Falls Church News-Press 2-29-2024

The City of Falls Church’s latest large scale mixed use project was approved by the F.C. City Council by a 5-2 vote Monday night. Known as the QuinnHomestretch project, it has been OK’d as a single building to rise to 10 stories on 1.866 acres in the S. Washington Street area of Falls Church. It will provide 225 apartments for seniors, as well as medical offices, ground floor retail including a restaurant, and ample open space for a park and pedestrian friendly amenities.

In terms of fiscal impact, the project will go onto property that currently contributes $159,562 in annual revenues to the City with a project that is projected to have a net positive revenue impact of $1,100,517 annually.

The local family of Paul and Catherine Quinn and their two sons David and Matthew, initiated and have seen through the years-long process leading to Monday’s final approval. City

The veritable embarrassment of riches that is now the restaurant scene in the City of Falls Church, with an array of serious top-drawer choices complementing an ever growing number of quality dining options, shows no signs of slowing down, according to the report issued by the City’s Economic Development Office (EDO) at this week’s meeting of the City Council’s Economic Development Subcommittee at City Hall.

While City Hall has not yet come up with an accurate way of measuring the success of the recent Restaurant Week, and the noted closing of one solid City restaurant last week, Pizzeria Orso, has caught a lot of peoples’ attention, the clear upside of the industry in the Little City is very evident, and it will get better when two new and classic steakhouses open their doors here in the next period.

According to Becky Witsman of the City EDO, new businesses planning to open soon include two first-rate steak and seafood establish-

ments. One is a Korean steakhouse, Seoul Prime, being promised for the Founder’s Row development, though

no further details were provided this

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Quinn Projects Gets Final OK 2 Steakhouses Opening Soon

residents and local business owners (Quinn Auctions), they submitted a letter to the News-Press (published elsewhere in this edition) expressing their gratitude for everyone involved in gaining the approval, and also to the City of Falls Church, itself, as their adopted home.

“As longtime residents of Falls Church, we are so proud to bring this new, community-centered project to the City that we love,” Paul Quinn wrote. “It is not only beautiful, but also safe, vibrant and one of the most financially beneficial projects the City has seen to date.” He added, “Cathy and I feel so fortunate to have had the opportunity to raise our family, grow our business and spend our lives in Falls Church.” In speaking to the Council Monday night, Quinn said, “This will be great for Falls Church, and great for us.”

The final 5-2 vote (Mayor Letty Hardi, Vice Mayor Deborah Shantz-Hiscott and Catherine Lian, Jessica Underhill and Marybeth Connelly voting yes, and David Snyder and Erin Flynn voting no) was seen as a foregone outcome months before this Monday, An earlier effort by Snyder to table the vote failed by the same 5-2 vote before the final approval votes were cast.

The plan is for 233 residential units broken down to 145 senior independent living units, 56 assessed living units, 32 memory care units, 32,628 feet of business and professional medical and dental offices on the second floor, a 4,846 square foot restaurant, 40,000 square feet of publicly accessible open space and a three-story partially underground parking garage with 292 spaces.

From its earliest days following submission of the plans, the project won the recommendation of support from the

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City’s Planning De\partment, with the City’s Laura Arenseau as its point person assigned to the project.

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“The staff has completed the review of the submission and finds that it generally aligns with the City’s Comprehensive Plan and S. Washington Street Small Area plan,” the City staff report said. “Assuming project approval, staff will continue to work with the applicant to refine the following elements:

“To refine the ground floor commercial layout and retail marketing plan, to confirm that the design and cost of sculptures in the plazas and commitment to brand the corridor as part of the City of Falls Church park system, to oversee the final design of the public plaza and greenway/park, the final Transportation Demand Management and parking management plans and the applicant’;s commitment to LEED Gold and energy reduction goals.”

The name of the City-based non-profit Homestretch was added to the project name solely because one of the existing three older buildings at the site is owned by them. Otherwise, that group has had no involvement. The City’s Planning Commission voted 4-1 to support the project.

The project is seen by its proponents as an anchor for further development in the S. Washington Street area.

The granted special exception for height included the provision for mechanical penthouses above the top floor, and the Quinns have agreed to construct a gravity sewer line and upgraded and expanded sewer lines.

According to the City staff report, “The proposed mixed use project provides for key elements in the City’s design guidelines – pedestrian oriented design, distinctive landscaped outdoor areas and connections, including a public linear greenway and parklike setting and consistency with streetscape standards.”

week, and the other is the regional brandnamed Grill Marx. The latter will go onto S. Washington in a currently unoccupied space in the same apartment building that once was home to a Target store.

Over 250 seats will go into the large site for the Grill Marx as $2.8 million will be spent on its buildout in the coming months and an opening by fall is being predicted.

As for the Target site, Duffie owners of the property say that an announcement is pending on who will go into the vacated Target site. Word was initially supposed to come by the end of February, so it could be any day now.

Also moving ahead with an imminent demolition of one of the two buildings on the site of the old Stratford Motel in the 300 block of W. Broad are owners of Dominion Wine up the street, who are preparing to create the Stratford Gardens restaurant on the old hotel site.

A plethora of smaller eateries has also been announced for the massive 10-acre West End project to include Mason’s Famous Lobster Rolls, Ice Cream Jubilee, Burger Fi and Seoul Spice.

While the Class A medical office building on that project is being completed, the long-stay hotel is now slated to be up and running by this fall, along with the condo building on the site (to be

called The Oak).

There is 10,000 square feet of space for a restaurant in the Founders’ Row 2 building now under construction at W. Broad and West Street.

Many of these will be discussed at next week’s four-hour “retreat” of the City’s Economic Development Authority (EDA) Tuesday, March 5 at 6 p.m. in the downstairs Laurel Room of City Hall.

That meeting will include planning for the May 9 NAIOP bus tour, an annual event when a caravan of up to 10 buses will take developers and others around the region to look around and discuss possibilities. The F.C. EDA has signed up as a sponsor of the event, hoping that the Little City will be duly showcased as part of the tour, and so far so good, as the tour is scheduled to stop for lunch in Falls Church’s West End project, sponsored by the City of F.C.

The mega-Whole Foods slated to go into the Insight Developers’ property at Washington and Broad will be handed the keys to the site in April and will hope to be open by Thanksgiving in the fall.

2024 Demands More In America Wake Up to Putin

Nicholas F. Benton

FALLS CHURCH NEWS-PRESS

“Education is not memorizing that Hitler killed six million Jews. Education is understanding how millions of ordinary Germans were convinced it was required. Education is learning how to spot the signs of history repeating itself.” -Noam Chomsky

This Chomsky quote is an essential starting point in this year’s mandatory project to recover a huge part of the American population from years of disinformation and veritable brainwashing. Not unlike the Germans of the 1920s and 1930s, an ingrained anti-Semitic prejudice has always been alive in the U.S. population, but dormant and rightfully suppressed by powerful social norms that have historically worked to keep it that way. It’s only been since the rise of Trump and the new social order in America that such prejudices are now erupting through social media, primarily.

This “new social order” in America has to be aggressively taken on by a large majority of Americans in this critical presidential election year or democracy is doomed.

This “new social order,” as I call it here, began, in its latest iteration, to be unleashed in the U.S. starting in the early 1970s as a marginal movement, operating in the culture created under the rubric “postmodernism.” It was a cultural offensive ostensibly in reaction to the world that New Dealers, first, and Dr. Martin Luther King had been shaping up from the time of the FDR administration until Dr. King’s untimely demise in April 1968.

A new cultural paradigm was sought by those captains of industry and finance who had backed Hitler, including among major elements in the U.S. They’d sought unsuccessfully to assassinate FDR prior to his inauguration in early 1933 and to boost Hitler with pro-Nazi rallies in the U.S. during the 1930s, including one that packed Madison Square Garden to the hilt, and their energies were applied to trying to

bilization of the nation’s women and their allies that is setting up for a major and resounding defeat of Trump later this year, way too much of the U.S. population is veritably sleepwalking through this most decisive period in human history. With the mainstream media clearly on the side of the “new social order,” the public is generally too lazy and bound up in its selfish self-interests to discern where, on the one side, the horny hand of Putin and his pro-Nazi interests, including his Hamas operation designed to weaken his opposition in Ukraine, are working, and, on the other, the FDR-like policies of Biden.

Many more of us need to wake up this year.

