Herndon High Gets a Hall of Fame — Herndon High School will be inducting its first Athletic Hall of Fame class in a ceremony June 7. A committee of former HHS athletes and coaches selected the candidates, who date all the way back to the 1940s. [Herndon High Athletics]
Comstock Wins — Virginia Del. Barbara Comstock easily won the 10th District Republican Primary over the weekend. Comstock will run against Democrat John Foust in November’s general election to replace Frank Wolf, who is retiring after more than 30 years. The 10th District represents nearby places such as McLean, Great Falls and Herndon. [Politico]
Cost Issue Delaying New SOLs — The commonwealth had planned to roll out a new adaptive SOL over the next few years, but but a reduction in funding associated with the General Assembly’s decision to eliminate five of the state’s 22 standardized tests is delaying that effort. [Washington Post]
The History Of Hoarding — Fairfax County Law Enforcement officials get a look at this very real problem and how to deal with it. [Fairfax Times]
Photo of post-race fun at SLHS’ Band on the Run 5K Saturday/Credit: Melissa Gifford
When the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority and Metro came to an agreement on Silver Line turnover on Thursday, it was hailed from Capitol Hill to Dulles Airport as a major step towards getting the rail extension open this summer.
But at what cost?
The project is already seven months behind schedule and will be missing a project manager since Pat Nowakowski announced last week he is leaving the job. It is also $150 million over budget.
And those are just the issues before one starts to look at the list featured in the agreement, which includes more than 50 items, some of them major system woes that need to be addressed before passengers can safely ride the line.
The Silver Line’s Phase 1 will run from East Falls Church to Reston’s Wiehle Avenue. Dulles Transit Partners, the contractor building the line, submitted for “substantial completion” on April 9, the same day $25,000-a-day penalties were slated to begin under the terms of the contract with MWAA.
The submission was actually a resubmission as DTP, a division of Bechtel, also filed on Feb. 7 — and MWAA found issues of 7 of 12 areas in its review.
Those issues were supposed to be fixed before MWAA could accept the project to turn over to Metro. MWAA said Thursday it was accepting the project as substantially complete, even if dozens of punchlist items were, in fact, not complete.
Metro said if the agency waited until MWAA completed all the necessary work before taking custody of the project, passenger service probably wouldn’t begin until late 2014 — about a year behind schedule.
But there is still no opening day in site and fixes ranging from “ponding in stations” to automatic train control glitches to “waterproofing at Wiehle Station are not exactly quick cosmetic fixes.
“The deal MWAA struck with WMATA yesterday makes a farce of the concept of ‘substantial completion,’ ” says Terry Maynard, co-chair of Reston Citizens Association’s Reston 2020 Committee. “Instead of verifying and certifying that DTP has built the Silver Line to contract specifications before turning it over to WMATA for testing and training, MWAA is passing off a poorly and incompletely constructed rail line with a 50-item laundry list of work that needs to be done before WMATA may accept it. Some of that work is simple, but some of it will be difficult, expensive, and time consuming to complete.”
Maynard is concerned about what the cost to MWAA — and ultimately the taxpayer — will be to make the fixes. Under the terms of the agreement, MWAA must:
- Reimburse WMATA (Metro) for costs it has incurred in providing technical advisory services as a direct result of the line not being completed on Sept. 9, 2013.
- Cover Metro’s cost of having two employees, 24 hours a day, seven days a week, monitoring the Horton Remote Terminal Units (RTUs), which help run the crucial Automatic Train Control software. As mentioned in a $1.8 million contract MWAA awarded last week to a New York company, the current controls are below par and replacing and upgrading could take a year.
- MWAA will also pay Metro the costs of managing said contract with Alstom Signaling.
