October 29 – November 4, 2015
Fa lls Chur c h, V i r g i ni a • ww w. fc np. c om • Fr ee
Fou n d ed 1991 • Vol. XXV No. 36
Falls Church • Tysons Corner • Merrifield • McLean • North Arlington • Bailey’s Crossroads
Inside This Week Gross Challenged By Loeffler for Supervisor Supervisor Penny Gross is being challenged by independent Mollie Loeffler for her Mason District Supervisor char in next Tuesday’s election. See News Briefs, page 9
After 36 Years at TJ, Mrs. Ohr Retires
This Friday, Margaret Ohr, the longest serving employee at Thomas Jefferson Elementary, will retire from the school, 37 years after she started.
Controversy Roils as F.C. Council School Board Election is Tuesday T he F orbidden F orest
3-Year-Old Support Letters for Gardner Anger Many Voters
by Nicholas F. Benton
Falls Church News-Press
week, was improper when she prevented action on a motion and second by board members to call for her resignation. He cited Robert’s Rules of Order on the matter of a “motion to request leadership to step down effective immediately,” such that “a main motion that receives a
With the City of Falls Church election next Tuesday, the 13 candidates (five for three seats on the City Council and eight for three seats on the School Board) are expected to continue campaigning fervently in what has become to long-time observers, by far the most contentious race in the City’s history. There were races in the 1950s, in particular, when fights over integration of the schools became very nasty, and in one case an entire School Board, appointed in those days, resigned en masse. Not since School Board positions became subject to general elections in 1994 have there been so many candidates and such division. The theme for the City Council race – with five candidates seeking three posts, including incumbents Mayor David Tarter and Phil Duncan, former Council members coming back for another shot at the job, Johannah Barry and Sam Mabry, and newcomer Letty Hardi – has evolved to a choice between a moratorium on more mixed use development for the City and momentum to continue that growth for its wide benefits on the tax base and quality of life. That is, it’s “moratorium versus momentum,” with Barry and Mabry coming out of veritable public service retirement to campaign for a moratorium, and Duncan, Hardi and Tarter pushing for continued momentum. In the School Board race, two incumbents are on the ballot seeking re-election, current chair Justin
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See page 26
David Brooks: A Sensible Version of Donald Trump
The voters, especially on the Republican side, seem to be despising experience this year and are looking for outsiders. Hence we have the rise of Donald Trump and Ben Carson. See page 16
Press Pass with Garbage
Commemorating the 20th anniversary of the release of their self-titled debut album, the legendary 90s rock group Garbage rolls through 9:30 Club for a two-night engagement starting Wednesday. See page 32
FOR THE 13TH YEAR, the Devlins of Hemlock Drive in Falls Church have transformed their garage and yard into a haunted house for Halloween. This year, the theme is Harry Potter’s Wizarding World and their property includes a replica Hogwarts, Forbidden Forest – complete with Aragog spider – Whomping Willow, Hagrid’s Hut, Quidditch stadium, Voldemort and more. The Devlins hold an open house each Halloween for trick or treaters, providing candy, cupcakes, candy apples and, special for this year, polyjuice potion. (Photo: News-Press)
Legal Opinion: SPEAC Chair Was Wrong Quashing Motion by Nicholas F. Benton
Falls Church News-Press
Index
Editorial..................6 Letters..............6, 23 News & Notes.14-15 Comment......... 16-19 Sports..................24 Food & Dining......31
Business News....33 Calendar.........34-35 Classified Ads .....36 Comics, Sudoku & Crossword...........37 Critter Corner.......38
The in-house legal counsel of the Falls Church School Board issued an opinion this week that found the action chair of the Schools’ Special Education Advisory Committee last week – to deny a motion and second in the meeting – was “improper.”
Attorney Thomas W. Horn wrote that he reviewed a tape of the meeting and consulted with a registered professional parliamentarian before rending a two-page, single-spaced review and opinion. In particular, the action by the Special Education Advisory Committee, or SPEAC, chair Becky Smerdon, a candidate for election to the School Board next
PAGE 2 | OCTOBER 29 – NOVEMBER 4, 2015
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OCTOBER 29 – NOVEMBER 4, 2015 | PAGE 3
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Legal Opinion: SPEAC Chair’s Block of Vote Was ‘Improper’ Continued from Page 1
second should be brought before the committee for discussion before moving to any other business.” Horn said that “It appears that a main motion was offered and seconded” at last week’s meeting, “Without a ruling by the chair on the main motion, and without debate on the motion, the meeting moved into another order of business. This was improper.” In the case of last week’s meeting which drew considerable controversy in the wake of the upcoming School Board election and Smerdon’s legal filing of a petition in the Arlington Circuit
Court against the School Board, four parent members of the committee (parents of special needs students) called for a vote on the motion and second calling for Smerdon’s resignation. Smerdon ruled the action “out of order” and moved to the next item on the meeting’s agenda. One citizen volunteer committee member then called for the committee to be dissolved because “the atmosphere had become so bad.” Smerdon wrote a post online later that night claiming “a vote violates our committee by-laws and Robert’s Rules. But that claim was disputed by this week’s legal opinion by the Schools’ staff attorney, which the School Board’s
John Lawrence, its liaison to the SPEAC, requested after last week’s meeting. Even if a chair rules a motion out of order, “the committee could appeal the chair’s ruling, debate the chair’s ruling, and with a majority vote of the committee overturn the chair’s ruling,” Horn noted. “Parliamentary procedure is a complex set of rules and this review is limited to the events as I saw them on the video,” Horn wrote. “The most important takeaway is that parliamentary rules should ensure that the will of the committee as a whole will rule, while respecting the rights of the minority view and each individual member.”
In a letter to the full School Board last week, Bronwen Rankin, a parent of a special needs child who supported the call for Smerdon’s resignation, saying that at the SPEAC meeting “five committee members cited difficulties in the leadership and climate of the meetings, making it hard to move forward as a productive group.” Five of the seven parent members of the committee who spoke about the lack of collaboration in the leadership, lack of civility in the meetings, a feeling that if they spoke up in meetings they would be attacked, and feeling belittled by the leadership when opinions are expressed.” Asked to respond to Rankin’s
statement last week, Smerdon wrote to the News-Press, “As a school board candidate my focus encompasses a broad set of issues that affect our children, such a improving educational experiences for all students and supporting educator effectiveness. My candidacy is much more than one topic, as important as the topic is. The continued and critical focus on the SPEAC detracts focus from the knowledge and experience I have and, more importantly, from my mission to support change where I believe it is needed. It provides cover for those who do not want change and especially for those who do not wish to lose control, including the FCNP.”
OCTOBER 29 – NOVEMBER 4, 2015 | PAGE 5
FALLS CHURCH NEWS-PRESS | FCNP.COM
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PAGE 6 | OCTOBER 29 - NOVEMBER 4, 2015
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Vol. XXV, No. 36 October 29 - November 4, 2015 • City of Falls Church ‘Business of the Year’ 1991 & 2001 • • Certified by the Commonwealth of Virginia to Publish Official Legal Notices • • Member, Virginia Press Association •
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T� C������ ��� N���-P���� �����: 703-532-3267 ���: 703-342-0347 �����: ���������.��� ������� ����������� ��������.��� ���������� ��� �������������.��� ������� �� ��� ������ ������������.��� ������������� ������������ � �������� �������������.��� WWW.FCNP.COM The Falls Church News-Press is published weekly on Thursdays and is distributed free of charge throughout the City of Falls Church and the Greater Falls Church area. Offices are at 200 Little Falls St., #508, Falls Church, VA 22046. Reproduction of this publication in whole or part is prohibited except with the written permission of the publisher. ©2015 Benton Communications Inc. The News-Press is printed on recycled paper.
E D I TO R I A L
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The Election: Cooler Heads Prevail?
It is our hope that when it comes to the important Falls Church City election next Tuesday that in this intelligent and largely-reasonable community cooler heads might prevail over the fury that has exploded in the last week. Those on both sides of the central issues of economic development and quality schools would prefer citizens base their votes on the merits or not of the issues, rather than on unrelated inflamed passions. Right now, there are very impassioned views on more than one side of the issue of how appropriate or inappropriate it was for incumbent City Council candidate Phil Duncan, to join over a dozen citizens to pen a letter to the Arlington Circuit Court three years ago urging a more lenient, rather than harsh, sentencing for Michael Gardner, convicted of child abuse. There is no doubt that the crimes for which Gardner recently took a guilty plea were heinous and monstrous. But with his wife a popular mayor for years, and their two children to consider, Duncan was one among a number of citizens who, like our editor, was willing to comply with a request not to question the verdict, but to provide an expression of Christian charity, to seek a redemptive rather than vindictive outcome overall, with absolutely no ill intent toward the victims and their families. But clearly the letters deeply hurt the families of the victims and that is why Duncan and Revenue Commissioner Clinton expressed deep and heartfelt remorse in the past week, our editor sharing that remorse. Angry parents of one of the girls who were victims in the case released redacted versions of the letters on a web site associated with the campaign of Duncan’s rival in next Tuesday’s election, Sam Mabry, and have stirred strong (and legitimate) emotions in defense of their daughter against Duncan and the other letter writers. On the other side, some citizens have expressed indignation over the fact that the family, by going public, has made their daughter the centerpiece of a dispute among adults. Her identity thus revealed, she is no longer protected the way it always is for child victims. Despite her consent, according to her father, the child remains a minor. Still, in our view, in the interest of redemption, reconciliation and healing, we urge citizens to vote Tuesday with a mind to the major issues facing our community. Thus, we endorse for City Council the conscientious and dedicated Duncan, incumbent mayor David Tarter and highly-qualified newcomer Letty Hardi. We favor the good work and direction provided for the City by the current Council. For School Board, we endorse incumbent chair Justin Castillo, incumbent Kieran Sharpe and brilliant newcomer Erin Gill for the School Board, with “B Team” choices of newcomers Jacob Radcliffe and Philip Reitinger. We feel it is important to maintain the continuity of the board’s work on the City’s world renowned schools.
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Worried About FearMongering in Campaigns Editor, While I chose to raise my family in Falls Church City because of the schools and care deeply about their quality, other aspects of the community are also important to me. My vision for our Little City is simple: a wonderful, safe place to live, play, and raise a family. For me, that means walkable / bikeable streets; a vibrant, central, walking-accessible retail/ restaurant corridor (wouldn’t it be
wonderful if our stretch of Route 7 evolved to be as vibrant and varied as King Street in Alexandria?); high-quality, inquiry-based, reasonably-sized community schools that offer a range of academic and extracurricular opportunities to all of our children; and an active community of interconnected neighbors. I am deeply concerned about the fear-mongering infusing this campaign cycle. For one, keeping
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our schools exactly the same size as they are now does not ensure quality. Nor – if you actually look at the facts – does creating a vibrant semi-urban commercial corridor ensure that school quality will decline. I worry that making decisions about development based primarily on fear not facts will ruin the rich fabric of our Little City. Leadership of that nature would certainly necessitate our reconsidering our commitment to raising our family in the City of Falls Church. I hope the candidates elected will govern not out of fear, but instead out of a coherent vision for what the City of Falls Church can
and should be in 10-20 years. Our City deserves that. Bethany Henderson Falls Church
Momentum Isn’t Always A Good Thing Editor, The News-Press is full of information about candidates and their opinions, your opinions about development in the City, and lately a sunny, but not completely logical, guest commentary about
Letters Continued on Page 23
FALLS CHURCH NEWS-PRESS | FCNP.COM
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OCTOBER 29 - NOVEMBER 4, 2015 | PAGE 7
Without New Development, Taxes Will Increase B� C���� � K������ Z��������
Recent development trends and the current election campaign have stirred up an intense debate about the future direction of our Little City. Having spoken at length with Council members, City staff, developers and others, and having reviewed much of the available data on our schools, City budgets and financial information, and the history of population growth and development in the City, and living on one of the busier side streets that has seen a fair bit of residential redevelopment, we understand and appreciate many of the opinions and perspectives expressed by people in our community. However, the one thing that has become very clear from this discussion is that these issues are dynamic not static. And, therefore, the situation we face with our taxes and schools is not the result of any one reason but rather a complexity of factors. We need to recognize one simple fact – as a tiny jurisdiction, the City only has so much land from which it can generate the revenue needed to support our community. The only way to have better schools, a more vibrant and walkable downtown, and enhanced green space is to find opportunities to support these goals with greater revenue generation. Development provides the opportunity to put undervalued and underused land to better use to support the City as a whole. Without new development,
the only obvious alternative is an increase in the already high tax rate. The net effect of the development projects in the City has provided greater resources to keep taxes in check while providing more revenue for City services. For example, since 2002 the six mixed-
“To suggest that a moratorium or a pause on development of our commercial space will somehow save or reduce burdens on our schools is unsupported by reality.” use projects – the Broadway, Byron, Spectrum, Read Building, Pearson Square, and Northgate – have yielded $2.8 million per year in net revenue to the City. In addition, developers of these projects have contributed $3.4 million for school capital needs. Those who argue for a moratorium on development in the City seem to be forcing us to resolve our issues through
tax increases (or are willing to accept that we won’t be able to take necessary steps to improve our schools). With surrounding jurisdictions offering great location and schools at a lower tax burden, pursuing this path would achieve nothing more than drive more of our residents out of town. With regard to our school system, while it is true that mixed use projects have added children to our schools, these projects represent only a minority of the growth in our schools. The numbers published by the School Board show that the majority of the growth in our schools over the course of the years has come from residential redevelopment, existing housing stock, and the development of substandard and split lots. We have added a significant number of single family homes over the past several years, as a result of split lot development. The residential developers and former residents made a windfall from this and those remaining are paying the price. To us, this has been the real problem in our City. To suggest that a moratorium or a pause on development of our commercial space will somehow save or reduce burdens on our schools is unsupported by reality. We cannot control the inflow of families and outflow of empty nesters in our town. It is hard to understand how we can manage the net effect of the residential and student increase that will occur from single family home turnover without continuing com-
mercial development activity to provide additional revenue. Absent development, we will need to increase property taxes yet again. We fear higher taxes will simply drive more empty-nesters from our community with the likely result that additional children will arrive, further burdening our already stretched system. Because these development projects take years to review and build, we cannot afford to halt efforts to attract new, smart development projects that can help solve our financial problems and provide the necessary resources for our City and schools. We should not let perfect be the enemy of the good. To assume that the growth and increased demand on City services can be managed without commercial growth in the City seems entirely unworkable without significantly increasing property taxes. Development may not be perfect, but it does offer the best way forward to help deal with variables we cannot control in our City. Our best hope is to use the opportunities we have with development projects to stem the tide and work towards increasing commercial revenue that we will enjoy as residents, and which will hopefully serve to retain empty nesters and create a revenue stream from those living in close proximity to our City. We can’t stem the traffic created by development outside the City, but we can support development that will create revenue to support our City and schools!
Q������� �� ��� W��� Has the revelation of support letters for Michael Gardner affected your decisions for Tuesday’s election? • Yes
Last Week’s Question: Have the F.C. City Council and School Board races become too negative?
• No • Don’t know
Log on to www.FCNP.com to cast your vote
FCNP On-Line polls are surveys, not scientific polls.
[WRITE FOR THE PRESS] The News-Press welcomes readers to send in submissions in the form of Letters to the Editor
& Guest Commentaries. Letters to the Editor should be no more than 350 words and writers are limited to one appearance every four weeks. Guest Commentaries should be no more than 800 words and writers are limited to one appearance every four months. Because of space constraints, not all submissions will be published. All submissions to the News-Press should be original, unpublished content. We reserve the right to edit submissions for length, grammar and accuracy. All submissions should include writer’s name, address, phone and e-mail address if available.
Email: letters@fcnp.com | Mail: Letters to the Editor, Falls Church News-Press, 200 Little Falls St., #508, Falls Church 22046 | Fax: 703.340.0347
PAGE 8 | OCTOBER 29 – NOVEMBER 4, 2015
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FALLS CHURCH NEWS-PRESS | FCNP.COM
Contentious Races Lead to F.C. City Election Tuesday Continued from Page 1
Castillo and long-time member Kieran Sharpe. Also running and seeking a seat on the board for the first time are Erin Gill, Mark Kaye, Alison Kutchma, Jacob Radcliff, Philip Reitinger and Becky Smerdon. Since Tuesday of last week, however, another element has muddied the waters in the campaign, the sudden release through a website associated with Mabry of redacted texts of more than a dozen letters written by prominent local figures, including Duncan, to the Arlington Circuit Court urging the judge in the case of the conviction on child sexual abuse charges of Michael Gardner, husband of the former mayor Robin Gardner, for relative leniency in the imposition of his penalty. This has created a firestorm of controversy, as the Mabrylinked website obtained through the “freedom of information act” (FOIA) the entire mailing list for the City Schools’ announcements and began using it. The anger that flowed from this has been palpable and the candidates reported beginning to feel it in their door-to-door campaigning. Thus, at last Monday’s Falls Church City Council meeting, Duncan threw himself at the proverbial mercy of the Falls Church community, seeking forgiveness for “misjudging Michael Gardner’s character.” Duncan’s apology followed one that Commissioner of the Revenue Tom Clinton brought to the podium for the same reason. Their letters did not challenge the verdict but did seek a lesser rather than greater prison term for Gardner. In fact, in that case, the Virginia Supreme Court overturned Gardner’s conviction and it was when a new victim surfaced a year ago that a new arrest of Gardner occurred. A new trial was to begin last month and resulted in a guilty plea by Gardner at its outset. The letters first hit the Mabrylinked website on Oct. 20 and the parent who was responsible for posting them revealed his name, thus exposing the identity of his daughter. In a subsequent televised interview on a D.C. television station this week, the mother of the victim, identified in the clip, said openly that she hoped the expose of Duncan’s letter
THE ISSUE OF the actions by more than a dozen local �igures to write letters three years ago appealing for a shorter rather than longer term for convicted child sexual abuser Michael Gardner took the form of signs like this one on the eve of the City’s election next Tuesday (P����: N���-P����) would influence the outcome of next week’s election. (In a related development, the parents of the victim joined their names as applicants of a petition filed by a group of parents, including by School Board candidate Smerdon, in the Arlington Circuit Court, against the Falls Church School System in a matter unrelated to the Gardner case. This was filed last month, before the parents released any information about the letters.) In comments posted on the News-Press web page this week, the father of one of the victims defended the identification of his daughter. “Most of this community knew our daughter’s involvement, and she gave us her blessing to move forward and ask for change in this community. We need leaders with integrity,” he wrote. Additionally, in a statement to the News-Press received yesterday, the father of another of the girl victims wrote, “The letters are a disgusting display of misplaced loyalty and demonstrate a concentration of improper, unchecked influence that remains a threat to the community.” Citizens who came forward to speak at this Monday’s City Council meeting punctuated their criticisms of Duncan with calls for “mending the breach of the public trust” he allegedly caused by the Council’s collective effort to adopt a Code of Ethics. Mayor Tarter, Vice Mayor David Snyder and Nader Baroukh spoke up in favor of such an effort. Ken Currle of the City Sunoco spoke to offer $200 to help support the girl victims.
But counterveiling the harsh criticism directed against Duncan, civility emerged from an unexpected source when the venerable head of the City’s Republican Committee, Ken Feltman, wrote on Duncan’s Facebook page last week. Duncan is a Democrat, although the City elections are non-partisan. Feltman wrote in part (with minor edits), “This ‘grim saga’ has become our community’s ‘ruins’ – so divisive that all of us, willing or not, are now part of it. Yes, a clever, conflicted, manipulative man, driven by urges that overcame his judgment and even his concern for his own family, has divided our community. Only the most insensitive would not have compassion for all those who have been touched by this selfishness, starting with the victims and their families and extending surely to Mr. Gardner’s family. Feltman added, “Now, let’s rebuild. We can start by ignoring those who would search the ruins for stones to throw. Probably, those who now attack Duncan do not understand the purpose in the law of letters such as the ones he wrote to the court. Clearly, they do not understand him. “Phil, I know you and most of the others who responded to the request for letters. Collectively, you represent a generation of leadership in Falls Church. We may differ politically, but all of us, individually and together, have a responsibility to learn from this community tragedy as we rebuild. “The stones from these ruins should be used for rebuilding, not for throwing.”
FALLS CHURCH NEWS-PRESS | FCNP.COM
LO CA L
Fa l l s C h u r c h
NEWS BRIEFS
Johannah Barry for City Council
The City of Falls Church is a jewel, with a vibrant spirit and a sense of community far larger than can be contained in 2.2 square miles. This unique sense of place is what has attracted so many of us to live, work, and enjoy all that the City provides. Despite our size, the economic and social complexities of managing and balancing the needs of our residents are significant.
