A team from Fairfax County Virginia Task Force 1 (VA-TF1) Search-and-Rescue team is expected to land in Kathmandu, Nepal, Monday to aid in the recovery efforts following Saturday’s earthquake.
More than 3,000 people have been killed and many more injured or missing after the 7.9-magnitude quake struck the area.
VA-TF1 is a team of more than 200 specially trained personnel and dogs capable in disaster response. The team specializes in rescues from collapsed buildings.
When activated, the Task Force is comprised of 70 persons that consists of firefighters and paramedics from the Fairfax County Fire & Rescue Department (both career and volunteer) and highly trained civilians, including physicians, canine handlers, structural engineers, communications experts and heavy rigging specialists.
Six dogs will be making the trip to Nepal, Fairfax County officials said.
VA-TF1 partners with the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and US Agency for International Development (USAID). When activated by either federal partner, all related expenses are fully reimbursed by either, resulting in no cost to the citizens of Fairfax County.
VA-TF1 has helped with such disasters as Hurricane Sandy, the 2010 earthquake in Haiti and Hurricane Katrina.
VA-TF1 Dog and Supplies/Credit: Fairfax County Fire Rescue
A Fairfax County judge on Friday dismissed a lawsuit against the Fairfax County Park Authority that called for the shutdown of the off-leash dog area at Baron Cameron Park.
In March of 2014, five homeowners who live in Longwood Grove, a subdivision located across Wiehle Avenue from Baron Cameron Park, where the dog park is located, filed suit against the FCPA and a nonprofit group that runs the park, saying the park constitutes a private nuisance.
The complaint cited several previous Virginia rulings dealing with the definition of a nuisance. It claimed the plaintiffs are likely to suffer “irreparable harm from the dogs barking and fighting in the dog park in the summer of 2014 as this case proceeds” and have no legal remedy other to quiet the noise other than to ask for an injunction to shut down the park.
Longwood Grove has about 100 homes. The families that brought the suit live closest to the dog run — about 300-400 feet away.
Fairfax County Park Authority Board Chair Bill Bouie said the case against FCPA was dismissed without merit. The dog park, Reston’s only off-leash area, is operated by the nonprofit Reston Dogs, Inc., which was also named in the lawsuit.
“I am very pleased that the judge ruled in the Park Authority’s favor this valuable amenity in the community has been preserved,” said Bouie. “We will still work to mitigate any issues that are violations with our partners and neighbors.”
Moira Callaghan, speaking for the Longwood plaintiffs, said the group is considering an appeal and the case is not over. She added that the case against Reston Dogs is still pending.
“We are disappointed with the judge’s ruling that our nuisance claim, which the judge acknowledged as valid, could not go forward against the Park Authority,” she said. “However, the case has not been dismissed and Reston Dogs is still a defendant. We are considering an appeal as we feel it is wrong and unfair that the park authority would be given legal immunity from a nuisance that it created and continues to maintain.”
Earlier this year, the Longwood Grove residents submitted a Mastenbrook Grant application to the park authority seeking a grant to move the dog park to Lake Fairfax Park as a solution.
Callaghan said the park authority has not responded to the grant proposal.
“We will continue to work towards a solution to this problem that we feel would be beneficial to the community as whole,” she said in an e-mail. “This was the purpose of our Mastenbrook Grant proposal, under which we offered to contribute $15,000 of our own money to a public project to create a bigger and better dog park that would not adversely affect nearby neighborhoods. Unfortunately, the Park Authority has not yet officially responded to our proposal.”
Mastenbrook Grants are a Park Authority program, founded in 1999, that match funding (up to 50 percent of the total project cost or $20,000 maximum) for park projects. The aim is to fill a gap between limited bond funding and the community’s desire for new neighborhood facilities, according to the park authority.
Baron Cameron Dog Park/file photo
The new owners of Tall Oaks Village Center will be back in Reston Monday for another presentation about potential plans for the nearly empty center at Wiehle Avenue and North Shore Drive.
Executives from The Jefferson Apartment Group, along with land use lawyer Mark Looney, spoke to a full house at an initial meeting at Reston Association headquarters on Thursday.
Monday’s meeting (7 p.m. at RA’s offices) is not expected to yield new information, but will be another chance for residents to see what JAG has in mind.
