August 16 – 22, 2007
Test on Route 7 Will Narrow Lanes to 1 Each Way
On either Thursday, Aug. 16, or Friday, Aug. 17, the City of Falls Church will conduct a test on the traffic impact of narrowing Route 7 (West Broad St.) to one land each way for a single block, the 400 block of W. Broad. The purpose of the test will be to determine if the diminished traffic flow will create a significant inconvenience or safety hazard prior to a final decision on whether or not to undertake the same policy during a two-month undergrounding of utilities and other improvements slated to begin next month. City officials say they don’t want to specify the exact time of the test in order to have it be a more accurate sample. It will occur for a three to five-hour period. The road construction, done as a private-public partnership with Waterford Development, involves the undergrounding of overhead utilities, reconstruction and widening of the sidewalk with brick pavers, installation of a landscaped strip between the sidewalk and the roadway, reconstruction of curb, gutter and driveway entrances, installation of street furniture and decorative street lighting, and road reconstruction to upgrade the roadbed to Virginia Department of Transportation standards.
Read Building Full Occupancy This Week, Friel Says
Final occupancy permits are expected to be granted this week for the Read Building at 402 W. Broad St., Elizabeth Friel of the Falls Church Planning Division told the City Council Monday. The building will become the second fully-completed and commercially-occupied, new mixed use structure built in the commercially-zoned corridors of Falls Church since 2001. The Vantage Fitness facility there is already open. The building, constructed by the Young Group, Inc. is unique from at least three standpoints: 1. It is the first in Falls Church named after a pro-northern Civil War hero who operated in the area now covered by the City. 2. It is the first built in Northern Virginia in the modern era with distinctive Art Nouveau architecture. 3. It is the first “workforce housing” building in Falls Church, with proffers to the City including making several residential units available to teachers in the Falls Church school system at reduced rental rates.
Baseball Bat Attack in Culmore
Fairfax County Police responded to a fight in the 6000 block of Argyle Dr. in the Bailey’s Crossroads section of Falls Church Monday at 11 p.m. and found a 26-year-old Falls Church man beaten on the sidewalk. It is alleged that several men beat the victim with baseball bats. The victim was transported to Inova Fairfax Hospital with life-threatening injuries. An investigation led to the arrest of Fredy Adiel Ramos, 20, of 6069 Argyle Dr. He was transported to the Fairfax County Adult Detention Center and charged with aggravated malicious wounding. The investigation continues.
Webb, Kaine Address State AFL-CIO Friday
Virginia Senator James Webb and Governor Tim Kaine are among the speakers scheduled to address the annual Virginia AFL-CIO State Conference Friday, Aug. 17, at the McLean Hilton Hotel. National AFL-CIO President John Sweeney will also deliver remarks. Virginia AFL-CIO President Jim Leaman will introduce all the principal speakers.