Shields Wins Leadership Award The Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments honored Wyatt Shields with its 2015 Institute for Regional Excellence Visionary Leadership Award on October 23. Shields, who serves as City Manager of the City of Falls Church, was praised for his accomplishments in the city as well as his commitment to regional partnership during the graduation ceremony of 23 new Certified Public Managers of the insti- Wyatt Shields (left) and COG executive director Chuck tute. Shields was recognized for developing the Bean. (Photo: Bill Petros) city’s annual Legislation Program, and tracking key issues for the City Council on Capitol Hill and in Richmond, which helped secure millions in federal and state funds for transportation and other improvements. Officials also noted that Shields is an active leader on Council of Governments’, or COG’s, Chief Administrative Officers Committee, and he has encouraged city staff members to participate with their regional counterparts in COG programs and activities, like the Institute for Regional Excellence. “Wyatt Shields is an energetic and effective leader, who lives up to the City of Falls Church’s reputation of regional engagement,” said COG Executive Director Chuck Bean. “He’s a leader who understands the value of sharing ideas and data and developing solutions across borders in order to create a better region.” Shields has served as City Manager since January 2007. He previously served as Acting City Manager. Prior to joining the City of Falls Church, Shields served as Town Administrator of Scottsville, Virginia. He also worked for Dominion Virginia Power as well as former U.S. Senator Charles S. Robb.
As a former City Council member and CEO and founder of an international conservation organization, I bring real-world experience to the table and I will ensure that our City’s values – diversity, inclusivity, innovation, and sustainability – continue to take center stage in the decisions we make regarding our economic future.
I ask for your vote on November 3. www.johannahbarryforcitycouncil.com
Gross Bids for 6th Re-Election Tuesday Mason District Supervisor Penny Gross has run an aggressive campaign this fall in pursuit of a sixth four year term. The Democrat is being challenged by independent Mollie Loeffler who has the endorsement of former Republican congressman and Mason District Supervisor Tom Davis and the Fairfax GOP. “I love my job and I am working hard to keep it,” Gross said. “I and my supporters have knocked on 55,000 doors in the last year, and we are finding amazing support,” she said. Programs to better certify the workforce at the high school and community college levels are among her priorities. Loeffler, who appeared with Gross at a Mason District League of Women Voters event at the Wilson School last week, says “I will bring fresh ideas and a new perspective to the Mason District. We need to grow our business districts, apply fiscal responsibility to new development and take better care of our schools.” The election is next Tuesday.
OCTOBER 29 – NOVEMBER 4, 2015 | PAGE 9
Paid for and authorized by Johannah Barry, Johannah Barry Treasurer
Mark Kaye for School Board
I-66 Outside Beltway Plan is Approved The Commonwealth Transportation Board approved Tuesday the recommended design concept, known as the “Preferred Alternative,” for the I-66 Outside the Beltway Project, as well as a phased implementation approach. The preferred alternative is a combination of various alternatives that were evaluated over the past year to improve 25 miles of I-66 from I-495 in Fairfax County to Route 15 in Haymarket. These multimodal improvements, which reflect extensive public input received at nearly 200 public meetings held since January 2014, are expected to move more people throughout the I-66 corridor, reduce hours of congestion per day, and reduce cut-through traffic on local roads. The preferred alternative consists of two express lanes alongside three regular lanes in each direction, with space in the median for future transit; dedicated express lanes access points; safety and operational improvements at key interchanges throughout the corridor; new transit services such as new and expanded park and ride lots and bus service; and corridor-wide bikeway, trail, and sidewalk improvements. Due to the cost and complexity of the proposed improvements, the board has approved a phased implementation approach. Phase 1 extends the express lanes for 22 of the original 25 miles, from 495 to Gainesville, (University Boulevard), and then transitions to a traditional HOV lane in each direction. Phase 1 also proposes retaining existing ramps and bridges, and converting them to express lanes access points, at Monument Drive and Stringfellow Road, rather than rebuilding these interchanges.
Water Main Break Blocks Traffic on S. Maple From 2 a.m. Tuesday to 5 p.m. that afternoon, in the 300 block of S. Maple Avenue adjacent the construction of the new Lincoln at Tinner Hill mixed use project, a water main break was discovered and then repaired, closing traffic in the block for the day. Fairfax Water responded to the first reports of the break and undertook the repairs.
• • • •
More Resources to Kids and Teachers Preserve Small Town Size of the Schools Budget Transparency and Efficient Planning GMHS: NO Rush to Secretive Developer Driven Land Deals That Will Add 100’s of Apartments
We Can Do Better www.KayeForFCCSchools.com KayeForFCCSchools@gmail.com Authorized by Mark Kaye. Mark Kaye, Treasurer
PAGE 10 | OCTOBER 29 – NOVEMBER 4, 2015
FALLS CHURCH NEWS-PRESS | FCNP.COM
FALLS CHURCH NEWS-PRESS | FCNP.COM
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OCTOBER 29 – NOVEMBER 4, 2015 | PAGE 11
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䄀氀椀 愀渀搀 䨀漀栀渀 䰀愀瀀瀀 䈀爀椀琀琀愀渀礀 愀渀搀 䴀椀欀攀 匀愀欀愀琀愀 䔀洀椀氀椀攀 䘀愀爀椀猀 䌀栀愀爀氀椀攀 愀渀搀 䜀椀渀最攀爀 䴀漀漀爀攀 䈀氀愀渀挀愀 匀渀礀搀攀爀 䬀爀椀猀琀椀渀愀 䰀甀渀搀 愀渀搀 䈀攀渀琀漀渀 䤀瘀攀猀 䬀愀琀栀礀 匀栀甀瀀攀 䴀愀爀礀欀愀琀攀 愀渀搀 䄀搀愀洀 䠀甀最栀攀猀 䴀愀爀琀礀 愀渀搀 䌀漀爀礀 圀攀椀猀猀 䴀愀琀琀 䴀愀搀搀攀渀 䴀攀爀攀氀礀渀 䬀愀礀攀 匀愀爀愀栀 愀渀搀 䜀攀漀û 匀栀漀眀猀 䴀愀爀最愀爀攀琀 䬀愀樀攀挀欀愀猀 䨀攀渀渀椀 䨀攀渀渀椀昀攀爀 䄀渀搀攀爀猀漀渀 䨀漀栀渀 愀渀搀 䨀甀洀愀渀愀 䴀椀猀氀攀栀 䐀椀愀渀攀 娀愀渀攀琀琀椀 䨀漀搀礀 匀渀礀搀攀爀 䄀渀最攀氀椀渀愀 䰀漀瀀攀稀 愀渀搀 倀攀琀攀爀 䰀甀渀搀焀甀椀猀琀 䐀愀瘀攀 䌀栀愀瘀攀爀渀 匀栀攀礀 圀愀欀攀氀攀礀 䈀爀椀搀最攀琀 䬀爀愀昀琀 䬀愀琀栀礀 刀漀渀搀漀渀 䔀搀攀渀 愀渀搀 䄀搀搀椀猀漀渀 䠀攀愀爀搀 匀甀猀愀渀 䐀椀洀漀挀欀 䨀愀渀椀攀 一栀愀洀 䬀漀洀愀氀 䈀愀稀愀稀 匀洀椀琀栀 䨀攀猀猀 愀渀搀 䨀攀猀猀 愀渀搀 吀漀洀 匀愀戀漀 䈀愀爀戀愀爀愀 吀眀椀最最 愀渀搀 刀愀渀搀礀 刀愀戀椀渀 䐀愀瘀攀 匀瀀攀瘀愀挀攀欀 䐀攀戀戀椀攀 䠀椀猀挀漀琀琀 䜀椀渀愀 䌀愀挀攀挀椀 䴀椀挀栀愀攀氀 䈀甀琀攀爀愀 吀漀戀礀 刀甀猀猀攀氀氀 圀椀氀氀 愀渀搀 䐀攀戀漀爀愀栀 䴀甀攀氀氀攀爀 䰀椀稀 愀渀搀 䨀愀洀攀猀 圀攀愀琀栀攀爀氀礀 䠀攀挀琀漀爀 䌀爀攀猀瀀漀 䌀漀氀氀攀攀渀 一最甀礀攀渀 䴀攀爀攀搀椀琀栀 䐀漀渀渀攀氀氀礀 倀愀甀氀 䘀攀爀最甀猀漀渀 䈀爀椀愀渀 愀渀搀 䈀爀椀愀渀 愀渀搀 䄀搀攀渀愀 圀椀氀氀椀愀洀猀 䄀猀栀氀椀攀 刀愀猀洀甀猀猀攀渀 䄀洀礀 刀漀最攀爀猀 䌀栀愀搀 愀渀搀 吀愀洀洀礀 䔀椀猀攀氀攀
PAGE 12 | OCTOBER 29 – NOVEMBER 4, 2015
FALLS CHURCH NEWS-PRESS | FCNP.COM
Your Falls Church Neighborhood Office Get additional Info @ www.fallschurchva.com
Woodbridge $310,000 So much for the money! 4BR/ 2.5BA, Hrdwd Flr, Gar+ Much More. 1/2 Acre Call Omar Sherzai, 703-534-9660
$1,549,000 Falls Church Waterfront Home! Totally Renovated w/new kit, baths, HVAC, elec, hrdwd flr– can’t list them all. Call Ghada or Hazim Barakat 703-534-9660
Falls Church $689,500 Well Maintained & updated! 4BR/2BA Great Kit, hrdwd flrs, 3 Fls, 2 patios, 8 mi to DC Karen Freije (703) 534-9660
Beautiful 2BR/ 2FB Corner Unit, Loads of Closets, Bright & Sunny W on’t Last! Call: Jennifer Talati 703-534-9660
Centreville $250,000 Just Move In! Meticulously Maintained 3BR/ 1.5BA TH, Tons of storage & Close to Everything Call Marin Kinov 703-534-9660
$307,000 Oakton 2BR/ 2FB LOTS of Space! Granite Counters, Skylights, Large Balcony Call Ellen Heather 703-534-9660
Annandale $410,000 Gorgeous end unit TH 4BR/3.5BA Hrdwd flrs, So much for the money. MUST SEE! Call: Carolina Santa Cruz 703-534-9660
Falls Church $649,000 Great 4BR/ 3.5BA TH Close to Everything & Metro Bus at Front Door! *Rare Opportunity! Call Will Farnam 703-534-9660
Fairfax Cily $449,000 All new interior! Bright light 4BR/ 2FB, Lovely kit, lg lower lvl. Must See! Call: Minhthu Lynagh 703-534-9660
Sterling $399,999 Ready to Move In! 3BR/ 2FB W alk-In Closets & so much more. Call Ellen Heather 703-534-9660
Alexandria $315,000 Great Price! 2BR/ 2FB, W ood Floors, Gourmet Kit, Walk-in Closets Call Diane Freeman 703-534-9660
Falls Church
$318,500
Falls Church $545,900 Location! This 4BR/ 2.5BA home has updated kit. Lg BR’s, Hrdwd flrs, New AC System Call Melissa Klein 703-534-9660
LONG & FOSTER, FALLS CHURCH– WORKING HARD FOR OUR AGENTS SO THEY CAN WORK HARD FOR YOU. HIRING NEW & EXPERIENCED AGENTS!! There is NO BETTER TIME to get your Real Estate License than RIGHT NOW! Virginia Real Estate Course Price $199, including books MAXIMIZE YOUR SUCCESS!! Ask about our Military Scholorships! Register today for classes that will change your future! Contact DAVID.GILLIS@LNF.COM Cell: 571-451-7306
6311 Cardinal Hill Place Springfield, VA 22152 5 BR , 3.5 BA. Fresh paint, new carpet, granite countertops, stainless steel appliances and two car garage. $799,000
2200 Westmoreland St. N. #529 Arlington, VA 22213 1BR condo w garage
2114 Great Falls St. Falls Church, VA 22043 Beautiful, large open floor plan. Huge addition w updated kit. 5BR/3BA, 2 car garage. Over one half acre.$1,089,000.
6804 Jefferson Ave Falls Church VA 22042 4BR/2BA, Updated and kitchen & baths. $589,000
1097 Pensive Lane Great Falls, VA 22066 Almost a full acre of land. 5BR on upper level/ 3.5 BA 2-car garage. Gourmet kitchen, updated baths. $929,000
7700 Tremayne Place #114 McLean, VA 22101 1BR/1BA Super close Metro Sold Price $198,000
Contact Bethany for all your real estate needs.
Bethany Ellis
REALTOR®, SRES, e-PRO, Corporate Reloca�on Specialist NVAR Life�me Top Producer & Mul�-Million Dollar Sales Club
703-307-7003 bethany.ellis@longandfoster.com
McLean Sales Office 1355 Beverly Rd Ste 109 McLean, VA 22101
Two homes sold in Falls Church Dunn Loring - Stunning 4/5 BR, Falls Church City - Builder's before R UNDE CT! they ever 3 BA, 2,422 sf contemporary. 5 BR, 4 BA, 4,664 sf home! A Dramatic 2 story fam room off Unique! Deck off MBR w/lux BA CONTR hit the formal living & dining rooms. & his/hers walk-ins. Spacious MLS! Hardwood floors. Spacious BR’s. Top floor fam rm w/BA & If you are looking to buy & rooms, big windows. 2 car gar. mini kit - ideal guest retreat. want an agent that can FIND Great yard w/deck & patio. Walk Brazilian hdwds. Roof top deck. you the right home, even if it out finished basement. 1 car garage. Private yard. isn’t in the MLS, call me!
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Falls Church City 2 BR, 2 BA 1,426 sf Broadway condo, on quiet courtyard side. Gourmet kit w/gas cooking, 9’ ceilings, fplc, balcony, laundry room, hardwood floors. Double storage unit! 2 pkg spaces. Party room, Gym, Library, Concierge. 502 W Broad St #421 $544,000
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Search the MLS at www.VirginiaHomeTeam.com
OCTOBER 29 – NOVEMBER 4, 2015 | PAGE 13
FALLS CHURCH NEWS-PRESS | FCNP.COM
TRUTH
OR CONSEQUENCES?
The Byron - 513 West Broad Street (former Red Lobster) 2015 Gross Tax Revenue: $1,003,069 2015 Net Tax Revenue: $666,810 (118% higher than estimated when approved) Initial Capital Contribution to Falls Church Public Schools: $447,762 Former Red Lobster Restaurant Gross Tax Revenue: $209,380 2015 Actual School students: 13 (1 less than the 14 projected when approved) Source: City of Falls Church - http://www.fallschurchva.gov/407/News-Reports
Simple Math Over the past 9 years since completion of The Byron, the City has collected over $6 million more in gross tax revenues and over $4 million more in net tax revenues than would have been collected from the former Red Lobster or a similar replacement restaurant. And more yet than the or drive-through bank that offered to buy the site. The net tax benefit is after deductions for all school and City service costs from the project.
Consequences of Denying Approval: For those that would have voted against The Byron, what exactly would you have done to make up the $4+ million net fiscal benefit that it has generated since 2006? Reduce City services? Cut school funding? Raise taxes?
Intelligent Debate on Development is Healthy This is NOT to suggest that all development proposals presented to the City are worthy of approval. Some are not. For those that may be, careful staff and Planning Commission review, citizen input, and intelligent and honest City Council debate can help refine and improve the proposed projects. Developers and all businesses - that are willing to participate in the process, take entrepreneurial risks and invest hundreds of millions of dollars in the City can be potential partners for helping secure the financial future of The City of Falls Church.
Disclosure: I do not live in the City. Neither I nor Nova-Habitat has ever contributed to any candidate for City Council or other public office. We have greatly appreciated the opportunity to work in the City, and have strived to fulfill our corporate responsibility by developing quality projects with positive financial benefits to City taxpayers. We hope to continue to do so in the future.
Thank you and best regards, Ed Novak, Nova-Habitat
PAGE 14 | OCTOBER 29 – NOVEMBER 4, 2015
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FALLS CHURCH NEWS-PRESS | FCNP.COM
News-Press
Community News & Notes Don Beyer Wins National Press Club Spelling Bee
Virginia Senator Tim Kaine won the spelling on the word “nonpareil.”
Congressman Don Beyer (VA8) won the National Press Club Spelling Bee on Wednesday, Oct. 21. The spelling bee, in which a team of lawmakers took on a team of reporters, ended in a split outcome with Beyer taking the individual championship and the team of reporters trouncing legislators in a nearly two to one victory to take home the team championship. “It was great fun to be part of a bipartisan, bicameral team working together to try to defeat a common enemy – the press!” Beyer said in a press release about him winning the spelling bee. “Strangely enough the team of reporters – who spell words for a living – killed us! Surviving over 20 rounds, Beyer won the spelling bee on the word “apostasy.” The spelling bee has been held twice this century, with Virginia lawmakers winning both competitions. Two years ago,
Quinn’s Launches Ethnographic Art Series Quinn’s Auction Galleries launched a series of ethnographic art auctions on Saturday, Oct. 24, with an auction featuring nearly 600 lots of Pre-Columbian, African and Native American pieces of art. The sale featured a wide array of objects for buyers at all price points and all forms of bidding were available, including live bidding via the Internet. “Having collections from the estates of well-known collectors Cora and Laurence C. Witten II and the late Adele Lebowitz, as well as works from prolific private collectors across the country allows us to present a broad range of items to the public,” said Matthew Quinn, vice president of Quinn’s Auction Galleries. The late Laurence Claiborne Witten II, founder of Laurence
Witten Rare Books in New Haven was as well known for his collection of Pre-Columbian art as he was for his rare books and maps. Adele Lebowitz and her husband Mortimer, the founders and owners of Morton’s Department Store in Washington, D.C., were distinguished citizens known as Civil Rights activists, philanthropists, and avid collectors of fine and decorative arts. Their collection includes African, NativeAmerican and Pre-Columbian items. For more information, visit quinnsauction.com, call 703-5325632 or email info@quinnsauction.com.
F.C. Haunted House Takes On Harry Potter Theme A local family that hosts a haunted house in their Falls Church garage and yard every year has taken on the theme of Harry Potter’s Wizarding World. The Devlins of 3336 Hemlock Drive
VIRGINIA CONGRESSMAN DON BEYER was the lone lawmaker on the stage at the National Press Club Spelling Bee on Wednesday night. He won the individual competition on the word “apostasy.” The team competition, in which a team of lawmakers and a team of reporters square off, was won by the team of reporters. Beyer is the second Virginia lawmaker to win the spelling bee in as many competitions. Senator Tim Kaine won in 2013. (Courtesy Photo)
have transformed their property into a replica Hogwarts. Outdoor decorations include the Forbidden Forest with large Aragog spider, a life-sized figure of Voldemort and a graveyard surrounded by Dementors. Inside the haunted house props include the Chamber of Secrets doorway, Pensieve, Quidditch chest, shelf of horcruxes and portraits of all the headmasters. The Devlins hold an open house every Halloween for neighborhood kids who are trick and treating. In addition to candy, they also provide cupcakes, candy apples and, special for this year, “polyjuice potion” for kids. Their haunted house is now in its 13th year and has grown in size and popularity with hundreds of children coming through every Halloween.
Learning Theater Ensemble Prepares for ‘Pinocchio’ Creative Cauldron’s Learning Theater Ensemble,
a multi-generational workshop open to children, teens and adults, is preparing for its premier of “Pinocchio,” which opens on Friday, Oct. 30 with a 7:30 p.m. performance at ArtSpace Falls Church at 410 S. Maple Avenue. Follow the adventures of everyone’s favorite marionette in his quest to become a “real boy.” The production is funded by the Bold New Works for Young Audiences fund. The show runs through November 22, with performances at 7:30 p.m every Friday and Saturday and performances at 2 p.m. every Saturday and Sunday, with the exception of Halloween, when there will be no Saturday night performance. To make up for it, there will be an additional performance at 4 p.m. Tickets for the show are $16 for general admission and $14 for students, seniors and military service members. For more information, visit creativecauldron.org/ pinocchio_266.html.
THE FAIRFAX STARS NIKE TEAM won the Nike National Championship over the summer in Augusta, Ga. Two George Mason High School students and players on the Mustangs basketball team, Maddie Cherry and Coral Gillette, played on the team. They beat out 16 Nike sponsored teams in the competition in an event that was attended by over 600 college coaches. (Photo: Courtesy of Kim Cherry)
Send Us Your News & Notes!
The News-Press is always on the lookout for photos & items for Community News & Notes, School News & Notes and other sections of the paper. If you graduate, get married, get engaged, get an award, start a club, eat a club, tie your shoes, have a birthday, have a party, host an event or anything else you think is worth being mentioned in the News-Press, write it up and send it to us! If you have a photo, even better! Because of the amount of submissions we receive, we cannot guarantee all submissions will be published, but we’ll try our best!