Thursday’s presentation was met with a high level of frustration by Tall Oaks-area residents and store owners, who blame the previous Tall Oaks Village Center owners for letting the 40-year-old retail center fall into disrepair while it continued to raise rents. That drove many tenants away in the last few years — with no new stores taking their place.
McLean-based JAG plans 154 residential units on the site — a mix of townhomes, “two over two” townhomes and condos in two-four story buildings. JAG also plans 8,500 square feet of retail, which would hopefully include loyal Tall Oaks tenants such as Mama Wok, Paradise Nails and others.
Many at Thursday’s meeting said more residential would burden traffic and asked that retail be given another chance at Tall Oaks.
Looney pointed out that retail has been declining at Tall Oaks for a decade. Giant Foods left the anchor spot in 2004. It was replaced by two different international grocery stores, each of which lasted fewer than two years.
There are also a half-dozen other grocery stores within a few miles, most of which were not open when Tall Oaks was thriving in the 1970s and 1980s, he said.
“When you start to compare existing retail at Tall Oaks to other new retail that is newer and more attractive, that’s when Tall Oaks began to struggle to compete,” he said.
The future may have been sealed when 7-Eleven left in 2008, he added.
“The notion of 7-Eleven not surviving is shocking,” said Looney. “7-Eleven is a very nimble business. If you can’t keep a 7-Eleven open, it says something.”
Looney predicts Tall Oaks, which had a nearly 90-percent occupancy rate in 2007 and currently has a 13-percent occupancy rate, will be 6 percent occupied by early 2016.
“The reality is, every anchor store knows this center and has passed it by,” said Looney, adding that there was no recent retail developer interest to purchase Tall Oaks.
JAG says that no site plan has been filed with Fairfax County and the Tall Oaks redevelopment plans are in the very early stages. JAG would also have to file a re-zoning application to build housing on the site of the shopping center.
Tall Oaks’ future was also a big point of discussion at last week’s public hearing on Reston Comprehensive Plan changes.
Rendering of new Tall Oaks Village Center site/Courtesy JAG
Farewell, Snow Pile — The Washington Post has some fun with the remnants of the annual winter snow pile at Plaza America. [Washington Post]
Is TJ Unbalanced? — The incoming class at Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology is 70 percent Asian, 20 percent White, 2.4 percent Hispanic, and 1.6 percent Black. Are minorities getting fair representation at the highly regarded magnet school? [Reston Connection]
Good FCPS Teachers Leaving — Fairfax County Public Schools’ teacher pay ranks fifth among area public schools systems. That may be causing good teachers to get jobs elsewhere. [WUSA9]
Gender Status May Be Added to FCPS’ Non-Discrimination Policy — Fairfax County School Board heard pros and cons of adding gender identity as a protected status. [WJLA]
Photo: South Lakes High School band members entertain runners on the paths at Band on the Run 5K Saturday/Courtesy SLHS Band
Tetra Partners has reached an agreement with Reston Association to perform $275,000 in repairs to the building on Lake Newport that RA seeks to purchase.
The two sides reached an agreement on Friday. The money will be held in escrow until Tetra repairs or replaces the HVAC system, roof, windows, paving and other items, according to the contract addendum. The items in disrepair were found during an inspection last month.
RA put in a conditional contract to purchase the 3,128-square-foot building for $2.65 million in late March. The purchase cannot go forward unless a quorum of RA homeowners approves it via referendum. The referendum runs through May 8.
RA said on Friday that the asking price remains $2.65 million. It also estimates it will cost an additional $260,000 to rehab the interior of the building. RA will get a $650,000 developer contribution from Comstock and will also get money from Tetra renting back the building from RA into 2016.
RA wants to repurpose the building — which formerly served as Reston’s Visitors Center and currently serves as Tetra offices — and its 3.48 acres for community space and a lakefront park. It also hopes to stave off commercial development and bring in income in event rentals and child care programs.
The property off of Baron Cameron Avenue sits in between Lake Newport Tennis and Brown’s Chapel Park and would give RA 98 acres of contiguous space.
Opponents of the purchase say the price for the property is too high as its most recent Fairfax County tax assessment was $1.2 million.
RA held a town hall meeting this week to address member concerns about the purchase.
Fairfax County Police have charged Stephen Thompson, 29, with malicious wounding after he allegedly shot his wife in an argument at their Reston home early Thursday.
Police said that Thompson shot his 33-year-old wife and then himself. Both remain hospitalized. Thompson was served the warrant in the hospital, where he is in non-life threatening condition.
