<sh>Free Carseat Inspections
<bt>Certified technicians from the Sully District Police Station will perform free, child safety carseat inspections, Thursday, Nov. 30, and Tuesday, Dec. 5, from 5-8:30 p.m. each day, at the station at 4900 Stonecroft Blvd. in Chantilly. They’ll make sure the carseat is correct for the child’s age, height and weight, the child is securely placed in the seat, and the seat is properly installed in the vehicle.
No appointment is necessary. But residents should install the child safety seats themselves, so the technicians may properly inspect and make adjustments, as necessary. Call the Sully District Child Seat Information line (703-814-7000, ext. 5140) to confirm dates and times. For additional child seat inspection times throughout Fairfax County, call the Fairfax County Operations Support Bureau at 703-280-0559.
<sh>Update on Bank Pad Site
<bt>Attorney David Gill returned last Tuesday, Nov. 21, to update members of the West Fairfax County Citizens Association (WFCCA) Land-Use Committee on plans for a bank pad site. It's planned for Centreville's Sully Station Shopping Center off Westfields Boulevard.
Representing the shopping center's landlord, JBG Rosenfeld, Gill said the landlord wants to amend the shopping center's proffered conditions to allow a drive-in bank. The 4,000-square-foot bank pad would be in front of the former Frank's Nursery building (now Ace Hardware).
Since PNC Bank may not be able to build on another site it was previously eyeing in Centreville, Gill said it's now considering leasing this pad site for its local branch.
After Gill first appeared before the WFCCA on Aug. 15, he met with the Sully Station Board of Trustees and apprised the members of the proposal. He said the new bank will be in substantial conformance with that shopping center's architecturals.
However, said WFCCA's Carol Hawn, "We have concerns about both pedestrian and traffic circulation there, and they said they'll continue working on it." Gill will come back to the WFCCA at least one more time before the matter goes to the county Planning Commission on Feb. 28.
<sh>Mount Zoar Plans Church Here
<bt>If all goes as planned, Mount Zoar Baptist Church will move from its home in Fairfax to a new one in Centreville. And last Tuesday, Nov. 21, its attorney, Steve Fox, shared details of the proposal with the West Fairfax County Citizens Association (WFCCA) Land-Use Committee.
The 200-member Mount Zoar is currently on Braddock Road in Fairfax and is selling its property to a nearby Coptic church that wants to expand. So Mount Zoar hopes to build a new, 16,265-square-foot church on Ordway Road.
It purchased nearly 6 acres there and would like to be in its new sanctuary by late 2008. Planned is a church with 450 seats and 131 parking spaces. However, it must first obtain a special permit from the county to construct a church in a residential area.
According to Fox, the site would have 55 percent open space but, since it's environmentally sensitive land, at least 50 percent of that space must remain undisturbed.
The special-permit request is slated to go before the county Board of Zoning Appeals (BZA), the morning of Dec. 19. But since that's the date of the next WFCCA meeting, that evening, the matter won't return again to the WFCCA unless the BZA defers its December hearing to a later date.
<sh>Connect With Your Community
<lst>Applications are now being accepted for the Centreville and Chantilly Neighborhood College program, scheduled for Saturday, Dec. 2 and Saturday, Jan. 6, from 9:30 a.m. until 2 p.m., at the Pennino Building, 12011 Government Center Parkway, Room 232, Fairfax.
These sessions, co-sponsored by the Department of Systems Management for Human Services and the Fairfax County Park Authority, provide education on how to collaborate with others who live or work in Fairfax County, to strengthen neighborhoods and build a strong sense of community. Through a combination of panel presentations, hands-on activities, group discussions and field work, the Neighborhood College will provide the opportunity to learn more about how local government works.
Space is limited and a free breakfast and lunch will be provided. Contact Paulette Whiteside at paulette.whiteside@fairfaxcounty.gov or 703-324-5285, TTY 711. Korean participants may contact Wang Bang at wang.bang@fairfaxcounty.gov or 703-324-8514, TTY 711. Visit www.fairfaxcounty.gov/news.
<sh>Meals on Wheels Needs Drivers
<bt>The Fairfax Area Agency on Aging "Meals on Wheels" program is in immediate need of drivers to deliver meals, Monday through Friday, to senior adults living in Fairfax County. Volunteers who speak Vietnamese are also needed.
The job involves picking up meals at specified sites between 10:30 a.m.-noon and delivering them to seniors by 1 p.m. Drivers may choose to deliver meals on a daily, weekly, biweekly, monthly or substitute basis. Call the Fairfax AAA Volunteer Intake Line at 703-324-5406 or e-mail melanie.mitchell@fairfaxcounty.gov.
<sh>Role Models for Children
<bt>Volunteers are needed throughout Northern Virginia to be positive role models for children who currently have an incarcerated parent. Mentors meet with children two hours per week. Weekly meetings are supplemented by monthly group recreational activities. The only qualification required is a desire to help a child in need.
To sign up for the mentor training session at the Center for Multicultural Human Services in Falls Church, call Ellen Klene, Volunteer Program manager, at 703-533-3302, ext. 107, or see www.cmhs.org.
<sh>Blood Donations are Sought
<bt>The Inova Blood Donor Center in the Centremed I Building on Route 29 in Centreville (across from the Centreville Multiplex Cinemas) is in urgent need of blood donations — especially O positive or negative, as well as A and B. They're accepted Tuesday-Friday, noon-8 p.m., and Saturday, 8 a.m.-2 p.m. For an appointment to give blood, call (703) 322-1970, or drop in at your own convenience.