Community News & Notes: newsandnotes@fcnp.com | School News & Notes: schoolnews@fcnp.com Mail: News & Notes, Falls Church News-Press, 200 Little Falls St. #508, Falls Church, VA 22046
FALLS CHURCH NEWS-PRESS | FCNP.COM
The Legwarmers Play Special Halloween Shows at State
Washington, D.C.’s premier 80s tribute band The Legwarmers are having a special two-night run of shows at The State Theatre on Friday, Oct. 30 and Saturday, Oct. 31 to celebrate Halloween. There will be a costume contest both nights with $400 going to the first place winner, $200 going to the second place winner and State Theatre memorabilia going to the third place winner. Doors open at 8 p.m. both nights and showtime starts at 9:30 p.m. Tickets for either show are $18. For more information, visit thestatetheatre.com or thelegwarmers.com.
Mary Riley Styles Food for Fines Program Ends Nov. 1 Patrons of Mary Riley Styles Public Library can have their fines alleviated now through Sunday, Nov. 1 during the library’s Food for Fines program. This initiative provides patrons the opportunity to help those in need by donating non-perishable groceries as payment for fines on overdue items. Food for Fines operates as a one-for-one exchange: a single grocery item (can of fruit, cake mix, etc.) will cover the fine for a single overdue item, including books, videos, DVDs, audio cassettes, or CDs. There is no limit on the number or amount of fines that can be cleared or the quantity of overdue materials that can be returned. Bills for lost or damaged library materials cannot be paid by this program. Glass jars, opened containers, bulging or damaged cans, items past their expiration date, sample
or trial sized-items, or any items needing refrigeration or freezing cannot be accepted for donation due to safety reasons. All donations go to aid local community organizations that work with the City’s Housing and Human Services Division to provide assistance to families in the area. For more information, visit fallschurchva.gov/Library or call 703-248-5031.
’Playing By Air’ Gears Up for Peformance at The Alden The high-energy performance troupe Playing By Air will be at The Alden, located at 1234 Ingleside Ave., McLean on Sunday, Nov. 1 at 2 p.m. for an engaging show that encourages audience participation. The troupe captivates audiences with a joyful fusion of music, juggling and circus acts in which traditional theatricality meets absurd comedy. The award-winning performers share their sense of playfulness and perform breathtaking feats in a production enjoyed equally by adults and children. Audiences are drawn into the performance by the contagious attitude of expressive play and creativity. Tickets for the show are $15 for McLean Community Center tax district residents and $20 for everyone else. For more information, visit mcleancenter.org or call 703-790-0123.
Artist Darcy Meeker Featured At Gallery Underground Artist Darcy Meeker, who’s based in Blacksburg, will be the featured artist for November at Gallery Underground, located at 2100 Crystal Drive, Arlington. Her
LO CA L show Bumps and Grinds features a cohesive body of stone and metal work and runs from November 2 – 27. It will be exhibited in Gallery Underground’s Main Gallery. Meeker tools copper and creates sculpture in stone, clay, silk and aluminum. In her mixed media work, she paints, collages and prints on a variety of materials with the same wide-ranging enthusiasm. In the Focus Gallery, members of the Arlington Artist Alliance will have their work, including sculpture, glass, ceramics, jewelry, watercolor, oil, acrylic and mixed media, featured. The featured artist this month will be Patricia Andril, who does colored pencil works, as well as mini-shows during November for “Small Works” and a tribute to American Pop painter Wayne Thiebaud. Both shows have opening receptions on Friday, Nov. 6, from 5 – 7 p.m. For more information, visit galleryunderground.org.
Maryanne Pollock Takes ‘Refuge’ at Scheslinger Center Artist Maryanne Pollock and her two 18-foot canvases will be the featured artist at Northern Virginia Community College’s Rachel M. Schlesinger Concert Hall and Arts Center in a show called Refuge, which will be on display from November 14 – January 14. The large scale printed, painted and stenciled canvases will be exhibited in the Schlesinger Center’s large space. The opening reception for the show will be held on Saturday, Nov. 14 from 4 – 6 p.m. at Schlesinger Center, located at 4915 E. Campus Dr., Alexandria. For more information, visit nvcc. edu/schlesingercenter.
LONGTERM FALLS CHURCH RESIDENT Eva Boncore (center) celebrated her 100th birthday on Monday, Oct. 26 with a surprise party at the Falls Church Community Center’s Senior Center. In the photo above, she’s �lanked by her friends Fran James (left) and Ellen Tasker (right). As a longtime resident of Falls Church, Boncore enjoys gardening, crocheting and getting her nails done. (P����: C������� �� T������ M�����)
OCTOBER 29 – NOVEMBER 4, 2015 | PAGE 15
PAGE 16 | OCTOBER 29 – NOVEMBER 4, 2015
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A Sensible Version of Trump The voters, especially on the Republican side, seem to be despising experience this year and are looking for outsiders. Hence we have the rise of Donald Trump and Ben Carson. People like me keep predicting that these implausibles will collapse, but so far, as someone tweeted, they keep collapsing upward. But imagine if we had a sensible Trump in the race. Suppose there was some former general or business leader with impeccable outsider status but also a steady temperament, deep knowledge and good sense. What would that person sound like? Maybe something like this: Ladies and gentlemen, I’m no politician. I’m just a boring guy who knows how to run things. But I’ve been paying close attention and it seems to me that of all the problems that face the nation, two stand out. The first is that we have a polarized, dysfunctional, semiNEW YORK TIMES NEWS SERVICE corrupt political culture that prevents us from getting anything done. To reverse that gridlock we’ve got to find some policy area where there’s a basis for bipartisan action. The second big problem is that things are going badly for those in the lower half of the income distribution. People with less education are seeing their wages fall, their men drop out of the labor force, their marriage rates plummet and their social networks dissolve. The first piece of good news is that conservative and progressive writers see this reality similarly, which is a rare thing these days. The second piece of good news is that we have new research that suggests fresh ways to address this problem, ways that may appeal to both Democrats and Republicans. The studies I’m talking about were done at Harvard by Raj Chetty, Nathaniel Hendren and Lawrence Katz. They looked at the results of a Clinton-era program called Moving to Opportunity, which took poor families and moved them to middle-class neighborhoods. At first the results were disappointing. The families who moved didn’t see their earnings rise. Their kids didn’t do much better in school. But as years went by and newer data accumulated, different and more promising results came in. Children who were raised in better environments had remarkable earnings gains. The girls raised in the better neighborhoods were more likely to marry and raise their own children in two-parent homes. The first implication of this research is that neighborhood matters a lot. When we think about ways to improve the lot of the working class, it’s insufficient to just help individuals and families. We have to improve entire neighborhoods. Second, the research reminds us that to improve conditions for the working class it’s necessary to both create jobs and improve culture. Every time conservatives say culture plays a large role in limiting mobility, progressives accuse them of blaming the victim. But this research shows the importance of environment. The younger the children were when they moved to these middle-class environments, the more their outcomes improved. It’s likely they benefited from being in environments with different norms, with more information about how to thrive, with few traumatic events down the block. I know the professional politicians are going to want to continue their wars, but I see an opportunity: We launch a series of initiatives to create environments of opportunity in middle-, working- and lowerclass neighborhoods. This will mean doing some things Republicans like. We’ve got to devolve a lot of power from Washington back to local communities. These neighborhoods can’t thrive if they are not responsible for themselves. Then we’ve got to expand charter schools. The best charter schools radiate diverse but strong cultures of achievement. Locally administered social entrepreneurship funds could help churches and other groups expand their influence. This will mean doing some things Democrats like. We’ve got to reform and expand early childhood education programs, complete with wraparound programs for parents. They would turn into community hubs. Infrastructure programs could increase employment. Basically we’ve got to get socialist. No, I don’t mean the way Bernie Sanders is a socialist. He’s a statist, not a socialist. I mean we have to put the quality of the social fabric at the center of our politics. And we’ve got to get personalist: to treat people as full human beings, not just economic units you fix by writing checks. Then we’ve got to get integrationist, to integrate different races and classes through national service and school and relocation vouchers. And finally, we have to get a little moralistic. There are certain patterns of behavior, like marrying before you have kids and sticking around to parent the kids you conceive, that contribute to better communities. Look, I don’t know if I’m red or blue. If you want a true outsider, don’t just pick someone outside the political system. Pick someone outside the rigid partisan mentalities that are the real problem here.
FALLS CHURCH NEWS-PRESS | FCNP.COM
David Brooks
Free Mitt Romney! Sometimes I find myself feeling sorry for Mitt Romney. No, seriously. In another time and place, he might have been respected as an effective technocrat – a smart guy valued for his ability to get things done. In fact, that’s kind of how it worked when he was governor of Massachusetts, a decade ago. But now it’s 2015 in America, and Romney’s party doesn’t want people who get things done. On the contrary, it actively hates government programs that improve American lives, especially if they help Those People. And this means that Romney can’t celebrate his signature achievement in public life, the Massachusetts health reform that served as a template NEW YORK TIMES NEWS SERVICE for Obamacare. This has to hurt. Indeed, a few days ago Romney couldn’t help himself: He boasted to The Boston Globe that “Without Romneycare, we wouldn’t have had Obamacare” and that as a result “a lot of people wouldn’t have health insurance.” And it’s true! But such truths aren’t welcome in the GOP. Ben Carson, who is leading the latest polls of Iowa Republicans, has declared that Obamacare is the worst thing to happen to America since slavery; 81 percent of likely Republican caucus-goers say that this statement makes him more attractive as a candidate. Not surprisingly, then, Romney quickly tried to walk his comments back, claiming that Obamacare is very different from Romneycare, which it isn’t, and that it has failed. But you know, it hasn’t. On the contrary, the Affordable Care Act has been a remarkable success, especially considering the scorched-earth opposition it has faced. First of all, a lot of people – around 16 million, the administration estimates, a picture confirmed by independent sources – do indeed have health insurance who otherwise wouldn’t. Millions more would be insured if Republican-controlled states weren’t refusing to expand Medicaid (even though the federal government would pay the costs) and generally trying to obstruct the program. How good is the insurance thus obtained? Not perfect: Despite subsidies, policies are still hard for some to afford, and deductibles and copays can be onerous. But most people enrolled under Obamacare report high satisfaction with their coverage, which is hugely better than simply not being uninsured. And may I inject a
Paul Krugman
personal note? If truth be told, I live in a pretty rarefied, upper-middle-class-and-above milieu – yet even so I know several people for whom the Affordable Care Act has been more or less literally a lifesaver. This is, as Joe Biden didn’t quite say, a really big deal. Oh, and have you noticed how those ads featuring people supposedly hurt by Obamacare have disappeared? That’s because none of their stories held up. What’s more, the big Biden deal has come in below budget. Insurance premiums in Obamacare’s first two years were well below predictions. It looks as if there will be a partial rebound in 2016, but it’s still cheaper than expected. And overall, health care spending has slowed dramatically. Meanwhile, none of the bad things that were supposed to happen have. Employment growth since the “job-killing” law went into effect has been faster than at any time since the 1990s. Employers have not, in fact, eliminated full-time jobs to avoid the act’s provisions. And the budget deficit keeps falling. In short, President Barack Obama, Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid, who pushed the Affordable Care Act through despite total opposition from the GOP, have a lot to be proud of. And so does Romney, who helped lay the foundation. Instead, however, he’s trashing the best thing he’s ever done. You have to wonder: Does Romney really think that his party would look more favorably on Obamacare if it worked even better than it has, if it cost no money at all? If so, he’s delusional. After all, the great majority of Republican-controlled states have turned down free money, refusing to let the federal government expand Medicaid. The point is that from the point of view of the Republican base, covering the uninsured, or helping the unlucky in general, isn’t a feature, it’s a bug. It’s not about how much it costs in taxpayer funds or economic impact: the base is actually willing to lose money in order to perpetuate suffering. And a movement with those values has no use for technocrats. Ask Ben Bernanke, who has given up on a party in thrall to the “know-nothingism of the far right.” Maybe Romney still imagines that a desperate party will call on him to save it from Donald Trump. Or maybe he just can’t bring himself to admit that he picked the wrong group of people to hang out with. Either way, one hopes for his sake that he eventually gives up his illusions. Trust me, Mitt: It will be a liberating experience.
FALLS CHURCH NEWS-PRESS | FCNP.COM
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‘Truth,’ the Film: Why It Matters
A film on limited screens across America now, “Truth” is a powerful indictment of how partisan political pressure brought down the nation’s most revered television journalist and his team to ensure the re-election to a second disastrous term of George W. Bush in 2004. Starring Cate Blanchett, in another Oscar-worthy performance, and Robert Redford, the stark title of the movie is taken from the book it is based on, Truth and Duty: The Press, The President and the Privilege of Power, written by Mary Mapes, the executive producer at CBS’ “60 Minutes” played in the film by Blanchett. It concerns the events that led to the downfall of the revered Dan Rather as anchor of the nightly CBS News. He is played by Redford in the film. Two things served as the backdrop FALLS CHURCH NEWS-PRESS to what happened, and its portrayal in “Truth.” The first concerned allegations that became the center of the controversy when the “60 Minutes Wednesday” segment in September 2004 was aired, namely that Bush had received special favor in avoiding the draft to serve in Vietnam in 1968 and that for much of the time he was in the Army National Guard he was, in fact, AWOL. Those allegations were not new in 2004, but had been swirling around for decades, from Bush’s earliest years as governor of Texas to his first campaign for president. No one before had the resources or the guts to put together a documented case to explode it before a national TV audience. The second concerned the long-standing antipathy that the GOP held for Rather due to his alleged “liberal bias” dating back to his days reporting on the Watergate scandal. The baked-in notion of his bias contributed to a willingness of many, including in his own network, to be skeptical of the so-called “Killian documents” purportedly from the lieutenant colonel who was Bush’s commending officer in the national guard. The film follows Mapes’ book to recount the events surrounding the fateful September 8 broadcast, replete with the efforts of Mapes and others to authenticate the “Killian documents” ahead of time, the pressure from the network to air the report with too little time to fully vet the facts, the uproar the televised report caused, the almost immediate assault, led by Karl Rove, to challenge the authenticity of the report, the recants from earlier claims by some of the story’s sources, Rather’s crow-eating apology for airing the report before a national TV audience, CBS’ own “internal investigation” of the incident led by a former Republican attorney general, Dick Thornburgh, the firing of Mapes and others, and the eventual demise of Rather at CBS. Mapes and Rather, in subsequent years, have stood by their story, but as the film makes clear, the entire subject of that TV news report shifted overnight from the questions about Bush’s military service to CBS’ inability to conclusively affirm the authenticity of the documents it had been provided. The dramatic nature of that shift was a testament both to the weakness of the CBS news organizations’ commitment, or lack of it, to independence from political influence and to the shrewd use of obfuscation, smoke-screening and diversion from hard-ball political operatives such as Rove to achieve their goals. Of her accusers on the investigative panel, Mapes wrote in her book, “They didn’t want to listen, and more important, they just plain didn’t get it – whether that was intentional or not I can’t say. They didn’t seem to understand what I had done to demonstrate that the Killian memos were most likely real and deserved to be reported. The panel’s lawyers may have been high-powered legal minds, but as journalists they were a bust.” It became like the Army-McCarthy U.S. Senate hearings of 1954. Asked is she were a “liberal,” Mapes replied, according to her book, “You mean, are you asking me, ‘Am I now or have I ever been a liberal?” “Why were they even considering my politics when they were supposedly just trying to get to the truth of a story?,” she wrote. Oh yeah, “truth!” That’s what the movie is called.
OCTOBER 29 – NOVEMBER 4, 2015 | PAGE 17
Nicholas F. Benton
Nicholas Benton may be emailed at nfbenton@fcnp.com.
The Empire Strikes Back WASHINGTON – Nobody plays the victim like Hillary. She can wield that label like a wrecking ball. If her husband humiliates her with a girlfriend in the Oval Office, Hillary turns around and uses the sympathy engendered to launch a political career. If her Republican opponent gets in her space in an overbearing way during a debate, she turns around and uses the sympathy engendered to win a Senate seat. Hillary Clinton is never more alluring than when a bunch of pasty-faced, nasty-tongued white men bully her. And she was plenty alluring during her marathon session on Thursday with Republican Lilliputians, who were completely oblivious to the fact that Hillary is always at her most potent when some Teanderthal is trying to put her in her place. Trey Gowdy and his blithering band of tea-partiers went on a fishing expedition, but they forgot to bring their rods – or any fresh facts. It was a revealing display of hard-core conservatives in their parallel universe, where all their biases are validated by conservative media. NEW YORK TIMES NEWS SERVICE They crawled out of the ooze into the sea of cameras, blinking and obtuse. Hillary acted bemused, barely masking her contempt at their condescension. She was no doubt amazed at what an amateur job they were doing at character assassination. The Republicans came across as even more conspiratorial than their other target, Sidney Blumenthal, and his nickname is “G.K.,” for grassy knoll. One conservative on the panel, trying to paint Clinton as an addled 68-yearold, as of Monday, kept snidely offering to pause while she read the notes her posse was passing her. They must have been mistaking her for W. It is not the terrain of Gowdy’s lame committee, but it is legitimate to examine Clinton’s record in the Middle East. As a senator, she made a political vote to let W. invade Iraq. As much homework as she did to get ready for the Libya committee, she chose not to do her homework on Iraq in 2002, neglecting to read the sketchy National Intelligence Estimate. Then she urged President Barack Obama to help topple Moammar Gadhafi without heeding the painful lesson of Iraq – that if America went into another nebulously defined mission, there would have to be a good plan to prevent the vacuum of power being filled by militant Islamic terrorists.
Maureen Dowd
Since she was, as her aide Jake Sullivan put it, “the public face of the U.S. effort in Libya” – one of the Furies, along with Samantha Power and Susan Rice, who had pushed for a military intervention on humanitarian grounds – Hillary needed to stay on top of it. She had to be tenacious in figuring out when Libya had deteriorated into such a caldron of jihadis that our ambassador should either be pulled out or backed up. In June 2012, the British closed their consulate in Benghazi after their ambassador’s convoy was hit by a grenade. A memo she received that August described the security situation in Libya as “a mess.” When you are the Valkyrie who engineers the intervention, you can’t then say it is beneath you to pay attention to the ludicrously negligent security for your hand-picked choice for ambassador in a lawless country full of assassinations and jihadi training camps. According to Republicans on the committee, there were 600 requests from Stevens’ team to upgrade security in Benghazi in 2012 and 20 attacks on the mission compound in the months before the Sept. 11 siege. In a rare moment of lucidity, Rep. Mike Pompeo of Kansas said to Clinton: “You described Mr. Stevens as having the best knowledge of Libya of anyone,” but “when he asked for increased security, he didn’t get it.” As Hillary kept explaining, that job was the province of the “security professionals,” four of whom were later criticized for providing “grossly inadequate” security at the Benghazi compound and removed from their posts. The 11-hour hearing showcased the good Hillary, but there were occasional flashes of the bad. She still doesn’t believe that setting up her own server was so wrong. Even though the inspector general of government intelligence said that there was top secret information in her emails, she sticks with her parsing. “There was nothing marked classified on my emails, either sent or received,” she told Jordan. She seemed oddly detached about Stevens, testifying that he didn’t have her personal email or cell number, “but he had the 24-hour number of the State Operations in the State Department that can reach me 24/7.” There were no call logs of talks between Stevens and Clinton, and she said she could not remember if she ever spoke to him again after she swore him in, in May. “I was the boss of ambassadors in 270 countries,” she explained. But Libya was the country where she was the midwife to chaos. And she should have watched that baby like the Lady Hawk she is.