His wife, whom police did not identify, remains in life-threatening condition.
Police were called to the home in the 2300 block of Branleigh Park Court near Hunters Woods Village Center about 2:30 a.m.Thursday after someone called 911.
Both Thompson and his wife were found with gunshot wounds and were taken to a local hospital
Searching for a new home? Check out these open houses this weekend. For complete real estate information and more open houses, visit Reston Now’s Real Estate section.
2026 Chadds Ford Drive
3 BR, 2 FB, 2 HB TH
$545,000
Open Sunday, 1 to 4 p.m.
11569 Lake Newport Road
4 BR 3.5 BA SFH
$1,545,000
Open Saturday & Sunday, 1 to 4 p.m.
1517 Stuart Road
5 BR, 3.5 BA SFH
$735,000
Open Sunday, 1 to 3 p.m.
1937 Sagewood Lane
2 BR, 2 BA TH
$349,000
Open Sunday, 1 to 4 p.m.
12000 Market Street
3 BR, 3 BA Condo
$620,000
Open Sunday, 1 to 4 p.m.
2186 Pond View Court
3 BR, 2 FB, 2 HB TH
$427,500
Open Sunday, 1 to 4 p.m.
Fairfax County Police’s Reston District Station reports three break-ins this week.
The first incident was in the 2200 block of Stone Wheel Court on Sunday, when a resident reported someone entered the residence and took property.
The second was on Tuesday in the 11600 block of Charter Oak Court. A resident told police someone entered the property, but nothing was taken.
In the third, a woman entered a house in the 10800 block of Oldfield Drive, Thursday at 3 p.m. The intruder entered through an unlocked door, a resident told police. She immediately left whem she saw someone in the residence and nothing was taken.
In other crime news this week:
LARCENIES
1600 block of Reston Parkway, purses from business
1900 block of Winterport Cluster, merchandise from business
12800 block of Wrexham Road, merchandise from business
600 block of Dranesville Road, phone from school.
2700 block of West Ox Road, property from business.
New Tall Oaks Village Center owners The Jefferson Apartment Group (JAG) envision 154 residential units on the nearly empty shopping center’s seven acres at Wiehle Avenue and North Shore Drive.
The residents just want their grocery store back.
That’s the message the room full of Tall Oaks residents tried to convey to JAG Executive Vice President Greg Lamb and Senior Vice President Jim Duncan and their attorney, Mark Looney of Cooley LLC, on Thursday.
JAG, which bought the 40-year-old village center in December for $14 million, came to Reston Association headquarters Thursday to show their preliminary plans for and get feedback on medium-density residential and a small amount of retail at Tall Oaks.
Here is what JAG envisions (though it admits this is just the earliest stages): 46 townhomes; 42 “2 over 2” townhomes; 66 condos in two four or five-story buildings; underground resident parking; an enhances trail network; and about 8,500 square feet of retail, with first dibs given to the remaining locally owned small businesses at Tall Oaks. Tall Oaks Assisted Living would remain, as would a small office building.
Here is what the residents essentially had to say: The development lacks recreational space; new residents will overwhelm the Tall Oaks pool; North Shore will be choked with traffic; and JAG needs both a more community-focused idea process and a better traffic study.
And just bring back a grocery store.
“You are selling yourself short short on retailers,” said one resident. “Tall Oaks could have survived without a grocery store if [previous landlord] was able to provide reasonable rent. They had grand ideas about making money, and that drove a lot of [the vacancies].”
Looney says that when Tall Oaks first opened the in mid-1970s, it could support a 25,000-square-foot Giant Foods because there were not that many options nearby.
Looney points out that Tall Oaks began its decline in the 1990s, after new retail at North Point, The Spectrum, Reston Town Center, Trader Joe’s and Plaza America all opened nearby.
After Giant left the center in 2007 — residents say it was a corporate decision on smaller stores and not from lack of use — followed by 7-Eleven in 2008, the vacancies began mounting.
“In part, it’s because of competition from other retailers,” said Looney. “But there are site challenges. There are mature [RA owned] trees blocking the center on North Shore. Many people don’t know it is there. There is only one way in and out on North Shore.”
Looney predicts Tall Oaks, which had a nearly 90-percent occupancy rate in 2007 and currently has a 13-percent occupancy rate, will be 6 percent occupied by early 2016.
