Community celebrates Earth Day on the Annandale Greenway
Dozens of people and public officials celebrated Earth Day April 23 at a cleanup event on the Annandale Greenway.
Several local leaders spoke to the group at the future Annandale Civic Space as the event started, several local agencies and organizations hosted information tables.
The Greenway is a four-mile pathway connecting existing park trails and public walkways between Annandale Community Park and Green Spring Gardens.
Mason Supervisor Penny Gross congratulated James Albright, the Mason District representative on the Fairfax County trails committee, for coming up with the concept, Gross suggested there are lots of other places in the county that can replicate this idea.
When Gross invited Park Authority Director Jai Cole to a meeting on the Greenway, Cole said it took her “all of two seconds to say, ‘I’m in.’”
Cole called trails “the best bang for the buck” in terms of connecting communities and promoting fitness.
Related story: The Annandale Greenway gets a green light
Board of Supervisors Chair Jeffrey McKay read a proclamation declaring April 22, 2022, as Earth Day/Arbor Day in Fairfax County and urging “all residents to avail themselves of all opportunities to protect and preserve the environment through education, partnerships, and positive actions.”
He also stressed the need to take action on climate change and preserve the tree canopy, noting there are 44 million trees in Fairfax County.
McKay and Braddock Supervisor James Walkinshaw both spoke about the county’s new plastic bag tax which is making a difference in ridding waterways and parks of plastic bag litter.
Other public officials who participated in the Earth Day on the Greenway celebration included Rep. Don Beyer, Rep. Vivian Watts, Commonwealth’s Attorney Steve Descano, and Capt. Shawn Adcock, the commander of the Mason Police District.
Also participating were representatives of the Hidden Oaks Nature Center, Friends of Green Spring, Fairfax Advocates for Better Bicycling, 4 Public Education, FACETS, the Annandale Christian Community for Action, and the county’s Office of Community Revitalization.
Thanks to the volunteers on the Annandale Greenway Alliance, the greenway has been formally accepted into Fairfax County’s master list of trails.
The next steps for the greenway include working with local agencies to identify short and long-term improvements and having signage and information kiosks installed on the trail.
As part of FACETS’ Opportunity Neighborhood-Annandale initiative, I was happy to be part of this great event! Thanks to all who worked together to organize it.
Friends of Accotink Creek was happy to participate in suport of the Annandale Greenway concept linking together existing infrastructure for a no-trees-harmed route connecting parks, neighborhoods, and commerce.