As he campaigns for a third term, Herndon Vice Mayor Clark Hedrick is well aware that an electoral victory would come with some daunting responsibilities.
Among the tasks awaiting the next Herndon Town Council are the hiring of a new town manager, a resolution of the ongoing legal battle over Comstock Companies’ downtown property, the development of an affordable housing policy and the completion of a comprehensive plan update that will guide the town’s evolution over the next quarter-century.
“The next Council will face consequential decisions,” Hedrick said by email. “I would bring my experience in public oversight, accountability, and management, along with my experience on Council, to help work through them. We need to move with purpose, make sound decisions, and keep residents’ needs at the center of the work.”
To retain his seat at the council dais, Hedrick will need to fend off 11 other candidates on the ballot for next Tuesday’s (Nov. 3) election, including four fellow incumbents — Cesar del Aguila, Kelvin Garcia, Alex Reyes and Michael Lloyd — and several challengers seeking to bring new voices to the table.
A resident of Herndon since he and his wife bought their first home in 2016, Hedrick has worked as an attorney for the federal government for more than a decade and served on the town’s Board of Zoning Appeals before winning election to the council for the first time in 2022.
He argues that experience and continuity of leadership will be critical for guiding Herndon through the next two pivotal years, which could see the small town either stagnate amid aging infrastructure and an ever-rising cost of living or transform into an up-and-coming destination.
“I want my children to recognize this community as home, the Town we fell in love with, not just in the next decade, but for decades beyond that,” Hedrick said. “That’s what guides my decisions on Council.”
Looking over his first two terms on the town council, Hedrick says he’s especially proud of the progress that Herndon has made on securing transportation funding — specifically, for traffic and pedestrian safety improvements in the South Elden Street corridor. Most recently, the Northern Virginia Transportation Authority approved $4.4 million for the project, pushing its total grant funding so far beyond $23 million.
“Those are significant resources for an important part of our Town and I’m proud to have played a role in moving the project forward,” Hedrick said, noting that the corridor contains about a third of Herndon’s most dangerous intersections and stretches of roadway, as identified by a Roadway Safety Action Plan adopted in April.
Economic development has also been a top concern for Hedrick, who says he advocated for the town to join the Virginia Main Street program after learning about it from local leaders while traveling in southern Virginia.
The town council authorized staff on Tuesday (Oct. 27) to submit downtown Herndon for Main Street status, which would give the local government access to grant funding, training and other resources as it considers establishing a nonprofit organization to lead future revitalization efforts.
In addition to overseeing the Main Street program’s implementation, a reelection would enable Hedrick to continue pushing forward a related proposal to create a business improvement district (BID) for the redeveloping area near the Herndon Metro station.
Pursuing opportunities like the Main Street program or a BID could help Herndon strengthen its economy and commercial tax base, allowing it to ease the tax burden on residents at a time when the town and Northern Virginia in general are becoming increasingly unaffordable, the vice mayor says.
According to Hedrick:
“We are in danger of pricing out both young families looking to buy or rent their first home and the more seasoned members of our community who struggle to keep up with increased costs and tax bills on retirement savings or fixed incomes. Growing up in Northern California, I watched communities die as the tech boom swept through; formerly vibrant, diverse communities shrunk into mere bedroom communities where only the wealthiest could afford to sleep. To avoid that fate, we need to broaden our tax base, revitalizing our local business community and becoming less reliant on our residential real estate tax revenue.”
If he wins a third term, Hedrick says he would also prioritize delivering “the infrastructure and services residents count on,” including figuring out how to restore programs like the spring and fall bulk trash collections that were recently eliminated due to budget cuts.
The loss of the Herndon Festival also still stings for Hedrick, who says he and his wife fell in love with the Town of Herndon when visiting for the once-annual event. The summer tradition was canceled after 43 years in 2023 due to a variety of administrative, financial and logistical challenges, town staff said at the time.
While the Herndon Festival is unlikely to return, at least at its former scale, the town council and Mayor Keven LeBlanc, who is running for reelection unopposed, introduced a Polar Heat on Lynn Street event in May that they hope will bring some of the same family-friendly, community-building energy back to Herndon.
Hedrick says there are difficult questions ahead for Herndon, but he’s confident the town can successfully tackle them if it has “experienced, steady leadership.”
“What excites me is the opportunity on the other side of that work: a stronger downtown, safer streets, a broader tax base, and a town that remains welcoming and affordable for families,” Hedrick wrote to FFXnow. “I’m also excited about finding sustainable ways to restore services and traditions people miss, including bulk trash pickup and the Herndon Festival. We have important work ahead, but we also have a great deal worth working for.”
Outside of the incumbent council members, candidates on the ballot include Meron Yohannes, Yasmin Shafiq, Sabrina Bruce, Josif Ezekilov, Doug Mejia, Stevan Michael Porter and Justin Britt.
In-person early voting will remain available at 16 sites across Fairfax County until 5 p.m. tomorrow (Saturday). Polls will then open for Election Day at 7 a.m. on Tuesday.
