FCPS Must Invest in Kids — In an op-ed, Fairfax County Public Schools Board Chair Pat Hynes (Hunter Mill) and Mason District rep Sandy Evans say the county needs to properly fund schools to do the right thing for students and the community needs to speak up. [Washington Post]
Crystal Ball Commute — Transportation experts look at the area commute in 2040. [Washington Post]
Free Breakfast Friday — McDonald’s restaurants in the Washington D.C. area are offering free Egg McMuffins to kids in Kindergarten through eighth grade today. Students must be accompanied by an adult to participate and the offer is valid in-restaurant only. Reston’s McDonald’s is at 11265 Roger Bacon Drive.
Photo: Bald eagle on Reston electric wires in Reston/Charlie Bobbish via Twitter
Halloween costume-clad runners will return to Reston this fall.
After the 2014 Oktoberfest took place without its popular Great Pumpkin 5K, a race is back in the lineup for 2015.
Oktoberfest Reston will feature the Reston Pumpkin 5K, said the Greater Reston Chamber of Commerce, sponsors of the annual fall festival Oct. 10-11.
The Anthem Great Pumpkin 5K, which featured one of the best logos around, was off the schedule in 2014 because the race was administered by the Greater Washington Sports Alliance, which had disbanded, Chamber president and CEO Mark Ingrao said last year. He also said the Chamber planned to reorganize the race and present it themselves for 2015, which they have.
Here is what you need to know about the new Reston Pumpkin 5K:
The race begins at 8:15 a.m. on Sunday, Oct. 11 at Reston Town Center
There will be a Kids Pumpkin Dash at 9:30 a.m.
Fees:
$30 per person until Oct. 9
$35 per person – Oct. 10 and 11
Ages 14 and under:
$20 per person until Oct. 9
$25 per person – Oct. 10 and 11
Kids’ Pumpkin Dash (recommended for kids ages 8 and under, all finishers will receive a finishers keepsake)
$10 per person until Oct. 9
$15 per person – Oct. 10 and 11
There will be a Scrambled Legs Breakfast! with food vendors and beer on tap when you cross the finish line.
Costumes encouraged.
To register, visit the race website.
A local man is facing charges after he set fire to a grassy area outside his apartment building in the 2500 block of Wasser Terrace.
Fairfax County Fire investigators charged Yun Cho Han, 57, with intentionally setting an outside fire on Wednesday. The fire was set in a landscaped area of bushes and grasses adjacent to an apartment building at 2521 Wasser Terrace in unincorporated Herndon. Wasser Terrace is located off of Sunrise Valley Drive near the Westin Washington Dulles Airport Hotel.
Han was charged with Virginia Code 18.2-86, fire capable of spreading, a class six felony. There was no property damage or injuries.
He is currently being held in the Fairfax County Adult Detention Center, police said.
Reston author Terry Catasus Jennings takes science and turns it into relatable stories that children can understand.
Her latest book, Sounds of the Savanna (Arbordale Publishing) came out last week. In it, Jennings (and illustrator Phyllis Saroff) explains how animals communicate — through sound. The mighty lion of the savanna roars, a lioness answers, the wildebeests respond and the day springs into action as a chain of sounds brings the African plains to life until the quiet night returns.
Jennings will hold a reading and book signing at the Reston Zoo Saturday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Jennings, a 38-year Reston resident who has worked for the Smithsonian Institution, has also written books on Mount St. Helen’s and the women’s movement. The Mount St. Helen’s book, Gopher to the Rescue: A Volcano Recovery Story was honored with the National Science Teachers’ Outstanding Science Trade Book award in 2013.
She says she finds kids are very interested in science and history if the concepts are at a level they can understand.
“If you present it in an engaging way, it leaves them with an understanding that science is great — it is part of everything in our lives,” she said. “I think translating it to young readers is my strong suit.”
Jennings said she is particularly interested in physics, which she majored in in college, and hopes to pen books about electricity and magnets.
Jennings will have additional book signing events at Reston’s Used Book Shop on Nov. 7 and at The Baltimore Zoo on Nov. 8. She will also participate in George Mason University’s Fall for the Book on Oct. 3.
Learn more about Jennings on her website and on her blog for kids, KC’s Wild Facts.
The former Chili’s Bar & Grill at 11840 Sunrise Valley Drive has taken on a new look in recent weeks. The building is tented with plastic covering and other safety accoutrements as crews work on asbestos removal in prep for the building’s demolition.
