When the new year starts, plastic bags will come with a new price tag.
Fairfax County’s 5-cent tax on single-use plastic bags will take effect for the first time on Saturday (Jan. 1). The fee will also be introduced in Arlington County and the City of Alexandria.
The towns of Herndon and Vienna are included, but the City of Falls Church passed its own ordinance that will begin April 1.
Virginia’s new law, passed in 2020, allows localities to introduce the tax starting in 2022. Research has shown that introducing such a fee influences consumers, helping promote environmental friendly behavior.
Although stores must pay the tax, they can still give plastic bags away for free. However, a sampling of companies by FFXnow suggests customers at various chains can expect to pay at stores ranging from Giant to Harris Teeter.
Wegmans stopped providing disposable plastic bags to customers at its four Fairfax County stores in early December, offering 5-cent paper bags instead.
Big box chains that include products beyond just groceries are also affected, according to Fairfax County. Walmart didn’t initially respond to a message seeking comment for its plans.
Target said it will charge customers for the bags, but it has a longstanding policy that rewards shoppers for bringing their own bags.
“In an effort to promote the use of reusable bags and keep more plastic bags out of landfills, Target gives guests a five-cent discount for each reusable bag used at all of our stores,” spokesperson Shane Kitzman said in an email. “For example, if a guest uses five reusable bags, they will receive a $0.25 discount on their purchase.”
Besides grocery stores, convenience stores and drugstores are also subject to the tax.
The money will be used for environmental cleanup programs, pollution and litter mitigation programs, education programs on environmental waste reduction and providing reusable bags to recipients of food stamps and Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) program benefits.
Customers will continue to be able to donate plastic bags for recycling at major chains such as Giant, Harris Teeter, and Target. Bins are available in the front of stores.
Fairfax County advises people not to place plastic bags into recycling bins because the items can jam and entangle sorting equipment and conveyor belts and contaminate other grades of plastic being recycled at its facility.
The plastic bags tax doesn’t apply to heavy duty plastic bags, bags used to wrap fish, meat, bulk food items and certain other foods as well as plastic bags used to carry dry cleaning, prescription drugs or garbage/leaf/pet waste packages.
Photo via Ivan Radic/Flickr
Longtime Restonian Dave Hughes Dies — Dave Hughes, a longtime Restonian who founded newsy gossip blog DCRV.com, died at the age of 63. He moved to North Carolina two years ago after living in Reston for a number of years. [WTOP]
Fire and Rescue Department Adjusts Service — The county’s fire and rescue department is adjusting services after COVID-19 cases surged among staff. Currently, 66 employees have tested positive. An additional 12 are in quarantine. Fire Chief John Butler says service adjustments were made in an effort to minimize the impact of staffing shortages. [Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department]
Oversight Agency Recalls Metro Railcars — The Washington Metrorail Safety Commission has issued an order calling on Metro to remove its 7000 series railcars from service. The move came after the agency found that at least five of the 40 railers did not meet safety criteria. [WMSC]
New COVID-19 Testing Clinic Announced — INOVA has set up a new testing site that opens today on weekdays from Monday through Friday. Appointments are required at the site, which is located in Falls Church. [INOVA]
Photo via vantagehill/Flickr
Comstock, a Reston-based developer, plans to begin construction on the redevelopment of downtown Herndon by August of next year.
A company spokesperson told Reston Now that a groundbreaking date has not been finalized yet, but could offer a ballpark estimate of when construction might begin.
“We are finalizing updates to plans to ensure constructability given the numerous supply chain constraints currently affecting the industry and hope to start construction in Q1 or Q2,” the spokesperson said.
The project recently secured a commitment for five million dollars in county funding earlier this month, allowing the project to move forward.
In the public-private partnership between the Town of Herndon and Comstock, the developer plans to transform 4.7 acres of land previously owned by the town into a mixed-use town center with 273 residential apartments, 17,000 square feet of retail space, an arts center and a 726-spae parking garage.
The project’s total cost increase by nearly $25 million due to issues related to materials, labor, and workforce restrictions caused by the pandemic, the town’s economic development manager Dennis Holste, told the Herndon Town Council earlier this month.
The revitalization of downtown Herndon has been on the drawing board for several years. A groundbreaking date was first anticipated in late 2019.
Del. Ken Plum will head back to a very different Virginia State Capitol next month.
As the delegate for the 36th District, he says he’s looking to advocate for changes that Democrats heralded in during the last two years when they controlled both houses in the legislature and the governor’s office, a trifecta that hadn’t been since 1993.
