In this issue...
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Addressing Park Maintenance Issues - Parks are among our most utilized public amenities and some of our greatest treasures. My office has received numerous complaints from residents regarding overflowing and/or removed trashcans, overgrown grass, amenities out of service, and deteriorating conditions in some facilities. Below are some of the efforts I have taken to address these issues.
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Lee Chapel Road Update - At last night’s Lee Chapel Road Town Hall Meeting, the team working on a solution to the safety of the road and the community received great news from State Senator George Barker. He was able to secure state funding in the amount of $4M for the project which means the $9M project to remove both hills is fully funded and ready to move forward. The community input at the town hall was supportive of moving forward with the project. More below…
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Thoughts on the Car Tax - Despite assessed values decreasing on many cars compared to last year many tax bills went up. One reason was the decision by the Board majority to reduce the 15% reduction in market value in the prior year’s car assessments to a 10% reduction this year in a budget I did not support. More of my thoughts on the car tax below…
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Other News and Information - see below.
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Addressing Park Maintenance Issues
Parks are among our most utilized public amenities and some of our greatest treasures. My office has received numerous complaints from residents regarding overflowing and/or removed trashcans, overgrown grass, amenities out of service, and deteriorating conditions in some facilities.
Based on my conversations with Fairfax County Park Authority (FCPA) management, there are several reasons for these declines. The primary reasons include an increase in the number of facilities without a corresponding increase in the park maintenance budget, difficulties in staffing open maintenance positions, and a significant overrun in emergency tree removal of over $2M. (Note that this is for emergency tree removal, not preventative tree removal, which is an even greater operational challenge.)
I have taken several steps over the last few years to address these issues including:
- Allocating $150,000 from my district’s discretionary funds to make long overdue improvements at Burke Lake Park. With those resources and some funds from the Park Foundation, Burke Lake Park was able to perform significant trail improvements to reduce flooding and saturation, purchase 80 new heavy duty picnic tables and advance work on improvements to make the Amphitheater ADA compliant and more comfortable for all users, as well as improvement to the minigolf area.
- Earlier this year during the budget process, I proposed reallocating $5M to a reserve for Park maintenance; that motion failed.
- At this week’s meeting, I proposed a budget consideration item to reallocate $1M to FCPA’s operational budget for essential tree removal and park maintenance. Rather than increase spending, I asked to reallocate $1M in funds that are being planned for Board offices on top of the additional $1M that was added to the Board office budgets last year. This will be voted on by the Board in October.
The Park Authority Board is reviewing the need for increased maintenance as well as the County Executive’s directive to find options to reduce its budget by 7 percent. This directive to identify 7% in budget spending reductions applies to all County agencies. These items will be discussed as a part of the budget process. Regardless, I do not support any decrease in the FCPA budget.
We have opportunities to diversify our revenue base with sports tourism facilities where our residents would have access to state of the arts athletic facilities that are paid for and maintained with the revenue they bring in from tourism dollars. We also need to focus on constructing the facilities our residents are requesting, including pickleball courts and an indoor track for our high school program.
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Parks are an essential service, a critical community amenity, and play a part in the community’s quality of life--they should be a priority. Park maintenance is the life blood of a park system and should also be a priority. I will continue to work to address these issues just as I have on increasing maintenance of our trail system. In my opinion they are a higher priority than Board office budgets or other misguided spending. Please let me know your thoughts. |
Lee Chapel Road Update
At last night’s Lee Chapel Road Town Hall Meeting, the team working on a solution to the safety of the road and the community received great news from State Senator George Barker. He was able to secure state funding in the amount of $4M for the project which means the $9M project to remove both hills is now fully funded and ready to move forward. The community input at the town hall was supportive of moving forward with the project. The next update will be in 10 to 14 months where the County and VDOT will share preliminary plans for the road improvement with another opportunity for community input.
There was also some discussion on whether the road would be closed during construction to save 2 to 3 months of construction time and some construction dollars. There will be extensive analysis done before the decision whether to close it or instead build a temporary road to be utilized during construction is even considered, and numerous opportunities for community input before any decision is made.
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Many thanks to Senator Barker for his efforts to obtain the critical $4M in state funding, Supervisors Storck and Chairman McKay for working the $5M reallocation of state funds with me, Delegate Tran for her efforts to bring the community together during her town hall in January, the quick work of VDOT on the short-term improvements and the Fairfax County Dept of Transportation for developing the options and estimates so quickly. This is an example of what state and county agencies, elected officials and the community can do when they come together to address a problem.
Please let me know if you have any questions or comments.
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Thoughts on the Car Tax
I have received multiple emails and calls from residents who have recently seen their car tax assessments and bills increase. Despite assessed values decreasing on many cars compared to last year many tax bills went up. One reason was the decision by the Board majority to reduce the 15% reduction in market value in the prior year’s car assessments to a 10% reduction this year.
Taxes are driven by spending and the current increase in spending and taxes is unsustainable. Not only did I vote against the budget but I provided options and alternatives to reduce spending and the resulting taxes. Please see this version of the Herrity Report for my thoughts on the budget.