Asbestos is a fiber formerly found in many construction materials and can cause lung damage. The Chili’s building was constructed in the early 1980s, before many uses of asbestos in insulations, water pipes, and roofing, among other places, were banned by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
The restaurant closed at the end of 2014. The building, along with others at the former Reston International Convenience Center, will be torn down to make way for the second phase of The JBG Companies’ Reston Heights development.
A Wells Fargo Bank there closed last August, and the remaining strip of stores, including 7-Eleven and Reston Kabob, closed in the last few months. Construction fencing was being put into place around those former stores on Wednesday as that strip prepares for asbestos removal and demolition as well.
Here’s what JBG has planned:
A six-story residential building, a 15-story residential building, a five-story building that incorporates a parking garage with residences and retail space; and a 10-story building that mixes office space, parking and retail space.
The plan includes 145,000 square feet of above-grade retail, 100,00 square feet of below-grade retail, 428,225 square feet of office and 498 residential units.
Only the stand-alone Popeye’s will remain as a holdover from current tenants.
JBG has signed 24-Hour Fitness as a major tenant.
There will be an entrance to the development from the Reston Parkway side, something the area currently lacks.
In a presentation to the Reston Association Design Review Board in 2013, Cunningham Quill Architects and Olin, a landscape architecture firm, said they were seeking a design that engages with the landscape and connects with the Wiehle-Reston East Metro station via bike and foot paths.
The new plans will also be harmonious with the adjacent Reston Heights project, also built by JBG. That includes the Westin Reston Heights hotel and the Mercer Condominium, as well as office space.
Uber, Lyft Get New Rules At Dulles — Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority says it will allow services to operate at D.C.-area airports, with MWAA-issued permits. [Washington Business Journal]
GoFundMe For Reston Trash Founder — Friends and customers of John Hasle, the longtime owner of Reston Trash who announced this week he is closing his business for health reasons, have started a fund to help with his expenses. [GoFundMe]
Teeny, Tiny Park — Fairfax County Park Authority will turn a parking spot at its headquarters into the county’s smallest park for one day on Friday as park of PARK (ing) Day, a global initiative. [Fairfax County Park Authority]
Amar Speaks Out on Ovarian Cancer — Chilli Amar, on-air personality at 97.1 radio and emcee of the annual Virginia Polar Dip at Lake Anne, shares her story of upcoming surgery to prevent hereditary ovarian cancer. [Washington Post]
A Reston Now reader looked up into the sky Sunday and saw a mysterious object floating above.
Since Reston Now knows of no such UFO invasion, training exercises or robots-in-the-sky news, we are asking other readers — any ideas?
Some ideas floating around Facebook: an odd-shaped drone and an escaped mylar birthday balloon (could be an errant robot or Disney character).
Did you see it? In any case, tell us your theories in the comments.
The five candidates running for three vacancies in the 2015 Reston Community Center Preference Poll will take part in a candidates forum Wednesday at 6:30 p.m. at RCC Hunters Woods.
Incumbents Bill Bouie, Lisa Sechrest-Ehrhardt and Gerald Zavala are all seeking additional three-year terms to the board. Newcomers running for a seat are Karol Anderson and Richard Titus.
Voting in the poll opened in early September and will run through Oct. 2. Residents of Small District 5 may use the unique USERID and PIN found on their ballot to vote online, in person or by mail:
- Online: Visit the RCC login page to enter your unique household credentials and gain access to online voting. Online voting will be available through Friday, October 2 at 5 p.m.
- In Person: Ballots may be deposited into secure ballot boxes at either RCC location. Ballots must be received by Friday, Oct. 2 at 5 p.m.
- By Mail: Residents may use the return envelope provided with the ballot to cast a vote by mail. Postage required. Mailed ballots must be received by Thursday, October 1 at 5:00 p.m. Please note the earlier deadline for mailed ballots and allow time for delivery by the deadline.
The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors established the RCC Board of Governors to represent the interests of Reston (Small Tax District 5) residents and businesses in developing policy and providing financial oversight for RCC. Board appointments are made by the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors after participants have made their preferences known in the annual poll.
The Board of Governors works to establish the overall policy for RCC and to guide its programs and budget. Board members represent Reston Community Center at social, recreational, cultural and educational activities throughout the district as well as function as liaisons to RCC’s community partners.
Read the candidates’ entire statements on the RCC website.
Bring the kids to the Reston Historic Trust and Museum on Sunday for Family Fun Day.
The free event is from 2 to 4 p.m. at Lake Anne Plaza.
There will be live music, children’s activities, beer tasting and other fun for all ages.
