I encourage you to learn more about the county's Black/African American Experience Project, a recently launched collaboration of the Board of Supervisors, Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS), the county's History Commission and Neighborhood and Community Services (NCS). The goal is to capture, communicate, and preserve the Black/African American experience throughout Fairfax County’s history. There are three parts of this effort:

An effort is underway to increase the visibility of Black/African American experiences in the county by sharing oral and written history. Neighborhood and Community Services is asking current and former county residents to share their stories. These stories will help build a racial history timeline, support project-based learning opportunities at FCPS and enrich future generations as the county charts a more equitable future through One Fairfax.

FCPS will provide resources to support students in researching untold local stories of Black/African Americans and groups who have impacted our community. The Historical Marker Project is available to all FCPS social studies teachers and published online for equitable access to students not enrolled in FCPS. In addition, all students from K-12 (public, private, homeschooled, etc.) can submit topics for new historical markers through March 31.

Students and others can access a new inventory of Black/African American history completed in 2021. The new inventory is available on the History Commission website and includes Black/African American residents’ houses of worship, schools, homes, communities, and events to document Black/African American culture and their contributions to the history of the county.

Order your free at-home COVID-19 test kit from the federal government at http://covidtests.gov.

Booster and Vaccine Update for Teens and Children

Your guide to spring events in the Town of Vienna is now available. You can mark your favorites and be ready for registration starting Feb. 7 for Town residents and Feb. 14 for non-residents. Learn more.

The Fairfax County Park Authority's Parktakes is available online and registration is underway for summer camps and more. Online Parktakes and registration.

The annual Northern Virginia Soil and Water Conservation District (NVSWCD) seedling sale will open Tuesday, March 1. These species were selected because of their value to native bees, but they also serve as valuable food sources for wildlife. All species are native to Virginia. More information.

Permit applications increase every spring especially for popular summer projects such decks, screened porches and pools. Many of these projects require homeowners or contractors to submit architectural plans and plats as part of the permit application. Higher volumes of applications increase queue times for permit processing. You are encouraged to obtain your permit now and avoid the rush. Learn more.

The meeting is hosted on the Webex platform. Use this link to attend and participate in the meeting. You will be prompted to register with your email address and ZIP code before logging into meeting. If you prefer to listen to the meeting on your phone, call 1-844-621-3956 and use access code: 2349 840 5136. To learn more about the Reston Comprehensive Plan Study and the task force, visit the Reston Comprehensive Plan Study webpage. Meeting details and agendas will be found here. You can watch live streams of the meetings on YouTube Live, as well as the video archive of all past task force meetings.

Discussion will be on SEA 2010-HM-004. The meeting is hosted on the Webex platform. Use this link to attend and participate in the meeting. You will be prompted to register with your email address and ZIP code before logging into meeting. If you prefer to only listen to the meeting, you may call 1-844-621-3956 and use code: 2344 579 2842. For information, contact Jose Delcid, 703-478-0283.

The meeting is hosted on the Webex platform. Use this link to attend and participate in the meeting. You will be prompted to register with your email address and ZIP code before logging into meeting. If you prefer to only listen to the meeting, you may call 1-844-621-3956 and use Access Code: 2335 606 9904. This is also the number to use if accessing TTY 711. More information.

Extra copies of the Town calendar are available free of charge at the Vienna Town Hall, the Vienna Community Center and the Patrick Henry Library while supplies last. Special thanks to the Vienna Photographic Society for providing the images for this year`s calendar! For program, event and meeting updates, please check the online Town calendar.

If you own a business in the Town of Vienna, it's time to renew your business license. 2022 renewal forms have been mailed to all active business owners. For more information, contact the business license office at 703-255-6321 or LKing@viennava.gov. Payment deadline is March 1.

Watch this short video to learn about two arrests in a recent catalytic converter theft case, as well as tips to prevent catalytic converter theft.

Although it may be tempting, removing native grape vines, or any other plants from Fairfax County parks and woodland areas, is illegal and may be harmful to the environment. Fairfax County Park Authority staff has become aware of native grape vines randomly being cut in the woods. More information.

The Golden Gazette is a free monthly community newsletter that covers a variety of topics and community news concerning older adults and caregivers in Fairfax County. You can read the latest issue here.

Last month, Fairfax County completed a successful bond sale, generating $300 million to fund various project areas, after once again affirming its AAA bond rating with all three major rating agencies. Learn more.