The contractor constructing Metro’s Silver Line says it is ready to submit for “substantial completion” of the project again — which could come as soon as Wednesday.
Wednesday also happens to be April 9, the day Reston-based Bechtel Corporation and subsidiary Dulles Transit Partners would have to start paying fines of $25,000 a day until the job is done.
Bechtel Corporation says it is waiting for results late Tuesday then will determine if it will submit Wednesday.
“We are very pleased with the progress and moving the Silver Line one step closer to full operation,” Bechtel officials said in a statement.
Dulles Transit Partners originally said on Feb. 7 that substantial completion on the $2.7 billion rail extension from East Falls Church to Reston’s Wiehle Avenue had been reached.
Substantial completion is the point at which they feel their job is done and ready to be turned over to Metro. Metro would then have a 90-day period to conduct its own testing.
However, part of the handoff involves Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority conducting its own checklist, and in late February MWAA found issues in 7 of 12 areas, ranging from leaks to problems with the automatic train control system. It was revealed at a recent MWAA Board meeting that speakers in all five stations have to be reinstalled, and there is a cable issue in the Tysons tunnel.
According to DTP’s contract, the work is not finished starting April 10, DTP faces a $25,000-a-day penalty until the work is done. If the project is not completed 92 days after that April date, the contractor would have to pay roughly $2.3 million in fines, plus an additional $75,000 a day.
Ultimately, if the project is delayed more than six months from that April date, DTP could be required to pay more than $9 million total. Under the terms of the contract, the payments are capped at $60 million.
“Our goal is to have this wrapped up by April 9, before fines set in,” MWAA President and CEO Jack Potter said March 19.
Former Congressman Tom Davis, a MWAA board member, told WUSA9-TV that the most important thing is that the rail line is 100 percent safe and ready to go before opening.
“Hopefully, we can meet the April 9 deadline and it will be acceptable and we could move on,” Davis said. “But we want the public to know that when this transit system opens, it is going to be Grade A reader for business. It is going to be safe and it is going to work efficiently.”
But Davis also said if DTP has to pay fines, it could benefit the transportation system.
“If it is not ready, I think the airports authority can make some money on it,” Davis told WUSA. “
While a opening date for the Silver Line was never set, officials had hoped to finish testing last September for a possible December opening. But delays were announced last summer, then in November when the tracking system issues were discovered.
After the March setback, officials are no longer estimated when the turnover may be as DTP works to correct the problems. However, a source told WTOP last week that the Silver Line may open by July 4.
More than 200 artists will have their works on display at the annual Northern Virginia Fine Arts Festival at Reston Town Center May 16-18. Also on display: The new Kia K900 luxury sedan as the carmaker has signed on to be a major sponsor of the festival.
“Securing a widely-recognized and respected lead sponsor is a testament to the preeminent nature of this event on the Northern Virginia calendar,” said Holly McCullough, executive director of Greater Reston Arts Center (GRACE), which organizes the event. “The Festival, which features over 200 juried artists from around the country, is already a nationally top-ranked fine art and craft festival, attracting 30,000 visitors annually. With the Kia K900 sponsorship, we can continue our efforts to make the Festival an even more dynamic destination event in the region.”
The K900 is Kia’s first entry in the luxury car market. It features a 5.0 liter V-8 engine that will go from 0-60 in 5.5 seconds, Kia says. The top-of-the-line model will cost about $60,000. Actor Laurence Fishburne is doing the voice over in TV ads, where he asks car buyers to : “Challenge the luxury you know.”
Kia’s Vice President of Marketing Tim Chaney said Kia is involved in many community outreach programs on the local and national level, and the Northern Virginia Fine Arts Festival is an excellent match for the company.
“The GRACE Festival is the perfect example of the kind of community outreach we like to promote,” he said in a press release. “GRACE and this Festival are major components of the Northern Virginia cultural landscape and we are really proud to be able to associate the Kia K900 with such a fantastic cultural institution.”
A K900 will be on display throughout the Festival weekend. In addition to the artwork on display, the festival includes a ticketed Opening Night Party on Friday, May 16 (5-8 p.m.); musical performances throughout the weekend; an Il Fornaio hospitality station in The M Group Pavilion; a Family Art Park (featuring children’s art activities, a public art project, and face painting); and a Celebrity Cruise Raffle (a one-week cruise for two).
Photo of K900/Credit: Kia
As searchers from several nations continue to sweep the Indian Ocean for signs of missing Malaysia Airlines Flight 370, they are using complex technology to pinpoint the “pings” that could be coming from the plane’s black boxes.
A company with headquarters in Reston could help them. Metron Scientific Solutions, located at Reston Town Center since 1991, was instrumental in finding Air France flight 447 after that plane went missing in 2009.
