All bulldogs are Irish bulldogs at Lake Anne Plaza Saturday.
PetMAC at Lake Anne Plaza is holding a fundraiser from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Stop by the bulldog kissing booth, where the Rebound Bulldog Rescue Foundation will be bringing an assortment of pooches decked out in their St. Paddy’s Day best.
Kiss a dog for dollars and help support the rescue group.
PetMAC is located at 11412 Washington Plaza West.
Official Trailer: Another Way of Living: The Story of Reston, VA from Rebekah Wingert-Jabi on Vimeo.
Reston filmmaker Rebekah Wingert-Jabi was on WAMU’s “The Kojo Nnamdi Show” on Thursday to discuss Robert E. Simon’s vision for a new town in the Virginia countryside a half-century ago.
Wingert-Jabi, director of “Another Way of Living: The Story of Reston, VA,” was visiting the show to promote the documentary, which will screen at the National Building Museum March 24 as part of the Environmental Film Festival in the Nation’s Capital.
Wingert-Jabi spoke about how Simon wanted dense housing as well as the beauty of nature when he founded Reston in the mid-1960s.
“When Robert E. Simon saw [the acreage that would be become Reston], what struck him most was natural beauty,” Wingert-Jabi said in response to Nnamdi’s question about Simon’s desire to break away from “Cul de sacs and cookie cutter homes.”
“He also said ‘we don’t have to to that,’ ” said Wingert-Jabi. ” ‘What about the idea of townhouses?’ If we put people together, maybe we can build a sense of community.’ And if you put lots of people together, you will also have lots of open space.”
Listen to the 17-minute interview on WAMU’s website.
Wingert-Jabi’s 70 minute film premiered in Reston last fall. It was edited from a rough cut shown to Restonians in 2014. The final version includes the milestone of Simon’s death last September at age 101.
Another Way of Living will screen at 6:30 p.m. on March 24 at the National Building Museum (401 F St. NW, Washington, DC). Admission to the festival is free.
It would be about $700,000 cheaper to renovate an existing Fairfax County septic disposal site rather than build a new one on Hunter Mill Road, says a Septage Site Receiving Study made available by Fairfax County.
Hunter Mill-area residents attended a somewhat contentious community meeting on Feb. 18, where they were skeptical of many things — including the need to relocate the site after 46 years from Colvin Run to Fairfax County Park Authority’s Maintenance Area 6 on Hunter Mill Road, where Reston meets Vienna.
The existing site (one of two in Fairfax County) serves about 21,000 homes with septic tanks — mostly in Great Falls and Oakton — as well as all restaurants in this part of the county, which must dispose of grease into the septage receiving site.
County officials said at the February meeting that the Colvin Run site floods, smells and is serviced by a pipe that is too small. The county looked at six sites, determining that Hunter Mill Road was the only one that could accommodate a facility, even though hauling trucks would have to contend with the one-lane bridge to access the location.
Residents who live on or near Hunter Mill Road were opposed to that plan, citing traffic, noise and the potential for sewage to get into nearby streams as concerns. They urged officials to go back to the drawing board to find a new location.
A couple of items of note in the report, prepared by consultants at Hazen and Sawyer:
The search for the new site came about after a petition was sent to Dranesville Supervisor John Foust. However, the petition only contained 20 signatures from 11 families.
The report was completed in June of 2015, but Hunter Mill-area residents said they did not know anything about the potential project until just before the February meeting.
About 6,000 trips are made to the Colvin Run site annually, the report says. But the consultants also recommend that Fairfax accept sewage from the City of Alexandria and Loudoun County, which would make the new site much busier.
A survey of haulers says that at least 20 percent of waste currently being hauled to Colvin Run may not originate in Fairfax County.
A new site at Hunter Mill will cost $3.4 million to construct. Renovating Colvin Run — which authorities said at the February meeting was not a possibility — would cost $2.6 million.
Read the full feasibility study on Fairfax County’s website.
