May 23 – 29, 2019
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 • VOL. XXIX NO. 14
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The official program of Monday’s City of Falls Chuch Memorial Day Parade & Festival is included in this edition with features on the parade Grand Marshal, King & Queen plus festival map, vendor listing, parade lineup and more.
F.C. Council Slowly Begins to Take On Dire Affordable Housing Shortage R������ R������ Comprehensive Plan For F.C. Rehearses Variety of Options
BY NICHOLAS F. BENTON
FALLS CHURCH NEWS-PRESS
House committee subpoenas and demands for information. Beyer told the News-Press in a phone interview that he attended the Democrats’ closed meeting with Pelosi yesterday morning and that Pelosi’s concern was that all the forceful moves are being carried out prior to going the impeachment route, including taking contempt votes to the floor of the House and going to court.
Monday’s work session of the Falls Church City Council became a little testy when Councilman Dan Sze challenged an otherwise innocuous proposed update to the City’s Comprehensive Plan for not taking into account adequate ways to achieve a lot more affordable housing over the next 20 years. Sze announced he’d not be supporting a proposed projection showing that the City would have a housing stock mix reflecting uncommonly high regional median income numbers and not taking into account the cost burden on the entire community of major projected increases in affordable housing demand. It caught the City Planning Department director Paul Stoddard a bit off guard. But it reflected some of the difficulties caused tackling intellectual compartmentalization of City values, needs and goals resulting in disconnects between demographic, income projections and housing need factors. While some lip service to affordable housing began to arise among a certain number on the Falls Church City Council in the recent period, there was no new money for the City’s Affordable Housing fund in the budget that goes into effect on July 1. In addition, the sum held in the account a decade ago — over $2 million — is almost entirely gone (estimated at $200,000 now), while the number of housing units deemed affordable by current formulas have been in steep decline in the last decade.
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SEE PULL-OUT, PAGES S-1 — S-12
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Erin Gill, current chair of the Falls Church School Board, announced to the News-Press this week that she will not seek a second four-year term in this November’s election. SEE NEWS BRIEFS, PAGE 9
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Still trying to shed its “nice guy” persona and get into a grittier postseason mindset, George Mason High School’s girls soccer team was able to muscle out a win over Central High School on Tuesday. Next, the Mustangs will face Madison County tonight at home. SEE SPORTS, PAGE 28
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The Mason High girls soccer team blanked Clarke County in its regular season finale and looks towards the district tournament, starting next week. SEE SPORTS, PAGE 12
INDEX
Editorial...............6 Letters......... 6, 26 News & Notes10–11 Comment ...12, 25 Business News 27 Sports .............. 28
Calendar ...30–31 Classified Ads .. 32 Comics, Sudoku & Crossword ....... 33 Crime Report ... 34 Critter Corner... 34
MUSTANGS JACK BROWN (#8) AND SMITH KRAFT (#10) along with the rest of George Mason High School’s boys soccer team barreled through Strasburg Tuesday, cruising to an easy 13-0 victory over the Rams. The Mustangs are back in action tonight against Clarke County in the Bull Run District championship. See Sports, page 28. (P����: C���� S��)
Rep. Beyer Steps Out Front to Call For Trump ‘Impeachment Inquiry’ BY NICHOLAS F. BENTON
FALLS CHURCH NEWS-PRESS
U.S. Rep. Donald S. Beyer Jr., who represents the 8th District of Virginia that includes the City of Falls Church, has called on the U.S. Congress to open an impeachment inquiry into the conduct of President Trump. Beyer became the first member of the Virginia congressional delegation to make this call, as the total number of Democrats
advocating that approach came into double digits in the last days. Beyer’s statement followed the first Republican to call for an impeachment inquiry, Rep. Justin Amash of Michigan, earlier this week. Among other Virginia Democrats, Rep. Gerry Connolly, a member of the House Oversight Committee, stopped short of that call on CNN yesterday, echoing the claim of the Democratic Majority Leader Nancy Pelosi that Trump is “engaged in a cover-up” by defying