Braddock candidates lay out their vision for Fairfax County
At a forum with the candidates for Braddock supervisor, Ken Balbuena, the Republican candidate, presented himself as disconnected from national GOP politics, while the Democrat, Rachna Sizemore Heizer, said, “who we align ourselves with matters.”
Sizemore Heizer, a member of the Fairfax County School Board, said, “We have a party that is decimating our economy, attacking federal workers, denigrating science. We need to live our values.”
Sizemore Heizer, Balbuena, and independent candidate Carey Campbell will be on the ballot for a special election on Dec. 9 for the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors. That position has been vacant since the former Braddock Supervisor, James Walkinshaw, was elected to Congress.
The three candidates laid out their qualifications and vision at a forum hosted by the Braddock District Council of Community Associations on Oct. 15 at Braddock Hall.
“I’m not a typical Republican,” Balbuena said, referring to his support for immigrants and diversity and his campaign slogan, “People Before Politics.” Noting that his father immigrated from the Philippines, he said he hopes to become the first Asian-American on the Board of Supervisors.
Balbuena touted his experience on several community and county boards, including four years as president of the North Springfield Civic Association.
Related story: Sizemore Heizer wins the Democratic primary for Braddock supervisor
Sizemore Heizer has spent nearly six years on the school board, first as an at-large member and later as the Braddock District representative.
After earning a law degree, she specialized in mergers and acquisitions, but said, “that didn’t feed my soul.” She switched gears, beginning a second career as a teacher at George Mason University, while becoming active in community organizations. When her son was diagnosed with autism, she focused on advocating for better services for children with disabilities.
Campbell is an Air Force veteran and labor union leader who has been active on the Fairfax County Federation of Citizens Associations. This is the eighth time Campbell is running for the Board of Supervisors since 2007.
Property taxes
To address the increases in homeowners’ tax bills due to rising assessments, Balbuena said the county needs to grow the tax base by growing the economy. He proposed addressing the high vacancy rate in commercial properties by repurposing those spaces for housing and small businesses.
Campbell said the solution is to cut the budget to keep taxes as low as possible. “We’re going to have to make hard cuts somewhere.” He also proposed attracting more development by reducing minimum parking requirements, which he said would lower housing costs.
Sizemore Heizer said it’s important to look for efficiencies, but questioned whether people want decreased services.
A better solution, she said, is getting the General Assembly to increase funding for education. She cited a study by the Joint Legislative Audit and Review Commission that found education in Virginia is chronically underfunded compared to other states.
“We need to diversify our tax base and diversify our economy,” Sizemore Heizer said, while reducing the county’s reliance on the federal government. She proposed building on existing strengths by attracting more companies focused on cybersecurity, artificial intelligence, and AI-adjacent industries.
The future of Lake Accotink
All three candidates expressed qualified support for preserving Lake Accotink.
“I am all about preserving as much of the lake as we can. It’s a treasure and we need to preserve it,” said Sizemore Heizer. However, future decisions on the lake will depend on the outcome of the sedimentation and dam studies underway and forthcoming cost estimates to determine what is feasible.
“We need robust community engagement,” she said, “Do we want to bring out the sediment with trucks going through the neighborhood or use it on site? Until there is a cost estimate, it’s hard to answer this question.”
“It all comes down to money,” said Campbell, who described himself as frugal. Dredging will cost over $400 million over the next 10 years, he said, and the other supervisors will have to agree to cover the cost.
“We have to save this lake,” Balbuena said. “It’s not only for the Braddock District; It’s for the Franconia District and the rest of Fairfax County. If the lake is no longer there to capture sediment, the sediment will flow downstream.
In response to a question about their views on a potential casino in Tysons, both Balbuena and Campbell said they are against a casino but would support a public referendum on it.
The traffic in Tysons is one reason to oppose a casino, Balbuena said, but “the entire community should have a chance to vote on this.”
“Until I hear that people want a casino, or even a referendum, I’m against it,” said Sizemore Heizer. “If my constituents want a casino, that’s different, but I’m not hearing that.”
A commitment to public service
When asked about the ban on guns in libraries and parks, Balbuena said, “We need to prioritize public safety.” He called for increased funding for law enforcement.
Sizemore Heizer told Balbuena, “It’s hard to support a gun ban when you represent a party that has a platform of guns everywhere. You could have run as an independent.”
In response to a question about panhandlers, Sizemore Heizer proposed more support for nonprofits that provide mental health services, housing, and empowerment.
“Jailing someone in need is not the solution,” she said. “Do you punish the panhandlers or give them support so they don’t have to panhandle? I want to provide support.”
“Having supports in place is hugely important,” Balbuena agreed. “I see them as human beings. That’s what my Catholic faith taught me.”
