Groundbreaking Scheduled
<bt>Loudoun County Department of Parks, Recreation and Community Services (PRCS) will hold a groundbreaking ceremony for phase I of the new Dulles South Multipurpose Center Saturday, July 7, at 11 a.m.
Phase I of the project will replace the former Arcola Community Center with approximately 24,000 square feet for classrooms, meeting rooms, a large multi-purpose room, an activities room, indoor recreation area restrooms and offices. The projected completion date for phase I is summer 2008. A future phase II addition will include recreation and fitness areas, a gymnasium, an aquatic center and multi-purpose rooms.
The public is invited to attend the groundbreaking ceremony. The Dulles South Multipurpose Center is located at 24950 Riding Center Drive in South Riding. From Route 50 east or west, turn onto Loudoun County Parkway heading south. Turn right at Riding Center Dive. Continue past the intersection at Tall Cedars Parkway. The project site is located on the left past the storm water pond.
For more information, please call 703-777-0343.
<sh>New Laws in Effect
<bt>The Loudoun County Sheriff’s Office and the Department of Fire, Rescue and Emergency Management are reminding parents of the recent changes in the Virginia child-safety seat laws and a new measure regarding cell phone usage by provisional drivers.
The changes in the child-safety seat laws have increased the age requirements for child-restraint devices. Effective July 1, the age that children must be properly secured in a child-restraint device increases from 5 years to 8 years. Additionally, any rear-facing child restraint devices shall be placed in the back seat of a vehicle. If the vehicle does not have a back seat, the rear-facing child-restraint device may be placed in the front passenger seat only if the vehicle is either not equipped with a passenger-side airbag or the passenger side airbag has been deactivated.
Anyone interested in scheduling an appointment to have your child seat inspected, call a fire/rescue station in your area. Below are the stations in Loudoun County that provide inspections by appointment:
The Sheriff’s Office would also like to remind parents and teenage provisional drivers of a new measure regarding cell-phone usage while driving. The measure prohibits the use of cellular telephones or any other wireless telecommunication devices, whether or not they are hand-held, by drivers under 18-years-old while operating a motor vehicle.
<sh>Accidental Fire
<bt>A mid-afternoon structure fire Wednesday, June 27, that resulted in $250,000 damage to the commercial property located at 1323 Shepard Drive in Sterling was accidental. The Loudoun County Fire Marshal's Office stated that the fire was a result of smoking materials being discarded next to flammable liquid spraying operations.
Around 2 p.m., Loudoun County received a 911 call for a structure fire at 1323 Shepard Drive. Callers reported that there was smoke coming from the roof of the property. Fire units arrived on the scene to find heavy fire coming from a two-story spray finishing area of a furniture distributor. One person was checked out for possible smoke inhalation.
<sh>One Arrest
<bt>Members of the Sheriff’s traffic safety unit conducted a driving under the influence checkpoint Saturday, June 30, at South Lincoln Avenue and Jefferson Court in Sterling. The checkpoint started at 11 p.m. and was completed at 2:25 a.m., 136 cars passed through with eight drivers screened for possible impairment. 0ne driver was arrested for DUI. Three were cited for no valid operators license, one driver was cited for a child-seat violation and one subject was cited for a seatbelt violation.