“The delays, repairs, and new construction requirements in the MWAA-WMATA deal will all cost money, probably tens of millions of dollars although no one has told the public what the cost will be,” said Maynard. “Worse, we don’t have any idea who will pay for all this. “
Maynard says if the costs are shared under the funding partners agreement among MWAA, Loudoun, and Fairfax counties, it means that Dulles Toll Road users will end up paying about two-thirds of the added cost.
“It makes no sense whatsoever that toll road users should pay for the failure of DTP to meet its contractual obligations or the failure of MWAA to make sure that it did.”
MWAA officials said last week about $23 million is available in its contingency fund.
Metro General Manager Richard Sarles said Thursday that Metro will likely take control of the line next month and that allowing MWAA to complete the items after that will help get the line open this summer.
Sen. Mark Warner (D), who met with MWAA officials this week, says both agencies need to get the project done correctly and quickly.
“I strongly encourage MWAA and WMATA to maintain a sense of urgency so that we will see the Silver Line up and running before the end of summer,” he said in a statement. Warner has been critical of the Silver Line’s delays for months.
“I urge everyone involved to pull together to get the remaining punch-list issues resolved quickly so we can move forward to the crucial safety testing. Too many travelers and taxpayers have waited too long for these final steps not to be resolved as quickly and efficiently as possible.”
Shopping for a new home? Start with these open houses in Reston.
11170 Great Owl Circle
4 BR, 4.5 BA TH
$595,000
Open Sunday 1 to 4 p.m.
11045 Purple Beech Drive
4 BR, 3 BA SFH
$899,900
Open Sunday 1 to 4 p.m.
11530 Links Drive
4 BR 2.5 BA TH
$449,500
Open Sunday, 1 to 4 p.m.
1416 Hemingway Court
4 BR, 3.5 BA SFH
$784,500
Open Sunday 1 to 4 p.m.
10714 Cross School Road
4 BR, 2.5 BA SFH
$684,000
Open Sunday 1 to 4 p.m.
1963 A Villaridge Drive
2 BR, 1 BA Condo
$280,000
Open Sunday 2 to 4 p.m.
1851 Stratford Park Place
1 BR, 1 BA Condo
$314,900
Open Sunday 1 to 4 p.m.
1705 Lake Shore Crest Drive
2 BR, 1.5 BA Condo
$304,888
Open Saturday 1 to 4 p.m.
11407 Fieldstone Lane
5 BR, 4.5 BA SFH
$990,000
Open Sunday 2 to 4 p.m.
For more open houses and complete real estate information, visit Reston Now’s Real Estate Section.
The Lake Anne Summer Film Festival will return to the plaza May 11, with themed outdoor movies airing monthly through September.
Lake Anne Plaza held its inaugural summer showings in 2013, and based on that success has expanded it for 2014.
This year’s movie categories include Date Night, Family, Retro, and Classic. So get out your lawn chairs and a picnic and head to the plaza for the free shows under the stars.
SCHEDULE:
MAY 11 – MAMMA MIA! (MOTHER’S DAY)
JUNE 8- UP (FAMILY)
JULY 13 – BREAKFAST CLUB (RETRO)
AUG 10 – CASABLANCA (CLASSIC)
SEPT 14 SKYFALL (DATE NIGHT)
Movies begin at sundown (about 8 p.m.)
Photo Credit: Lake Anne Plaza
South Lakes High School art students are teaming with the Initiative for Public Art Reston (IPAR) for a temporary art installation at the Lake Thoreau spillway.
The project stemmed from a request from a Lake Thoreau resident in 2011. The man, who wishes to remain unnamed, said the concrete spillway that can be seen from South Lakes Drive could use some improvement — and if the community could get together on a student project, he would offer a scholarship, said IPAR executive director Anne Delaney.
Delaney said she wanted the students to have a real life artist experience, from proposal to preliminary sketches to approvals and installation.
“What was important to IPAR, Reston Association and SLHS was to provide students with a real life experience that any professional artist would go through in the development of a public art project in Reston,” Delaney said.
“We wanted to make the project relevant to students and give them a unique experience.”
