July 13, 2021
To the Fairfax County Community,

Over the weekend, I represented Fairfax County at the National Association of Counties conference in Maryland. I’m always excited to showcase all of our successes in Fairfax with counties across the country and learn new ways to advance. As President of the Virginia Association of Counties I was proud to host Virginia, Maryland, and West Virginia members' caucus breakfast. It was great to see friends Chair Randall from Loudoun County and Chair Wheeler from Prince William County - combined we proudly represent over 2 million Virginia residents.

I also wanted to highlight some of the amazing work of members of our County team and residents.

As you likely know, a tragic building collapse in Surfside, Florida in late June has triggered a massive search and rescue effort. It is truly difficult work that takes a toll mentally and physically. Our thoughts and prayers are with the Surfside community. I wanted to thank members of our County team that are on Virginia Task Force 1, our urban search and rescue team, who have gone to Miami to support the crew on the ground. While three structural engineers have returned, we still have one K9 handler and her K9 on site.

In addition, there are three former FCPS athletes going to the Olympics in Tokyo this year. I want to congratulate:

  • Andrew Seliskar: Andrew will be swimming for Team USA and is a 2015 Thomas Jefferson High School graduate.
  • Chioma Onyekwere: Chioma will be throwing discus for Team Nigeria. She is a 2012 Robinson Secondary School graduate.
  • Trevor Stewart: Trevor will be running track for Team USA and is a 2016 South County High School graduate.

Finally, below you will see highlights from today's Board meeting. You can see the full package here.
Presentations
  • The Semiquincentennial Anniversary of the American Revolution, the Revolutionary War, and the Independence of the United States of America: 2026 is the 250th anniversary of US Independence and today we received a presentation from the Work Group charged with leading the commemoration in Fairfax County. You can see the report on page 4 of the Board package. The presentation, pictured above, was given by Scott Stroh, member of the Work Group and the Executive Director of George Mason's Gunston Hall.
  • Falls Church News Press: We also recognized the Falls Church News Press and its editor and founder Nicholas Benton on 30 consecutive years of weekly publication. Congratulations and thank you Nick for all of your work bringing local news to Falls Church residents.
Operational Energy Strategy
What happened? The Board adopted an updated Operational Energy Strategy. In addition, we issued a formal declaration called “Carbon Neutral Counties” that encourages other local governments to take action to halt climate change.

What was agreed to? The primary goal of the Carbon Neutrality Agreement is to become carbon neutral by 2040 in our energy use for government operations, including buildings, facilities and transportation. To do so, we have several targets laid out in the OES:

  • Decrease total energy use from all existing county facilities by 25% by 2030 and 50% by 2040, as compared to the FY2018 baseline.
  • Produce 25% of electricity use from renewable energy generation by 2030, and 50% by 2040, using FY2018 as the baseline.
  • Achieve net-zero energy standards for all new buildings and major renovation projects greater than 10,000 occupied square feet, beginning planning and design in 2021 and beyond.
  • Transition Fairfax Connector’s diesel buses, along with other county vehicles, to electric or other non-carbon emitting alternatives by 2035. By 2035, 99% of Connector bus fleet miles traveled will be made with non-carbon emitting vehicles.
  • End the purchase of diesel Fairfax Connector buses after FY2024 unless approved by the Board of Supervisors.

Learn more about today's action here.
Confederate Road Names
What happened? We established a Task Force to review and consider the names of Lee Highway (Route 29) and Lee-Jackson Memorial Highway (Route 50). Read more about the action here.

What's next? The Task Force will seek public input and coordinate its deliberations with neighboring jurisdictions’ efforts considering changes to the names of the same roads.

Anything else? This is part of the larger inventory we requested regarding names and other dedications to members of the Confederacy in Fairfax County. County staff identified a number of buckets that all have different routes for change. We are committed to making this a community process and will also begin outreach across the County to engage people on this important issue. If there are changes recommended by the Task Force and ultimately the Board of Supervisors, that recommendation would be sent to Virginia's Commonwealth Transportation Board for a decision. Most roads including these are owned and maintained by VDOT, not the County.
Infrastructure
What happened? I asked County staff to investigate what resources are available for voluntary inspections that may be helpful to condo associations and owners of aging buildings in Fairfax County. In addition, I directed that they identify what tools would help us accomplish this initiative in the future and evaluate existing Virginia code for authority to improve building safety.