The museum is also hosting a membership drive. Annual memberships are $45 ($30 for seniors and students). Members will receive the newly published booklet, “Reston History,” based on the Reston Museum exhibit “From New Town to Our Town.”
Members also receive 10 percent off shop purchases and discounts from many Lake Anne merchants.
Comstock Partners has formed a new partnership with Tokyo-based Daito Trust Construction Co., Ltd., which has purchased an equity interest in Comstock’s BLVD luxury apartment tower.
BLVD is the first of of eight buildings planned by Comstock at Reston Station, adjacent to the Wiehle-Reston East Metro station. BLVD is scheduled to begin leasing later this month and will have its first occupants in early 2016, said Comstock spokeswoman Maggie Parker.
Daito is says the $35.5 million investment in BLVD builds on its success in the multi-family rental market in Japan and the partnership with Comstock continues the Japanese company’s overseas strategy of strategic investments in strong markets with accomplished U.S. based firms.
Said Comstock’s Managing Director, Christopher Clemente: “We are proud of our association with a firm of Daito’s stature and we are excited about the potential of our partnership with Daito. As one of Japan’s most accomplished multi-family rental housing operators, Daito’s significant sector knowledge and financial strength compliments Comstock’s operational skills and financial capabilities.”
BLVD will have 448 residential units, including 88 workforce housing units, and an eventual 8,500 square feet of ground floor retail. Amenities include a roof top pool and terrace, a fully equipped fitness center, yoga room, business center, secure garage parking, and numerous outdoor amenities including cooking stations and a movie screening area.
The apartments will be part of Reston Association as part of a new fee structure for properties in Reston’s former industrial zone.
Reston Trash, which has been servicing the area for more than 40 years, announced it will shut down on Oct. 1 due to the health of president John Hasle.
“I have been dealing with steadily worsening health problems for more than 15 years,” Hasle wrote in a letter to customers. “Results of recent testing and evaluations dictate that my condition requires me to stop working and seek the most advanced treatments possible without delay.”
Reston Trash, founded by Hasle in 1974, serves more than 500 homes in Reston. Hasle said the accounts will be turned over to American Disposal Trash Services, another local company. Reston Trash’s customers will begin service with American Oct. 1, said Hasle.
In 2011, Reston Trash customers stood with Hasle when American allegedly launched a door-to-door sales campaign encouraging homeowners to switch to their company. ADTS reps were apparently telling homeowners that Reston Trash was selling to another company, AAA Trash, according to a Reston Patch story.
One Reston Trash client said on Tuesday he is upset that Reston Trash “unilaterally moved all of their accounts over to American Disposal.”
“This is a cause of considerable concern as I see it,” homeowner Chris Lamb said in an email to Reston Now. “First, neither Reston Trash nor American Disposal enjoys power of attorney over any former Reston Trash customer. Once Reston Trash ends operations, my contract with them ends. I found this out when I called Republic and American to obtain competing bids. American told me I was already a customer and ‘locked’ into a rate.”
“After I explained they have no right to unilaterally sign a service agreement on my behalf they agreed to cancel my account. … I can’t imaging Cox cable going out of business and unilaterally signing their customers up for Comcast.”
Lamb, who said he was pleased with Reston Trash’s service and does not believe it did anything intentionally wrong, said he was able to negotiate a rate with Republic that was lower than both the locked-in rate he had with Reston Trash and the new rate with American.
Photo: John Hasle, 2011/Elizabeth Vandenburg for Reston Patch
Kiddie Kudos — Julie Julius, Director at the Kiddie Academy of Reston, was recently honored as New Director of the Year award by Kiddie Academy, a national childcare and education company. Kiddie Academy says “parents consistently share that Julie’s warmth and respectful interactions with them and their children makes them truly feel valued and a part of the Kiddie Academy community.”
What’s Killing These Area Fish? — A Reston resident calls in authorities after discovering a fishkill near Lake Fairfax Park. [Fairfax Times]
Nearby: Plane Pull is Saturday — The annual Dulles Day Plane Pull and Family Day is Saturday. The event — teams try and pull an Airbus 12 feet — raises money for Special Olympics. Registration is still open. [Dulles Day]
‘Bird in the Hand’ Movie — There will be a screening tonight at 7:30 p.m. at Bow Tie Cinema of Bird in the Hand, a movie by Reston filmmaker Rebekah Wingert-Jabi about sculptor Patrick Dougherty, who created the public art of the same name at Reston Town Square Park. A talk with Doughtery and Wingert-Jabi follows the film.
