Tag: parks
Summer concerts end this weekend
The LUA Project performed Mexilachian music, combining Mexican and Appalachian elementary, at Ossian Hall Park earlier this month. If you haven’t taken full advantage of the free summer Spotlight by Startlight concerns in Annandale yet, you’ve only got two more chances. The last show at the Mason District Park Amphitheater is tonight, Aug. 20. The U.S. Navy … Continued
Park Board to recommend construction of large pickleball facility
A draft report on the Park Authority’s Pickleball Study recommends at least one large pickleball-only facility suitable for large groups and tournaments, with six or more courts. Funding would come from the 2024 park bond or another source. The public is invited to a community meeting Sept. 14 to learn more about the Pickleball Study. … Continued
Park Authority Board endorses dog park report
Mason District Dog Park The Fairfax County Park Authority Board endorsed the Dog Park Study report, which will serve as a guide for the planning and maintenance of future dog parks. The study is based in part on a survey of dog park visitors, as well as research, policy analysis, and identification of best practices. … Continued
Del. Kory wants to improve Park Authority transparency in light of Justice Park parking lot conflict
Del. Kaye Kory talks to a reporter at an open house at Justice Park in June hosted by opponents of the parking lot proposal. Fairfax County Public Schools and the Fairfax County Park Authority were able to push a proposal for a parking lot in Justice Park without public hearings because they used a section … Continued
An open house at the White Gardens reveals how much work a resident curator would have to take on
The foyer in the White House. Potential resident curators and curious neighbors got a chance to look inside the house at the Margaret White Gardens at an open house on Aug. 7. The Park Authority is seeking a resident curator to fix up the house. The curator would pay for the needed repairs and maintenance … Continued
Margaret White wouldn’t have wanted a ‘resident curator’ for the park that bears her name, her son says
The flowering plants at the White Gardens are being overtaken by invasives. The Fairfax County Park Authority is seeking a “resident curator” to live in and restore the house at the Margaret White Gardens, but that’s not what Margaret would have wanted, says her son Doug White. “She didn’t care whether the house was torn … Continued
Evaluations underway on Lake Accotink dredging project options
Lake Accotink is filling up with sediment. Options under consideration for drying out the sediment dredged out of Lake Accotink have been narrowed down to Wakefield Park near the maintenance facility, the Dominion Energy right of way, the upper lake settling basin, and the lake island. Several alternative sites – Howrey Park, the Wakefield Park … Continued
Park Authority seeks ‘resident curator’ to restore the house at the Margaret White Gardens
The house at the Margaret White Gardens. The Fairfax County Park Authority is seeking a “resident curator” to live in and rehabilitate the house at the Margaret White Gardens in the Falls Church area of Mason District. There will be a public information meeting on the Resident Curator Program for the house July 27 at … Continued
Park Authority calls parking lot in Justice Park ‘unacceptable’
Local residents oppose removing green space from Justice Park for a parking lot for Justice High School. The Fairfax County Park Authority has issued a statement indicating it is willing to work with Fairfax County Public Schools to consider an alternative to building a parking lot at Justice Park. The statement, submitted to the Annandale … Continued
Nature center is getting a makeover
Construction is expected to start soon on an expansion/renovation project at Hidden Oaks Nature Center in Annandale. The $1.2 million project includes new offices, a new multipurpose room, accessible restrooms, an additional exhibition area, and improved stroller parking. The contractor will begin mobilizing on site in August.
Free outdoor concerts in full swing
The NOVA Annandale Symphony Orchestra in the amphitheater at Mason District Park. After going all virtual in 2020 due to the COVID pandemic, the Spotlight by Starlight free concerts in Mason District are back live this summer. More than 200 people enjoyed classical, jazz, and ragtime selections performed by the NOVA Annandale Symphony Orchestra in … Continued
Explore a Park: The woods in Poe Terrace Park draw homeless campers
Poe Terrace Park as seen from Hillbrook Drive. This article is part of our series on parks in the Annandale/Mason District area. The last piece in this series explored Pine Ridge Park in Annandale. Poe Terrace Park is a 14.3-acre undeveloped park at the intersection of Little River Turnpike and Hillbrook Drive in Annandale across … Continued
Board of Supervisors reauthorizes Park Authority for 30 years, despite complaints from Justice Park advocates
Justice Park, where the Park Authority wants to pave over parkland for a parking lot. Nearly all of the community members who spoke at a Board of Supervisors hearing July 13 urged the board not to approve a 30-year extension of the Park Authority ordinance. They cited the lack of accountability and transparency around the … Continued
Public officials failed to inform public on Justice Park land negotiations
During the past few months, advocates for Justice Park repeatedly sought answers about the plans by the Park Authority to give a portion of land to the school system for a parking lot. During that time, public officials never mentioned their discussions on a leasing arrangement or a land deal involving a recreation center in … Continued
Lake Accotink dredging sites could disrupt the Howrey memorial, youth sports, and wildlife habitats
These signs were put up by the Friends of the Soldiers Memorial at Howrey Park. The options under consideration for dredging Lake Accotink are raising alarm bells among residents concerned about the potential environmental destruction and loss of sports fields. The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors agreed to fund a $30.5 million dredging project in … Continued