Updated at 10:25 a.m. on 2/28/2024 — The National Weather Service has moved up the start time for its Wind Advisory to 3 p.m. today (Wednesday).
Earlier: A Wind Advisory has been issued for the D.C. area, including Fairfax County.
The alert is currently scheduled to start at 6 p.m. tomorrow (Wednesday) and continue until 4 a.m. Thursday (Feb. 29), according to the National Weather Service.
“Gusty winds could blow around unsecured objects. Tree limbs could be blown down and a few power outages may result,” the NWS said, warning that winds could reach 20 to 30 mph with gusts of up to 50 mph.
The strong winds will conclude what’s expected to be a rainy day in the county. The NWS is forecasting a 100% chance of rain tomorrow, but temperatures could still reach a high of 63 degrees, continuing an abnormally warm February for the East Coast.
A cold front is anticipated following tomorrow night’s high winds, bringing temperatures slightly down on Thursday, according to the Capital Weather Gang.
The full Wind Advisory is below.
…WIND ADVISORY IN EFFECT FROM 6 PM WEDNESDAY TO 4 AM EST THURSDAY…
* WHAT…West winds 20 to 30 mph with gusts up to 50 mph expected.
* WHERE…Portions of central, north central, northeast and northern Maryland, The District of Columbia, central, northern, northwest and western Virginia and eastern and panhandle West Virginia.
* WHEN…From 6 PM Wednesday to 4 AM EST Thursday.
* IMPACTS…Gusty winds could blow around unsecured objects. Tree limbs could be blown down and a few power outages may result.
PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS…
Use extra caution when driving, especially if operating a high profile vehicle. Secure outdoor objects.
A traditional Hindu festival is set to light up Lake Anne Plaza next month.
The inaugural Holi Festival, which is sponsored by local CBD business OmBaked, will take place on March 23 from noon to 4 p.m.
“We’re thrilled to bring the joy of Holi to Lake Anne Plaza,” OmBaked CEO Radhika Murari said. “Rallying behind the Women Empowerment Foundation makes this celebration not just fun, but meaningful too!”
Holi — sometimes known as the Festival of Colors or Love — is celebrated across India. It often involves attendees throwing colored powder to mark the beginning of spring, the renewal of friendship, and letting go of resentment.
Proceeds from the event will benefit the Women Empowerment Foundation, a nonprofit that provides domestic violence counseling, educational programs, workshops and other support services to women.
The festival is free, and vendors can apply online. It will include traditional tunes, food vendors, crafts and henna.
(Updated on 9:05 a.m. on 2/28/2024) The first-ever Battle of the Bands by Friday Night Live! in Herndon is underway.
The last of three preliminary rounds is set for March 9. Winners from each preliminary round — including two others that took place on Feb. 10 and this past Saturday (Feb. 24) — will compete in a final round on April 20. A wild card will also be selected.
The battle is set to take place at Ned Devine’s Irish Gastro Pub and Restaurant, which is located at 2465 Centreville Road in Herndon.
A portion of the $5 entry fee will be donated to several community organizations: The Closet, Herndon Community Television, Friends of Frying Pan Farm Park, and Arts Herndon.
The winner will be crowned with an opening slot for one of this year’s Friday Night Live! concerts on the Town Green and a future gig at Ned Devine’s.
The contest was organized by Friday Night Live! in response to demand from bands that wished to take part in the town’s popular summer music series.
“Friday Night Live! has a strong lineup of returning acts and each season we add new discoveries that our scouts have found throughout the year,” Friday Night Live! Chair Laura Poindexter said. “But we are approached by approximately 100 other bands each year to play our event. That’s why we created the Battle of the Bands, a chance for some of these local bands to showcase their talent to our team and to spread the word about Friday Night Live!’s upcoming 30th season.”
This summer, Friday Night Live! is set to celebrate 30 years with a new, to-be-announced roster of local acts on the East Coast. The season will include 17 free concerts from May through August and draw over 35,000 patrons, according to a recent update sent to the program’s email list.
The event is produced by the Dulles Chamber Regional Chamber of Commerce through the work of the Friday Night Live! organizing committee.
The final preliminary Battle of the Bands round features bands Berlin Calling, Decibel Therapy, Tell Me More!, The Randos, and Twisted Flags.
(Updated at 10:30 a.m.) Fairfax Connector is now in its sixth consecutive day without service, as workers continue their strike for better pay, benefits and working conditions.
