This is an op/ed submitted by Terry Maynard, co-chair of the Reston 20/20 committee. It does not reflect the opinions of Reston Now.

Hunter Mill District Supervisor Cathy Hudgins led off her newsletter this month with a two-page article on “misinformation” concerning the proposed Reston Tax Service District (TSD) for homeowners and businesses along the Dulles Corridor, the so-called Reston transit station areas. So far as we know, no one has provided misinformation on the road tax, including Reston 20/20.

What Reston 20/20 has done — and will continue to do — is highlight the vast quantity of vital information about the proposed Reston road tax that neither Supervisor Hudgins nor FCDOT have been willing to acknowledge because, of course, it undermines the validity of having such a tax. Let’s take a quick look.

First, the foundation argument for a Reston road tax is that there is a $350 million gap over the 40-year period of planned station area expansion — less than $9 million per year — in road funding that can absolutely only be filled by another singular tax on Restonians. Supervisor Hudgins doesn’t even mention the “funding gap” in her missive, almost certainly because she knows there isn’t one. The “funding gap” was created by FCDOT to justify creating an added County tax revenue stream (at the Board of Supervisors’ direction) solely on Restonians.

The so-called “funding gap” is the result of a series of FCDOT assumptions about transportation funding that are a fantasy, plain and simple. [This was addressed in an earlier op/ed.]

That’s all not mentioned, much less explained, in Supervisor Hudgins’ letter. And some things mentioned there are less than “the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth.” Some example, her letter states, “To accommodate traffic pattern changes, reduce congestion, move traffic efficiently, and provide convenient connections to transit stations, multi-modal transportation improvements were proposed.” That statement alone is loaded with fallacies.

• Well, yes, multi-modal improvements were proposed in the revised Reston master plan, but the ongoing County transportation proposal addresses only street improvements. Nary a word about more buses, better bike access, improved pedestrian movements, etc. In fact, to the contrary, FCDOT Chief Biesiadny has stated on multiple occasions that no added bus service is required, just a re-jiggering of current routes. Yet, the plan calls for 76,000 new residents and 41,000 new jobs; a total potential of 211,000 people living and working in Reston’s station areas. But no new bus service is needed? Preposterous! And you know that the proposed Reston station area tax will be increased to finance that obviously needed new bus service.
• And, no, the planned street improvements will neither “reduce congestion” nor “move traffic efficiently.” To the contrary, by County policy intent, the goal is to increase congestion by lowering the acceptable level of service for traffic under the County’s new “urban standard.” Yes, you can expect to wait at least an extra half-minute or more at every already gridlocked intersection in Reston’s station areas as this “urban standard” is implemented.

In fact, proceeds from the County’s Reston road tax proposal will be primarily used (87 percent) to finance the construction of the so-called “grid of streets.” This grid is not being built to “reduce congestion” or “move traffic efficiently”; it being built to improve the profitability of the development of the adjoining properties. In fact, the specific grid streets to be financed by Restonians road tax are primarily those streets at the east and west periphery of the station areas, areas that could not be profitably developed without a public tax subsidy. From your pocket to developer profits.

Moreover, the fact that these streets will be built and the areas developed will mean more, not less congestion, in the station areas. For what it’s worth, not even the developers in Tysons are having the “grid of streets” subsidized by taxes on residents; they will be building all of them there out of their own pockets. Yet somehow Supervisor Hudgins and FCDOT don’t mention any of this. No need to fully inform Restonians, they must think.

And two bits of seeming relative good news in Supervisor Hudgins’ commentary are less than they appear.

