City Council Meeting

Catherine Read15th, 2026 to order. If you are able and so choose, please rise for the Pledge of Allegiance. I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of

Speaker 5America and to the republic of which it stands, one nation, under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.

Catherine ReadAnd we will begin our proclamations by asking the Garden Club of Fairfax to come down proclamation. Alright, here we go. So,

Speaker 5the

Catherine ReadPresident, you're the President.

Speaker 5We'd be making a lot of money. Yes, I have a few. Wonderful.

Catherine ReadAll righty then. So important. Whereas. The Garden Club of Fairfax was founded on June 30, 1926, by 20 charter members with Mrs. Frederick D. Richardson serving as its first president. And from its earliest days, the club has been dedicated to beautifying and improving the community, including holding its first flower show at Old Town Hall in 1927 and serving as caretaker of the historic building for more than 20 years. And whereas the Garden Club of Fairfax joined the Garden Club of Virginia in 1935 and has spent a century promoting horticulture, conservation, environmental stewardship, and the preservation of Virginia's natural, historic, and cultural resources. And whereas club members have made significant contributions to the City of Fairfax through the planting of trees, creation of gardens, and beautification of community landmarks, including Old Town Hall, the Fairfax Museum, Germantown Cemetery, Fairfax City Cemetery, Blenheim, and other historic and civic sites.

And whereas the Garden Club of Fairfax has extended its service throughout Northern Virginia through numerous gardening, landscaping, conservation, and preservation projects, including work at Green Spring Gardens, Sully Plantation, Meadowlark Botanical Gardens, Mason Neck State Park, George Mason University, and other community institutions. And whereas Historic Garden Week in Virginia has been an important focus of the club, helping raise funds to preserve and enhance historic gardens and public landscapes throughout the Commonwealth, while showcasing historic homes and gardens within the city of Fairfax. And whereas for 100 years, the Garden Club of Fairfax has inspired generations to appreciate gardening, flower arranging, conservation, and the environment, leaving a lasting legacy of service and stewardship that continues to enrich the City of Fairfax and the Commonwealth of Virginia.

Now, therefore, I, Catherine S. Reed, Mayor of the City of Fairfax, do hereby recognize and celebrate the 100th anniversary of the Garden Club of Fairfax and extend the city's sincere appreciation to its members, past and present, for a century of service, beautification, conservation, education, and dedication to our community. And now I will turn the microphone over to the President. Thank you, Mayor Reed.

Speaker 10Mayor Reed, distinguished members of the Fairfax City Council and honored guests, on behalf of the Garden Club of Fairfax, thank you for this proclamation and recognition of our 100th anniversary. We are deeply honored to celebrate this milestone with you. Since our founding in 1926, our members have shared a belief that gardening brings people together and that caring for our natural surroundings strengthens our community. culture, education, conservation, historical preservation, generations of members have devoted their time and talent to making that belief a reality. As we celebrate our centennial, we honor the women whose vision and dedication built our club. We renew our commitment to those

who will follow us. Madam Mayor and members of the council, thank you for recognizing our legacy of service. We look forward to cultivating beauty, preserving history, and nurturing community for the next 100 years. Thank you. Thank you.

Speaker 5Thank you. Thank you. Another century. We appreciate this. I don't think we'll be here to see it.

Catherine ReadBut you're going to inspire

Speaker 5the next generation, right?

Catherine ReadAll right. I'm now going to ask Jennifer Rose, Executive Director of the Central Fairfax Chamber of Commerce, to come up so that we can talk about the local Chamber of Commerce Day. And she's got some of her ambassadors and board members here. Come on down, everyone. Her chamber is very important, very important. Oh, there you go. I see that. I see that. Come on down and join us. All right. We love our chamber. I just want to say that even before the proclamation, this city loves its chamber of commerce. So I appreciate you all be here. Ready? Okay. Whereas. Chambers of commerce strive to address the community's top challenges and greatest opportunities through bold leadership and innovative problem solving.

And whereas Chambers of Commerce fosters stronger, more vibrant communities by advocating for priorities to promote economic prosperity, enhance quality of life, and create access to meaningful employment and opportunity for all residents. And whereas the Central Fairfax Chamber of Commerce is a champion of the City of Fairfax and surrounding Fairfax County, serving as a trusted resource for business, residents, and other stakeholders. And whereas the Central Fairfax Chamber of Commerce creates catalytic community partnerships to build resilient economies and promote community-wide prosperity. And whereas 27 small business owners established the Courthouse Square Businessmen's Association, now known as the Central Fairfax Chamber of Commerce, in 1958.

And whereas over the decades the Central Fairfax Chamber of Commerce inaugurated many traditional events around the City of Fairfax, including the Chocolate Lovers Festival. And whereas the Central Fairfax Chamber of Commerce has become a valued partner of the City of Fairfax and Fairfax City Economic Development, supporting impactful programs such as Civic Connections, the National Civics B, Fairfax City Restaurant Week, Small Business Saturday, and numerous small business initiatives. And whereas the Central Fairfax Chamber of Commerce and the Fairfax City Economic Development Director have invested in the professional development of Executive Director Jennifer Rose, enabling her to earn her Institute for Organization Management, IOM, designation from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce,

and a certificate in Chamber Management from the Association of Chamber of Commerce Executives. And whereas the Central Fairfax Chamber of Commerce has grown to nearly 400 members strong since 2018, Now, therefore, I, Catherine S. Reed, Mayor of the City of Fairfax, do hereby proclaim October 21, 2026, as support your local Chamber of Commerce Day in the City of Fairfax and encourage residents to learn more about their local chamber, its impact, and support of local businesses. And with that, I will now turn it over to Jennifer Rose.

Jennifer RoseThank you, Mayor Reed. We love the city probably more than you love the chamber. that we have with the City of Fairfax and with Fairfax County. I've always joked and say for nearly 70 years, we're not quite as old as the Garden Club. We have served the City of Fairfax and its suburbs. And, you know, our home is here, our heart is here, and we appreciate the partnership that we've had with the City. We added into the proclamation, I know there's so many whereases in there, but the professional development that I've been able to take advantage of in the last two years was because of our relationship with the city. So I am grateful that you have helped make me a better leader for our community and for the nearly 400 members that are a part of our Chamber of Commerce.

So thank you very much. And thank you very much. And a photo.

Speaker 5Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.

Catherine ReadAll right. I'm going to ask Leslie Abashian of our Human Services Director, Malika Walters, of our response team and representatives of SafeSpot. And I think we have some of our law enforcement people here in the back too if you'd like to come down while we talk about domestic violence awareness month. Only if you want to. This is a very, very serious topic. And we are all, I know I'm wearing my, somebody was nice enough to leave me this wonderful bracelet. End domestic violence and break the silence. Thank you, ladies. Whereas, Domestic Violence Awareness Month has been observed during the month of October for over 30 years, with the goal to increase awareness of this pervasive crime and provide support to survivors in our communities.

And whereas the 2026 Domestic Violence Awareness Month theme, With Survivors Always, builds upon the importance of safety, support, and solidarity by calling on communities to move from awareness to action and stand with survivors in meaningful and lasting ways. And whereas, according to the National Domestic Violence Hotline, one in four children witnessed violence in intimate partner violence cases filed in state courts, leaving a lasting impact on their lives and increasing their vulnerability to abuse and neglect. And whereas we celebrate programs that provide support to individuals experiencing domestic violence and embodies what it means to take action, and whereas Safe Spot Children's Advocacy Center has partnered with child welfare agencies and law enforcement to conduct forensic interviews,

crisis intervention, and offer mental health support to help victims and non-offending family members. And whereas Safe Spot Children's Advocacy Center focuses on helping children who have experienced abuse or witnessed violence, including domestic violence, and use a multidisciplinary approach to minimize the impact of trauma. And whereas by raising awareness, we can play a vital role in breaking the cycle of violence by being a caring adult to a child, promote health relationships and environments. Now, therefore, I, Catherine S. Reed, Mayor of the City of Fairfax, do hereby proclaim the month of October as Domestic Violence Awareness Month in the City of Fairfax and encourage us as a community

to create a compassionate and safe environment for survivors to be able to share their experiences, lift their voices, and seek adequate support. And I think I'm turning it over to you from Safe Spots.

Lindsay KerverThank you. Thank you, Mayor Reed and City Council members for shining a light on this really important issue. My name is Lindsay Kerver. I'm the Clinical Director at Safe Spot Children's Advocacy Center, and we are a nonprofit organization in Fairfax that provides safe, supportive environment and specialized services for children who have experienced abuse or witnessed violence. And we know that abuse and domestic violence are so interconnected, and we see that at Safe Spot every day, see the impact this has on children and families every day. And we feel very firmly that children and families deserve a response that promotes healing while pursuing safety and justice, which is what we do at SafeSpot. As Mayor Reed mentioned, we bring together law enforcement,

child protective services, prosecutors, victim advocates, mental health professionals to ensure children do not have to navigate multiple systems alone. Through all of our services, forensic interviews, trauma-focused therapy, family advocacy, we help children and families begin the healing process and access the support they need to move forward. So on behalf of everyone at SafeSpot and all of our multidisciplinary partners, thank you for recognizing this connection between domestic violence and child abuse and for highlighting the needs of children affected by violence in their homes. Your leadership strengthens awareness, supports a and reinforces our shared commitment to ensuring that every child has the safety,

support, and opportunity to thrive. So thank you. Thank you.

Speaker 5Thank you so much. Thank you.

