December 8, 2022
Dear Neighbor,

I hope you can join me at this year's Holiday Open House on Monday, December 19 from 5:30pm to 7pm at the Providence Community Center. RSVP and get more information here.

You can still bring in donations for our Providence District Food Drive. A list of the most needed items can be found here. There are several other donation drives going on throughout the county. Take a look at the 2022 Holiday Giving Guide to see where and what you can donate!

Early voting is ongoing for the January 10 special election for the Virginia House of Delegates 35th District. This seat is currently vacant after former Del. Mark Keam resigned in early September. This election will be held using the old district boundaries prior to redistricting. More information and a list of voting locations can be found here.
You can read about the following Providence District updates:
  • Health and Human Services Updates
  • Board Meeting Highlights
  • Providence District Holiday Open House
  • Providence Donation Drives
  • Green Corner
  • Land Use and Transportation Updates
  • ArtsFairfax Pandemic Recovery Grant
  • Upcoming Events

With gratitude,
Supervisor Dalia Palchik
Health and Human Services Update
Community Recommended Resources
After December 17, Fairfax County COVID-19 clinics at the Government Center and Hyland South County Center will no longer be operational. Vaccines are widely available throughout our community and residents can seek COVID-19 vaccinations and boosters at pharmacies, provider offices, groceries, urgent care centers, or other sites throughout the community.

Residents who are unable to access a booster vaccination may call the Fairfax County Call Center at 703-324-7404 to make an appointment at one of the Health Department’s district office clinics. Given the current early seasonal surge of flu, RSV, and other respiratory illnesses in circulation, getting boosted against COVID-19 now is an important step to staying healthy this holiday season. Take advantage of this time window to stop by the Fairfax County Government Center or Hyland South County Center before Saturday, December 17. Clinic dates/times are posted on the health department’s website here.

Additionally, due to low turnout, Fairfax County’s COVID-19 testing partner, Curative, announced they will cease operations throughout the county after Thursday, December 15. Home testing kits and opportunities are now widely available in stores, medical offices, and other locations throughout the community. If anyone is unable to access a test, they are encouraged to contact the Fairfax County Call Center at 703-324-7404 to discuss options that may be available.

Live Healthy Fairfax Awards Nominations

The Partnership for a Healthier Fairfax is seeking a wide range of nominations. Examples include individuals who volunteer to lead major initiatives, businesses that provide employees and customers with health-related opportunities or agencies that implement support for making healthy choices. Also celebrated are examples that impact the health of the larger community and are considered sustainable ideas.

The deadline to submit a nomination is December 15, 2022. For any questions, contact Susan Sanow, Partnership for a Healthier Fairfax Program Manager, susan.sanow@fairfaxcounty.gov.

Care to Share Toolkit

The Fairfax Food Council has a new toolkit to support schools, PTAs, and other volunteers who want to start up an easy-to-implement food rescue program at a Fairfax County school.

The “Care to Share” Toolkit is a hands-on/how-to toolkit to support efforts to rescue food waste in our schools. It provides a step-by-step way to start a food waste rescue program.

Board Meeting Highlights
At Tuesday's Board meeting, the Board recognized the recipients of the 2020-2022 Best Workplaces for Commuters Awards, many of which are in the Providence District. Additionally, the Board adopted the 2023 Legislative Program for the Virginia General Assembly and the county's Recommended Strategies and Principles for the 118th Congress.

I presented the following Board Matter:

The Board approved the following administrative items:
  • Authorization to advertise a public hearing on a proposal to vacate and abandon portions of Scotts Crossing Road.
  • Authorization to advertise a public hearing to consider an ordinance establishing a property classification and tax rate for real property owned by certain surviving spouses of members of the armed forces who died in the line of duty.
  • A supplemental appropriation resolution for the Department of Neighborhood and Community Services to accept grant funding from the Virginia Early Childhood Foundation supporting the Ready Regions Capital Area.