• First, there is the seemingly low impact of the $.021/$100 valuation impact of the proposed TSD tax on station area homeowners’ tax bill, for example, $105 per year on a half-million dollar property. Sounds OK, but it fails to acknowledge: The tax is based on 2016 dollars and will triple over 40 years at three percent inflation, totally ignores any property appreciation above inflation, fails to mention that the Board can raise the tax rate at any time — as it has already done on a similar tax in Tysons, and assumes construction costs will not exceed inflation. So, no, it will cost much more than Supervisor Hudgins’ letter says.
• Second, Supervisor Hudgins states that there is a new “sunset” provision in the proposed tax without specifying the details. The implication is that the road tax would be used only for construction, not the indefinite maintenance of the streets and intersections. That’s a positive change, but — like the tax rate and adding needed bus service — can be undone by the Board with a simple vote anytime in the future.

So “cui bono?” Who benefits?  By our estimate based on an analysis of Boston Properties’ annual report, developers in Reston’s station areas stand to earn $45 billion over the next four decades in 2016 dollars, roughly double that in future dollars, from fulfilling the Reston master plan. And, as stated above, the County stands to receive $11 billion in property tax revenues at current tax rates in 2016 dollars over the same period.

And station area residents? They get a larger property tax bill every year and increased congestion.

What could be wrong with that?

As the late radio commentator Paul Harvey (for those of you old enough to recall) would say, “And now you know the rest of the story.” So you can accept Supervisor Hudgins’ Tetra-esque one-sided sales promotion or you can consider the proposed Reston road tax in the context of this more complete picture. If you believe, as we do, that the TSD road tax is little more than a fraud, please do any or all of the following:

• Join the more than 200 others who have signed Reston 20/20’s petition to stop the Reston TSD tax which we will submit to Chairman Bulova and the Board of Supervisors before the upcoming public hearing on the Reston road tax proposal.
• Share with Supervisor Hudgins your concerns about the proposed Reston road tax by any means you choose — email, telephone, letter, social media, whatever.
• Take the time to attend and even testify at the public hearing at the Government Center on Feb. 28.

There is no good reason that Reston station area homeowners, current or future, should subsidize developer profits or bolster County coffers for basic public infrastructure requirements. Next they will be taxed for schools, parks and more. Tell Supervisor Hudgins and the Board of Supervisors you oppose this misguided and ill-conceived Reston TSD road tax proposal.

Terry Maynard, Co-Chair

Reston 20/20 Committee

D.C.-based Dance Place will present its tribute to Marvin Gaye, “What’s Going On,” tonight at CenterStage in Reston.

According to information available on Dance Place’s website, the show is the troupe’s first full-length production. The artistic director of the show, which was first performed in November, is Vincent Thomas. Thomas used Gaye’s 1971 album of the same name as the show’s lifeblood.

“Taking inspiration from 1971’s inimitable What’s Going On, Marvin Gaye’s insights into life, love and social justice are given fresh perspectives with new choreography by Vincent E. Thomas, Ralph Glenmore and Sylvia Soumah. What’s Going On seeks to provoke thoughtfulness and spark conversations to ignite change in each community it touches.”

The performance features modern, jazz and West African dance. Gin Dance Company will join the show as well.

The show is scheduled for tonight at 8 p.m. at CenterStage at Reston Community Center (2310 Colts Neck Road). Tickets are $15 for members and $20 for non-Restonians. For more information, call Paul Douglas Michnewicz at 703-390-6167.

Photo illustration via Dance Place

Reston Town Center announced Tuesday that clothing store J.McLaughlin will open on Market Street later this year.

According to a press release:

J.McLaughlin, a classic American clothing and accessories brand for women and men, is expanding its retail fleet to RTC with a new location slated to open later this year.

The 1,113 square foot store will feature all of the elements that classify the trademark J.McLaughlin aesthetic, an inviting feeling with distinctive details, furnishings and décor. In keeping with the colorful palette and cheeky details of the brand, the interior of this store is decorated with marine shades of green and blue complemented by bamboo-inspired furnishings.

The Reston Town Center location marks J.McLaughlin’s fifth location in Virginia and the 177th store to open nationwide. Originally founded by two brothers, Kevin and Jay McLaughlin, in 1977, the retailer believes in “being a good neighbor” and approaches business as a welcome and active community member.

