It was an interesting year—2012. Derecho joined our vocabulary and we spent some time peering over a fiscal cliff, one that still threatens at this writing. With 2012 in the rearview mirror, here are some of its highlights.
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Springfield Mall’s renovation is one of the year’s top stories. While inside work has been going on since July, the late November demolition of the outside shell proved that the Mall was really on track. In 2009, the Board of Supervisors fast tracked the new mall owners’ (Vornado) plans and at my request assembled a team to expedite site plans and building permits. While the financial markets stagnated, so did the mall schedule. Now, with improved market conditions, the redevelopment is finally moving forward with Phase I. We’ve waited a long time for a revitalized place to dine and shop. The 700,000 sq feet of new stores, restaurants, and movie theaters will have a totally different look and feel from the old mall.
County Budget: In 2012 a better economic climate and our work over the past several years to maintain core services and trim the non-essential put us in a far better position than many other localities. We restored a good part of the human services safety net cut by the state budget, strengthened public safety, and restored some library hours. Today, however, uncertainty over the federal fiscal cliff and significant potential cuts at both the federal and the state level are concerns. My citizen budget committee will again study the budget and provide me with valuable input and I’d also welcome your thoughts on the budget priorities as well.
Transportation: Improvements to one of our worst bottlenecks—the intersection of Van Dorn Street, Telegraph Road, and South Kings Highway continue. Right of Way acquisition is done and utility relocation is underway. The completed project will include widening Telegraph Road and new turning lanes to improve traffic flow. Construction should begin this spring.
Mulligan Road is back on track after a lengthy bid protest and should be open to traffic in early 2014. This is the road near Hayfield Secondary School that will connect Telegraph Road to Route One near Fort Belvoir.
The Woodrow Wilson Bridge has been almost done since August—only a small amount of final surface pavement and roadway markings remain. With BRAC a reality, our success in working with Congressman Moran and other federal elected officials to get $180 million to widen Route 1 from Telegraph Road to Mount Vernon Memorial Highway is welcome. This will expand the existing four-lane road to six lanes, provide pedestrian and bicycle improvements, and leave space to accommodate future transit. Construction should begin in fall/winter 2013.
The 495 Express Lanes (Hot Lanes) opened in November making it a lot easier and safer to drive to Tysons and points west. This January, Connector bus service will be available to Tysons from Burke and in the spring, new Connector routes will open from Springfield/Saratoga to Tysons and from the Lorton VRE station to Tysons. This will be limited- stop direct express bus service—even during rush hour buses will travel on average 55 miles an hour.
We’ve made a number of pedestrian and bus stop improvements throughout the district.
Parks and Recreation: We’ve continued to grow our fully accessible family recreation area in Lee District Park, funded through a public-private partnership. In June, we opened the Tiki Village playground as part of Chessie’s Big Back Yard. It complements our spray park that opened in 2011.
