Angela Woolsey | FFXnow

Reston Community Center names new leader for ‘next era’

Published August 22, 2024 at 11:30AM

Reston Community Center Deputy Director BeBe Nguyen will become the executive director on Sept. 9, 2024 (courtesy RCC)

After considering applicants from around the country, Reston Community Center (RCC) has decided to promote from within for its next executive director.

The community center announced yesterday (Wednesday) that its board of governors has selected current RCC Deputy Director BeBe Nguyen to succeed Leila Gordon, who will retire after 16 years with RCC on Dec. 13.

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Vienna man pushed out of militia pleads guilty to having toxin

By Angela Woolsey

Published August 22, 2024 at 9:30AM

The Albert V. Bryan U.S. Courthouse in Alexandria (file photo)

A Vienna man who came under FBI scrutiny for allegedly suggesting a militia make explosives could serve prison time for having a deadly toxin.

Russell Richardson Vane IV, 42, pleaded guilty in federal court yesterday (Wednesday) to possessing ricin — a poison derived from castor beans that can be fatal to people exposed to it — without a registration, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia announced.

Around Town

For 15th year, Vienna Oktoberfest adds new brewery, bike garden

By Angela Woolsey

Published August 21, 2024 at 3:30PM

Vienna Oktoberfest patrons enjoying beers (courtesy Vienna Business Association)

With temperatures at least temporarily feeling almost autumnal, the Vienna Business Association (VBA) is already starting to hype up its upcoming Oktoberfest.

The annual festival and fundraiser for the VBA will celebrate its 15th anniversary from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 5, bringing food, beer, artisan and business vendors, and live entertainment to the Church Street area in downtown Vienna.

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Herndon advances traffic calming plan for Ferndale Avenue

By Angela Woolsey

Published August 21, 2024 at 2:30PM

The planned Ferndale Avenue traffic calming improvements include curb bump outs and a new crosswalk at Park Avenue (via Town of Herndon)

Eventually, Ferndale Avenue will get curb bump outs, additional crosswalks and marked parking lanes, changes intended to slow down traffic and protect pedestrians.

First, though, Town of Herndon staff are reviewing options for temporary, more immediate safety measures that can be implemented ahead of the long-term traffic calming project, which has no set funding or completion date yet.

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UPDATED: Police find no threat from ‘suspicious device’ near Innovation Metro station

By Angela Woolsey

Published August 21, 2024 at 12:50PM | Updated August 21, 2024 at 1:41PM

Innovation Center Drive at Sunrise Valley Drive in Herndon (via Google Maps)

Fairfax County police have determined there’s no threat posed by a “suspicious device” that was reportedly seen near the Innovation Center Metro station in the Herndon area.

Officers were dispatched to the area around 10:34 a.m. after a caller reported “a strange package that looks like a pressure cooker” near Sunrise Valley Drive, according to scanner traffic on Open MHz.

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JUST IN: Chantilly man charged with murder after Gold’s Gym shooting

By Angela Woolsey

Published August 21, 2024 at 12:15PM

Chantilly resident Steve Taehee Ha (via FCPD)

A Chantilly man is facing a murder charge in connection to yesterday’s fatal shooting at Gold’s Gym in Reston.

Steve Taehee Ha, 43, was arrested around 9 p.m. yesterday (Tuesday), nearly eight hours after he allegedly shot another man who was working out at the gym on the ground floor of the VY Reston Heights apartments.

Around Town

After successful launch, Lake Anne Plaza expands ‘Second Sunday’ promotions

By Angela Woolsey

Published August 21, 2024 at 11:30AM

Second Sunday, a promotional campaign to support local businesses, will return to Lake Anne Plaza in Reston on Sept. 8 (courtesy OmBaked)

Businesses at Lake Anne Plaza in Reston hope to get residents and visitors buzzing again with the return of their new “Second Sunday” event.

Conceived by OmBaked CBD Boutique owner Radhika Murari, the effort to draw foot traffic to the plaza and its many independently owned businesses and nonprofits will expand on Sunday, Sept. 8 with new promotions and additional participants after a successful introduction on the second Sunday of August (Aug. 11).

Around Town

Te’Amo Boba Bar now open in the Mosaic District

By Angela Woolsey

Published August 21, 2024 at 9:30AM

Te'Amo will give away heart keychains for its grand opening at the Mosaic District (courtesy Te'Amo Boba Bar)

Te’Amo Boba Bar is now serving tea, along with other sweet treats, at the Mosaic District in Merrifield.

The boba tea cafe chain had a soft opening at 8190 Strawberry Lane, Suite 5, on Monday (Aug. 19), making the Merrifield location its first outside of the Chicago, Illinois, area where it originated in 2018.

Around Town

Vienna family opens ‘all-natural’ ice cream shop on edge of Tysons

By Angela Woolsey

Published August 20, 2024 at 3:45PM

Terra's Ice Cream, Coffee and Sweets is open in Tycon Courthouse in Tysons (staff photo by Angela Woolsey)

A family-owned ice cream shop is now churning the frozen dessert daily on the ground floor of Tycon Courthouse, the office building better known to locals as the “Toilet Bowl” building.

Terra Bechara, who lives in nearby Vienna with her husband and five kids, opened Terra’s Ice Cream, Coffee and Sweets at 2070 Chain Bridge Rd, Suite 180, in Tysons on Thursday, Aug. 8, overcoming months of permitting and construction hurdles.

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Possibly harmful algae spotted in Reston’s Lake Anne

By Angela Woolsey

Published August 20, 2024 at 3:00PM

Blue-green algae was seen in Lake Anne on Aug. 19, 2024 (via Reston Association/Facebook)

It’s that time of the year when algae tends to surface in Reston’s lakes.

Reston Association reported yesterday (Monday) that “potentially harmful” blue-green algae was seen that morning in Lake Anne, advising community members to avoid contact with the lake’s waters.