The shop will be located at 11932 Market St., the former location of Origins, which closed in January. As we previously reported, signs advertising the new clothing store were posted by Feb. 1.

This is an op/ed submitted by Mary Nell Clark, a Reston resident and a South Lakes High School mother. It does not reflect the opinions of Reston Now.

The Fairfax County Executive’s new budget removes funding for youth with intellectual disabilities leaving Fairfax County Public Schools in 2017.

The people of Fairfax County are not that uncaring. You are not that selfish. I know because I have seen how amazing you are. But the County’s budget introduced Tuesday cut all funding for the youth with intellectual disabilities who will be leaving the school system this year.

The state has a program called the Medicaid Waiver, which provides support to Virginia individuals with developmental disabilities, enabling them to live and thrive in our community. But there are over 11,000 Virginians on the wait list for those services. My daughter, Beth, who has Down syndrome, has been on that wait list for years.

Because Fairfax County is a caring community, for years and years the Board has chosen to provide some support to those waiting for the waiver so that they can continue to be active after leaving FCPS. Each year, a new group of students graduates, and the county has realized that FCPS has invested and believed in them and we shouldn’t now abandon them to the sofa. The County has provided some support so these young people can continue to stay active, safe and, hopefully, find employment in the community.

This year, my daughter Beth leaves FCPS. Tuesday, we were heartsick to be told the County Executive did not think she or her graduating classmates were important enough to make the budget. But I know this is not true of our community.

Beth was born here and has always lived here. She was included in Terraset Elementary, Langston Hughes Middle, and South Lakes High School — with the support of amazing teachers and classmates. She was in a Reston Girl Scout Troop for over 10 years, earning her Gold Award — with the support of leaders and community members. She was on the SLHS Swim Team for four years and the Glade Gators for 13 through the support of cheering coaches, parents and friends. She was a part of a wonderfully inclusive SLHS Choral Program with Ms. G, and Dance Program with Ms. Girdy. She was “Defying Gravity” as she danced at Broadway Night. She was twice SLHS Homecoming Princess.

All along the way, the Reston community has supported her. She could have done none of it alone.

So I know that Fairfax County is a caring community. Can you please let the County Executive Ed Long (703-324-2531) know that we are? More importantly, please let the Board of Supervisors know that the budget must include support for these young adults as it has in the past.

Beth has spoken to Supervisor Cathy Hudgins. We know that she cares. Let her and the other supervisors know that we value these young people with intellectual disabilities and will support them.

Mary Nell Clark

Students from around the area are preparing to have their artwork on display at the Greater Reston Arts Center, where two March exhibits will be celebrations of Youth Art Month.

The first, GRACE Art: Celebrating Creativity, will be on display March 3-11 and will showcase the work of local elementary school students. The second, Emerging Visions: Interactions, will be on display March 17-April 1 and will feature the work of high schoolers.

Celebrating Creativity will highlight projects from GRACE Art program. Nearly 40 area schools participate in this program, in which trained classroom volunteers deliver an interactive art history lesson with materials and visuals supplied by GRACE, followed by a related in-class art project. Schools whose students will have art displayed in the exhibit include Academy of Christian Education, Aldrin Elementary, Armstrong Elementary, Crossfield Elementary, Flint Hill Elementary, John Kerr Elementary and Willow Springs Elementary.

After viewing GRACE’s exhibition last fall, Shih Chieh Huang: Synthetic Transformations, students from three area high schools — Herndon, Oakton and South Lakes — were asked to explore different interpretations and aspects of interactions. They worked directly with the education director at GRACE, and the final selections from their work will be shown in the Emerging Visions exhibition.

Several free art activities will also be offered for families throughout the month, and gallery visitors will be able to participate in hands-on art activities related to the art shown in the exhibition.

