We really need as many people as possible to attend the upcoming public meetings. The message heard at these meetings will determine whether we still require librarians in our libraries, specialists in services to children and youth in our libraries, full staffing of our libraries with well trained and motivated staff, and much more. Please come out and speak up for your libraries and library services before it is too late.

http://annandaleva.blogspot.com/2013/10/lots-of-outrage-at-community-meeting-on.html

http://annandaleva.blogspot.com/2013/10/major-changes-on-way-for-fairfax-county.html

http://annandaleva.blogspot.com/2013/10/library-board-seeks-public-input-but.html

Dranesville District
Wed. Nov. 6, 7 p.m.
The Future of Fairfax County Public Library
Spring Hill Elementary School Cafeteria
8201 Lewinsville Rd., McLean
Contact: Karen Gates, 703-324-8324
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Dear neighbors,

Our County Supervisor, John Foust, recently sent an email out calling attention to several important upcoming meetings on the topic of transportation projects in Fairfax County.

I am very grateful to active members of our community who have lobbied to include several projects for Pimmit Hills on the list of projects that will be considered for funding (see below for a full description). However, we need your help to make these projects a reality.

The County is hosting several "Dialogue on Transportation" meetings, where you can voice the need for improvements to pedestrian facilities or roads (and introduce new ideas!).

In addition, you can voice your opinions via an online survey by first visiting www.fairfaxcounty.gov/fcdot/cdot and then https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/DGPZVQV for the survey itself (if you go straight to the survey, three key Pimmit Hills projects are IDs 150, 159 and 208).

http://www.wtop.com/120/3493746/Va-gov-calls-Greenway-tolls-a-burden-on-working-families

How much is too much to pay to get from the Capital Beltway to Leesburg?

A hearing before the Virginia State Corporation Commission, set for Nov. 12, could shake up a long-standing contract with a private company and determine what drivers pay.

That company, Toll Road Investors Partnership II, owns the 14-mile Dulles Greenway where tolls could go up again early next year under a long-standing contract between the state and the company.

Combined with tolls along the connecting Dulles Toll Road, it will cost $16.80 for a car to travel round-trip during peak hours once the latest rate hike takes effect for Dulles Toll Road drivers on Jan. 1.

http://www.wtop.com/149/3493220/Officials-Silver-Line-will-carry-passengers-in-February

Tysons Corner could be getting a long -waited Valentine's Day gift. Officials say the Silver Line could be ready in February.

After a few missed deadlines on the $2.8 billion Phase One of the Metro rail extension, and a lot of controversy, leaders on both sides of the project say they're confident it will be ready before March.

"We're still shooting for a November substantial completion. Obviously there's work we have to do between now and then," said Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority spokesman Christ Paolino. MWAA is building the line.

Paolino says the five stations and track will be turned over to Metro after the slated November completion. Then, Metro General Manager Richard Sarles says 90 days of training and testing are needed before the Silver Line and its five new stations are open to passengers.

The line will run through Tysons Corner and to Wiehle Avenue at first. Phase Two, where construction is just beginning, will go to Dulles Airport and farther.

WTOP's Hank Silverberg contributed to this report. Follow @hsilverbergWTOP and @WTOP on Twitte

http://www.wtop.com/149/3493372/Vandals-shoot-destroy-windows-of-60-cars-in-Fairfax-County

Vandals destroyed the windows of more than 60 cars over the past two nights in Fairfax County, police say.

Fairfax County police are asking for the public's help to solve the cases.

They say the vandal or vandals used a BB gun early Monday morning and early Tuesday morning, targeting cars in the Centreville area.

In the Sully District, reports of broken windows came in from Little Run, Rocky Run, Singleton's Grove, Old Centreville Crossing and the Green Trails communities.

Mitre’s 14-story office expansion has begun construction on Colshire Drive. It appears the building pre-dates new comprehensive plan standards and will be a single use office (perhaps with some employee dining included). It isn’t clear if the commercial interest of additional companies moving to Tysons (CVent, Mitre Expansion, Intelsat, etc) is acting as a stimulus on the residential development in the area. This upcoming year three high-rise residential projects will be delivered (Vita, Ascent, and Ovation) to be followed up by Hanover Arbor Row (already under construction) and four 2014 anticipated projects: Garfield Parcel by Cityline, Home Properties Arbor Row, Spring Hill Station building 2, and Tysons West mid-rise.