Catherine ReadI appreciate all of you. Okay, I'm now going to ask, this is a big group, the City's Parks and Rec Fire Department and representatives of the Kiwanis Lions Club, Women's Club, and Volunteer Fire Department members. And so everybody's going to come down, and we're going to talk about this next proclamation around sudden cardiac awareness. month. We had a nonprofit who came into the city and put an AED at Draper Drive Park, and that inspired an outpouring of organizations who were like, let us put these AEDs around the city where they are easily accessible to people who are experiencing a sudden cardiac arrest. And for those of you who are not aware that it's different from a heart attack, A sudden cardiac arrest is just your heart stops.

It's very different from a heart attack. And so my grandfather, my uncle, and my first cousin all died of sudden cardiac arrest, and they all died at home. And so this is something that we want to make sure that people are aware that these AEDs dramatically increase the possibility that if someone has a sudden cardiac arrest and they are near an AED, CPR, and using this tool that so many of these organizations have placed around our city become incredibly important to the survival rate. So that's just the next one. Okay, now the proclamation. Whereas sudden cardiac arrest is the leading cause of death and can happen to individuals of any age, often without warning or previously recognized heart disease,

And whereas immediate recognition of cardiac arrest and prompt action, including calling 911, performing cardiopulmonary resuscitation, CPR, and using an automated external defibrillator, AED, can significantly improve a person's chance of survival. And whereas increasing public awareness and education about the signs of sudden cardiac arrest and the importance of knowing CPR and AED use can help save lives. And whereas communities, schools, workplaces, health care providers, first responders, and families all play an important role in promoting cardiac health, emergency preparedness, and access to life-saving resources. And whereas recognizing Sudden Cardiac Awareness Month provides an opportunity to encourage residents to learn CPR,

become familiar with the location and use of AEDs, and understand the importance of responding quickly during a cardiac emergency. And whereas the City of Fairfax encourages its residents, businesses, organizations, and community partners to increase awareness of sudden cardiac arrest and take steps to become better prepared to respond to a cardiac emergency. Now, therefore, I, Catherine S. Reed, Mayor of the City of Fairfax, do hereby proclaim October as Sudden Cardiac Awareness Month in the City of Fairfax and encourage all residents to learn more about cardiac health, CPR, and AED use to help build a safer and more prepared community. to the fire. That's Sean Dunstan, our

Sean Dunstanstaffacting fire chief. Thank you, ma'am. Thank you, Mayor. First, I just want to personally thank Chief Orndolph. He, Director Summerfield, asked for help with this initiative, and he really ignited it. He reached out to these groups, and it really took off. So thank you for that. I just want to publicly acknowledge him. And then real quick, before I turn it over to him to say a couple words, I wanted to thank all of you very much. Stacy's going to thank you again, but it's a huge deal. It's one of the things that I really love about the city of Fairfax is staff and the community will always come together to improve safety in our community, and this is just one of those initiatives. So it makes me very proud to be here in the city of Fairfax.

Speaker 17Thank you, Chief. As the mayor said, AEDs are an essential life-saving piece of equipment for us to have for treating somebody that's in sudden cardiac arrest. Although your fire departments and police departments do carry AEDs, putting these AEDs out in the public really decreases the time it takes to get that critical treatment to a person in need. Actually, just this past week, we actually had a public access AED be used in the public, and it did save a life. That person's still in the hospital, but if it wasn't for that public access AED, that person likely would not have survived. these can benefit. And expansions due to the gracious donations of these clubs and people in the city really helps put these AEDs in some of our highest use public spaces such

as parks. So just want to mention it. Thank you. No problem.

Speaker 11That's me. I want to echo everything that has been said previously and to confirm what the mayor said a few months ago we celebrated the placing of the first AED in the city and then through the remarkable generosity of our community, the generosity of the Women's Club, the Kiwanas, the Lions, an anonymous city donor, and the volunteer fire department. We're going to have seven AED units available in the community by the end of the year, which is an incredible expansion of the program. And I just want to thank FIRE for promoting it so much. So just a huge win for all of us. Thank you. Okay.

Catherine ReadAnd they're cool pins. Sneakers the Fox is holding an AED. And so Parks and Rec has pins for those who really want to, you know, talk about Sneakers the Fox as our mascot for AEDs. Now we're going to have a photo.

Speaker 5Okay. Okay. Thank you. Everybody's got some windshield. Short people in the front. Short people in the front. Okay. I'm sorry.

Thomas PetersonClose enough?

Speaker 5Yeah. Can I have the front row? And a big smile. Thank you. All right. Thank you. We will fight amongst ourselves. Okay, fight amongst ourselves. Thank you.

Ms. Shinneberryclerkwe can move on to the adoption of the agenda is

Catherine Readthere a motion to approve the agenda councilmember Hardy Chandler I move to adopt the agenda as presented second the motion has been made and seconded a roll call vote

Ms. Shinneberryclerkcouncilmember Amos aye councilmember Hall I councilmember Hardy Chandler councilmember Bates? Aye. Council Member McQuillan? Aye. Motion passed unanimously. We will go on to initial general public comment. This is for any speakers that sign up by 5 o'clock p.m. today, which I have one speaker, and that would be Doug Cox.

Mr. AlexanderstaffWow,

Doug Coxpublic commentall by myself. Hello, Doug Cox, Fairview. All right, I want to say real quick a few good things. City Manager Alexander, you know, I sent a thing to everyone. He got back to me. Really appreciate it. It's been a couple years since people gave me comprehensive responses. team I saw on city scene their award top 50 I know a guy does that stuff in Prince William County that's tough humping good job for them and Fairfax City Fire Department say to the chief but had a neighbor of my girlfriend have an accident bust her head open and they went above and beyond took care of her and great stuff great stuff now that said this city has a lot of really really good people we have a lot of really really good events things should be better because unfortunately

you look at the aggregate kind of a failing city all right i've already gone into depth in the past four straight tax increases six percent over four years 35 percent increase to real estate all told over the last four years uh kind of middling schools i hate to say that but look at their ratings rankings they're kind of you know 12 out of 28 whatever you know it's not bad not great um you know and unfortunately our economy is not looking so good uh you look around the city look at the commercial stuff so here's one great event car show there's our great park downtown and uh our mascot the homeless person laying there taking a nap which is pretty much every park in the city library etc etc you know where that doesn't happen pretty much everywhere

else okay go to clifton doesn't happen false church doesn't happen go to fairfax city have some person that's sitting out there randomly going blah blah blah hey hey it's not cool you know someone needs to do something about it maybe someone talked to lamb center where did all these people come from in the last three years all right their van's been seen down in southeast dc tell me these people are from this area hogwash all right stop it so here we are downtown that same day We all know this intersection. It's called Vacancy Alley, Samson Properties. Why they can't keep a person in that or tenant in there? I don't know. CPA, the next corner. Hey, reliable tenant, not exactly a draw to the city.

And right above that, you'll see the ever-popular lease. Next corner, lease. Everything is lease or vacant, it seems like. So let's go down the spine of Fairfax City astronomically. And we have, oh, Amazon Fresh, empty. And the adjacent, empty. Guys, this is fail, fail, fail. Got to do better than that. All right. Now I'm going to do the hard truth. Oh, I'm already down. We just got to do better, folks. Got to do better. Next time I show up, it'll be personnel in the sites, okay? Things like benches getting fixed. Let's do a little something. Thank you

Ms. ShinneberryclerkWe can go on to the consent agenda.

Catherine ReadAre there any questions on any of the items on the consent agenda? Mayor Reed? Yes. Council Member Hall.

Stacy HallI would like to request that we discuss the item referring to, what number is it? Part of the appropriations, I think, right?

Catherine ReadC. Item C, please. okay so so that's the next question are there any items council would like pulled from this consent agenda it sounds like you are suggesting 6c I

Stacy Halldon't need it pulled I just would like to have a discussion on item C

Catherine Readokay mr. Lubcomen

Brian Lokemanstaffagain if it's just a little information and some questions without pulling it I think it's perfectly appropriate for

Catherine Readokay so mr. Martinez thank

Mr. Martinezstaffyou mayor Director Ms. Riddle is coming up to give a quick brief summary on item C.

Gwen Riddlestaffby voiceGood evening, Mayor and Council. So, Council Member Hall, I don't know if you have a specific question or just one overview.

Stacy HallI was just hoping for an overview. I know we discussed this last week at our work session. I don't specifically have any questions, but I'd just like to bring these items to light. Thank you.

Gwen Riddlestaffby voiceAbsolutely. So, the supplemental appropriation has two items in it. One is to use $542,524 from our balance sheet, our previously received proffers, and use that to fund the housing trust fund that was approved on September 22nd. The second item is to create a separate schools fund. this does not change the funding for schools all it does is represent the accounting of how it's already being accounted for in our financial results and making our budget match so it's a zero effect to city overall but it will be a decrease to the general fund and schools will have their own funding amount

Stacy HallI thank you for that and I think that's a very important very helpful and I know something the school board has been asking for for quite some time including when councilmember McCullen and I served and this is in line with ACFA and all the other things that are needed and I understand correctly our auditor was actually happy that this was to be done absolutely congratulations to the finance team then for doing that making it happen and just for being transparent about it absolutely thank

Catherine Readyou you're welcome a council member Peterson before you run off

Speaker 5could

Thomas Petersonyou just be a little bit more specific about before that everybody's benefit about the exact source of those state and local revenues what are they

Gwen Riddlestaffby voicefor the for the schools

Thomas Petersonattributed to schools

Gwen Riddlestaffby voiceokay attributed to schools we the local revenue is money we get back from Fairfax County Public Schools on their students in our buildings so that's a rental fee that we get back the state revenue is any state revenue that normally goes to us to school system comes directly to the city so there's two basic school aid and I believe a sales tax that's school dedicated already

Thomas Petersongreat so this is really just a little bit of a clarification and improvement on some line-item accounting

Gwen Riddlestaffby voiceit the line item accounting is correct it's where it's placed on the general ledger so I just want to say we were have always accounted for correctly it's just been put into the general fund for budgeting in our financial system not for official reporting

Thomas Petersongot it thanks

Catherine Readexactly any other discussion on 6c Okay, seeing none. Is there a motion to approve the consent agenda, Council Member Hardy-Chandler?