Key dates throughout the month are as follows:

• GRACE Art: Celebrating Creativity opening reception and Family Day: Saturday, March 4, noon-4 p.m.
• Emerging Visions: Interactions opening reception: Saturday, March 18, 6-8 p.m.
• Studying Art Post Secondary School workshop, Saturday, March 25, 5-6:30pm

To register for the workshop, contact Stephanie Booth at [email protected] or 703-471-0952, ext. 118

The Greater Reston Arts Center (12001 Market St.) is open Tuesday through Saturday from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.

This is an op/ed submitted by Adam Huftalen, a Reston resident. It does not reflect the opinions of Reston Now.

As we do each year, my wife and I paid our Reston Association assessment this week.

Typically, after we’ve paid our dues, we reflexively take the opportunity to purchase our annual pool and tennis passes — our family’s favorite RA benefit. This year, however, we were taken aback by an unsettling new RA requirement that would-be pool-goers provide RA with digital photos of each family member, including children, to be stored in an RA database. The logic, as I learned after a call to RA, is that the database would allow RA employees to retrieve photos on demand to visually verify paid-up pool and tennis users.

RA exercises considerable authority to impose on its members in the name of cluster design uniformity or infrastructural upgrading, and does so often at great expense and questionable necessity. This new imposition, however, is akin to an inverse Reston Association photo ID. It is an unnecessary, perturbing and frankly outrageous invasion of personal privacy.

Events of the past year have unequivocally illustrated that we live in an era of digital uncertainty, one in which we struggle with vexing issues like hacking and identity theft. Sadly, no amount of precautionary behavior can be air-tight. But for those of us who go out of our way to protect our privacy online, this needless invitation of additional risk, especially for children, is unconscionable.

Some may argue that thousands of RA members already willingly provide digital images of themselves either on social media or for health club memberships. But to suggest that RA’s new requirement is analogous to making a personal choice about posting on Facebook or joining a gym is mistaken.

For one thing, choosing to post on social media or join a gym with a photo requirement is just that, a choice. RA members have no choice to pay their annual assessment, lest a lien be placed on their property. While voluntarily purchasing the additional pool passes is also a choice, suggesting that this is the same as the scenarios above also misses the point.

Aquatics and tennis represent roughly 13 percent of RA’s total expenses. Since a portion of each RA member’s required annual assessment is used to maintain pools and tennis courts, RA members make compulsory, not just voluntary, payments for their pools and tennis courts. Because of these compulsory payments alone, we deserve access to those facilities. The additional user fee for passes is reasonable, but making access to passes contingent on providing RA with a digital photo of one’s children is an unreasonable and startling invasion of privacy.

I can certainly appreciate the desire for RA to ensure that only those who have purchased a pool pass can use Reston’s pools, but surely there must be a better way of achieving that without invading the privacy of children. One alternative could be to require adult pool and tennis users to present a picture ID, such as a driver’s license, when signing into use those facilities. Under the circumstances, it’s unclear how such a simple solution could have been cast aside before moving forward as proposed.

Moreover, one need only consider the trouble with which multinational corporations and even the United States Government (each with far deeper pockets than RA) have struggled to secure customer or employee personal information to become anxious about RA’s ability to secure similar information. And this says nothing of the questionable cost involved with equipping seasonal employees with the technology necessary to access the proposed photo database; a cost that will no doubt be borne by assessment-paying RA members in 2018.

Plainly speaking, I consider this proposal to be a deeply disturbing invasion of privacy. I not only question the wisdom and judgment of requiring children’s photos to be placed in a RA database for the purposes of using a community pool, but also the legal authority with which RA could pursue such a requirement. One must wonder if the RA Board has considered the risk and likely consequences of a security breach.

Each year, my family proudly pays our RA assessment knowing that we generally get an excellent return on investment for the money we contribute. Unfortunately, this ill-conceived new requirement places an unwelcome invasion of privacy between my family and our desire to take advantage of RA’s most attractive member benefit: its pools and tennis courts. Worse still, it exhibits a clear and unacceptable disregard for personal privacy on the part of the RA Board.

I strongly encourage the Board to reconsider this new rule before the 2017 pool season begins.

