Tag: parks
Help Friends of Accotink Creek with the International Coastal Cleanup
Accotink Creek near Wakefield Park By Elizabeth Kirchner Friends of Accotink Creek (FAC), a volunteer waterway protection group, invites you to join 152 countries and millions of people around the world in the 2012 month-long International Coastal Cleanup. Starting at Fullerton Bridge on Sept. 15, cleanup crews will work their way upstream along Accotink Creek, … Continued
Wakefield Skatepark extension officially opened
Rob Fall, 24, a student at NOVA, at the new section of the Wakefield Skatepark. The new addition to the Wakefield Skatepark in Annandale was completed weeks ago, but the official ribbon-cutting ceremony took place Sept. 8. The 6,000 square foot addition was developed by the California-based Spohn Ranch skate park design and construction company, … Continued
FROGS supports Green Spring Gardens
Plant sales support FROGS projects. Green Spring Gardens is one of the nicest parks in the Annandale area—if not the entire region—and for that, we can thank the tireless and generous volunteers in Friends of Green Springs Gardens (FROGS). FROGS raises funds through year-round plant sales, spring and fall garden festivals, dues from its 1,400 … Continued
Elikeh turns up the heat at Annandale’s Ossian Hall Park
The sounds of Afrofunk, as interpreted by the band Elikeh, reverberated throughout Ossian Hall Park in Annandale Saturday evening. The D.C.-based band blends Afropop, traditional West African rhythms, funk, and jazz. Elikeh’s leader, Serge Massama Dogo (lead vocals and guitar), was born and raised in Togo. The other band members—on bass, drums, two saxes, keyboards, … Continued
Parks bond provides funds for White Gardens, fields, and trails
The White Gardens: a hidden gem in Falls Church The $75 million park bond, on the Nov. 6 ballot, would fund several projects in the Annandale area, including improvements to the John C. and Margaret K. White Gardens and synthetic turf fields at Pine Ridge Park. The bond includes $63 million for the Fairfax County … Continued
Registration under way for Northern Virginia Senior Olympics
Cyclists get ready to race at the 2011 Northern Virginia Senior Olympics Got Oympic fever, but think you’re athletic days are over? If you’re 50 or over, you can compete in the 30th Northern Virginia Senior Olympics, Sept. 15-26. There are 40 events, including track and field, tennis, swimming, diving, bowling, table tennis, men’s basketball, … Continued
New signs explain Civil War events that happened near Annandale
A new sign in Mason District Park explains the significance of the area during the Civil War. Two interpretive signs were installed in the Annandale area June 20 to commemorate Civil War actions. A sign next to the parking lot in Mason District Park provides information about Mason’s Hill, a strategic location during the war, … Continued
Body found in Annandale Park
Fairfax County Police are trying to determine the identity of a man whose body was found in Annandale Community park near the Hidden Oaks Nature Center on June 21. The Office of the Medical Examiner performed an autopsy on June 22 and has not yet determined the cause and manner of death, but detectives do … Continued
Park Authority Board updates
The following report is the latest in a series of occasional updates about Fairfax County Park Authority Board matters by at-large member and Annandale/Falls Church area resident Marie Reinsdorf. Greetings! Since my last update in early January, the Fairfax County Park Authority Board voted to approve the following: The Park Authority Board approved an agreement … Continued
Name sought for Annandale stream that feeds into Accotink Creek
The “unnamed tributary” runs close to the Cross County Trail. Everyone who uses, enjoys, or lives near Wakefield Park is invited to suggest a name for one of the park’s small streams currently known as “Unnamed Tributary to Accotink Creek.” The stream begins east of the beltway, runs through a culvert at the entrance to … Continued
Skate plaza proposed for empty lot in central Annandale
The lot proposed for a skate plaza, with the ACCA building in the background. There’s a small, derelict lot in the center of Annandale, in between the fire station and the Annandale Christian Community for Action building on Columbia Pike, that would be a perfect spot for a skate plaza. There aren’t that many … Continued
White Horticultural Park was saved from development
There’s a “secret garden” in the Mason District, a 13.5-acre parcel of woods and meadow that will never be developed. For that, we can thank Margaret White for her generosity in selling her homestead to the Fairfax County Park Authority (FCPA) in 1999 for much less than she could have gotten from a developer … Continued
Scene around A-town: Bluebells
Bluebells along the Cross County Trail near Wakefield Park
How can Annandale be improved?
Little River Turnpike is not that pleasant for walking around We asked random people who live or work around here how they think Annandale can be improved. Almost everyone said they would like Annandale to be more pedestrian friendly. Here’s how one person put it: “Annandale needs to be more walkable, more like central Falls … Continued
Illegal dumping is a huge problem in Annandale parks
Trash found in the woods near Medford Drive, Annandale By Elizabeth Kirchner A drippy stack of soiled mattresses, spackle buckets brimming with larvae, dented metal drums seeping something you can smell. A mound of rotting baby clothes. This is what you’ll find in the maple and oak forests along Accotink Creek. This stream valley is … Continued