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PAGE 18 | OCTOBER 29 - NOVEMBER 4, 2015
A Penny for Your Thoughts
FALLS CHURCH NEWS-PRESS | FCNP.COM
News of Greater Falls Church By Supervisor Penny Gross
Tuesday, November 3, is Election Day, and the ballot in Fairfax County is the longest in eight years. You can vote for state senator and delegate, Chairman of the Board of Supervisors, District Supervisor, three at-large members of the School Board and the district School Board member, Sheriff, Commonwealth’s Attorney, three members of the Northern Virginia Soil and Water Conservation Board, and the Clerk of the Court. Referenda questions are for school bonds and public safety bonds. Off, off-year elections have the lowest voter turnout of any election, since they lack the cachet of a gubernatorial or presidential election. Nonetheless, decisions made at the local level affect everyday life more than any made on Capitol Hill. When I first ran for Mason District Supervisor, I promised I would provide “Leadership That Listens.” I promised that I would work as hard as I could to represent Mason District residents fairly and equitably. I promised I would be a “hands on” leader with energy and enthusiasm for my constituents, and for my job. That commitment has never wavered and, enthusiastically, I am seeking another term. Campaigning is fun, governance is hard. It is easy to make promises; hard to keep them. It is easy to say no; much harder to get to yes to solve a problem. Listening to all points of view, and weighing all the factual information carefully, before making a decision, takes time and thoughtful consideration. Whether working to renovate and build schools, working on new environmental policies, addressing speeding and traffic in neighborhoods, building new walkways, or revitalizing older commercial areas, we work together as a community to achieve mutual
goals. All of this is accomplished in an honest and collaborative fashion, for that is the Mason District way – based on facts, respect for differing ideas, and honest and open discussion. I hope you will put my experience to work for you once again, and vote Penny Gross on November 3. The Washington Post, in its endorsement of Chairman Sharon Bulova, called her “highly effective.” Sheriff Stacey Kincaid, the first female sheriff in Fairfax County’s 273-year history, has illuminated the oft-hidden challenges of mental health needs for prisoners. Mason District resident George Lamb is seeking another term on the Soil and Water Conservation Board, which educates residents about environmental practices to reduce erosion and improve water quality, as well as providing technical expertise. Gerald O. Peters, Jr. is another good choice. Three incumbents are seeking re-election to the at-large School Board positions. Ilryong Moon, Ted Velkoff, and Ryan McElveen will continue their progressive, mainstream approach to issues, and need your support. Clerk of the Court is on the ballot only once every eight years, and Democrat Bettina Lawton, an energetic attorney and former SEC investigator, is running to improve access to the court system. Your regular polling place will be open from 6 a.m. until 7 p.m. on Election Day, November 3. Don’t forget that Daylight Savings Time ends on Sunday at 2 a.m. Set your clocks back one hour and enjoy the extra sleep! Penny Gross is the Mason District Supervisor, in the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors. She may be emailed at mason@fairfaxcounty.gov.
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FALLS CHURCH NEWS-PRESS | FCNP.COM
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Conversion Therapy
In the latest catastrophe for the “ex-gay” industry, a new government report was released that warned about the dangers of conversion therapy for minors. The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration’s report examined the evidence and concluded there is no efficacy for conversion therapy and it can lead to harmful consequences. Included in the report was a consensus statement by The American Psychological Association that explained the possible harm caused by conversion therapy and pointed out that being gay is a normal and natural variation of human sexuality. The “ex-gay” industry is a shambles – albeit one that has left a trail of blood, pain, tragedy and tears. No serious person promotes this charade – and those who do are viewed as as backward and delusional. The future is bleak for practitioners of this psychological voodoo. For the unfamiliar, conversion therapy is a pseudoscience that blames homosexuality on molestation or bad parenting. Specifically, the practice claims – without evidence – that a rift between a child and a same-sex parent can lead to a child rejecting that parent and his or her gender role. At puberty this leads to sexualizing the same sex. Conversion therapy seeks to reverse this alleged process through a combination of prayer, talk therapy, and creating non-sexual same-sex friendships. It also includes masculinity exercises for men, such as touch football and drinking Gatorade, and lipstick seminars for girls. Conversion therapy for minors is now prohibited in the District of Columbia, New Jersey, California, Oregon, and Illinois. There are several legislatures that will follow the lead of these states. The effort to protect children from such mental anguish is bipartisan, with two conservative governors – Bruce Rauner (R-IL) and Chris Christie (R-NJ) signing conversion therapy bans into law. In June, the Southern Poverty Law Center won a monumental legal victory over a notorious conversion therapy racket in New Jersey. A jury found Jews Offering New Alternatives to Healing (JONAH) guilty of consumer fraud. JONAH had misled its clients by falsely promising that they could help them change their sexual orientation from gay to straight. The trial exposed the outlandish tactics used by JONAH-affiliated therapists, which included abusive, bizarre and unscientific practices such as having clients undress and touch their genitals and reliving painful childhood moments in failed efforts to turn them into heterosexuals. This is why every respected medical and mental health association in the nation condemns conversion therapy. This includes the American Psychological Association, the American Academy of Pediatrics, the American Medical Association, and the American Psychiatric Association. Unfortunately, as long as there is prejudice and discrimination, some people will be determined to change who they are. Fitting in and being loved and accepted are powerful motivators – even if the effort is a fool’s errand that will inevitably lead to failure. Some people, particularly parents, feel it is safe and there is no harm if their child gives it a try. In reality, such rejection of self can be psychologically devastating and leave lasting mental scars that must be undone with real therapy. The single worst decision a parent can make is forcing their child into conversion therapy. Still, a demand often fueled by religious fervor inevitably creates a pool of religious ideologues or greedy practitioners who bilk desperate and vulnerable clients with promises of healing or an elusive cure. This is why conversion therapy must be banned for minors in all 50 states. I urge everyone to get behind such noble efforts that protect teenagers and put conversion con artists out of business. We must also be vigilant to ensure the “ex-gay” industry does not continue to wage this unholy war abroad. As they lose at home, they are shifting operations to more favorable terrain overseas. Many of these countries lack the freedom of speech and assembly that we take for granted. When coming out is criminalized and those who speak out risk jail or violence, the disinformation peddled by conversion therapists can flower. We must creatively and assertively strategize with our partners abroad to meet this challenge by fighting lies with truth – just as we did at home. In America, the right wing’s favored anti-gay strategy – the “exgay” industry – has fallen on hard times. But it up to us to finish the job we started and ensure no gay, lesbian, bisexual, or transgender child is abused by charlatans posing as medical experts.
Wayne Besen
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OCTOBER 29 – NOVEMBER 4, 2015 | PAGE 19
Our Man in Arlington By Charlie Clark
“Since this is the 2200th county board candidate debate, I brought my family,” joked Democratic candidate Christian Dorsey as four who hope to help govern Arlington appeared Oct. 21 at the Committee of 100. Their evening advertisements for themselves – some familiar, some fresh two weeks before the Nov. 3 balloting – were preceded by behind-the-scenes drama. Scott McCaffrey, the able SunGazette editor and my friendly competitor, was originally to moderate the debate for the civics and banquet club that never endorses candidates. But the day before, his newspaper published with an editorial endorsing Republican-turned-independent Mike McMenamin. This bothered the committee’s officers. So McCaffrey was disinvited as moderator, duties for which were handled by committee board chair Brian Marroquin. He credibly pressed candidates for examples whenever they sloganized vaguely. In the to-and-fro over taxes, affordable housing, transportation and schools, all four candidates came across as intelligent and experienced. But I suspect the two winners – in an era when the ground is shifting under Arlington’s Democratic establishment – will be those who speak dynamically and approach the job as problem-solvers more than ideologues. It doesn’t hurt to throw a sharp elbow. McMenamin and independent (formerly Green Party candidate) Audrey Clement blasted the current county board
for overspending and an office vacancy rate at 21 percent (as dramatized, said Clement, who lives in Westover, by Arlington’s loss of tenants from the National Science Foundation, the Fish and Wildlife Service and, more recently, the Transportation Security Administration). But Dorsey and fellow Democrat Katie Cristol turned their sights, subtly, on their electoral opponents. Cristol cast doubt on McMenamin’s generalizations about finding “efficiencies” in the school budget by removing duplication in snowplowing and computer services. “Be cautious about candidates who want to step outside the county budget and scrutinize the school budget,” she said. McMenamin’s notion that a long-term solution for traffic on Columbia Pike is a new Metro line contradicts his opposition to greater density for affordable housing, said Cristol, who, like Dorsey, lives near the Pike. Dorsey went after Clement’s “guesstimate” that the county’s affordable housing plan would cost $150 million, calling it a scare tactic. “If you actually read the plan, your concerns would be alleviated,” he said. “It goes through a litany of ways to pay according to our ability and triage tools – it doesn’t mandate a cent.” Both independents called for cutting business taxes. “Arlington has not been business-friendly,” said McMenamin, who lives in Maywood. He objected to Gov. Terry McAuliffe’s plan to raise tolls on single-occupancy cars on I-66. “Why come do business in Arlington if it costs so much to get
C i t y o f Fa l l s C h u r c h
CRIME REPORT Week of Oct. 19 - 25, 2015
N. Lee St. On Oct. 19, the victim’s vehicle was found in disarray.
Larceny from Motor Vehicle, 700 block Highland Ave. On Oct.19, personal items were reported stolen from two vehicles.
Narcotics Violation, 312 Hillwood Ave. (Larry Graves Park) On Oct. 20, a female, 18, of The City of Falls Church, was arrested and released on summons for Possession of Marijuana.
Tampering with Auto, 600 block N. West St. On Oct. 19, the victim’s unlocked vehicle was found in disarray. Larceny from Motor Vehicle, 200 block N. Lee St. On Oct.19, cash was reported stolen from an unlocked vehicle. Tampering with Auto, 200 block
Larceny from Motor Vehicle, 200 block N. West St. On Oct. 20, cash was reported stolen from an unlocked vehicle. Larceny from Motor Vehicle, 400 block W. Broad St. On Oct. 20, personal items were reported stolen from
to work?” Cristol claimed a contradiction in her opponents’ plans to cut taxes while also rebuilding infrastructure. One thing they all agreed on was a need to loosen rules on “accessory dwellings” so that more seniors and young people could afford living in residential areas. Clement played the intellectual gadfly, saying the county “blindsided” the community on rezoning upper Rosslyn. McMenamin, who is endorsed by streetcar-slayer John Vihstadt, echoed Vihstadt’s skepticism on spending. He complained “the community gets in at the back end of process.” Dorsey and Cristol want a new approach to marquee project spending but align with incumbents on affordable housing and transit. Dorsey boasted he has the “temperament and experience to collaborate.” Perhaps that’s why all five current board members endorse him. *** More on the shortest street in Arlington: Alert reader Bohdan Kantor double-checked me by tapping Google Earth measurements for my nominated N. Kansas and N. Lancaster streets. Lancaster remains the shortest at 200 feet at its 36th Street location, but it picks up again at 14th Road and adds another 305 feet. Kansas weighs in at 440 feet, he reports. Another Arlington shortie worth noting is N. Queens Lane, a 250-foot pedestrians-only stretch at Colonial Village dating to the 1930s. It shows up on maps like a normal road, Kantor says. (The novelty of Queen’s Lane also pointed out by my friend Fred Gosnell.) a vehicle. Obstruction of Justice, 6607 Wilson Blvd. (BJ’s Wholesale) On Oct. 20, a male, 26, of Falls Church, was arrested for Obstruction of Justice. Larceny from Building, 200 block E Columbia St.. On Oct. 23, pumpkins were reported stolen from the victim’s residence. Shoplifting, 1212 W. Broad St. (Virginia ABC Store) On Oct. 23, liquor was reported stolen from the store. Smoking Violation, 6757 Wilson Blvd. #15 (H20 Café) On Oct. 24 a male, 39, of Lorton, was cited for Smoking In a Non-Designated Area. A male, 32, of Falls Church, was cited for Permitting Smoking In a Non-Designated Area. Panhandling, 1000 block E. Broad St. On Oct. 25, a male, 52, of Stafford, was arrested and released on summons for Panhandling.
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FALLS CHURCH NEWS-PRESS | FCNP.COM
School Board Candidates & Falls Church’s Future To all the candidates who have bravely stepped forward to run for the seats on the Falls Church City Council and School Board that are being contested in the Nov. 3 election, the News-Press offered an opportunity to respond to a series of questions centered on visions for the future direction of our Little City. We are delighted that 13 candidates – five for the City Council and eight for the School Board – responded in a prompt manner. Alphabetically, here’s what the School Board candidates gave us (City Council candidate responses ran in last week’s edition and are available at www.fcnp.com):
Justin Castillo
City. The right proposal (which must be approved by the voters) could be a gamechanger for the City. Do you support the Mason Row project? Why or why not? The School Board and City Council have different and distinct functions. As a matter of sound governance, it’s important to keep those roles separate; otherwise we could create confusion and/or unfounded expectations among citizens about the respective role of the two bodies. That would be irresponsible. Accordingly, I don’t take a position on Mason Row as a candidate for re-election to the School Board.
What key issues have caused you to seek this office?
What about the City’s small area plans rolled out to date do you support or oppose most strongly?
I’m seeking reelection for three reasons: 1. The schools help to make Falls Church City a great place; I want to preserve this legacy for future generations. 2. My wife Ruth Ann I have seen our kids journey from Mt. Daniel through George Mason HS. My experience as a parent and a School Board member gives me the ability to maintain our great schools. 3. We strive to meet the needs of every student, which is why the Class of 2015 at George Mason HS had a 100% graduation rate. The challenges: expand and update the high school and to meet the needs of every student.
Again, it would not be appropriate for me as a candidate for re-election to the School Board to comment, as this would not be within my role as a member of the School Board. To suggest otherwise could be misleading.
Should the City Council approve full funding of City Schools? Why or why not? The School Board’s job is to present the best, most cost-effective (but fully realized) budget that provides the high-quality K-12 education that the law requires and that we as a community support. The job of the City Council is to accept or reject the amount requested by the School Board; they can’t change line items. There always will be give and take, but ultimately, I believe the City Council ordinarily should approve the budget that we submit. How should the City develop the new 34.6 acres campus that contains George Mason and Mary Ellen Henderson schools? Because the request for proposals (RFP) is pending and I am already on the School Board, I’m not at liberty to say anything more about my expectations or opinions except that I look forward to receiving proposals to the RFP for a new/renovated/expanded educational Mary Ellen Henderson MS and George Mason HS and for economic development that will help to offset school construction costs and that will create a vibrant sense of place in the
If you win this November, do you see yourself running again in the future? It’s an honor serve the community on the School Board. It’s given me the chance to use and to hone the skills I’ve learned as a lawyer, an adjunct professor, a 20-year City resident and the parent of four kids (three of whom have gone from Mt. Daniel through George Mason). Thanks to FCCPS, they have become lifelong learners. Whether I continue past this upcoming term depends on several unknowns (e.g. health of my parents.). For now, my goal is to complete the expansion/renovation of the GMHS/MEH site in a way that benefits the City for generations.
Erin Gill What key issues have caused you to seek this office? I believe we need a diversity of views on the School Board, including a parent with kids in the schools. My children are 1, 3, and 6 years old. They will attend all five of our City schools for the next 16 years. I have a vested interest in the long-term success and sustainability of our schools. I would like to see our administration turn the job of construction planning and management over to experts and return their focus to educating our students. I also am concerned that we are losing great teachers to neighboring districts over issues that go beyond compensation.
Should the City Council approve full funding of City Schools? Why or why not?
If you win this November, do you see yourself running again in the future?
Yes. Our schools are already doing more with less. School funding as a percentage of overall City revenue has remained constant despite rising enrollment, increasing fixed costs, and critical facilities needs. Furthermore, even when we “fully fund” our schools, we don’t fully fund our schools. There is always a list of needs that goes unfunded. Many of those needs are made up by our PTAs, the FCEF, businesses, and other community members. I do think we can spend our funds more efficiently and effectively. Our City was founded around great schools, and we must continue to support them.
If I am elected, I would be open to running for reelection in the future, but I have no plans to do so at this time. Ask me again in three years!
How should the City develop the new 34.6 acres campus that contains George Mason and Mary Ellen Henderson schools? I am open to exploring all of the options for developing the GM/MEH campus. If we determine that we must sell or lease ten of those acres for commercial development to pay for a new high school, I would like to see us engage in a project that is complementary to our schools. We should retain as much greenspace as possible on the campus and ensure that it is a complex our entire community can enjoy. I strongly support putting in a swimming pool and working with our Parks Department to turn it into a revenue-generating resource. Do you support the Mason Row project? Why or why not? I support the Mason Row project, with reservations. I would like to see the land developed in a way that provides more retail and dining options and acts as another gathering space for our community. My main concern with Mason Row, and the issue I would face on the School Board, is how the schools will accommodate the children and families who will be attracted to the proposed apartments. If Mason Row is approved, we should immediately begin to project and plan for the increased enrollment. My kids would like me to add: “Save a spot for Lazy Sundae!” What about the City’s small area plans rolled out to date do you support or oppose most strongly? Small area plans are great but only if they connect into a greater “whole area plan” for the City. My family moved to Falls Church City from New York City because we were seeking a walkable, pedestrian-friendly town with great schools. The Little City and The City are two vastly different places, but they both have passionate residents and unique neighborhoods. I would like to see our City Council move beyond the small area plans and work to create a plan that better unites and connects all of our neighborhoods.
Mark Kaye What key issues have caused you to seek this office? My concern for the schools and absence of school board leadership and direction has compelled me to run for office. The board has failed: Mt. Daniel expansion debacle, cost overruns at Thackrey, and costly delay at TJ. Standardized test scores at TJ and MEH are worrisome. A number of parents point out that many kids in the middle are overlooked. Kids with disabilities, English language learners and others are not thriving in our schools. The purchase of Apple Watches by administrators is symbolic of a system with no leadership. Our tax dollars are not benefiting our kids. Should the City Council approve full funding of City Schools? Why or why not? The City Council should consider supporting full funding under conditions: the schools must have transparent budgets supported by data; metrics on performance; accountability; finally, balance the needs of the schools against the needs of the entire City. We must consider the City as a whole. Constant real estate tax increases will eventually harm home values. We need a more realistic balance in our budgets. I believe in our schools – and want to make sure they exist for future generations. How should the City develop the new 34.6 acres campus that contains George Mason and Mary Ellen Henderson schools? We must have Citizen driven development that benefits the schools & City – and maintains the scale and livability of the Little City. We do not need a “Tysons III” developer driven project. The City is a mere 2.2 sq. miles and green space is scarce. A private public partnership is not good for us. PPPs are secretive and nontransparent; the voters will never know the financial details of any deal with a developer. We must conserve the uniqueness of the City. We need the right type of development that will enhance the viability of the City. Do you support the Mason Row project? Why or why not? I want development – but not the type envisioned with Mason Row. We need a
FALLS CHURCH NEWS-PRESS | FCNP.COM
moratorium on MUDs until we have a plan. MUDs generate 1/3 of the growth in school kids but do not pay for infrastructure expansion in any significant manner (new schools, libraries, etc.). We are adding thousands of new residents without considering the impact on the quality of life and unique character of the City. The impact of MUDs will be higher real estate taxes. Commercial and retail growth is desired. MUDs are not good for the financial sustainability of the City. What about the City’s small area plans rolled out to date do you support or oppose most strongly?
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but the community as a whole. What does full funding mean when members vote on a budget without the knowledge of the effectiveness of the programs we finance. We need to ensure that our educational dollars are going for educational purposes. The board did not share with the community their intention to give the Superintendent an additional $25,000 in tax free dollars this past September on top of her base salary of $212,000, $8,400 car allowance. We need budget transparency. How should the City develop the new 34.6 acres campus that contains George Mason and Mary Ellen Henderson schools?
The current plans seem reasonable since they were crafted with input by citizens. The community involvement seems substantial. However, what is actually happening is contrary to these plans. We envisioned more commercial/retail for downtown that fits with the scale and character of the City – we should not allow developers to drive MUDs. The MUDs are not generating enough significant tax revenue to pay for new schools, parks, libraries, rec centers, etc. We need to return to the original plans.
Stop. Pause. This is one of them most important decisions we will make as a community. I am uncomfortable with the rush to send out the RFP and the lack of transparency. Building more apartments on this site makes no sense at all because we would only be increasing the demands on our already overcrowded schools that we can barely afford now. We need to let the educational needs of our children and affordability drive this process. We also need to really make time to listen to teachers and community before we start picking out the paint colors.
If you win this November, do you see yourself running again in the future?
Do you support the Mason Row project? Why or why not?
Absolutely. I have owned and lived in the same home in FCC for 15 years. I moved here with my son because of the schools and character of the City. My son attended the Falls Church City schools from 2nd grade to graduation from GMHS (2014). I believe in the schools and know we can do better. I intend to stay and add to the growth of the schools and Little City.
As a school board candidate I will not be voting on this. However as a taxpayer that listens to the current school board say how “cash strapped” we are on the school side, while I see the city side having to wait for money to fund basic community needs, I would have reservations. While apartment dwellers don’t lead the list in why our schools are bursting at the seams, more attractive residential units in one of the best school districts in the county will attract more students. This project will change our little city forever.
