Update, 11 a.m. Thursday – Langston Hughes principal Aimee Monitcchio said the threat proved to be not credible and the school day will proceed as usual.

Original Story: Students at Reston’s Langston Hughes Middle School will have extra security at the school on Thursday after an online threat was made Wednesday night.

Here is the message principal Aimee Monticchio sent to Hughes families:

Dear Parents,

This evening we were made aware of an anonymous threat directed at our school on social media. At this time, police do not believe the threat is credible but, out of an abundance of caution, extra security will be at the school tomorrow.  We plan to operate on our normal schedule tomorrow.

The safety of our students and staff is our highest priority. In addition, we believe that, as partners in your child’s education, we have a responsibility to inform you of these kinds of circumstances, even when there is no reason for alarm.

With the assistance of the  Fairfax County Police Department and the FCPS Office of Safety and Security, we will continue to be diligent to ensure the safety of our students and staff.  Thank you for your support and understanding.  If you have any additional questions or concerns, feel free to contact the school office.

Sincerely,

Aimee Monticchio, Principal

There are a couple of empty horse stalls at Herndon’s Frying Pan Farm Park.

Formerly home to two draft horses, Jesse the horse died in late October at age 35. His horse “brother” Michael, died in September 2013.

The duo of Jesse and Michael were a popular park attraction, often found pulling wagon rides and other antique farm equipment for demonstration purposes or just letting young visitors pat their noses.

“The farm will look a bit vacant for right now without Jesse,” Todd Brown, a Fairfax County Park Authority operations manager, said upon Jesse’s death.

The nonprofit Friends of Frying Pan Farm Park is dedicating its year-end fundraising campaign to bring new horses to the park.

“Those two wonderful Percheron draft horses joined the farm family in 1999 working the fields and pulling wagon rides,” Jack Pitzer, president of Friends of Frying Pan Farm Park, said on the group’s website.

“Their senior years were spent greeting visitors from their stalls and enjoying the park’s lush pastures. It’s a good thing big horses have big hearts, because they had so much love to give and so many who loved them.”

Pitzer said donations will help us bring “gentle giants” back to Frying Pan Farm Park so that future visitors can also have this special bond with horses.

“Funds from this year’s Annual Appeal will go toward research and acquisition of a new team, training, care and other farm operations,” he wrote. “Your donations are not only a gift to the park, but also to the entire community the park has served over many generations.”

Donations can be made online. Any amount is welcome, but Friends of Frying Pan Farm Park also has suggestions for specific help, such as $6,000 for the purchase of a new draft team, $125 for a month of hay to feed the horses, or $400 for an annual vet checkup.

Photo: Jesse and Michael/Courtesy Frying Pan Farm Park

Fairfax County Police charged two Reston residents with larceny and being drunk in public early Wednesday after the suspects refused to leave Reston’s Target store — and when they did, they left with stolen merchandise and led police on a foot chase.

The officers were called to the store at 12197 Sunset Hills Rd. at 12:12 a.m. with a report of two intoxicated people who refused to leave at closing time.

When police arrived, the suspects were walking outside the store carrying merchandise they did not pay for, police said.

Officers gave commands to the suspects to stop, but they disregarded those commands and fled across the parking lot, into a wooded area adjacent to the store. Officers gave chase and apprehended one suspect without incident. The second suspect again failed to obey lawful commands from the officers and a taser was employed, which led to compliance by the second suspect.

Larrell Lansdowne, 32, of Freetown Court in Reston, was charged with grand larceny and being drunk in public. Shannon Jimenez, 33, of Greywing Square in Reston, was charged with petit larceny and being drunk in public.

Students and staff at Reston’s Terraset Elementary were on lockdown in the school cafeteria for about an hour on Wednesday due to a gas leak at the school.

Fairfax County Fire and Rescue crews were called to the school about 11:40 a.m. for a smell of gas. The leak, in the rear outside of the building, was located and capped. Crews determined it was safe for people to remain in the part of the school away from the leak while it was fixed.

Most students returned to their classrooms or safe areas of the building by 12:45 p.m. Upper-grade students in the temporary classrooms outside the school remained in the trailers. There were no injuries.

“As always, we were pleased with the appropriate and responsible conduct of our students and the professional manner of our staff,” principal Lindsay Trout said in an email to Terraset parents and guardians after the school day resumed. “We truly have a responsive and caring school family.”

Terraset’s grounds have been an active construction site for more than a year as the nearly 40-year-old school is undergoing a major renovation.

In Nov. 2014, the board denied a request by Flashman for an electronic copy of those voting records.

This year, Flashman has repeatedly requested the records for results of the Tetra referendum and the 2015 board election. RA records show there was a 33 percent turnout — 5,676 ballots were returned out of a possible 17,511 — which narrowly passed the referendum to purchase the old Reston Visitors Center for $2.6 million. The purchase closed in July.