More than 600 bus drivers and mechanics ceased working last Thursday (Feb. 22) when their union — Amalgamated Transit Union (ATU) Local 689 — called for a strike after months of negotiations with Transdev, the private company that operates Fairfax Connector, for a new labor contract to replace one that expired on Nov. 30.
In a press release, the union said yesterday (Monday) that it met with Transdev but didn’t reach an agreement, stating that the company “failed to offer an acceptable deal,” particularly when it comes to retirement contributions.
The Fairfax County Department of Transportation has said Northern Virginia’s largest public bus system can’t resume service until the strike ends, forcing the Connector’s approximately 26,000 daily riders to find alternate travel options. The county has suggested teleworking, carpooling, walking, bicycling or using other transit, such as Metro and Virginia Railway Express (VRE).
County data indicates that most commuters drive to work, as public transportation usage fell during the COVID-19 pandemic, from 10% in 2019 to 5% in 2022. However, Fairfax Connector’s ridership appears to have bounced back last year, exceeding 2019 levels with 774,875 passengers as of June, according to the Northern Virginia Regional Commission’s transit data dashboard.
In addition to workers, the Connector provides a crucial travel option for many students, who can get a free pass if they’re in middle or high school that can also be used for Fairfax City’s CUE bus and, for select schools, Metrobus.
According to ATU Local 689, the next bargaining session isn’t scheduled until March 5, when federal mediators are expected to attend. This strike has already surpassed the last Connector work stoppage, which lasted four days in 2019.
Local Man Dies in Alexandria Jail — “Ahntais Lucas, 39, from Fairfax County, was found unresponsive and alone in his cell experiencing a medical emergency. The release said the jail’s medical staff tried to treat Lucas but he was pronounced deceased at 4:42 a.m.” Lucas’s death is under investigation by Alexandria’s sheriff’s office and police department. [ALXnow]
McLean Man Forced to Drive at Gunpoint — “A McLean man was kidnapped at gunpoint early Sunday morning and forced to drive to his home and another location in Maryland, according to the Metropolitan Police Department. Investigators determined that around 12:30 a.m…the victim had arranged to meet with the suspect” in D.C., but upon arriving, he was confronted by two people with handguns. [Patch]
Update Coming on Fairfax County Parkway Construction — “The Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) will hold a hybrid ‘pardon our dust’ meeting Wednesday night, Feb. 28 at the VDOT Northern Virginia District Building, 4975 Alliance Drive…on the work underway at Fairfax County Parkway (Route 286) and Popes Head Road (Route 654) to replace the traffic signal with an interchange.” [VDOT]
Potential Beltway Crash Averted by Helping Drivers — “Michel Cochran, 82 was driving between the Little River Turnpike and Braddock Road exits in Annandale around 10 a.m. on Feb. 16 when she had a major heart attack and died.” A state trooper says other drivers helped move Cochran’s car out of the path of oncoming vehicles, called 911 and delivered CPR. [Annandale Today]
Virginia Tornado Drill Delayed Due to Primaries — “The Virginia Department of Emergency Management (VDEM) announced Feb. 20 it was rescheduling the Virginia statewide tornado drill, which has been slated for 9:45 a.m. on March 5, to the same time on Thursday, March 7. VDEM officials moved the drill to ensure it would not have any impacts on the primary elections.” [Gazette Leader]
Milk Tea Shop Now Open in Lorton — “Kokee Tea, a specialty drink and dessert café, opened Feb. 15 at Liberty Market in Lorton. The store, which specializes in milk tea and other types of teas, cold clouds and ice-blended drinks, will hold a grand opening event Saturday, March 2 at 2 p.m. with giveaways for the first 100 customers.” [On the MoVe]
Park Authority Rolls Out Virtual Golf Notifications — “Tired of searching through tee time cancellations to see whether your desired spot has opened up? Get ‘No-Tee-Fied’ with Golf Fairfax’s new virtual tee time waitlist and assistant, powered by Noteefy. This new system allows golfers to receive real-time notifications when their desired tee time becomes available.” [Fairfax County Park Authority]
Reston Restauranteur Makes Pricey Home Purchase — “Warren Thompson, president and chairman of Reston-based Thompson Hospitality Corp., the nation’s largest minority-owned food and facilities management company, acquired Wildersmoor House in Great Falls for $14.75 million earlier this month, according to public records. The estate was first listed in May 2023 for $17.995 million. It is the region’s most expensive sale of 2024.” [Washington Business Journal]
It’s Tuesday — Expect showers after 1 p.m. with a 50% chance of precipitation, partly sunny skies, and a high near 64. Showers are likely after 4 a.m., with a 70% chance of precipitation, cloudy conditions, and a low around 57. New precipitation amounts may be less than a tenth of an inch. [Weather.gov]
The Fairfax County School Board is moving ahead with its plan to change middle school start times.