ALISON KUTCHMA What key issues have caused you to seek this office? I am deeply passionate about improving our schools for all learners. I seek a real transparent and accountable budget process. I am concerned about the growing demands on the taxpayer to fund our schools while at the same time observing the school board review the budget figures over simple hand-outs and require no line by line cost accounting or program analysis with real data tied to educational outcomes for our children. They deliberated spending more than $45 million based on a simple handout with no justifications with real data. I need accountability for my tax dollars. Should the City Council approve full funding of City Schools? Why or why not? The school budget is the foundation of our schools. It embodies the educational priorities of not only the school district
What about the City’s small area plans rolled out to date do you support or oppose most strongly? I have not participated in these discussions but I do hope that the separate plans are consistent with an overall and cohesive vision for what we want Falls Church to look and feel like moving forward. In the 13 years I have lived here, I do sometimes wonder if we have or wish to have an architectural standard/vision for FC. I do not want to see a disjointed patchwork of towering developments. We are such a special historical town and I hope to see that maintained. If you win this November, do you see yourself running again in the future? Yes. I have been advocating for the educational needs of students with learning disabilities for the last 18 years. I am passionate about collaborating with teachers and staff about improving educational outcomes for students and I will continue to do so no matter the outcome on November 3rd.
JACOB RADCLIFF
OCTOBER 29 – NOVEMBER 4 , 2015 | PAGE 21
What key issues have caused you to seek this office? I am fortunate enough to be a stay at home father to my two kids, and with my youngest entering kindergarten I have the time to commit to improving our schools. This next board will likely decide how the GMHS/MEH buildout and renovation will be built and financed, and I have the skills, experience and leadership ability our City needs to diligently address the new building project and all issues affecting the School Board. As a manager, I am detail oriented and I strive to provide others with the agency and support they need to thrive. Should the City Council approve full funding of City Schools? Why or why not? In a word, yes. Our schools reflect our values as a community and are the primary reason people want to live here. As a member of the School Board, I intend to work with our sole employee, the Superintendent, to manage and scrutinize our proposed budget to bring the best possible education to our students. I also intend to work collaboratively with the City Council during the budget approval process. How should the City develop the new 34.6 acres campus that contains George Mason and Mary Ellen Henderson schools? We are building a school of the future, and how the new campus will take shape will be vetted by the community. If elected, it will be my responsibility to review responses to the RFP issued to private developers. I will be able to contribute extensively in this process, particularly with respect to the financial structure of the deal and the short and long-term impact it will have on our City’s financial health. I look forward to reviewing the proposals. Considering the size of this project, I’d like to see a pool at the site made available for community use. Do you support the Mason Row project? Why or why not? This land, which extends from West and Broad (the Sunoco station) all the way to St. James, could generate much more tax revenue, and perhaps also capital, for the City if developed. The process for deciding what that development should look like is not within the purview of the School Board. What about the City’s small area plans rolled out to date do you support or oppose most strongly? I like the new West Park! I may try to teach my kids to skate there.
If you win this November, do you see yourself running again in the future? I may, but it would most likely be for re-election to the School Board. Working in service of our schools, and continuing to improve them, is an opportunity to serve in a very personally rewarding way, and I am grateful to this community for considering me for a School Board position. www.jacobradcliff.org.
PHILIP REITINGER What key issues have caused you to seek this office? I want to serve on the School Board because I care about our schools, and I have the experience to help. I am a former government and private sector executive, with a background in technology. I understand the problems with managing large organizations because I have done so. My key issues are: improving our use of technology, and protecting kids online; retaining great teachers; engaging parents and taxpayers about our schools and plans for their future; and strengthening school management and providing fiscal accountability – funding a new George Mason high school and larger Mt. Daniel elementary school while protecting taxpayers. Should the City Council approve full funding of City Schools? Why or why not? Yes. Great schools are a foundation of our community. However, it is up to the School Board and administration to spend money carefully, and treat the taxpayers’ dollars as their own. That hasn’t always happened. More effective oversight by the School Board, and better planning by the administration and the Board, would help hold costs down. How should the City develop the new 34.6 acres campus that contains George Mason and Mary Ellen Henderson schools? The best approach is to build a new high school using significant private investment that also creates a new “place” for the City – facilities that will benefit all City residents – while minimizing taxes. Any development should maximize greenspace through undergrounding of facilities, more vertical development, and “green” rooftops. Whether all this is possible – whether development proposals will justify using up to 10 acres of City and School land for commercial purposes – will have to be carefully examined. To this end, the City Council and School Board must allow for as much public participation as is possible under the law. Do you support the Mason Row project? Why or why not? Whether to approve the Mason Row proj-
Continued on Page 22
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FALLS CHURCH NEWS-PRESS | FCNP.COM
Visions of F.C.’s Future from School Board Candidates Continued from Page 21
ect is a City Council issue. If the project is approved, the job of the School Board will be to provide an excellent education to the new students that the project is expected to produce, along with other students from the City. That said, as a citizen I support smart development that diversifies our tax base to reduce the burden on City taxpayers. What about the City’s small area plans rolled out to date do you support or oppose most strongly? I don’t believe the City’s small area plans are the domain of the School Board, with one exception. The School Board should focus on school issues. If elected, that is what I will do. The exception is school facilities, and if Mt. Daniel cannot be expanded, additional school facilities within the City may be necessary, and City plans should take that possibility into account. If you win this November, do you see yourself running again in the future? If I am elected, and represent people well, then I would expect to run for a second term.
Kieran Sharpe What key issues have caused you to seek this office? To assure that our schools continue in the role of pioneer driving constantly for world-class education, a role that provides the engine of the city’s prosperity. When deciding what commercial development may occur at the GM/MEH site, keep the Whittier experience in mind. Like GM/MEH, Whittier involved commercial use of about 10 acres otherwise available for schools. Before committing to such use at GM/MEH, take care to locate other sites for school use, especially ones with less traffic and lower cost, which would be more suitable for schools. To rebuild trust within the city and with Fairfax County.
Should the City Council approve full funding of City Schools? Why or why not?
If you win this November, do you see yourself running again in the future?
Yes. While collaboration and transparency can always be improved, Falls Church schools do not take an unfair share of local taxes. Falls Church’s school-age population is a higher percentage of total population than in Arlington or Fairfax – nearly twice as high as Arlington. However, our spending on schools is only about the same percentage of total budget as in Arlington and less than it is in Fairfax. The percentage of Falls Church land that is commercial is about the same as in Fairfax County (23 percent) but less than in Arlington (30 percent) and far less than in Fairfax City (35 percent).
Probably not. If I win, I will not declare victory. I will not shut out those who have different views. Instead, I will reach out to heal the divisions and to be responsive to the full diversity that is Falls Church. I’ll seek to lead us in ways that encourage everyone to participate and contribute so that Falls Church can achieve its full potential. And I’ll seek to fully achieve world-class education, so that all FCCPS students can achieve their full potential.
How should the City develop the new 34.6 acres campus that contains George Mason and Mary Ellen Henderson schools? Set a minimum of 1,000 students for GM and 800 for MEH while requiring the developer to show how we could expand from that level. Choose school designs consistent with inquiry-based learning (not bound to an industrial model). Look for a higher level of purely commercial use than has been typical of recent “mixed use” projects, especially as the commercial portion gets closer to the Metro. Look to VPIS and the Environmental Services Council to assess how much greenspace to include. Build a bike/pedestrian bridge across Haycock, and use natural turf with high maintenance for all athletic fields. Do you support the Mason Row project? Why or why not? Not if it has more than 200 residential units and a hotel. Such a level of persons living on that site, plus the attractive commercial uses, would add too much traffic and other burdens to that area. What about the City’s small area plans rolled out to date do you support or oppose most strongly? The area plans are a very sound approach to development. They encourage close cooperation among the area’s businesses and neighbors. I think the approach can both stimulate development and help assure its high quality.
Becky Smerdon What key issues have caused you to seek this office? Although a vast majority of our students score proficient on standardized tests, graduate high school, and go on to college, many do not – particularly, students with disabilities, English Language Learners, and economically disadvantaged students. In addition, we have a lot of students in the middle who are just getting by. Improvement must start with a set of clear, measurable goals that we hold our leadership accountable for meeting. I am running to work with board members to develop such goals and monitor and communicate progress on them so we may better support our educators and students. Should the City Council approve full funding of City Schools? Why or why not? Approval of full funding as a matter of course? No. First and foremost, the school board must to do a thorough analysis of the budget, our goals, and our return on investment. The budget we put forward should be detailed, thoroughly annotated and strongly justified with data. I would then fully expect a thorough review by the City Council and potential need for revision. It’s critical to have many checks and balances and opportunities to ask questions and raise issues. I believe strongly we should invest in education and I believe we must be prudent stewards of public funds.
How should the City develop the new 34.6 acres campus that contains George Mason and Mary Ellen Henderson schools? I participated in the first visioning meeting and I love the idea of bike trails, swimming pool, and a modern high school. But, I do not agree with the process (non-transparent due to Public-Private-Partnership) and I am not convinced that these amenities can be provided without having a significant and perhaps detrimental financial impact on our city and our citizens. I also want to hear about our educational vision for the future and how a new structure will support that. Therefore, I believe the city should first develop a sound, community-driven, transparent process for both considering and developing the space. Do you support the Mason Row project? Why or why not? I live by Mason Row and because I walk everywhere, I would love to have more interesting places to walk to in my neighborhood. Having said that, I, like other candidates believe that we are moving too fast with too little information and community input. How will the project impact capital costs of running the city? Running the school? What will our already congested traffic look like after this development? Similar to the previous question, I believe we need to start with a sound, communitydriven, transparent process for the project. What about the City’s small area plans rolled out to date do you support or oppose most strongly? My understanding of the first small area plans is that they involved the community and reflected city priorities. As I review development plans that have been put forward thus far, I have been struck by the lack of community involvement and it is not clear to me that the plans reflect city priorities. Indeed, I have been struck most by the lack of coherence in the small area plans moving forward. Not only am I concerned about how each plan will impact the city, I am also concerned about how these discrete pieces will reflect our vision for our city. If you win this November, do you see yourself running again in the future? Absolutely. I became active in the school system as soon as I moved here and plan to remain active whether I win or lose in November.
Election Day Falls Church Tuesday, November 3 Polls Open: 6 a.m. - 7 p.m.
FALLS CHURCH NEWS-PRESS | FCNP.COM
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TO LETTERS THE EDITOR
Falls Church Does Not Need To ‘Take a Breather’
Continued from Page 6 what’s good for the City. One of those opinions (as quoted from Phil Duncan and your word choice for the p. 1 headline), “Moratorium or Momentum,” is a naïve, simplistic way to frame development issues in the City and presents an untrue – and unnecessarily scary – dichotomy. Moratorium doesn’t mean “forever,” but rather a pause to take stock of the impact of the developments already underway and not approving more until we understand what we’re already getting. Momentum isn’t always a good thing. Momentum can get out of hand, and will if we continue to approve large mixed-use developments without pausing. The choice is really “Pause and Review vs. Develop to Develop.” The “little” City of Falls Church can handle only so much exactly because it’s small. Not to know the impacts of developments underway in and around the City limits before we approve even just one more large mixed-use project is unwise, working against ourselves, and not “smart growth.” Ms. Roth, it’s highly unlikely that the corner of Broad and West is going to “end up in the hands of [a developer] who wants little and does little except for, perhaps, planting more fast food restaurants” if “we say no to Mason Row.” Don’t you try to scare us, too! The Broad and West developers are making proffers because they have to and they want major zoning exceptions in return. Falls Church is not their concern, no matter how nicely they say it is. That’s not an insult to them. Business is business. Developments are built and sold. Spectrum will be gone in the not-too-distant future. A toolarge project that’s approved just to keep “momentum” going will be with us for decades, as will its impact. Jane Singleton Falls Church
Editor, We do not need to take chances on inexperienced School Board candidates who have a personal vendetta against the School Board or no track record (Kaye, Kutchma, or Smerdon); or former council members who did nothing remarkable their first time on Council and apparently have few ideas of what to do in the future since they (Barry or Mabry) only want to “take a breather” (granted that is Mabry’s shtick, however all five mentioned above likely subscribe to that by association since all appear on a flyer that arrived this week in our mailboxes). Get elected and “take a breather?” That’s a non sequitur if ever I heard one, and unfortunately a great disservice to our citizens and our students. This slate of candidates appear to have an ironic reverse progressive attitude. So their mantra is to “let’s take a breather,” and by a logical extension then allow the surrounding jurisdictions to box Falls Church City into an untenable situation where there is a diminishing tax base and real estate taxes on homeowners will be forced even higher. That sounds like a recipe for losing our identity and being forced to merge with Arlington or Fairfax County. The City Council and School Board have been doing a great service to our City’s citizens in the face of our unique and compact geography. That geography forces the commercial district into a distinct and defined pattern, and our Council has been effectively managing the increase in commercial, and revenue generating, use of that space. I welcome multiple groceries within the city. We are situated in a unique hub of opportunity where Metro and the
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LE TTE RS toll road to Dulles, Metro and I-66 to D.C. and out past Manassas to Front Royal can be spokes of a technology circle to rival the Technology Corridor of I-270 in Maryland. Certainly our Council has been aware of this unique geography on which the City finds itself as a hub of opportunity, and has been effectively building for our place in the rehabilitation of this area. It is not time to “take a breather,” lest we be left behind and the history of the City of Falls Church ends with a “take a breather” attitude. Steve Zullo Falls Church
We Need to ‘Clean House’ In City Elections Editor, I thought life in Falls Church was pretty good until I started paying attention to the city council election. My family loves our community, our neighbors, and our friends here. I’ve written multiple versions of this letter. Admittedly, it’s been tough to finalize. This was in part because I needed clarity around my own thoughts on redevelopment, anticipated traffic impacts, and stretching our school’s capacity. I’m also hung up on the emerging, disturbing details of current and past community leaders and their combined leniency plea for a convicted pedophile. Their actions defy logic and sound judgment. So all of the chatter about the pros and cons of taxing those who want to catch a movie, tolling those who want to get to work on-time, and shutting out those seeking a high-rise home in a small city (especially if they have kids – yikes!) is a distraction from our first order of business. We need a clean house. We need a fresh start with a new team – no incumbents or past members. There is too much baggage (with little evidence of any healing or self-reflection done) for this group to function effectively. Unfortunately, the math doesn’t work out. With only one firsttime candidate among the five, the refresh can’t be done in one election but we must start here. The same is true for the school board. We need a clean slate of leaders who are ready to roll up their sleeves and work together without resorting to tactics that distract from the number one issue – school kids. We can start on November 3 by electing a team to effectively represent us, work together, and be trusted to make compassionate, courageous leadership decisions. Robin Camarote Falls Church
OCTOBER 29 - NOVEMBER 4, 2015 | PAGE 23
Mixed-Use Is Not Responsible for Increase In Students
Editor, As a 40-year and now-retired City resident, I have seen the need for growth result in successful development activity that has removed many eyesores while increasing our downtown’s livability and attractiveness, particularly along the Broad Street corridor. I vividly remember the deteriorating Adcom property, where the Broadway now stands, sitting vacant surrounded by a chain link fence for 15 years, while the same kind of endless debate taking place in the current campaign, went on and on. I also recall that there have been three referendums since 2000 on the development issue. In the one in 2010, 57 percent of those who voted favored the pro-development position. In the other two (2002, 2008), more than 60 percent voted in favor of the pro-development position. My family intends to stay where we are in Winter Hill, and fully support the continuing efforts to move forward with the kind of mixed-use development that has brought us the Spectrum, Byron and Northgate – and their mix of stores and restaurants I can walk to, such as the Mad Fox Brewing Company, Café Kindred and Penzeys Spices. And, that’s why I find it disconcerting that those opposed to this smart development raise the red herring that it is the mixed-use approach that is responsible for the significant increase in the number of students in our public schools. The fact is, this increase in the student population over the past 10 years or so has come largely from single family homes and long established townhouse complexes such as Winter Hill. The not so subtle message coming from this opposition bloc is if you want to move to Falls Church City by either buying a single family home or a Winter Hill townhouse, don’t bring any children! Of course, this is not something I or anyone wants, let alone comports with our nation’s housing laws and regulations. Richard McCall Falls Church
Vote ‘No’ on Further Mixed-Use Development Editor, I write to register one more voice to voting “no” on further large-scale, high-rise, dense, “mixed-use” developments in
The Little City. Is the aim to become Ballston, Rosslyn or Megolopolis?! The numbers game being used to advocate for further development sure seems boundless, in this regard. Some are drunk with visions of millennial childless piggy banks propping up an elite school, and it’s as though the drunk co-ed is in the upstairs frat bedroom and all the developers are urged to get while the gettin’s good – more Hitt, more Spectrum. I urge citizens of the Little City to vote “no” to further development, to let the current massive developments – at Tinner Hill (right across from an earlier one), Broad Street & Little Falls (Harris Teeter), the impending assistedliving complex along Broad by Lee, the large Avalon development and the in-discussion development around West St. – have some time to give effect, and to spare our current small businesses from the bulldozer (or raised rents). “Luxury apartments” are now here en masse; affordable housing, not so much. Signs for a new high-rise promise “Dining, shopping, and entertainment right here.” Hey, look around, we have that already, right here in The Little City – and don’t really need the development to stomp out the extant businesses. We have good, ethnic smallbusiness groceries for Indian, Lebanese, Iraqi, Vietnamese influence. Let’s not squeeze them out for Wegman’s or Harris Teeter or Whole Paycheck, okay? Dan Lehman Falls Church
[ TALK TO US ] The News-Press wants to hear from you! Deadline for Letters to the Editor and Guest Commentaries is 5 p.m. Monday each week of publication. Letters to the Editor should be 350 words or less. Guest Commentaries should be limited to 800 words.
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PAGE 24 | OCTOBER 29 – NOVEMBER 4, 2015
FALLS CHURCH NEWS-PRESS | FCNP.COM
Mason Football Bounces Back with 56-42 Road Win by Kate Karstens
Falls Church News-Press
Home losses hurt, but first place feels good. After a crushing 47-14 home loss to Clarke County on Homecoming night, the George Mason varsity football team bounced back with a road win against the Warren County Wildcats, 56-42 on Friday, Oct. 23 on the strength of six touchdowns by senior D’Montae Noble and an improved passing attack from sophomore quarterback Thomas Creed. The Mustangs are now first in the Bull Run District with a record of 5-1. Last week’s game featured offensive fireworks from both the Mustangs and the Wildcats. “Our passing game is a work in progress,” said head coach, Tony Green. “It’s going to take a while to get it all down, Thomas is a young quarterback but he’s getting better.” Mason kicked off the high scoring affair with a touchdown run by senior running back D’Montae Noble, capping a successful first drive in which Noble carried the ball 3 times for 60 total yards. The Mustangs jumped all over the Wildcats, scoring three early touchdowns in the first quarter. Including his opening touchdown, Noble scored twice, on runs of
10 yards and 15 yards, and junior Dustin Green scored on a 20 yard run. When the Warren offense began to create plays and open space, sophomore linebacker, Finn Roou, quickly eliminated hope and forced their third punt of the first quarter. Although sophomore quarterback Thomas Creed and Green’s chemistry seemed disconnected at the start of the game, the two were able to push two first downs in a row for Mason, first with a handoff, and second with a 15-yard pass completion. “Our chemistry has improved,” said Green, discussing his relationship with Creed. “We’ve been getting better at understanding where and when the ball should be thrown to give us the best chance at a completion.” In the second quarter, Warren narrowed the gap with a 35-yard touchdown run, but the Mustangs did not stay down for long: On the ensuing kick return, Noble maintained his streak and ran through the entire Wildcat defense to score a 90 yard return, a crushing blow to Warren, whose previous touchdown was quickly overshadowed. The Mustang defense kept the momentum as Green nabbed an interception on the Wildcats’ next
MASON’S OFFENSE tries to run the ball against Warren County High School’s defense during their win against the Wildcats on Friday, Oct. 23. (Photo: Courtesy of FCCPS Photo/Kevin Creed) offensive possession. A late first half touchdown for the Wildcats cut the Mason lead to 28-14, but sophomore Andrew Coulson and the Mustang special teams recaptured the momentum at the start of the second half.