Flashman said knowing who votes saves future candidates time and effort, and that the voting records should be public because “this is not a private corporation; this is a membership corporation.” He later said he wanted to talk to the electorate.

“These documents reveal what households voted in the past election for the board and in the past election for the Tetra property purchase,” Flashman said at the Oct. 22 RA Board meeting.

“To anyone who wants to run for the board or in the holding of any referendum, this document is invaluable. Why? Because of all the 20,000+ households there are in Reston, it narrows it down to those who truly are interested in voting and who pay attention to the issues. It doesn’t make any difference what side they’re on, but they pay attention because they took the time to vote.”

The board, which sources say has spent thousands on legal fees for this matter, denied Flashman’s request at that meeting.

Flashman said Wednesday that RA’s proposal is “probably illegal.” He also said he has filed a complaint with the Commonwealth.

“This is an overall part of the lack of transparency that seems to be a part of the RA board,” he said.

The motion to be considered says that individual member voting records shall be kept secret and only aggregate voter turnout statistics shall be released for elections and referenda of the Reston Association.

Preventing Christmas Tree Fires — Fairfax County Fire and Rescue was on NBC’s Today show Tuesday with a demonstration on how quickly a dry Christmas tree can ignite. [Today.com]

No Reston On ‘Best Restaurants’ List — Reston may be home to dozens of popular restaurants, but none of them made Northern Virginia magazine’s “50 Best Restaurants’ list. [Northern Virginia Magazine]

Dulles To Get More Funds? — Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe wants to give Dulles International Airport an additional $50 million to help it remain competitive and keep United Airlines as a hub. [Washington Post]

Sheriff Brings Christmas Gifts to Embry Rucker Kids — A Fairfax County Target store gave the county sheriff’s office a $5,500 grant, which Sheriff Stacey Kincaid used to bring new hats, gloves and boots to the young residents of Reston’s Embry Rucker Community Shelter. [Fairfax County]

Just weeks after it screened at Reston Community Center and made its film festival debut at the Virginia Film Festival, the new Reston documentary can now be yours.

Another Way of Living: The Story of Reston, VA is available for purchase at the Reston Historic Trust and Museum at Lake Anne Plaza for $24.95.

Peabody Award-winning filmmaker Rebekah Wingert-Jabi, a Restonian, has been working on the documentary for more than four years. Wingert-Jabi and support staff shot more than 250 hours of footage and sifted through files of historical documents and photos at the Reston Museum to visually tell the story of Reston’s progress from a cow pasture purchased by New Yorker Bob Simon in 1961 to a pioneering “new town” — with some bumps along the way.

A rough cut of the 70-minute film was shown to a select audience in April 2014, during the celebration of Simon’s 100th birthday.

But since then, Metro’s Silver Line brought rail to Reston (in summer 2014) and Simon died in September 2015 at age 101. These significant events were included in the reworked version of the film.

“We wanted to flesh out key moments in Reston,” Wingert-Jabi said at last month’s screening of the film at RCC. “We wanted people to understand more of what happened in the years Simon wasn’t here (1967-92), about Mobil Land’s role in developing Reston Town Center.”

Read a recap of the film in this previous Reston Now article.

In addition to offering the movie, RHT has also just completed a new book focused on Reston’s past, present, and future. The book showcases images from the museum’s archives as well as text from exhibits to tell the story of Reston. That can be purchased at the museum for $18.95.

The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday approved nearly $11 million for 18 transportation projects that will improve pedestrian and bicycle access to the Wiehle-Reston East Metro station and the future Reston Town Center Metro Station.

Among the improvements: adding sidewalks, crosswalks, signals, bike lanes and expansion of Reston’s upcoming bikeshare program. See the accompanying chart for the full list.

Transportation Projects for Reston/Herndon area

The county has been discussing the infrastructure necessary for Reston’s transit areas since 2008, when the Silver Line was just an idea. See the Reston Metrorail Access Group (RMAG) report.

The board also approved projects in 2011 and 2012 to support Reston-area Silver Line access improvements. Those previously funded projects are either completed, under construction, or in design, the county says.

“Our Board supports these projects to help expand transportation options for Fairfax County residents,” said Fairfax County Board of Supervisors Chairman Sharon Bulova. “As more people are looking for ways to walk and bike to work, Fairfax County strives to make the infrastructure available for residents to use. These crosswalks, sidewalks and the W&OD trail access will also support the eventual opening of the new Phase II Silver Line stations.”

The Supervisors also approved a list of about $11 million in improvements for the Herndon Metrorail Station Access Management Study (HMSAMS) for future access to the Herndon station and in the Town Of Herndon.