Since

Quinn Project Is Finally Approved

Editor,

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To Contact the

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Kudos to the Falls Church City Council for its long-anticipated passage of the two measures needed to permit the construction of the QuinnHomestretch Senior Living project. The Council passed the measures by a 5-2 vote Monday night to culminate over a year of intense deliberation by advisory and other bodies throughout the Little City coming onto Monday’s final OK. The work is not done, of course, as with any of the near dozen large scale mixed use projects that the City has OK’d the last two dozen years. The deal needs to be hammered out with Arlington to make sure that the necessary hook ups to solid waste facilities occur and that the financial arrangements get finalized and a site plan approved. But it is now out of the hands of the political decision makers, and it will happen. See our story on Page One of this edition.

It is truly a dream project, and all are to be complimented who’ve had a role. See the Letter to the Editor by the Quinn family patriarch, Paul Quinn, to the right. It is ostensibly a love letter to Falls Church from a man, and his family, who put down roots here and are culminating a long career of local business and community involvement with a crowning achievement. We will now watch it come out of the ground and grace our entire community. It has all the elements of filling a need for senior housing and services, for medical services to the wider community, and with its park space and other public amenities, for enhancing the quality of life of everyone in and around Falls Church.

With all that has already grown up here, and with a lot more to come (so we anticipate), this Quinn project is unique for being truly homegrown, the first large scale project in the City to be advanced by a local entity since Bob Young built his now iconic “Flower Building” in the 800 block of W. Broad. The Quinns have been an established fixture in the City for decades prior to this, with both sons graduating from our local high school and following in their father’s footsteps in his auction business. The local Chamber of Commerce has benefited from them as well, with their professional auctioneering talents being offered at its gala fundraisers, for example.

It was a bit sad to see some newcomers on the City Council clearly unaware of this history, although one of the Council’s newest members, Justine Underhill, won a hero’s recognition for her report Monday of her personal initiative to go door to door in a nearby neighborhood potentially impacted by shadows from the new building and finding first hand that residents there favored the project.

The 5-2 Council approval vote was a foregone conclusion long before a lot of politically-inspired delay tactics finally ran their course. The Quinns and city taxpayers paid for the delays that added little to the otherwise commendable result.

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On Monday evening, the Falls Church City Council approved a long-time dream of the Quinn family – a beautiful, new mixed use development on our property at 300 S. Washington Street. As life-long residents of Falls Church, we are so proud to bring this new community-centered project to the city that we love. This project could not have happened without the many partners and community advocates who have been instrumental to our success. On behalf of my wife, Catherine, and our sons David and Matthew, I would like to publicly thank:

• Mayor Hardi, Vice Mayor Hiscott and the City Council for their approval and also their tireless work on behalf of City residents to ensure this project is not only beautiful, but also safe, vibrant, and one of the most financially beneficial projects the City has seen to date.

• The many boards, commissions and City-wide organizations who provided input and recommendations

as we shaped this project.

• The many City staff and departments who have been engaged and supportive throughout this process.

• Our partner Andrew Teeters

• Our counsel, Andrew Painter of Walsh, Colucci, Lubeley and Walsh, P.C. (land use attorney), and our incredible development team including Architecture Incorporated (architect), Red Sketch (landscape architect), Walter L. Phillips, Inc. (civil engineer), and Calvary Real Estate Advisors (fiscal analysis).

• The engaged and community-minded citizens of Falls Church who have lent us their input, support, and enthusiasm throughout this process.

• The News-Press for its coverage of our project during the last many months.

Cathy and I feel so fortunate to have had the opportunity to raise our family, grow our business, and spend our lives in Falls Church. We are honored to be able to give back and leave the legacy with the City that has given us so much.

Paul Quinn

Falls Church

Tax Hikes Slated All Around, But Not in F.C.

By contrast to the City of Falls Church, where City Manager Wyatt Shields signaled in December that another real estate tax cut, if modest, is in order for the upcoming budget cycle, the chief executives of both of Falls Church’s much larger neighbors, Fairfax and Arlington counties, released their recommended budgets with tax rate increases for both. Fairfax manager Bryan Hill and Arlington’s Mark Schwartz announced in the last week that they are recommending tax hikes of four cents for Fairfax (including with an option for as much as a six cent hike) and a penny for Arlington.

While Shields in Falls Church has yet to announce his formal recommendations for the upcoming budget cycle, he suggested in December a penny reduction.

In Fairfax, County Board chair Jeff McKay has reported that the county experienced an average residential increase of 2.86 percent in the last year, noting that “throughout 2023, mortgage rates remained relatively high, and in Fairfax County sales volume was down significantly from 2022.” But, he added, “on average, home prices have continued to increase due to demand exceeding supply, but only moderately compared to the previous two years.”

Sen. Warner Sponsors Bill Ensuring Access to IVF Access

Virginia’s U.S. Sen. Mark R. Warner sponsored the Access to Family Building Act, which would establish a federal right to access in-vitro fertilization (IVF) and other assisted reproductive technology (ART) for all Americans who need it, pre-empting state efforts to limit access and helping ensure no hopeful parent – or their doctors – are punished for trying to start or grow a family.

“After the Supreme Court struck down decades of precedent in overturning Roe v. Wade, we’re seeing more and more extreme attacks on women’s health care and reproductive freedom,” said Sen. Warner. “Following the far right-wing ruling in Alabama’s Supreme Court, we have to act now to make sure IVF remains legal and accessible for Americans seeking to build their families.”

CVS Supporting 2 Affordable Housing Projects

CVS Health announced this week its contribution of nearly $35 million in equity investments towards the creation of two new affordable housing developments in Hawaii. Located in Lahaina, Maui and Kapolei, Oahu, the communities will also offer residents supportive social and educational programs tailored to address their specific needs. These investments support the state of Hawaiis priorities in early childcare and affordable housing and exemplify the power of public and private collaborations, CVS said in a statement.

600 News Leaders Seek Answers to News Decline

More than 600 leaders from news organizations, civic advocacy groups and philanthropies gathered in Miami in

February seeking to shore up journalism and civic information in the U.S. Hosted by the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, the Knight Media Forum examined the intersection of journalism and charitable giving. This year’s program was more urgent than past programs.

The agenda featured speakers from news innovators including MLK50, Tiny News Collective, and ProPublica and also included civic advocacy and research organizations like Solutions Journalism Network, the Center for Public Integrity, the Center for Christianity and Public Life, and the Institute for Nonprofit News. Universities had a large presence at the event with speakers from large and small schools on the agenda. Philanthropic groups were also a major presence, the engine behind many of the initiatives in the room.

Sen. Kaine: ‘GOP Path Runs Through Virginia’

“It’s going to take all hands on deck to hold our Democratic majority this year. Republicans are already pulling out all the stops because they know the path to the Senate majority runs right through Virginia, and momen tum from my Senate reelection campaign will have a huge impact on the presidential race,” Virginia Sen. Tim Kaine said this week. “With nine different Republicans vying to defeat me this year, I’m not taking a single vote for granted.”

Arlington Board OK’s Goodwill Building Redo

The Arlington County Board has approved a plan to turn the 70-year-old Goodwill building at the intersection of South Glebe Road and Arlington Boulevard into a mixed-use development.

The plan has been under review since December.

Vape Shop Location Bill Advances in Richmond

Legislation allowing local governments to regulate the location of vape shops and other venues that deal in nicotine products has moved through the General Assembly unscathed and now awaits action by Gov. Youngkin.

Deadlines For F.C. City Business Licenses is March 1

The 2024 Falls Church City Business License Renewal Forms should have been delivered

all City businesses by now. The 2024 Business License Renewal Form (the counter version without your business’s data) is always available on the City’s website at: http://www.fallschurchva.gov/442/ Business-License-Tax-Forms or it can be sent to you by e-mail, if you want to renew your business license

In Memoriam: Suzanne Michelle Gittins

Suzanne Michelle

83

in her home January 12, 2024. Suzanne grew up in Ithaca, NY where her parents owned a corner grocery store and where she developed her interests

in food, numbers, and the arts. When she was 19 years old, she met the love of her life, Thomas W. Gittins, and together set out to live their life of adventure.

