On February 28, Fairfax County Executive Edward Long answered online questions regarding the proposed budget plan for the 2014 fiscal year. In total, 19 questions were asked. An excerpt of the Q&A is posted below. To read the full transcript, click here. Tysons Engineer : Executive Long, What effect will the transportation bill have for 2014 transportation expenditures, and has this been incorporated in your analysis? Continue Reading →
County seeks to define guidelines for urban parks
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The county is currently looking at guidelines for incorporating parks into existing urban communities, such as the City Garden in St. Louis, MO. As Fairfax County becomes more urbanized, county officials are looking at how to incorporate parks into existing urban communities. A proposed amendment to the county comprehensive plan seeks to provide broad guidelines for how parks will look and function in Tysons, Annandale, Bailey’s Crossroads and other areas that the county has targeted for growth.
Supervisor encourages citizen involvement through budget simulator
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Supervisor Cook encouraged residents to propose their own budget through a walk-through guide. (Photo courtesy of the Office of Supervisor John Cook.)
As county officials discuss ways to address a $169 million shortfall in the budget, one supervisor is asking citizens to propose their own ideas through a walkthrough simulation. The simulation, created by Supervisor John Cook’s (R-Braddock) office, guides citizens through the rules of distributing and allocating money in the county. “Your job is to amend the budget as you see fit,” Cook said in a statement.
Transportation
NVCC officials, nearby residents meet to discuss parking concerns
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NVCC officials and nearby residents of the Annandale campus met to discuss parking and traffic issues along Wakefield Chapel Road. At a February 25 community forum, nearby residents of the NVCC Annandale campus met with college officials to discuss parking and traffic concerns along Wakefield Chapel Road. The forum, hosted by Supervisor John Cook (R-Braddock), brought out about 30 residents to Wakefield Forrest Elementary School. “I understand parking of our students on the streets is an issue,” said Barbara Saperstone, provost of the Annandale campus. “We are listening. Continue Reading →
Budget
Q&A on County Executive’s Proposed FY 2014 Budget and Multi-Year Budget Plan
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Fairfax County
Chairman Bulova’s 2013 State of the County Address
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[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QbSbVvAiRZ4&feature=youtu.be] Continue Reading →
George Mason University
Fairfax city council discusses future of downtown with Mason student government
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New story on Connect2Mason:
Representatives from George Mason University Student Government met with the full Fairfax City Council to discuss the relationship between the city and the university. The special session, held on Feb. 19 in Mason Hall, focused on encouraging more students to spend time in Old Town Fairfax, located less than a mile north of the Fairfax campus. “We know that you have great interest in our downtown and some of the development and redevelopment issues that have been ongoing,” said Scott Silverthorne, mayor of the City of Fairfax. “Frankly, we thought it would be helpful tonight to have a broad discussion about what you all see as important for our downtown.”
The council and three members from Mason Student Government discussed different ways to attract more students downtown. Continue Reading →
Transportation
Bill removing income tax referendum passes senate
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A bill in the Virginia General Assembly that removes the requirement that localities hold a referendum to enact an income tax has passed the senate. Senate Bill 1313 would amend § 58.1-540 of the Virginia Code that allows a select number of localities to pass an income tax for transportation purposes. The City of Fairfax, Fairfax County and several other Northern Virginia localities are permitted to levy the tax. Currently, state law requires localities to hold a referendum on the issue. Under the new law, a tax could be levied by a majority vote by either the city council or the board of supervisors. Continue Reading →
Transportation
Advocates push for adoption of Tysons bicycle plan
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Bicycle advocates are pushing for the adoption of a master plan for cycling in the Tysons Corner area. The plan makes several recommendations for encouraging bicycling as a viable alternative form of transportation in the area. “The Master Plan will be a roadmap for creating better conditions for bicyclists in Fairfax County over the next 10-15 years,” Bruce Wright, chairman of the Fairfax Advocates for Better Bicycling, said in an email. The plan, which was sponsored by Fairfax County, splits its recommendations into five different categories that focus on both infrastructure improvements and ways to encourage new riders. “Children and adults need to learn how to ride safely through bicycle safety classes in school and other venues, and police need to enforce traffic laws to reduce speeding and dangerous behavior by motorists and bicyclists,” Wright said. Continue Reading →
Budget
Fairfax County and city receive high marks on budget availability
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In a recent report, both the City of Fairfax and Fairfax County received high marks for providing easy online access to their respective budgets. The study was conducted by the Virginia Coalition for Open Government, a non-profit that advocates for expanded access to government information on the state and local level. The City of Fairfax was the only locality to receive an “A+”, the highest ranking possible. “It took only one click to get to the budget, the word “budget” was used, the budget was available in its entirety, was searchable by keyword, provided context and explanation and was available in the first page of search-box results,” read the report. “There were also five years’ worth of past budgets available. Finally, the city’s site included multiple formats for the budget.” Continue Reading →
Land Use
County seeks public comment on new comprehensive plan review process
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In an ongoing effort to reevaluate and improve the way Fairfax County makes decisions about land use, county staff has proposed two new recommendations that overhaul how planning studies are conducted, and creates a schedule for which areas of the county should be studied in the near future.
The Comprehensive Plan, mandated for review every five years by the Virginia Code, is a set of guidelines for how much development is allowed in various regions of the county, and how they will be developed. “Fairfax Forward is an effort to find a new means to review the county’s Comprehensive Plan, which we have simplified into the two parts, although there are many more recommendations than two,” Meghan Van Dam, a senior planner at the Fairfax County Department of Planning and Zoning, wrote in an email. Since the late 1970s, the comprehensive plan has been updated using a system called the “area plan review.” Under this process, during a period of time set by the Fairfax County Planning Commission, amendments to current land use guidelines were accepted and reviewed by county staff, brought forward for public comment, and voted on by the Planning Commission then the Board of Supervisors. “Public comment has generally supported the effort and the need to replace [Area Plan Review],” Van Dam said. Continue Reading →
Fairfax County Planning Commission
Proposed bill to change planning commissioner requirements
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A new bill proposed for the 2013 General Assembly session would change the requirements for serving on local planning commissions, a group of appointed people who make recommendations regarding land use policies. Commissioners are appointed by the governing body of the locality. In Fairfax County, the Board of Supervisors makes the appointments, as does the City Council in the City of Fairfax. House Bill 1408, which was pre-filed on Dec. 18 of last year by Delegate James Scott (D-53), would remove the requirement that at-least half of all planning commissions own property. “…There is no reason that service on the planning commission should disqualify anyone who is registered to vote from serving on the governing body, as long as they are otherwise eligible to vote,” Delegate Scott wrote in an email. ”I remembered that, as a tenant when I first ran for elective office, I could not serve on the Planning Commission.” Continue Reading →