Document-Shredding Program Set for Saturday — The Fairfax County Solid Waste Management Program will sponsor a secure-document shredding event at the North County Human Services building (1850 Cameron Glen Drive) on Saturday morning. Residents can have up to four boxes of materials of a sensitive nature, such as tax documents and financial records, shredded. [Fairfax County]
Board of Supervisors Adopts Resolution on Diversity, Inclusion — At their meeting Tuesday, Supervisors voted to reaffirm that the county is “a welcoming and accepting community where residents of all backgrounds deserve to feel respected and safe.” [Sharon Bulova/Facebook]
Checkers to Expand in D.C. Region — The fast-food chain plans to open 20 locations in the Metro area and is currently in the process of seeking franchisees. [Washington Business Journal]
Longtime Coach Goes Into Local Hall of Fame — Al McCullock, who won 235 games and two regional championships in 15 years as Herndon High School’s baseball coach, was recently inducted into NOVA Baseball Magazine’s “Home Plate Club” Hall of Fame. [NOVA Baseball Magazine]
Beware of Bears as Weather Warms — The Fairfax County Police Department is sharing precautions for how to keep bears away and what to do should you encounter one. They say while bears tend to avoid humans, they sometimes wander into suburban areas in search of food. [Fairfax County Police Department]
Image via @NickDowsett on Twitter
CenterStage Has Full April Schedule — Programming next month at CenterStage (2310 Colts Neck Road) will include concerts by Trout Fishing in America and Le Mystère des Voix Bulgares, as well as performances from The Reduced Shakespeare Company and more. [Reston Community Center]
Founder’s Day to Feature Several Local Authors — Kristina Alcorn, Eric MacDicken, Watt Hamlett, Jill Olinger Vinson, Chuck Cascio, Chuck Veatch, Claudia Thompson-Deahl and Karen See will all be showcasing their work at Reston Community Center’s Jo Ann Rose Gallery (1609 Washington Plaza N.) at part of Founder’s Day festivities April 8. [Reston Historic Trust]
County Reaffirms Focus on Curbing Hate — At an event over the weekend in Annandale, representatives of Fairfax County police, schools and government gathered to hammer home the county’s stance against hate speech, bias and hate crimes. Sharon Bulova, chairman of the county Board of Supervisors, plans to continue the discussion at the board’s April 4 meeting. [WTOP]
Reston Company Faces Delisting by Nasdaq — NCI Inc., an IT services provider, has not released its 2016 financial information in a timely fashion, the stock exchange says. [Washington Business Journal]
Lieutenant Governor in Reston Tonight — Ralph Northam, Virginia’s lieutenant governor and a Democratic candidate for governor in the 2017 election, will be a guest speaker tonight at a meeting of Herndon-Reston Indivisible. Other speakers will be Del. Ken Plum (D-Fairfax) and Del. Jennifer Boysko (D-Fairfax/Loudoun). The meeting will start at 6:30 p.m. at Sunset Hills Montessori School (11180 Ridge Heights Road). [Herndon-Reston Indivisible]
Bulova: ‘Painful Cuts’ in Proposed Federal Budget — The chair of the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors says she is hopeful the local congressional delegation will address what she sees as a number of problems with the Trump administration’s budget proposal, unveiled last week. [Sharon Bulova/Facebook]
Arrests Made in Chantilly Gun Store Heist — Two 23-year-old men and a 19-year-old man have been arrested in connection with the theft of 35 guns from a Chantilly store earlier this month. The men are also charged in the theft of firearms from two shops in Fredericksburg. They each face up to 10 years in prison. [U.S. Department of Justice]
Digital Marketing Agency Opens New Office — Baltimore-based Jellyfish has opened a new office at RTC West (12120 Sunset Hills Road). The office will house more than 20 employees and serves as the development and technology hub for the agency. Five job openings are available. [Jellyfish]
A groundbreaking ceremony was held Wednesday to kick off construction of a new parking garage at the Herndon-Monroe Park and Ride, which will service the forthcoming Herndon Metro Station as part of the Silver Line extension.
Several local elected officials were on hand with shovels to make the first ceremonial dig, including Fairfax County Board of Supervisors Chairman Sharon Bulova.
“As we celebrate the ground-breaking of this new multi-modal parking facility, we reaffirm our efforts to provide alternatives to single-occupancy vehicles, to improve mobility, and to provide greater opportunities for people to connect with the entire metro region and the rest of the world,” Bulova said in a statement.
The new garage will have spaces for 2,007 cars, as well as feature a pedestrian bridge leading from the new garage to the future Metro station, and connections for both cars and pedestrians to the existing Herndon-Monroe Park and Ride lot, which contains 1,745 parking spaces.
The new garage also will have secure bicycle storage facilities, a spot for bus pick-offs and drop-offs and a “kiss-and-ride” area.