According to Fairfax County Public Schools, research has shown that later start times could positively influence student academic performance and mental and emotional well-being.
Last September, the school system awarded consulting firm Prismatic Services a contract to develop a plan for changing middle school start times to 8 a.m. or later. The goal is to make these changes without changing high school start times or impacting the FCPS budget.
Currently, all middle schools start at 7:30 a.m. FCPS moved high school start times to around 8 a.m. in fall 2015 through its Blueprint for Change adoption. At the time, the then-superintendent said revisions to middle school start times would be considered at a later date.
At a meeting last Thursday (Feb. 22), the school board received an update on the plan from Prismatic Services President Dr. Tatia Prieto, who said the goal is to recommend start times to the board in January 2025 with the intent to implement changes by 2026, if the board adopts them.
“To get there, we have a number of milestone activities,” Prieto said. “The background report, which we’re currently engaged in, [covers] the history of efforts in Fairfax around this issue. We’re also developing a number of case studies with a few large school districts to look at lessons learned from their implementation.”
The firm will also conduct on-site observations at selected middle schools.
“This is going to include observing bus observations at selected middle schools in order to get a good feel for things,” Prieto said.
The plan also includes a total of eight public information sessions for the community — four in the spring and four in the fall.
“The spring ones are going to be more informational in nature,” Prieto said. “We’ll communicate about sleep research, and let participants discuss how later school start times could be beneficial and could be implemented. And then the fall ones will present two to four alternatives for input.”
Additionally, the firm will conduct online surveys and forums. One major concern in changing school start times is transportation constraints, which Prieto said would be covered in the information sessions.
“Analyzing the potential impact of moving middle school start times on both the number of drivers needed, and on all the special programs will be part of our work on this project,” Prieto added.
Mount Vernon District School Board Representative Mateo Dunne questioned how a possible time change would affect extracurricular activities like sports, particularly in the fall and winter when the sun goes down earlier.
Prieto pointed to Anne Arundel County Public Schools, which also hired Prismatic Services to help change its school start times.
“All of their middle schools start at 9:15. They shifted their sports program — which is much more extensive than what you currently have — to the after hours, and are not experiencing any problems,” she said.
Dunne also asked how a change in the start time would affect staff and teachers working at middle schools. Prieto said they propose surveying teachers to find out if they foresee any potential issues.
“I will add that we did develop, as one of the initial documents for this, a list of the key stakeholders we need to talk to,” she said.
Springfield District Representative Sandy Anderson requested more information on how later start times has affected attendance at other schools.
“I have an eighth grader. I can’t imagine having him have to get to school on his own at 9:40, so that is terrifying to me,” Anderson said.
Plans for a future elementary school in the Herndon area are materializing after the Fairfax County School Board approved a land transfer.
At a Feb. 22 meeting, the board unanimously approved the conveyance of a nearly 5.6-acre site from developer Pomeroy Clark I.
“FCPS legal counsel negotiated an agreement for the conveyance of the school site and other corresponding conveyance documents, including a special warranty deed,” staff said in meeting materials.
Pomeroy Clark I plans to build 519 townhomes and stacked flats on a 44-acre site called “One Sunrise Valley.” Once completed, the neighborhood will feature up to 1.5 million square feet of residential and retail development near the Dulles Airport.
The school site is located at the intersection of Frying Pan Road and Sunrise Valley Drive. According to drawings, it will include a building of roughly 135,000 square feet with up to five stories. Preliminary plans show that it would be located opposite a 296-unit multifamily unit building.
Greg Riegle, a partner for the law firm McGuireWoods representing the developer, emphasized how multiple stakeholders worked together to execute a plan.
