RCA Board of Directors Meeting


March 28, 2016

National Realty Building
Those attending included: Connie Hartke, Nick Georgas, Sridhar Ganesan, George Kain, Yavuz Inanli, Annmarie Swope, John Hanley, Joe Leighton, Lynne Mulston, Robin Hogan,  and Geoffrey Lewis
Absent were: Hank Schonzeit, Dennis Hays
  1. Agenda – Based on a motion by George and a second by Lynne the agenda was unanimously adopted by those in attendance.
  2. February 22nd RCA Meeting Minutes – Based on a motion by Lynne and a second by John the February 22nd, 2016 minutes were unanimously approved as distributed.
  3. Treasurer’s Report – Joe clarified an accessibility contribution that was on the report. Based on a motion by Joe and a second by Lynne the treasurer’s report previously circulated by Joe via email was approved by John, Sridhar, Lynne, Joe, Yavuz, Annmarie, Nick, Geoffrey, George, Joe, and Robin. Connie abstained from the vote.
  4. RTC North Redevelopment – Connie spoke about running into Andy Miller, Project Coordinator of the Public-Private Partnerships Branch of the Fairfax County Department of Public Works and Environmental Services. He mentioned that there should be an update for citizens on the RTC North Redevelopment in the next 6-8 weeks.
  5. County Septage Facility– John updated the group on a letter he has written addressed to Supervisor Hudgins in regards to the proposed septage facility and RCA’s objection to the proposal which he would like the backing of the RCA Board of Directors to Send. There were no comments on the letter and John received backing to have Sridhar send it to CH from the RCA Board members in attendance.
  6. Fairfax County Police Review Commission – John updated the group on a letter he has drafted addressed to Supervisor Hudgins which he would like the backing of the RCA Board of Directors for Sridhar to send regarding the lack of action from the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors regarding recommendations from the commission. Annmarie questioned something she saw as a budget item that might relate to this. She will find and forward for email discussion. Hold on letter until this is explored.
  7. Parking at Reston Town Center – Lynne led the discussion regarding the proposal by Boston Properties to start charging for parking at Reston Town Center. There are still a lot of details missing from the plan but the feeling is that it is a done deal with little room for action to be taken. There is a community meeting on March 31st, 2016  at the Avant where the Reston Town Center Association and Boston Properties will discuss the proposed changes to the parking charge with the public. Yavuz suggested that while implementation might be unavoidable due to proffer language requiring the requirement to charge for parking and that RCA could take action in regard to the implementation of the parking app, timing, and rushed feeling of the program. RCA members will attend the meeting and create a summary of the meeting results to determine next steps.
  8. RA March 2016 Land Use Update – Connie spoke on the land use items from the Reston Association Board of Directors meeting and summarized a few items such as proposed toll road crossings, the St. John’s Woods County input deadlines, and proposed residential development at Pinecrest to update the Board on potential new land use items in the area.
  1. Elections Committee – Sridhar announced that John Hanley (Hunters Woods district), Joe Leighton (South Lakes), George Kain (North Point), and Lynne Mulston (Lake Anne/Tall Oaks/Town Center district) are up for reelection. A new election committee is needed to facilitate the election process. Sridhar, Annmarie, Yavuz, and Nick volunteered to be the election committee. Robin will assist with providing previous documents.
  2. RCA Outreach – RA Open House 3/31 – Connie explained the RA Open House on 3/31 and the benefit of getting to interact with new residents. The Citizen of the Year event was mentioned as being the key RCA event to market to open house attendees. RCA also needs to encourage people to either join or participate in the organization via committees and to sign up for the newsletter. Reviving the outreach committee or revising its mission was discussed in an effort to narrow the focus and help accomplish the goals of recruiting and enhancing RCA’s awareness in the community. Geoffrey, Sridhar, Lynne and Connie will meet separately to discuss next steps.
  3. Citizen of the Year Event – John confirmed that RA’s Cate Fulkerson and Ellen Graves will be able to speak at the event. Sridhar will write to Supervisor Hudgins asking  her to attend and potentially speak during the ceremony. There is also a need to get local businesses to donate to the ceremony which the committee is currently working on. The board agreed to contribute $25.00 each for the ceremony.
  4. Other Business –
    1. George discussed the possible incorporation of Reston into an independent town or city and recent findings regarding the challenges ahead if this were to become a serious issue. At this time,the consensus of the board is to not take any action due to current workload..
    2. Lynne updated the group on Tall Oaks redevelopment from the recent Reston Association meeting in terms of project dates. Lynne encouraged members who feel strongly about the issue to write personal letters to the Board of Supervisors and Jefferson Apartment Group. Connie & Robin raised the issue of whether or not the Village Center designation was kept or struck in the final master plan update – Lynne will check that status.
    3. Annmarie mentioned that RCA should explore partnering with Supervisor Hudgins for next year’s County Summit regarding the County’s budget.. Sridhar & Connie advised that they had attended the Hunter Mill District Community Summit on 2/20 in Vienna which was very informative.
    4. Yavuz mentioned a County Traffic Tier 10 mitigation meeting on Wednesday, April 30th.
  5. Location and Time of Next Meeting – The next meeting will be April 25th, 2016 at 7:30 at the Hartke Building. Joe made a motion to adjourn the meeting and Robin seconded it. The motion was unanimously approved by all those in attendance.