Construction of the garage, done by Manhattan Construction Co., will cost $44.5 million, and is expected to wrap up in the spring 2019, Fairfax County officials said.
Though officially named the Herndon Metro station, the stop is technically located at 12530 Sunrise Valley Dr. in Reston, just across the street from the border with Herndon.
Photo courtesy of Fairfax County Department of Transportation
Fairfax County Board of Supervisors Chair Sharon Bulova has been named by Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe as a member of the Board of Visitors for the University of Mary Washington.
Board of Visitors serve a four-year term and may be appointed to an additional term. Another high-profile person from this area, Greater Reston Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Mark Ingrao, is on the UMW Board.
“I thank Governor McAuliffe for this appointment and am honored to serve in this capacity,” said Bulova in a release. “The University of Mary Washington is a top-notch institution and I look forward to working with board, faculty and staff members of the university. My daughter Karin graduated UMW in 1993 and has many happy memories of her years on campus.”
Said McAuliffe:Â “Virginia’s economic future runs through our colleges and universities, and the leaders I appointed to Boards of Visitors this year understand the imperative to strengthen our academic institutions and make them more accessible to students from all walks of life. I ask each [Board member] to use his or her knowledge and experience to foster innovation at their institutions, to keep the burden of tuition as low as possible and to emphasize access and completion for every student.”
Sharon Bulova/file photo
Fairfax County Board of Supervisors Chair Sharon Bulova says she will have surgery soon to correct a throat issue and will take part of the month of August off to recover.
Bulova sent out this statement Monday:
The Board of Supervisors will not be meeting during the month of August and during the first week in September.
I will be taking advantage of this time to address a medical issue that began in March when my right vocal cord became paralyzed, affecting my ability to speak. My voice has returned, but testing as a result of this episode revealed a nodule on the right side of my thyroid.
In mid-August, I will be undergoing a medical procedure to remove the nodule and part of my thyroid. This will be outpatient surgery and hopefully will not require a followup procedure.
My office has declined a number of invitations for events that have been scheduled during this time period. I am sharing this information to explain my absence and also to assure the community that, as always, I will be in constant contact with e-mails, my office and County staff.
I look forward to being back in the saddle after the Labor Day holiday weekend and serving as your Chairman.
Sharon Bulova
Chairman, Fairfax County Board of Supervisors
Fairfax County Supervisor Chair Sharon Bulova has been appointed by Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe to serve on a new commission on ethics in state government.
McAuliffe on Thursday signed signed Executive Order 28, which establishes the Commission to Ensure Integrity and Public Confidence in State Government.
The order comes in the wake of former Gov. Bob McDonnell and wife Maureen’s convictions for corruption.
Says the governor’s office: “The executive order identifies the broad priorities of the governor in his pursuit of a better state government, including meaningful rules for the ethical conduct of state officials, procedures for ensuring accountability to the electorate, and policies guiding the selection and service of high quality public servants.”
The 10-member commission will provide the governor with recommendations in December 2014 on ethics laws and policies with the goal of pursuing legislation during the Virginia General Assembly’s 2015 session, which begins in January, a release from the governor’s office said.
The commission will continue to meet in 2015 in order to study and make recommendations on other good government topics, including campaign finance, the selection and service of judges and other public officials, and gubernatorial terms.
“I am creating this commission because it is imperative that we foster a culture of professionalism in state government that attracts future leaders of the highest caliber,” McAuliffe said in a statement. “I want to guarantee superior service to the next generation of Virginians. And I want to establish an enduring culture of integrity on which this state can prosper. These are not merely my values. They are the essential covenant of democracy.”
McAuliffe, a Democrat, pointed out that the commission is bipartisan. It will be co-chaired by former state senator and U.S. Congressman Rick Boucher (D), of Abingdon and former Virginia Lt. Governor Bill Bolling (R).
Other members of the commission:
- Viola Baskerville, of Richmond, Chief Executive Officer of Girl Scouts of the Commonwealth of Virginia and former House of Delegates member
- John T. Casteen III, of Keswick, President Emeritus at the University of Virginia and former Virginia Secretary of Education
- Christopher Howard, of Hampden Sydney, President of Hampden-Sydney College
- Susan A. Magill, of Alexandria, Vice President for Advancement at George Washington’s Mount Vernon
- Courtney M. Malveaux, of Henrico County, a business attorney at ThompsonMcMullan and former Commissioner of Virginia’s Department of Labor and Industry
- Joe T. May, of Loudoun County, Â former Virginia House of Delegates member and chairman of its transportation committee
- John Sherman, Jr., of Richmond, former President and CEO of BB&T Scott & Stringfellow, Inc.
Photo: Fairfax County Supervisor Chair Sharon Bulova/ file photo