Metron is scientific consulting firm that develops solutions to challenging problems in national defense, says company vice president Maribeth Dwyer.
“We do this through applying advanced mathematical methods,” she said via email. “We provide our clients with sophisticated analysis, simulation tools, detection and tracking tools, design engineering, and easily accessible software products.”
Officials called on Metron to help find the Air France flight, which disappeared on June 1, 2009 en route from Rio de Janeiro to Paris.
Metron’s expertise in applying Bayesian Search Theory to problems, such as the 1968 hunt for the missing submarine Scorpion and the 1986 search for the SS Central America, made the company uniquely suited to the complicated underwater search for the missing plane, Metron says.
“Metron’s staff, in particular, Dr. Lawrence D. Stone, have been involved in other high profile searches of this nature,” Dwyer said. “We were asked to assist in the search for Air France 447 by producing a probability map for the location of the aircraft which took account of all available information including two years of unsuccessful search and the possibility that the beacons (or “pingers”) on the black boxes failed to operate.
“At the beginning of the third year of search, the French decided to begin their search in the high probability area of the map and found the wreckage within six days of search,” said Dwyer.
So far, Metron has not received the call to assist in the search, which is now focusing on 30,000 square miles off of Perth, Australia. However, Dwyer says Metron has spoken with U.S. Navy officials and others involved in the effort.
“We stand ready to help should our assistance be requested,” she said. “The technology and hardware being used in the present search is similar to that used during the search for Air France 447. Likewise, the analysis required to apply Bayesian search theory to this problem would be similar, however on a much larger scale.
“We, like the rest of the world, are extremely hopeful that the recent pings detected will quickly lead to the discovery of the plane.
Photo: CNN
Who is ready for some ice cream — and to give back?
Tuesday, April 8 is Ben & Jerry’s annual Free Cone Day. Participating stores nationwide — including at Reston Town Center — will offer free ice cream cones from noon until 8 p.m. Tips are encouraged, which will be donated to a local charity.
Reston’s charity is Safe Spot, the Children’s Advocacy Center of Fairfax County. Safe Spot is a non profit aimed at ending child abuse.
Photo courtesy of Ben & Jerry’s
Reston Association’s Science Camp will return to the United States Geological Survey headquarters after sequestration cuts shut out the kids last year.
Prior to 2013, RA partnered with USGS for 17 years, where real scientists helped instruct campers ages 8 to 12, who attended camp on the grounds of the agency. Camp was held at a Reston elementary school in 2013 as all USGS outreach activities were put on hiatus and some scientists were furloughed.
But the budget is back for 2014. Registration for Science Camp begins April 14. RA says it will transfer those on the Science Camp waiting list or those enrolled in other camps to Science Camp if requested. Visit RA’s website for more information.
Help SLHS Seniors — Are you a local business looking to give back? The South Lakes High School Class of 2014 can use donations for its annual All Night Grad Party. Donations can be made online or checks can be mailed to ANGP, South Lakes High School, 11400 South Lakes Drive, Reston VA 20191. [SLHS PSTA]
Founder’s Day Wrap Up In Print, On TV — Restonian has pulled together all the media sources that covered Reston’s big Founder’s Day Saturday. [Restonian]
Kudos for Music in Schools — Fairfax County Public Schools has been recognized as one of 376 school districts nationwide as a 2014 Best Community for Music Education by the NAMM (National Association of Music Merchants) Foundation. The recognition cites school districts that have demonstrated exceptional efforts toward maintaining music education as part of the schools’ core curriculum. [FCPS]
Reston Representing — Reston’s Raba Letteri, an instructional aide at Forest Edge Elementary School, has been selected to the Fairfax County Public Schools’ Support Services Advisory Council. [FCPS]
Photo by Melissa Gifford.
A Chinese-Mexican fast casual restaurant will soon join the food options at Hunters Woods Village Center.
Chinito’s Burritos has filed permits to open at 2304 Hunters Woods Plaza.
Chinito’s Burritos will be a suburban offshoot of a locally owned shop on Florida Avenue NE in Washington, DC. No opening date has been set.
Chinito’s receives high marks on Yelp for its homemade egg rolls, signature hot sauce and fresh guacamole.
Another new food spot, Cold Spoon Frozen Yogurt, opened at Hunters Woods two weeks ago.
All Reston Association members are invited to hear about the state of the association and find out Board of Directors’ election results at the RA Annual Members Meeting Tuesday at 7 p.m. at RA Headquarters, 12001 Sunrise Valley Dr.
The event caps a busy election season in which eight candidates (as well as a write-in candidate) were on the ballot for four open seats.