Stacey Hardy-ChandlerI move to approve the consent agenda, items 6A through D, as presented, and the accompanying motions in the staff

Catherine Readreports.

Thomas PetersonSecond.

Catherine ReadA motion's been made by Council Member Hardy-Chandler and seconded by Council Member Peterson. A roll call vote.

Ms. ShinneberryclerkCouncil Member McQuillan? Aye. Council Member Bates?

Catherine ReadAye.

Ms. ShinneberryclerkCouncil Member Peterson?

Catherine ReadAye.

Ms. ShinneberryclerkCouncil Member Hardy-Chandler? Aye. I councilmember Amos I motion passed unanimously we will now go on to public hearings we only have one public hearing which is a public hearing and consideration of a resolution authorizing the exercise of quick take powers to include the initiation of common condemnation proceedings for the acquisition of certain fee simple rights of way and easements on various properties for the Cambridge Road sidewalk and bus stop improvement project imprints upc 119089 i'm going to recognize brian lokeman our city attorney to provide the staff report

Brian Lokemanstaffthank you and good evening mayor and council we have a detailed staff report in the package so i'm not going to read it verbatim mr summers mr sarna here if you have any questions about the project itself or any of the aspects of the item before you this evening but as the staff The staff report notes, this resolution, the public hearing and the resolution if approved, would authorize the exercise of what's known as quick take powers to acquire certain needed fee simple rights of way and easements in connection with the Chambers Road sidewalk and bus stop improvement project. Just by way of information in planning the project, it was determined that the total number of parcels that required right of way were 11.

And of those 11, there were 17 unique owners. Of the 11 parcels and 17 owners, the city has reached agreement on eight parcels of 14 unique owners. So there are three parcels remaining and offers have been tendered, discussions have been ongoing. We have not been able to reach agreement with these property owners. As I've said before, when we have these matters that come before you, this is a function of the fact that we need to move the project forward. Funding is available at certain times and the ability to spend it. But we will continue to have discussions with each of the property owners. The goal is always to reach a final agreement. And what QuickTake does is it enables municipalities that have this authority to acquire the rights

of way needed. The ultimate compensation still remains open for discussion and final evaluation. So with that, we're happy to answer any questions. But we are recommending both obviously conducting the public hearing this evening, but approving the resolution this evening as well so that we can proceed. Thank you very much. any questions. MS.

Catherine ReadQuestions? Council Member Hall.

Stacy HallFor each of the three remaining properties, are you able to tell us what remains unresolved? I said you said you weren't able to reach them, but is it a conversation? Is it access, something else?

Brian LokemanstaffIt's conversations. It's not simply as simple as in most of these cases because we do pride ourselves on working with property owners. It's not simply the bare minimum, the value of the take based on a formula. It's also things such as landscaping, other effects upon the property, the impact of construction. We try to make the property owners as comfortable as possible with the process, not only of the acquisition of the rights away, but also how the process will work during construction. And a prime example of that, you'll see the ongoing Blenheim project where we continue to have discussions with property owners. So it's not one size fits all. It's not one matter open. One of the properties, I won't go into the details, but one of the properties we only

recently got a response to request to acquire the right of way. And so that process will move forward as well. But these projects all reach a point where you just need to proceed or you need to decide not to do the project. But in this project, this project has a lot of value. I will note for the record, we did receive two emails from residents, not from these three supporting the project and actually encouraging the City Council to proceed this evening, those are made a part of the record as well. Those are the only communications we've had from property owners on this project.

Stacy HallOkay. And when you say we, do you, I received those two emails. I also, while out door knocking, did receive a lot of support from residents in the various, you know, shoot off neighborhoods that were very excited about this. I still don't like the quick take process. I understand it's legal and we're allowed to do it.

Brian LokemanstaffWe don't like it either.

Stacy HallI know. So I guess from your perspective, because we, I believe, as council members have not heard from any of the property owners that are concerned or have not agreed to move forward yet. So we don't really know enough to know

Brian Lokemanstaffanything. Each of these parcels have representatives, whether it's legal or otherwise speaking, on their behalf. They have consultants that are assisting them in the project. Again I think the city believes that there's significant merit to this project. It's a piece of the sidewalk network that's been lacking, especially on that side of the street. But again it's nothing, we can go into a lot of detail in a public meeting about the nature of negotiations. But we do not like to do quick take. We certainly don't like to do quick take on residential properties. But there are just our occasions where we have to. as well most of those even the ones that we went through a quick take process we ended up reaching agreements with the property owners that's always the goal

Stacy Hallokay thank you for clarifying just want to make sure that residents know that they are being heard so it sounds like they are we're just still in negotiations thank you councilmember McQuillan

Rachel McQuillenthis isn't a question this is more of a comment I too was door knocking in that neighborhood and there's a new family there a family that just had a new baby and the mother specifically wants that connection because she cannot walk safely with her child into the downtown area. So I just wanted to relay that to you all as well because I hadn't heard anyone who had an issue with this project. Thank you.

Catherine ReadCouncil Member Amos.

Anthony AmosI'd also echo that. I've heard from residents, specifically those with disabilities who'd like improved access as well. The only question I had was, do you have a general idea of what the timeline was in terms of outreach and if possible number of times of outreach to the residents just so if that's available.

Brian LokemanstaffAre you speaking specifically about the three that remain? Yes. We are in contact with each of those residents. It's not the one I just mentioned where we had a recent contact. There's been significant contact with the residents. It's not a matter of not being able to reach them. It's a question of reaching agreement on the terms. I figured that was the case. I just wanted to clarify. Thank you.

Thomas PetersonCouncil Member Peterson? What's the timing in terms of when we need to get a decision to be able to advance the project and not impair our timeline? In other words, do we need to do this tonight or is it two

Brian Lokemanstaffweeks? There is a reason we are pushing this forward this evening because it's not simply the approval of the resolution and you've acquired the right-of-way. There are the notices that need to go out. There's a time lag with that as well. while we are trying to get the right-of-way phase concluded in time to make maximum available use of both the project timing and the funds available. So there's an intentionality to why this is on this evening, and there's an equal intentionality as to why we're asking for action this evening as well.

Thomas PetersonOkay. So really helpful to know because this is a case where if that were not the case, there may be a case for us not taking action the same night as a hearing, but I'm hearing that that's something we need to do in order to advance the project. The other thing is I will just share in the feedback that others have provided. I am familiar with this area and was actually over there at a national night out talking with a lot of people. So there's a lot of support for this and really appreciate the need for the project and the need to move forward. And I would just note this is part of a bigger picture of staying on top of road safety in the city. And there are a number of locations where these kinds of projects are important.

So being able to spot these and advance them to the extent possible, being proactive and comprehensive about this would be a big help. Because I am hearing from a lot of people in the city that they are concerned about locations like this. So I have no objection to proceeding with that understanding. Thanks. Any other questions

Catherine Reador comments of staff? Okay. I will open the public hearing. Ms. Shinneberry, has this public hearing been properly advertised?

Ms. ShinneberryclerkYes, it has. I had one person sign up to speak, and I will call the speaker up, and then we'll open the floor if there's anybody else that wants to speak on this item. So our first speaker is Robert Matz.

Robert Matzpublic commentThanks for your time. My wife and I live at 3738 Cambridge Road on the corner of Cambridge and Center Street. We are one of the eight property owners who have come to terms with the city and felt it was a really good process. We feel like we got a very reasonable compensation and great support. So we're very happy. And we very much urge that you not lose the opportunity to do this project. I can tell you personally that the lack of a sidewalk and also a crosswalk at Center Street means one way or another we have to walk into Cambridge Road. We either have to cross it without a crosswalk to get to the side with the sidewalk or we have to walk in the margin of the road. The situation is even worse for our daughter who is in a wheelchair.

When she visits we have to sometimes stop traffic or you know because we push her a It's a little slow across the street. Our side of the street is inaccessible to her, to a wheelchair. And in addition to the danger, the experience really leaves her feeling like people don't care about those in, who have limited mobility. And there are also kids in strollers, and I suspect that my neighbor is the person Council woman McQuillan talked to, but they've asked me to share. This is Lindsay and Michael Gonzalez who live one house down for us on Center Street, 10502. Their wish that this project move expeditiously. They have an infant and they struggle with exiting the streak because of the lack of crosswalk and sidewalk.

Lindsay tells me she's had to face cars that come speeding over that hill to the north slipped or nearly slipped on the margins without sidewalks. It's a very tight space if you've ever, right where the Stafford Inn is.

Sean DunstanstaffAnd I agree,

Robert Matzpublic commentthe current situation, forcing people into Chamber Road, it's even worse between Cedar and Center Street. It feels like an accident waiting to happen. And I hope you will be able to move to prevent that. And finally, right now, all the unimproved areas, trash and are an eyesore. On the other hand, once there's a sidewalk, there's going to be a great accessibility from the projects that are going from the north and for everybody who you've talked to in the neighborhood who want that access. So I believe the city has been very fair about this and I hope you will proceed with the Quick Take resolution. Thank you.

Ms. ShinneberryclerkIs there anybody else in the room that would like to speak on this item?