“The election outcome represents a dramatic turnabout from the course we’ve been on the last two years, which has been one that has led to us passing some of the most progressive election laws in Virginia, election laws in the nation,” Plum told Reston Now. “I don’t want to see us turn back the clock on that.”
Virginia will become one of only three states in the country with split legislative control between Democrats and Republicans.
“Unfortunately, both parties in both Houses seem to insist on strict partisan voting, and that is really too bad,” he said. “It stands in the … ways which we could work together cooperatively and reach common solutions.”
With the results of the November election, Democrats will lose control of the House, meaning they’ll no long chair various agenda-setting committees, which for Plum was the Agriculture, Chesapeake and Natural Resources Committee.
In 2020, Plum advocated a proposal to create an urban agricultural advisory council to help support local sustainable food programs, but the bill lost steam in the Senate toward the end of the year. The proposed legislation is slated to expire in July 2023, and Plum says it’s something that he would like to revive.
With the upcoming session, which is slated to start Jan. 12, Plum says legislators hope to address issues with the state’s mental health system with a major study of the state’s Community Services Boards, which help people with mental illness, substance abuse, and developmental disabilities.
He said he would like to see more funding for the state’s CSBs, saying the state doesn’t need big mental health hospitals but needs growth with crisis intervention centers.
“That’s not a partisan issue. It’s a human rights issue. And we need to respond to it,” he said.
The 80-year-old legislator, who has represented the 36th District of half of his life, says he doesn’t want reforms to be rolled back, such as the end of the state’s use of the death penalty, a change he thinks will remain. He also highlighted other recent laws, such as the passing of legislation to help prevent racial and ethnic discrimination as well as discrimination of LGBTQ+ individuals.
In 2019, he sponsored a bill that became law regarding universal background checks for people buying guns, strengthening a Virginia law that was in place since 1989. Plum said he’s seen no evidence that it infringes on people’s civil rights, and he said he expects it to remain.
Meanwhile, the Virginia Supreme Court is working to redraw state and federal districting maps after a bipartisan redistricting commission failed to reach a plan by deadline, drawing criticism for partisanship by onlookers including Fairfax County Chairman Supervisors Jeff McKay.
Fairfax County saw its largest-ever increase in coronavirus cases among fire and emergency medical responders this month, mirroring a surge in case rates compared to 2020.
Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department data shows that there are 53 positive cases and 14 in quarantine, all staying at home to curb the spread of COVID-19. That’s the most cases the department has seen at one time, according to county figures as of Sunday (Dec. 26).
Increasing cases have forced the department to reduce extra medic units at three stations: Station 8 in Annandale, the Mount Vernon Station 9 in Hybla Valley, and Station 10 in Bailey’s Crossroads.
It’s also relying more on volunteers.
“We use volunteers at those 12 partner stations routinely, so this isn’t anything necessarily beyond the norm; it’s just that we’re utilizing them a little more than usual,” FCFRD spokesperson Ashley Hildebrandt said, adding that the volunteers are assisting as needed, such as an extra person or two on a shift.
The department has around 1,400 staff across 38 stations. The three stations that cut medic units typically have two units, so they were reduced to one.
“No one’s without coverage,” Hildebrandt said. “We have a lot of data points, and we looked through a bunch of options to make sure that…no one notices a disruption of service.”
The uptick in infections has not affected any one particular station, but FCFRD says it has made temporary staffing adjustments to keep service as regular as possible.
The department has seen 298 cases overall since COVID-19 became widespread in the U.S. in the spring of 2020. Most new cases in America now consist of the Omicron variant, which might spread more easily than the Delta variant but could be less severe for those fully vaccinated who have also received booster shots, research teams have found.
Most of the cases among Fairfax County’s emergency responders have occurred in 2021. Over 245 cases so far have been logged as fully recovered.
The positive cases mean local rescue workers must stay home for 10 days. That’s based on guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and Fairfax County Health Department.
The CDC, however, changed that timeframe on Monday (Dec. 27), reducing its recommended isolation time from 10 days to five days for asymptomatic individuals, followed by five days of wearing a mask when around others. And the county health department announced last night (Tuesday) that it has adjusted its guidance to align with the CDC.
Amidst the changes, Hildebrandt said today (Wednesday) that because the county health department switch just happened, FCFRD has yet to discuss switching its 10-day isolation period for positive cases.
It’s unclear when normal schedules could return, but it depends on a decline in COVID-19 cases, according to the department.