“One Sunrise Valley joins a comprehensive list of approved land use applications that will transform western Fairfax County for the better,” Riegle wrote in a statement. “Frankly, the property owners stepped up to the plate to solve a critical school capacity issue while working in tandem with County officials and planning staff to maximize the development potential for the site.”
To the north, Coates Elementary School is operating at 131% capacity, according to Fairfax County Public Schools’ latest capital improvements plan. The school board voted earlier this month to prioritize the school at 2480 River Birch Road for a boundary adjustment.
The board approved the land transfer with no discussion.
(Updated at 12:30 p.m.) Cindy’s Legacy — a Reston-based nonprofit organization that helps cancer patients in financial stress — received a lift from a local business last week.
Reston’s Great Clips donated $579 to the nonprofit organization, which was named after its founder’s mother, Cindy Martin, who had been a hairstylist in Reston for more than 30 years. Martin died from brain cancer in 2011.
(Correction: This story initially stated that Martin died in 2021.)
“This event, the vital funds raised, and our ongoing partnership will continue to honor her legacy and help cancer patients in our community,” Cindy’s Legacy founder and president Stacy Brooks said.
The three-day fundraiser also included free haircuts for cancer patients and showcased the business’ hair donation programs.
Cindy’s Legacy has since provided more than $75,000 to at least 400 cancer patients nationwide. Great Clips also offers free haircuts to anyone who wants to donate their hair to Wigs for Kids, an initiative that helps kids and young adults experiencing hair loss.
Clips of Kindness is another program run by Great Clips that provides a free clipper cut to anyone who is losing their hair due to cancer treatment.
The fundraiser for Cindy’s Legacy — titled Shear Love — kicked off on Valentine’s Day and concluded after three days.
Run by franchisee Sean Carroll, Great Clips opened its Reston location at South Lakes Village Center (11130 South Lakes Drive, Suite E) in November 2022. The company was founded in Minneapolis in 1982 and now has over 4,400 salons in the U.S. and Canada.
The Fairfax County Park Authority wants to know how community members are using its park facilities.
The park authority has launched an equity survey, open through Monday, April 1, as part of its ongoing work to improve access to park programs.
“The Park Authority has intentionally been applying an equity lens to our park system in order to ensure that the accessibility and variety of our program offerings align with the present-day values and interests of our community,” Park Authority Executive Director Jai Cole said. “This latest outreach effort is important to help us identify the barriers that yet need to be overcome such as economic, cultural, transportation and others so that we can continue to make the benefits of parks accessible to everyone.”
The survey asks about the use of parks, rec centers, summer camps, golf courses, nature centers and historical sites. In several cases, respondents have space to explain why they don’t use a given resource. Respondents are asked to provide some personal information, including race, ethnicity and home ZIP code.
“We’re particularly interested in understanding potential barriers that you experience which prevent you from taking full advantage of recreational opportunities,” the survey instructions read.
The survey builds on a recent equity study that found FCPA’s approach to funding some of its programs, including summer camps and rec center memberships, is not consistent with national best practices and is a barrier to their accessibility.
The current model requires fees to cover 100% of both direct program costs, such as equipment, and indirect overhead costs, such as building utilities. In contrast, the median cost recovery from fees across parks and recreation agencies nationally is 25%, and cost recovery typically does not include indirect costs, the study says.
Conducted by the consulting firm HR&A, the study points to greater racial diversity and diversity in household income in Rec-PAC, a recreational program that doesn’t have to recover 100% of its costs, compared to summer camps and other work operating with full cost recovery.
In the case of summer camps, 71% of campers come from households making at least $150,000 per year, even though just 40% of the county’s population meets that income bracket; 69% of summer camp participants are white, compared to 50% of the county’s population.
“These high fees make many programs unaffordable and therefore inaccessible to a large portion of the population, and it hampers the park authority’s ability to provide equitable services,” HR&A Managing Partner Stan Wall told the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors when presenting the study’s initial findings in January.
The equity study includes two main recommendations. First, for an estimated $9.4 million, FCPA could reduce some fees across the board by factoring community benefit into its cost recovery requirement. For instance, children’s swim lessons would not require full cost recovery.
Second, FCPA could offer targeted subsidies to help lower-income households take advantage of recreation programs and resources.
In total, the study estimates it would take $17.2 million to implement a sliding fee scale for certain programs and flexible annual vouchers to cover some recreation expenses for qualified households, including costs for administrative work, outreach and software.
