Fairfax County Board of Supervisors unanimously approved today (Tuesday) $4 million to begin implementation of police body worn cameras.

The Fairfax County Police Department is set to receive roughly 1,200 body-worn cameras that would be phased in over three years with a five-year contract for equipment, licensing and storage.

Officers from the Reston District Station are expected to receive the body worn cameras in May 2020.

The approval comes amid mixed results of a recent American University study on the county’s pilot program and some concern about the cost of the program.

Before the vote, Springfield District Supervisor Pat Herrity shared concerns about the fiscal impact of the proposal.

Herrity said that he has concerns about the funding coming from the reserve — one-time fund — and that body worn cameras are getting prioritized over increases in police officers’ pay.

“This is going to set our public safety budget back by millions of dollars,” Herrity said, adding that he wants more information about the extra costs the cameras will place on the Public Defenders’ Office.

While Herrity also took issue with the approval for the funding happening outside of the budget cycle, Chairman Sharon Bulova said it’s necessary to have the funding before the budget decisions in May.

The $4.3 million approved by the board today comes from the Reserve for Ad-Hoc Police Practices Review Commission Recommendations.

“This amount will cover the initial cost of equipment, infrastructure enhancements and will allow for the immediate recruitment and hiring of personnel to ensure a seamless implementation on or about May 1,” according to county documents.

In response to Herrity’s concerns that the program is meant to address national issues with police, Dranesville District Supervisor John Foust said that the program is not trying to address criticism of police outside of Fairfax County.

“The overwhelming support in the community for doing this is important. We know our community pretty well and we know the respect the community has for the Fairfax County Police Department,” Foust said. “We have the tech to do it, and we should move forward.”

Story by Catherine Douglas Moran; Fatimah Waseem contributed reporting

File photo

Before we head off into the weekend, let’s take a look back at the biggest stories on Reston Now in recent days.

1. UPDATED: Two Missing Teens Last Seen in Reston Found
2. Lake Anne Plaza Business Owner Protests Hanging of Historic Pharmacy Icons on Damaged Wall
3. Community Celebrates ‘Mr. Bob’ for 40 Years at Local Safeway
4. Jinya Ramen Bar to Open in Reston Town Center Next Year
5. Adda Restaurant and Lounge Coming Soon to Herndon

If you have ideas on stories we should cover, email us at [email protected] or submit an anonymous tip.

Feel free to discuss these topics, your weekend plans or anything else that’s happening locally in the comments below.

Photo by Charlotte Geary

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The past week was unusually quiet week for crime. The Fairfax County Police Department and the Herndon Police Department released no reports of major incidents in the area.

However, FCPD’s Reston District Station did report the following minor incidents in recent days:

LARCENIES:

11900 block of Bowman Towne Drive, cell phone from location

2200 block of Coppersmith Square, tools from vehicle

13300 block of Glen Echo Circle, backpack and cash from vehicle

13300 block of Glen Echo Circle, backpack and cash from vehicle

12700 block of Oak Farms Drive, purses and wallet from residence

11700 block of Sunset Hills Road, beer from business

STOLEN VEHICLES:

None reported

Photo via FCPD

Before we head off into the weekend, let’s take a look back at the biggest stories on Reston Now in recent days.

1. Report: Uncle Julio’s and Boston Properties Settle Reston Town Center Parking Lawsuit
2. Death Investigation Prompts Short Closure of Baron Cameron Park
3. Herndon Teen Wins National Scholarship for Method to Diagnose Parkinson’s Disease
4. Paddywax Candle Bar Coming to Reston Town Center
5. Fairfax Officials Raise Concerns About Silver Line Phase 2 Safety

If you have ideas on stories we should cover, email us at [email protected] or submit an anonymous tip.

Feel free to discuss these topics, your weekend plans or anything else that’s happening locally in the comments below.

Image via Google Maps

Since 2013, Reston Now has been reporting news about the Reston and Herndon areas. Recently, we started providing additional coverage of Great Falls.