Four SLHS students rose to the challenge. Sammy Nazam, Gabriella Rando, Margaret Lashley, and Tehmeena Salahin worked to create the work titled “Pyramid of Light.” The final design includes multicolors plexiglass panels in a pyramid shape that will move with the wind.
The students made three presentations to the IPAR and the RA Design Review Board over the last six months, Delaney said. The final concept was approved by the DRB in March.
The project will have a test run in Lake Audubon this weekend. The real installation should be either May 2 or May 5, said SLHS art teacher Marco Rando, an advisor to the students.
Photos courtesy of IPAR
Band on The Run 5K Saturday — Help the South Lakes High School Band Boosters by taking part in the Band on the Run 5K at 8 a.m. Saturday. Race is open to children and adults. Runners will be entertained by SLHS pyramid bands while they run. [PR Racing]
Fairfax County Animal Shelter Consolidates Adoption — Thinking of getting a shelter pet? The Fairfax County Animal Shelter will now combine the adoption and spay/neuter fees, which save owners money and streamline the process. [Fairfax County]
Tonight: Giving Circle’s Empty Bowls — Reston nonprofit Giving Circle of HOPE will hold its annual Empty Bowls fundraiser Friday from 5:30 pm to 8 pm at the Floris United Methodist Church in Herndon. Tickets are $30 at the door, which includes supper of soup, bread, a beverage, dessert and a ceramic bowl. [Giving Circle of HOPE]
Holton Will Be NVCC Commencement Speaker — Virginia Secretary of Education Anne Holton will be the keynote speaker at Northern Virginia Community College’s 48th Commencement on Sunday, May 18 at George Mason University’s Patriot Center. Holton, the wife of Sen. Tim Kaine (D), is also a former lawyer, judge and first lady of Virginia.
Art and Orthodontia? — Sunrise Orthodontics, 11490 Commerce Park Dr., is teaming with Greater Reston Arts Center to sponsor a weeklong exhibit of art from local schoolchildren. The artwork featured is from the GRACE Art program at Lake Anne Elementary and is based on a lesson about artist Wassily Kandinsky. The exhibit runs from April 26 to May 2.
When Jasmine Cafe owner Eduardo Faubert found his restaurant, Jasmine Cafe, chained shut earlier this week, it marked a public view of a landlord-tenant battle.
It also gave a glimpse as to the unusual way Lake Anne Plaza’s retail properties are managed.
Most shopping centers are owned by one company and have a uniform management policy. Because of its mixed-use status, Lake Anne’s retail spaces are owned by individual owners and part of a condo association, Lake Anne Reston Condo Association (LARCA), that includes both residential and business members who sometimes have differing interests and priorities.
While a typical shopping center such a Reston Town Center has standard leases and property management standards that regulate everything from business hours to signage, Lake Anne is subject to many different personalities and perspectives.
That has both plusses and minuses, says Rick Thompson, president of LARCA.
“It does allow for variation,” he said. “We are not a cookie-cutter shopping plaza. On the other hand, it allows for outliers. We have owners who take a sabbatical and shut down for two months at a time. That is not helping the plaza. We reasonably should have the expectation that they should be open certain days and hours.
“There has always been some conflict,” he said. “People have their own ideas on what is best. But if some people don’t care, there is no one in charge to say ‘I am the property manager’ ”
Thompson says the condo association and the voluntary Lake Anne Merchants Association both have rules, but they are not enforced as strictly as a typical commercial center. Read More
Metro General Manager and CEO Richard Sarles announced an agreement on Thursday with the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority that will move the Silver Line closer to opening day, possibly this summer.
Phase 1 of the $5.6 billion Silver Line — which will run from East Falls Church to Reston’s Wiehle Avenue — is more than six months behind schedule.