Suzanne had a passion for the arts which began early on in life, specifically drawing and painting. She could be found in her artist space painting in oil, watercolor, and drawing in pen and ink. Suzanne’s interest in the arts began in grade school when she and her mother would walk through downtown and pass the only art supply store in the area. Suzanne would go in and explore the array of brushes and colors and blank canvases, awaiting her yet undiscovered imaginative abilities. Over the years painting had brought her a mix of joy and frustration. After painting sporadically over the years, she de-

cided to branch out and was able to catch a place in line for watercolor lessons at the Falls Church Recreation Center (hiring a local boy to stand in line to put her name on the waiting list while she was out of town). Her favorite subjects were always animals which expanded as a result from her travels, and then there were those other animals –people – in addition to painting people she was very fond of painting flowers which calmed and delighted her as well as those who were lucky enough to see her work.

Moving to Falls Church in the ‘70s, Suzanne worked for various businesses as a bookkeeper while raising her two children, preparing flavorful home cooked meals, and hosting countless visitors and events at their home for guests from around the world.

Suzanne was a fiery, protective, passionate, and creative woman. She had a twinkle of mischievousness and laughter in her eyes as if she knew something no one else was privy to. She loved her children Tom and Dianne as fiercely as she loved her grandchildren Grant and Kyle. That passion for her family extended outward to family and friends. Always giving, always strong, always aware of the knowledge that she was loved and that those around her knew they were cherished. Whether welcoming and hosting a group from overseas or family and friends for a night of caroling, Suzanne always made sure that all who came to her home were taken care of and felt welcome.

Our family celebrated her life the way she lived her own, no fan-

fare or unnecessary attention and surrounded by the ones she loved. In lieu of flowers or donations to causes that were important to our mom, she would rather you take a dance lesson, an art class, travel the world or simply share a milkshake with someone you cherish.

Suzanne was predeceased by her husband Thomas W. Gittins, her sister Emma Lou Hughey and niece Jeanine Baker. She is survived by her son Thomas M. Gittins (Gina), daughter Dianne M. Gittins, grandson Grant Gittins (Kelsey), Kyle Gittins and adopted son Alexander Gorev (Chrissy). In addition, she was survived by her loving nieces and nephews Dave Rietz, Jay Rietz (Connie) and Stefanie Hutchison (Larry), Laurie Smith (Shayne), and Jennifer Huffman (Bob).

Gittins, age

of Falls Church, VA passed away peacefully

See pages 10-17

Mark Rothko Art on Display at The National Gallery of Art

by Patricia Leslie

Only one month remains to see almost 100 works at the National Gallery of Art by one of the most recognized names and styles in contemporary American art, Mark Rothko in his “Paintings on Paper.”

The show is huge, displayed in eight rooms on two floors, and although titled “works on paper,” Rothko considered them to be completed paintings, not merely preliminary studies for his studio, says the National Gallery, the world’s largest public depository of Rothko art.

Many of the works are on public view for the first time and range from early watercolors to oil and acrylic paintings, some measuring up to seven feet tall.

Rothko (1903-1970) began his art career drawing urban scenes, influenced by the impressionists before moving to surrealism and later joining the abstract expressionists of New York City. In the early 1950s, he developed his “signature” style of large horizontal blocks of bright colors, repetition which may seem boring to some after a while (shudder that I would ever suggest this! An anathema to Rothko devotees!).

The artist wanted viewers to experience art as he did with passion and understanding.

Michaela Milgrom, a Gallery research assistant, quotes Rothko: He was “interested only in expressing basic human emotions — tragedy, ecstasy, doom... and the fact that lots of people break down and cry when confronted with my pictures

shows that I communicate those basic human emotions.”

He sometimes refused to sell to buyers who did not respond to his works like he wanted them to, like he did. (Not to worry at the National Gallery: The guards and docents will not throw anyone out for dispassionate looks!)

Largely self-taught, Rothko studied classical art (Michelangelo and Rembrandt van Rijn were favorites) in books and at galleries, monuments and museums worldwide, like at the Museum of Modern Art where he spent hours at Henri Matisse’s “The Red Studio,” Matisse, who is known for his skilled combination of color and line.

An unofficial Mark Rothko website says that he believed “art was truly an expression of emotion and social circumstance and he had a deep distrust for money and material wealth.”

Indeed, a famous story from 1958 says Rothko yanked 30 of his works (and returned the $35,000 commission, his first) from the Four Seasons restaurant in New York because he didn’t like the eatery’s wealthy customers ogling his art just because it was “the next big thing.”

When he was 10 years old, he arrived with his mother and sister at Ellis Island from Latvia, his birthplace and then part of Russia. The family soon joined his father and brothers in Portland, Oregon, where his father had earlier taken his older sons to escape the draft in Russia’s Imperial Army.

Mark Rothko graduated from high school in Portland and received a scholarship to Yale University,

but he did not graduate, finding the school to be elitist and racist. (It awarded him an honorary doctorate in 1969.) Soon after Yale, he found himself in New York working in the garment district where, one day, he was stopped by students drawing a model.

And thus, his art career took shape.

To support himself, Rothko worked part-time jobs, one, teaching art classes to children at the Brooklyn Jewish Center from 1929 to 1946. During this time he began writing a book, never completed, about the similarities between children’s art and the work of modern painters.

He spoke four languages and studied Paul Klee, Georges Rouault, and the German Expressionists (whom the National Gallery features concurrently in the West Building). Other favorites were Pablo Picasso, Adolph Gottlieb and Milton Avery, his mentor.

Rothko became a citizen of the

United States in 1938, and concerned about antisemitism in America and Europe, changed his name to Mark Rothko from Markus Rothkowitz.

Like Vincent van Gogh who painted black birds in the sky in “Wheatfields with Crows” before his suicide in 1890, Rothko used blacks, browns, and greys for his blocks towards the end of his own life, his suicide in 1970.

Today Rothko’s art is among the priciest in the world. A year ago “World Art News” reported Rothko’s “Violet, Green and Red” was one of the five most expensive pieces of art ever sold, going for $186 million in 2014.

Today he stands as his own model, one of independence and freedom from conventions, giving mavericks a brand to emulate and strengthening those who buck trends and keep on going, following their own rhythms.

A hardcover catalog of the exhibition with more than 125 illustra-

tions and 200 pages is available in the shops for $45.00.

Since receiving a major gift from the Mark Rothko Foundation in 1986 of 1,100 of the artist’s works, the National Gallery has loaned more than 240 Rothkos to 200 museums, galleries, and embassies worldwide.

This show is not to miss! Excellent for children of all ages. Who knows what young (or old) Rothko is standing at the artist’s 1945 “Baptismal Scene,” mesmerized as Rothko was by a drawing?

The exhibition was curated by the National Gallery’s Adam Greenhalgh, and next moves to Norway for the first major exhibition of the artist’s work in Scandinavia.

The National Gallery is open every day from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on the north side of the National Mall between Third and Ninth streets along Constitution Avenue NW. Rothko is in the East Building with the entrance on Fourth Street. Admission is free!

ENTRANCE TO THE ROTHKO show at National Gallery of

)

Falls Church’s Trinity School to Perform ‘Madwoman of Chaillet’ SPRING ARTS PREVIEW

by Mark Dreisonstok

March is upon us, and many Falls Church schools are beginning to perform their spring plays. Trinity School at Meadowview, with its classical education curriculum, would normally be staging Shakespearean fare such as last year’s “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” and “The Comedy of Errors.” This year, however, the entire twelfth grade is performing “The Madwoman of Chaillot,” a comic drama about a group of heroes who cuddle imaginary dogs, see imaginary people, and sit on a bench all day waiting for a dead president to arrive. Written by Jean Giraudoux in the French Absurdist tradition, the play was composed during the Nazi occupation of France and thus indirectly satirizes the supposed great leaders of society: businessmen, officials, and a prospector who all scheme to dismantle Paris in order to drill for petroleum! Meanwhile, Aurelia, the titular madwoman of Chaillot— the self-proclaimed “countess” who manages the Café Chez Francis— seeks, along with other suppos-

edly mad residents of Paris, to foil these plans and, in a more classical moment in the play, condemn the would-be despoilers to damnation and restore the earth to a place of justice and kindness.

The play is directed by Trinity teachers Patty Whelpley and James Clancy. Each year, Trinity School at Meadowview students in the upper high school grades dedicate some seventy hours of class time to put together a full production of a culturally significant play. We recently attended a rehearsal of the current production, watching Annie Bryant as the Prospector arguing passionately for oil drilling, Gordon Sandilands as a president seeming to argue for stock swindles, and Annette Whelpley as the eponymous madwoman who, as per the play’s notes, is “dressed in the grand fashion of 1885,” except for “a hat in the style of Marie Antoinette.” Other students performed their parts convincingly as well.