The Board approved the following action items:
  • The Phase II design and construction agreement between the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors and the City of Fairfax regarding the joint redevelopment of the Willard Health Center Campus and the Sherwood Community Center.
  • Acceptance of 2022-2023 countywide Site-Specific Plan Amendment nominations.

The Board held public hearings and approved:
  • Petroleum Marketing Group, Inc to permit the addition of a convenience store within an existing service station building and a waiver of the open space requirement in the Providence District.
  • Pulte Home Company, LLC to rezone and permit a mixed-use family residential development and approval of the final development plan in the Providence District.
  • A temporary uncodified ordinance providing for an up to one dollar per trip emergency taxicab fuel surcharge from December 30, 2022, through June 30, 2023.
  • An amendment to Fairfax County Code, Chapter 82, Article 2, to add a new section 82-2-9 (Speed Camera Pilot Program)

Providence District Holiday Open House
I hope you can join me at this year's Holiday Open House on Monday, December 19 from 5:30pm to 7pm at the Providence Community Center. Come meet Team Providence and Providence District's Boards, Authorities, and Commissions appointees, enjoy some snacks and refreshments, and learn more about what we do for the Providence Community.


We will also begin collecting new and gently used winter coats, hats, and gloves of all sizes to be donated to local shelters including The Lamb Center. This Winter Coat Drive is in partnership with the Providence Community Center, Tysons Community Alliance, and local HOAs. Please consider bringing winter gear donations.
Providence Donation Drives
Food Drive
We are still collecting donations for our food drive until Thursday, December 15! My office and the Providence Community Center have partnered with local HOAs to collect food and household essentials to be donated to the Oakton High School Pantry and Falls Church High School Pantry.
 

The holiday season is an especially busy time for both pantries, and we thank you in advance for your generosity.

If you have any questions or want more information, please email Providence@fairfaxcounty.gov or call 703-560-9646.
Winter Gear Drive
From Monday, December 19, until Thursday, January 19, 2023, the Providence District Office is partnering with the Providence Community Center, Tysons Community Alliance and local HOAs to collect new and lightly used winter coats, hats and gloves of all sizes. Donations can be dropped off at the Providence Community Center. More drop-off locations will be posted here as they become available.

For questions or more information, please email providence@fairfaxcounty.gov or call 703-560-6946.
Green Corner
County Temporarily Waives Landfill Disposal Fees for Former Haulin' Trash Residential Customers
Last week Haulin’ Trash, which served approximately 3,000 county residents, filed Chapter 7 Bankruptcy and abruptly went out of business, leaving customers with no immediate recourse other than to bring their trash to a county drop-off facility while they contract with other trash haulers and wait for their first pickup. In many cases, trash was already overflowing due to multiple missed pickups.

The Board is offering a remedy to customers of the now-defunct private trash collector Haulin’ Trash LLC by authorizing a temporary suspension of disposal fees at the I-95 Landfill Complex and the I-66 Transfer Station. The waiver only includes the company’s former county individual residential customers and will be in effect from December 7 until January 1, 2023.

To qualify for the waiver, residents must provide a Haulin’ Trash bill as proof they were customers. Each facility opens 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday and 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. Both sites will be closed on Sunday, January 1, in observance of New Year’s Day.

Bamboo Ordinance
Avoid the fine, don’t let running bamboo grow beyond your property line.
In March of 2022, the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors passed the new running bamboo ordinance that goes into effect on January 1, 2023. It will be enforced by the Department of Code Compliance on an individual complaint basis.

The ordinance requires that:
  • A bamboo owner must not allow running bamboo to spread from the bamboo owner’s property to any public right-of-way or any adjoining property not owned by the bamboo owner.
  • A bamboo owner must contain the running bamboo to keep it from spreading onto any public right‑of‑way or adjoining property not owned by the bamboo owner.

If a bamboo owner fails to comply with a Notice of Violation, each day that running bamboo remains uncontained may result in a civil penalty of $50, up to a maximum of $2,000 in a 12‑month period. Property owners may incur additional penalties if they allow bamboo to spread to another adjacent property.

