Board Meeting – On July 23, 2024, President Mulston called to order the meeting of the Board of Directors (Board) of Reston Citizens Association (RCA) at 6:20 pm. This was an in-person meeting at the Hidden Creek Country Club.
Board Member attendees: Lynne Mulston, President; Gary Maupin Vice-President; Joe Leighton, Treasurer; Shawn Endsley Secretary; Connie Hartke (arrived at 7:30pm); Jerry Volloy; Stephanie Oliver; J Orisha; and Michele Silver. (Note: following the election of the new Board leadership, Michele Silver completed the minutes.)
Rich Hoffmann and Dennis Hayes were absent.
Other attendees included: John Carter Fairfax County Planning Commissioner (representing Hunter Wood); Sophia Jungenberg (special committee member working with Reston Strong); and Tammi Petrine and John Lovaas (providing oversight of voting for Board leaders.)
President Mulston determined that a quorum of 8 of 10 members (prior to Connie Hartke’s arrival) was present and the meeting could proceed.
Adoption of Agenda – President Mulston asked for adoption of the agenda. Upon motion made by Treasurer Leighton, and seconded by Vice President Maupin, the Board unanimously approved the proposed agenda.
Approval of Minutes – President Mulston asked for adoption of the June 27 Board meeting minutes. Treasurer Leighton made the motion, which was seconded by Vice-President Maupin. The Board approved the minutes with one abstention by Secretary Endsley who was not present at the June meeting.
Approval of Treasurer’s Report – President Mulston asked for adoption of the Treasurer’s report. Vice-President Maupin made the motion, which was seconded by Treasurer Leighton. The Board unanimously approved the report.
Introductions – Prior to the elections, Tammi Petrine, John Lovaas, Sophia Jungenberg, John Carter, and all the Board members introduced themselves.
Homeless Comments – Sophia Jungenberg could not attend the June meeting as originally planned, so she provided some comments on the homeless situation in Reston.
- Jungenberg serves on a Special Committee called “Reston Strong” and works with Sarah Selvaraj-D’Souza HOME | #RestonSTRONG
- Currently, the focus is not providing only overnight shelter to the homeless community but to help these vulnerable individuals a place to transition back into society.
- One of the concerns with only having overnight shelter is that people do not have anywhere to store their personal belongings.
- Commissioner Carter asked if Reston Strong was looking at the use of any of the vacant commercial buildings as a temporary transition housing site. Ms. Jungenberg said she would look into it.
2024 RCA Election – President Mulston proceeded to the 2024 Board elections. Vice-President Maupin made motions to nominate individuals for each of the Board positions and Treasurer Leighton seconded each nomination.
- President – Lynne Mulston
- Vice President – Shawn Endsley
- Treasurer – Joe Leighton
- Secretary – Michele Silver
Each Board member proceeded to write their votes on individual pieces of paper provided to Tammi Petrine and John Lovaas, who tallied and read off the votes for each position. The Board unanimously voted for each of the individuals above.
RCA Newsletter – President Mulston moved this topic up in the agenda as Director Orisha had to depart early.
On July 23, anyone signed up to receive emails from the RCA received the first ever newsletter (for the month of July). Attendees stated that the newsletter was well done, and lauded Director Orisha for her efforts. Director Orisha will continue producing a monthly newsletter, which will be sent to the Board for approval prior to dissemination.
Addendum: On August 25, 2024, the August Newsletter was distributed via email to subscribers.
No Casino Coalition Update – President Mulston alerted the attendees that the McLean Citizens Association donated $1,000 to the No Casino Coalition (made up of RCA, the Great Falls Citizens Association, Vienna Town Council, and McLean Citizens Association). She also mentioned the booth at Viva Vienna, where approximately 500 people stopped by for information.
President Mulston stated it is vital for individuals to come and either speak or be present at (wearing either the No Casino t-shirt or a red shirt, preferably) Fairfax County Board of Supervisors (BoS) monthly meetings to show their opposition. At the July 30 BoS meeting where the Casino is on the agenda, there are three speakers already signed up and 10 speakers providing public comments (maximum amount of public testimony at any BoS meeting is 10.)
There is an “Action list” No Casino Petition and Facebook page that should be marketed to others in the community. When anyone signs the petition, email is automatically sent to the State Senators and Fairfax County Supervisor Jeff McKay.
Lastly, President Mulston informed the attendees of a community meeting at McLean High School on October 27 at 3pm. She indicated some Virginia elected officials, including Supervisor Walter Alcorn, will be in attendance and that there will be a panelist of speakers.
Data Center Zoning Ordinance Amendment (ZOA) – At the June meeting, the BoS opted to defer a vote on the Data Center ZOA until the July 30 meeting. President Mulston asked the Board to review the additional comments to be sent to the BoS by the RCA no later than close of business, Thursday, July 25. The goal of sending the follow up message is to frame the RCA’s position and how the Data Center ZOA could be mutually beneficial.
Planning Commissioner John Carter also added that data centers are not allowed in “planned areas” (per the Reston Planned Residential Community or “PRC”) and that no data centers could exist within one mile of a Transit Station Areas (TSA).
President Mulston encouraged the attendees to send, and encourage others to send, emails to the BoS regarding the passage of the data center ZOA that protect residents.
BoS Data Center Email Template
Fairfax County Placemaking Initiative – President Mulston turned the floor over to Commissioner Carter, who walked through a presentation titled “Urban Development and Placemaking,” developed by the Fairfax County Planning Commission.
Commissioner Carter made the following key points during his presentation:
- Placemaking is a broad term that includes homelessness, open space, etc.
- Goal is “To promote high-quality development and placemaking of open spaces and streets in the Activity Centers of Fairfax County” with Reston as an example
- An Activity Center is defined as 3.5 acres and Reston has two – one near the WO&D trail and the Reston Town Center
- The two main areas of focus are:
- Open Space – Accessible, Safe and Open for All:
- Network of Open Spaces
- Larger Publicly Owned Sites
- Larger Private Spaces for Public Use
- Smaller Private Spaces for Public Use
- Streets – Safe, Inclusive and Complete:
- Safe, Inclusive, and safe Streets
- Safe Intersections
- Arterial and Connector Streets
- Local Streets
- Planning an Urban Forest
- Neighborhood Lighting
- Open Space – Accessible, Safe and Open for All:
Director Hartke asked if Walker Nature Center was included, to which Commissioner Carter said it was not considered an “Activity Center” where there are supposed to be “events” held for the community.
President Mulston asked Commissioner Carter what the most controversial areas are in Reston—Association Drive (DECA building) going from commercial to residential and Michael Faraday, which is behind McDonald/Taco Bell on the corner of Wiehle and Sunset Hills, with that becoming all residential.
Commissioner Carter also talked for a few minutes about the Wiehle Avenue study. He mentioned the community meeting and three options discussed and that the public comment period is now closed. Commissioner Carter also said it would be beyond 2030 for any updates to Wiehle. Lastly, he stated that the budget is $100 million and that the focus now is on short-term projects that will be roughly half of the budget, $50 million.
Because the discussion with Commissioner Carter ran until 8:30pm, the remaining agenda items (Reston Town Center North (RTCN) Update and Golf Course Updates), were tabled until the next meeting.
Other Business –
- Next Meeting – will be in person at the Hartke Building at 7:30pm on August 27
Adjourn – President Mulston asked for a motion to end the meeting, made by Director Oliver made, and seconded by Director Maupin. The meeting adjourned at approximately 8:35pm.