Mrs. Whelpley, the co-director, explains: “As part of the curriculum, we have the students write daily journal entries analyzing the play. In these journal entries, we see that the students are recognizing the way the

Parisians must have received this play after the end of World War II. Students connect with the realization that the ‘sane’ people are just as crazy as the ‘madwoman,’ analyze what each of these characters signifies, and discuss why the author says that the vagabonds are ‘the last free people of the earth.’”

Some of the student performers shared their thoughts on the play to Falls Church News-Press as well. Aleksandra Pack, who plays the low-status Ragpicker, tells us: “Giraudoux’s work remains relevant because it illustrates issues that persist today. With ‘The Madwoman,’ Giraudoux shows something we don’t like to acknowledge: we may not be inclined to do the right thing because it seems disadvantageous or even crazy, but it’s the only way to preserve the beauty and goodness we’ve been given.”

Student Charlotte Wolfe states, “My main role, Madame Josephine, might initially be dismissed as a whimsical old madwoman. Yet she embodies logic and justice in her own distinct manner. The complexity of each character, especially the madwomen, makes this play exciting to perform.” Sarah Clifford,

who plays Dr. Jadin, comments further on the madwoman countess: “Through her madness, she saves Paris from great evil!”

Ariana Tehrani, who enacts the role of the waitress Irma, observes: “The characters in the play are fun to see unfold because they make up every extreme: from the stereotypical bad guy characters (president, prospector, broker, and baron) to the classic naïve character who can only see good in the world (the madwoman Aurelia). Even so, though the characters are at first glance very black-and-white in presentation, there is still much nuance to each character.”

The production is enhanced by period costumes (both mid-twentieth century and nineteenth century), simple sets suggesting the stone foundation of the venerable city of Paris, and enthusiastic actors and actresses who have thought deeply about the meaning behind the play; the production may also be curiously appropriate for an election year! “The Madwoman of Chaillet” will be performed on March 8 and 9 at 7 p.m. at the Pozez Jewish Community Center of Northern Virginia, 8900 Little River Turnpike, Fairfax, Virginia 22031. The performance is free, and no tickets or reservations are needed.

PHOTO OF THE CAST. ( Photo: Annie Ryland )

2024 Academy Awards Returns to Luxe

by Parker David Dodge

The stars will shine brightly as ever in Hollywood’s legendary Dolby Theatre at the 96th annual Academy Awards on Saturday, with 2023’s most celebrated actors, directors, producers, and filmmakers in the running for the highest honor in the movie business: an Oscar.

After three years jarred by a pandemic that disrupted production schedules and forced the fashionforward red carpet into a sterile, bythe-numbers format, the prestigious event returns to its roots as a glitz ‘n’ glam extravaganza this year, delighting fans with an event they can again mark their calendars for!

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), which presents the awards, announced latenight comedian Jimmy Kimmel as this year’s host, his fourth time in the role. An Academy favorite since his first run in 2017, Kimmel was perceived by many to have stabilized the ceremony in 2022 after a few tumultuous years.

Though this year’s list of shoeins may seem impenetrable, there is a history of surprises under the Academy’s belt.

The Best Supporting category is no exception, with a history of complete shocks that leaves its prediction a gamble.

This year’s Best Supporting Actor is likely between Ryan Gosling’s portrayal of Ken in Greta Gerwig’s “Barbie” and Robert Downey Jr.’s career-best performance as Lewis Strauss in “Oppenheimer.” While Gosling initially seemed to be the category favorite, it now looks likely that Downey Jr. will be the one taking home the statue.

The award for Best Supporting Actress seems to be the only true shoein the awards hold; while nominees America Ferrera (“Barbie”), Danielle Brooks (“The Color Purple”), Emily Blunt (“Oppenheimer”), and twotime Oscar winner Jodie Foster (“NYAD”) all certainly hold enough magnitude in their performances to win, accolades leading up to the event seem to favor rookie Da’Vine Joy Randolph the normally comedic actor whose subtle and sensitive performance in “The Holdovers” has already won her an Independent Spirit, BAFTA, Golden Globe, and SAG award.

This year’s nominees for Best Director are overwhelmingly

full of talent and prestige. Both Justine Triet (“Anatomy of a Fall”) and Martin Scorsese (“Killers of the Flower Moon”) put in stellar work with their films, while Yorgos Lanthimos (“Poor Things”) and Jonathan Glazer (“The Zone of Interest”) may find their indie fills proving too controversial. Christopher Nolan is ultimately the front-runner for his legendary direction of “Oppenheimer” — a win no cinephile could refute.

In the Best Actor category, Cillian Murphy (“Oppenheimer”) and Paul Giamatti (“The Holdovers”) seem to be the top contenders; the duo is joined by Bradley Cooper (“Maestro”), firsttime nominee Colman Domingo (“Rustin”), and Jeffrey Wright (“American Fiction”).

The Best Actress category appears neck-and-neck between two nominees: Lily Gladstone for her beguiling work in “Killers of the Flower Moon,” and Emma Stone for her raw performance in “Poor Things,” though many feel a win is deserved for Sandra Hüller’s devastating turn in “Anatomy for a Fall.”

Nominees for Best Picture have expanded from the typical

five, with ten in contention this year. This year will likely come down to the now legendary standoff between Christopher Nolan’s epic “Oppenheimer” and Greta Gerwig’s criminally under-nominated candy colored hit “Barbie,” with each having already received enough recognition — not to mention awardwinning merit — along the way to make whoever the winner is worthy of the honor. Other nominees include Alexander Payne’s “The Holdovers,” Cord Jefferson’s cultural satire “American Fiction,” Jonathan Glazer’s sobering Holocaust drama “The Zone of Interest,” Celine Song’s indie darling “Past Lives,” Bradley Cooper’s artful “Maestro,” Martin Scorsese’s Best Picture contender “Killers of the Flower Moon,” Yorgos Lanthimos’ provocative “Poor Things,” and Justine Triet’s “Anatomy of a Fall.”

The rest of the categories are a gamble indeed. Best Picture underdogs likely to take home other awards include “Poor Things,” “American Fiction,” “Past Lives,” and “May December.” Fan favorite “Spider-Man: Across the SpiderVerse” directed by Joaquim Dos Santos, Kemp Powers and Justin K. Thompson, appears to be in a final standoff with Hayao Miyazaki’s “The Boy and the Heron” for Best

Animated Feature (other nominees include “Elemental,” “Nimona,” and “Robot Dreams”). “Zone of Interest” is likely to take Best International Film” if it doesn’t take home the Best Picture trophy. Honorary awards will be given to Mel Brooks, Carol Littleton, and Angela Bassett.

Snubs this year include “Barbie” and “Past Lives” in the Best Actress category, “Origin” and “All of Us Strangers” for Best Picture, and Charles Melton in “May December” for Best Supporting Actor. The Oscar nominee list always causes controversy, and over the years the politics have ebbed and flowed, but this year the AMPAS seems to be stepping up to strengthen its character (though much work remains to be done in the way of diversity).

With a star-studded list of award presenters, a return to luxe form (with a red carpet pre-show that will have fashionistas drooling), and exciting musical performances (yes, Ryan Gosling will be performing “I’m Just Ken”), and a worthy host this year’s Academy Awards will be an event no one will want to miss!

The 96th Annual Academy Awards will air on ABC Sunday, March 10, at 7:00 p.m.

To read Parker David Dodge’s movie reviews on Instagram, follow @ReviewsByParkerDD.

2024 Spring Arts Round-Up

Private Jones, 2/6 – 3/17

A gripping, inspiring and unexpectedly funny world premiere musical adventure about a deaf WelshsniperinWorldWarI. Withrousingsongs and an innovative soundscape, featuring a cast of hearing, Deaf and hard-of-hearing actors.

Signature Theatre |Arlington sigtheatre.org

Working, 2/8 – 3/3

A vivid portrait of the workers that the world so often takes for granted: the school teacher, the phone operator, the waitress, the millworker, the mason and the housewife, just to name a few.

Creative Cauldron | Falls Church creativecauldron.org

Tempestuous Elements, 2/16 – 3/17

This play shines a light on visionary Black feminist and educator Anna Julia Cooper’s tumultuous tenure as Principal of Washington, D.C.’s historic M Street High School, where she fought to keep Black education alive despite the racism, gossip, and sexism that threatened to consign her efforts to obscurity.