Catherine Readall right I will just say one thing before I ask for the motion and that is four years ago when I initially ran for mayor the two things I said the city needed more of was sidewalks and bathrooms and it's been four years and we still have a long way to go on both but I appreciate the support from people who understand that it improves the quality of life including the people who are losing some of their property understand that it's in the best interest of the entire city and for for people visiting and for students to have these kind of sidewalks built so i appreciate the support and with that i will ask is there a motion council member hardy chandler thank

Stacey Hardy-Chandleryou i move that the city council adopt the presented resolution as attached to the staff report and considered at this meeting following required public hearing authorizing the exercise of quick powers to include the initiation of condemnation proceedings for the acquisition of certain fee simple rights of way and easements on the various properties for the chain bridge sidewalk and bus stop improvement project UPC 119089.

Thomas PetersonSecond.

Catherine ReadA motion has been made by Council Member Hardy Chandler and seconded by Council Member Peterson. Is there any discussion on the motion? Seeing none roll call vote

Ms. Shinneberryclerkcouncilmember Amos aye councilmember Hall aye councilmember Hardy Chandler aye councilmember Peterson aye councilmember Bates aye councilmember McQuillan

Rachel McQuillenaye

Ms. Shinneberryclerkmotion passed unanimously we will now go to second general public comment is there anybody in the room that would like to make a general public comment that was not a public hearing item tonight okay

Catherine Readall right seeing none I will now recess the regular meeting to go into a work session we will stay in council chambers our

Ms. Shinneberryclerkone work session item tonight is a discussion on an ordinance to grant charitable real estate tax exemption for the property located at three eight five zero Germantown Road Fairfax Virginia two two oh three oh and more particularly described as tax map parcel 57-1-02-003 owned by Nova Labs Incorporation. I'm going to recognize Sherman Lambert, our Real Estate Assessment Director, for the staff presentation.

Speaker 5Thank you. You're welcome. Find the cursor. There we go.

Sherman LambertstaffAppreciate it. Thank you. Thank you. Okay. Good evening. Mayor, members of the council, I don't believe I've had the pleasure to meet any of you yet, so I will briefly introduce myself. My name is Sherman Lambert. I'm the new real estate assessment director. I come from Washington, D.C., where I was there for 11 years, and before that, Prince William County, where I was there for a decade almost.

Doug Coxpublic commentIt's a pleasure to

Sherman Lambertstaffbe here. I look forward to serving you and the residents of the city. And I'll go ahead and get started. So we are here tonight for the real estate tax exemption application of Nova Labs. It's a discussion on an ordinance to grant charitable real estate tax exemption for the property known at 3850 Germantown Road, Fairfax, Virginia, 22030. and their tax parcel map number is 57-1-02-003. Nova Labs is a nonprofit organization that operates a community maker space that provides members of the public with access to tools, equipment, technology, training, educational programming designed to promote creativity, skills, innovation, and collaborative learning. NOVA Lab's mission is to create a place that enables people to share in fearless exploration,

hands-on learning, entrepreneurship, and creative expression. Again, some of their additional works that they do are woodworking, metalworking, electronics, robotics, 3D printing. It's a plethora of different things that they do in their facility, which is quite impressive. A review of and approval of their statutory compliance was done through their application and statement submissions. Nova Lab has met the requirements under Virginia State Code Section 58.1-3651 for real estate tax exemption. under that particular section of the code, there are roughly eight items where you look to make sure that they qualify, which I'll go through briefly. The last two I will save for different parts of the slide later on.

But the first one is whether the organization is exempt from taxation, and they are pursuant to Section 501C of the Internal Revenue Code. The second is whether a current annual alcoholic beverage license has been issued by the Board of Directors of the Virginia Alcohol and Beverage Control Authority. It has not. The third is whether any part of the net earnings of such organization ignores to the benefit of an individual and through their submissions it does not. Whether the organization provides services for the common good of the public, it's our opinion they do. Whether a substantial part of the activities of the organization involves carrying on propaganda or otherwise attempting to influence legislation.

And whether the organization participates in or intervenes in any political campaign on behalf of any candidate or public office, they do not. And the last two I will leave off because they will be covered in additional slides. But before I move on to the next slide, I do also want to state that their exemption, they are applying for exemption by designation. And the ordinance in the city code also states along with the state law that specific use on which the exemption is based and the continuation of the exemption shall be contingent on the continued use of the property in accordance with the purpose for which the organization is designated. So they will also need to continue to keep that property in its current use to continue on with that particular designation.

and we have recommended a date of effective date of June 1, which is also covered in the City of Fairfax Municipal Code, Chapter 90, Article 12, Section 90-445, effective date, which states that unless otherwise directed by City Council, the grant of tax exemption under this section shall be effective from the date that the owner began using the property purposes specified in the statutes referenced therein. And for this particular property, it wouldn't necessarily be from the point of when they were in use, but from the point of when they qualified. We'll move on to the next slide so you can particularly see that there was a specific issue that was holding up their application prior to June 1st, which was that they had

an income producing lease and I believe it was middle of September of this year that they submitted a early lease termination agreement which basically resolved the issue. There was a similar real estate tax relief application that was done, the last time it was done was November 2022. And the city's real estate tax exemption committee met on September 30th. 2026 and recommends that the City Council consider advancing the ordinance for consideration and public hearing. The committee concurs with the applicant regarding the direct and indirect value they provide to the city through programs and education, youth programs, resources, facilities, and support to small businesses which we believe outweigh their tax revenue.

I'd just like to take a moment to speak to a little bit of their works and speak to that. So ranging from zip codes 22030 to 22033, they have this year had over 1,300 classes and events. 10% of their participants are city residents. 23% of their paid members reside within the city. And 25% of youth robotics participants reside in the city as well. And 21% of their Maker School students also reside in the city. And of all of their courses, of those 1300 courses and events, at least one city resident was a part of 35% of those events and classes. So they definitely have community engagement, and they have also had some programmatic reach to Fairfax High School, and I believe they have somewhere between 15 and 20 students

that are participating in a robotics program within their facility. last thing I'll say before I move on to the next slide actually is I did some research to they are part of the Camp Washington small area plan and more specifically I believe it's called Kuttner Park Hub and that particular parcel it doesn't have it's not designated for any So we're not talking about taking away a parcel that would be subject to or envisioned for the short-term or long-term plan for additional density. And also, it meets the first goal of that particular small area plan, which is to cultivate memorable spaces. It has a distinct visual facade on the front of the building that helps to, what's it called, the pedestrian prioritized zone, I believe is what it's called, right with their particular parcel is identified as and it fits right in line with that particular zone.

And it also fits with the future use and the planning of that particular area. Moving back to the requirements from the state code, number seven would have been the revenue impact assessment. The projected annualized revenue impact to the city will be roughly a little bit more than $60,000, $60,363.58 for this particular tax year. That calculation was arrived using an assessment of $5,040,800 and taking that divided by 100 and then timesing that by a combined rate, which is just the base rate of 1.0725 plus the commercial and industrial 12.5 cent add-on to the tax rate. Nova Labs is also current on all its city obligations. Moving on. So for a summary, Nova Labs has met applicable city and state requirements for real estate

tax exemption. The annual revenue impact would be a little bit more than $60,000. More specifically for this current 2026 tax year, $60,363.58. There was a similar type of application last approved for Pathway Homes in November of 2022. Anticipated community impact, the organization provides a multifunctional facility for members of the community designed to fabricate technical industrial works and incubator offices and shops that give access to advanced machinery and tools. it's our opinion that it would be difficult to find another or for the city to replace that kind of facility and to do it without significant investment. They also have volunteers that provide educational programs through classes, training, and hands-on

workshops. The staff recommendation prepared from the submitted materials is that the City's real estate tax exemption committee recommends that City Council consider advancing the ordinance for consideration and public hearing. And last but not least, I believe it was Councilmember Hall that you requested we look into a more more comprehensive view of the charitable tax exemptions of everyone within the city, every organization that receives that exemption in the city. The city currently has nine charitable organizations receiving exemptions representing $514,397. And that's a representation of the annual revenue foregone. We projected that out at a 3% assessment growth over the next five years with the tax rate remaining constant.

And you can see that it ends on 2031 with the projected revenue foregone of $604,690, which represents roughly a $90,293 increase over that term. That is pretty much all I have unless there are any questions. that i could answer thank

Catherine Readyou so much for the presentation councilmember hardy chandler

Stacey Hardy-Chandleryes thank you for the presentation i just want to start out by saying i am so proud that this exists in our city if you go there and take a tour you know the benefit that our city and neighbors who participate in that gain from having that available and the classes and just the enthusiasm of Everyone who's involved with Nova Labs, this is something that is a jewel in our city's crown, I think. And when we talk about, first of all, you went through the eligibility requirements for exemption. They're in more detail in your report, honing in on the benefit to the city. There's no doubt in my mind that we are getting much more out of this than what the exemption represents. I also appreciate your discussion of the alignment with the small area plan.

I think that's a very important point to highlight. If you could just clarify a little bit about the income-producing lease and what happened with that, and I'm glad to hear that that was taken care of, but if you could explain that a little bit more. Sure.