Photo via Google Maps
County Changes Quarantine Period — Following the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s revised recommendations, the county is now shortening the recommended isolation period after testing positive from COVID-19 to five days. [Fairfax County Government]
No Word Yet on Herndon Sheetz — The company says that it is too early to provide additional details on when a Sheetz in Herndon is expected to break ground. The project is still in permitting stages, a company representative tells Reston Now. [Sheetz]
Last Few Days for Tacky Christmas Lights — Residents still have the chance to check out tacky Christmas lights in Fairfax County. A local location is 12708 Kettering Drive in Herndon. [Fairfax County VA]
Eastbound Route 7 Traffic Shift to Begin — Beginning Jan. 11, drivers should expect a lane shift to the north between Lyons Street and Lewinsville Road and temporary traffic changes on side streets. All residences and businesses will remain accessible. [Connect Route 7]
Photo via vantagehill/Flickr
A retired priest who headed the Catholic Diocese of Arlington’s Office of Child Protection and Safety for seven years has been indicted for allegedly sexually abusing a boy in Fairfax County two decades ago.
Virginia’s Office of the Attorney General announced this morning (Tuesday) that a grand jury handed down two felony charges against Terry Specht, 69, of Donegal, Pennsylvania on Dec. 20.
The Fairfax County Circuit Court grand jury charged Specht with aggravated sexual battery of a child under the age of 13 and sexual abuse of a child under the age of 18 with whom he had a custodial or supervisory relationship.
According to the indictments, the abuse occurred between March 1 and Sept. 30, 2000 and involved Specht “intentionally touching…intimate parts or material covering such intimate parts” of a victim identified as G.H., who was a minor at the time.
Specht served as a priest in the Diocese of Arlington from 1996 to 2012, including as director of its Office of Child Protection from 2004 to 2011.
The Diocese of Arlington says it first received an allegation of sexual abuse against Specht in 2012. The allegation was reported to law enforcement, and Specht was placed on administrative leave while the diocese’s review board conducted an investigation.
According to a report by The Washington Post at the time, the investigation concerned abuse of a teen boy that occurred in the late 1990s while Specht was parochial vicar at the Saint Mary of Sorrows Catholic Church in Fairfax.
“The Review Board found the allegation to be inconclusive, and law enforcement never brought charges related to the 2012 allegation,” Diocese media relations director Amber Rosebloom told FFXnow in a statement, noting that Specht was granted a request for medical retirement in 2012 and has not served in priestly ministry since.
According to the Diocese, Specht’s role in its Office of Child Protection was as a policy administrator and instructor, and he was not involved in the 2012 investigation or in assigning priests. A subsequent third-party review of the office’s policies, staff, and procedures did not find any issues.
“As a priest in the Diocese of Arlington, Father Specht underwent a criminal background check and completed VIRTUS safe-environment training,” the Diocese said. “He also underwent recurring background checks every five years, consistent with diocesan policy.”
The Diocese says it reported a second, separate allegation of abuse that it received in 2019 to police and has shared information and files related to both allegations with Attorney General Mark Herring’s office.
Specht is the third person to face charges as part of an ongoing, statewide investigation of clergy-related sexual abuse, according to the attorney general’s office.
“Children should always feel comfortable around religious leaders in their life, without fear that they could somehow hurt them,” Herring said in a statement. “Our joint investigation with the Virginia State Police into potential clergy abuse in Virginia remains ongoing, and I am proud of the work that we have done so far.”
Specht’s case is scheduled to go to trial in October 2022.
Herring encouraged Virginians who might have information about this case or any other instance of clergy abuse to speak up. His office launched a clergy abuse hotline in 2018 that remains available 24/7 at 1-833-454-9064 and www.VirginiaClergyHotline.com.
“No matter how long ago the incident occurred, we will take it seriously and make sure that you get the help and support you deserve,” he said.
The Diocese of Arlington similarly encouraged people with information about Specht or other incidents of misconduct or abuse to contact the Fairfax County Police Department at 703-691-2131 or its victim assistance coordinator at 703-841-2530.
“The Diocese of Arlington has a zero-tolerance policy for abuse and continues to be fully committed to training our clergy, staff and volunteers to identify and report suspected instances of abuse,” Rosebloom said. “No one with a credible accusation of abuse of minors is serving in the Diocese.”
The Tephra Institute of Contemporary Art will kick off the new year with the work of Laurel Nakadate, a Boston-based artist who traveled across the country to photograph familiar matches she discovered through DNA testing.