Photo: Lake Fairfax Maintenance Area 6
Reston Author’s New Book — Kwame Alexander, Newbery-award winning novelist and Reston resident, has a new book that comes out April 5. Read a preview of “Booked,” which is a companion to award-winner “The Crossover.” [Publishers Weekly]
Metro Gets Grace Period — You now have 15 minutes if you want to leave a Metro station after you have paid to get in. Currently, when riders enter a station and leave that same station, they are charged $1.75 (peak time, $2.15). These same-station entry/exit transactions account for about 0.5 percent of all rail transactions each month, according to WMATA. [DCist]
Spring Flea Market This Weekend — Ready for some deals? Reston Community Center Hunters Woods is hosting its Spring Flea Market tomorrow from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. There will be more than 30 vendors. [RCC]
Animal Industry — The Fairfax County Animal Shelter is holding a career day Saturday for youth who are thinking about working in the pet industry, such as a veterinarian, animal control officer, animal trainer or caretaker. The event is from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the shelter, 4500 West Ox Rd. in Fairfax. Added bonus: adoption fees half off Saturday. [Fairfax County]
See how things fly, gears that go and inventions that are just plain cool as the NoVa Mini Maker Faire — a gathering of more than one hundred inventors, craftspeople, hackers and others who “make things” — returns to Reston Sunday.
The regionwide family-friendly event calls itself “the Greatest Show (and Tell) on Earth-a family-friendly showcase of invention, creativity and resourcefulness, and a celebration of the Maker Movement. It’s a place where people show what they are making, and share what they are learning.”
The Mini Maker Faire runs from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. at Langston Hughes Middle School and South Lakes High School.
Makers will share their knowledge through hands-on projects for adults and
children on topics ranging from blacksmithing and primitive skills to 3D printing, drones and robots to creative reuse of recycled materials to creative art-making, say Mini Maker Faire organizers.
The event is organized by Nova Labs of Reston.
Makers will be grouped in neighborhoods by their topic. Neighborhoods include: Young Makers, Drone Zone, Robotics, 3D Printing, Science Lab, Fiber Alley, Sustainability Village, and more.
See the whole list of makers on the event’s website.
Advance tickets are available online now. Tickets are $15 for adults and $5 for children through Saturday. New this year is a family ticket $40, which is good for a family of 5 and is available only in advance. Tickets at the door are $20 for adults and $8 for children.
NoVA Mini Maker Faire 2015/file photo by Jennifer van der Kleut
Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe (D) signed a bill into law on Wednesday that will limit proffers, which local governments rely on to get builders to contribute to park, roads and other improvements in exchange for development.
As the bill went through the House and Senate, many local governments, including Fairfax County’s Board of Supervisors and Reston Association, asked the governor to amend or not sign the legislation.
The law requires that proffers be limited to offsetting impacts that are directly attributable to new residential developments, such as traffic. The restrictions do not apply to high-density areas, commercial developments or neighborhoods near Metro stations.
The law is effective July 1, 2016.
This is important time in Reston, which is undergoing a period of multifamily housing growth as it turns towards being a transit-oriented community. However, most of that growth will occur near Metro stations, so the impact here remains to be seen.
Reston Association President Ellen Graves, who wrote a letter to the governor last month voicing the association’s opposition to the bills, said the final version looks to pretty much leave Reston alone due to parameters of Reston’s Master Plan.
“It’s good for us,” Graves said Thursday. “The final version excludes all pending zoning applications and all residential or residential/mixed use [applications] located in an area near existing or future Metro. ”
Students from South Lakes High School and Herndon High School are among the 22 students chosen for this year’s Student Peace Awards of Fairfax County.
The students will be honored in a reception at Sherwood Community Center in Fairfax Sunday.
Local awardees include:
Aditi Takle, senior, South Lakes High School
Takle is president of the school’s chapter of Girls Learn International, a national nonprofit that seeks to provide resources and support to girls in other countries from low-income families who want to have an education, but whose families either cannot afford to send them to school or who, with the limited resources at their disposal, prioritize their sons’ educations. The chapter raises money for a school in India and holds advocacy events to raise awareness of the plight of so many girls across the globe who need access to education and opportunities for greater self-sufficiency. Aditi is also a volunteer with Cornerstones, where she tutors elementary school students from low-income families.