Sherman LambertstaffI am not certain of when the application came in. A little bit more than a month, but they had, Nova Labs had an income producing lease. I believe the name of the tenant was Sundog Productions, LLC. And they had a lease that was running, I believe, through either, I believe to the next year. But they received an early lease termination which they submitted to the tax committee on which their lease ended May 30th of 2026. so hence the effective date for the exemption of June 1st of 2026 and

Stacey Hardy-Chandlerthank you for that clarification I support this exemption and on top of that encourage everyone to support Nova Labs and visit it and see all of the wonderful things that are happening there thank you

Catherine Readcouncilmember Peterson

Thomas Petersonyeah I'd actually like to build on the last two sets of questions and also agree this is things. If you could maybe build a little bit on the timeline for this. I think it's on slide five. And based on what you just said, my understanding, but please correct me if I don't get this right. The table indicates that the facility has been in operation since 2024 and I can't it looks like maybe September 2024 is it the case that it operated because of the income producing lease essentially as a for-profit entity until recently and it's only after the termination of that lease that then it converted over to a nonprofit entity that and at that point an exemption was sought is that how this timeline works

Sherman Lambertstaffagain I am not certain when the initial was submitted because I was not here for that. But what I can tell you about the determination of the lease was under Virginia Code Section 58.1-3603, it deals with, I guess, income-reducing a lease with that. So I'll just read a portion of that to you. When a part but not all of any such building or land, however, is a source of revenue or profit and the remainder of such building or land is used by any organization exempted from taxation pursuant to the chapter, to this chapter for its purposes. Only such portion as is a source of profit or revenue shall be liable for taxation. So more or less that lease was preventing them from moving forward with this tax exemption.

Thomas PetersonAnd it looks like so we were collecting taxes until the lease ended. Is that correct?

Sherman LambertstaffYes.

Thomas PetersonOkay. All right. That explains that. Yeah, I didn't, like you, I did not see a date for the submission of the application, but it seems to be concurrent with the termination of a lease, and that would have allowed consideration on the September 30th meeting of the Real Estate Exemption Committee. Okay. The other question, I appreciate the assessment on, I guess it's the last slide, of the number of charitable organizations receiving exemptions in the city. I'd like to maybe go beyond that, though, and ask, to our knowledge, are there, and if the answer is yes, how many additional charitable organizations in the city that exist but have not yet received exemptions? In other words, should more be accepted or no?

Or should more be expected, rather, or no?

Sherman LambertstaffYes, we have applications that are pending, but some applications aren't full applications as of this moment, so there are missing particular items relating to that section of Virginia code that needs to be submitted before we can even take that application to the committee. So, and I believe we just received two more last month. So, yes, there could be potentially more.

Thomas PetersonOkay. And given that there's a little bit of shifting in terms of status because of the code issue you just referred to, but do we have at least a ballpark, if not a tighter figure than that, on the number of potentially eligible charitable organizations? in the city?

Sherman LambertstaffWe do not because it is upon the applicant to apply. And so once they apply, we are made aware that they are interested in that particular exemption, in this case, the exemption by designation.

Thomas PetersonOK, so we really don't have a way, I understand it, to know how many charitable organizations exist in the city.

Sherman LambertstaffWe, within our land book, we have a state code to run a particular list of properties that are already receiving that exemption. But potential properties, I don't believe so.

Thomas PetersonWell, I asked just, yeah, go ahead. I say,

Mr. MartinezstaffCouncil Member Peterson, what we could try to do is coordinate with the Commissioner of the Revenue or the Treasurer. ask them for a list, but as Mr. Lambert stated, it would be almost impossible to try to quantify how many of those on that list would potentially qualify for this very specific tax exemption. They may at some point. They don't right now. A lot of times what happens is you have individuals or these nonprofits that submit an application to kind of test the waters to see how close they are. We provide some feedback of you've met X number of these eight criteria, and then they work on that for the next months, days, years, and then they try to resubmit again to see how close they can get.

As Sherman noted, there are two that have come in. One apparently is missing some information. I think another one still needs a little further review.

Thomas PetersonMR. Well, just to clarify, a 501 nonprofit organization does not pay taxes, as I understand it. So if they exist in the city, and pardon me for not understanding this, why do they need to move forward with a request for a tax exemption if, by definition, they're tax exempt? MR.

Mr. MartinezstaffThere are eight items that are listed specifically, so there are actually some nonprofits that generate some revenue. There are thresholds. So you have a good example would be a church that has a daycare. If they're generating more revenue from that daycare than what is allowed per the statute, then technically they would not be considered and meet that one item, one of those eight items. That's a pretty common item where we review it, and I've had those discussions with the previous real estate director where there would be one the other one is alcohol you have nonprofits that also have a substantial amount of revenue coming in through alcohol sales maybe the VFW the Legion things of that nature

where they would be considered nonprofit but they still have a significant amount of revenue coming in they would not meet one of those criterias

Thomas Petersonjust helpful to know and I would be curious we don't need to do this now but at some point to Certainly there are many 501 organizations that generate revenue. Nonprofit consulting firms do this routinely, and those revenues are not taxed. So it's a little bit odd to have a model that is normally tax-exempt for revenues.

Brian LokemanstaffBut, Council Member, remember we're talking about specifically real estate tax, not their revenues that they're generating. It's a specific exemption. Okay.

Sherman LambertstaffI could speak a little more to that. There are two different types of exemptions even within the real estate or personal property. There is by classification and then by designation. The state code, more specifically, there's probably about 10 or 12 different specific organizations that are listed out by classification that they are covered within a different subsection of the state code. And then the second portion of the state code deals with exemption by designation, which City adds additional items in terms of is that particular applicant current on their obligations to the City, things of that nature. That's added on additionally. But there are also additional line items added within the municipal state code that

for exemption by designation to more or less qualify. Is

Thomas Petersonthat? That's helpful. So the key distinction here is it's a real estate tax. It's an asset tax rather than a revenue tax, and that's the point of differentiation. I think the general point is just very helpful to know, and from a revenue forecasting standpoint, it's kind of helpful to know whether and to what degree this impacts any sort of revenue forecast that we have. I don't know whether this is an insignificant number and not material or whether it's otherwise, so just curious to know. Thanks.

Catherine ReadCouncil Member McQuillan?

Rachel McQuillenThere we go. Okay. Let me find my questions. You had stated that the benefits of the Noble Labs provides outweigh the tax. What information did you use to reach that conclusion?

Sherman LambertstaffSubmissions from the applicant, reviewing the small area plan, and also...

Speaker 5Where is it?

Sherman LambertstaffI didn't bring it. More or less those two. Okay.

Rachel McQuillenAnd then you had mentioned the number of Fairfax City residents that are served there or are in classes. Could you repeat those numbers for me? I'm sorry. I was trying to keep up, and I'm just a slow writer.

Sherman LambertstaffSo they've held roughly 1,300 events or classes over this particular year. 10% of participants are city residents. Okay. 23% of their paid members reside within the city. Members, okay. 25% of youth robotics participants reside within the city. Great. Okay. of their maker school students reside in the city.

Stacy HallOkay.

Sherman LambertstaffAnd of their classes and events, 35% of them, at least one city resident was present.

Rachel McQuillen35% of their classes always have at least one city resident in them. Okay. Thank you for repeating that. Sorry. I was trying to keep up. And then what is the cost for membership right now?

Sherman LambertstaffOh, I did not bring that with me.

Rachel McQuillenMembership and classes.

Sherman LambertstaffDon't have that with me. Okay. I could

Thomas Petersonget

Sherman Lambertstaffthat for you.

Rachel McQuillenYeah, I'm trying to, do they have scholarships or something available to students who can't afford the, okay, thank you. They're behind you.

Speaker 5Yeah.

Rachel McQuillenAnd then I had a question about the exemption. Is there, why is it, it says that it's, the exemption continues until council revokes it, but why wouldn't we establish some type of periodic review? Or do we?

Sherman LambertstaffIt's not written within the code. You could, but it would come from the body itself and not from the state code or the city municipal regulations. All it particularly speaks to is that if they no longer are using the property for the use that they were granted designation, then revocation is on the table.

Rachel McQuillenOkay, understood. Let me see. Yeah, so what's the process for monitoring compliance for this type of exemption?

Sherman LambertstaffUsually we look for things such as sale of the property, or we do in the assessor's office track more or less what's going on with particular commercial properties throughout the city annually. And so those are things that we do pay attention to. but if you're asking if there is a design set program for that there is not currently we could set something or implement something of that nature it's not a problem to do

Rachel McQuillenjust curious thank you and then let's see you answered that one for me oh any opportunities to expand those the benefits those classes and everything to more Fairfax City residents and students oh

Sherman LambertstaffI would have I can't speak to the gentleman in Condoleva Live. They would have to speak to that. I couldn't tell you.

Speaker 5Come here. Yes.

Bradley MatthewsapplicantHello. Bradley Matthews, board member and previous president. And yes, we would love to work with you to expand it and actually point to some data. We had a grant from you in 23. There was a Everybody Plays grant, I believe. It was $10,000. In that year, we doubled the number of city participants in the Maker School camp, going to 30% over the average that is just hovering around 17%. So there is a number of opportunities we'd love to partner with you to expand that. We're also meeting with your EDA team next week as we are expanding into the space. It was vacated by the tenant, growing that into potentially Artist Loft or to other business members. and so I'll work with them to see what that might look like with a survey that they are currently running on that need.

Rachel McQuillenWonderful. Thank you. Thank you. And just making sure I think that was it. Sorry, one second, just checking. Okay, that was covered. Oh, I had one last question. Have we considered how a full real estate tax exemption might affect any competition with businesses that are currently paying full property taxes that provide the same service? Or do we have anything like that?

Sherman LambertstaffNo, not currently. But I believe the differentiation with this particular application and the part that makes it stand out is that it's very unique in itself. there isn't another competitor within you know so many square miles I believe they have a second location in Northern Virginia as well but there's when you talk about the type of facility the work they've done to it to make it an open space the front facade to have the heavy machinery that they use within that particular facility for metal works woodworking even down to things like sewing it's it's um it doesn't have a lot of competition but especially within It doesn't have any. So that particular impact would be non-existent for the

Rachel McQuillencity

Sherman Lambertstaffconfines.

