Residents of Berry Street Host “Play Streets” Closure

This past Sunday, the residents of Berry Street hosted a play streets closure so that kids could access the streets to ride bikes, play ball, and friends could gather without fear of car traffic. It was a great way to squeak in some last minute fun before students returned to school on Monday. Berry street will be hosting additional fall play streets from 2:00 p.m. — 6:00 p.m. on September 15 and October 20.

PNC To Close Branch, Drive-Through ATM September 20

The PNC Bank at 402 W. Broad St. (the Read Building) in Falls Church is closing as of Sept 20, 2024. This includes the drive-through ATM. Signs posted by the ATM and inside the branch alert customers of the coming change.

PNC closed hundreds of branches in 2023, with dozens more closures announced so far in 2024.
After the Broad St. branch closes, the nearest PNC will be south of Arlington Blvd. in Fairfax County. With only one branch remaining north of city limits, PNC customers in the City of Falls Church — and especially those near the northern border with Arlington — will become the most isolated from a local branch inside the beltway.

F.C. Commits to Promote Tobacco-Free Parklands

The City of Falls Church Recreation and Parks recently decided to commit to promoting 100 percent tobacco-free and vape-free parklands to provide a clean, healthy, and safe environment for all to enjoy.
The voluntary policy change was initiated by the Share The Air campaign of Y Street, a program of the Virginia Foundation for Healthy Youth (VFHY) and Virginia’s largest youth-led movement. Share The Air aims to create 100 percent tobacco-free parklands by encouraging local park and recreation departments and government officials to adopt voluntary, comprehensive tobacco-free and e-cigarette-free outdoor policies.

The impact of the city’s commitment is expected to reduce tobacco and vape litter and residents’ exposure to secondhand smoke, as well as promote positive role modeling for youth who visit the city’s parks and outdoor recreational areas. The City of Falls Church joins the growing list of localities with tobacco-free and e-cigarette-free voluntary outdoor policies, becoming Share The Air’s 24th partner. Anand Colby, a student representative from the Falls Church Advisory Board of Recreation and Parks, shared, “We want our parks to come across as clean, healthy, and welcoming for all ages.”

As part of its partnership with Share The Air, the City of Falls Church will receive free tobacco-free signage to post as a reminder to park visitors.

New FCA Exhibit ‘Home’ Opens August 24

Thirty-eight artists will be featured beginning this week in “Home,” an all-media show at the gallery of Falls Church Arts from August 24 to September 29. The exhibit theme was selected by social media followers in a bracket-style selection process. The show will open with a meet the artists reception in the FCA gallery (700-B W. Broad St., Falls Church) from 7:00 p.m. — 9:00 p.m. this Saturday, August 24. The reception is free and is open to the public.

For this exhibit, artists were invited to submit works that embody what home means to them. The show includes representational works. Artists depicted a wide range of subjects capturing the feeling of home in nature, at worship, with family and friends. Media include watercolor, acrylic, metal, mixed media, mosaics, and photography.

For gallery hours, more information about FCA, or to view or purchase artwork online, please visit fallschurcharts.org.

ArtsFairfax Awards Grants to Four Little City Nonprofits

Last week ArtsFairfax announced it would fund 58 local arts and culture organizations to support outstanding arts experiences in the region — eight more than last year. FY25 Operating Support Grantees represent all arts disciplines and all nine magisterial districts in Fairfax County, the City of Fairfax, and the City of Falls Church.

A total of $591,900 was awarded to 58 organizations for the coming fiscal year. ArtsFairfax notes that leaders for these organizations are 81 percent women, 28 percent BIPOC, and 24 percent veterans. Half of the recipients are considered small businesses with budgets under $100,000. As instituted last year, the minimum eligible budget for applicants remains at $5,000 to allow more organizations to apply.

Four FY25 grantees are located within the City of Falls Church, each the preeminent organization in their respective disciplines for The Little City. Creative Cauldron — the Tinner Hill based performing arts organization moving late this year into the new Broad & Washington complex — was the city’s theater grantee. Falls Church Arts — the only art gallery within city limits — was the visual arts grantee. Little City Concerts — a nonprofit that holds social justice themed fundraising events pairing musical performances with related charities — was the city’s instrumental music grantee. Tinner Hill Heritage Foundation — a nonprofit and cultural hub dedicated to preserving and presenting the African American legacy and promoting racial reconciliation in Northern Virginia — was a multidisciplinary/arts services grantee.

As ArtsFairfax’s largest grant program, Operating Support Grants provide critical funding for the basic operation of vital programs, performances, arts education, and services to residents of Northern Virginia. While ArtsFairfax saw a 20 percent increase in total requested funds, the available funding for this grant category remained flat from last year.

“Arts and culture vibrancy in Fairfax is growing year over year. For FY25, we saw a 16 percent increase in new applicants and a 20 percent increase in total requested funds. One of our goals at ArtsFairfax is to diversify our resources and increase our grants funding so that all the creative work in this community can be fully realized,” said Stuart Holt, ArtsFairfax President and CEO.

To learn more about ArtsFairfax, visit artsfairfax.org.