Under the agreement, Metro will allow MWAA additional time to complete certain items after the project is turned over to Metro, but prior to the start of passenger service, Metro says. Without this agreement, the Airports Authority would have been required to complete all items before Metro takes control, meaning an opening date that would be later in the year.
The Airports Authority is still required to address all priority items — those that affect reliability or require significant track access — prior to handing the project off to Metro. Some examples:
- Resolving items identified during system performance demonstrations, such as loss of speed readouts (a signal problem that affects reliability)
- Installation of capacitors to resolve interlocking “bobbing” track circuits
- Improve the reliability of traction power circuit breakers
- Completion of all work that requires significant track access or single tracking
“While there are still outstanding items for the Airports Authority and their contractor to resolve, today’s agreement allows us to move this project closer to opening day for our customers by allowing certain tasks to be completed after the project is in Metro’s control,” Sarles, Metro General Manager and Chief Executive Officer, said in a statement.
“We expect that the Airports Authority will complete the remaining items in a timely fashion, thereby allowing us to open the line this summer.”
MWAA also announced Wednesday that it has accepted Dulles Transit Partners’ declaration of substantial completion — even though there are still many punchlist items that need to be repaired.
“Achieving substantial completion is a significant milestone,” said Airports Authority President and CEO Jack Potter. “We have conducted a thorough review of the contractor’s submission and are satisfied that Phase 1 has met the contractual requirements that will allow the project to now move to the next steps in the process to begin passenger service.”
After substantial completion, the next major milestone is the “Operational Readiness Date” (ORD), which is when the project is turned over to Metro’s custody and control. If the Airports Authority completes all priority tasks in a timely manner, ORD may be achieved in late May, Sarles said.
Following ORD, Metro has up to 90 days for testing, employee training and emergency drills prior to the start of passenger service, says Metro. With today’s agreement, Metro will permit the Airports Authority to use this time to complete remaining tasks including:
- Providing to Metro safety certification documentation demonstrating that all open items have been closed
- Resolving traction power reliability issues
- Executing a contract for the replacement of track circuit modules
- Resolving leaks and drainage issues
- Grounding of tunnel handrails and replacement of coaxial cable in the tunnel
- Replacing public address speakers to meet Virginia Department of General Services requirements
- Elevator shaft and piston replacement at Tysons Corner station
- All work required to obtain permanent certificates of occupancy
Many of those tasks were found deficient when DTP first filed for substantial completion in February. DTP was supposed to have addressed and fixed those issues in the interim.
Dulles Transit Partners filed for “substantial completion” for Phase 1 on April 9. It was the second time the contractor, a division of Reston-based Bechtel, filed. DTP said its work was finished on Feb. 7, but MWAA’s review showed issues in many areas, including ongoing issue with the Automatic Train Control software.
Last week, MWAA awarded a $1.8 million contract to a New York company to upgrade the ATC controls. That could take a year, MWAA said.
The Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority will rule the Silver Line is “substantially complete” today, sources say. But the handoff to Metro still will not happen for a while so there is still no projected opening date.
WAMU reports that MWAA, which completed its own inspection of the project, will sign off on the project but the handoff will not come for about a month.
WMATA (Metro) will then have 90 days to conduct its own testing before Phase 1 of the Silver Line, which will run from East Falls Church to Reston’s Wiehle Avenue, would be open to the public.
Construction contractor Dulles Transit Partners filed for “substantial completion” for Phase 1 on April 9. It was the second time the contractor, a division of Reston-based Bechtel, filed. DTP said its work was finished on Feb. 7, but MWAA’s review showed issues in many areas, including ongoing issue with the Automatic Train Control software.
“We have been looking at the test results from the train control system,” MWAA CEO Jack Potter said on Tuesday.
Last week, MWAA voted to award a $1.8 million contract to Alstom Signaling, the company that built the ATC system, for an upgrade. The system upgrade could take a year, but MWAA officials have said they hope to get the Silver Line operational without it. Extra personnel would be in place in the meantime.
