When a Bill Becomes a Law
On July 1, sales taxes go up for Fairfax County residents.
“We needed to at least make it clear that you risk a reckless driving offense if you text and drive.” —Del. David Bulova (D-37)
Cross County Trail Renamed After Gerry Connolly
U.S. Rep. Gerry Connolly (D-11) says he is humbled by the Fairfax County Park Authority's decision to rename the 40-mile Cross County Trail the “Gerry Connolly Cross County Trail."
Virginia Lyme Disease Bill Signed
On June 25, Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell and other Northern Virginia lawmakers met at Claude Moore Park in Sterling for the ceremonial signing of the Lyme Disease Information Disclosure Act of 2013.
Levey’s Washington Revisited in Vienna
Shepherd’s Center of Oakton-Vienna hosts Bob Levey at luncheon.
Bob Levey’s 37-year career with the Washington Post spanned the eras of Watergate, Desert Storm and the rise of Internet news reporting. For 23 years, Levey wrote Bob Levey’s Washington, a personal look at the region he loves. He shared his experiences on June 10 with guests of Shepherd Center of Oakton-Vienna’s Lunch ‘n’ Life, drawing on anecdotes and perspectives.
Establishment Wins Democratic Primary
State senators beat out first-time candidates for lieutenant governor and attorney general.
Two first-time candidates had a hard time beating back the establishment this week, as two state senators won the Democratic nomination for lieutenant governor and attorney general Tuesday night.
Incumbents Retain Town Council Seats
Standing under umbrellas, the four candidates running for three Vienna Town Council seats greeted voters in a rain steady throughout most of the morning and early afternoon. The rain wasn’t torrential but neither was voter turnout throughout much of the day.
Absentee Voting Starts Now for Democratic Primaries
Primaries held for lieutenant governor and attorney general.
The State Board of Elections reported Monday, May 6, that absentee voting began for the June 11, 2013 primary and all localities met the required 45-day deadline for mailing absentee ballots to voters.
Governor McDonnell Endorses Springfield Site for FBI Headquarters
In letter to FBI director, McDonnell says Fairfax County site will advance “national security mission.”
Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell has publicly endorsed the Springfield warehouse site for the new FBI building headquarters. In an April 30 letter to FBI Director Robert Mueller and Dan Tangherlini, the acting administrator of the U.S. General Services Administration, McDonnell said the federally owned warehouse is the best choice for a number of reasons.
Community Center Expansion Discussed
Open forum on April 23 solicited viewpoints and needs from community.
If you had an unlimited budget—or a magic wand—what would you turn the Vienna Community Center into? Most of the more-than 35 attendees at the Department of Parks and Recreation April 23 forum on the proposed expansion of the community center shared a consensus of what they hoped to see an expanded community center look like (from a large indoor swimming pool with retractable walls to a well-equipped fitness center and regulation-sized gym).
Editorial: More Obstacles to Transparency
General Assembly puts more information out of public reach, but other factors also limit access.
The first paragraph of the Virginia Freedom of Information Act, passed by the General Assembly in 1968, states that all public records "shall be presumed open." It doesn’t add, “except when we don’t want to,” although that provision does seem to be available in many cases. Individual government entities have a variety of ways of making it hard for the public to access public information.
Governor Approves Conditional Budget for Medicaid Expansion
Vote-swapping operation traded transportation votes for Medicaid money.
Half a million uninsured Virginians may be eligible for Medicaid under an agreement now being worked out in Richmond — a deal in which Republican Gov. Bob McDonnell agreed to include Medicaid expansion as part of the budget if Senate Democrats supported a transportation package.
EPA Will Not Appeal Court Decision on Accotink Watershed
EPA regulations could have cost county $300 million.
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) effectively ended a two-year legal battle with Fairfax County when the agency announced last week it will not appeal a federal court decision favoring Fairfax County’s handling of the Accotink Creek watershed.
Local Leaders Praise Transportation Funding Bill
State Senator Chap Petersen wants you to curb your enthusiasm.
Politics makes strange bedfellows, and sometimes estranged ones as well. On Saturday, the last day of the Virginia General Assembly, state legislators struck a bipartisan 11th hour deal to pass a comprehensive transportation funding plan—the first long-term plan in 27 years.
Ritz-Carlton to the Rescue
Tysons Corner hotel leaves “Footprints” in community.
It’s not uncommon for Vienna-McLean businesses—from defense industry contractors to hospitality providers—to make themselves good neighbors, vital partners in the community in which their presence is known. They come into schools, they mentor, they support wounded warrior programs. They embrace the community spirit envisioned by their company’s corporate philosophy. Ritz-Carlton Tysons Corner goes beyond McLean and Tysons, extending its hand to local service clubs, nonprofit and humanitarian projects, and to the hotel’s dedicated project, the Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Washington, Fairfax County Region [Fairfax BGCGW Club].
Redefining Service
Vienna mayor’s first goal: To make politician a nice word.
Politician. Noun: a person who is professionally involved in politics, or a person who acts in a manipulative and devious way, typically to gain advancement within an organization, as defined by Oxford. Mayor Jane Seeman, from the Town of Vienna, is not a politician, at least not in the current form of the word. She doesn’t seek to be a politician either, but instead wants to redefine the word and the meaning behind it. She wants to make government accessible to her citizens, and wants to give power back to the people who should be making decisions for her community: not the politicians.