FALL HIKING: Read about a new trail in Occoquan and the joys of hiking in Markham. Pages 10-11
October 7, 2020 | Vol. 19, No. 41 | www.princewilliamtimes.com | 50¢ Covering Prince William County and surrounding communities, including Gainesville, Haymarket, Dumfries, Occoquan, Quantico and the cities of Manassas and Manassas Park.
See PrinceWilliamTimes.com for coronavirus updates
Permit for Va. 28 bypass up in the air By Daniel Berti
Times Staff Writer
Parents remain split on in-person learning PHOTO BY DELIA ENGSTROM
A group of parents and kids who want the choice to return to school for in-person learning in November rallied at Montclair Elementary Monday, Oct. 5, and then walked to 2 miles to Forest Park High School. By Jill Palermo
Times Staff Writer
Parents of Prince William County students remain divided on whether it’s safe to send their children back to school under the school division’s “hybrid 50% plan,” which would allow students to attend school in person two days a week starting on Tuesday, Nov. 10. The school division set an Oct. 4 deadline for opting into the program and did not extend it despite news this past weekend that the novel coronavirus had hospitalized President Donald Trump and infected first lady Melania Trump, former New Jersey governor Chris Christie and other members of the president’s inner circle. Prince William County maintains the highest percent-positivity rate on COVID-19 tests in Northern Virginia, according to the Virginia Department of Health. The local health district, which includes Prince William County, Manassas and Manassas Park, reported four COVID-19 deaths in the past week and continues to report dozens of new cases a day. As of Monday, 52 cases of COVID-19 had been reported among students and staff at more
Teachers union calls for schools to remain virtual, page 2
Work to design the Va. 28 bypass in Manassas is plowing ahead, but whether the project will receive a key U.S. Army Corps of Engineers permit to pave through wetlands and streams remains an open question. The proposed $300 million bypass would extend Godwin Drive to create a new, four-lane road between the West Gate and Loch Lomond residential subdivisions that will run parallel to Flat Branch Stream and cross Bull Run Creek before it reconnects with Va. 28 beyond the Fairfax County line. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers issues permits for all work in wetlands and other national waters that are regulated by Section 404 of the Clean Water Act. Although a supporter of the bypass, Prince William Board of County Supervisors Chair Ann Wheeler has said, “There’s always a chance [the permits] could get rejected.” See VA. 28, page 4
Del. Elizabeth Guzman joins race for lieutenant governor By Jill Palermo
Times Staff Writer
than 40 Prince William schools even though most students and teachers have been working remotely since the start of the school year. And, according to a new U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention metric, Prince William County is at a “higher risk” and at a “moderate risk” for spreading COVID-19 in schools based on the number of cases reported in the past 14 days and the county’s percent-positivity rate on COVID-19 tests, which was 6% as of Monday, Oct. 5. Cases and percent-positivity rate are two of three “core indicators” in the CDC’s school metric. The third is the school division’s own assessment of whether it can employ mitigating strategies such as the “consistent and correct use” of face coverings; maintaining 6 feet of social distancing between students and staff; following hand hygiene and “respiratory etiquette;” ensuring regular and frequent cleaning; and the ability to contact-trace in collaboration with the local health department.
Saying Virginia needs a leader who will fight for the working class, Del. Elizabeth Guzman formally announced SUBMITTED Monday her cam- Del. Elizabeth Guzman, paign for lieutenant D-31st, with her husband, governor, a post that Carlos, mother, Gregoria, and has yet to be held by the couple’s two youngest a Latina or a woman. children, Carlos and Hannah. Guzman, 47, said she believes she’s ready for the promotion because of her accomplishments in the House of Delegates and her 17-year career in in the public sector, serving Fairfax County schools, Fairfax County government and now the City of Alexandria. Guzman is a social worker and division chief for the City of Alexandria’s Center for Adult Services.
See SPLIT, page 2
See GUZMAN, page 7
INSIDE Business...............................................8 Classifieds...........................................16 Lifestyle..............................................10 Obituaries...........................................14
Opinion.................................................7 Puzzle Page........................................12 Real Estate..........................................13 Sports.................................................11
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