Speaking of Cvent, they announced a permanent home in Tysons with a lease of 130,000 sf at MRP’s campus on Solutions Drive. That lease will likely help accelerate plans for non-developed portions of the property (the parking lots) to be developed as the deal has drastically reduced the amount of vacant space at the property. Additional good news from the deal includes plans for Cvent to hire 400 new jobs. Some might consider the $1 million grant to the company to assist in their permanent office move had a lot to do with the decision. In reality that amount is less than 1% of what the company earns in revenue per year and likely had little to do with the decision. Cvent acknowledged that the Silver Line played a major role in their decision to stay in Tysons. (FCEDA)

Use this new smartphone friendly online tool to discover trails in Fairfax County

Fairfax Trail Buddy is a web-based mapping tool that allows you to discover Fairfax County's extensive network of over 900 miles of trails, bikeways and sidewalks for non-motorized transportation that have been mapped using a Geographic Information Systems database. Fairfax Trail Buddy also provides access to the Bike Fairfax Interactive Bike Map, which highlights the most desirable on-road and off-road bike routes for recreational and commuter bicyclists. The web map is accessible from all types of devices and operating systems.

On Trail Use with a Smartphone: Taking the Fairfax Trail Buddy with you on your hike is easy and requires downloading a free mobile application. For iPhones and iPad devices, go to the itunes App Store and search for the ArcGIS application and install it to your device. For Android devices go to Google Play Store and search for the ArcGIS application and install it on your device.

For more information visit the Trail Buddy website at http://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/parks/trails.

The Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority continues with final work on Phase I of the Silver Line Metrorail service. The new line runs from East Falls Church to Wiehle Avenue on the eastern edge of Reston with four stations in Tysons (McLean Station, Tysons Station, Greensboro Station, Spring Hill Station) and one Reston station (Wiehle-Reston East Station).

Silver Line Phase I is now 96% complete. Project completion was originally scheduled for December 31, 2013, but has been delayed several weeks. The Wiehle garage is 99% complete and was recently tested with simulated Connector bus operations. The Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority now projects that service will commence on the Phase I Silver Line in early 2014.

Phase II is projected to be completed in 2018. This final 11-mile section of the Silver Line includes six stations: Reston Town Center, Herndon, Innovation Center, Dulles International Airport, Route 606 and Route 772. In May of this year, the design and construction contract was awarded to Capital Rail Constructors, a joint venture of Clark Construction Group and Kiewit Infrastructure South Co.

Also, metro has launched a new website, www.silverlinemetro.com, to provide information on the Silver Line. The site will be updated frequently with new service details, destinations, and partner information. If you have additions to suggest or links you would like Metro to include, please email your comments to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

For construction-related emergencies including noise, please use the project HOTLINE at 877-585-6789. For further information about the project, please visit the project website at www.dullesmetro.com or call 703-572-0506.

For more information about the Metro Silver Line project, please contact Benjamin Wiles in the office of Supervisor John Foust at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

Sponsored by Supervisor Foust and the McLean Citizens Association

On September 26, in recognition of September as "National Preparedness Month",Dranesville Supervisor John Foust and the McLean Citizens Association (MCA) sponsored a program titled "The 2012 Derecho Storm: Lessons Learned and Improvements Made". The event included an in-depth discussion by high level County officials and Dominion Virginia Power experts, focusing on what was learned from the massive storm and what steps have been taken to make improvements across all facets of emergency preparedness and response. Also included was a discussion on how residents can be better prepared for emergencies. Participating in the panel were David Rohrer, Deputy County Executive for Public Safety; Steve Souder, Director of Public Safety Communications for Fairfax County; Roy Shrout, Deputy Coordinator, Fairfax County Emergency Management Department; Steve Willey, Lead Instructor for Community Emergency Response Team (CERT); and Tim Sargent, Government Affairs Director, Dominion Virginia Power. MCA President, Sally Horn and Dranesville Supervisor John Foust also addressed the group.

The Derecho hit Fairfax County at approximately 10:00 p.m. on June 29, 2012. Its fury was felt throughout the area. After every emergency, the County reviews its performance and prepares an after-action report. After the Derecho, Supervisor Foust and Mt. Vernon District Supervisor Gerry Hyland introduced a motion that directed staff to address specific issues in the report and to make recommendations for improving response to future disaster events. Much of the September 26 presentation covered material requested by their motion.

Board of Supervisors Considering Changes to Zoning Ordinance to Allow Residential Studio Units
Tuesday, October 22, 2013 10:01 AM | Anonymous member
The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors is considering amending the County's zoning ordinance to expand affordable housing options in the County. As currently proposed by County staff, the amendment would allow up to 75 Residential Studio Units (RSUs) of up to 500 square feet in size, in most residential, commercial and industrial districts and in all planned development districts. RSUs would only be allowed by the approval of a special exception or as part of a rezoning.

The Board of Supervisors raised several concerns about the proposal as presented by staff and directed the Fairfax County Planning Commission to conduct public outreach sessions and to consider recommending revisions. As part of that process, Supervisor Foust has asked staff and the Planning Commission to consider options that would exclude low density residential zoning from the ordinance. The Planning Commission's public hearing on the RSU amendment is now scheduled for late February 2014.