The approved HMSAMS projects include three pedestrian/bicycle intersection improvements; seven pedestrian and bicycle facility improvement projects, including signalized crosswalks, lighting, sidewalks, shared-use paths and on-road bike lanes; and three projects that will study the design feasibility and costs of major pedestrian and bicycle improvement projects.

In early 2014, the supervisors approved $42.92 million for the projects. The total for the project approved for Reston and Herndon on Tuesday total about $22 million, according to Fairfax County Department of Transportation (FCDOT) estimates. The $22 million will come from a 2014 bond referendum approved by Fairfax County voters.

A teacher in Fairfax County Public Schools can expect to make nearly $300,000 less than a one employed in nearby Arlington County during the course of the teacher’s career.

That is a finding by a study from Segal Waters Consulting presented to the FCPS School Board at a work session on Monday.

FCPS is in the process of determining its budget needs for Fiscal Year 2017, and it has repeatedly pointed out that 1) salaries are not keeping pace with neighboring school systems; and 2) the rising cost of employee benefits is one of the drivers of an expected budget gap of more than $50 million.

FCPS has withheld step increases for teachers for three of the last six years. Salary scale adjustments were also frozen for two of the past six years. FCPS said in a budget presentation two weeks ago that 2017 spending will be up more than $113 million from 2016. Some of the biggest spending will be on step increases and benefits for employees; growing enrollment; and infrastructure.

The study showed that FCPS teacher salaries start to lag behind at around Year 5 of a teacher’s career.  Over a 30-year career, an FCPS teacher earns $142,000 less than the survey average and $293,000 less than a teacher at Arlington Public Schools.

The study showed Year 5 of a career for a teacher with a master’s degree, using current pay lanes as a comparison, a teacher earns $2,804 less than teachers in the average of neighboring districts. By year 10, that figure grows to $6,820; by year 15, the annual gap is $8,569.

“Our superior teachers are the heart of FCPS and I find the salary comparisons to be sobering and very concerning. As I have said many times, we cannot cut our way to excellence,” FCPS Superintendent Karen Garza said in a statement. “As a community we can, and we must, do better. If we expect to maintain and grow the outstanding achievement of our school system, we must make significant investments in our teachers.”

Garza said that teacher turnover has risen from 5 to 7 percent in the last few years. Many of the teachers head to Loudoun or Arlington. FCPS said more than half of teachers who left said that pay rates influenced their decision to leave. Thirty percent said it influenced their decision a great deal.

“This third-party study is proof that multiple years of pay freezes and the inability to provide step increases have put our teachers at a great disadvantage during their prime earning years,” said Garza. “Teacher turnover has risen 2 percentage points, from 5 to 7 percent, as we lose teachers to nearby districts that pay more throughout a teacher’s career.”

Other jurisdictions in the Segal Waters study: Alexandria, Arlington County, the District of Columbia, Loudoun County, Montgomery County (Md.), Prince George’s County (Md.), and Prince William County. The survey looked at base pay and promotional increases, pay supplements and stipends, health benefits, and retirement benefits.

The company will now continue the compensation study by completing a market study analysis; conducting employee surveys and focus groups; developing a new compensation philosophy; recommending compensation models and approaches to help the district recruit, retain, and reward high-quality employees, including a new salary scale approach; and estimate the costs of implementing the recommendations, FCPS said.

Fairfax County Fire and Rescue officials are still trying to determine the cause of the two-alarm fire at 11853 St. Trinains Court early Friday.

Fire and Rescue spokesman Dan Schmidt said the townhouse has been declared total loss, but investigators have not yet determined how the fire started.

Fire and Rescue crews were called to the townhouse in the Deepwood neighborhood shortly after 3 a.m. on Friday. About 60 firefighters went into action to put out the blaze.

A woman, the only person in the home at the time, self-evacuated from the fire. She was flown to Washington Hospital Center’s burn unit, where she remains.

New Owner For Reston Office Building — The Meridian Group has purchased an office building at 11111 Sunset Hills Rd. from Beacon Capital Partners. The 216,000 Class-A office building is walking distance to the Wiehle-Reston East Metro station. Meridian Group president and co-founder David Cheek says the property also has future development potential. [Bisnow]

Kudos for Reston Community Center Director — Leadership Fairfax, Inc. (LFI) honored Leila Gordon, Executive Director of Reston Community Center, as the recipient of the 2015 Northern Virginia Regional Leadership Award. The award was presented Thursday at LFI’s annual Northern Virginia Leadership Awards lunch. Gordon, who has led RCC since 2008, was recognized for her dedication and leadership in the Northern Virginia community.

Breakfast With Santa — Common Ground Child Care Center is hosting Breakfast with Santa on Saturday, Dec. 12. There will be food, games and crafts, and digital pictures with Santa can be purchased for a small fee. Cost: $5 per person plus a new or gently used children’s book for the center’s library. [Reston Now]

Fairfax County Police are investigating an armed robbery that took place early Saturday morning in Reston.