Arena Stage |Washington arenastage.org

Images, 3/2 – 4/14

A fine art exhibit, featuring 60 pieces from 47 photographers, inspired by music.

Falls ChurchArts | Falls Church fallschurcharts.org

It Doesn’t End in Nebraska, 2/29

An award-winning production written by playwright and lead actor Han Nguyen Based on Han’s own real-life events, the play recounts her recovery from a suicide attempt and the mental health struggles she faced after that.

MarshallH.S.StatesmenTheatre|FallsChurch statesmentheatre.org

Festival Ballet Virginia:

Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, 3/1 – 3/2

Take an adventure with Alice as she falls down the rabbit hole and embarks on a colorful and whimsical journey through Wonderland.

Festival Ballet Virginia | Annandale bit.ly/3IfxV3k

The Princess and The Pea, 3/8– 3/24

The King and Queen task the Court Jester with finding a suitable bride for their son Price Dillon, but this unleashes a never-ending line of young women with serious flaws. His mother’s ridiculous test of worthiness involves a pea and some magical help from the local wizard.

Creative Cauldron | Falls Church creativecauldron.org

Quijote y Sancho Panza, Nuevas Andanzas, 3/9 – 3/23

Immersed in a world of lively music and uproarious laughter, the play follows the indomitable duo as they set out on a fresh series of misadventures.

Gala Theatre | Washington galatheatre.org

Songs of Nature and Life, 3/10

Fairfax Choral Society presents: The Earth, The Air, The Deep: Songs of Nature and Life. Fairfax Choral Society | Annandale galatheatre.org

The Peking Acrobats, 3/18

The Peking Acrobats’ world-class gymnasts, jugglers, cyclists, and tumblers provide a gravitydefying spectacle with amazing displays of contortion, flexibility, and control.

GMU Center for the Arts | Fairfax cfa.calendar.gmu.edu

Little Shop of Horrors, 3/15 – 5/18

Luckless florist shop worker, Seymour, raises a wisecracking carnivorous plant – Audrey II – that must feed on human blood. Come to Skid Row for a sci-fi horror comedy, love story and rock musical that has become one of the most treasured pieces of American musical theatre.

Ford’s Theatre fords.org

Virginia Opera: Madama Butterfly, 3/16 – 3/17

Virginia Opera’s season comes to a stunning close with one of opera’s most beloved works, featuring an all-female, Asian creative team, bringing a new lens to this tragic tale.

GMU Center for the Arts | Fairfax cfa.calendar.gmu.edu

Murder on The Orient Express, 3/23 – 4/13

A snowstorm stops the Orient Express luxury train in its tracks, when a wealthy American businessman is discovered dead, and Hercule Poirot must solve the mystery before they strike again.

Little Theatre of Alexandria | Alexandria thelittletheatre.com

Trinity Irish Dance Company, 3/24

A captivating and joyous program that blends sheer percussive power with aerial grace.

GMU Center for the Arts | Fairfax cfa.calendar.gmu.edu

Unknown Soldier, 3/29 – 5/5

A sweeping, elegiac musical about a woman’s journey to unearth the secrets of her family’s past, spanning three generations as she unravels a delicate tangle of family lore, chasing the story that unlocks her history, and charts her future.

Arena Stage | Washington arenastage.org

Chicks in Heaven, 4/11– 4/28

When four friends come together in a rural southwest Virginia town for a reunion, it’s a happy gathering filled filled with remembrance and ritual until some religious crusaders stage a bookburning, testing their friendship.

Creative Cauldron | Falls Church creativecauldron.org

Litewire Theatre: The Ugly Duckling, 4/12 Lightwire Theatre tells Aesop’s classic fable with their unique brand of electromagnetic storytelling using LED wire, larger than life puppets, and a dramatic score. Family-friendly.

Alden Theatre | McLean mcleancenter.org

Surviving Grace, 4/12 – 4/27

A brutally honest, irreverent and moving story that sheds light on the emotional ups and downs of a daughter’s experience as she cares for her mother with Alzheimer’s. Mature themes. Providence Players | Falls Church providenceplayers.org

David Hyun-Su Kim: The Artistry of Clara Schumann, 4/16 Fortepianist David Hyun-Su Kim presents a program celebrating the artistry of Clara Schumann. Proceeds benefit Doorways, a housing nonprofit. Little City Concert Series | The F.C. Episcopal bpt.me/6253523

Martha Graham Dance Company, 4/13 Celebrate 100 years of this revolutionary ensemble with a program that showcases the company’s legacy through iconic classics and new work. GMU Center for the Arts | Fairfax cfa.calendar.gmu.edu

New Worlds: Women to Watch 2024, 4/14 – 8/11

Twenty-eight visionary artists reimagine the past, present alternate realities, and inspire audiences to create different futures.

National Museum of Women in the Arts | Washington nmwa.org

Hair, 4/16– 7/7

The sensational, groundbreaking rock musical bursts with the jubilant spirit, raging rebellion and psychedelic color of the 1960s. A tribe of long-haired bohemian hippies on the cusp of adulthood champion freedom, pacifism, and joy, but confront a world thrown into chaos when one of their own receives a draft notice for the Vietnam War.

Signature Theatre | Arlington sigtheatre.org

Flora and Fauna:

Thriving or Threatened, 4/20 – 6/9

Artists are invited to submit work that celebrates the beauty and diversity of the natural world or explores the challenges it faces. Submission deadline March 24.

Falls Church Arts | Falls Church fallschurcharts.org

Schumann Cello Concerto, 4/20

Featuring works by Bologne, Schumann, and Cherubini. Cellist Eric Kutz has captivated audiences throughout both North America and Europe.

Washington Sinfonietta | The F.C. Episcopal washingtonsinfonietta.org

Brush Theatre: “POLI POP,” 4/21 Poli and Pola are siblings who don’t want to go to sleep. The siblings start off playing with toys in their bedroom, but then their imagination takes them on a surreal dreamlike journey full of surprise and joy. Family-friendly.

Alden Theatre | McLean mcleancenter.org

FALLS CHURCH NEWS-PRESS | FCNP.COM

GenOUT Youth Chorus, 4/28

GenOUT Youth Chorus presents its annual Youth Invasion concert, in collaboration with the chorus of Jackson-Reed High School, celebrating the voices and ideals of area youth.

Gay Men’s Chorus of Washington | Atlas Performing Arts gmcw.org

Alice: Dreaming of Wonderland, 5/2

“Dreaming of Wonderland” features an international cast of veteran performers from across Europe and North America, including acrobats, a four-member, hand-to-hand balancing act, a one-man band, and a new art form creating original creations with smoke and bubbles. Family-friendly.

Alden Theatre | McLean mcleancenter.org

The Return of Eva Peron: Momia en el Closet, 5/9 – 6/9 In this dark musical comedy, historical intrigue meets spinechilling entertainment... Experience the intense love between Eva Perón and the working class and Evita’s mesmerizing power as Argentina’s most iconic figure.

Gala Theatre Washington galatheatre.org

Bubbly Black Girl Sheds Her Chameleon Skin, 5/16 – 6/9

What’s a black girl from sunny Southern California to do? In a humorous and pointed coming-of-age story spanning the sixties through the nineties, Viveca blithely sails through the confusing worlds of racism, sexism and Broadway showbiz until she’s forced to face the devastating effect self-denial has had on her life.

Creative Cauldron | Falls Church creativecauldron.org

Is He Dead?, 5/18 – 6/8

Young painter Jean-Francois Millet is in love with Marie Lerous but in debt to villainous art dealer Bastien Andre, who threatens debtor’s prison unless Marie marries him! Millet realizes only dead artists achieve fame and fortune, so he fakes his death and prospers, all while passing himself off as his own sister, the widow Tillou. Now a rich widow, Millet must find a way to get out of a dress, return to life, and marry Marie!

Little Theatre of Alexandria | Alexandria thelittletheatre.com

SPRING ARTS PREVIEW

Spring Affair: A Night at the Museum, 5/18

GMCW hosts a glamorous fundraising evening with dinner, entertainment, special presentations, live and silent auctions, and celebrity guest performer Raja Gemini from RuPaul’s Drag Race.