Nakadate’s work, which is presented in partnership with George Mason University, will be on display at the institute from Jan. 22 through May 29. The artist focuses self-representation, identify formation, representation and loneliness.
Her DNA-based series — “Relations” — began in 2013. It also features direct relatives of her mother — who died shortly after Nakadate completed work on that series. Each photograph features individuals at night with a single light source at a location of their choice.
“I realized at a certain point it wasn’t just about the people, but it was about these landscapes. It was about standing in these landscapes and night. And it was about the sort of ways that I could still be surprised by photography,” Nakadate wrote in a statement.
Tephra will also offer a first look at a series in which technicians edited photos of Nakadate’s mother with her newborn son, who was born shortly after Nakadate’s mother died.
The arts institute offered a quick look at upcoming exhibitions as well:
Travis Childers (Feb. 10-June 28): “The component parts of one of Childers’ artworks are often recognizable manufactured objects, such as pencils or model railroad trees and figurines–even his works on canvas are comprised of images lifted from printed newspaper using scotch tape. Through a process that errs on the side of obsession, he assembles works that are deeply influenced by his personal experience of the Northern Virginia suburban landscape and his memories of a more rural childhood. In reference to a collage made from hundreds of skies excerpted from the background of published newspaper images, the artist reflects, “There is just something reassuring about seeing so many horizon lines.”
Danni O’Brien (July 14-Oct. 11): Danni O’Brien is fascinated by the history of the plastics boom that took place in the mid-twentieth century. Looming in the corner of her studio, an overburdened wire shelf serves as a library of collected refuse. Boxes and bins of found and scrapped objects are sorted intuitively by criteria such as texture, shape, material, and color. O’Brien speaks about her process as “caring for the objects” as she meticulously integrates them into monochromatic wall mounted works, whose compositions are drawn from diagrams similarly loosened from their original contexts as instructions for home renovations, sewing, or understanding human anatomy.
Dominic Chambers (Fall 2022): Chambers’ most recent bodies of work feature his friends and acquaintances engaged in acts of leisure and contemplation. “Too often, the Black body has been located in our imaginations as one incapable of rest,” Chambers explains. “Often when we imagine what the Black body is doing it is usually an act of labor, rebellion, or resistance.” Instead, his subjects are depicted reading or lost in thought, their gaze fixed on points that seem far beyond the realm of the picture plane.
Image via Laurel Nakadate/Tephra Institute of Contemporary Art
As the winter surge continues following Christmas weekend, COVID-19 tests are becoming increasingly hard to come by in Fairfax County.
Many local testing facilities are booked until at least Thursday (Dec. 30). The shortage comes as COVID-19 cases surpass last winter’s surge. With another 1,441 cases recorded on Christmas Day, the county is now averaging 1,124 cases a day for the past week.
“We are hearing reports that some people are having difficulty in locating tests in Fairfax County,” a spokesperson for the county’s health department told FFXnow.
Testing demand appears to be unparalleled in the county as the emergence of the omicron variant fuels daily caseload increases.
Most testing sites that are part of national chains are fully booked until next week. CVS Pharmacy — which offers a variety of testing options — is booked at its Herndon, Leesburg, and Ashburn locations until next Thursday (Jan. 6). The Vienna location is booked through Saturday, Jan. 8.
My Dr. Pharmacy in Herndon is offering PCR tests for $150, with results released within one day of testing. But the earliest slot isn’t available until late Thursday afternoon.
High demand prompted Walgreens to recently take down its registration page.
“We are currently using a virtual waiting room as a result of exceptional demand and to give you the best possible online experience,” the landing page stated.
The page now appears to be back up, but as of this morning (Tuesday), all stores in Fairfax County have been fully booked, with the nearest availabilities in Arlington and Ashburn.
Inova Health Systems is urging residents to seek out a community testing site or home test kit instead of getting tested for COVID-19 at the emergency room.
“Inova Emergency Departments are prioritizing patients with medical conditions requiring emergency care and those with critical illness. We strongly discourage patients who are asymptomatic or have mild symptoms from coming to ER,” INOVA Health tweeted yesterday (Monday) afternoon.
Efforts to set up a community testing site are underway.
County public health officials are encouraging residents to seek out multiple testing options, including clinics, kiosks urgent care facilities, and drive-through sites. The Virginia Department of Health offers an online portal to find testing sites in the state.
The shortage has prompted many residents to purchase tests online.