Read more about the board candidates here:
At the meeting, RA will also say goodbye to departing board member Amanda Andere, who is finishing her three-year term as the Apartment Owners representative, and thank John Higgins and Ellen Graves for filling in for partial terms on the board. The association will also honor some special members and talk about the year’s highlights.
Reston founder Bob Simon’s idea for density and community was forged in a childhood apartment high above New York City’s Riverside Drive and in the green spaces of urban parkland.
Whether the idea was a good one, a not-so-good one, a half-hatched one or a groundbreaking one depends on who you ask.
And many people are asked — or at least answer — in the documentary Another Way of Living: The Story of Reston, VA. The 70-minute film by director Rebekah Wingert-Jabi was shown at a VIP screening Saturday night at Reston Community Center as part of the Founder’s Day celebrations.
Wingert-Jabi, a Peabody Award winner who shot about 250 hours of film for the project, hopes to enter the movie into national film festivals. After that, it will be available for the public.
The movie looks at founder Simon’s life and what inspired him to purchase more than 6,000 acres of Virginia farmland in 1961 and plan an urban-style “New Town” in an era of neat lawns and tract homes.
It didn’t always go that well.
“The vision was correct, but his timing was terrible,” says former Fairfax County Executive J. Hamilton Lambert, one of many planners, architects and citizens interviewed in the film. “Putting a town in the middle of a field – people didn’t know how to take this field of dreams.”
Indeed, Reston had many ups and downs to get to the place it is today, with 60,000 residents, excellent amenities, and an important business and retail hub. Fifty different banks originally turned down Simon for financing. And in 1967, After Lake Anne and some of Hunters Woods were built, Gulf Oil took over the struggling operation and fired Simon.
“How could they fire him?” longtime Restonian and chair of the Reston Community Center Board Beverly Cosham wonders in her on-camera interview. “He WAS Reston.” Read More
Fifty years after its founding, Reston is still living by the principles of its founder, Robert E. Simon.
Master of Ceremonies Chuck Veatch — one of the original salesmen for the “New Town” back in the 1960s — read Simon’s words from Reston’s dedication at the Founder’s Day celebration at Lake Anne Plaza on Saturday.
“The deed of Reston celebrates not the completion of this new town, but symbolizes its beginning,” Simon said in 1964. “It is a place where people will come to live, work, play and call their own. We have just begun to build — there is very much more to come. But from this day forward, Reston is its people.”
Several hundred people — some of them original Restonians or children of original Restonians — were in attendance Saturday for the celebration of Reston’s 50th birthday and Simon’s 100th birthday. Also paying tribute — Gov. Terry McAuliffe; Lt. Gov. Ralph Northam; Sen. Tim Kaine; Rep. Gerry Connolly; County Supervisors Sharon Bulova and Cathy Hudgins; and Virginia General Assembly members Del. Ken Plum and Sen. Janet Howell.
President Barack Obama also sent his regards in a letter to Simon.
“You are part of a generation that helped guide our country through uncertain and extraordinary times, and the energy and creativity you have shown over the years serve as an inspiration,” wrote the president. “As you celebrate a century of memories, I hope you take tremendous pride in the community you founded 50 years ago and all you have done to ensure our neighborhoods are vibrant places to live and work.”
Reston’s place in history was was a top topic during the tributes. In Virginia in 1964, segregation was alive and well. Simon envisioned an open, inclusive community where people of all races, ages and incomes could live.
“We moved here in 1969,” said Hudgins, who is black. “Things were different in this country and in the world. We are lucky we found a place here. Reston has been able to give us and so many other people the feeling that they belong. … Reston is and has been a model.”
Sen. Tim Kaine, who also served as governor of Virginia from 2006 to 2010, put Simon’s vision in perspective.
“In 1964, when Reston opened, discrimination was rampant and legal,” he said. “It wasn’t until 1968 that the federal Fair Housing Act was passed. It wasn’t until 1971 that the Virginia General Assembly passed the South’s first fair housing law.
“Bob [Simon] was a real visionary,” Kaine said. “All human beings ought to be able to live together and be neighbors. When we look at Virginia history since World War II, Bob should be one of the 5 or 6 individuals. Bob took a state that was facing backward and turned it facing forward.”
Other Founder’s Day fun including musical performances from South Lakes High School, Terraset Elementary School and Hunters Woods Preschool; honoring the second and third generations of Restonians who have returned to live and work here; and a dedication of commemorative bricks and a historical marker; and, of course, birthday cake.