To fund these programs, the county could consider “a dedicated tax stream,” according to the presentation.
“The good news is that many other places have dedicated tax streams for parks and recreation, whether property tax levies or other creative funding streams, and these measures consistently have high levels of voter support,” Wall said.
The equity survey’s results will help inform the FCPA’s recommendations to its board and the Board of Supervisors, which are expected to come this fall.
Officer in Fatal Tysons Shooting Had Drawn Gun Before — “In the 13 months before a Fairfax County police sergeant shot and killed an unarmed man suspected of stealing sunglasses from a major shopping mall, the officer twice drew his gun on other suspected shoplifters, spurring criticism that he was acting too aggressively and possibly violating department policies.” [Washington Post]
Fairfax Connector Strike Continues — “Fairfax Connector bus service will remain suspended through Monday, Feb. 26, 2024. Operating Status for the rest of the week (February 27-March 1) will be updated as information becomes available. We encourage our users to consider alternative methods of travel and we apologize for the inconvenience and truly appreciate your patience.” [Fairfax Connector]
Loan Approved for Seven Corners Housing Project — “The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors on Feb. 21 approved a $9.7 million loan from the Fairfax County Redevelopment and Housing Authority to Wesley Housing for an affordable housing project between Seven Corners and Bailey’s Crossroads. The loan will facilitate the development of Kindred Crossing at 6165 Leesburg Pike.” [Annandale Today]
D.C. Area News Site Shut Down — “A Friday morning visit to DCist.com, one of the most beloved local news sites in the District, won’t take you to insightful articles about local politics, transportation or businesses, or to quirky only-in-D.C. culture pieces. Instead, it will take you to a temporary popup message, announcing the death of a local institution.” [NBC4]
FCPS Student Journalists Named Among Best in U.S. — “McLean High School was among three Fairfax County schools and 28 nationwide selected as recipients of the 2024 First Amendment Press-Freedom Award. It is the seventh consecutive award for the high school’s journalism program. Locally, Chantilly and West Springfield high schools also were saluted.” [Gazette Leader]
New Reston Firm Helps Launch Restaurants — “While food truck operators and food hall vendors might have mad skills with a chef’s knife and a skillet, that doesn’t mean they have the skills to start their own brick-and-mortar restaurants. That’s why Reston real estate firm Winmar Advisory has launched a consulting platform to help them determine sales projections, sign their first lease and operate efficiently, Managing Partner Lance LJ Marine told me.” [Washington Business Journal]
Silver Line Ridership on the Rise, Metro Says — “Exciting update! Metrorail ridership is up over 22% since last year, and guess what? These Silver Line stations are absolutely crushing it with even higher growth than the systemwide average! Let’s keep the region moving!” [WMATA/Twitter]
New Principal Needed for Mount Vernon HS — “Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS) is kicking off a nationwide search for a new principal at Mount Vernon High School (MVHS) following the announcement that current principal JoVon Rogers will soon be departing for a new position as an executive principal in Region 6. Effective April 1, MVHS assistant principal Karen Boyd will assume the role of acting principal through the end of the school year.” [On the MoVe]
It’s Monday — Expect sunny skies with a high near 63 degrees and a southwest wind between 3 and 7 mph during the day. The evening will be partly cloudy, with temperatures dropping to a low of around 46 degrees, accompanied by a southeast wind of about 6 mph. [Weather.gov]
Reston Association has adopted a new strategic plan that aims to continue the vision of Reston’s founder Bob Simon over the next three years.
At a meeting last night (Thursday), the Board of Directors approved the strategic plan, which guides the organization through 2026 with little fanfare.
After obtaining input from “a small panel” of board members in early fall 2023, RA staff developed a first draft of the 2024-2026 strategic plan that was presented to the full board in January. The plan is intended to improve the organization’s communication and fiscal responsibility, while charting a new course for capital projects and building a “dynamic workforce.”
Now that the plan is adopted, staff will create an implementation strategy, according to RA CEO Mac Cummins.
The strategic plan is guided by a mission statement tasking RA with preserving and enhancing the Reston community through leadership, service and stewardship of its resources. The founding principle is putting “the importance and dignity of everyone as the focal point of planning.”
It lays out six broad objectives that focus on communications and engagement, partnerships and advocacy, member experience, fiscal responsibility, strategic capital improvement and the workforce.