Park Results Are In — Fairfax County Park Authority recently conducted a user survey, which showed, among other info, that 87 percent of county residents report regular park use. The system earned lower marks in patron satisfaction. [Fairfax County Park Authority]
Reston has a new Japanese restaurant. Bento House Sushi, Noodles & Grill opened its doors last Saturday.
Owner Eric Zhou said he spent months looking for the right “high-concentration” location that offered a mix of businesses and residences. He found what he was looking for at 11790 Baron Cameron Ave., in a former chiropractor’s office at the Home Depot Center).
Zhou spent five months renovating the space, which now offers no-frills Japanese at very reasonable prices.
“At Reston Town Center, restaurants are very expensive,” said Zhou, a Restonian who has managed several franchise restaurants but is setting out as an owner for the first time. “I wanted to open some place with a good environment and consistent, quality food.”
All of the dishes are made on-the-spot from fresh ingredients, he said. By offering fast food-style service, the savings is passed on to the diners, who can get a full meal at Bento House for about $10.
Some of the specialities:
Bento Boxes: Choice of chicken, steak, shrimp, salmon or tofu (with rice or noodles and mixed vegetables) $6.15 to $8.95. Deluxe bentos, add four pieces of California Roll and a Spring Roll for about $1.50 more.
Sushi and Sashimi, $1.75 per piece.
Traditional Rolls (i.e., California, Avocado, Spicy Tuna Roll, Shrimp Tempura Roll, Spicy Tuna Roll), $4.50.
Speciality Rolls (i.e., Rainbow Roll, Dynamite Roll, Volcano Roll), $10.95.
Bento Ramen with pork belly $9.95-$10.45.
Salads and sides such as edamame ($3.50), tempura ($4.95) miso soup ($1.95) and seaweed salad ($3.95).
Bento House is open Monday to Thursday, 10 a.m. to 9:30 p.m.; Friday and Saturday, 10:30 a.m. to 10 p.m.; Sunday, 11 a.m. to 9 p.m.
Michael Wayne Edwards, a former Reston personal trainer who was charged last month with taking “upskirt” videos at the South Lakes Safeway, was arrested last week on an additional similar charge, Fairfax County Police said.
Edwards was charged on Sept 6 with filming a non-consented nude person. He was released on $2,500 bond, said police spokeswoman Lucy Caldwell.
The most recent charges stem from a July 24 incident. A woman said she was in the South Lakes Safeway and felt someone someone bump her and then touch her underneath clothing while she was in the store. She identified the person as Edwards.
Edwards has an Oct. 13 hearing in Fairfax County Court on the most recent charge.
In August, Edwards, 33, of Centreville, was charged with indecent exposure, simulated masturbation and filming a non-consented nude person. A woman told police she was shopping at Safeway when a man, identified as Edwards, was following her in the store on more than one occasion.
The victim said as she walked back to work that day, Edwards followed her as she walked near Sunrise Valley Drive and Lakespray Way. The man appeared to be videotaping and spoke to her. The woman told police the man then exposed himself to her then he ran away. Officers identified the suspect and worked with store personnel to investigate.
Edwards told Reston Now in August he did not commit any crime. Edwards was fired from his job at Fusion360 gym, also located at South Lakes, shortly after the first arrest. He has a hearing date of Nov. 24 on the August charges.
This is not the first time Edwards has been accused of a sexually related crime. In 2010, he was charged with several accounts of second-degree assault after he squirted semen from a bottle on women as they exited a Giant and Michael’s craft stores in Gaithersburg, Md.
Edwards pled guilty to one of those charges (the rest were dropped as part of the plea deal). He was fined $500 and given a three-year suspended jail sentence, Montgomery County records show. His probation period ended in June 2014.
Photo: Michael Wayne Edwards, Sept. 6 booking photo/FCPD
Fairfax County Police reported two property crimes in the area surrounding the Wiehle-Reston East Metro Station over the weekend.
The first was a burglary in the 1800 block of Metro Center Drive on Saturday. An employee told police someone entered the building and took property.
The second was a larceny report of property taken from a business at Wiehle Avenue and Reston Station Boulevard.
Officers from FCPD’s Reston District Station have not said if the incidents were related.
In other weekend crime reports:
BURGLARY, 11900 block of Escalante Court, Sunday. A resident reported someone entered the residence and took property. The home is currently vacant and under reconstruction.
LARCENIES:
1400 block of Lake Fairfax Drive, property from park.
1700 block of Landon Hill Road, property from vehicle.
11100 block of South Lakes Drive, merchandise from business.
STOLEN VEHICLES:
11800 block of Sunrise Valley Drive, 2001 Nissan Maxima.