Adam Huftalen

Reston, VA

A man was assaulted and robbed while walking his dog last week at the Winterthur Apartments, police say.

According to the Fairfax County Police Department, the 28-year-old man and his dog were walking at about 10:50 p.m. Thursday in the 11900 block of Winterthur Lane. The neighborhood is off Colts Neck Road, just north of Hunters Woods Village Center.

According to the man, he saw a woman running from four Hispanic men. One of the running men stopped the chase and “assaulted the man’s dog,” according to police. All four then turned their attention on the man and his dog, he said.

“One displayed a knife while the others repeatedly assaulted both [the 28-year-old] and the dog,” according to police.

The suspects allegedly stole the man’s cellphone before fleeing the scene. The victim sustained minor injuries, police said, and the dog escaped harm.

No further descriptions of the suspected assailants were provided.

In a break from previous tradition, 22 finalists for the 2017 Best of Reston Awards were announced Thursday night. In past years, only the winners have been honored.

According to Cornerstones, which puts on the awards along with the Greater Reston Chamber of Commerce, the new process serves to recognize the importance of the “many fine people, businesses and organizations involved in giving back in greater Reston/Dulles corridor.”

“At a time of uncertainty and change in our nation, the Best of Reston Community Service Awards serve as a powerful reminder that there is so much that unites us,” said Kerrie Wilson, CEO of Cornerstones. “This new approach to the awards was recommended as a way to lift up those who are bringing our community together, and affirms principles of service that are core to the work of Cornerstones and the Greater Reston Chamber of Commerce.”

Nominees for the awards are as follows:

INDIVIDUAL OR FAMILY SERVICE

• Robert Goudie
• Vernon and Kathy Joyner
• Bill Keefe
• Shreya Papneja
• Maggie Parker
• Bob Schnapp
• Vincent and Gillian Sescoe
• Herb Williams-Baffoe

CIVIC AND COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT, VOLUNTEERISM THROUGH NONPROFIT SERVICE

• Herndon Community Leo Club Youth
• Omicron Kappa Kappa
• The Reston Chorale
• Touching Heart
• Wolf Trap Foundation for the Performing Arts
• Women Giving Back

LARGE BUSINESS

• JK Moving Services
• Navient
• Odin, Feldman and Pittleman, P.C.
• SOSi

EMPLOYEE-OWNED AND SMALL BUSINESS

• SpeedPro Imaging Northern Virginia
• Storycatcher Productions
• Synergy Design & Construction
• The CST Group

Up to two awardees will be selected from each category and will be honored April 6. Proceeds from the celebration benefit the programs and people served by Cornerstones.

Mark Ingrao, president and CEO of the Greater Reston Chamber of Commerce, said the candidates are all vital parts of the community.

“We believe that service is a cornerstone of any thriving community, and this event… says it all,” he said. “Through their volunteerism and philanthropy, the past Best of Reston honorees and the candidates for the 2017 Awards work throughout the greater Reston and Dulles corridor region to make it a stronger community.”

Leidos, which hosted Thursday night’s reception, has partnered with cornerstones as the Annual Champion Partner. The company presented Cornerstones with a $100,000 check during the event.

“It is our hope that this support will be a beacon and spread the light of the good work Cornerstones does on behalf of Reston and beyond,” said Melissa Koskovich, Leidos senior vice president and marketing director. “Partnering with Cornerstones, who empowers people in our community to become self-sufficient, allows us to have a lasting impact in Reston and the greater Dulles Corridor.”

For more information about the awards, visit Cornerstones online.

Photos courtesy Chip McCrea Photography

High winds that have been blowing hard through Reston today are expected to continue into the early evening.

The National Weather Service in Sterling has issued a wind advisory for the entire region that is scheduled to be in effect until 6 p.m.:

* WINDS…Northwest 20 to 25 mph with gusts around 45 mph.

* IMPACTS…Gusty winds will blow around unsecured objects. Tree
limbs could be blown down and a few power outages may result.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS…

A Wind Advisory means that winds of 45 to 55 mph are expected.
Winds this strong can make driving difficult…especially for
high profile vehicles.