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Editor’s Note: Two candidates are running for the seat of Pat Hynes, who currently holds the Hunter Mill District seat on the Fairfax County School Board. Earlier this year, Hynes said she would not seek reelection after serving on the 12-member board for the last seven years. This week, Reston Now will publish statements by the candidates.

Statements are published in the order in which they are received. With the exception of minor formatting edits, profiles are published in unedited form.

Melanie Meren, MPP, is a parent, small business owner, and school board appointee who has lived in Fairfax County for over 15 years. Originally from New York, where she attended public school her entire life, Melanie moved to Virginia after accepting a Presidential Management Fellowship in 2004 at the U.S. Department of Education.

While at the Dept. of Ed, Melanie oversaw a multi-million-dollar budget for services for students at underperforming schools. Her responsibility encompassed both evaluation and problem-solving situations, with oversight of federal grant recipients. She recovered over $1 million in funds when program services were not provided to the target population of students most-in-need of support.

Advocacy and community are central in her life. Joined by her husband, Drew Meren, the two are active in local government. Melanie’s current community service commitments are:

• Appointed member of Fairfax County School Board’s Human Resources Advisory Committee
• Elementary school PTA Green Team Chair and representative to the Fairfax County Council of PTAs
• Girl Scout troop co-leader
• Member of the Virginia Association for Environmental Education
• Until 2019, she was a Leadership Team member for eight years of NoVA Outside, the alliance for outdoor educators in Northern Virginia

Melanie views academic success as a community effort: there must be a connection among those impacted by student achievement: parents, teachers, community members, and of course, students. Motivating students to succeed is essential, and the environments around them must be built and supported by dedicated public servants who steward resources along a responsible path.

Melanie is focused on three core areas in her candidacy. First, she wants to cultivate holistic student environments – classrooms, playgrounds, activities, school gardens, and outdoor spaces are all part of the learning ecosystem. For example, Melanie champions scientific learning in outdoor classrooms. Students who interact in these spaces achieve learning goals essential to a 21st century economy, benefit from being in a healthy space, and discover lessons that anchor their sense of community. No matter where in Hunter Mill students live, their greatest challenge should be in understanding what array of choices lay before them, not if they’ll have those opportunities.

Second, Melanie is concerned with facilities and the future of FCPS infrastructure. No student should experience public schooling inside a trailer, and existing buildings need to be reviewed, refitted, or replaced. Joyful learning and a positive classroom experience is critical, and it is incumbent upon those responsible to identify every way to accomplish that. Facilities and trailers are a clear place to start.

Third, Melanie is focusing on equity and opportunity. That means honoring teacher and staff professionalism with opportunities for competitive pay and benefits, realistic expectations on their time, and access to vital instructional resources. For students, the promise of a Fairfax County Public Schools education must align with their strengths and cultivate their path into adulthood. Melanie believes that parents and families are what bring the whole learning experience together. Melanie has advocated with and for fellow parents since her first year as an FCPS parent. She will bring her steadfast commitment to listening to and working with parents to her role on the school board.

Melanie welcomes your questions and input about her candidacy – and for your vote on November 5th. Learn more at melaniemeren.com.

Editor’s Note: Two candidates are running for the seat of Pat Hynes, who currently holds the Hunter Mill District seat on the Fairfax County School Board. Earlier this year, Hynes said she would not seek reelection after serving on the 12-member board for the last seven years. This week, Reston Now will publish statements by the candidates.

Statements are published in the order in which they are received. With the exception of minor formatting edits, profiles are published in unedited form.

My name is Laura Ramirez-Drain and I am a unique political candidate running in my first election. I am an engineer, a small-business entrepreneur and a parent of two sons who attended FCPS from elementary to high school. I have been advocating for students for many years as an active PTA volunteer. As a busy, working mother I had never given any thought to running for office.

