Brief news items from the Greater Falls Church area for the week of 8/31.

Second F.C. Treasurer Candidate Qualifies for Ballot

Just at the deadline last Thursday, a second candidate qualified for the ballot in November to run for Treasurer of the City of Falls Church. Margaret A. Housen met the City Registrar’s petition requirements to file for the election and will face off against Kathy Kaye to fill the three remaining years of the unexpired term of recently-retired Bob Morrison. Ms. Housen recently became a resident of the City of Falls Church after 30 years as a citizen of Virginia. Claiming over 40 years of administrative work experience, she is currently employed by the City of Falls Church as a senior administrative assistant to the chief engineer of the Department of Environmental Services, a post she has held since December 2004. In a statement, Ms. Housen said, “I believe the former Treasurer had an excellent staff and that the continuity of the smooth running of this office is better served by persons who have worked there for a combined total of 27 years. I would keep this team together.”

 F.C. Katrina Relief Group Makes New Push

Having raised more than $150,000 in aid to date, the City of Falls Church-appointed Katrina Relief Task Force announced it will continue its fundraising efforts through National Preparedness Month in September. The group’s latest projects include pre-sales of the City-oriented “Falls Churchopoly” custom board game and participation in the national “Making Change for Katrina” campaign. The board game sales are expected to raise $10,000 earmarked for the St. Bernard Parish Public Schools in Louisiana, according to task force officials. Pre-sales in advance of the arrival of the game in mid-November (in time for holiday giving) will occur on line, www.fallschurchva.gov, at City schools “Back to School” nights and at the Fall Festival on Sept. 16. The “Making Change for Katrina” campaign is a national spare change collection effort between Sept. 11 and 22. Collection boxes will be at City Hall and the Community Center with funds going to the Habitat for Humanity rebuilding efforts in the Gulf Coast.

Zogby Poll Shows Webb Edging Ahead of Allen

For the first time during the campaign, Democratic U.S. Senate nominee Jim Webb has pulled ahead of incumbent Republican Sen. George Allen in a major poll. Monday it was reported that results of the latest Wall Street Journal/Zogby polls shows Webb at 47.9% and Allen at 46.6%. While the margin is considered “too close to call” to be statistically decisive by the pollsters, it reflects a 12-point upswing for Webb from a July Zogby poll which showed Allen ahead by 11 points then. It was reported Tuesday that as a result of the polls and factors which contributed to it, including the impact of Allen’s racially-insensitive reference to a citizen of Indian descent as “macaca,” the Democratic Senate Campaign Committee has committed to assisting the Webb campaign in Virginia. DSCC head Sen. Church Schumer of New York said his group will definitely contribute to the Webb effort, a marked shift from earlier in the summer when he was non-committal. “We think this is a neck-and-neck race” Schumer told reporters. “We plan to provide Jim Webb with the kinds of resources he needs to win.” After winning the Democratic primary in June, Webb had only $424,235 in cash, compared to $6.6 million for Allen. Webb said this week that he’d raised $2 million since winning the nomination.

F.C. Receives 2nd Historical State Marker

The City of Falls Church will receive its second Virginia State Historical Marker in a ceremony on Saturday, Sept. 16, at the site of the future home of the Tinner Hill Cultural Center, 106 Tinner Hill Rd. The marker will commemorate the civil rights pioneers of Tinner Hill and the site of the first rural branch National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), founded in 1915. The unveiling and dedication will take place at 1 p.m, followed by a reception and open house. The City’s only other state historical marker is at the Falls Church Episcopal Church.

Composite Drawing of Assault Suspect in Vienna

Fairfax County police have released a composite drawing of a man believed responsible for three assaults on women in the Vienna area in the last week. Two incidents were reported on Aug. 24 and another on Aug. 27. In all three cases, a man approached a woman from behind and either groped or attempted to pull down pants. In all cases, the assailant fled when the women yelled and no serious injuries occurred. Two incidents occurred near Vienna Metro station and the other in the 2600 block of Glengyle Road. The suspect has been described as a dark-skinned male, 5’6” to 5’7” tall, weighing about 160 pounds.