Mustangs Volleyball Defeats Bull Run District Rival Clarke County by Matt Delaney
Falls Church News-Press
A rout. A rut. A rally. The formula is all too familiar for the Mustangs, who after going up 2-0, took a nosedive midway through the match only to arise from their ashes once more and claim a big win late in the season as they defeated Clarke County 3-1 (25-17, 25-10, 19-25, 25-23). The wheels were wiggling off Mason’s unit as they were staring down a 9-5 deficit early in the fourth set after surrendering a 25-19 third set loss that never should have been, given the team’s dominance early on. But one point led to another, and then another, and finally a “tick-tick, boom”-ing kill by junior outside hitter Shaun Rodock put Mason ahead 11-10, allowing the home stands to erupt as the Mustangs were on their way to dodging any semblance of last week’s putrid loss to Strasburg. “We started sticking serves,”
MASON’S VICKY-MARIE ADDO-ASHONG and Mary Catherine Donovan get ready to receive a serve in a match earlier this season. The Mustangs defeated Clarke County 3-1 this week. (Photo: Courtesy of Carol Sly/FCCPS Photo)
assistant coach Brad Young said. “Once we took that first lead in the fourth set, our girls were fine. They woke up and realized they were right there…so it was just focusing [and] getting our girls in
a good service run.” Serving, was in fact, the key. Head coach Hillary Trebels noted an improvement in Clarke County’s hitting since their first meeting with the team on Oct. 6,
Coulson returned a Warren kickoff 50 yards to give the Mustangs first-and-goal. Noble finished the drive with a quick 5-yard touchdown run and sophomore Ethan Morse’s steady leg made it a 35-14 lead early in the second half.
The Mustangs will face Madison County (2-6) at home on Friday, October 30, at 7:30 p.m., the team’s senior night. “This is week nine,” said Coach Green. “We’re still fighting for a playoff position.”
causing her to brainstorm defensive adjustments with Young prematch so the Mustangs wouldn’t be caught off-guard. The ladies negated Clarke County’s power well, but their best counter came to be the stifling serves they launched throughout the match. “[Our serves] weren’t really aggressive, and other teams could attack out of that,” Trebels said. “So…we focused on adding pace to them and that helped because [Clarke County] struggled passing and couldn’t run their offense as much as they wanted.” This advantage was on full display during the home team’s winning sets. Mason appeared to drag and drop their serves in the first and second sets as the Eagles ran amok, failing to piece offensive possessions together and ended the opening sets 25-17 and 25-10, respectively. The trend resumed in the fourth set as the Mustangs’ serve game left Clarke County scurrying to recover, though to no avail, with freshman outside hitter Mackenzie Brady’s ace sealing the deal 25-23. Outside of the service game, the Mason defense showed out
against a Clarke County team that put some mustard on the ball from multiple vantage points. Hearty digs made way for good passing which evolved into great scoring chances finished off by senior outside hitter Vicky-Marie AddoAshong and junior middle hitter Kate Karstens. Addo-Ashong’s usual share of leaping strikes wooed the crowd from time to time, but it was Karstens’ off-speed kills that kept Clarke County’s morale in check and maintained Mason’s competitive edge. “Coach always tells me ‘Demand the ball,’” said Karstens, but refused to take credit for her good play alone. “It’s really nice, [but] it all starts with a pass. You can’t run middle without a pass, so I will definitely say that without our backrow I couldn’t have done anything.” “It was a reminder that we can’t rely too heavily…on the fact that we’re going to come and be able to perform every game,” Karstens said. “We have to want it out of ourselves, and the Strasburg game made us re-evaluate how we treat games and situations like this.” Mason ends their regular season on Thursday against Rappahannock County before beginning the postseason on Nov. 3.
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FALLS CHURCH NEWS-PRESS | FCNP.COM
Fa l l s C h u r c h
School News & Notes
OCTOBER 29 – NOVEMBER 4, 2015 | PAGE 25
JUSTIN CASTILLO For School Board
“A successful school system benefits everyone. Help me keep the schools strong.”
GEORGE MASON HIGH SCHOOL ART teachers Sarah Gurgo and Marc Robarge received a $1,100 grant from the Falls Church Education Foundation for The Memory Project as part of the foundation’s Super Grants program. (Photo: Courtesy of Marybeth Connelly/FCCPS Photo)
F.C. Schools Selected as Apple Distinguished Program Falls Church City Public Schools were selected last week as an Apple Distinguished Program, the school system announced in its “Morning Announcements.” The school system was nominated earlier this year based on five best practices: visionary leadership; innovative earning and teaching; ongoing professional learning; compelling evidence of success; and flexible learning environment. Apple officials will celebrate the designation with the entire school community in November. The recognition is for two academic years, 2015-2017, during which time the school system will be an Apple recommended division, hosting visits and sharing its success story and best practices onsite with other educators from across the country. For more information, visit apple.com/education/ apple-distinguished-schools.
F.C. Education Foundation Awards $67,000 in Grants The Falls Church Education Foundation awarded more than $67,000 in grants to Falls Church City Public Schools programs on Thursday, Oct. 22 as part of its Super Grants program. There were 18 applicants requesting over $100,000 in funding for a
During my term on School Board, we have worked to help every student make the most of his or her potential.
Over the next four years I will strive to keep our schools moving forward by: • Modernizing and expanding George Mason High School • Keeping class sizes small
HOLDING A BIG CHECK FROM RAYTHEON in mid-October was Mary Ellen Henderson Middle School teacher Joel Block (center right), who was named a Math Hero by the locallybased tech company. Block and Henderson received $2,500 matching grants from Raytheon as part of the the company’s MathMovesU Grant. He was one of 25 teachers from across the nation to be recognized as a Math Hero. (Photo: Courtesy of FCCPS
• Recruiting and retaining great teachers
Communications)
wide variety of Pre-K – grade 12 programs. Among the winners were programs at Mary Ellen Henderson Middle School and Thomas Jefferson and Mt. Daniel Elementary Schools. Mary Ellen Henderson received a grant of $10,000 for its Fountas and Pinnell Leveled-Literacy Intervention System, which allow extension of the program to grades 6 – 8 to provide consistency to students who need intensive reading support.
Thomas Jefferson and Mt. Daniel Elementary Schools received a $20,000 grant for Jan Richardson’s “The Next Step in Guided Reading” professional development program. Super Grants are made possible through Academic Booster donations as well as sponsorship and community participating in the Falls Church Education Foundation’s annual gala and auction and Run for the Schools. For more information, visit fcedf.org.
Questions about my experience or what I stand for? Find out more at: facebook.com/castilloforfallschurch castilloforfallschurch.com castilloforfallschurch@gmail.com Authorized and paid for by Friends of Justin Castillo for School Board.
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PAGE 26 | OCTOBER 29 – NOVEMBER 4, 2015
After 37 Years, Ohr Set to Retire from TJ Elementary School
BY DREW COSTLEY
FALLS CHURCH NEWS-PRESS
Margaret Ohr was working as a crossing guard in the City when she began working at Thomas Jefferson Elementary School as a playground and lunchroom aide in October 1978. This Friday, Oct. 30, Ohr, the longest serving employee at Jefferson, will retire from the school, 37 years after she started. But although she’s retiring from full-time work at the school, Ohr will be nearby. She lives a short walk away from the school, right around the corner on Sherrow Avenue. Ohr and her family originally moved to Falls Church in 1972 from Arlington County, from which Ohr and her husband Daniel hail. Margaret is from Westover and Daniel, a retired volunteer firefighter, is from Cherrydale.
The Ohrs moved to the house they live in now after Daniel fought a fire at that house, which was vacant at the time, because they needed space for their growing family. A few years later Ohr applied for the job at Jefferson at the suggestion of her husband and her eventual close work associate Mary Warner. After she was hired, she would do her crossing guard duty in the morning at Madison Elementary and then come to Jefferson to work the lunch and recess shift in the late morning and afternoon. Since then, she has served several other functions at the school, working as a substitute physical education teacher, administrative support staff, classroom assistant and ad hoc supervisor of classrooms when teachers need someone to cover for them. When she began working at
MARGARET OHR, who has been working at Thomas Jefferson Elementary School for 37 years, checks her email at the end of her work day. She is set to retire from Jefferson on Friday, Oct. 30. (P����: D��� C������/N���-P����)
Jefferson, Ohr said, the school’s population was much smaller. But it still had its fair share of excitement. “It was an adventure, let me tell you,” Ohr said. “We had a lot
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of fun. I worked with Mary and the two of us, we were kind of a team. We worked a long time together and it was fun.” Warner, who retired from Jefferson in 2009, echoed what
Ohr said about their time together at Jefferson. “We had a lot of fun together. We worked in the office and we’d order supplies,” Warner said. “You know, you always have your ups and downs...petty stuff.
FALLS CHURCH NEWS-PRESS | FCNP.COM
an evening when she’s called Ohr to talk on the way home. In one instance, Huber was stuck in hellacious traffic after a winter storm came through mid-day and caught students, staff and faculty at school. She called Ohr during that especially long haul, she said, and Ohr stayed on the phone with her. Ohr said that she is going to miss Jefferson, especially her work as a lunchroom and playground aide. It’s not quite the same as it used
to be – Ohr said she used to know every student’s name when she first started working at Jefferson but the boom in the enrollment at the school has made that impossible – but she’ll still miss it. “It will be nice to not have to wake up and be somewhere by a certain time...but I will miss it,” Ohr said. “It’s been part of my life for a long time.” She told the News-Press that she had not told many Jefferson
OCTOBER 29 – NOVEMBER 4, 2015 | PAGE 27
students about her impending retirement, but that the ones she had told her expressed longing for her before she even left. “I told a couple of them,” Ohr said. “And they said ‘You mean
you’re leaving forever and ever?’” She’s not quite leaving forever. Ohr said that she’s going to apply to be a substitute teacher at Jefferson as part of her postretirement plans.
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“But on the overall we enjoyed each other while we worked together and you know we used to laugh and have fun and we’d go out to eat. We had a lively time.” Warner was not Ohr’s only friend at Jefferson. She’s grown close to the Jefferson’s head custodian, David Morales, in the over 20 years he’s worked at the school. He spoke to the News-Press about his genial work relationship with Ohr directly after he greeted her with open arms and an affable exchange about their time together at Jefferson. “We have a great friendship and I really enjoyed working with her,” Morales said. “And I’m going to miss her really, but I’m happy for her. “After 37 years, that’s a long time. It’s time for her to go the next phase of her life and enjoy her grandchildren and enjoy her life. I’m glad for her.” Several of the staff and faculty at Jefferson gathered around Ohr in Jefferson’s main office, voicing their affection for Ohr. “We’re going to miss her,” said Julie Huber, the school’s gym teacher. Huber, who has a long commute to and from Falls Church for work, said there have been many
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DAVID MORALES, the head custodian at Thomas Jefferson Elementary School, and Margaret Ohr have been working together at Jefferson for over 20 years. The two have a close working relationship. (Photo: Drew Costley/News-Press)
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PAGE 28 | OCTOBER 29 – NOVEMBER 4, 2015
SE NI O R L I V I NG
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Time for Medicare Open Enrollment BY MATLIDA CHARLES
KING FEATURES SYNDICATE
Here we are again in the middle of the annual open enrollment for Medicare. Information abounds, but AARP especially is encouraging seniors to compare the cost of drug plans with an eye toward saving money. Here are some of the things you can do during the open enrollment: • Change from traditional Medicare to an Advantage plan, or vice versa. • Switch from one stand-alone prescription drug plan to another. • Drop Part D. • Sign up for a drug plan if you didn’t join one when you first enrolled in Medicare. • Change from one Advantage
plan to another. You’ll be looking for convenience, cost, customer service and coverage. There are two easy (or at least easier than doing it yourself) ways to pick a plan. 1) Go online to Medicare’s Plan Finder (www.medicare.gov/finda-plan) and start by putting in your ZIP code for plans in your area under the general search. Below that is the personalized search, but only use that if you’re absolutely sure of your computer’s virus protection, because it requires you to put in your Medicare number. 2) Call Medicare directly at 1-800-633-4227 or contact your State Health Insurance Program (SHIP) at www.shiptacenter.org. If you need to learn more, check the AARP site (aarp.org) for
A Newcomer’s Guide to Medicare or AARP Medicare Part D Guide. Don’t forget that the open enrollment only runs through Dec. 7, 2015. Any changes you make will start on Jan. 1, 2016. Open enrollment is for those who already have Medicare. If you’re just now signing up for Medicare, there is a different enrollment window for you: three months before your 65th birthday, your birthday month, and three months after your birthday. *** As it stands now, if Congress doesn’t act immediately, many of us will be faced with a big increase in our Medicare Part B cost in 2016. Even if Congress acts to stop the increase, consider this fair warning that it could happen in the future. Here are some of the figures: Most of us currently pay $104.90 for Medicare Part B, and it’s taken directly out of Social Security checks before we even see the money. The new costs for many of us are slated to jump up 52 percent, up to $159.30. The deductible is likely to jump from $147 to $223. Seventy percent of us fall under
FALLS CHURCH NEWS-PRESS | FCNP.COM
the “hold harmless” rule, which means there will be no increase because there likely will be no Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA) in 2016. Those people are covered. It’s the other 30 percent who will shoulder the increased costs of Medicare for everyone else. (It’s been calculated that if the costs were spread equally, everyone would pay $120.70 per month.) Those who will pay extra: • Anyone who signs up for Medicare for the first time in 2016, • People who are direct billed for their premiums, • Those enrolled in Medicare
but not Social Security because they’re still working. AARP and more than 60 other groups across the country have written to various senators to ask them to intervene. Watch the news to see how this turns out, and watch out for it happening in the future. Meanwhile, if you’re just signing up for 2016 Medicare, remember that your cost will be calculated based on your 2014 tax return. If you’ve had a life change that lowered your income, ask Social Security to use more recent income data.
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OCTOBER 29 – NOVEMBER 4, 2015 | PAGE 29
FALLS CHURCH NEWS-PRESS | FCNP.COM
Elect Terry Modglin to the State Senate!
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LO CA L
PAGE 30 | OCTOBER 29 – NOVEMBER 4, 2015
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FALLS CHURCH NEWS-PRESS | FCNP.COM
FALLS CHURCH RESIDENT ANNIKA NICHEN paints a jack-o-lantern on one of the windows of Ireland’s Four Provinces on Saturday, Oct. 17, the last of�icial day of the 8th Annual Halloween Store Window Painting project. (P����: D��� C������/N���-P����)
Ghosts, Jack-O-Lanterns Adorn Store Windows in Falls Church BY DREW COSTLEY
FALLS CHURCH NEWS-PRESS
Ghosts, jack-o-lanterns, skeletons and Frankenstein have been inhabiting Falls Church recently. Fortunately, they aren’t real. Instead, they are decorating the windows of local businesses after local residents, organizations and sports teams adorned the city over the past month as part of the 8th Annual Halloween Store Window Painting project. Nostalgia is one of the things that inspired Falls Church resident Marty Behr to start the Halloween Store Window Painting project in 2008. “I grew up in New Jersey and we painted in my town and I thought about bringing it to Falls Church, but I usually remembered in November,” Behr said. “And then one year, I thought about it in the summer and I thought we could try this year because we have this little downtown area between Brown’s and the [Falls Church Antique Center] that would be suitable for painting.” After deciding to try to start the window painting project, Behr jumped on the Internet and searched for how to get something like this started. Through her search she connected with a man who works for the Parks Department in Lawrence, Kan. who gave her a
GHOST BRUSHERS Alex Dunie (right) and Rebecca Horovitz take a short break after painting their Halloween window creations outside Argia’s Italian Restaurant. (P����: C������� �� B���� H�������) guide to doing it, which brought Behr to the second reason why she started the Halloween Store Window Painting project. She wanted to create something that would bring together the community and bring people to the community.
“I would like to think that people might drive through Falls Church and look at it,” Behr said. “It might make it a destination. I might bring people that come and eat dinner here….I know people
Continued on Page 38
FALLS CHURCH NEWS-PRESS | FCNP.COM
FO O D &D I NI NG
OCTOBER 29 – NOVEMBER 4, 2015 | PAGE 31
Eden Kitchen Stands Out Among A Cornucopia of Options BY DREW COSTLEY
FALLS CHURCH NEWS-PRESS
Eden Kitchen has great food, as with most of the eateries in Falls Church’s famed Eden Center, but what separates it from the other spots in its neighborhood are that it doesn’t look like a hole in the wall.
Eden Kitchen
6793 Wilson Blvd. Falls Church 703-534-3336 Hours: Monday - Thursday: 10 a.m. – 10 p.m. Friday – Sunday: 10 a.m. – 11 p.m. Don’t get me wrong, I like a good hole in the wall better than a nice hoity toity spot, but the saturation of places like that in Eden Center – even if they have great food – makes a place like Eden Kitchen stand out. It has nice, minimalist furnishing and decor. The restaurant is spacious – Eden Kitchen occupies over 3,300 square feet of space whereas the
average Eden Center restaurants occupy around 1,500 square feet. And it has a few large circular tables suited for large dinner parties, but there were curiously not many people dining at the restaurant any of the times that I’ve been there, two of which were Saturday nights. Opened in 2013, Eden Kitchen, along with the new Good Fortune supermarket, might be part of the new (read: gentrified) Eden Center. And while I’m definitely not here for gentrification (see: The Trail of Tears and Manifest Destiny), I’m definitely here for Eden Kitchen, which was opened by Andy Phan, owner of Alexandria’s Pho Factory (both signs hang in the windows at the front of the restaurant). The Vietnamese eatery doesn’t veer from or put any corny fusion twists on traditional fare. But they do it well. And they have a huge menu. What’s more, Eden Kitchen almost has a full menu page of vegetarian options. Let’s start with the Vegetarian Egg Rolls ($3.95), which are good, but aren’t anything special.
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Among the pho offerings of Eden Kitchen are the Vegetarian Pho, of which you can get a large serving ($8.95) or a small serving ($7.95). The Vegetarian Pho is second best in the area (that I’ve tried) to the Vegetarian Pho at Old Town’s Caphe Banh Mi. I only wish that Eden Kitchen’s Vegetarian Pho had a source of protein besides tofu, like vegan beef slices. The Vegetarian Clay Pot ($12.95) at Eden Kitchen, with clear cellophane noodles, tofu, mushrooms and mixed vegetables, was more noteworthy than the restaurant’s Vegetarian Pho. It wasn’t just the novelty of my meal coming to the table sizzling in a clay pot (so authentic!) – the dish was tasty. Upon first bite, which consisted of a few mixed vegetables, I thought that the dish was bland. It was lightly seasoned, I learned during the next few bites, because the cellophane noodles were flavorful. They were salty and sweet with a heartiness underlying each bite. The trick was to incorporate cellophane noodles into each bite. My dining companion during a recent visit to Eden Kitchen had the Chicken Lemongrass Vermicelli Noodles ($9.95), which comes with
THE VEGETARIAN PHO at Eden Kitchen is good, but it’s not the best in the region. (P����: D��� C������/N���-P����) beansprouts, cucumber, mints and roasted peanuts, served with a fish sauce, and she liked it. She said the chicken was well-seasoned. The first time she and I went there she had the Spicy Lemongrass Beef Vermicelli Soup ($9.95), which she liked as well. She couldn’t tell what all of the parts of the cow were that were in the soup, but traditionally the dish
includes marinated and boiled beef shank, chunks of oxtail, pig’s knuckles and congealed pig’s blood. Yum (read: disgusting). With the cornucopia of eateries in Eden Center, Eden Kitchen has a ton of competition. But the restaurant has great food and service and it looks wonderful. Hopefully they can get the number of diners they deserve.
PAGE 32 | OCTOBER 29 – NOVEMBER 4, 2015
A RTS&E NTE RTA I NME NT
FALLS CHURCH NEWS-PRESS | FCNP.COM
Oct.
