Supervisor Jimenez wants to make Mason District a cultural hub
Andres Jimenez, Mason District’s new member of the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors, wants to make Mason District “the cultural hub of Fairfax County.”
“Mason District is one of the most diverse districts in the county, and we really want to put a spotlight on the small businesses that are here, the restaurants that are here,” he said during an interview with Annandale Today.
He wants the rest of the county and the entire region “to know what we have to offer,” in art, music, food, and culture.
To make that happen, Jimenez is establishing an Art Advisory Council that will submit ideas for short-term and long-term projects. The council will be chaired by artist James Albright, who organized an art show in December at Beanetics Coffee Roasters.
A long-term project could be something like bringing an arts center to Mason District, he said. An example of “low-hanging fruit,” something that could be done right away, is an art show displaying works by local students. “It’s all about coming up with innovative ideas to spotlight art in Mason District.”
Crime
With regard to crime, Jimenez said, “obviously, it’s of great concern to our office. We’ve already kicked off a great relationship with the police department.”
During a recent ride-along with the commander of the Mason Police Station and chief of police, he saw officers arrest six people for fentanyl-related charges at Fairmont Gardens in Annandale, a hot spot for crime.
That apartment complex was the site of a fatal stabbing by a 14-year-old and a shooting in the past week.
Jimenez said, “Mason police officers are upping how much they’re monitoring in that area and bringing in a task force equipped to work with gangs.”
Some of the troublemakers at Fairmont Gardens were evicted right away, he said. It’s also important to ensure they don’t come back. “Once the residents creating problems realize there is more surveillance and a heavier police presence, they will find it’s easier to go somewhere else.”
Revitalization
“It’s absolutely critically important that we work on revitalizing the commercial areas in Mason District, and we have to be very strategic in how we do that,” Jimenez said. “We can’t just open the floodgates and let everything in.”
“We need to make sure that what we bring in to Mason are things that folks who live in Mason District need,” he said.
“Redevelopment needs to be part of a larger plan,” he said. “We can’t just let developers bring in retail wherever they want. We’ve got to be smart about it. Does it fit our community? Does it fit our values? Does it fit our mission of creating a cultural hub?”
That also means reaching out to the owners of existing businesses and urging them to do more to address trash, recycling, signage, and other issues. “It’s those things that really turn around a community.”
Jimenez said it’s important to meet with developers and hear their ideas. He has a couple of meetings with developers lined up in the next few weeks. “We have to balance meeting with developers who want to meet with us but also make sure we’re meeting with constituents on other critically important needs and concerns in Mason District.”
Pedestrian safety is really important, he said, and environmental groups have spoken to him about their concerns, such as the need for more trees and encouraging more solar energy. Mason District could be a test case for bringing solar to schools, he suggested.
He believes “it’s important to hear from the community on all these different issues while at the same time, obviously, having conversations with developers.”
When it comes to data centers, Jimenez said, they belong in industrial areas. “I don’t think data centers should be anywhere near communities.”
“I don’t think we’re going to turn Mason into a data center hub,” he said. “The bigger longer-term picture is what do we do with data centers throughout Fairfax County.” [The Board of Supervisors is holding a hearing on a mega data center on Jan. 23.]
Affordable housing
Jimenez believes Fairfax County needs more affordable housing, but said, “it needs to happen where there is public transportation.”
Otherwise, “people are going to be forced to buy a car, which many of them don’t have the money to do. They’re going to be stuck somewhere where they have to walk miles to public transportation.”
“If we’re going to have more affordable housing, we’re going to have to do it strategically,” he said. “We’re going to have to look at the best locations next to public transportation.”
“In certain parts of Mason District, public transportation isn’t readily available, so we need to see what options there are. You can’t do one without the other, or you’re going to create an even bigger problem.”
Community engagement
One of Jimenez’s top priorities is constituent services. “We want to make sure we’re hearing from the community, working with stakeholders in the community, the police and fire departments, and all our county agencies to make sure we’re serving the people of Mason District.”
Jimenez invites community members to an open house on Feb. 2, 6:30-8:30 p.m., at the Mason District Government Center, 6507 Columbia Pike. Residents will have a chance to meet the new supervisor and his staff and connect with local community groups. “I want to make sure residents feel welcome here,” he said.
“We’re running at a very fast pace right now,” he said. He encourages residents to subscribe to his newsletter and follow him on social media, including X, Instagram, and Facebook. “We have lots of different ways for constituents to reach out to us.”
“We’re meeting with as many groups, as many stakeholders, as possible,” he said. He already held a town hall with SEIU, the union that represents county employees; the Bailey’s Crossroads/Seven Corners Revitalization Corporation, and lots of county departments. “Mostly it’s been a listening tour, so we’ll have a better understanding of the issues in Mason District.”
Jimenez’ plan for constituent services “is building on a lot of the institutional work that was done by former supervisor Penny Gross during her 28 years in that role,” he said, although “we have a little bit of a different vision for Mason.”
Jimenez believes he can handle all the work of being a supervisor while retaining his job as executive director of Green 2.0, an organization aimed at making environmental organizations more diverse and inclusive.
“One of the things I’ve always been praised for is how many things I can do at once and how great I am at the things I do because I put so much passion into them,” he said.
Another top priority is “making sure people understand Mason District isn’t just a place to drive by, that it’s a destination point, that it’s a place where families can come to eat, live, and play.”