Gay Men’s Chorus of Washington | Ritz-Carlton Washington gmcw.org

Where the Mountail Meets the Sea, 5/21 – 7/7

After he learns of his estranged father’s death, a son recreates the cross-country trip his Haitian immigrant parents took before he was born, bonding with the music his father adored.

Signature Theatre | Arlington sigtheatre.org

Noche de Estrellas, 5/9

An evening to support multicultural youth and Latino performing arts! Enjoy cocktails, a seated dinner, inspiring performances, and unique auction items.

Gala Theatre | Washington galatheatre.org

30th Annual Tinner Hill Music Festival, 6/8

With live music and interactive villages including a heritage village with historic exhibits and storytime, food village with vendors, Rock Star Realty village with beer garden and patio, kids village with games and activities, relaxation village with yoga and massages, and more!

Tinner Hill Heritage Foundation | Falls Church tinnerhill.org/events

Roma Rhapsody, Capital One Hall, 6/15

A celebration of the musical traditions of the Roma people (historically called Gypsies). For centuries, audiences have been captivated by the mesmerizing melodies, scintillating rhythms and haunting ballads that are the heart and soul of the Roma. Experience the music of Roma that has enchanted and thrilled audiences for generations and continues to do so today.

Washington Balalaika Society Orchestra | Tysons balalaika.org

Community News & Notes

FCA “Images” Art Exhibit Celebrates Fine Photography March 2 to April 14

Sixty pieces from forty-seven photographers will be on view when “Images,” a fine art photography exhibit, opens at Falls Church Arts on Saturday, March 2. The show will open with a evening reception from 7:00 p.m. — 9:00 p.m. The Juror’s Choice Award will be announced during the event, and photographers will be on hand to discuss their inspiration and process. The reception is free and is open to the public.

Lloyd Wolf, juror for “Images,” described the submissions for this show. “I was impressed by the range of subject matter, quality of craftsmanship, and aesthetic vision of all the submissions. It is clear that the Falls Church photographic community is thriving and filled with vibrant creative energies. It was complicated to choose the most compelling sixty pictures from the submissions.”

Wolf is an award-winning photographer with work included in the collections of the U.S. Library of Congress, the Katzen Museum of Art, the Museum of Jewish Heritage, American University of Cairo, and many others. He has been in more than one-hundred fifty national and international exhibitions including fifty solo shows.

“Images” will be on view through April 14 in the FCA gallery (700-B W. Broad St., Falls Church). The gallery is open Tuesday-Friday, 11:00 a.m. — 6:00 p.m., and Saturday and Sunday, 11:00 a.m. — 4:00 p.m. Admission is free.

Artwork can viewed online at fallschurcharts.org. All pieces can be purchased at the gallery or on the website.

CBC Launches Applications for 2024-2025 Youth Representatives Initiative.

Citizens for a Better City (CBC) has launched applications for their 2024-2025 Youth Representatives Initiative. Any high school aged student interested in serving on a City board, commission, or participating civic group board may apply by the submission deadline April 5. Interviews will be scheduled for May 2-6, except Sunday.

Applications can be found online at fallschurchcbc.net and youthrepsinitiative.net or the Meridian guid-

ance department.

The Initiative was started by CBC in 2014 to involve City youth in local government, support F.C. boards and commissions, and promote civic leadership development.

CBC reports the program is growing in popularity as more students apply every year – especially younger siblings of those currently serving. The organization’s goal is to engender the spirit of community activism in their youth and through their interest and commitment inspire the participation of their parents.

Fifty four Falls Church City High School students are currently serving on over 20 City Boards, Commissions, and Civic Groups.

F.C. Chamber Announces Tropical Themed Awards Gala

March 21 at The State Theatre

Last week the F.C. Chamber announced the date and theme for their Annual Awards Gala, to be held Thursday, March 21 at The State Theatre (220 N. Washington St., Falls Church).

Each year the Chamber recognizes outstanding contributions from individuals and small businesses at the Gala. This year’s Gala will transform The State Theatre into a tropical paradise, with a theme of “Escape to Paradise.”

The F.C. Chamber invites all community members to book tickets, shake the dust off your resort-wear, grab your sunglasses and straw hat, and make your way down for a great beach party. Expect music, food, beach games, photo opportunities, the annual silent auction, and a celebration of the F.C. business community and those that make it so special.

Tickets are $85 and available at business.fallschurchchamber.org.

E.B. Henderson Book Talk

On ‘The Grandfather of Black Basketball’ March 9

The Mary Riley Styles Public Library will host F.C.’s own Edwin B. Henderson on the publication of his book, The Grandfather of Black Basketball: The Life and Times of Dr. E B Henderson for a book talk, March 9 at 1:00 p.m. Free registration is available at mrspl.org.

Henderson’s book, about his grandfather, is the first contemporary biography of the man credited with introducing basketball to

African Americans on a wide-scale, organized basis. The son of working-class parents born in slavery, a driven, intelligent, and charismatic young Henderson attended Harvard University, where he met the leaders in the new field of physical education and recognized athletics — basketball, especially — as a public health initiative and a way that young Blacks could gain college scholarships and debunk the idea of racial inferiority.

In his new book, Edwin Bancroft Henderson II — Dr. Henderson’s grandson — provides unprecedented detail and fascinating insight into this influential figure in Black history. Henderson organized the first athletic league for Blacks, introduced basketball to Black people on a wide-scale, organized basis, and founded associations to train and organize Black officials and referees. He also wrote and co-edited the first Spalding publication that highlighted the exploits of African American participation in sports and authored The Negro in Sports Outside of athletics, Henderson was instrumental in founding the first rural branch of the NAACP, advocated for school desegregation, and held executive board positions with multiple NAACP branches.

Overlooked for decades, Henderson was finally enshrined in the National Basketball Hall of Fame in 2013 as a contributor. His grandson’s book gives long-overdue recognition to a sports pioneer, civil rights activist, author, educator, and pragmatic humanitarian who fought his entire life to improve opportunities for youth through athletics.

Edwin Bancroft Henderson II is the founding president and director of the Tinner Hill Heritage Foundation, whose mission it is to research, preserve and celebrate the African American and civil rights history of Falls Church, Fairfax County, and Northern Virginia. He received the NAACP’s African American History Preservation Award and was named a National Trust for Historic Preservation Diversity Scholar. He is a Life Member of the NAACP and a member of the Historical Society of Washington. He has served on the Falls Church Historical Commission since 1995. Henderson was an educator for 25 years and is the namesake of Dr. E. B. Henderson.

F.C. HOMELESS SHELTER hosted its Little City Big Heart Winter Gala at The State Theatre on February 24. (Courtesy Photo)

WITH A PROMINENT CAMEO in the Creative Cauldron’s production of “Working” that runs through this weekend is Tammy Baldwin, popular manager of Harvey’s restaurant on W. Broad. She is shown here with Thomas Harvey, owner of Harvey’s. (Courtesy Photo: News-Press)

IMAGES, THE latest Falls Church Arts exhibit, on display March 3 to April 14. (Pictured: “Venetian Masi” by Chuck Dervarics)

THURSDAY FEBRUARY 29

It Doesn't End In Nebraska

The Marshall H.S. Statesmen Theatre performs an award-winning production written by playwrightlead actor Han Nguyen, a junior at Marshall. Based on Nguyen's own real-life events, the play recounts her recovery from a suicide attempt and the mental health struggles she faced after that. Free and open to the public. Marshall H.S. (7731 Leesburg Pike, Falls Church), 3:40 p.m.

Affordable Housing Fund Cmte. Meeting

Affordable Housing Fund Committee meets. City Hall (300 Park Ave., Dogwood A-B, Falls Church), 5:00 p.m. — 8:00 p.m.

Women-Owned Wines & Bites

— 9:00 p.m.

FRIDAY MARCH 1

LGBTQ+ Social

@ The Commentary Free-to-attend LGBTQ+ social, held the first Friday every month. The Commentary (801 N. Glebe Rd., Arlington, VA), 7:00 p.m.

SATURDAY MARCH 2

Falls Church

Farmers Market

Shop the award-winning market every Saturday, year-round! City Hall Parking Lot (300 Park Ave., Falls Church), 9:00 a.m. — 12:00 p.m.

Last Day For Early Voting

Last day to early vote in the March 5 primary. City Hall (300 Park Ave., Dogwood A-B, Falls Church), 9:00 a.m. — 5:00 p.m.