29 y
sda Thur
Radio NV Clare and Don’s 6:30 p.m. 130 N. Washington St., Falls Church
703-532-9283 • clareanddons.com
30 y
Frida
Ellis Paul with Chelsea Berry Jammin’ Java 6 p.m. 227 Maple Ave. E, Vienna
703-255-1566 • jamminjava.com
The Legwarmers State Theatre 9 p.m. 220 N. Washington St., Falls Church
703-237-0300 • thestatetheatre.com
31
ay
d Satur
BY DREW COSTLEY
FALLS CHURCH NEWS-PRESS
Duke Erikson, bassist for Garbage, spoke to the News-Press a day after the legendary 90s rock group wrapped on rehearsals for a tour commemorating the 20th anniversary of the release of their self-titled debut album. The tour, in which they’ll play their self-titled debut, rolls through 9:30 Club for a two-night engagement, which started on Wednesday. “We’re all really looking forward to it,” Erikson said. “We hatched this idea of doing a 20th anniversary tour and we started rehearsing a couple of weeks ago. And it was a real trip to actually play these songs again. Many of them we haven’t touched in 20 years. I’ve barely even listened to them.” Of course, Garbage had been playing their biggest hits, “Stupid Girl” and “Only Happy When It Rains,” over the past two decades, but, Erikson said, there are a lot of deep cuts that they “had nearly forgotten about.” GARBAGE. (C������� P����) “It was kind of time warp going back and “I immediately fell in love with her voice listening to these songs and relearning them,” Erikson said. “It brought back all these emo- when I heard her on the Angelfish record and I tions and memories and stuff and a lot of won- loved her whole attitude. I read a couple of interdering why did we do that in that part of the views with her and she was just funny and smart song and how did we ever come up with that and so I was already converted,” Erikson said. “But then there’s the whole other side of sound. It’s been good.” Before they started Garbage, all of the band’s whether or not you’re gonna get along with this members had musical careers of their own. person and whether she’s gonna get along with Erikson had a twenty year career playing with you and whether you’re gonna have the same kind popular Midwestern bands Spooner and Fire of artistic temperaments. So there were a whole Town, the former of which drummer Butch Vig lot of questions beyond just liking her voice.” To answer some of those questions, Erikson, eventually joined. Erikson and Vig, Garbage’s drummer, created Smart Studios, where Garbage Vig and Marker invited Manson to play with recorded their first four albums, with Steve them at Smart Studios. Erikson said they hit off really well after an awkward first meeting. Marker, who became Garbage’s guitarist. “The first time that she showed up in Madison Marker also famously spotted Shirley Manson, Garbage’s lead vocalist, while she was it was very awkward. We’d never really audiperforming with her band Angelfish on MTV’s tioned anyone or tried to put a band together this “120 Minutes,” which eventually led to her join- way,” Erikson said. “We just came together as ing Erikson, Vig and Marker’s burgeoning group. friends. So it was very awkward and it was obvi-
ous that she felt awkward and I’m sure it was obvious that we didn’t know what we were doing, so it was not a very successful audition.” But after Erikson, Vig and Marker listened back to the tape of the audition they decided to give Manson one more try because they loved her voice so much. That next time it, Erikson said, it was much more relaxed and natural. Garbage, who have since recorded five studio albums and sold 17 million records worldwide, don’t have that problem anymore. It’s relatively rare for a group with as much success as they’ve had to stick together for as long as they have, a fact that isn’t lost on Erikson. “I think it’s an accomplishment, whether it’s a family or a marriage or whatever, to stay tight and stay together for 20 years,” Erikson said. “So it’s worth celebrating.” • For more information about Garbage, visit garbage.com.
Joan Armatrading with Marti Jones Wolf Trap 7:30 p.m.
These singles whet the appetites of the FCNP editorial team this week: Nicholas Benton – The Whole Shebang by Grant Lee Buffalo
1645 Trap Road, Vienna
703-255-1900 • wolftrap.com
Jody Fellows – Hell by Squirrel Nut Zippers
Drew Costley – Can’t Feel My Face by The Weeknd
FALLS CHURCH NEWS-PRESS | FCNP.COM
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OCTOBER 29 – NOVEMBER 4, 2015 | PAGE 33
Fa l l s C h u r c h
Business News & Notes
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Family Medicine in Falls Church Celebrates Ten Year Anniversary Family Medicine in Falls Church celebrated its ten year anniversary on Tuesday, October 27. Since the founding of this local independently owned and operated family medicine practice, Dr. Gordon Theisz has seen more than 43,000 patient visits. The City of Falls Church resident, volunteer, and doctor is a 1998 graduate of the University of Virginia School of Medicine. During training at Riverside Family Medicine Residency, he received the G. Stanley Mitchell Spirit of Family Practice Award. For his service to the community as a volunteer with several organizations including the Boy Scouts of America and the Village Preservation and Improvement Society, Dr. Theisz was the recipient of the 2014 Greater Falls Church Chamber of Commerce Pillar of the Community Award. Dr. Theisz also served in the United States Navy prior to medical school. Family Medicine in Falls Church is located at 104A East Broad Street. For more information, visit www.fmifc.com.
Local Realtor Hughes Now with Century 21 Redwood Realty Local Realtor Gary Hughes is now with Century 21 Redwood Realty which has 10 offices in the metro DC area. Hughes will work out of the Arlington office. Hughes made the move to better serve home buyers and sellers with the ability to advertise homes with video tours and 3D modeling in addition to the traditional photos, slide show and brochures. Additionally, clients will be able to access properties by neighborhood and school district and experience paperless transactions if desired. For more information, visit www. novaagent.com.
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Congressional Schools of Virginia Host Ribbon Cutting The Congressional Schools of Virginia are hosting a ribbon cutting ceremony on Saturday, October 31 at 12:30 p.m. for its new Sport Court. The Sport Court, a multipurpose athletic court with four basketball hoops, a tennis court, and space for four-square and hopscotch, is the first major construction project on campus since the mid-‘90s. The ceremony will be part of the schools annual Fall Festival from 11 a.m. – 3 p.m. The 40-acre campus is located at 3229 Sleepy Hollow Drive in Falls Church. For more information, visit www.congressionalschools.org.
F.C. Chamber of Commerce Hosting Member Orientation
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The Falls Church Chamber of Commerce is hosting a Member Orientation Meeting on Thursday, November 5 from 5:30 – 6:30 p.m. at Art and Frame of Falls Church located at 205 W. Jefferson Street in Falls Church. The event is for prospective, new, and current members interested in learning more about the benefits of Chamber membership. For more information or to sign up to attend the free event, go to www.FallsChurchChamber.org or call 703-532-1050.
Local Businesses Invited to Donate Coupons to Lego League Tourneys Local businesses interested in promoting their products and services to parents of middle school children in Falls Church are invited to donate coupons and premium items for the participant gift bags which will be distributed at two regional Lego League tournaments taking place at Mary Ellen Henderson Middle School on Saturday, November 14 and Sunday, November 15. For more information, contact Marybeth Connelly at connellym@ fccps.org.
Sharp Business Systems Hosting Grand Opening Sharp Business Systems is hosting a grand opening open house with refreshments, door prizes and raffle prizes, on Thursday, November 12 from 10 a.m. – 3 p.m. at its new technology center at 3110 Fairview Park Drive, Suite 1170, in Falls Church. The new location features automated paper processes to enhance internal and customer communication, going paperless for greener, faster and more secure access to information, high-impact, interactive, Pro AV technology to reach customers onsite and capture meeting collaboration, and IT support services that help control costs and reduce potential threats. Business News & Notes is compiled by Sally Cole, Executive Director of Greater Falls Church Chamber of Commerce. She may be emailed at sally@fallschurchchamber.org.
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CA L E NDA R
PAGE 34 | OCTOBER 29 – NOVEMBER 4, 2015
Community Events
THURSDAY, OCTOBER 29
Early Literacy Center. Explore educational and manipulative items to teach early literacy through play on Monday, Tuesday and Thursday every week. This program is for ages birth to 5 years. No registration required. Mary Riley Styles Public Library’s Youth Services Room (120 N. Virginia Ave., Falls Church). Free. 11 a.m. – noon. & 3:30 – 4:30 p.m. 703-248-5034. Spanish Language Storytime with Communikids. Children ages 2 – 5 can drop-in for Spanish storytime with Communikids. Mary Riley Styles Public Library’s Youth Services Room (120 N. Virginia Ave., Falls Church). Free. 3 – 3:30 p.m. 703-248-5034. Teen Advisory Meeting. For children in grades 7 – 12. Registration is required. Mary Riley Styles Public Library’s Youth Services Room (120 N. Virginia Ave., Falls Church). Free. 7 p.m. 703-248-5034.
FRIDAY, OCTOBER 30
Halloween Carnival. The carnival has been a popular event for children for more than 30 years. Enjoy carnival games, a moon bounce, face painting, crafts, a haunted house, movies, candy and a live creepy creature show. Falls Church Community Center
(223 Little Falls St., Falls Church). Free. 6 – 8:30.p.m. fallschurchva. gov/halloweencarnival. “Women to Die For…” Ghost Stories. What better way to kick off Halloween, than with an evening of old-fashioned ghost stories. Join the Victorian Society of Falls Church as re-enactors bring to life ghost stories written by female authors. Reservations recommended. Cherry Hill Farmhouse (312 Park Ave., Falls Church). $5. 8 – 10 p.m. 703-2485077.
SATURDAY, OCTOBER 31
F.C. Farmers’ Market Chef Series Demo. Vendors offer fresh locally grown fruits and vegetables, cheeses, meats, baked goods, plants, and wine. Chef Ed Kwitowski from D.C. Central Kitchen will be demonstrating from 9 am until 11 am with tastes and recipes available all morning long. City Hall Parking Lot (300 Park Ave., Falls Church). Free. 8 a.m. – noon. 703-248-5077. Book Sale. Used adult and children’s books for sale. Mary Riley Styles Public Library Conference Room (120 N Virginia Ave, Falls Church, VA 22046). Free. 9 a.m. – 5 p.m. 703-248-5034. Trick or Treat. Children of all ages can visit the library to Trick or
&
FALLS CHURCH NEWS-PRESS | FCNP.COM
Send community event submissions to the News-Press by e-mail at calendar@fcnp. com; fax 703-342-0347; or by regular mail to 200 Little Falls St., #508, Falls Church, VA 22046. Please include any photos or artwork with submissions. Deadline is Monday at noon for each week’s edition.
Treat for Halloween treats. Mary Riley Styles Public Library (120 N. Virginia Ave., Falls Church). Free. 11 a.m. – noon. 703-248-5034.
Public Library’s Youth Services Room (120 N. Virginia Ave., Falls Church). Free. 10:30 – 11 a.m. & 3 – 3:30 p.m. 703-248-5034.
SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 1
TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 3
Book Sale. Used adult and children’s books for sale. Mary Riley Styles Public Library Conference Room (120 N Virginia Ave, Falls Church, VA 22046). Free. 1 – 5 p.m. 703-248-5034. Concert. The combined choirs of St. Luke Catholic Church and St. Francis Episcopal Church will be joined by musicians from the Amadeus Orchestra in a performance of Faure’s “Cantique de Jean Racine” and “Requiem.” Saint Luke Catholic Church (7001 Georgetown Pike, McLean). $15. 4 p.m. amadeusconcerts.com. Concert. The Metropolitan Chorus presents its first concert of the season “Testing the Waters” under the baton of its new artistic director and conductor, Dr. Nancia D’Alimonte. Unitarian Universalist Church (4444 Arlington Blvd., Arlington). Free. 4 p.m. 703-9332500.
Preschool Storytime. Songs, movement, and stories for ages 18-36 months. Mary Riley Styles Public Library’s Youth Services Room (120 N. Virginia Ave. Falls Church). 10:30 – 11:15 a.m. 703248-5034.
MONDAY, NOVEMBER 2
Preschool Storytime. Stories, finger plays and songs for children ages 2 – 5 on Monday and Thursday every week. Mary Riley Styles
WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 4
NARFE Meeting. Chesapeake Bay Foundation will talk about efforts in Fairfax County to “Save the Bay,” and Blue Cross/Blue Shield will discuss upcoming health benefits open season at a meeting of the National Active and Retired Federal Employees Association. Mason District Government Center (6507 Columbia Pike, Annandale). Free 10 a.m. 703980-6831. Early Release Wednesdays – Creativity Cans. Children in grades K – 5th can use their imagination to make something out of cans and craft supplies. Registration is required and space limited to 15 participants. Mary Riley Styles Public Library’s Youth Services Room (120 N. Virginia Ave., Falls Church). Free. 3 p.m. 703-248-5034.
Theater Fine Arts THURSDAY, OCTOBER 29
“The Apple Family Circle – Sorry.” Over meals and through conversation, the Apples grapple with the changes the years have wrought, both for themselves and for America in one of the two �inal plays of Nelson’s cycle. In this play, it’s 5 a.m. on Election Day 2012. Obama’s bruised reelection campaign is almost won and the Apple siblings have gathered to move their ailing Uncle Benjamin into an assisted care facility. Over orange juice and cold Chinese food, they grapple with their unease about the paths they are taking, as a family and a nation. Through Dec. 13. Studio Theatre (1501 14th St. NW, Washington, D.C.). $75. 8 p.m. studiotheatre.org.
FRIDAY, OCTOBER 30
“Pinocchio.” This is the Learning Theater
Ensemble’s opening night production of another beloved classic with one of the most re-imagined characters in the pantheon of children’s literature. Follow the adventures of everyone’s favorite marionette in his quest to become a “real boy.” This production is being funded by the Bold New Works for Young Audiences fund. Through Nov. 22. ArtSpace Falls Church (410 S. Maple Ave., Falls Church). $14 – $16. creativecauldron.org.
“girlstar.” Signature Theatre favorite Donna Migliaccio stars in this fantastical world premiere musical fairytale, brimming with magic, darkness and blinding ambition. Legendary record producer Daniella Espere is searching for her next international sensation. She discovers it in her long-lost niece, Tina, who dreams of being a world-famous pop star. Despite warning signs that all may not be as it
seems, the two eagerly forge a mother/daughter bond and Daniella transforms Tina’s image, voice and talent into star quality – but not by the usual means. Through Nov. 15. Signature Theatre (4200 Campbell Ave., Arlington). $40 – $92. 8 p.m. sigtheatre.org.
SATURDAY, OCTOBER 31
“Winners and Losers.” Is Kanye West a winner or loser? What about the Berlin Wall? Old friends Marcus and James spare nothing and no one in a seemingly harmless drinking game that separates the champions from the chumps. But what begins as a playful exercise slowly reveals itself as a dangerous unpacking of privilege, status symbols and class divisions. Through Nov. 22. Wooly Mammoth (641 D St. NW, Washington, D.C.). $35 – $45. 8 p.m. woolymammoth.org.
FALLS CHURCH NEWS-PRESS | FCNP.COM
CA L E NDA R
live_music&nightlife THURSDAY, OCTOBER 29 R���� NV. Clare and Don’s Beach Shack (130 N. Washington St., Falls Church). 6:30 p.m. 703-532-9283. M�� S�������� ���� C��� M� K������ ���� K����� N����. Jammin’ Java (227 Maple Ave. E, Vienna). $18 – $30. 7 p.m. 703-2551566. E������� R������ ���� N��� J��� S�������� ���� J�� O������. The State Theatre (220 N. Washington St., Falls Church). $17 in advance; $20 day of the show. 7 p.m. 703237-0300. L��� W���: H�������� E������. Black Cat (1811 14th St. NW, Washington, D.C.). 7:30 p.m. 202-667-7960. W����� N���. Wolf Trap (1645 Trap Road, Vienna). $22 – $25. 8 p.m. 703-255-1900. J��� C��� ���� S���� P�����. Iota Club and Café (2832 Wilson Blvd., Arlington). $12. 8:30 p.m. 703-5228340. M��� L�������. Dogwood Tavern (132 W. Broad St., Falls Church). 9:30 p.m. 703-237-8333.
FRIDAY, OCTOBER 30 E���� P��� ���� C������ B����. Jammin’ Java (227 Maple Ave. E, Vienna). $20 – $22. 6 p.m. 703-2551566. T�� L���������. The State Theatre (220 N. Washington St., Falls Church). $18. 8 p.m. 703-237-0300. P������ P������ P��� P��� ���� P����� K������ ��� L���. 9:30 (815
V St. NW, Washington, D.C.). $15. 8 p.m. 202-667-7960. C�������� R������. Wolf Trap (1645 Trap Road, Vienna). $22 – $25. 8 p.m. 703-255-1900. L���� T�������� ���� B����� A������� ��� D���� E���. Iota Club and Café (2832 Wilson Blvd., Arlington). $12. 8:30 p.m. 703-5228340. P��� R��� K������. Black Cat (1811 14th St. NW, Washington, D.C.). $8. 9:30 p.m. 202-667-7960. S���� M� U�. JV’s Restaurant (6666 Arlington Blvd., Falls Church). 9 p.m. 703-241-9504. B���� S������. Dogwood Tavern (132 W. Broad St., Falls Church). 10 p.m. 703-237-8333. B��� �� ��� 90� ��������� L������ (N������ T������), G��� T��� B��� (R�� H�� C���� P������ T������) ��� P���� L��� I�’� (N� D���� T������). Jammin’ Java (227 Maple Ave. E, Vienna). $10 – $15. 10 p.m. 703-255-1566.
SATURDAY, OCTOBER 31 O� ��� T�� R����. JV’s Restaurant (6666 Arlington Blvd., Falls Church). 4 p.m. 703-241-9504. I����. Clare and Don’s Beach Shack (130 N. Washington St., Falls Church). 6:30 p.m. 703-532-9283. B��� �� ��� 90� ��������� W������ W��� J���� (W����� T������), G����� G���� (S������ T������) ��� G��� T��� B��� (R�� H�� C���� P������ T������). Jammin’ Java (227
OCTOBER 29 – NOVEMBER 4, 2015 | PAGE 35
Maple Ave. E, Vienna). $15 – $20. 7 p.m. 703-255-1566. J��� A���������� ���� M���� J���� ��� D�� D����. Wolf Trap (1645 Trap Road, Vienna). $85 – $95. 7:30 p.m. 703-255-1900. T�� L���������. The State Theatre (220 N. Washington St., Falls Church). $18. 8 p.m. 703-237-0300. T�� R���������� ���� G����� L��� � T�� P�����. 9:30 (815 V St. NW, Washington, D.C.). $22. 8 p.m. 202667-7960. Y���� R�����. JV’s Restaurant (6666 Arlington Blvd., Falls Church). 9 p.m. 703-241-9504. F��������. Iota Club and Café (2832 Wilson Blvd., Arlington). $10. 9 p.m. 703-522-8340. T�� H�������� C�����. Black Cat (1811 14th St. NW, Washington, D.C.). $10 in advance; $12 day of the show. 9 p.m. 202-667-7960. H�������� B��� ���� DJ D��� M���. Dogwood Tavern (132 W. Broad St., Falls Church). 10 p.m. 703-237-8333.
SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 1 J��� K����� ���� C��� A�������. Jammin’ Java (227 Maple Ave. E, Vienna). $20 – $22. 6 p.m. 703-2551566. Y���� L����� ���� M��� K���. 9:30 (815 V St. NW, Washington, D.C.). $25. 7 p.m. 202-667-7960. J��� A���������� ���� M���� J���� ��� D�� D����. Wolf Trap (1645 Trap Road, Vienna). $85 – $95. 7:30 p.m. 703-255-1900.
D�� C��� R��������. Iota Club and Café (2832 Wilson Blvd., Arlington). $10. 8 p.m. 703-522-8340.
MONDAY, NOVEMBER 2 T�� E������� S������� ���� R����� S������� ���� N������. Jammin’ Java (227 Maple Ave. E, Vienna). $15. 6 p.m. 703-255-1566. T�� D�������� ���� L��� L��� ��� S�� C���. 9:30 (815 V St. NW, Washington, D.C.). $20. 7 p.m. 202667-7960. N���� S������ ���� B��� ��� S�����. Black Cat (1811 14th St. NW, Washington, D.C.). $10. 7:30 p.m. 202-667-7960. S����� L��� S������. Iota Club and Café (2832 Wilson Blvd., Arlington). $12. 8 p.m. 703-522-8340.
TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 3 S���� T��������. Jammin’ Java (227 Maple Ave. E, Vienna). $20 – $22. 6 p.m. 703-255-1566. M������� C����� ���� N����� W�������. Black Cat (1811 14th St. NW, Washington, D.C.). $12. 7:30 p.m. 202-667-7960. L��� ���� T���� I��. 9:30 (815 V St. NW, Washington, D.C.). $20. 8 p.m. 202-667-7960.
WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 4 D����� O’R����� ���� P���� B��������. Jammin’ Java (227 Maple Ave. E, Vienna). $15. 6 p.m. 703-2551566. M�����! ���� S������� C����. Black Cat (1811 14th St. NW, Washington, D.C.). $15. 7:30 p.m. 202-667-7960.
P������� A����... Thursday, November 5 – Spanish Language Storytime with Communikids at the Library. Children ages 2 – 5 can drop-in for Spanish storytime with
Communikids. Mary Riley Styles Public Library’s Youth Services Room (120 N. Virginia Ave., Falls Church). Free. 3 – 3:30 p.m. 703-248-5034.
Wednesday, November 11 – Veterans Day Ceremony. Every year the Recreation and Parks Department honors veterans with a ceremony, which features
a keynote speaker, at the City of Falls Church Veterans Memorial. Falls Church Community Center (223 Little Falls St., Falls Church). Free. 11 a.m. fallschurchva.org/VeteransDay.
Saturday, November 14 – Juggler and Magician Jonathan Austin at the Library. Come see Jonathan Austin perform award winning juggling, amazing magic
tricks, a hilarious unicycle bit, jokes, gags, comedy and lots of audience participation. This is not to be missed! Best for ages 4 and over. Mary Riley Styles Public Library’s Youth Services Room (120 N. Virginia Ave. Falls Church). 1:30 – 2:15 p.m. 703-248-5034.