Rachel McQuillenSo I just wanted to make a quick comment and just say that I recognize the tremendous value that Nova Labs brings to our city. I, too, like Council Member Hardy Chandler, am very aware of how much our students in the city rely and use Nova Labs and enjoy everything that you guys provide to our students. and I just wanted to make sure that we were being very clear about what our community would be receiving the benefits and things like that in doing this and supporting this exemption so thank you very much for answering all my questions I appreciate it

Catherine Readother questions or comments councilmember Amos

Anthony Amosthank you so just comments first off welcome to the city and by the way great presentation concise and to the point I like you already so thank you very much I remember, and I, God, was that last year when we took the tour of Nova Labs? I mean, that was a phenomenal facility. It was excellent seeing the students there, seeing the robotics team, which I'm sure everyone geeks out at, but also the smelting and the really cool things that you all have going on there. So that was very exciting. I love that you are truly a phenomenal and good city partner that's unique. and just coming from VML with a couple of my colleagues we can we saw how the culture of incubator spaces is something that I wish that we could expand upon

more on the city and that it provides truly a unique vibrancy that I think would contribute to what a lot of people call a small-town charm and the fact that you provided data showing direct percentage in support and increases for city residents and students. I think you're doing a phenomenal job and happy to support this. So thank you very much. MS.

Catherine ReadOther questions or comments?

Thomas PetersonCouncilmember Peterson. MR. Just to follow up on a question Councilmember McQuillan asked, I'm on the website for NOVA Labs right now and membership tiers and pricing, active membership is required, et cetera, et cetera. weekly or weekday, weekday access, $65 per month. Associate night, weekend, $80 per month. Key member, $130 per month. Innovation center member, 24-7 access, $180 a month. So there's a fee schedule here for pricing for subscriptions. Question on the building. If I read the staff report correctly, the assessed value of the building is $5 million. and change, right? Yes, sir. Is 100% of that building used for Nova Labs or is less than 100% used for Nova Labs?

Sherman LambertstaffYes, it's 100% used for Nova Labs. It used to be leased. And so I believe the lease was for 14,000 square feet prior to May 30th of 2026. And so that was additionally part of the problem with the application. And then, of course, once we received the early lease termination, the problem resolved itself.

Thomas PetersonWas the lease for part of the property or the entire property?

Sherman LambertstaffPart of the property.

Thomas PetersonAnd that part of the property, now that the lease is defunct, has that been occupied now by an expansion of Nova Labs so that it's using what was previously space under lease?

Bradley MatthewsapplicantWe're currently building that out. The building itself is 38,800 square feet. The lease was for about 14,000 square feet. The tenant moved out towards the end of May, and we're now rebuilding that space, as I mentioned, to further expand our capabilities into more business centers or artists lofts and then general capabilities beyond that. But that will be 100 percent Nova Labs moving forward.

Thomas PetersonOkay. So that's not going to go back into some sort of a leasing arrangement?

Bradley MatthewsapplicantIt is not.

Thomas PetersonOkay.

Bradley MatthewsapplicantThank you.

Catherine ReadOther questions or comments? Councilmember Hull.

Stacy HallThank you. Mr. Lambert, thank you very much for the presentation and welcome to the city. I think you're getting trial by fire tonight, so nicely done. So thank you for repeating the numbers on the city residents. I have a general question, and I think the answer is no, but is there an option for real estate tax relief, but that would still allow them to continue to pay the C&I tax?

Sherman LambertstaffNot currently under law that I've read. Again, I've just started reading it, but I didn't see anything within the state or municipal regulations or code that says that. It more or less breaks out between real estate, personal property, and then if you get into the State Code, it talks about within the part of the code I mentioned before, what is that? Section statute 58.1-3603, it starts to mention about income producing and then apportioning parts of the property for if it's income producing, it's not available for an exemption. So those particular items, but it does not do what you were asking in terms of just partitioning out the tax rate.

Stacy HallOkay. Do you agree with that?

Brian LokemanstaffYeah, nothing to add.

Stacy HallOkay.

Brian LokemanstaffThere's no separation.

Stacy HallOkay. I thought you were getting ready to jump in. No. No. Okay. So I love what this brings to the city. I think it's a great space. I think it's a great opportunity. I recognize that short of extra advertising or outreach, there's not much that you can do to bring additional city residents into your space versus county residents. But I do wish that there were a larger number of city residents that are showing up. And I have toured the facility a couple times. Once was with the Catherine Johnson Middle School when they went and did their rockets, and it was a great time. I do just want to point out some other numbers for context, and this is not specifically towards you. my other council members are aware. Currently, in addition to the $514,397,000 that we provide

in real estate tax relief, we also provide $1.184 million to seniors. We provide $950,000 to veterans. The veterans portion is not an option. It is an unfunded state mandate. so all of that together works out to 3.06 cents on the real estate tax rate so for a number geeks like me I just like to point that out because I think it's useful information when we're looking at budgets and when we're talking about how much we can cover or what we can't I do share concerns with not knowing what else is out there and I think it sounded like there have been four or five other applications that you've received if I inferred that correctly

Sherman Lambertstaffthere is one that is incomplete and we have received two others last month

Rachel McQuillenokay

Stacy Hallso three so I I love what nonprofits and other businesses bring to our city I don't necessarily see the need for differentiation sometimes of the real estate tax portion so I'm I'm still thinking on this to be totally honest I I do worry that the minute we agree to something it's setting a precedent for another entity, another organization, another 501c3. And I know we have our own budgetary challenges, so I'm still sitting with this. Thank you.

Thomas PetersonMayor.

Stacy HallYes, Mr. Lubcom.

Brian LokemanstaffJust to clarify, just so everybody's aware, this is not a new program. The applications have been coming for years, and I think they've been fairly constant, not that many here and there. So just, and I know you know that, but this is not something new where we anticipate by, and approve this that this would lead to a flood of applications?

Stacy HallYes and no, I think in my opinion. I think when we do things that make it more attractive to a type of entity to come in here, we do open up that opportunity. So again, I understand we received one that you're working on and we received two others. I don't know if the other one I'm thinking of we already know about. But I do also recognize that there are nine entities for which we already do this. So I just think numbers are information is good.

Brian LokemanstaffThat's fair. And it's also true that this program exists in many jurisdictions of the Commonwealth.

Stacy HallAbsolutely.

Catherine ReadThank you. Any other questions or comments? Councilmember Bates.

Billy BatesI just want to thank you all for the work that you do for the city. And I'm glad to see the affirmative recommendation on this and look forward to seeing it proceed. and I also want to convey that to my mind we want to do everything that we can to make sure that we are shifting the burden away from residents and organizations that perhaps do not have as much means as other residents organizations to to pay the their tax burden you know whether it be nonprofits lower income seniors and disabled residents. I think that we need to make sure that we're trying to shift the burden away from them wherever we can. Thank you.

Catherine ReadAny other questions or comments? Well I will just add that I think that NOVA Labs is an incredibly unique organization in our city. It mirrors the maker space, the mix at George Mason University. It is a nice complement to what the university provides for university students, only it's of all ages. This is children who attend the summer camps to seniors and they have a special rate for seniors. And this is something I talked about at the Brightview ribbon cutting for the number of seniors moving into apartments who left their woodworking shops and their quilting apparatus and their sewing rooms. This city has a free bus we didn't even talk about. The fact that Nova Labs is served by the Q bus.

So young people, old people and seniors, all the people can get from where they are in the city to Nova Labs, and it is open seven days a week. The membership structure is about people coming when they can come, and the seniors can come during the day, because many of them, that's when they come. The student robotic teams have a space to work. If Nova Labs did not exist, some of these programs probably wouldn't exist either, or they would have a far greater difficulty in finding space where they could do these competitions of the education of this current generation. I would also say that so much of the equipment has been donated. There is almost nothing you cannot do, including foundry work

and fabricating car parts, and so much of that has been donated equipment. And if it wasn't for Nova Labs, I don't know where that equipment would end up either because it's still functional and it still works, and companies who've upgraded their equipment know that there's a home here. And this is also important for training people in technical skills, going back to Fairfax High School and trying to get some of the students there skilled up in trades that we don't have enough people in the trades. This is a perfect complement to our academic programs to have a maker space with such varied equipment and programs to teach young people how to use it. I can't say enough how unique this is, what a gem it is, and what it offers that other jurisdictions cannot offer.

And I think they are very deserving of the tax exemption. We are not a city that's built on big box stores and chain restaurants or anything else. We attract small businesses. We attract unique organizations because as a city, we are great partners. executive director back there with her nearly 400 chamber members and she will tell you the city goes out of its way to say that our jurisdiction is different we have more to offer we have support and this is where we want to be this makes us a destination place for the region and while i too appreciate the fact you serve our residents you're also bringing people into our city who would not otherwise come because of this unique offering the last thing that i will observe is adding up

um tax benefit to the nine charitable organizations over the next five years it comes to three million three hundred and sixty seven thousand seven hundred and eighty one dollars which is still less than the three point five million dollars we're paying to vdot for which we are getting no value nothing at all so for nine organizations to be able to provide services to our city i think this is a great value and i hope that too that the dais will support this And with that, thank you so much, Mr. Lambert. Welcome to the city. We will move on to future meeting topics. Mr. Alexander.