And that means expanding on the idea that “we’re a cultural hub and bringing an environmental lens and an equity lens to all that we do in the next couple of years,” he said. “We want to make sure Mason is able to reach the potential that we know it has.”
Thank you! Terrific interview. I like that Supervisor Jimenez gave many common sense answers to the questions.
Mr. Jimenez has some great ideas. I look forward to his leadership and creativity in making them happen. It’s especially satisfying to see that he is looking to our community for its input as well as support. Mason District is definitely in need of revitalization, affordable housing and a stronger focus on crime prevention. I wish him the very best in this important job.
Excited that there is new leadership and the old leadership has finally left the building.
Please tear down Fairmont Gardens already
you need to quiet down. while your in your peaceful home typing away while you sip your tea on your couch. people are struggling in those apartments tryna provide for their families. commanding for a destruction for those apartments wont do anything but scatter the crime, and put families in a harsh predicament. their are so many innocent people that live there and demolishing it to “get rid of the crime” wont help i know this because I’ve lived there myself. fcpd needs to do something about the crime but not a demolishment.
Fcpd needs to put them all in jail.
The police department needs to be more present in all the neighborhoods surrounding Fairmont Garden. Fairmont Garden is not the only problem. There are three other apt complex with crime and drug problems. Maybe they should tear them all down!!
I did live at the apartments long before they were called the Vistas. When I moved in in the 90’s it use to be run by Charles E Smith ( back then they were nice). It changed hands many times while I lived there for 15 years. I saw how poorly they were managed and it kept going down hill. Maybe it would be better to knock down the poorly run apartments and build condos, town house or single family homes.
This is Dave Lyons from the Fairfax Workers Coalition (FWC).
We appreciate everything Supervisor Jimenez is doing and support it.
But your story lists Seiu as the union representing county employees.
This is untrue.
There are TWO recognized County employee unions for general county workers. Neither has anywhere near a majority of county employees.
No one has been selected as such.
FWC is a growing independent union that represents more county workers each day as part of a growing movement to provide workers with an independent voice free of partisan politics and corporate unionism.
Thanks so much.
Dave Lyons
the Fairfax union.org
[email protected]
571-991-5386
Annandale has become the trashiest place around. So embarrassing! Come off 495 to be greeted w panhandlers and trash in the median. Get it together Jimenez. And BTW, all Korean is NOT diversity.
Mason is 18% Asian, last I checked it’s still majority white.
Jimenez began his job less than one month ago and you’re already telling him to get it together!!?! It’s not his fault Annandale is the way it is, it has taken many years for it to get this way and it’s not going to be fixed in 26 days. Maybe you could give him a few more days to do miracles. Give him a break.
I appreciate the interview and story. I also found it interesting the hubris of what can be dictated from the county government with private property, and even more so with the number of references to developers (developers and local elected officials often are linked together like a pair of handcuffs). I’m an optimist so I’m hopeful, but have a realistic streak that gives me great pause We need a new supervisor who is going to be an improvement over the last supervisor on foundational county services such as enabling law enforcement, prosecuting crime, demanding better from schools for all that taxpayers spend, and especially trash service. Focus on the core government services that desperately need attention & it will help everyone in Mason. Then work on the nice to have items – many outlined above in the hub of the story.
No one will come enjoy our diversity and culture with crime being as high as it is lately. Everywhere you drive in Mason district you see panhandlers, people openly selling drugs in strip mall parking lots, people openly using drugs in parks, etc. It’s a disaster and a cancer that eats away at anything good that we have here. Hire more cops, start enforcing the laws and prosecute the criminals.
Building a relationship with police means nothing and won’t put a dent in ever-increasing crime and vagrancy.
How about Fairfax County paying the rent for a couple of police officers to live in Fairmont Gardens? If the rent is free, they might be willing to do it. Most of the residents are nice families with children and they’d probably be very happy with some resident officers, plus the officers could save a few bucks for a future home purchase.
Annandale has gotten pretty grubby in the 35 years we’ve lived here. It used to be a sweet little town. Mason District has to stop allowing itself to be the trashy backyard of Fairfax County. Super Jimenez could really help us by insisting on laws being enforced and getting some decent advice from city planners on how NOT to have what we have now. Poor little Annandale is icky strip mall after icky strip mall that people avoid. Annandale needs to return to being a clean and safe family-friendly town.
My priority is the crime issue. You only highlighted Fairmont Gardens. Crime is everywhere in the Mason District. I support our police. You and the rest of the Board of Supervisors need to provide the police with whatever they need to get crime under control.
The cops are just as frustrated as most of us. The Commonwealth Attorney is just as much if not more of the problem as the Board of Supervisors.
How many folks advocating for more police presence were whining to defund the police a couple years ago?
Supervisor Jimenez, thank you for serving your community in this important role and good luck in achieving the vision you have set forth. I agree with you and others that redevelopment and affordable housing is of paramount importance so that those who are eager to work can find jobs and become invested in their home community. (But please keep viable single-family neighborhoods, too!) Working closely with Fairfax County Police Department and the Commonwealth Attorney’s Office is essential for keeping crime at bay. Good citizenry starts at home so I encourage you (and all of us) to do what we can to support to families, schools and social services and promote (and teach where necessary) good parenting, study and work skills. Finally, I hope that more can be done to address environmental concerns particularly clean water and preserving the tree canopy by removing invasive vines that are killing the trees. Best wishes.