C������� S���������� Be sure to include time, location, cost of admission, contact person and any other pertinent information. Event listings will be edited for content and space limitations. Please include any photos or artwork with submissions. Deadline is Monday at noon for the current week’s edition.
Email: calendar@fcnp.com | Fax: 703-342-0347; Attn: FCNP Calendar Mail: Falls Church News-Press, Attn: Calendar, 200 Little Falls St., #508, Falls Church, VA 22046
PAGE 36 | OCTOBER 29 – NOVEMBER 4, 2015
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The plan is also available on the City’s Web site at www.fallschurchva.gov >Government (under Departments) >Development Services (see DRAFT Planning Area 1)
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Public Notice NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING CITY OF FALLS CHURCH, VIRGINIA PLANNING COMMISSION On Monday, November 2, 2015 beginning at 7:45 PM, the Planning Commission will hold a public hearing during their regularly scheduled meeting, in the City Council Chambers, 300 Park Avenue, Falls Church Virginia 22046, on the following: (TR15-32) A Resolution to Adopt the West Broad Street Small Area Plan as a Guiding Document in Decision Making for Planning, Zoning, and Development Review, Capital Improvements, City Regulations and Policies, and Included, By Reference, in the City’s Comprehensive Plan.
Please email Todd Martin at: tmartin@fairfaxicearena.com or pick up an application at 3779 Pickett Road Fairfax, VA 22031
Interested persons may appear and present their views on the proposed legislation. Information and review copies of the referenced plan are available in City’s Department of Development Services (DDS), Room 300W, 300 Park Avenue, Falls Church VA., 22046, Monday to Friday, 8 AM to 5 PM, 703-248-5040. Additional review copies are available at the Mary Riley Styles
ABC LICENSE Kanya Thongprasert, Inc. Trading as Manekineko Express, 3813 Lee Highway, Arlington, Virginia 22207-3722. The above establishment is applying to the VIRGINIA DEPARTMENT OF ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGE CONTROL (ABC) for a Beer and Wine on and off Premises license to sell or manufacture alcoholic beverages. Futoshi Takazato, Member. NOTE: Objections to the issuance of this license must be submitted to ABC no later than 30 days from the publishing date of the first of two required newspaper legal notices. Objections should be registered at www.abc.virginia.gov or 800-552-3200 ORDER OF NOTICE BY PUBLICATION DOCKET NUMBER 1577CV01223 Trial Court of Massachusetts The Superior Court CASE NAME: Michael P Noon et al vs. Aklilu Shewangizaw et al WHEREAS a civil action has been begun against you in our Superior Court by Michael P Noon wherein it is seeking to; have an order declaring that the Mortgage was not extinguished by the foreclosure auction and is still an encumbrance on the property located at 8 Westview Road, Lynn, Essex County, Massachusetts; and that the deeds recorded at the Essex South Registry of Deeds at Book 25841, Page 190, Book 26650, Page 206 , and Book 26650, Page 227 operate as assignments of the mortgage recorded at the Essex South Registry of Deeds at Book 24622, Page 322, resulting in the Plaintiffs holding a mortgage on any interest in the Property remaining in Shewangizaw and Mesfin, and described more particularly in said complaint. We COMMAND YOU if you intend to make any defense, that on 12/03/2015 or within such further time as the law allows you do
cause your written pleading to be filed in the office of the Clerk of Court named above, in said Commonwealth, and further that you defend against said suit according to law if you intend any defense, and that you do and receive what the Court shall order and adjudge therein. Hereof fail not, at your peril, or as otherwise said suit may be adjudged and orders entered in your absence. It appearing to this Court that no personal service of the Complaint has been made on the defendant a deputy sheriff having made a return on the summons that after diligent search he can find no one upon whom he can lawfully make service, a copy of which is hereto attached and made part of this notice, it is ORDERED that notice of this suit be given to them by publishing, once a week for three successive weeks, the last publication to be at least 20-days before said return day in the: Newspaper: Falls Church News-Press City/Town: Falls Church, VA COURT NAME & ADDRESS Thomas H. Driscoll, Jr., Clerk of Courts Essex County Superior Court Newburyport 145 High Street Newburyport, MA 01950
W. Broad Street and 421 W. Broad Street, RPC #s 52-302-059 and 52-302-056 of the Falls Church Property Records, zoned B-1 (Limited Business), said property owned by Tim Luwis. c. Variance application V1574-15 by Tim Luwis, a variance to Sec. 48-1101 and Sec. 48-939 to allow a rear yard setback of 10 feet instead of 20 feet on the southern property line and side yard setback of 10 feet instead of the 20 feet on the western property line, both of which abutting R-M (Multi-Family) zone to permit the construction of a new hotel on premises known as 419 W. Broad Street and 421 W. Broad Street, RPC #s 52-302-059 and 52-302056 of the Falls Church Property Records, zoned B-1 (Limited Business), said property owned by Tim Luwis. Information on the above applications is available for review at: Zoning Office 300 Park Avenue, Suite 300W Falls Church, VA. 703-248-5015 (option 1) zoning@fallschurchva.gov
NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING CITY OF FALLS CHURCH, VIRGINIA BOARD OF ZONING The Board of Zoning Appeals of the City of Falls Church, Virginia will hold a public hearing on November 12, 2015 at 7:30 PM in the Council Chambers, 300 Park Avenue, for consideration of the following subjects: New Business a. Variance application V1578-15 by Hal Swetnam and Lisa Young, owners and applicants, for a variance to Section 48-238(3)(a) to allow an interior side yard setback of four and four tenths (4.4) feet instead of fifteen (15) feet in order to convert an existing deck into a room addition on premises known as 200 Brook Drive, RPC #53-120-006 of the Falls Church Real Property Records, zoned R-1A Low Density Residential. b. Variance application V1573-15 by Tim Luwis, a variance to Sec. 48-1004 to allow a 30 percent reduction in the required parking spaces, on premises known as 419
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A RTS&E NTE RTA I NME NT
FALLS CHURCH NEWS-PRESS | FCNP.COM
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© 2015 David Levinson Wilk
Across 1. Shoots out
1. Shoots out 6. Network for political junkies 11. Beetle juice? 14. Jew : kosher :: Muslim : ____ 15. Lady Gaga listed it as her “prized possession” on her high school yearbook page 16. First responder, for short 17. “The Man Who Mistook His Wife For a Hat” author 19. Long in Hollywood 20. Started a film scene gradually 21. Sunset setting 23. Superb, in slang 24. “In what way?” 26. Many telenovela viewers: Abbr. 27. Put one’s feet up 28. Make ____ of cash 30. Fisherman’s tale 33. Have the rights to 35. “SNL” alum Jason 38. Meditation syllables 41. Helping 43. Place for sweaters? 44. “Why does this keep happening to me?!” 46. Justice Dept. heads 48. ____ page 49. Well-behaved 51. School for Prince Harry 55. Winery tubs 58. Nautical heading: Abbr. 59. Duncan of Obama’s cabinet 60. Clarence of the E Street Band 63. Symbols of freshness 65. ____ Cabos, Mexico 66. Investment banker who joined
OCTOBER 29 - NOVEMBER 4, 2015 | PAGE 37
DOWN
1. Ram’s horn used on Jewish holidays 2. Home fit for a king 3. Skips over in pronunciation 4. Greets from afar 5. Iditarod vehicle 6. “Strangers and Brothers” novelist 7. Singer with hit 2014 song “Chandelier” 8. Diplomatic goal 9. Egyptian crosses 10. Brown-____ 11. “The Odd Couple” director 12. “The Rachel Papers” novelist Martin 13. “Chop-chop!” 18. Grammy-winning singer from Barbados 22. “The ____ see it ...” 25. Knew about 29. Clunker 31. Fashion show disaster 32. Org. named in WikiLeaks documents 34. Mannequin topper 36. Negotiate with success 37. Trio before HI 38. Bride of a Beatle who attended
CHUCKLE BROS BRIAN & RON BOYCHUK
6. Network for political junkies
elementary school with Emperor Akihito 39. Finish (up) 40. Second baseman who was 1982’s National League Rookie of the Year 42. 2008 TARP recipient 45. Levine of “The Voice” 47. Natural seasoning 50. Batting next 52. Sister of Julie Nixon Eisenhower 53. Like some wonders 54. Cryptozoology figure 56. Opera with the aria “Recondita armonia” 57. Quagmire 60. Paella ingredient, perhaps 61. “____ is the answer, but while you’re waiting for the answer, sex raises some pretty interesting questions”: Woody Allen 62. Captain Hook henchman 64. Ideologies 67. Pac-12 member
the firm of his father-in-law, Marcus Goldman, in 1904 68. Female robot in 2015’s “Ex Machina” 69. Gradual increase in vol. 70. 1053, on a cornerstone 71. Code for Latin America’s busiest airport 72. Smart ____ 73. Washington, but not Lincoln
11. Beetle juice?
Sudoku Level:
Last Thursday’s Solution
R E G R O U P
A R I A N N A
J O B L E S S R B R A L A T T E E
S E P H T O H O A H V O E M R I R O Y E M I R E N E B E T A S
G O R E
I D O L
G I G L I
I P C R E R E I S O N S P
R S A H U A M E M A N S P I N D A A C H C H A R D E R S O N I T S A S A Y S
P U E N T E
I E C E S V P S B E R T N F A Y D O O R R I L S E L E S C D I E O A L L N G E L C A N I D I T S N U T
By The Mepham Group
1 2 3 4
14. Jew : kosher :: Muslim : ____ 15. Lady Gaga listed it as her "prized possession" on her high school yearbook page 16. First responder, for short 17. "The Man Who Mistook His Wife For a Hat" author 19. Long in Hollywood 20. Started a film scene gradually 21. Sunset setting
1
23. Superb, in slang 24. "In what way?" 26. Many telenovela viewers: Abbr.
LOOSE PARTS
27. Put one's feet up
DAVE BLAZEK
28. Make ____ of cash Solution to last Sunday’s puzzle
NICK KNACK
1
© 2015 N.F. Benton
11/1/15
Complete the grid so each row, column and 3-by-3 box (in bold borders) contains every digit 1 to 9. For strategies on how to solve Sudoku, visit www.sudoku.org.uk. © 2015 The Mepham Group. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency. All rights reserved.
LO CA L
PAGE 38 | OCTOBER 29 – NOVEMBER 4, 2015
FALLS CHURCH NEWS-PRESS | FCNP.COM
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BACK IN THE DAY
laz y The dog. c k q u i fox sly p e d jum e r o v lazy the g . d o is Now time the all for o d g o to cows
20 s Yearo Ag
e c o mthe to of aid i r t h e re. pastu w N o the is e t i m all for o d g o to cows e c o mthe to
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Falls Church News-Press Vol. V, No. 33 • November 2, 1995
Nation Watches as Makeup of Virginia’s Legislature Goes Up for Grabs Tuesday Tuesday’s election in Virginia will signal to the entire nation what’s in store for the upcoming Presidential election year. It is perceived by the experts as this year’s most telling indicator of whether the stunning Republican takeover of the U.S. Congress last year was a “flash in the pan,” or only the beginning of a trend.
It is no the timw e for g o all o cows d to go to the aid of the pa stu ir re. *** **
Falls Church News-Press Vol. XV, No. 34 • October 27, 2005
10 Year s Ago
Thr ow it up. Pour it up It now is the time for all go od cows to go the to aid
Bidder Than Hoped Falls Church School Superintendent Dr. Lois Jones and the schools’ chief financial officer Hunter Kimball waited patiently until representatives of the two general contracting firms bidding on the expansion work at Mt. Daniel Elementary School left the room Tuesday afternoon. The representatives were present as their sealed bids were opened and publicly announced.
Families, Clubs Paint Store Windows In F.C. Continued from Page 30
who don’t live in the City anymore who make it a point to bring their grandchildren to come and see what’s going on.” The way that she went about enlisting painters and merchants was truly grassroots. She advertised at all of the local schools and went to each of the storefronts in Downtown Falls Church to pitch the window painting concept to merchants using photos she had of the store window painting in Kansas. In the first year she enlisted the help of members of her family and friends, among other volunteers, to paint windows at businesses like Brown’s Hardware and Argia’s Italian Restaurant. That first year, there were 60 painters and 15 stores and restaurants participating in the project. This year, there were 153 painters who painted 133 windows around Falls Church. Organizations like girl scout troops, 4-H clubs and the Wildcatz soccer team are among those that painted windows. And the project has spread geographically past the main strip on Broad Street – Don Beyer Volvo near Haycock Road, Applebee’s on E. Broad Street, Body Dynamics on S. Maple Avenue and One More Page Books on Westmoreland Street in Arlington are all participants this year. One of the perennial participants in the Halloween Store Window Painting project is Argia’s, which is decorated by a ghost, bats backlit by a moon and a jack-o-lantern among other figures.
THIS IS GINNY, beloved dog of the Castillo family named after the spunky, ginger-haired Harry Potter character. She loves walks on the bike path and in Cherry Hill, and she is surviving nicely the addition of a cat to the house (but not pictured in the photo – cat is very fast moving). Ginny was adopted from the Animal Welfare League of Alexandria. Just because you’re not famous doesn’t mean your pet can’t be! Send in your Critter Corner submissions to crittercorner@fcnp.com.
WE EXIST TO MAKE SURE IT DOESN’T
ALVARO JEREZ (center) and his Wildcatz soccer team stand in front of their work at Mad Fox Brewing Company, which they completed on Saturday, Oct. 17 after a game. (P����: C������� �� A����� J����)
Salina Rana, one of the owner’s of Argia’s, said that the restaurant agreed to have its windows painted to support the community and bring the Halloween festivities to customers. “All the customers who come in love it,” Rana said. “I think that it makes our restaurant look very festive also.” The Horovitz family – Evelyne, Bruce and their daughters Rachel and Rebecca – has been painting Argia’s every year since the Halloween Store Window Painting project started in 2008. Evelyne Horovitz, a paraprofessional at Thomas Jefferson Elementary School, said doing the project every year is a way to bring family and friends together. “We thought that it would be a great way to get out and be with the community, to do something in
the community, for the community and have a really fun family project,” Evelyne said. “The family can be out together and do this to share with others.” Bruce Horovitz, a former reporter for USA Today, said that it’s not just a family activity, but a “cosmic” calling for the family and their friends to paint Argia’s every year. He said that every painted window in the City “stands out in its own way.” “Every window is a point of light to the [group] that’s doing it and I think that’s really important….What it means to the kid who paints a window and drives by it and they can point to it and say ‘There it is,’ that’s huge,” Bruce said. “And whether it’s Argia’s or any other window it’s like a really big deal, particularly to the kids involved.”
Multiple sclerosis interrupts the flow of information between the brain and the body and stops people from moving. With the help of people like you, the National MS Society addresses the challenges of each person whose life is affected by MS and helps them stay connected to the great big moving world.
JOIN ThE MOvEMENT jointhemovement.org
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OCTOBER 29 – NOVEMBER 4, 2015 | PAGE 39
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Directory Listings: Call Us at 703-532-3267
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ACCOUNTING
Diener & Associates, CPA.. . . . . . . . . 241-8807 Eric C. Johnson, CPA, PC . . . . . . . . . 538-2394 Mark Sullivan, CPA. . . . . . . . . . . 571-214-4511 Hahn & Associates, PC, CPAs. . . . . . 533-3777 n
ANTIQUES & COLLECTIBLES
Falls Church Antique Company . . . . . 241-7074 Antique Annex . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 241-9642 n
ATTORNEYS
Mark F. Werblood . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 534-9300 Sudeep Bose, Former Police Officer. 926-3900 Janine S. Benton, Esq. . . . . . . . . . . .992-9255 n
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DENTISTS
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EQUIPMENT RENTAL/SALE
VA Outdoor Power Equipment . . . . . . 207-2000
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GIFTS
Stifel & Capra. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 407-0770
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HOME IMPROVEMENT
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PET SERVICES
Apex Pet Partners . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 532-8012 Feline Foundation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 920-8665 n
PHARMACY
Broad Street Pharmacy . . . . . . . . . . . 533-9013
INSURANCE
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LAWN CARE
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PHOTOGRAPHY
Gary Mester, Event, Portraits. . . . . . . 481-0128 Mary Sandoval Photography . . . 334-803-1742
REAL ESTATE
Merelyn Kaye . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .790-9090x218 www.helpfulmortgage.us . . . . . . . . . . 237-0222 Casey O’Neal - ReMax . . . . . . . . . . . 824-4196 Rosemary Hayes Jones. . . . . . . . . . .790-1990 The Young Group. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .356-8800 Tori McKinney . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 867-8674 Shaun Murphy, Realtor . . . . . . . . . . . 868-5999
MASSAGE MEDICAL
Dr Gordon Theisz, Family Medicine. . 533-7555
OPTOMETRIST
Dr. Alison Sinyai, Family Eye Care . . 533-3937 n
www.healthybyintention.com.. . . . . . . 534-1321 n
MUSIC
Academy of Music . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 938-8054 Foxes Music Co . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 533-7393
Lawn Enforcement Services, LLC . . . 237-0921
Art & Frame of Falls Church . . . . . . . 534-4202 n
HEALTH & FITNESS
Allstate Home Auto Life Ins. . . . . . . 241-8100 State Farm Insurance. . . . . . . . . . . . . 237-5105
Falls Church Florist, Inc. . . . . . . . . . . 533-1333
FRAMES
n
FC Heating & Air Service . . . . . . . . . . 534-0630 Joseph Home Improvement. . . . . . . . 507-5005 Picture Perfect Home Improvements 590-3187 One Time Home Improvement. . . . . . 577-9825
Point of View . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 237-6500
n
HANDYMAN
Vantage Fitness . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 241-0565 Jazzercise Falls Church. . . . . . . . . . . 622-2152
EYEWEAR FLORISTS
1 Line Maximum
(30 characters + Ph. #, incl. spaces)
Doug’s Handyman Service. . . . . . . . . 556-4276 Your Handyman . . . . . . . . . . . . . 571-243-6726
Family Dentistry, Nimisha V Patel . . . 533-1733 Dr. William Dougherty . . . . . . . . . . . 532-3300
n
BCR Binders . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 534-9181
COLLEGES
American College of Commerce and Technology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 942-6200
BANKING
BOOK BINDING
CLEANING SERVICES
Maid Brigade . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 823-1922 Acclaimed Carpet Cleaning . . . . . . . . 978-2270 A Cleaning Service. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 892-8648
n
Burke & Herbert Bank & Trust Co.. . . 519-1634 BB&T . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 241-3505 TD Bank/www.TDBank.com. . . . . . . . 237-2051 n
BUSINESS DIRECTORY
AUTOMOTIVE
Beyer Volvo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 237-5000 n
3 months - $150 6 months - $270 1 year - $450
n
TAILOR
Tailor Lee . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 534-8886
All numbers have a ‘703’ prefix unless otherwise indicated.
PAGE 40 | OCTOBER 29 – NOVEMBER 4, 2015
Just Listed in McLean
FALLS CHURCH NEWS-PRESS | FCNP.COM
Check Online for Open Houses For Sale
For Sale
105 S Cherry St | Falls Church City
305 Parker Ave | Falls Church City
Incredible 6 BD/6.5 BA Southern Colonial. Approx 7,000 sq ft, 4 finished levels,13,000+sq ft lot. Mins to Metro. Offered at $1,475,000
Lovely 4 BD/3 BA home with attached 2 car garage and large lot. Offered at $765,000
For Sale
For Sale
158 Rees Place | Falls Church City
Wonderfully cared for home with over 200K of updates and additions! Custom kitchen done in 2014, huge family room addition, renovated Bathrooms and new windows. Extensive landscaping and hardscaping. Stunning rear yard with deck. Garage and more! Please call Merelyn for more info on this lovely home! Priced at $849,000
Merelyn Kaye
Meeting Real Estate needs since 1970. There is no substitute for experience Home Office: 703-362-1112 e-mail: merelyn@kayes.com
Gorgeous 3 BD/3.5 BA town home overlooking Tripps Run. Stunning interior and updates. Walk to downtown FCC. Offered at $879,000
6712 19th St N | Arlington
5 BD/2 BA home steps from EFC metro and mins to DC! Yorktown High School! $685,000
Voted Best Residential Real Estate Agent
Louise Molton NVAR Top Producer Phone: 703 244-1992 Email: louise@moltonrealestate.com
www.LouiseMolton.com
EQUAL HOUSING OPPORTUNITY
®
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