“The reality is, every anchor store knows this center and has passed it by,” said Looney, adding that there was no recent retail developer interest to purchase Tall Oaks.
“We tested the market. Crickets. No one in retail wanted to buy it in its current condition. JAG stepped forward, They are keeping the retail component. They are taking a drab retail center and turning it into Reston’s next great cluster.”
Many residents — some of whom have lived nearby for 30-plus years — are not impressed.
Said one resident: “Brand new townhouses are going to make my townhouse look like garbage.”
Added resident Tammi Petrine: “People bought homes with the expectation this was going to be a retail area. We need a grocery store.”
Said Looney: “The lack of grocery at this location is not something in our abilities to solve. The market is going to dictate that no matter how much we try to wish it.”
JAG will be back at RA Monday at 7 p.m. for another community meeting.
Rendering of Tall Oaks residential courtesy of JAG
Town Square Park Sculpture Dedication Saturday — The Greater Reston Arts Center (GRACE) will formally dedicate the public art project by Patrick Dougherty on Saturday at a reception from 5 to 8 p.m. There will also be a family day Saturday from 2 to 5 p.m., featuring hands on activities. Dougherty and a crew have been building the project out of saplings for the past two weeks. [GRACE]
‘Fox on the Fairway’ at CenterStage — Reston Community Players’ new comedy opens Friday. [Reston Community Players]
Giving Circle Raises $36K — The Giving Circle of HOPE’s annual Empty Bowls fundraiser exceeded expectations in aiding the hungry. [Reston Connection]
Reminder: Road Closing At Wiehle-Reston East — Reston Station Boulevard will be blocked Saturday to Wednesday. Fairfax Connecter will be making changes to work around it. [Fairfax Connector]
Plan For Multicultural Festival Now — Reston Community Center is taking applications for entertainment at the 2015 Reston Multicultural Festival on Sept. 26. [RCC]
Photo: Artist Patrick Dougherty puts finishing touches on sculpture in Town Square Park/Credit: Reston Association
The Fairfax County Planning Commission heard citizen concerns ranging from a potential massive traffic interchange to the neglect of Tall Oaks Village Center, but opted to defer decision on changes to the Reston comprehensive plan on Wednesday.
The comments came at the planning commission’s public hearing on changes to the Reston comprehensive plan. The commission heard testimony from more than 20 citizens, developers, Reston Association staff and board members and other interested parties about the planning changes that will guide Reston development going forward.
Planning staff has been working on what is commonly called the Reston Master Plan Phase 2 since June 2014. Phase 2 changes deal with development in and near Reston’s village centers, as well as in neighborhoods, should they be redeveloped.
The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors approved Phase 1 of the comprehensive plan changes in February 2014. That plan, which guides development around Reston’s transit centers, was finalized after four years of task force meetings.
Speakers mainly concentrated on a few themes at Wednesday’s public hearings:
Concerns about traffic changes near Polo Fields homes
Several residents of residential neighborhood Polo Fields, located off of Sunrise Valley Drive at Fairfax County Parkway, are not in favor of a suggested multi-lane interchange to be built near their homes.
“This suggested interchange will not significantly improve traffic issues and will cost as least as much as Fair Lakes interchange, which was $65 million,” said John Eidson, a longtime resident of Halter Lane. “If this interchange goes in, some of us may lose our homes. Where are our rights? and what gives you the right [to build this] without giving us a say in the matter?” Read More
Take a trip back to 1962 Baltimore beginning Thursday as South Lakes High School’s drama department presents Hairspray.
The show is directed by Maria Harris and stars Mely Megahed as Tracy Turnblad;
Harrison de Wolfe as Link Larkin; Maddie Murphy-Nielson as Penny Pingleton; Nathan Nkomba as Seaweed J. Stubbs; Karin Hoelzl as Amber Von Tussle; Sequoia Carrillo as Velma Von Tussle; Amirah Kirwan as Motormouth Maybelle; Jacob Kemp as Edna Turnblad; Arthur Payne as Wilbur Turnblad; Brentan Walter as Corny Collins; and Sydney Crutcher as Little Inez.
Shows are at 7 p.m. Thursday, Friday and Saturday April 23-25 and April 30-May 2 in the SLHS Little Theatre.
Tickets are $10 for adults ($12 at the door); $8 for students and seniors ($10 at the door). Visit the SLHS Theatre Arts website to purchase in advance.