When asked what they are most proud of, Balbuena spoke about serving his neighbors and solving problems as a civic association president. He said he has no ambitions to seek higher office. “I want to stay here in Braddock.”
Sizemore Heizer said she is most proud of her service on the school board, noting that Fairfax County has seven of the 10 best high schools in Virginia.
“Public education is the great equalizer,” she said. “To build the economy and protect our democracy, it starts with the schools.”
“We need someone on the board who can stand up against those who are attacking our values,” she said. “I’m ready to start on day one.”
As an immigrant from India who arrived in the U.S. not speaking English, Sizemore Heizer said, “I want to give back to the country that embraced me. I see our community under attack. I will protect our immigrants. … I have a record of getting things done and living up to my values.”
This isn’t my district, but I’m not sure that spending hundreds of millions on one park, when all the remainder parks have had less and less maintenance done on fields, trails, etc. Around the country, people are removing dams and returning things to natural habitat. Fish can swim upstream to their normal breeding areas. Sediment naturally flows downstream. If it is a stream, it will flow into the Chesapeake where it flowed two hundred years ago instead of becoming a hundred million dollar boondoggle of regular sediment maintenance to operate a man-made sediment collection pond. If a beaver decides to build a natural dam in the stream, I would support that. A park with a healthy stream that is low maintenance only makes sense, especially concerning the absurd costs projected. A healthy stream is good ecologically for the the fish, birds and other animals.
Personally, I would like this part time job to return to a part time pay. BoS voting to pay themselves as full time professionals a few years ago really irked most voters. Paying 150K for meeting twice a month (even with some committee meetings added) is absurd. Cut half and put that into park maintenance and school programs.
Lower the costs to the tax payer first with your paychecks and lower the costs by approving ecologically sound, fiscally responsible approaches to park.
I agree with you. However, we absolutely need to do something about the construction in the northern and western parts of the county that is creating the sediment in the first place. McLean, Langley, Chantilly, etc. are reaping benefits that are hurting Springfield, Franconia, and Mt. Vernon. A mortarium on new construction honestly would be good until a full analysis can be done on its impact in the larger environment.
Truthfully this is what makes Balbuena’s repurposing of current unoccupied space the most appealing to me. Not the economic issues–which are important–but the environmental ones as well.
While I view your opinion with some support your comment about returning the steam back to the way it was 200 years ago is very short-sided. 200 years ago we did not have the development of parking lot and concrete jungles that have markedly increased the amount of water flowing down that stream vice going into the woodlands it was 200 years ago. To unleash the amount of flow that would be witnessed with the ever increasing storm surges we are seeing with the climate change would increase severe erosion issues downstream toward the Chesapeake and increase sedimentation of that waterway possibly impacting the crab and fish population. I think an assessment of the flow volume and erosion estimates should be completed as well so a complete picture of the impact could be known before making a final decision.
Last night’s Braddock District candidate forum allowed district residents to hear the candidates views on a few topics. However many questions submitted by the audience were not addressed due to time constraints. In some ways the question selected were softballs, with no meaningful distinction between candidate positions. What candidate would say “Let’s not save Lake Accotink” or “Let’s lock up the poor guy standing at the corner of Braddock and Rolling Roads?”
We needed to hear questions that helped differentiate between the candidates visions and values. I encourage the Braddock District Council of Community Associations to publish the list of questions residents asked but were not posed to the candidates and to offer the candidates the opportunity to answer those questions for the record.
This is a fantastic idea, thank you for suggesting it.
Carey Chet Campbell, the independent veteran on the ballot for Braddock District. Campbell has nearly four decades of civic service in Braddock District.
Here are Campbell’s answers from the forum. https://careychetcampbell.com/videos
Keeping strong schools, police, fire, and reliable human services comes down to what taxpayers are willing to pay.
Learn more about Campbell’s campaign at CareyChetCampbell.com.
Thank you for posting these responses. Carey has been a relentless advocate for the community for decades.
Shame on heavy favorite, Dem. Rachna Sizemore-Heizer, for her unforced & mean-spirited attack against Braddock District Supervisor candidate Ken Balbuena (R) at this week’s candidate forum.
After Balbuena responded affirmatively to a gun law question, explaining he supports existing laws prohibiting guns in parks and government buildings because common sense is necessary when talking about gun policy, Sizemore-Heizer accused him of being disingenuous and dishonest about his Republican party ties and said he should have run as an independent.
As many residents in Braddock District & Fairfax County who have known & worked with Ken Balbuena over 2 decades, “People Over Politics” is not a slogan for him, it’s who Ken is and how he serves. Shame on Rachna Sizemore-Heizer for this unprovoked broadside, one that only diminished her own character, as was instantly confirmed by the visible and audible objection of Braddock residents present on Wednesday evening.
(For the record, I’m a registered Democrat.)