May 2 6 - J u n e 1 , 2 0 1 6
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. X X V I No. 14
Falls Church • Tysons Corner • Merrifield • McLean • North Arlington • Bailey’s Crossroads
Inside This Week
Official F.C. Memorial Day Program Inside
The official City of Falls Church Memorial Day Parade and Festival program including veterans ceremony information, vendor list and festival map, parade lineup and much more is inside this special edition of the News-Press.
City, School Officials Mull ‘Eminent Domain’ Taking of Fellows Property 1.8-Acre Tract May New Mt. Daniel Principal Be Deemed Critical
For Educational Use
by Nicholas F. Benton
Falls Church News-Press
include a $39.6 million transfer from the City. The School Board held numerous work sessions, and open hearings for public input, to figure out where the $912,600 in cuts from its original budget crafted in February would come. Enrollment increases, increased health insurance and other cost increases beyond the district’s
The City of Falls Church’s government, including its City Hall management, the elected City Council and the elected School Board, are in private talks to impose “eminent domain” on the 1.8-acre property at 604 S. Oak Street for purposes of acquiring the land, which is adjacent the Thomas Jefferson Elementary School, for educational purposes, the News-Press has learned. In the latest step, the School Board, at its meeting Tuesday night, went into a closed session with the stated, explicit purpose of discussing acquisition of the property, known as the Fellows Tract. The tract’s owner, the Fellows Living Trust composed of members of the family led by the elderly woman who was raised and lived her whole life on the wooded tract in the middle of the section of residential Falls Church known as the “Virginia Forest,” had just won a preliminary approval for a sub-division of the property into seven parcels for residential development at the F.C. Planning Commission last week. It has been mentioned in public sessions that the occupant of the land, Ms. Fellows, has been adamant about not wanting to sell her land to the City. On the other hand, the City does retain the legal right to “condemn,” or invoke “eminent domain” on, her land for a government purpose, and the News-Press learned that this has been under discussion in closed meetings for some time. The potential move is motivated by growth pressures on the
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See pull-out, pages S-1 – S-16
Reception for New TJ Principal Next Week
Paul Swanson, an elementary principal in Indiana, has accepted the position as new principal of Thomas Jefferson Elementary School. The TJ selection committee is hosting a welcome reception for the community next Wednesday. See News Briefs, page 8
David Brooks: Why is Clinton Disliked? I understand why Donald Trump is so unpopular. He earned it the old-fashioned way, by being obnoxious, insulting and offensive. But why is Hillary Clinton so unpopular? See page 12
Press Pass with Tweet
For her latest album, Charlene, R&B singer Tweet decided she would not follow a specific blueprint for how it would sound. See page 34
NEW MT. DANIEL PRINCIPAL ERIN KELLY (center) is shown flanked by Superintendent Dr. Toni Jones (left), Falls Church School Board chair Justin Castillo and School Board member John Lawrence. The School Board emerged from a closed session Tuesday night to announce the nomination of Kelly, the current assistant principal at Mt. Daniel Elementary, as the new principal of the school. See News Briefs, page 8. (Photo: News-Press)
F.C. School Board Settles on $912,600 in New Budget Cuts by Nicholas F. Benton
Falls Church News-Press
Index
Editorial..................6 Letters....................6 News & Notes.10-11 Comment...12-14, 31 Sports..................33 Food & Dining......35
Calendar.........38-39 Classified Ads .....40 Comics, Sudoku & Crossword...........41 Business News....42 Critter Corner.......42
After yet another lengthy work session Tuesday night, the Falls Church School Board settled on how it will handle $912,600 it was mandated to cut from its coming fiscal year budget request by the F.C. City Council last month. Salvaged from original proposals on the chopping block were the
assistant principal position at Mt. Daniel School, an International Baccalaureate Middle Years Program coordinator, two elementary school teacher positions, a half-time specialist for gifted students and other personnel positions. The board will meet at 7 a.m. Friday to formally vote on a final version of its $47.7 million budget for the coming year that will