The state needs to work with localities to eliminate this tax once and for all. This needs to be done through a combination of reduced spending at the county level and an increase in the funds returned to localities from the state.
As a reminder, car/personal property taxes are due on October 5th. If you feel your vehicle(s) has been incorrectly assessed on the grounds of high mileage or vehicle body damage, you can appeal your vehicle assessment. For more information on how to do that, visit the Dept. of Tax Administration’s appeal information webpage.
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Other News and Information
- Input Requested on Next Year's Summer Concert Series
- 2023 Congressional App Challenge
- Normal Library Operating Hours Have Resumed
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National Coffee with a Cop Day (Oct 4th)
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Retiree Appreciation Day! (Oct 27th)
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Input Requested on Next Year’s Summer Concert Series
This summer’s concert series was our best series yet with nine shows, over 5,000 people, 6 different food and drink vendors, 350 attendees for two Celebrate Fairfax Kids pre-concert events, and zero weather cancellations! As I look forward to planning next year’s series, I want to hear from you about which concerts you liked best, which food trucks we need to bring back, and if there are other things you hope to see and do at the concerts next summer. If you missed the series, I would still appreciate your feedback to learn what would make you attend the series next summer.
Will you take this 3-minute survey to share how we can improve the concerts for next summer?
This concert series would not happen without our partners at the Park Authority Foundation, the Park Authority, and our local business sponsors, including Transurban, Dominion Energy, Peterson Companies, Sheehy Automotive, Wegmans, Glory Days Grill, Interstate Van Lines, NOVEC, Great American Restaurants, West Springfield Car Care, Hello Garage, McGuireWoods, TD Bank, Pulte Homes, National Endowment of the Arts, and Virginia Commission for the Arts!
Breaking news –based on your requests we are working on a fall concert for Thursday October 5. Stay tuned -- more to follow as we finalize details.
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2023 Congressional App Challenge
The annual Congressional App Challenge returns! It serves as an opportunity for high school students to be more engaged in coding in their district. Every year, Members of Congress challenge students in their districts to create and submit their original apps for a chance to win the Congressional App Challenge (CAC). Each challenge is district specific. U.S. Representatives publicly recognize their winning teams, and each winning app may be put on display in the U.S. Capitol Building for one year.
1. Winning apps are eligible to be displayed in the US Capitol Building and featured on the House of Representatives’ website, House.gov
2. Winning students are invited to #HouseofCode Capitol Hill Reception in Washington D.C.
3. Additional sponsor prizes TBA!
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Normal Library Operating Hours Have Resumed
Libraries are another critical community amenity provided by the County. The Fairfax County Public Library (FCPL) system adjusted its operating status in August 2022 due to ongoing staff recruitment challenges and this change limited hours of operation throughout the library system.
I am happy to share that effective the week of Sunday August 27th, all library branches resumed their normal set of public service hours. For regional library locations, those hours are Monday-Wednesday 10am-9pm & Thursday-Sunday 10am-6pm. For community library locations, those hours are Monday-Tuesday 10am-9pm & Wednesday-Saturday 10am-6pm. This resumption brings back 9 hours weekly at regional locations (Monday and Tuesday 10am-1pm & Wednesday 6pm-9pm) and 6 hours weekly at community library locations (Monday 10am-1pm & Tuesday 6pm-9pm).
For more information on running and sponsorship opportunities, please see here. |
National Coffee with a Cop Day
In honor of National Coffee with a Cop Day on October 4th, multiple community events will be held to encourage positive and fun interactions between the community and law enforcement agencies. Events like these do a good job of connecting citizens with our first responders to promote open dialogue and to build relationships in a comfortable environment. It has grown in popularity on college campuses around the nation and has become a staple since its founding in 2016.
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Our friends with FCPD at the West Springfield Station are hosting an event for National Coffee with a Cop Day at the Starbucks in Huntsman Square, located at 7475 Huntsman Boulevard in Springfield. It will be held October 4th from 1PM to 3PM and is open to all community members. |
Retiree Appreciation Day
On October 27th, Fort Belvoir and the Fort Belvoir Retiree Council will be hosting their annual Retiree Appreciation Day event. This event will feature a session with subject matter experts on TRICARE, AARP, DMV, and more, as well as a health fair with active clinics and a cake cutting at the Exchange. It runs from 8AM to 1PM and starts at the Wells Field House in Building 1810 located at 2104 Goethals Rd on Fort Belvoir.
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Email
Office
(703) 451-8873
Website
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Give a big, warm AROOO of a welcome to Scout the hound dog. This handsome boy is about 6 years old. His owner described him as a loving dog who is friendly, house trained, and medium energy. He really soaks up the love when he’s around people, and he’ll lean his big ‘ol 100-pound body into you looking for more. Yes, Scout is a BIG boy who could stand to lose a few pounds. But don’t tell him that because food is pretty much his favorite thing. He has lived with another dog that he was playful with and a cat that he just ignored. If you’ve got another dog at home, bring them for a visit to see how they do.
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