At the meeting, board member Jennifer Jushchuk said she was unhappy with the diction of the objective related to supporting a dynamic workforce, lamenting that there isn’t a greater emphasis on recognizing and appreciating volunteers.
“I don’t wanna sit here and word-smith,” Jushchuk added, as the hours-long meeting inched toward 11 p.m.
Board director Jalal Mapar cautioned the board against “getting in the weeds.”
“This is a strategy goal,” he said. “It’s not intended to be that detailed.”
After some discussion on how to shift the objective, the board moved to adopt the plan. Cummins said staff will present the board with an implementation plan in the coming weeks following the hiring of several key positions, including a chief financial officer.
Updated at 3:55 p.m. — Fairfax Connector service will stay suspended at least through this weekend (Feb. 24-25) as drivers and mechanics continue their strike, the Fairfax County Department of Transportation has announced.
FCDOT says it “expects negotiations to continue in good faith with the goal of completing a new contract very soon.”
Earlier: Stagnant wages. Eleven-hour work days with barely enough break time for a meal. Just seven days of sick leave, even after a pandemic that research suggests sickened and killed transit workers nationwide at an elevated rate.
Those are some of the challenges Fairfax Connector workers report facing under Transdev, the private company that Fairfax County hired in 2019 to operate its public bus system. In a bid for improved working conditions, more than 600 bus drivers and mechanics are now on their second day of a strike called yesterday (Thursday) by Amalgamated Transit Union (ATU) Local 689.
“You have to make a choice. When is enough, enough? When do you stand up and fight back? It was time to stand up and fight back,” Sharon Forsyth said while picketing outside the West Ox Road Bus Facility where she works as a Fairfax Connector driver. “What the outcome would be, who knows? But at least my voice was heard…Treat us right. Fair contract, fair wages, sick leave. Give us something more than a slice of pizza and a handshake after 35 years of service.”
A relative newcomer who joined the Connector just over a year ago, Forsyth has worked in transportation for 37 years — including a previous stint with Transdev. The starting salary for drivers is nearly the same as it was 20 years ago, which is “unacceptable,” she says.
“You can’t afford the housing in this region. You can barely afford food in this region,” said Forsyth, who commutes from Prince William County. “So, that is the purpose of this. Nobody wants to be here, but we’re all here, you know? If you don’t take care of the people that run your business, you’ll soon be what? Out of business.”
Forsyth was one of about 128 people who showed up yesterday to march, chant and display signs at the West Ox facility (4970 Alliance Drive), which employs about 163 Connector workers, according to ATU Local 689 organizer Troy Barnes. Workers began convening around 2 a.m., rotating in three shifts.
Across all three Connector garages, including ones in Herndon (268 Spring Street) and Lorton (8101 Cinder Bed Road), about 97% of the workers represented by the union were expected to join a picket line, Barnes told FFXnow.
Authorized by members on Dec. 29, the strike call came after Local 689 and Transdev spent 12 bargaining sessions between October and last Friday, Feb. 16 trying to hammer out a new labor contract that will determine pay, benefits and working conditions, according to the union. Before the strike, workers were operating under a four-year contract that was negotiated after a four-day strike in December 2019 and expired on Nov. 30, 2023.
Fairfax Connector service will remain suspended until the strike is resolved, leaving around 26,000 daily bus riders in limbo, the Fairfax County Department of Transportation has said.
UPDATE: All Fairfax Connector bus service remains suspended Friday, February 23. We are continuing to monitor contract talks between Connector’s operations contractor, Transdev, and the Amalgamated Transit Union (ATU) Local 689, which represents Connector drivers and mechanics.
— Fairfax Connector (@ffxconnector) February 23, 2024
As reported yesterday, Transdev called the union’s work stoppage disappointing in a statement that detailed some of its contract proposals, including a 19.5% wage increase over three years, coverage for 90% of health care expenses and 50% of dental and vision expenses, and yearly performance bonuses of up to $5,300.
However, Barnes says the contractor’s offers for sick leave, retirement benefits and guaranteed work hours remain inadequate. Read More
Fairfax County Public Schools is seeking a solution to its ballooning student meal debt, which soared over the past year.
On Tuesday (Feb. 20), Fairfax County School Board members directed Superintendent Michelle Reid to get them more information on what options are available to prevent FCPS students from accumulating more debt due to their inability to pay for meals.
