Editor’s Update: 7-Eleven regional manager confirms that the 7-Eleven on West Street will close at the end of September, confirming information in the community that the 7-Eleven contract have been bought out. Editor’s Note:  While many of us in Falls Church City have been on summer mode, a small cadre of involved citizens have been following the Founders Row project closely; for years.  They’ve attended meetings, taken notes and shared information via email to a list of other citizens.  Thanks to their involvement, many of us know more about Founders Row then we would have.  Now it’s time to tell the Planning Commission and CityRead More →

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This is a reprint from The Daily Pause by Hal Runkel: “Our numbers-driven society perpetuates a pressure on our kids to perform. High-stakes testing has taken the place of meaningful teaching and learning. College rankings and endowments are also predicated on numbers…All of which adds up to an education system focused on competition, performance and rankings.” (Vicki H. Abeles) Getting into the “right” college The world has always been involved in some kind of collective insanity, but one kind seems to be gripping us all: the pressure to get into the “right” college. I’ve counseled several New York families who were driven by this pressure,Read More →

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City Hall Renovation over budget The City was not able to negotiate a not-to-exceed-priced contract to renovate City Hall for the $13 million they had budgeted.  The new plan is to cut back on the scope of the project and try again. Enrollment Projections Error We had a total of 8 new students in the school system this year.  Our enrollment consultants who were also paid to provide us enrollment predictions to justify the size of the new high school, say that this year’s surprisingly low number of new students is an anomaly.  In October 2016, they had predicted that there would be 75 newRead More →

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Do we really need to spend $ 120 million on a new high school? The Basic information on Huguenot High School (pictured above) Brand New $ 64 million high school completed in 2015 Located about 100 miles away in Richmond, VA 250,000 square feet, Certified LEED Gold Serves 1,385 students now, can flex to 1,700 student (we have 850 now, need to plan for 1,500) Auditorium with seating for 1,000 Dining Commons for 500 3 court gymnasium with seating for 2,000 Media Center, Television Studio, Distance Learning Center Administration Spaces State-of-Art technology, Construction, Architecture Field house & Stadium with seating for 3,500 (we already theRead More →

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Saying No Thanks does not mean:  That we have to spend $40MM to repair the schools.  We can look for less risky and less pricey new-build alternatives and do another referendum vote. That you are anti-school.  It means you care about the schools and the city and want a fiscally responsible plan before moving forward. That you can’t have a different opinion from the School Board.  It means you want the School Board to provide more detail and give you more choices. A taxpayer who has purchased signs indicates they are free and they even deliver! Send a message to fallschurchfacts@gmail.com if you are interested.Read More →

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There is an intricate 30-year City plan to procure a $ 120MM new high school. It is risky because there are so many steps in the plan and each step has risk. The risks have been identified and there are mitigation plans to help keep each risk from occurring, but there is little or no contingency planning for the situations if the risks were to come true.  Some call this stress testing, sensitivity testing or modeling. For example, the City says the worse consequence of many of the risks would be that taxpayers would have to pay the $ 7.4 MM bond payment every yearRead More →

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