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Hello!
It is hard to believe that 2017 is nearly over. It has certainly been another busy year in Fairfax County, with big changes coming to Lee District. Since January, we have successfully completed additional pedestrian and road improvements in the Route One corridor, continued ongoing revitalization of Springfield, appointed a new County Executive, secured more state funds for our schools, and repaved many roads. I was also proud to see the passage of the OneFairfax Resolution, a great step forward in helping everyone have more access to opportunities and promote inclusion and equity in Fairfax County schools and government-something that that has made this County successful but a policy that we need to ensure continues to thrive in the future. I have included information below on what is happening in Lee District, as well as what I have been working on.
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Lee District Prioritized on Funding Request List
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Since I first took office, improving Route One has been a major priority of mine. It's where I spent my entire childhood, and is critical to the County's economic success. Route One received a boost when the entire Board of Supervisors voted to list our Route One widening and Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) projects as the top two priorities for regional and federal funding over the next eight years through the Northern Virginia Transportation Authority (NVTA).
Smart infrastructure investments pay off huge dividends in the long term, both in saving money and congestion relief, a major factor in my decision on the vote. Overall, the funds will have a major positive impact on the residents who live along Route One and the thousands of people who commute on it every day. Adding on to the widening, the Richmond Highway project will also add bike and pedestrian lanes, as well as reworking traffic timing to address rush hour congestion along the highway. The BRT project includes median running BRT from the Huntington Metrorail Station to Fort Belvoir, and will include new transit stations, facilities for bicycle, pedestrian and vehicle travel modes.
While superficial results are fast and easy, true revitalization takes time and effort. I am proud that the Board of Supervisors voted to approve this funding request that prioritizes Route One. While the widening and improvement along the highway is complicated and takes time, getting funding is the critical step necessary to really get going beyond planning and towards implementation.
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Our New Deputy County Executive: Tisha Deegan
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The Board of Supervisors appointed Tisha Deeghan as deputy county executive, effective Jan. 8, 2018. She replaces Patricia Harrison, who retires on Jan. 22, 2018. Deeghan will be responsible for Fairfax County's health and human services programs.
Since 2014, Deeghan has served as the executive director of the Fairfax-Falls Church Community Services Board (CSB), which is the public agency for Fairfax County and the cities of Fairfax and Falls Church that provides services for people with concerns related to mental health, substance use disorders, and developmental disabilities. She joins the new County Executive, Bryan Hill.
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Legislative Update: 2018 Priorities
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The Board of Supervisors adopted the 2018 Legislative Program at our last meeting of the year, setting our priorities for working with our state and federal colleagues for the upcoming legislative session. Among our many concerns, we advocated for increased funding to help fight the opioid crisis, creating incentives for creating renewable energy sources, legislation to allow the County to prohibit discrimination on basis of gender identity or sexual orientation, increased funding for transportation projects and more state K-12 education spending for our students. Public education funding in the Commonwealth is enshrined in the Virginia Constitution as a joint responsibility of both state and local governments, so it is essential that the state fully meet its Constitutional responsibility to adequately fund K-12 education. The full legislative priorities package is available online here.
We also plan to continue working with the legislature and Governor-Elect Northam to push for more flexibility on how localities create revenue. More fiscal freedom would allow us to move away from reliance on the property tax, while providing even more services to residents and improving our public works-a clear win-win for residents.
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Lee District Spotlight: Todd Lattimer
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Nicknamed "Mr. Springfield", Todd Lattimer is a 40 year veteran of Fairfax's financial sector and longtime community banker and philanthropist for Lee District. He began his career as a drive-in teller in 1977, rising through the ranks with a reputation for helping residents in need and aiding youth sports programs. Among his many accomplishments, Todd served as the president of both the Greater Springfield Chamber of Commerce and the Franconia-Springfield Lions Club, and was a key figure in rejuvenating Springfield Days to the massive community celebration it is. I was proud to be with Todd this month when he was honored by the Board of Supervisors for his decades of service to the people of Lee District, and wish him a happy retirement.
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Hypothermia Awareness for Homeless Residents
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Hypothermia Prevention Program in Lee District and the Route One Area
Each year, all three Fairfax County emergency shelters that serve single adults activate a "no-turn-away" policy from December 1-March 31. "No-turn-away" is also implemented outside of that timeframe based on temperature and weather conditions. The Hypothermia Prevention Program operates in coordination with the regular emergency shelter programs and function in partnership with nonprofit agencies, faith communities, and various community groups and individuals. For general questions, contact Abby Dunner in the Office to Prevent and End Homelessness at abigail.dunner@fairfaxcounty.gov.
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Public Safety Update: Body Cameras
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Our department will be launching a pilot body-worn camera program this spring, after unanimous approval from the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors. This pilot program will be conducted with all operational uniformed patrol officers from two of our district stations; Mount Vernon and Mason. It will include 230 cameras and last for three months, with the option to extend it to six months.