Mr. AlexanderstaffAll right, Mayor and Council, we covered many of these upcoming items in greater detail during our last work session, so we'll briefly highlight the schedule ahead. October 27th is our next regular meeting we have a public hearing anticipated action on request to men operating hours for Mantua Hills swimming pool and tennis courts we'll also have a work session pre-application briefing for city center-west November 5th is our scheduled engage Fairfax providing stakeholders an opportunity to share their perspectives on FY 2028 and the budget number seventh then is our council budget work session that will will preview and review a number of items associated with that to include our financial results from 2026 first quarter FY 27 performance 2028 financial

forecasts debt and capital needs and proposed financial policies and budget guidelines that will also discuss at that time potential changes to the real estate relief program for elderly and disabled residents. November 10th regular meeting includes several items that have been discussed in previous council work sessions. We'll have a public hearing on proposed 2027 legislative program along with public hearings on four pedestrian and sidewalk improvement projects. No council action is scheduled on those four projects that evening. We'll also bring forward proposed zoning ordinance amendments, the housekeeping measures we've talked about and also previous discussion on the small area plan amendments.

We'll also introduce several ordinances, including changes to the residential permit parking program, the tax relief program we just mentioned, the proposed real estate tax exemption from Nova labs, which we discussed tonight. Uh, we'll also have tentative consideration of the updated alignment on the coxson trail which could move to the 8th we've tentatively reserved november 17th for a special meeting if needed for the one percent local sales tax on december 1st we have a work session covering the proposed 2027 legislative program the draft cip program move fairfax pedestrian master plan safety action plan and proposed future updates to the small area plans we've also just added an update on q transit development plan for that date finally december 8th our last regularly scheduled

meeting of the calendar year we anticipate council consideration of the legislative program potential final action on several ordinances introduced previously in november and we also have two tentative land use applications scheduled for public hearing and potential council action gallery as city center and courthouse plaza a public hearing on the proposed one percent sales tax remains tentative also council will receive the fiscal year 2026 annual comprehensive financial report and we at that time consider anticipate consideration adoption of the Q transit development plan following the December 1st work session update we reserved still December 15th for special meeting if necessary as always this is a working schedule and dates or agenda items may

change as reviews occur and applications progress happy to answer any related questions

Catherine Readquestions councilmember Amos

Anthony Amosthank you and I'm sure I'm jumping the gun a little bit I know we were previously talking about December 15th and I just wanted to know on a couple of these tentative items do we have an idea of when we'd actually know when they're scheduled because I mean December 8th we're looking if Wilcoxon gets moved we're looking at potentially seven public hearings that evening and that I you know would we know by the October 27th meeting that way we can book the December 15th if needed or what are we what's the anticipated timeline on these items if we know yeah

Mr. AlexanderstaffI mean as far as we know at this point we're continuing as planned relative to the schedule that we have here we don't right now anticipate any changes but it's a living breathing you know process so we certainly may have to pivot at some point but to your question directly we don't have any cause to believe that the schedule is inaccurate

Mr. Martinezstaffat this point.

Anthony AmosOkay. Well I'd be curious my colleagues thoughts. I mean yeah I mean we're looking at potentially seven public hearings on the 8th but I do feel like either it doesn't have to be tonight but maybe we reevaluate October 27th and it might be worth splitting it up because I don't see us getting through seven public hearings and I do feel like there will be some some action on this at least in terms of public feedback and we shouldn't have people here until 1 2 a.m. Thank you.

Catherine ReadOther comments questions on this? I think the council member McQuillan.

Rachel McQuillenDecember 15th is a really tough time for me personally so I'm not favorable to that decision but I try to be as flexible I try to move things but it's not a good date for me so I would prefer if we don't have to do a special meeting that night I would prefer not to so that's I

Catherine Readthink one of the things we have to look at is advertising for public hearings because there is a long lead time so if we were to even consider moving any of these things up to an earlier date we would have to think about moving up earlier the advertisement for the public hearing so let's for instance if we were to move something up to November 10th I think we'd have to advertise that at October 23rd so I mean this this is not a small when you think about if there's anything at all, and I'm not sure, I'm not saying there's anything at all, we could move up, but you can't just move it up without moving up advertising the public hearing. Do you have thoughts, Mr. Lubbock? I mean, you look like you might.

Brian LokemanstaffNo, the only other comment I was going to make, some of these items require Planning Commission action as well, so they're all feeding off dates. Again, there's a reason they're scheduled when they are scheduled, but as the manager notes, it's a living, breathing document.

Catherine ReadOkay.

Stacy HallThank you. I think we comment all the time on how wonderful our staff is and so if you're telling us that you think we have sufficient time to do the things that are outlined here I think we should take you at your word and move forward only when given other information. Thank you.

Catherine ReadAny other questions or comments on the future meetings? All right then. so let's move on to the manager report out and council comments and committee reports out report outs do you have anything for us mr alexander

Mr. Alexanderstaffvery quickly one item of course the fall festival uh last week i want to take a moment to recognize the success of the festival overall community celebration certainly an extraordinary collaboration support that we received from the community mayor council was extraordinary the weather cooperated which was a big bonus and plus for us and so you know want to take a second to recognize all the effort that went into developing an event action plan coordinating public safety emergency response traffic management vendor organization and transportation departments specifically call out Parks and Rec police fire rescue public works code administration transportation and many other staff and volunteers I mention those because again

it takes a lot for us to put something together of this nature work beginning as early as 4 a.m. that morning and extending well into the evening as we close things out and frankly continue to see smiles and positive attitudes from all involved from staff to volunteers to participants these events don't happen by accident months of preparation people taking great pride in the work that they do to make sure that these things go well again thanks to everyone mayor counts for continued support of these traditions that make our community great and help folks live life connected. That's all we have for tonight. Thank you, Mayor.

Catherine ReadThank you, Mr. Alexander. Let's start with Council Member McQuillan.

Rachel McQuillenThank

Catherine Readyou.

Rachel McQuillenIt's been a busy few days. I actually just got back this afternoon from the Virginia Municipal League annual conference, and over the past three days, I had the opportunity to connect with the local government leaders from across Virginia, exchange ideas, and hear about the challenges and successes in their communities. This morning we also heard from Senator Tim Kaine and Governor Spanberger. It was a great experience. I came home with a lot of wonderful new connections and some interesting ideas. I also want to thank the League of Women Voters and the Council of Civic Associations for hosting recent candidate forums. It's been wonderful seeing so many residents come out and get to know us, ask questions, and really get to know each candidate.

I'd also like to give a huge thank you to everyone who made this year's Fall Festival. So great. We had such a good turnout. Weather was fantastic, like city manager Alexander just said. And just wanted to say a big thank you to everyone that worked hard. That's a long day, and I know a lot goes into it. Finally, I'd like to close by recognizing that October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month, and I want to bring attention to something I don't think we talk about or hear about nearly enough, our outdated divorce laws. We tell victims of domestic violence to leave, to protect themselves and their children, but our laws actually make that impossible. Here in Virginia, couples with minor children seeking a no-fault divorce generally must be separate for an entire year, 365 days.

This requirement dates back to 1960 when the waiting period was actually three years. Meanwhile, as you already heard, one in three women in this country experience physical violence, contact sexual violence, or stalking by an intimate partner. And in Virginia alone, domestic and sexual violence agencies serve nearly 28,000 adults and children in 2025. Research also tells us that separation can be one of the most dangerous times for someone experiencing abuse. And here's what really concerns me. During divorce proceedings, attorneys may advise their clients to remain in the marital home to protect their interests involving custody and property. But what happens when staying isn't safe? Leaving doesn't automatically mean you lose your rights, but it can create enormous financial uncertainty and concerns about custody and housing.

I understand these separation requirements were intended in part to encourage reconciliation, but not every marriage should be reconciled, particularly when abuse is involved. I'd really like to see our state and other states revisit these requirements and strengthen protection so that leaving an unsafe home doesn't have to put someone at a disadvantage. Awareness alone isn't enough. We need to examine whether our laws are helping or hurting the people we're trying to protect. A law written for a different generation should not become a barrier to safety. No one should have to choose between their home their children and their life and I also just want to mention that recently the topic of canceling the

George Snyder trail keeps coming up in every meeting and we hear all the time about the payback figure however what we don't hear is the figure related to preserving one of our last only remaining urban forests in Fairfax City which to me to me is invaluable thank you

Catherine ReadCouncilmember Bates.

Billy BatesI just want to thank our staff, volunteers, and first responders for a wonderful 50th Fall Festival. And also thank our police department and our volunteers and even former elected officials for participating in National Coffee with a Cop Day last week. I think it's the first time we've done it at two different locations. And, yeah, thank you all.

Thomas PetersonThis has been a big week or so and it's not quite done yet on energy issues here in Virginia but also next door in Maryland and in particular their connection to cost of living and affordability. So last Thursday I was at the Virginia Energy Summit in Richmond. Governor Spanberger spoke in the morning. The next day I was at the Arlington campus of George Mason on the first Resilience Day, which is focusing on the vulnerabilities that are associated with climate change and our opportunity and need to respond to those, including by mobilizing clean energy actions. And today was at the Maryland Clean Energy Summit, and I'll be there again tomorrow, there about the cost pressures that municipalities businesses and

households are facing because of increased energy costs I was asked to be a speaker and comment on the municipal perspective on this my organization is doing quite a bit of work in this area but I was actually very pleased and proud to let people know that here in the city of Fairfax We are in the process of hiring an energy program manager for the strategic purpose of helping to reduce government business and household cost on energy, but to do that through environmentally responsible means and that is certainly Where we are all headed here in this country to be able to adjust to these energy issues So it's great that the city of Fairfax Is in the middle of this It's been a long time coming, and now there are so many people who are focused on finding

a way that we can do this in the absence of the kind of federal support and policy that we've had in the past. Unfortunately, I also learned that a friend who has been a world leader in this issue not too long ago. This is public, and so I can share it. His name's Joe Rome. Joe and I met each other back in my service in the White House. I met his wife, Patty, when I was in service in Joe Lieberman's office. And Joe is a frequent flyer in the White House. He was part of the movement towards recognizing that advanced and modern approaches to energy didn't have to be more expensive. They could actually save money. A lot of people felt at the time that there was no way to make progress without it damaging

affordability. I think what we found back then and what we're finding today increasingly is just the opposite, that we can actually reduce our exposure to economic risk and harm by taking more modern approaches to energy. And that is exactly what's happening, and the market is encouraging that. It's particularly the case here in Virginia as we're seeing very significant increases in energy associated with data centers. But I wanted to let Patty know that we're remembering her and we're remembering Joe. Many many people are. Joe was recognized worldwide for his absolutely tireless advocacy for us thinking about the future with energy. and you know his legacy has already been translated into so many different

institutions and activities that we all have so much to be thankful for for what he's done I wanted also to honor Patty's request that we stay focused on symptoms of mental health and be proactive in responding to them and granted every day is a gift and anytime we spot these kinds of things we really have an opportunity if not an obligation to do something about it so Patty we're thinking of you and we appreciate your reminder thank you very much council member Hardy Chandler

