energy costs through solar power purchase agreements will enable FCPS to save millions of dollars while freeing up additional funds for classroom investments.  We look forward to working with the County to expand this initiative to as many FCPS schools and facilities as possible.  Our solar investment will also become an amazing learning lab for our students to reinforce the value and sustainability of solar energy.”

The school system was one of the first regional school districts in the country to install equipment to capture solar energy. Terraset Elementary School used solar heat collector tubes to capture energy from the sun when it opened in 1977.

The following schools in the area are being considered for solar modifications:

• Coates Elementary School
• Hunters Woods Elementary School
• Lake Anne Elementary School
• South Lakes High School
• Sunrise Valley Elementary School
• Terraset Elementary School

Photo via Unplash

Herndon Police Department Offers Safe Trade Zone — If residents are planning to buy or sell online or need a safe place to meet for the exchange of payment and goods, the police department offers a place to do so at 387 Herndon Parkway. [Herndon Police Department]

Design Review Board Training — Reston Association’s Design Review Board met yesterday (Tuesday) at the organization’s headquarters to receive training on responsibilities, objectives of design covenants, and design guidelines. [Reston Association]

Be Wary of Black Ice This Morning — State transportation officials remind residents to drive safely due to possible slushy areas and black ice after last night’s rain. [Virginia Department of Transportation]

Photo via Flickr/vantagehill

Five family members are displaced after a fire engulfed their home on the 1100 block of Silver Beech Road in Herndon.

The fire, which caused $784,550 in damages, was caused by the improper disposal of fire pit ashes, according to the Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department.

Officials believe the fire started on the deck near an outdoor fire pit. The family was at home when the fire broke out at around 2:30 a.m. on Monday (Dec.  9).

The fire spread throughout the come and caused a partial collapse of the roof. No injuries were reported.

Photos via Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department

American Tap Room in Reston is set to close on Dec. 22, according to a tipster and an employee at the restaurant, though the company has yet to confirm the closure.

The company’s corporate office did not return a request for comment to determine if the closure was permanent or temporary. Written requests for comment were also not returned.

Two other locations in the area closed within the last few years. The Arlington location shuttered in 2016, followed by the closure of the Bethesda location earlier this year.

This story will be updated.

A 29-year-old man was arrested in connection with a robbery at Wells Fargo Bank in Reston Town Center on Monday (Dec. 9).

Police believe Lawrence Purvis announced that he was robbing the bank at around 9:18 a.m. by passing a note to a teller.

Purvis escaped from the bank with an undisclosed amount of cash, but was later arrested near the scene, according to the Fairfax County Police Department.

A spokesperson for FCPD declined to release details about the incident until the department’s daily roundup was published this afternoon.

Photo via FCPD

The Reston Community Center has once again delayed the opening date of its renovated Terry L. Smith Aquatics Center. The facility is expected to open in January, two months later than originally estimated.

Delays were caused by challenging completing interlocking activities, according to RCC. For example, work on plumbing, electrical and mechanical pumping systems is dependent on each other. Additionally, tiling must be done while the deck space is used to access other work areas.

In a statement posted online, RCC stated that Branch Builds, the contractor, expects the project to be completed by Jan. 3.

“Branch Builds is working with its sub-contractors to schedule as much work simultaneously as feasible, but this sequential nature of the work makes that challenging. As much weekend, overtime and extra work as possible is being scheduled to move forward expeditiously,”

Here’s more from the statement:

As a result, activities planned before Jan. 4 will be canceled and the start of Saturday and Sunday swim lessons will begin on Jan. 11. Learn-to-swim and exercise programming will remain on schedule, with a start date of Jan. 6.

RCC says it will monitor progress daily to determine if other action is needed. 

The facility — which was built in 1979 — was closed this year to jumpstart the renovation effort.

Photo via RCC

It could take up to two weeks for Cafesano’s cafe to reopen in South Lakes Village Center after a fire caused $2,000 in damages in early December.

A company representative told Reston Now that the Italian and Mediterranean restaurant is currently taking takeout orders.

On Dec. 1, a fire broke out at the shopping center. Fire investigators said the fire was caused by grease buildup in the store’s ventilation system.

An exact opening date has not been set yet.

Photo by Jay Westcott

Reston Hospital Center‘s $72 million expansion is expected to be completed by the first quarter of next year, a few months later than originally estimated.

The completed pieces of the project include a new 18-bed inpatient rehabilitation center, an expanded 24-bed Intensive Care Unit, a second lab for the cardiac services unit, a new parking garage for patients and visitors at the West Wing entrance, and four rooms for high-risk obstetric patients.

A new cafeteria and seating area has also been opened.

Progress on renovations to visitor areas, including a new cafeteria, glass concourse, main entrance, and lobby, is underway, according to Todd McGovern, said director of marketing and communications for the hospital.

McGovern said the upgraded main entrance and lobby will improve navigation between the main entrance, west wing entrance, pavilion entrances, and the emergency department.

“We will be making an additional investment into the modernization of several patient care areas to elevate our entire facility to a consistent level for a best-in-class patient experience,”  McGovern said.

The new patient-visitor parking garage, which has more than 400 parking spaces, opened in the summer of this year.

The 231-bed hospital announced its plan to expand on its 30th anniversary. The phased project will add more than 63,000 square feet to the building, which is part of Tennessee-based health giant HCA Healthcare.

Photos via Reston Hospital Center

All Fairfax Connector buses will return to normal operations today (Monday) after a worker strike ends.

Transdev, the company that recently took on a new contract to operate buses for the county, is ending the strike without a negotiated contract.

The Amalgamated Transit Unions 1764 told WTOP that a deal is within reach, although issues like wages, vacation, sick time and retirement remain to be ironed out.

“We still have items to negotiate, but our riders come first and foremost for us. We are going back to work because their support and that of elected officials and allies have helped us make significant advances at the table,” said ATU International President John Costa said in a release Sunday night.

Photo via ATU 1764/Facebook