When combined with today’s temperatures in the 30s, the winds are going to make bundling up important.

A wind advisory for the areas in tan until 6PM this evening. Wind chills in the teens and 20s, bundle up! pic.twitter.com/PCw4bVYTK4

— Amelia Draper (@amelia_draper) February 9, 2017

Fairfax County Fire and Rescue says a house fire that caused an estimated $155,000 in damages was the result of improper disposal of fireplace ashes.

Units were dispatched to the blaze in the 12300 block of Myterra Way, just south of Reston, at about 1:20 a.m. Friday. Fire was showing from the basement and first floor of the two-level home.

Three adults and one juvenile were in the home at the time, and they all were able to get out before the fire department arrived. There were no reported injuries, and Red Cross assistance was declined.

According to investigators, the fire started under an elevated enclosed deck in the rear of the home. The fire was determined to be accidental, the result of the ignition of combustible materials due to improper disposal of fireplace ashes in a plastic container.

In a press release, the Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department reminds residents to be cautious and keep safety in mind, offering these tips:

• Do not discard your ashes into any combustible container such as a paper or plastic bag, a cardboard box, or a plastic trash can.
• Do not place ash containers on/under decks, porches, or in garages.
• Put ashes into a non-combustible metal container with a lid and place it away from the house to cool.
• Pour water into the container to make sure the ashes are cool.
• Keep your can OUTSIDE and away from the home and away from your fireplace, wood stove and anything combustible.
• Teach all family members to be safe with ashes from your fireplace or stove.

Valentine’s Day is just a little over a week away. If you haven’t already, you’ll want to make your dinner reservations soon, before the restaurants fill up and you’re left in the doghouse.

Here is just a sampling of some of the specials being offered by eateries around Reston:

• American Tap Room (1811 Library St.) will offer a three-course dinner (2 entrees, 1 appetizer, 1 dessert) with a bottle of wine and a rose for $70, tax and gratuity not included.
• Big Bowl (11915 Democracy Drive) is offering a special three-course Valentine’s Menu for Two from Friday, Feb. 10 to Tuesday, Feb. 14 for $44.95 per couple, not including beverages, tax or gratuity.
• Il Fornaio (11990 Market St.) will be offering its regular dinner menu along with a regional menu inspired by the region of Umbria, the birthplace of St. Valentine.
• Kalypso’s Sports Tavern (1617 Washington Plaza N.) will offer music by Tula from 6-9 p.m.
• McCormick & Schmick’s (11920 Democracy Drive) will have Valentine’s specials all weekend.
• The Melting Pot (11730 Plaza America Drive) is offering a four-course prix fixe menu on Valentine’s Day. Cost is $80 per person, which includes all four courses and a complimentary champange toast.
• Mon Ami Gabi (11950 Democracy Drive) offers more than 80 boutique French wine varietals that complement its menu of classic French dishes.
• Morton’s The Steakhouse (11956 Market St.) is welcoming Valentine’s Day celebrants to enjoy their steak dinner.
• Passion Fish (11960 Democracy Drive) will be offering a three-course dinner with a price range of $60-$90, depending on entree selection.
• Tavern64 (1800 Presidents St.) is offering a Valentine’s Day “Duet Menu” for $55 per person. Details are available on the restaurant’s Facebook page.
• Uncle Julio’s (1827 Library St.) will offer chocolate pinatas, filled with fresh fruit and house-made mini-churros. They are served with a trio of raspberry, chocolate and caramel sauces and homemade whipped cream.
• Vinifera Wine Bar & Bistro (11750 Sunrise Valley Drive) is featuring a $50 tasting menu with a wine pairing. The meal begins with an offering of baby red Russian kale salad, followed by house-cured Wester Ross organic salmon and grilled rack of lamb, and ending with dessert of pomegranate mousse and dark chocolate ganache.

Some information via OpenTable. Image via Wikimedia/suksim