Strains are being felt nationwide. President Joe Biden lamented the testing shortage yesterday, as omicron and holiday travel resulted in long lines at some testing facilities.
Biden noted that his administration aims to increase testing availability with new federal testing sites and the purchase of 500 million at-home rapid coronavirus tests, which will be delivered to residences beginning in January.
Local Plastic Bag Tax to Begin — At grocery stores, convenience stores and drug stores, a five-cent tax will be charged for each single-use plastic bag for customer purchases. The Northern Virginia Waste Management Board is working on outreach to help with the transition. [Patch]
County Launches New Photo Contest — The First Hike Fairfax contest returns next year with more categories for photographers to submit entrants. Participants can submit photos from any trails managed by the Fairfax County Park Authority. [Fairfax County Government]
Christmas Tree Recycling Underway — Christmas trees will be collected from Jan. 3 to 14. Lights, decorations and stands must be removed to ensure trees can be collected. [Reston Patch]
Photo via vantagehill/Flickr
Fairfax County saw more COVID-19 cases over this past holiday weekend than at any other point in the pandemic.
The 1,550 cases reported on Christmas Eve (Friday) represented a new single-day record, surpassing the 1,485 cases that came in on Jan. 17, according to the Virginia Department of Health.
With another 1,441 cases recorded on Christmas Day, the county is now averaging 1,124 cases a day for the past week, even after the daily total dipped to 946 cases yesterday (Sunday) and 883 cases today (Monday). Last winter, the weekly average peaked in mid-January at 697 cases.
Fairfax County Health Department spokesperson Lucy Caldwell notes that the fluctuating case numbers may be a product of data reporting backlogs due to the holidays.
“There may be a lag of 2-3 days,” she told FFXnow by email. “Often, we see that the reported case numbers are lower on Mondays or after a holiday as employees may not be working to process the information/data on Sundays or major holidays.”
The Fairfax Health District, including the cities of Fairfax and Falls Church, has seen a total of 110,416 COVID-19 cases, 4,260 hospitalizations, and 1,244 deaths, six of them occurring in the past week.
On a more hopeful note, the recent surge in infections has not been accompanied by an equivalent rise in hospitalizations and deaths, supporting ongoing research that suggests the omicron variant is extremely transmissible but less likely to lead to severe illness than its delta predecessor, especially for people who are vaccinated and boosted.
In addition, the variant has started to subside as quickly as it emerged in South Africa, where it was first identified in late November. Even if it follows the same trajectory in the U.S., though, the consequences of the current COVID-19 wave could still be devastating, with many hospitals already overwhelmed.
Fairfax County continues to outpace Virginia and the U.S. when it comes to COVID-19 vaccinations, according to VDH and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data:
At Least One Dose
- Fairfax County: 82% of the population (941,383 people), including 92.3% of individuals 18 and older
- Virginia: 76.9% of the population (6.56 million people), including 88.3% of adults
- U.S.: 72.7% of the population (241 million people), including 84.9% of adults
Fully Vaccinated
- Fairfax: 72.8% of the population (835,706 residents), including 82.7% of adults
- Virginia: 67.4% (5.7 million people), including 77.9% of adults
- U.S.: 61.7% (204.7 million people), including 72.6% of adults
28.1% of Fairfax County residents, amounting to 322,733 people, have received a third or booster shot, including 36.2% of adults.
The weekly planner is a roundup of interesting events over the next week in the Herndon and Reston area.
We’ve searched the web for events of note. Want to submit a listing? Submit your pitch here!
Monday, Dec. 27
- Baby Lapsit — 10:30-11:15 a.m. at Great Falls Library — Help your baby up to 2 years old learn early literacy skills. Registration required.
Tuesday, Dec. 28
- Terry Pratchett’s Discworld Read-Along Adventure — 7-8 p.m. on Zoom — Discuss a book series with other teens and adults involving the wild planet conceived by author Terry Pratchett.
Wednesday, Dec. 29
- Meadowlark’s Winter Walk of Lights — 5-10 p.m. at Meadowlark Botanical Gardens — Enjoy lights and holiday scenes in this annual transformation, which goes through Jan. 2. Tickets for those ages 2 and over are $18 each.
Thursday, Dec. 30
- Puppet Show – Wild Winter Break — 11:15 a.m. to noon at the Walker Nature Center — A puppet show gives an audience a glimpse about the nature center’s animals. The show features songs and the chance to feel animal feather and fur. Cost starts at $6.