Supporting Our Ecosystem on Larger Properties

Managers of larger properties, whether residential or commercial, are important participants in the regional native tree campaign. Their decisions about plant choices and other landscaping practices determine the health of the local ecosystem. As our understanding of the effect of humans on nature has grown, new practices have emerged that support the songbirds and protect our natural areas. Those practices include adding locally native plants, rescuing native trees from the non-native plants that threaten them, and leaving the leaves under trees to nourish the soil and provide food and shelter for pollinators.

EQAC Annual Public Comment Meeting
The Environmental Quality Advisory Council (EQAC) will hold its annual public comment meeting on January 11, 2023, at 7:15 p.m. in Conference Room 9/10 of the Fairfax County Government Center. EQAC is appointed by the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors to advise on environmental matters. The public is encouraged to attend EQAC’s public comment meeting to share views on the state of the environment and to identify environmental issues of concern applicable to Fairfax County. Please click here for more information.
2022 Environmental Excellence Awards
The Fairfax County Office of Environmental and Energy Coordination announced the winners of the 2022 Environmental Excellence Awards. Each year, the Environmental Excellence Awards recognize individual county residents, county employees, and organizations or businesses who advance or support the county’s environmental goals and policies, dedicate personal time and expertise beyond their normal fiscal and civic responsibilities and demonstrate leadership within the community.

This year, the Fairfax County Environmental Quality Advisory Council (EQAC) issued five awards to county residents and employees. The individual awardees have demonstrated extraordinary leadership within the community and exceptional dedication to the preservation and enhancement of the county’s natural resources. Click here to learn more about this year's awardees.
Fairfax Water Assistance Program
The Virginia Department of Social Services’ Low Income Household Water Assistance Program (LIHWAP), Fairfax Water can now offer assistance to eligible customers who need assistance with their water and wastewater bills. Funds are now available, and eligible customers are being asked to apply soon before the funds run out!

The application and additional info on the program are available here: www.virginialihwap.com. Residents can call 1-888-373-9908 to apply.

Land Use and Transportation Updates
Updated Tyson's Webpage

Fairfax County’s Tysons webpage has a new look! The redesigned site contains more streamlined information, updated content, images, and graphics, and improves public accessibility to the site. If you are looking for information about Tysons land use, transportation, environmental stewardship, public facilities, parks, and development activity, please visit the webpage here.
Site-Specific Plan Amendment Update
The Board accepted 70 nominations from across the County into the Site-Specific Plan Amendment (SSPA) Screening process at the December 6 Board meeting. The list of nominations accepted into the Screening process can be found here. Nine of the nominations are in the Providence District.

These nominations will proceed for staff, community, and Planning Commission review during the Screening process to determine if the nominations should be added to the Comprehensive Plan Amendment Work Program. The Screening process will include community meetings which are anticipated to start in January. The Planning Commission will also hold public workshops on the nominations to help determine which of the nominations should be added to the Work Program for formal review. The Board action on approval of the Work Program is anticipated for March or April 2023. Nominations that are added to the work program would then be reviewed in greater detail in the next phase (the Evaluation phase) with the community, staff, the Planning Commission and Board, as formal Plan amendments and/or studies. The timing of the review of the Plan amendments and/or studies will be determined ahead of the adoption of the new work program.
Capital Bikeshare Stations in Providence District
The Fairfax County Department of Transportation held a virtual public meeting on Monday, December 5 to discuss the 21 proposed Capital Bikeshare locations in the Providence district.

You can still submit your feedback to the Bike Fairfax team until December 16.

Student Bus Pass Program
Students, ride Connector and CUE for FREE! The free student bus pass is available to all Fairfax County middle and high school students. Get yours today!