Smriti Subedi, Senior, Herndon High School
The disastrous earthquakes last year in Smirti’s country-of-origin Nepal inspired her to organize relief efforts to assist Nepalese people suffering loss of their homes, livelihoods, food, and water. As president of Herndon High’s Interact Club, she organized students to raise money and collect material goods to provide relief. She and her family volunteered in Nepal over the summer, helping in schools and hospitals.
High schools in Fairfax County may recognize one junior or senior who devotes time, energy and creativity to being peacemakers in local, national or international service, says Reston’s Ken Fredgren, who is on the awards committee.
The Student Peace Awards of Fairfax County started in 2006 with the hope of moving people to think more about peace as both a means and an end, andto recognize young people who work as peacemakers, says Fredgren.
Honorees receive a monetary gift as well as a gift made in their honor to a peace-focused charity of his or her choice.
This is a column by Del. Ken Plum, who represents Reston in Virginia’s House of Delegates. It does not reflect the opinion of Reston Now.
One of the responsibilities of the Governor of Virginia as dictated by the State Constitution is to propose a budget for a biennium.
With the governor being limited to one four-year term, the current scheduling of the two-year plan for state revenues and expenditures is awkward. A newly elected governor takes office inheriting a budget left by the preceding governor; likewise the final budget proposed by a governor is implemented by his or her successor.
The mid-term budget takes on special significance as it is the only one proposed and implemented by a governor. The significance of this budget was clearly not lost on Gov. Terry McAuliffe. Of course, in all instances the budget must be approved by the General Assembly.
Both the House of Delegates and the Senate made amendments to Gov. McAuliffe’s budget. In a ritual that happens each even-numbered year when the General Assembly meets in a “long” or 60-day session to consider the biennial budget, both houses have appointed conferees to work out the differences among the two houses and the governor.
The conference report, once approved by both houses and signed by the governor, becomes the state’s budget for the next two years beginning on July 1, 2016. For a comparison of the governor’s, House and Senate budgets, go to Budget Policy Choices.
With growth in the economy the budget proposed by Gov. McAuliffe and approved by the General Assembly will for the first time in history exceed $100 billion. While that number is huge in absolute terms, it is modest when Virginia as the 10th-wealthiest state in per capita income is compared to other states. Virginia’s state and local revenue as a percentage of personal income is 49th lowest among the states. The Commonwealth’s per capita state general fund expenditures are in the middle of the other states at number 25 with $2,168. The national average is $2,496. Read More
Calling all Hunters Woods Preschool alumni and parents of alumni, there is a big event happening you won’t want to miss.
Lois Male, who has been teaching at the co-operative preschool in Reston for 44 years, is retiring this spring.
The school is hoping to track down as many former students and their families as possible to share their memories at a goodbye party for their “Mrs. Male.”
Male was also a founder of the preschool. As a young mother of three, she joined with three other Reston moms to organize the school in 1970. In 1972, she started teaching there. Many of her original students have also sent their children to HWPS over the years.
“She has impacted so many children, parents, families, and friends over the years, and now it’s time for us to celebrate all she’s done for all of us,” event organizers said on an Evite for the celebration, which will take place on May 21 at 1 p.m. at the Walker Nature Education Center.
“The party will be open house style, so drop by to say hello, have some cake and wish Mrs. Male well in the future.”
Party organizers say:
Please bring a note for her with a statement like “My favorite memory of HWPS was…..” (don’t forget to include your name and years with HWPS) to include in a scrapbook we will assemble for her. Also, if you have any pictures you can send to us of Mrs. Male, we would love to see them and share them with her as well! Please send them to [email protected].
Please also spread the word about the party by sharing the link to this Evite to your former classmates and families that we may not be able to reach! We’d love to have as many people from our HWPS community come by as possible to show Mrs. Male how much she means to us all. Her impact on us all has been tremendous, join us by taking some time to honor her on May 21st!
If you have any questions or suggestions, please contact Allison Rankin at [email protected] or 571-350-9499.
Read more about Male and HWPS in this previous Reston Now story.