Why? The condo building collapse in Surfside, Florida on June 24th, has left at least 90 people dead and 31 unaccounted for. I, and I'm sure residents, are concerned that the proper procedures are in place for people to check and assure the safety of their own buildings. While Fairfax County has a thorough inspection and maintenance process, everyone must understand the importance of routine building maintenance to protect people's safety.
Broadband
What happened? I have requested a detailed plan for outreach and a specific schedule for when we can expect to achieve universal broadband access in Fairfax County. I hope to receive a report in early 2022.

Why? During this pandemic we all pivoted to working and learning from from home. It is clear that broadband is as essential as access to water and utilities. In addition, while we are fortunate that over 90% of households in the County have internet access it is estimated that 4.2% of County households do not. Moreover, while some may have internet access, it may not be sufficient to meet the needs of the household. To ensure that we continue to create a more equitable and competitive community, it is imperative that there is universal internet access in Fairfax County.
Other Actions
  • Plastic Bag Tax: The General Assembly recently passed a bill that allows counties in Virginia to implement a bag tax with revenues going potentially to environmental clean up efforts. The Board supported these bills at the time. Today, the Board directed staff to prepare a Plastic Bag Tax Ordinance for thorough community input and outreach and possible consideration by the Board in September 2021.
  • Letter to the General Assembly: The Board approved sending a letter to our Fairfax County delegation in the General Assembly that highlights our priorities as legislators return to Richmond for the August Special Session. Some of those priorities include: funding for K-12 public education, increasing resources to housing and eviction prevention, and the preservation of River Farm.
  • COVID-19 response: While I am proud of the work we have done in every department to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic, we can certainly learn a lot from the work we did. I asked that County staff conduct a review of the work we have done for preparation for future emergencies.
  • Fairfax Founders: We moved to develop targeted support and resources for start-ups in Fairfax County’s most promising sectors.
Health
Vaccine Resources:


Common Health Questions:

  • People with COVID-19 have a wide range of symptoms reported - ranging from mild symptoms to severe illness. Symptoms may appear 2-14 days after exposure. You might experience:
  • Fever or chills
  • Cough
  • Shortness of breath or difficulty breathing
  • Fatigue
  • Muscle or body aches
  • Headache
  • New loss of taste or smell
  • Sore throat
  • Congestion or runny nose
  • Nausea or vomiting
  • Diarrhea
  • Follow mitigation practices:
  • Wash your hands or use hand sanitizer if that isn't an option (especially when in public places)
  • Cough and sneeze into your sleeve
  • Don't touch your face
  • Social distance
  • Wear a mask (Which is required in Virginia.)
  • What it means to social distance, self-isolate, and quarantine.
  • If interacting with others outside of your household, being outside is safer than inside. You can make your home safer by increasing ventilation and filtration.
  • The New York Times (access to COVID-19 content is free) speaks with infectious disease experts, aerosol scientists, and microbiologists to find out if COVID-19 can land on your clothing, hair, shoes, and mail.

COVID-19 Resources:

  • Fairfax County Health Department
  • To view the number of cases in Fairfax County this page is updated at noon daily.
  • Visit the County site on COVID-19, Health Department Website, and see their FAQs.
  • To view multilingual health materials visit the County's Language Portal.
  • Sign up for text message alerts: text FFXCOVID to 888777. Para inscribirse, textear FFXCOVIDESP a 888777.
  • Call the Health Department from 9am-7pm weekdays and 9:30am-5pm on weekends: 703-267-3511
  • Email: [email protected]. This account will be staffed Monday through Friday, 8am-8pm.
  • Inova has a helpful FAQ.
Sincerely,
Jeff McKay
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