Stacey Hardy-Chandlerjust a very briefly follow up on our prior discussion about Nova Labs I really appreciated hearing a little bit more but as sort of a side note wanted to acknowledge the john staley room at nova labs john staley is a former city council member and again just really proud of the legacy of different kinds of investments in the kinds of organizations that make our city special so he's very humble about that but i think they do laser cutting in that room so i'm just really proud of that colleague's investment I want to talk a little bit about, well, we have a lot of proclamations that are so worthy and so proud of all of the groups that we acknowledge today. But I do want to talk about domestic violence from the standpoint of a service provider.

So as an undergraduate, being a hotline counselor was one of my first volunteer jobs. Later on, as I went through my master's program, I was a night counselor at a domestic violence shelter. So seeing firsthand the impact is not theoretical. It's not in the abstract. It's very real. People who had to be in shelter environments in order to stay safe. And then, of course, later when I worked for the city of Alexandria, overseeing their entire domestic violence program, including the shelter. way had a wonderful program that also was in partnership with the animal shelter because we're talking about the whole family being in danger including animals who might be a part of the family but I think it's really important

to also just acknowledge from a health perspective that we're getting better about health providers asking questions I am so proud of the fact that when I go appointment. Health providers are asking, do I feel safe at home or asking about certain things that really highlight domestic violence and puts it in the path of people who are seeking help for other reasons to get access to resources. So really want to call out that. Again, we acknowledge a lot of worthy awareness months and entities in our city, but just wanted to shed a special spotlight on that this October. It's been such a significant part of my career as a human service provider, so thank you.

Catherine ReadCouncil Member Hall.

Stacy HallThank you. I just wanted to make some comments on our trip down to the Virginia Municipal League Conference this weekend. Huge thanks to the city of Norfolk and the hotel at the Marriott there for hosting us. It was wonderful. It felt safe at all times. It was pouring rain, but it was really nice to be able to park in the garage and then just take your little footbridge over and not have to get wet at all. They did a fantastic job. VML was really amazing in what they put on. It was really just a great opportunity to engage. we met so many mayors and council members and police chiefs and towns and city managers from these tiny tiny little towns. One gentleman we spoke with a 1,500 residents another one has 2,300 residents and in some ways we

feel like you know kind of the big city there in some ways just due to our population but it was also interesting the Cape Charles group in front of us they are also about six square miles and if I recall correctly they have I think 1,500 to 2,300 residents. So it's just amazing the differences that you see. I also want to thank our staff for taking us down there and Melanie for our voting. It was an interesting evening. I do want to point out that there were lots of topics discussed including energy, housing, collective bargaining, and I want to point out that we voted with the majority, it sounded like of the VML to agree to keep from the perspective to ask to the Commonwealth that if there are collective bargaining measures that are taken that we keep the ability to

keep it local and have us decide here what is best for our cities and counties and to not be forced into something by Virginia. We also discussed the retail cannabis sales, which was actually a very, very interesting topic today. and another one that I thought was really really great that I attended was building resilience by identifying nature-based solutions and you know it's not just piping water underground but it's an example of what we did here with the stream restoration I don't love the stream restoration I'll be honest but the science of how it's used to you know essentially create little tide pools along as they go is is a good use of nature-based solutions and that was one of the key things that

mentioned in some of their highlights of the projects that were discussed. It was fantastic to hear Senator Tim Kaine speak as well as Governor Spanberger. Honestly, I don't know Senator Tim Kaine well at all, but it was very interesting to hear him speak so fondly of his days as being a mayor and just seeing people at the grocery store. He gave a story about he actually got rear-ended one time and the police officer came out and said, oh, Mayor McCain, are you okay? And the woman said to him, oh, you're the mayor? I've got to talk to you about the zoning issue. And he said, you know, it's a great opportunity. It wasn't maybe the most appropriate time, but it was a great opportunity for people to see us out in the community.

And that's, I think, what all of us run into frequently. I did want to thank the Kiwanis Club, the Women's Club, and I'm missing others I know, the fire department, I'm sorry, the volunteer fires for giving the AEDs to the city. received one and then quickly now we have or will have seven. And to see that it saved someone's life this, you know, a few days ago is truly amazing and it's why we do these things. And I know, you know, we love to have events and festivities to celebrate everything and everybody, but this is a truly life-saving measure and I think it's fantastic how it's being received here. I want to, I will end on that one, but I will come back to the George Snyder Trail conversation

because I am the one that made the comment about the sales tax. I'm sorry, the real estate tax. And yes, you're absolutely right, Mayor. It is going to cost $3.5 million to repay for the George Schneider Trail. Not a doubt about that. I would love that we could just lay that to rest and get it out there. No one is saying it is any different. But the three cents that I was referring to is actually an annual amount, whereas the George Schneider Trail is something that is being repaid once essentially, years. So yes, it is a cost, no doubt about it. But also, which is true, is that we do give over three cents annually in tax exemptions to organizations, and that is great. We give it to seniors. We give it to the veterans. These are just numbers. You can infer them exactly how you

would choose. On that though I would also like to remind you that with that 3.5 million dollar payback over a thousand trees were saved, nearly a hundred acres. Applying a recent UVA analysis, a thousand mature trees have an economic value of 76 million dollars. This forest absorbs 1.5 million gallons of water in a single storm preventing millions of dollars in flood damages to city residents. Millions of city tax dollars were saved, avoiding costly operation and maintenance. Temperatures near a forest feel 14 degrees cooler, helping to lower temperatures in city heat islands. As far as I'm concerned, canceling the GST was the right decision for our budget and our environment. And I also would like to bring those that are interested in learning more about this

remind you of an article written by Jessica Locke, who is a council candidate, called Trees Fairfax City Council got it right. That was April 24, 2026. And that discusses a lot more of the reasons why this was a controversial step and why it was the right one. And finally, I would like to end on a happy note, which is to invite everyone out to Trunk or Treat on Saturday, September 17th, from 5 to 7 p.m. at the Point 50 Shopping Center. This is an opportunity to meet all of your candidates. And I will plug Kelly O'Brien, who is the one who came up with this, and was able to get nearly every council member, mayor candidate, and school board member to participate. So prime example of, you know, they always talk about, you know, crossing the lines when it comes to bipartisan bills and conversations.

And that's what this city is. It should be nonpartisan. But in some cases, we have to be bipartisan. And so I think a trunk or treat example is just perfect. So I encourage you all to come out, check it out. and then for those that may have college kids on Sunday October 18th there is an FCPS college fair at George Mason University from 4 to 6 p.m. and again a huge plug and thank you to George Mason for putting on something like this for our students for our county residents and for all those that are around and are able to come so thank you very much

Catherine Readcouncilmember Amos

Anthony Amosthank you So just a few things to run through. So first off, happy 12th birthday to my little brother. I'm sorry I was in Norfolk, but just wanted to make sure I did get a video call in with him, even though it was a little bit spotty, but that's okay. Also wanted to thank George Mason University for honoring me this Thursday with the Graduate of the Last Decade Award. I feel like I'm a little young for it, but appreciate that. I would also like to say VML was definitely an interesting experience, had a blast networking and getting to meet a lot of folks. It really grew my appreciation, and I'm already appreciative of my gratitude for staff. Shout out to Melissa, our city clerk, as well. We attended a council clerk session together, and that was a fun one, hooting and hollering just a little bit.

And to Melanie as well for doing the voting. You know, when, you know, a lot of us, and we've all door knocked in the past, And we've also heard from a number of constituents that there's active projects like Blenheim. The city always has a lot going on. It can be difficult to keep up with, including when it comes to issues, questions. And our staff truly does a great job in being professional and responsive. And so just wanted to express my appreciation for that. We really do take pride in our service and being a service-oriented city. and we continue to provide a plethora of opportunities for engagement. And just want to reiterate to a lot of folks, we still have the Fairfax 311 page, still have the Engage page, our project pages.

So I want to make sure that residents don't forget that those opportunities are available online through apps and that there's so many different ways to receive help, learn more about the city, and truly embrace our incredible and professional staff. because, you know, and this may just be my personal feeling, but council is just a blip. Staff is the foundation. So thank

Speaker 17you.

Catherine ReadThank you. So we can't always do proclamations for everything. October is also Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Don't want to overlook that there are other very important things that we need to recognize, and breast cancer awareness is certainly one of them. Three weeks from today is Election Day. We will not have a work session because of that. And so in the next three weeks, you will find that your candidates who are running will be out there knocking on doors and having conversations. And I, Council Member Hall, agree. There are a lot of opinion pieces out there that have been written on a variety of topics. So I just want to say best of luck to everyone in the next three weeks, and we will see everyone back here on the 27th, actually, of October for our next meeting.

And with that, we are adjourning at 8.56 p.m. on Tuesday. Thank you.