Audience members that bring three needed items for the Embry Rucker Community Shelter will receive a free concession stand item.
Photo: Hairspray at SLHS/Credit: Katherine McCool
How can roads be safer and commuting be smoother in Fairfax County?
That’s what the Fairfax County Police want to know, and they are inviting all citizens to attend the Transportation Safety Summit Friday at Reston Town Center.
The Transportation Safety Summit, which runs from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., will be a place for police to “hear your ideas on how to help keep our commuters and residents safe, and give us feedback, comments, and suggestions,” said police spokeswoman Lucy Caldwell.
With the extension of Metro’s Silver Line, roadway expansions, and increased urbanization centers, we are facing a changing landscape in our region, says Caldwell.
FCPD will be joined by law enforcement agencies from across Northern Virginia, as well as the Virginia Department of Transportation, experts in bicycling and pedestrian safety, Drive Smart Virginia, Metro, FCPS school transportation and safety officers, and more.
Activities will be in the pavilion and on closed roads adjacent to the pavilion, says Caldwell.
Police said that between 2011-2014, there were roughly 665 collisions involving pedestrians in Fairfax County. There have been roughly 313 involving collisions with bicycles.
In Reston in the last year, there have been several serious pedestrian and bicycle accidents, including teenager who was killed after a car hit him while he was riding a motorized mini-bike at Reston Parkway and Wiehle Avenue.
Photo: DWI simulator that will be at Friday’s summit/Credit: FCPD
Tall Oaks Village Center could morph from a mostly vacant shopping plaza to a mixed-use residential and retail spot.
Reps from Tall Oaks’ new ownership, The Jefferson Apartment Group, will be at Reston Association headquarters, 12001 Sunrise Valley Dr., Thursday at 7 p.m. for a first look at what they have planned.
Tall Oaks Development Group, a division of the McLean-based Jefferson Group, purchased Tall Oaks in December for $14.3 million.
The Jefferson Apartment group has developed more than 18,000 rental units in 10 states, including Virginia. Locally, the company was developed the Residences at the Fairfax County Government Center, Tellus in Arlington, The Asher in Alexandria and the Jefferson at 14W, a seven-story, mixed-use luxury development in Northwest DC.
Tall Oaks is zoned industrial/commercial, so turning the 7.6-acre parcel into residential would likely involve rezoning, as well as approval by the RA Design Review Board, Fairfax County Planning Commission and the county Board of Supervisors.
What do do with Tall Oaks, which in the last several years has seen many tenants leave the village center without new ones opening, has been a subject discussed at length in Reston.
Last fall, residents at a Master Plan Phase 2 meeting suggested that it may be time to repurpose Tall Oaks‘ 18-acre site as something other than a retail center. The center is about a mile from the Wiehle-Reston East Metro.
The anchor space, which housed a Giant Foods and later two international grocery stores, has been empty for more than four years. The stand-alone former Burger King space has been vacant for nearly a decade. Other recent departures include El Manantial restaurant, Curves, 7-Eleven and Total Rehab Chiropractic.
It was suggested at the Phase 2 meetings last fall that Tall Oaks could survive as a convenience center with limited retail and the remaining space could be used for a variety of other purposes.
Can’t make it tonight? The Jefferson Group will be back at RA on Monday to make another presentation.
Empty stores at Tall Oaks Village Center/file photo
Smart Market, the Wednesday farmers market that had been operating at Sunrise Valley and Reston Parkway the last several years, will change locations this season.
Smart Market operator Jean Janssen says the afternoon market will open at Reston Station’s Plaza on May 6.
Reston Station, located adjacent to the Wiehle-Reston East Metro station, is soon to be a foodie destination. The Stock Market @ Reston Station, with about a dozen food stalls and other retailers, is slated to open soon, and developer Comstock is hoping the area turns into a shopping, food truck and dining destination.
“We are very excited to have a farmers market,” says Comstock spokeswoman Maggie Parker. “We think it is a great opportunity for Metro commuters, and I know I will be stocking my office fridge with lots of fresh fruit and vegetables.”
Janssen said on the market’s Facebook page that the Reston Corner office complex’s recent sale made it difficult to secure market space for this season.
Janssen also said she is working with Comstock on ways to make parking available on the outdoor parking deck, adjacent to where the market will be located.
Meanwhile, the Saturday Reston Farmers Market and craft market will open for the season at Lake Anne Plaza on May 2.