Celtic Underground Concert

A lively evening with Irish, Americana, and folk music. Tickets at tinyurl.com/4waw9yhh. Cherry Hill Farmhouse (312 Park Ave., FallsChurch),6:00p.m.—8:00p.m.

SUNDAY MARCH 3

SONOVA presents: Elements of Earth Symphony Orchestra of Northern Virginia presents earthly classics. Tickets at sonovamusic.org. George Washington Masonic National Memorial Theater (101 Callahan Dr., Alexandria, VA), 5:00 p.m.

Civic Sips: Housing & Zoning

F.C. Forward hosts civic leaders and experts for bites and a TED-like talk on zoning, housing, history and more. Free to attend. Viget Offices (105 W. Broad St., 5th Floor, Falls Church), 4:00 p.m. — 6:00 p.m.

MONDAY

MARCH 4

City Council Work Session

City Council Work Sessions are open to the public and conducted to allow Council Members to discuss upcoming legislation and policy issues. Watch live or on-demand at fallschurchva.gov/CouncilMeetings or on FCCTV. City Hall (300 Park Ave., Dogwood A-B, Falls Church), 7:30 p.m. — 11:00 p.m.

TUESDAY MARCH 5

Electoral Board Meeting

Electoral Board meets. City Hall (300 ParkAve., DogwoodA-B, Falls Church), 7:00 a.m. — 7:00 p.m.

Chamber Networking Mixer

Held the 4th Tuesday every month. Free to attend; details at fallschurchchamber.org. Clare and Don's Beach Shack (130 N. Washington St., Falls Church), 5:30 p.m. — 7:30 p.m.

School Board Office Hours

Ask questions and offer feedback in a casual and public environment. Email the School Board to setup a more private exchange. TBD (check fccps.org/page/school-board for location, 6:00 p.m. — 8:00 p.m.

Economic Dev. Authority Meeting

EDA meets. Viget Offices (105 W. Broad St., 5th Floor, Falls Church), 7:00 p.m. — 10:00 p.m.

WEDNESDAY MARCH 6

Ask the Council Session

Meet with Council members in an informal public setting. City Hall (300 Park Ave., Oak Room, Falls Church), 9:00 a.m. — 10:00 a.m.

Planning Commission Meeting

Planning Commission meets. City Hall (300 Park Ave., Council Chambers/Court Room, Falls Church), 7:30 p.m. — 10:00 p.m.

THE SYMPHONY Orchestra of Northern Virginia (SONOVA) is presenting earthly classics, by Beethoven, Dvorak, Debussy and more, this Sunday in Alexandria. (Photo: Ginger Werz-Petricka)

804-521-7576, landonc@vpa.net

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We are pledged to the letter and spirit of Virginia’s policy for achieving equal housing opportunity throughout the Commonwealth. We encourage and support advertising and marketing programs in which there are no barriers to obtaining housing because of race, color, religion, national origin, sex, elderliness, familial status or handicap. All real estate advertised herein is subject to Virginia’s fair housing law which makes it illegal to advertise “any preference, limitation, or discrimination because of race, color, religion, national origin, sex, elderliness, familial status or handicap or intention to make any such preference, limitation, or discrimination.” This newspaper will not knowingly accept advertising for real estate that violates the fair housing law. Our readers are hereby informed that all dwellings advertised in this newspaper are available on an equal opportunity basis. For more information or to file a housing complaint call the Virginia Fair Housing Office at (804) 367-8530. Toll free call (888) 551-3247. For the hearing impaired call (804) 367-9753.

MERIDIAN E-SPORTS expanded for 2024, with three teams now formed to competitively play Super Smash Brothers Ultimate against over 150 other state high schools this season. (Photo: Sasha Thomas)

THE MERIDIAN LIBRARY’s new Makerspace was transformed into a creative oasis, thanks to supplies funded by the Meridian PTSA and F.C. Education Foundation. (Photo: Chrissy Henderson)

STUDENTS STARGAZED like professionals at Oak Street Elementary School’s STEAM Night last week. (Photo: Jessica Goodwin and Steve Knight)

THE MERIDIAN Cheer Team visited Disney World during the UCA National H.S. Cheerleading Championship. (Photo: Mustang Athletics)

SECOND GRADERS at Mt. Daniel Elementary School learned about Indigenous peoples past and present last week. (Photo: Amanda Morey)

TEN MUSTANG WRESTLERS competed in the Regional Wrestling Tournament, with two team mem bers continuing to a strong showing at the State Tournament February 17. (Photo: Mustang Athletics)

Meridian Girls Move on to State Semis, Boys Go Down Swinging

by Ryan McCafferty

Both of Meridian High School’s basketball teams were on the road on Tuesday afternoon for the State Quarterfinals, the girls facing Lafayette and the boys playing Lake Taylor. It was a mixed bag of results as the boys fell 36-56, while the girls won 52-41 to advance to the Semifinals this Friday.

Maureen Tremblay scored 15 points to lead the girls, who came from behind and pulled away from Lafayette with a huge second half. Charlotte Lieu, Ellie Friesen, and Nora Stufft all had nine apiece to help Chris Carrico’s squad earn a semi-home game in Alexandria City, where they will play the same Lake Taylor school that beat Meridian’s boys. Lake Taylor knocked off Brentsville by a score of 56-49 to advance to the Semifinals.

Grant Greiner and Will Davis each scored eight to lead the way for the boys, who were doomed by a rough second quarter in which they were outscored 17-1. Otherwise, they played Taylor — a team head coach

Jim Smith described as the best team in the state, regardless of class — nearly evenly, and despite the disappointing end to the season, there is no shame in the way the year as a whole played out. The boys conclude with a regular season regional title and a final record of 22-4, a remarkable accomplishment for a program that two years ago went 7-15.

“They’ve worked extremely hard and represented their community

Yes, Falls Church, There Is a Primary on March 5!

by Jeff Person

This is Jeff Person, and I was just elected Chair of the Falls Church City Democratic Committee (FCCDC). I have been working in Democratic politics for the better part of 20 years.

The first campaign I ever volunteered on was for Howard Dean in 2003, right here in our Little City of Falls Church. I learned at a very young age what it takes to win elected office. Fast forward 21 years, I am now a political campaign consultant at my own political consulting shop and an executive director of Able Dems PAC, whose mission is to elect Democrats with disabilities to office.

I ran to be Chair of FCCDC at this perilous time for our country because I felt like so much is at stake in 2024. This will be the year that will decide whether our country will remain a democracy.

The primary on March 5, Super Tuesday, is when Virginia voters will choose their party nominees. President Joe Biden is running for reelection, with two opponents, for the Democratic nomination.

Primaries are always a prelude to the general election. This year is no different.

By casting your vote, you contribute to the fight against MAGA extremism and a chance to stop the chaos of former President Donald Trump who is running for President (again) with 91 felony charges, and the horrors that plagued our country when he was President.

We have a chance this year to re-elect President Joe Biden and build on the progress of his administration over the last 4 years. And, President Joe Biden has done a lot of good while in the Oval Office. From rebuilding and promoting policies that put America back on track after Covid-19 to fighting for reproductive freedom. There is a huge choice this November. But first, we need to get through the primary.

It all starts now. Early voting is underway at City Hall until Saturday March 2. On primary day March 5, polls are open 6:00 a.m. — 7:00 p.m.

If you like what President Biden has been doing, come get involved with our committee!

For more information or to sign up to volunteer, visit the FCCDC website at fallschurchdems.org.

We absolutely need you to make your voice heard this year. The future of our country is at stake.

wonderfully,” Smith said via e-mail while noting how proud he is of his team. He also made a point to thank all of Mustang Nation for the continued support.

The boys figure to be back for unfinished business next season — Greiner is the only graduating starter — while in the meantime, the girls will be playing for a trip to Richmond later this week. Be there if you can!

C ritter C orner

Just because you’re not famous doesn’t mean your pet can’t be! Send in your Critter Corner submissions to crittercorner@fcnp.com.

City of Falls Church CRIME REPORT

Week of February 19 - 25, 2024

Destruction of Property, Roosevelt Blvd, a victim reported their vehicle being damaged between 4 PM on February 18th and 1 PM on February 19th.

Defrauding an Inn Keeper, W Broad St, Feb 19, 3:47 PM, a black male, 32, of Washington, DC was arrested for Defrauding an Inn Keeper.

Tampering with Auto, N Virginia Ave, a victim reported their vehicle being tampered with between 2:19 PM on February 19th and 2:19 PM on February 20th.