Fifty Trees For 50 Years Planting Monday — In honor of Reston’s 50th anniversary, Friends of Reston will give 50 trees to the community to be planted on Arbor Day, Monday, April 7 from 9:30 a.m. until 12 p.m., rain or shine. [Reston Association]
Fewer Virginia SOL Tests — A bill passed in Richmond last month and signed by the governor Friday cuts the number of standardized tests that third-graders take in half, eliminating the social studies and science tests. School districts will be required to develop alternative assessments that are project-based to show that students are learning the same material. [Washington Post]
Fill Those Potholes — Spring is here, but a few traces of winter remain. One annoying one: potholes. Potholes are created when moisture seeps into the pavement, freezes, expands and then thaws, says the Virginia Department of Transportation. Who to call with a heads up depends on who maintains the road. Most primary and secondary roads are maintained by VDOT. Call them at 1-800-FOR-ROAD (1-800-367-7623).
“Our” Reston — More thoughts on Reston’s big anniversary, these from people who have lived here for many years. [Reston Connection]
Photo of Reston Little League Parade by Melissa Gifford.
Gov. Terry McAuliffe, Sen. Tim Kaine and other dignitaries were among the hundreds of people who came to Reston’s Lake Anne Plaza Saturday afternoon to wish founder Robert E. Simon a happy 100th birthday and Reston a happy 50th birthday.
What will the next 50 years bring?
“We will have to just sit around and see,” Simon said before cutting the cake at the Founder’s Day celebration.
Reston Now will have full coverage of the weekend events on Monday.
A source tells WTOP that Metro’s Silver Line could be up and running by July 4 after significant progress in correcting issues throughout the last few weeks.
From WTOP:
The Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority continues to run tests on the tracks and the contractor building the Silver Line could get approval to turn the project over to Metro within the next two weeks.
Multiple sources tell WTOP that it’s more likely that the Silver Line will be completed and certified before the end of the month than it being delayed into May. Once MWAA certifies the project as complete, it would turn over the project to Metro. Project Director Pat Nowakowski has told WTOP the time between certification and turnover to Metro would be quick.
The opening of the 11-mile rail extension from East Falls Church to Reston’s Wiehle Avenue has been delayed several times — though an exact opening date was never set.
The Silver Line was originally estimated to be finished last summer, with a September handoff to Metro and a possible December opening. In July, the estimate was pushed back, as it was again in November when issues were found with the Automatic Train Control system.
In early February, construction contractor Dulles Transit Partners told the Metropolitan Washington Airport Authority it had reached “substantial completion” on construction of the $2.8 billion project.
But MWAA completed a 15-day review and found issues in 7 of 12 areas, ranging from leaks to problems with the automatic train control system. It was revealed at a MWAA Board meeting two weeks ago that speakers in all five stations have to be reinstalled, and there is a cable issue in the Tysons tunnel.
According to DTP’s contract, the work is not finished starting April 10, DTP faces a $25,000-a-day penalty until the work is done. If the project is not completed 92 days after that April date, the contractor would have to pay roughly $2.3 million in fines, plus an additional $75,000 a day.
Ultimately, if the project is delayed more than six months from that April date, DTP could be required to pay more than $9 million total. Under the terms of the contract, the payments are capped at $60 million.
Reston Association has chosen Tricia Holman-Pierce’s video Life as a Reston Canine as the Grand Prize winner of it My Community Video Contest.
Holman-Pierce tells the story of all there is to do in Reston — the lakes, ice skating at Reston Town Center, and dining at Lake Anne among them — through the eyes of her French Bulldog.
RA kicked off the contest last summer, when it asked for three-minute videos showing why you liked to Live, Work, Play and Get Involved in Reston.
Holman-Pierce will win a $1,000 prize
Reston Association will recognize and congratulate the winners of the My Community video contest at the Annual Members’ Meeting on Tuesday, April 8.
Other winners:
- Juliette Rossant: Moon Viewing Platform – 2nd Place
- Emily Marquet: Leave that Little Old Farm Market Alone – Honorable Mention
- Elizabeth Scheurer: Reston Mural Movie – Honorable Mention
- Taylor Mauceri: Reston: A Place to Live – Honorable Mention
- Steve Jones: Why Our Family Loves Reston – Honorable Mention
This is a sponsored column from Eve Thompson of Reston Real Estate. She writes twice weekly on Reston Now.
Thirty-five new listings were added to the Reston inventory of homes for sale this week.
Total inventory is holding pretty steady in the 150-155 range. Sales are keeping pace with new properties, so we’re losing inventory at pretty much the same pace we’re adding inventory. Here are a few of the new ones that came on this week.
12010 CREEKBEND DR 5BR 5.5 Baths $1,150,000
11408 TANBARK DRIVE 4BR 2.5 Baths $649,000
1920 CRESCENT PARK DR 3BR 2.5 Baths $535,000
11872 LAKES CT S 4BR 3.5 Baths $449,900