“So, in my view, we need to do some work to…put policies or procedures in place that, A) prevent the ballooning of this debt going forward, and B) expand access to lunches for kids, so we can feed more children and deter the potential practice — that may or may not be occurring — of holding children liable for the debt,” At-large member Kyle McDaniel said during the work session.
As of 2022, over one-third of FCPS students (34%) qualify for free and reduced-price meals through the National School Lunch Program, but FCPS Chief Financial Officer Leigh Burden said parents might not have realized that they needed to reapply after the end of a universal free school lunch program introduced during the pandemic.
The federal relief funds that paid for that program, which enabled all students to eat for free, ran out on July 1, 2022. FCPS reported an increase in students eating school food while the program was in effect.
Although schools are supposed to send out newsletters to parents with information about meal debt and free or reduced lunches, Burden recognized that families may be unaware of their accumulating balance.
She also emphasized that in some cases, families barely exceed the eligibility threshold for free lunches, making it difficult for them to clear their debt.
“So, we think those two things combined have contributed to the student debt rising so dramatically over the last two or three years,” she told the board during the work session.
About one-fourth of FCPS schools qualify for the Community Eligibility Provision program, which provides free lunch and breakfast to all students attending low-income area schools.
But elsewhere, students only qualify for free meals if their family earns less than 130% of the poverty level. Those with incomes between 130% and 185% of the poverty level qualify for reduced-price meals.
For grades K-12, breakfast costs $1.75. Lunch is $3.25 for elementary schools, and $3.50 for middle and high school students.
Burden notes that meal debt has been steadily rising since she was hired six years ago. However, in the last few years, the debt has “skyrocketed” across the entire school system, she said.
“During the years that all meals were free, we were serving 160,000 meals a day, whereas now, we’re back to about 110,000 [meals],” Burden said. “I mean, think about that: 50,000 students more were eating each day who now aren’t.”
As of this week, Burden said student meal debt at FCPS hovered around $1.1 million. In mid-January 2023, FCPS reported $708,140 in meal debt, and previous year-end balances were around $101,000 for the 2021-2022 academic year, $153,000 in 2020-2021, $212,000 in 2019-2020 and $214,000 in 2018-2019.
Board members recommended that the superintendent’s office thoroughly examine state and federal policies and consider organizing fundraising and awareness campaigns to help manage the debt.
They also suggested setting a limit on how many meals students can purchase each day to prevent families from accumulating too much debt.
“I believe that given the technology and the world we live in today, we should be able to address that,” Springfield District representative Sandy Anderson said during the work session. “If parents want to opt their children out of the ability to get a lunch or getting breakfast because they get fed at home. I mean, I think that’s some of our burden.”
Mason District representative Ricardy Anderson agreed with the concern about letting students buy too many snacks, adding that her own child has, on several occasions, bought food they didn’t need.
However, she cautioned that for some students, the one or two meals they get at school may be the only meals they receive all day.
“So, if there was a way to control the snacks, that, I’ll be in support of,” Anderson said. “I just don’t want us to lose track of the fact that we have some kids who they are coming to our schools and those are the only consistent and reliable meals that they get, and sometimes they want two. But it’s not because of being wasteful or being gluttonous. It’s because they’re hungry.”
State law prohibits schools from making students throw away food if they can’t pay for a meal or have meal debt. Students also can’t be stopped from joining in extracurricular activities because of meal debt. Schools can receive donations to help clear or reduce meal debt.
FCPS can’t use its operating fund to immediately “write off” the debt, Burden explained.
Instead, school board members requested that the superintendent’s office provide other options for paying off the debt and stopping its growth before the 2024-2025 school year, which starts in August.