Photo: Lois Male and young students at Hunters Woods Preschool/file photo
BLVD Bash — Another look at the grand opening party for BLVD at Reston Station. [Washington Business Journal]
Candidates Forum Tonight — Want to hear more about the five people running for Reston Association Board of Directors? Attend the candidates forum at RA Headquarters, 12011 Sunrise Valley Dr., 7 p.m. The forum is also available on RA’s You Tube Channel. [Reston Association]
Nearby: Herndon Hero — An eighth grader from Herndon was honored by Herndon Mayor Lisa Merkel and the Herndon Town Council for calling public safety officials when his family was suffering from carbon monoxide poisoning in January. [NBC4 Washington]
Photo: Sunset from BLVD rooftop/Credit: Jennifer Heffner, Vita Images
Carpet One at Reston’s Home Depot Shopping Center has quietly closed its doors.
A sign on the vacant storefront at 11970 Baron Cameron Ave. says to visit Carpet One in Ashburn (433330 Junction Plaza) or in Fairfax (13065 Lee Hwy).
No word who, if anyone, has signed a lease to take over the space.
An 18-year-old Reston woman who had not been seen since Saturday has been located unharmed, Fairfax County Police said.
Madison Short, turned herself in to the FCPD’s Reston District Station Wednesday, police said. Police said in a statement Short “was in good health and they are working with her to get appropriate services.”
Short was not accused of any crime, but friends and relatives thought she may be a danger to herself and asked for the public’s help Monday in locating her.
Police responded to her home in the 11600 block of North Point Court about 8 a.m. Saturday for reports she wanted to harm herself.
Short had left the home prior to the officer’s arrival. Additional officers, K-9s and the police helicopter responded to search the area, but Short was not located at that time.
Photo of Madison Short/FCPD
St. Patrick’s Day starts early in Reston.
The annual Lucky Leprechaun 5K is Saturday, March 12 at Reston Town Center.
There is still time to register. Here is what you need to know:
The race begins at 8:30 a.m. at Reston Town Center.
Pre-registered runners receive a Lucky Leprechaun 5K technical T-shirt.
The race course loops around town center, but will also affect public streets Reston Parkway, Baron Cameron Avenue, Sunset Hills Road and Town Center Parkway. See the course map on the PR Races website. Roads will not be entirely closed, but lanes may be blocked.
Online registration is $35 through 8 p.m. Wednesday, March 9; $40 in-person at packet pickup (Thursday and Friday at Potomac River Running at town center) or at the race on Saturday morning.
There will be a free, short (about 100 yards) kids fun run at 9:30 a.m. Registration for the kids fun run will take place on race day morning near the finish line.
There will be a special St. Paddy’s Day refreshments at the post-race celebration following the race.
The blizzard of late January is but a memory, save for a few piles of snow that still remain — despite temperatures near 80 degrees — about six weeks later.
The one big storm of the winter dumped about three feet of snow on Reston Jan. 23-24. People dug out within a day or two — but snowplows made piles on some streets and sidewalks that reached six feet or more.
A few piles remain. Take this one at the corner of Ridge Heights Road and Cobblestone Lane, where a few kids (wearing shorts, because it was unseasonably warm Wednesday) pelted each other with snowballs while waiting for the school bus this morning.
Dulles International Airport tied its all-time high for March 9, reaching 79 degrees at 1 p.m.
Fairfax County Police are trying to figure out who shot a bullet into a home in the 13100 block of Diamond Mill Drive in unincorporated Herndon early Friday.
Police said a resident heard what sounded like a gunshot about 2:30 a.m. He investigated and found a hole in a back bedroom wall. He then located a bullet on the bedroom floor, police said.
The bullet was turned over to police, who conducted an investigation. There were no injuries and it is unknown where the gunshot originated, police said.
In other crime news reported by the FCPD’s Reston District Station:
BURGLARY
2200 block of Chamblee Place, March 6. A resident reported that someone entered the residence and took property.
LARCENIES
- 13100 block of Fox Hunt Lane, bicycle from business
- 2300 block of Glade Bank Way, property from vehicle
- 11900 block of Market Street, merchandise from business
- 13200 block of Stable Brook Way, license plate from vehicle
- 11600 block of Sunrise Valley Drive, property from vehicle