Fraud – Credit Card, W Broad St, between February 15th and February 20th, victim reported their card being used to make multiple transactions online.

Destruction of Property, S Washington St, a victim reported finding graffiti spray painted on their business.

Fraud – False Pretenses, W Broad St, Feb 22, 10:53 AM, victim reported an unknown suspect

transferring money out of their account.

Driving on Suspended License, W Broad St, Feb 22, 6:04 PM, a black male, 23, of Ashburn, was arrested for Driving on a Suspended License.

Other Jurisdiction Warrant Service, W Broad St, Feb 23, 2:32 AM, a black male, 19, of Upper Marlboro, MD, was arrested on an outstanding warrant for another jurisdiction.

Shoplifting, Wilson Blvd, Feb 24, 8:17 AM, two unknown suspects stole merchandise without paying. The first unknown suspect is described as an adult black male approximately 5`10-6`0 in height, weighing between 185lbs-200lbs and 30-40 years old with a beard, wearing all black clothing. The second unknown suspect is described as an adult black female approximately 5`9-6`0, weighing between 120lbs-140lbs and 30- 40 years old wearing all black clothing, a pink hat and fuzzy boots.

Shoplifting, Hillwood Ave, Feb 24, 5:52 PM, two unknown suspects stole merchandise with -

out paying. The first suspect is described as a white male with short blonde hair wearing a black jacket with fur around the hood and black pants. The second suspect is described as a white female with brunette hair wearing a white shirt, black jacket, black pants and carrying a brown purse.

Shoplifting, W Broad St, Feb 25, 1:41 PM, an unknown suspect stole merchandise without paying. The suspect is described as a black male, wearing a black beanie, black jacket, blue jean style pants, pushing a walker.

Public Intoxication, S West St, Feb 25, 9:03 PM, a white male, 37, of Fairfax County, was arrested for Public Intoxication.

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MEET BLUEBELL, a shih tzu puppy who loves people! Bluebell is energetic, loving, cuddly, super nice, and gives lots of kisses.

MUSTANG GIRLS Basketball secured a 52-41 win on Tuesday, advancing to the State Semifinals this Friday (Photo: Shawn Friesen)

The LGBTQ+ Reach

by Brian Reach Falls Church News-Press

accommodating the homosexual community over the last couple of decades.”

A ‘Couple of Decades’ of Immeasurable Accommodation

Yes, Earle-Sears said that, in 2004, “the homosexual community” had already enjoyed a couple decades of accommodation that was “immeasurably beyond almost all standards.” Let’s briefly measure a couple highlights for LGBTQ+ rights during those “couple of decades.”

Falls Church Business News & Notes

Forbes Announces Best Employers

which the school says it must allow based on the policies.

The other comes from a Hanover County student who, despite qualifying and having her parents provide the documents requested by the school board, was excluded from participating in a girls’ sports team, with the board taking a step further to change the entire district’s athletics policy, citing the policies.

The Youngkin administration announced new model policies in 2022 that overturned the guidance from a 2020 law that required school districts to uphold students’ rights to privacy regarding their pronouns, preferred name, or gender identity. Instead, according to ACLU VA, the policies “do not recognize LGBTQ+ students as a protected class, and focus not on the rights of students, but of parents.”

Virginia Lieutenant Governor Misgenders Senator Roem

On Monday, Virginia Lieutenant Governor Winsome Earle-Sears (R), who as Lt. Gov. is also President of the Virginia Senate, called Sen. Danica Roem (D-Manassas) “sir” during proceedings, prompting Roem to quietly leave the floor, followed by several other Senators. Roem, who in 2017 became the first Trans person elected to any state legislature in the U.S., presents and identifies as a woman, and uses feminine pronouns.

Earle-Sears attempted to continue proceedings, repeatedly calling on Sen. Ghazala Hashmi (D-Chesterfield), who refused to respond. Sen. Scott Surrovel (D-Fairfax) requested a recess, telling Richmond’s 8News that he did so to “give [Earle-Sears] a chance to figure out what to say.”

When the session reconvened, EarleSears loudly issued a weak apology, declining to mention Roem or her correct pronouns. Instead, she referenced “respect and dignity” for all. Roem, as she always does when her gender identity becomes the center of attention, has simply said she is focused on serving her constituents.

In 2004, Earle-Sears wrote an op-ed for the Daily Press , titled “Marriage Deserves Preservation,” in which she objected to drawing parallels between African-American and LGBTQ+ rights as “a huge stretch,” saying that the former is a civil rights, while the latter is “an issue of lifestyle.” She also wrote “I also believe our society has gone immeasurably beyond almost all standards in

In 1981 the first AIDS case was diagnosed. In 1995, AIDS killed 65,000 Americans, mostly gay men. In 2003 the Supreme Court overturned laws criminalizing same-sex sexual activity.

2004 was the peak of the AIDS epidemic, with over 2,000,000 deaths globally.

Exactly what standards was Earle-Sears referring to?

Accommodations in The Couple of Decades Since 2004

In 2006 Virginia voters passed the Marshall-Newman amendment to the state Constitution, banning same-sex marriage. 2011 was when LGB people were allowed to openly serve in the military, 2015 for Trans people. Same sex marriage was legalized in 2015.

Today in 2024, nearly half of U.S. states ban Trans people from participating in sports that match their identities.

Gay men can’t donate blood within three months of having sex (which is progress), or tissue or semen within five years of having sex, even if all infectious testing is negative. More than half of states still allow conversion therapy, despite it not working and being widely viewed (appropriately) as, essentially, torture.

According to the ACLU, just two months into the year, at least 463 antiLGBTQ+ bills have been introduced in 2024, likely to surpass the record of 510 in 2023, which surpassed the previous record of 180 in 2022, which surpassed the previous record of 154 in 2021.

Progress, Uncertainty in Virginia Same-Sex Marriage Bill

Last week the Virginia legislature sent a bill codifying the right of any adult couple to get married, regardless of gender, to the desk of Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R). Virginia currently has a gay marriage ban in place — the MarshallNewman Amendment, passed by voter referendum in 2006. The 2015 Supreme Court ruling legalizing same-sex marriage has essentially invalidated the ban, however if SCOTUS were to reverse their decision and leave the decision to states, the ban would immediately take effect again.

To amend the Virginia Constitution, the legislature must pass a bill twice, in two separate sessions (a general election must take place in between the sessions), then put the amendment on the ballot for the voters to decide in a statewide referendum. The earliest we could see the ballot referendum is November 2026.

Forbes conducted its annual workers survey for America’s Best Large Employers and America’s Best Mid-size Employers and has announced the rankings. Among Virginia-based businesses, Capital One ranked 33 on the large employer list. Northrop Grumman, headquartered in Falls Church, ranked 121 on the large employer list. Cognosante, also headquartered in Falls Church, was ranked 361 among Mid-size Employers.

Local Restaurant Coverage

Arlington Magazine gave high marks to several local restaurants in a recent article on Indian restaurants.

Haandi was highlighted for three decades of business with a large Northern Indian menu. Saffron Fine Indian Cuisine was noted for the lunch buffet, signature dishes, and the to-go business. The third local restaurant was Raaga in Bailey’s Crossroads with vibrant flavors, also offering a lunch buffet.

Sunrise of Falls Church Grand Reopening Event

Sunrise of Falls Church Senior Living Community has been under renovation for 8 months and will host a Grand Reopening on Wednesday, March 6, 2:30 p.m. — 5:30 p.m. The public is welcome to tour the community and enjoy refreshments while speaking with staff and residents.

Overflow parking is available in the Christ Crossman United Methodist Church parking lot.

BAE Acquisition of Ball Corporation

BAE Systems has completed the $5.6 billion acquisition of Ball Aerospace from Ball Corporation. This acquisition adds market-leading space, science, and defense capabilities to the company’s portfolio of products and services.

Ball Aerospace will operate under BAE Systems’ U.S. business as a new sector called Space & Mission Systems, led by Dr. Dave Kaufman who currently serves as Ball Corporation senior vice president and the president of Ball Aerospace. This responds to a strategy of growth and the advancement of technology and innovation in high priority areas identified in the U.S. National Defense Strategy and the U.S. Intelligence Strategy.

 Business News & Notes is compiled by Elise Neil Bengtson, Executive Director of the Greater Falls Church Chamber of Commerce. She may be emailed at elise@fallschurchchamber.org.

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