This afternoon, Governor Northam announced some new statewide measures to help combat COVID-19. These new measures will take effect at midnight on Sunday, November 15. Below I have included Governor Northam's press release with the details, information on the CDC eviction moratorium, information from the Fairfax County Health Department on ways to safely celebrate this holiday season, and some virtual resources from the Safe Community Coalition.

In addition, this email includes a link to a recording of the November 7th McLean CBC Open House. The Open House was an opportunity for the task force I appointed and staff to present their draft update of the Comprehensive Plan that will guide development in downtown McLean over the next 20 years. A follow-up virtual Q & A session with staff is scheduled for Monday, the 16th. 

I would like to thank you, the voters, for turning out in record numbers, and a special thank you to the amazing election officers who served under extraordinary circumstances this year! I would also like to congratulate Mayor-Elect Sheila Olem and the Herndon Town Councilmembers-Elect Naila Alam, Cesar A. del Aguila, Pradip Dhakal, Signe V. Friedrichs, Sean M. Regan, and Jasbinder Singh on their election victories.

Please share this email with your friends and neighbors and do not hesitate to contact my office if we can be of assistance; email Dranesville@fairfaxcounty.gov or call 703-356-0551.

Sincerely,

John

As COVID-19 surges in states across the country, Governor Ralph Northam today announced new actions to mitigate the spread of the virus in Virginia. While the Commonwealth’s case count per capita and positivity rate remain comparatively low, all five health regions are experiencing increases in new COVID-19 cases, positive tests, and hospitalizations. 

 

Governor Northam shared a new video to update Virginians on the additional steps the Commonwealth is taking to mitigate the spread of COVID-19, which is available here

The following measures will take effect at midnight on Sunday, November 15: 

 

 

 

 

 

Virginia is averaging 1,500 newly-reported COVID-19 cases per day, up from a statewide peak of approximately 1,200 in May. While Southwest Virginia has experienced a spike in the number of diagnosed COVID-19 cases, all five of the Commonwealth’s health regions are currently reporting a positivity rate over five percent. Although hospital capacity remains stable, hospitalizations have increased statewide by more than 35 percent in the last four weeks.

 

On Tuesday, Governor Northam announced new contracts with three laboratories as part of the Commonwealth’s OneLabNetwork, which will significantly increase Virginia’s public health testing capacity. Contracts with Virginia Tech in Blacksburg, University of Virginia Medical Center in Charlottesville, and Sentara Healthcare in Norfolk will directly support high-priority outbreak investigations, community testing events, and testing in congregate settings, with a goal of being able to perform 7,000 per day by the end of the year.

 

The full text of amended Executive Order Sixty-Three and Order of Public Health Emergency Five, and sixth amended Executive Order Sixty-Seven and Order of Public Health Emergency Seven will be made available here.  

 

For information about COVID-19 in Virginia, visit vdh.virginia.gov/coronavirus. 

 

To read the full press release click here. 

Several fall holidays, including Navratri, Diwali, Friendsgiving, and Thanksgiving will likely need to be different this year to prevent the spread of COVID-19.  

The CDC is providing health updates for various fall and winter holidays here. 

To protect public health and slow the spread of COVID-19, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has issued a temporary moratorium on evictions through December 31.

The moratorium applies to people with incomes less than $99,000 or $198,000 if married and filing jointly, unable to pay rent due to income loss or extraordinary out of pocket medical expenses and would become homeless if evicted. Tenants facing eviction need to present a declaration to their landlord.

If you are having trouble making rent payments because of the coronavirus pandemic, you are not alone. Federal, state and local governments continue to offer relief and resources to protect tenants.

In Fairfax County, the Eviction Prevention Task Force is working to provide resources to tenants facing eviction. The task force, which includes stakeholders from county agencies, the Sheriff’s Department and Legal Services of Northern Virginia, has pulled together a point-in-time snapshot of the eviction situation in Fairfax County. The team will be analyzing this data to assist with application of resources and efforts. Future considerations include exploring the various multi-family housing settings in high risk areas.

The Safe Community Coalition has launched a series of short videos for the community featuring the psychologists, psychiatrists, and social workers of the SCC’s mental health committee.

The short segments, approximately 10 minutes each, touch on a wide variety of topics designed to help parents and students in dealing with a range of issues, from younger children’s challenges staying focused while distance learning to effective communication strategies when families feel the strain of too much togetherness.

The first six videos include:

Additional videos will be rolling out in the weeks to come. All videos and any accompanying tip sheets are free and available on the SCC website here.

Almost 200 people participated in the virtual McLean CBC Open house on Saturday, November 7. Thank you for taking the time to participate and share your thoughts. If you were not able to attend the full video of the meeting is available on the McLean Community Business Center (CBC) Study website here.

There will be a virtual follow-up Question & Answer Session with county staff to go over any questions residents may have:

Monday, November 16

12:30 p.m. to 1:30 p.m.

Virtual WebEx Meeting

Contact Ben Wiles in my office at Benjamin.Wiles@fairfaxcounty.gov or (703) 356-0551 if you have any questions or comments. For any procedural questions about the meeting, contact David Stinson with the Department of Planning and Development at David.Stinson@fairfaxcounty.gov or by phone at (703) 324-1370.

Fairfax County is closely monitoring the COVID-19 situation. Residents are strongly encouraged to utilize the resources listed below: