F.C.’s Annual Fall Festival & Taste of F.C. Set Sept. 14
The 48th Annual Falls Church Fall Festival will take place Saturday, Sept. 14, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on the F.C. City Hall grounds (300 Park Ave.). Activities will range from live music and entertainment to pony rides and other children’s rides and inflatables. Over 90 local vendors, businesses, and civic organizations will participate, as well as a beer garden and the Taste of Falls Church.
Admission to the festival is free, but amusement rides, food, and beer require the purchase of one or more tickets.
A roster of restaurants will offer small bites at $3 per “taste” at each restaurant (some tastes may require two tickets). The taste tickets will be available for purchase at outdoor ticket booths.
Participating restaurants include: Badd Pizza, Café Kindred, Clare and Don’s Beach Shack, Fava Pot, Harvey’s, Hot N’ Juicy Crawfish, Mark’s Pub, Nothing Bundt Cakes, One1ea, Open Road, Taco Rock and The Falls.
The Rockstar realty beer garden will offer selections from Audacious Aleworks and Solace Outpost. The beer garden will operate from 11 a.m. to 3:45 p.m.
F.C. Council Hears Updates On Bike Master Plan Work
At its work session Tuesday night, the Falls Church City Council reviewed the parameters of a draft Bicycle Master Plan, with a final consideration coming at its public business meeting on Sept. 23.
In a report from the City’s Director of Planning Paul Stoddard and lead staff planner Kerri Oddenino, it was noted that if the latest iteration of the plan gets approved, “staff will continue to improve the designs for the three priority routes – S. West Street (between the Fairfax County line and W. Broad St.), N. West Street (between W. Broad and the Fairfax County line) and an East-West connection (between the W&OD Trail and the Meridian/Henderson schools campus – by incorporating community-requested features, including traffic calming and pedestrian safety.” Revised plans would be shared with the community through a second round of walking tours in the Spring of 2025.
Updates to the vision and goals of the plan will be designed to “reinforce all ages and all abilities and to achieve bicycle-friendly status,” the update report said.
Accessory Dwelling Units Ordinance Moving Ahead
An updated draft ordinance to encourage the growth of accessory dwelling units (also called in-law suites, granny flats or backyard apartments) was mulled by the Falls Church City Council at its work session this week.
According to a report prepared by Council member Justine Underhill and Grayson Timoner that was shared at the meeting, revising local ordinances to allow for such units “will create several benefits, including an increased availability of affordable housing, improved financial stability for homeowners and a denser, more efficient use of land and resources.”
Parameters of a policy would cover three main aspects: floor area, building height, front, side and rear setbacks, and impervious lot coverage.
Tuesday’s update by City planner Jack Trainor was revised following two public forums on the subject last month attended by 90 citizens, who let their priorities on these three aspects be expressed through “dot voting” on large displays of alternatives.
Fairfax County to Install 50 School Bus Cameras
Fifty school bus camera systems will be installed throughout neighboring Fairfax County to help identify and issue citations to drivers who refuse to stop while school buses are loading and unloading children, Supervisor Board chair Jeff McKay reported this week. “I was glad to lead this initiative with former Sup. John Foust to make sure we use technology in every way we can to better protect our students,” McKay said. “I can think of no excuse for a driver in a vehicle to ever pass a stopped, red-light-flashing school bus that is loading students. Being a distracted driver is never an excuse to put our kids at risk.”
Pet Adoption Event Was ‘Best Yet,” McKay Says
The Fairfax County Animal Shelter held its annual “Clear the Shelters” fee-waived pet adoption event August 23-25, and Supervisor Board chair Jeff McKay said, “This was the best Clear the Shelters event yet. One hundred eleven pets found homes, including 91 pets adopted during the Clear the Shelters three-day adoption event, and 27 dogs went out on Adoption Audition – the innovative new program that allows adopters to try out the adoption for five days.