But as my children went through school, I realized that while FCPS has some of the strongest schools in the country too many children were able to fall through the cracks of that system. Furthermore, it became clear that the schools were veering away from teaching academic fundamentals and allowing a political agenda to permeate the curriculum at all levels. I felt that I could no longer sit on the sidelines and that the time had come for me to stand up and advocate for the policies that will ensure our students thrive.

I’m running to be a voice on the School Board for people of all backgrounds in Hunter Mill district. I strongly believe in the importance of high-quality public education for all students. As a naturalized citizen having immigrated here from Mexico, empowering minority students has always been a priority of mine.  I founded the Alcanzando Metas (Reaching Goals) Foundation to foster academic excellence in minority youth, particularly in STEM subjects. The Foundation helped over 200 students of color in Washington, DC and Birmingham, AL, successfully graduate from high school and pursue careers in their areas of interest. I plan to draw on that experience in helping to reduce the current racial achievement gap in Fairfax County schools.  Democratic-endorsed members of the school board have held a majority for almost 25 years but have done nothing to close this gap.

As committed as I am to equality of opportunity, I do not believe that “equity” has to mean changing boundaries of schools to achieve arbitrary ratios of students by ethnic group.  Students should go to schools in the communities that have nurtured them throughout their childhood. We should be building up all of our schools, and not spending resources to move children out of their own neighborhoods

Finally, I believe education is a partnership among students, teachers, and families.  I believe parents, as the first and educators of their children, should hold the primary responsibility for determining when and how their children should be educated on issues of sexuality.  As a school board member, I will commit to fighting to make Family Life Education opt-in, as opposed to opt-out. I will also do everything in my power to ensure that we are not inappropriately sexualizing young children via a politicized curriculum.

I look forward to continue getting to know the families of Hunter Mill District.  I want to make it clear that whether or not you have a child, grandchild, niece, nephew or other family member in FCPS, this election is critically important.  Today’s students are tomorrow’s leaders and how we educate our future leaders is an issue that affects all of us. I hope you will visit my website, vote4laura.com, and learn more about my background and platform.

Photo courtesy Vadym Guliuk

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Local residents will have yet another option for grocery shopping in the Town of Herndon when Sprouts Farmers Market opens in Herndon Centre in early October.

The grocery store joins MOM’s Organic Market at 424 Elden Street and Lotte Plaza Market at 490 Elden Street in the same plaza. Although each business brings unique goods to the market, the number of grocery stores in the area continues to grow.

Reston Now would like to know if you think the Town of Herndon has too many grocery or just enough. Let us know by voting in the poll below:

Before we head off into the weekend, let’s take a look back at the biggest stories on Reston Now in recent days.

1. Reston Residents Accuse Local ‘Music Man’ of Repeated Overcharging
2. Missing SLHS Teacher Found Dead Near Crashed Motorcycle
3. Crime Roundup: Request for Cigarettes Turns Violent
4. At Budget Meeting, Residents Push for Lake Thoreau Pool to Remain Open
5. Local Committee OKs Isaac Newton Square Proposal

If you have ideas on stories we should cover, email us at [email protected] or submit an anonymous tip.

Feel free to discuss these topics, your weekend plans or anything else that’s happening locally in the comments below.

Photo via GoFundMe

Since 2013, Reston Now has been reporting news about the Reston and Herndon areas. Recently, we started providing additional coverage of Great Falls.

Keep up with our coverage by signing up for our email subscriptions.

The afternoon email — sent at 4 p.m. — rounds up the most recently published stories and sponsored content on our site. Our morning email is currently on a hiatus.

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This week, students from Herndon and South Lakes High School are picking up laptops from their respective schools as part of the new county schools initiative “FCPSOn.”

Fairfax County Public Schools plans to issue computers to all high school students in the county through the initiative. It is meant to transform learning for students and educators by providing ““equitable access to meaningful learning experience and technology to support their learning.”

A $50 annual fee is required for the program.

As the initiative rolls out, we’d love to hear your thoughts on what you think of the program in the poll below.

Photo via FCPS/YouTube