Cell Phone Service Restored After Outage — Phone service has been restored after a nationwide service outage reported yesterday (Thursday) morning “that affected several major service carriers and impacted phone calls,” including to 911. “Residents may need to reboot their cell phone (possibly multiple times) to establish a connection.” [Ready Fairfax/Facebook]
Springfield Man Pleads Guilty in Connection to Capitol Breach — “A Fairfax County, Virginia, man pleaded guilty Wednesday to two felonies connected to the breach of the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. Joseph Brody, 24, of Springfield, pleaded guilty to assaulting law enforcement and civil disorder.” [WTOP]
Man Arrested After Firing Gun in Annandale Home — “A man was safely taken into custody [Wednesday] evening after recklessly discharging a firearm from inside his home in Annandale.” Police responded to the 7800 block of Butterfield Lane around 10 p.m. “for the report of gunshots being fired into a neighboring, occupied townhouse. There were no reported injuries.” [FCPD]
Longtime County Economic Development Leader Dies — Fairfax County Economic Development Authority (FCEDA) President and CEO Victor Hoskins announced yesterday that the authority’s senior vice president, Catherine Riley, died on Feb. 7. Serving in leadership roles at the FCEDA for the past 35 years, Riley helped Fairfax County “become a global hub where businesses and people thrive,” he said. [FCEDA]
Woodlawn Wendy’s Reopens After Facelift — “The Wendy’s restaurant located at Woodlawn Shopping Center reopened for business Feb. 21 following a four-month long renovation…To celebrate the store’s reopening, Wendy’s will hold a ‘grand opening’ event Saturday, March 16” with a ribbon-cutting and a year of free sandwiches, salads or breakfast biscuits for the first 200 dine-in guests. [On the MoVe]
Bill Designating State Cat Is No More — “Legislation proposed by Del. Paul Krizek (D-Alexandria) to designate the domestic shorthair as the ‘official cat of Virginia’ did not make it out alive when the House Committee on Rules wrapped up its work before the legislature’s crossover.” A bill “to designate the honeybee as Virginia’s official state pollinator,” however, sailed through both chambers, which set it to Gov. Glenn Youngkin. [Gazette Leader]
Springfield Lunar New Year Celebration Arrives — “Springfield Town Center, in partnership with the Asian American Chamber of Commerce, will host a Lunar New Year Celebration in Grand Court with traditional music, and cultural performances and activities to ring in the year of the Dragon.” The festivities will be held tomorrow (Saturday) from noon to 3 p.m. [Springfield Town Center]
Rock Band Kansas to Mark 50th Anniversary in Tysons — “His were the hands that played iconic classic rock hits like ‘Carry on Wayward Son’ and ‘Dust in the Wind.’ WTOP caught up with founding Kansas guitarist Richard Williams to preview the band’s 50th anniversary tour ‘Another Fork in the Road’ next week at Capital One Hall in Tysons, Virginia, on Saturday, March 2.” [WTOP]
It’s Friday — Showers are likely mainly before 1pm, followed by mostly cloudy skies and a high near 58. The southwest wind of 7 to 10 mph will shift to the northwest, with a 50% chance of precipitation. Friday night will be partly cloudy with a low around 37. [Weather.gov]
A thorny set of issues continues to complicate Deli Italiano’s arrival in Reston’s Lake Anne Plaza.
The Reston Association Design Review Board (DRB) voted Tuesday (Feb. 20) to defer a decision on the application after attorney John Cowherd, who was representing an appealing Lake Anne condominium owner, flagged some concerns about the proposal.
Alec Berry, a member of the Lake Anne of Reston Condominiums Unit Owners Association (LARCA), has appealed conditional approvals by the DRB and LARCA — entities that considered the project separately — of the architectural plans for the restaurant.
Berry, who lives behind the restaurant’s planned unit at 1631 Washington Plaza, said he was concerned metal equipment, an exhaust shaft, an exhaust pipe, gas line and louvres would be installed on LARCA common space, not in the commercial unit, which is owned by Baslios Family Real Estate.
Berry asserts that he has an exclusive easement to an area where the restaurant plans to install a shaft, equipment and gas lines. The front facade of his house faces the back of the property, and the front of the restaurant faces Washington Plaza.
According to Cowherd, he was also concerned about a contractor that cut a large hole through LARCA’s common elements that separates the floor of Berry’s unit and the restaurant. The slab provides strucural support and is essential to protecting the home from a grease fire in the restaurant.
“I just don’t think this shaft project is really moving Reston or LARCA forward. I think it’s going to kind of hold things back with respect to this particular building,” Cowherd said.
Cowherd said Berry is awaiting a books and record request to LARCA in order to get more information about the drawings, architectural approvals, and documents referenced in Deli Italiano’s application and decision-making process.
The board deferred the appeal to allow staff to look into those issues following a discussion held in executive session.
Deli Italiano has been working on plans for the Reston location for several years. A spokesperson said the company was not ready to comment by press time.
Deli Italiano opened a restaurant at 700 Lynn Street in Herndon in December 2022. It serves pizza, pasta, subs and more.