Phase 1 of the $5.6 billion Silver Line is more than six months behind schedule, which is why Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe met with MWAA officials on Tuesday.
“We’re about seven months delayed,” McAuliffe told reporters. “I understand [that] things happen on a project of this scale, this magnitude. But I wanted to know why. I want to know how we’re spending our money. I want to know what’s going on.”
After the one-hour meeting with McAuliffe said he was satisfied with the answers he received.
File photo/MWAA
The morning bell for Fairfax County Public Schools high school students may ring nearly two hours later if one of several proposals for later start times goes through.
On Wednesday, the FCPS School Board heard from researchers from Children’s National Medical Center. The medical experts were hired by FCPS a year ago to study the effects of chronic sleep deprivation for teens and how other school systems nationwide have adjusted their schedules.
The CNMC panel told the board members that 67 percent of FCPS high schoolers would benefit from any of the four options presented. The options would move the first bell from the current 7:20 a.m. to as late as 9:15 a.m. With the later high school start times, middle school and elementary schools would be altered (see graphic above).
The board approved four options — with start times from 7:50 a.m. to 9:15 a.m. — to be discussed with the community. The estimated costs would be $2.8 million to $7.6 million, mostly for new bus purchases. If any of the four plans are approved they would not go into effect until at least 2015-16.
The school board says there will be community meetings in May and June on the four proposals.
Superintendent Karen Garza says she supports the effort.
“There is a growing amount of research and literature about this issue,” Garza said. “I know the easiest thing in the world is to do nothing. I know not everyone will be happy with a change. But I do think it’s very important that we do it right.”
However, the school system is facing lean times. County Supervisor Sharon Bulova sad this week the school transfer from the county will be $51 million, which is far less than the nearly $100 million she requested from the county. State funds are expected to add $30 million to the school budget for Fiscal Year 2015, but FCPS still will likely make some hard cuts.
Also, in 2009, the last time the board voted on a similar measure, it failed 10-2.
Graphic: FCPS
Great Grapes Returns — Great Grapes! wine and food festival returns to Reston Saturday and Sunday from noon to 6 p.m. Hundreds of wines will be be available for tasting, along with food vendors and great shopping opportunities. [Great Grapes]
Chapter Two Debuts — The Reston Community Players production of Neil Simon’s Chapter Two opens Friday at the Reston Community Center. Performances are also Saturday, as well as May 2, 3, 4, 9, 10. All are 8 p.m., except May 4, which is a 2 p.m. matinee. [Reston Community Players]
Tops in Contracting — Several big companies with Reston/Herndon headquarters had a great year in government contracting despite 2013’s sequestration. [Washington Business Journal]
Saturday: Southgate Community Day — There will be music, food, games and family fun at Southgate Community Center’s Annual Southgate Community Day on Saturday from 2 to 6 p.m. Southgate Community Center located at 12125 Pinecrest Road. The event is free [Fairfax County]
Photo: Earth Day plating at Walker Nature Education Center/Credit: Reston Association
Reston’s 50th anniversary events continue April 28 with a symposium sponsored by George Mason University titled “Reston at 50: Looking Back at Forward Thinking.”
A panel will discuss Reston’s diversity, planning, preservation from 7 to 9:30 pm, at The Reston Community Center.
Reston was a highly innovative yet highly risky plan when founder Robert E. Simon envisioned it in the early 1960s. In an era when suburban tract homes on larger lots were being built, Simon saw European style villages with high-density housing and lots of green space on the open land he purchased near Dulles International Airport.
Panel presenters include:
Lindsey Bestebreurtje, doctoral candidate in the George Mason University Department of History and Art History, who will address the context of Reston’s groundbreaking policies of integration and diversity.
Harold Linton, Director of the School of Art at George Mason University, will provide a window into the development of the Reston Master Plan and its seven principles of design, design/planning precedents, architecture, success, awards, and liabilities.
