October 29 – November 4, 2020
FA LLS CHUR C H, V I R G I NI A • WW W. FC NP. C OM • FR EE
FOU N D E D 1991 • V OL. X XX NO. 37
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F.C. City Leads State in Early Voting with 58% Final Early Voting Day is This Saturday, Oct. 31
BY NICHOLAS F. BENTON
FALLS CHURCH NEWS-PRESS
According to the Virginia Political Action Project (VPAP), as of this Monday, Oct. 26, the voters in the City of Falls Church led the state in the percentage who’d voted absentee or by mail ahead of next Tuesday’s Nov. 3 election day. A whopping 58.3 percent of the City’s registered voters had cast their ballots by that date, far ahead of the second place Arlington County at 49.39 percent. The final day to vote in this manner is Saturday, Oct. 31. Otherwise, the City’s three polling places will be open from 6 a.m. – 7 p.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 3, which is the official Election Day to determine who will be president of the United States for the next four years. Also, in the case of Falls Church, three City Council candidates are on the ballot vying in a special election to fill the last year of the unexpired term of the late City Councilman Dan Sze. In alphabetical order, the candidates are Debbie Hiscott, Simone Pass Tucker and Joshua Sharif Shokoor. In addition, candidates vying for the U.S. Senate from Virginia and for the 8th District representative in the U.S. House are on the ballot, with incumbent Democrats Sen. Mark Warner and Rep. Donald S.
Beyer Jr. expected to win re-election handily. There are two constitutional amendments, one that would establish a less-partisan method for redistricting electoral boundaries each decade, a hotly contested item with many but not all prominent Democrats urging a “no” vote, and an item to exempt families of veterans from certain taxes. (The News-Press last week endorsed Hiscott, Warner, Beyer and a “no” vote on the redistricting amendment). All three of the candidates running for F.C. City Council have continued to run aggressive and constructive campaigns. Hiscott has lived in the City for 24 years, and Pass Tucker and Shokoor are both life-long residents, having come through the school system from beginning to end here. In response to a request from the News-Press all three provided as of noon yesterday a final summary campaign statement, each of which we reprint in full here: Statement by Debbie Hiscott I’m energized to be part of a community taking its civic duty seriously. We’ve exceeded 60 percent early voter turnout! For more than 24 years, I’ve loved working, volunteering, and raising my family in Falls Church City. We’ve grown
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FALLS CHURCH’S SCHOOL BOARD held its first in-person meeting since the pandemic began in March. Read more about it in News Briefs on page 8. (P����: N���-P����)
Bond Sale $$ Goes To Stormwater Efforts BY NICHOLAS F. BENTON
FALLS CHURCH NEWS-PRESS
The City of Falls Church was in the process of selling municipal bonds in the amount of $11.7 million as the News-Press went to press Wednesday, acting on a unanimous vote taken by the Falls Church City Council Monday night to press on with the City’s stormwater mitiga-
tion efforts. It came also as the Council voted to allocate $100,000 from underspent general operating funds this year to the Affordable Housing Fund, in a precedent-setting move that also harkened a new way forward for the Little City. Moving quickly to the bond sale yesterday, according to the City’s Chief Financial Officer Kiran Bawa in remarks to the News-Press yes-
terday, came as a result of concerns expressed Monday night that next week’s election could complicate the markets, especially if the large numbers of early votes cast cause delays in declaring winners. Of the $11.7 million total bond sale, $400,000 was dedicated for the advanced engineering work ahead
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Charles Workmaster, a native of Falls Church studying theatre at Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles, is experiencing what’s it’s like for young actors to try and break into an already difficult business on top of the obstacles presented by Covid-19. SEE STORY, PAGE 10
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No industry has been challenged more by the Covid-19 pandemic than those that house the elderly. Senior living facilities in Falls Church serve as a microcosm of the adjustments made throughout the nation where keeping its residents safe is balanced by preserving its community. See Seniors, page 15
3 P���������� H����������� �� W. B���� A������� An adult and two minors were hit by a car at the intersection of W. Annandale Road and W. Broad St. around 11 a.m. Wednesday morning, according to police. F.C. City police said all three victims were taken to Virginia Hospital Center to be treated for non-life threatening injuries. See News & Business, page 17
INDEX
Editorial............................................... 6 Letters................................................. 6 Comment ................................ 7,12,13 News & Notes................................... 11 Crime Report .................................... 12 Calendar ........................................... 14 Classified Ads ................................... 16 Comics, Sudoku & Crossword ......... 17 Critter Corner.................................... 18 Business News ................................. 19