Police said a 24-year-old man reported her was walking on Glade Drive near Freetown Court about 5:30 a.m. when a gray SUV pulled up next to him.

A male passenger got out of the SUV, pushed the victim to the ground, produced a handgun and demanded money, police said. The victim handed over his wallet containing an undisclosed amount of cash and credit cards. The suspect got back into the SUV which then fled west on Glade Drive.

The victim was not injured. The suspect was described as a black male, 30 to 35 years old, wearing dark clothing.

Looking for something sparkly for the holidays? Kendra Scott, a high-end fashion jewelry shop, opened its doors at 11924 Market St. at Reston Town Center on Monday.

Kendra Scott is a fast-growing nationwide chain with nearly 40 locations, including nearby shops at Fairfax’s Mosiac District and in Bethesda.

The new store is part of a repurposing of the spaces that formerly housed the Gap and Ben & Jerry’s at RTC.

Those stores closed in the last year. That stretch of Market Street now houses bluemercury, a high-end cosmetics store with spa services, Kendra Scott, and in January, a branch of clothing store Madewell. Ben & Jerry’s, which left its longtime space a few months ago, will re-open in the same row,closer to Fountain Square.

Kendra Scott will celebrate its grand opening with a special event on Saturday.

There will be sips and sweets (cupcakes from Georgetown Cupcake and lots of bubbly) all day and a special gift-with-purchase offer. Shoppers who spend $50 on Dec. 12 will receive a free pair of Danielle earrings in Black Iridescent (while supplies last).

Construction crews are very busy at Comstock’s BLVD Apartments at Reston Station, where they expect the first residents will move in in mid-February.

The 450 luxury apartments will be the first major building at Reston Station, which is adjacent to the Wiehle-Reston East Metro station. More housing, a hotel and office buildings are planned for the mixed-use development. Founding Farmers restaurant has signed a lease for the retail space.

BLVD’s leasing center, located on the plaza at Reston Station, is open weekdays from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Sundays from noon to 5 p.m.

Rents will start at about $1,900 a month for a studio to more than $3,000 for a three-bedroom plus den model. There are a number of floorplans available.

Among the features and amenities:

• Stainless steel, gas appliances, hardwood laminate floors, quartz countertops and other high-end finishes in all units.
• A concierge lounge, business center, and cold-storage space for grocery delivery, as well as an exercise room and yoga/martial arts space.
• 20 percent (88 units) of the apartments are priced for workforce housing.
• A ninth-floor “skypark” with green space.
• Penthouse-level lounge, pool, media lounge, dog walk and demonstration kitchen with 360-degree views.

The building will open in stages, with the first eight floors available for occupancy Feb. 15, says leasing manager Evan Schluederberg. Upper floors should be available in mid-April, he said.

Residents of the building will be Reston Association members. Comstock has paid RA $650,000 in developer contributions, $300,000 of which is an association initiation fee under a new membership fee structure for buildings along the Dulles Toll Road, which were not previously RA property.

Residents will not have to pay the annual RA assessment fee but they will be offered an optional $350 annual recreational package to gain access to RA’s pools, tennis courts and other amenities for members.

When and if the building goes condo, residents will pay 50 percent of the RA full-member assessment, under the agreement between RA and Comstock.

Proponents of open space in Reston got a small victory on Friday when Fairfax County Circuit Court Judge Michael Devine denied the request of RN Golf Management, the owner of Reston National Golf Course, to delay the final issuance last month’s opinion on the future of the the 166-acre-course.

In November, the court vacated the Board of Zoning Appeals’ decision from earlier in 2015, when it ruled that the golf course owners would not need a comprehensive plan amendment to redevelop the course as a residential neighborhood.

RN Golf has been saying the last several years it has no specific plans it just wants to know its rights.

Last week, RH Golf had asked the court to delay issuance of its order — which cements the ruling — for at least three months so as to permit RN Golf more time to consider alternative strategies.

That means the clock begins ticking now if RN Golf wants to take the case to the Virginia Supreme Court. RN Golf has 30 days from Dec. 4 to appeal to the Virginia Supreme Court.

The issue dates back to 2012, when RN Golf asked Fairfax County if the course at Sunrise Valley and Colts Neck Road could be considered residential. Fairfax County Planning and Zoning said no, it’s open and recreational space. After several postponements, RN Golf filed an appeal to the Board of Zoning Appeals (BZA), which heard from all sides in a lengthy hearing in January of 2015.

Rescue Reston, the advocacy group created in the wake of the golf course saga, said they expect a further fight in the case.

“We fully expect RN Golf Management to continue its attempts to invade our open space,” said Rescue Reston President Connie Hartke. “Rescue Reston will remain vigilant and take all steps necessary to prevent that from happening.”