William Jordan Patty, doctoral student in the George Mason University Department of History and Art History and Archivist/Librarian with George Mason University Libraries, will highlight the history of the Planned Community Archives,a research collection developed by the community in Reston and donated to the George Mason University Libraries.
Zachary M. Schrag, Professor of U.S. History in the George Mason University Department of History and Art History, will introduce three students scholars selected to present their research on Reston history.
Wendi Manuel-Scott, Director of George Mason University’s African and African-American Studies, will moderate.
This program is cosponsored by George Mason University Libraries and the Reston Museum and Historic Trust and is presented with the generous support of Virginia Foundation for the Humanities.
The event is free and open to the public.
Photo of Lake Anne Plaza in the 1960s. Credit: Reston Historic Trust
Several Reston Now readers have asked about construction at the intersection of Reston Parkway and Lawyers Road near Fox Mill.
A Fairfax County spokesman says the Fairfax County Department of Public Works is constructing bus stop safety and accessibility improvements at the Reston South Park and Ride.
The work includes pedestrian improvements, including sidewalk and ramps and a new bus stop concrete pad.
In addition to the pedestrian improvements, Fairfax Water is also constructing a 24-inch water main at this location. They are working under a separate VDOT Land Use Permit.
Fairfax County Supervisor Sharon Bulova has established a tax force to examine whether a county meals tax could be a reliable source of revenue.
If adopted at the same approximate rate as cities and towns in Northern Virginia, the rate would be 4 percent of the cost of a restaurant meal and would result in revenue of approximately $88 million, Bulova said.
“There has been a growing sentiment during recent years for our board to once again allow the voters to decide whether or not they wish to avail themselves of this additional source of revenue,” Bulova said in a statement. “Reasons for urging this include the desire to diversify the revenues we have available to fund schools, public safety, parks, libraries and human services.”
The task force will be led by former Board of Supervisors chairs Tom Davis and Kate Hanley, who will report back to Bulova by June 17. It will be made up of members of two dozen county organizations, including Republican and Democratic parties, the county Chamber of Commerce, the Restaurant Association of Metropolitan Washington, Visit Fairfax, the Fairfax County Taxpayers Alliance and the Fairfax Education Association.
The task force will be asked not only to recommend, or reject, a meals tax referendum, but also to suggest what year the question should be asked and how the resulting revenues should be used
The mission of the task force will be to recommend to the Board of Supervisors whether or not to proceed with a referendum for a meals tax; if it is the recommendation of the group to do so, the task force should recommend the timing (what year?) for the question to be put to voters; and the task force should return with a recommendation for how revenue from a meals tax should be used.
In Virginia, towns and cities are permitted to have a meals tax subject to a vote by the governing body. In Northern Virginia, all of the cities and towns around and within Fairfax County have adopted a meals tax. Counties may establish a meals tax only if a referendum is approved by the voters.
The last time the question was put to Fairfax County voters was 1992. It failed.
On Tuesday, the Supervisors approved a half-cent increase per $100 in the real estate tax. That will result in an additional $10.9 million annually for the county.
Photo: Supervisor Sharon Bulova/File photo
The nomination process for the inaugural RestonNow.com Best Reston Businesses awards begins now.
The Best Reston Businesses awards are a chance for residents and community members to choose their favorite local restaurants, stores, services and more.
Now is your chance to show your favorite hair salon, doctor, new business, kids store or gym, among other categories, a little love and spread the word about their good work.
Nominations for the contest begin today, April 23, and run through April 30. Use this online form to nominate your favorite, or use the form embedded below. Voting on the nominated businesses will then begin Monday, May 5 and end Friday, May 16.
There are just two rules: one submission per person, and the nominated businesses must be located in Reston. We’re a fan of all things Herndon and Vienna too, but for Best Reston, we need to keep it in Reston.
If you don’t have a business you’d like to nominate in any given category, just leave that field blank.