Friday, Dec. 31
- New Year’s Eve Bollywood Bash 2022 — 8 p.m. to 1 a.m. at the Hyatt Regency Dulles — From a belly dancer to a midnight ball drop, ring in the new year with this Bollywood-style party. Tickets start at $175 per adult.
- Carpool’s New Year’s Eve 2022 Pajama Party! — 8 p.m. to 2 a.m. at Carpool in Herndon — Advance tickets, which now start at $100 — include 12 drinks. Designated driver tickets start at $35.
Saturday, Jan. 1
- Watercolor, Pen, Ink and Mixed Media Art Exhibit — running the month of January at Reston Community Center – Lake Anne — A monthlong showing features the work of artists Bob Biedrzycki and Angie Magruder.
Sunday, Jan. 2
- Tinsel! — activities throughout the day at 45425 Holiday Drive in Sterling — Enjoy the last day of events, featuring craft making, a DJ and winter princess singing. Tickets are $22 for adults and $15 for kids ages 3-12.
Photo via Kenneth Lu/Flickr
Maame Biney, the 21-year-old Restonian who became the first Black woman to land a spot on a U.S. Olympic speedskating team, is bringing her local Northern Virginia flair along with her on her Olympic journey.
For the last year and a half, she’s been training in Utah, where she earned a spot this month to compete in the upcoming 2022 Olympics. But despite not being face-to-face with people back in Fairfax County, she told Reston Now that she still has pieces of home with her, such as when grade school teachers Mrs. Bentley and Damon reach out to her.
“That’s super nice to know they’re out there supporting me and wanting the best for me beyond the role of a student, but as a skater and human being,” Biney said in an email.
Biney’s record-breaking history includes competing in the 2018 Olympics, and after three days of competition ending Dec. 19 at U.S. qualifiers in Utah, she secured her return to the Games next year in China.
She and four other female skaters, including Kristen Santos, made the short track team. Biney is the only returning Olympian on the squad.
“What was going through my head during qualifiers, was just to chill,” she wrote.
The athletes made the team based on their overall performance in six races (two 1,500-meter races, two 1,000-meter races and two 500-meter races).
Biney’s iconic smile came out as she skated off the rink following her win in the 500-meter final, quickly taking the lead from a third position on the starting line.
“I was mainly focused on my breathing and trying to be calm throughout the very big storm,” she said by email. “I really wanted to make my second Olympic team, but I can’t be too hard on myself. Then during the 500 I proved to myself I still got it, and I’m still the 500 queen!”
Overcome with emotion and talking amid tears, she talked about her family, friends and God
“This is for them,” she told NBC Sports while eventually breaking out smiles again.
Biney moved to the U.S. from Ghana at age 5 and began speed skating at the age of six.
While still a high school student at South Lakes, she made her Olympic debut in South Korea at age 18.
In high school, she also won bronze and gold medals at the world junior championships in 2017 and 2018 and defended her title as a University of Utah student in 2019 — when she also set a junior world record.
Arrests Made in Online Predator Sting — Ten men have been arrested in sting operations intended to identify predators who use the Internet to exploit children. The arrests were made since Dec. 23. [Sun Gazette]
Reston Association to Hold Special Meeting — The association’s Board of Directors will meet with its information technology committee on Jan. 5 to discuss IT-related matters. The meeting takes place via Zoom and starts at 6:30 p.m. [RA]
Local Organizations Given Funding for Afghan Resettlement — The Community Foundation for Northern Virginia has awarded $60,000 in grants to six local organizations to help resettle Afghans. Awardees include Herndon-Reston FISH, Inc. and the Literacy Council of Northern Virginia. [The Connection]
Photo via vantagehill/Flickr
Construction crews are starting a new development with townhomes starting in the mid $700,000s along Frying Pan Road.
The Floris development by Sunrise Valley Drive will feature three-to-five bedroom homes some 2,301-3,131 square feet in size, according to a Beazer Homes project page for the development, dubbed Towns at Carters Grove.
The rapidly changing area is emerging as a residential neighborhood, with several people buying and moving into newly completed homes in the Foster’s Glen development this past fall as construction there continues.
The Beazer development will span across three new roads in a new cul-de-sac consisting of Tayberry Way, Wineberry Terrace and Loganberry Drive.
The new development calls for three-story homes, according to the company, and county property records suggest there could be up to 35 residences built there, grouped in clusters.
The development comes through subdivisions from New York City-based real estate investment firm JEN Partners. According to Beazer, the townhomes will be coming this spring.