For more information visit your school’s administration office; you will need to have your parent’s/guardian’s approval for signing up. More information can be found here.
ArtsFairfax Pandemic Recovery Grant
Fairfax County recognizes the value of the arts in our community and the ongoing impact of the pandemic on the arts ecosystem. As a part of their increased funding to the arts, $170,000 has been allocated to the ArtsFairfax Pandemic Recovery Grant, a funding opportunity that will prioritize but not be limited to the following criteria:  

Organizations that have not received County recovery funds previously: 
  • BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, People of Color) organizations as determined by mission, leadership and community served
  • Organizations that serve arts participants and audiences in economically disadvantaged areas of the County.  

Organizations from Fairfax County, the City of Fairfax and the City of Falls Church are all eligible. The deadline to apply is January 20, and ArtsFairfax is offering office hours in both English and Spanish to answer any questions you might have. More information can be found here.
Upcoming Events
Winter Market at The PARC
Ready for holiday shopping? Get something for everyone on your list from one of our local small businesses! Fridays and Saturdays until December 17th, Celebrate Fairfax is hosting its Winter Market at The PARC.

For festivities and vendor lineup by date, visit Celebrate Fairfax's event calendar here.
Winter BOROland
Looking to get in the holiday spirit? Check out the Winter BOROland in Tysons!

Saturday, December 10, 9:45am-2pm: Holiday Movie Pajama Party
  • The Boro is teaming up with Tysons ShowPlace ICON for their second annual holiday movie marathon. Tickets are $8 and include admission, a small popcorn, a small drink, free crafts, candy-filled goodie bags, and a photo booth opportunity.

Saturday, December 17, 11am-2pm: Rudolph’s Rockin’ Reindeer Games
  • Santa is coming to #TheBoro and Rudolph is throwing a disco. In addition to the dance party, there will be crafts, a hot cocoa bar, a bounce house, and an opportunity to take a photo with Mr. Claus from 1-2pm.

The Nutcracker with Fairfax Ballet
The Fairfax Symphony joins The Fairfax Ballet in their sixth collaboration to present the timeless holiday favorite, The Nutcracker. This production is unique in the Washington metropolitan region as one of few presented with LIVE musical accompaniment. The Fairfax Ballet Company dances to Tchaikovsky’s score performed live by the Fairfax Symphony. 

Enjoy a winter wonderland of dancing Snowflakes, Candy Canes, and a Ginger Bread House, with epic battles between heroic Toy Soldiers and Mischievous Mice…plus the Sugar Plum Fairy and Nutcracker Prince. It’s the perfect holiday treat for the entire family… experience this cherished tradition of the season!

Saturday Sensations Registration
Registration for Saturday Sensations at the Providence Community Center for January is now open. Classes will open Friday for January 7th, 21st, and 28th. Spots fill up quickly!

Registration for February classes begin Monday January 16th.
 
As a reminder, please bring socks with you for each appointment.
Please see flyer for class times or call: 703-865-0520 for more information and to register.
Made in Fairfax Holiday Gift Guide
Fairfax County is home to an incredible and diverse group of artisan makers – so much so that the Made in Fairfax initiative was born.

The Made in Fairfax network aims to be a one-stop shop for maker businesses and those who want to support them. The Made in Fairfax directory features dozens of artisans who create a variety of products in the county like custom furniture, baked goods, jewelry, and more.

This holiday season (or any time of year, really!) take “shop local” to new heights by directly supporting the makers of these gift-worthy products – created right here in Fairfax County, Virginia.
Your December Must-List
'Tis the season in Fairfax County! There are plenty of things to do in Northern Virginia this month. Check out these things to see and events in the Washington, DC area that embrace winter and the holidays. Whether you want to be inside staying warm or enjoying the extra twinkle outside, here is your go-to guide for enjoying December 2022 in the nation’s capital region.
Contact Us
We want to hear from you! Please reach out to us with questions, comments or just to say hello. Please feel free to email us with events you would like to be included in my newsletter.

Office Phone: (703) 560-6946 | Email: Providence@fairfaxcounty.gov