This comes following the Ad Hoc Police Practices Review Commission Final Report recommendations to outfit officers with body-worn cameras. The pilot body-worn camera program is designed to provide the Department with the opportunity to review police-community member encounters as they occur, as well as provide an additional degree of safety for our officers as they patrol the streets.
Cameras will be worn on the outside of the officer's uniform or ballistic vest on a full-time basis to evaluate the technical merits of the software and equipment. The cameras that will be tested offer various features and mounts to capture the details of police-community member encounters without compromising the officer's job tasks or safety. Prior to being issued the equipment, all officers will receive training.
Officers will be expected to activate the body-worn camera during any law enforcement-public encounter related to a call for service, law enforcement action, subject stop, traffic stop, search or police service. The officer should start recording at their arrival/response, or as soon as it is practical and safe to do so, and leave it on for the duration of the incident.
After the three month program concludes, a research team led by Dr. Richard Bennett of American University will present their study on the effect of the cameras on community trust and police use of force, after which we will make a decision on whether to deploy the cameras permanently or not.
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Annual Lee District Open House
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My annual Open House will be on January 20, 2018 in the Helen G. Wilson Community Room at the Franconia Governmental Center. I
invite all residents to join myself and my staff for a chance to sit down and talk Lee District for a few hours. All are welcome to attend and refreshments will be served.
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Holiday Season Tip from FCPD
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EQAC Public Hearing on January 10, 2018
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Each year, the Fairfax County
Environmental Advisory Council holds a public hearing to get input on issues of environmental concern. The next public hearing has been scheduled for Wednesday, January 10, 2018 at 7:30 PM.
It will be held in Conference Rooms 9 and 10 of the Fairfax County Government Center, 12000 Government Center Parkway, Fairfax.
The hearing is a chance for you to share your thoughts on the state of the environment in the Fairfax, as well as identify environmental issues for the county. To sign up to speak, call the Department of Planning and Zoning at
703-324-1380, TTY 711, or send an
e-mail message. You also may submit written testimony
by email, and video testimony will be accepted as well.
Upload a video-five minutes or less is preferred-to YouTube, Ustream or Vimeo, and then
email the link to it by Wednesday, Jan. 3, at 5 p.m. No more than one video per person will be accepted. Videos will be screened in advance by county staff before they are played during the Jan. 10 public hearing.
While EQAC's
2017 Annual Report on the Environment was recently published, this hearing is not intended to focus on this report but rather to hear your views and concerns on environmental issues.
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Code Compliance Corner: Smoke Alarms
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Smoke Alarms are required on all floors of a residential dwelling unit as well as in each bedroom. In an effort to increase fire safety, and through their 'Get Alarmed' program, the Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department has obtained a State grant allowing their staff to provide and install smoke alarms in residential dwelling units throughout the county that either do not have smoke alarms, or have inoperable smoke alarms. County residents in need of a smoke detector who cannot afford one should call their local fire station. To enhance the coordination of efforts between Fire and Rescue and the Department of Code Compliance, DCC now participates in the 'Get Alarmed' program. Acting on behalf of Fire and Rescue, DCC Investigators may now provide and install smoke alarms whenever a missing or inoperable smoke alarm is detected during an investigation of a residential dwelling unit
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The Fairfax Falls-Church Community Services Board (CSB)
began offering same-day, in-person screening for adults with mental health/and or substance use concerns in July 2015 and extended same-day access service to youth in late 2016. More than 500 youth and families have been served this year.
According to a recent national survey, The State of Mental Health in America 2018, Virginia is ranked high in several categories concerning the mental health of today's youth: 12th in youth with alcohol dependence and illicit drug use, 7th in youth alcohol dependence, 10th in illicit youth marijuana use and 8th in youth cocaine use. More than half of people who took the online depressive screening (in Virginia) had thoughts of self-harm or suicide nearly every day. According to the report, youth are at risk - 62% of female youth and 52% of male youth scored as having moderately severe or severe depression.
For substance use concern, you may walk in, without appointment, to the
CSB's Merrifield Center and speak with a staff member in person, rather than initiating contact over the phone. If the individual appears to qualify for CSB services, they may be able to receive a more in-depth assessment for services that same day. Each CSB assessment clinician is trained to assess for substance use disorders as well as mental health and co-occurring disorders.
For more information, contact the CSB at 703-383-8500 (M-F, 9 a.m.-5 p.m., extended hours for youth until 7 p.m. on Tuesdays). In an emergency, call CSB Emergency Services at 703-573-5679 (answered 24/7).
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Did You Know?
Virginia ranks 11th nationwide in per capita personal income, but 48th in education spending per capita, and relies more on localities for funding services than most states.
Source: Fairfax County 2018 Budget Fact Sheet
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6121 Franconia Road
Alexandria, Virginia
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