This email has some good news from the Virginia DMV on more appointment opportunities, the Fairfax County Public Libraries will be resuming normal services starting June 5, and the Park Authority will be increasing enforcement at Scott's Run Preserve. See below for details.

Also, below are a few upcoming meetings and events:

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

In line with Governor Ralph Northam’s recent announcement to ease current COVID-19 restrictions, the Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) will open more windows in its customer service centers beginning June 1, creating 184,000 additional appointment opportunities across the Commonwealth.

Customers can begin to schedule these new appointments. Additional windows will open in stages on June 1, June 15 and in July as DMV continues to hire and train new employees to expand appointment availability.

Customer service centers and mobile operations teams continue to operate by appointment only for specific services which generally necessitate an in-person visit. Appointment opportunities are currently available for a 90-day period.

Patrons will once again be able to visit FCPL branches without time or capacity limits to enjoy the full range of library services and resources.

Under the new expanded hours:

Curbside services will remain available to patrons on days branches are open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Learn more about curbside service at the library.

Public PCs will be available for use at pre-pandemic levels: 30-minute sessions, with unlimited sessions per card per day.

In-person library programming, hosted indoors or outdoors, may resume as of June 5. FCPL will continue to offer robust virtual programming for all ages, which can be found on the FCPL online calendar, YouTube channel and Facebook page. Learn about the top 10 ways to access FCPL resources at home.

Available meeting rooms will reopen for public bookings beginning June 5.

FCPL’s standard circulation procedures will resume or remain in place. This includes: returned materials will not be quarantined, items will be due after their normal circulation period, fines will be assessed for materials returned late, and holds will expire if not picked up before the pick-up date.

Ask Your Library chat support via the website and text messaging will continue to be available 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday.

Due to capacity restraints, branches cannot yet accept donations.

Plexiglass shields at customer service desks will remain in place at this time.

FCPL continues to follow Virginia Department of Health (VDH) and local Health Department guidance on mask wearing and social distancing. All visitors are welcome to continue to wear masks, if they choose, and caregivers are expected to ensure that their children ages 5 through 12 follow current masking guidance.

Please find more pandemic-related information on the county’s COVID-19 webpage or the emergency blog.

The Fairfax County Park Authority is planning tougher measures this year to preserve the beauty of Scott’s Run Nature Preserve, ensure the safety of visitors, and keep the preserve a family-friendly destination.

Beginning Memorial Day, security will be on site, seven days a week from 10 a.m. until 6 p.m. to enforce park rules. Visitors are reminded that no alcohol or glass bottles are permitted in Scott’s Run. Bags and coolers will be checked at the trailheads in the parking lot.

In addition, enforcement efforts will be stepped up at the waterfall area to help keep everyone safe. The beauty of the falls masks the peril. This area is subject to dangerous currents, and submerged rocks can combine with those currents to make entering the water a deadly decision. No swimming, wading or boating is allowed at Scott’s Run.

Scott’s Run has been a victim of its own popularity in recent years, with crowds engaging in risky activities that both pose a safety risk and threaten the many remarkable and rare plant species that call the preserve home. To help control crowds and make sure that everyone has a good day at Scott’s Run, parking is limited to 50 cars in the designated parking areas. No parking is permitted in adjacent neighborhoods or along the roadway leading to the park.

Fairfax County has a host of parks that can accommodate larger crowds during popular visiting times this summer. Consider a visit to one of the county’s three lakefront parks -- Burke Lake Park, Lake Accotink Park and Lake Fairfax Park. Riverbend Park offers trails along the Potomac River.

For more information, contact the Public Information Office at 703-324-8662; or send an email to parkmail@fairfaxcounty.gov.

Join the Park Authority for a public information meeting about the McLean Central Park Development Concept on Monday, May 24, 2021, at 7 p.m. The meeting will be held online so that members of the public can participate safely and conveniently from their own homes. You can watch the meeting at www.publicinput.com/McLeanCentralPark, or listen by calling 855-925-2801 (access code 2881). Preregistration is optional and not required.

Park Authority staff will present a development concept and will be available to answer any questions from the public.

For more information, please visit the project webpage; or contact the Public Information Office at 703-324-8662 or via Parkmail@fairfaxcounty.gov.

The Fairfax County Planning Commission will hold a public hearing on the McLean Community Business Center Study (PA 2018-II-M1) on May 26, 2021 at 7:30 p.m. The Plan Amendment was authorized by the Board of Supervisors in 2018 to create a sense of place in downtown McLean and to update guidance on planned land uses, transportation, parks and open space, and other public facility needs. Information on how to testify or submit comments on the amendment can be found on the Planning Commission website.

The proposed Plan retains the neighborhood serving aspect of the downtown area but identifies the center of the downtown as an area of taller mixed-use buildings that create a sense of vibrancy. A signature urban park is expected to be a major placemaking element in the center of the CBC. Development intensities would taper away from the core area, and existing development intensities around the edge of the CBC are expected to be retained.

Highlights of the Plan Include:

Information regarding the study, including the draft Plan, overview videos, task force meeting material, and staff report can be found on the project website here. An addendum to the staff report was recently published to address additional comments provided by the community.

Contact Ben Wiles at Benjamin.Wiles@fairfaxcounty.gov or (703) 356-0551 if you have any questions or comments.

This virtual Zoom seminar is a Fairfax County Black Mental Health Committee initiative to continue dialogue about mental health. Topics of discussion will include: Adapting to Trauma & Stress, Processing Big Changes and Taking Time for Yourself (Self-care). All are invited to attend:

Thursday, May 27, 2021

6 – 7:30 p.m.

This event is being presented by Fairfax County Government agencies – Neighborhood & Community Services, Health Department, Department of Family Services, and Fairfax-Falls Church Community Services Board – in partnership with Fairfax County Public Schools and the NOVA Chapter of the National Coalition of 100 Black Women.

The Sickle Cell Foundation of Northern Virginia and the Red Cross are recruiting people of color to register to donate blood at a local blood drive on Friday, June 11, 9:00 a.m. - 2:00 p.m. at the McLean Community Center. Blood given to patients with rare blood types or conditions such as sickle cell disease must be matched closely with someone from the same race to avoid complications. By indicating your race when you donate, you help the Red Cross best meet the needs of patients of all backgrounds.

For an appointment, visit www.redcrossblood.org and enter sponsor word: HEARTOFGOLD

or call 1-800-RED Cross (1800-733-2767).

for eligibility questions call 1-866-236-3276

See the flyer below for details:

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