RCA Board of Directors Meeting Minutes - February 22, 2016

RCA Board of Directors Meeting

February 22, 2016

National Realty Building

Those attending included: Connie Hartke, Hank Schonzeit, Nick Georgas, Sridhar Ganesan, Dennis Hays, George Kain, Yavuz Inanli, and Annmarie Swope, John Hanley, Joe Leighton, and Geoffrey Lewis

Absent were: Lynne Mulston and Robin Hogan

Guests were: Michael Travis

1. Agenda - Based on a motion by Joe and a second by John the agenda was unanimously adopted by those in attendance.
2. January 28th RCA Meeting Minutes - The January 28th, 2016 minutes were discussed and a few changes were incorporated. Based on a motion by Hank and a second by John the minutes were approved by Sridhar, George, Annmarie, Dennis, Yavuz, Geoffry, and Connie, voted aye. Joe and Nick abstained from the vote.
3. Treasurer’s Report – Based on a motion by Joe and a second by Yavuz the treasurer’s report previously circulated by Joe via email was unanimously approved by those in attendance.
4. Proffers Bill In State Assembly - John sent around the final Fairfax Federation document regarding the position on the County proffer bill. Reston 20/20 co-chairs Terry Maynard and Tammi Petrine sent a letter to the Governor on behalf of Reston 20/20 in opposition to the proffer bill. Annmarie brought up the idea of a better unified front of Reston organizations opposing the bill. Sridhar discussed how to modify the bill moving forward to prevent Reson proffer money from leaving Reston. Yavuz suggested a mitigation score where proffer money would be prioritized for County areas and projects - Sridhar and Yavuz will look into language or other areas that have utilized a mitigation score approach as a case study for  including in the bill in the best interest of Reston.
5. RTC North Redevelopment – Hank discussed a lack of updates from the County to RCA representatives. Fairfax County will give 30 days notice before the next public meeting. Dennis and Hank will continue to follow up with the County for updates on behalf of RCA. Dennis suggested a separate RCA discussion with Supervisor Hudgins in an effort to present our concerns and to see if there is a better unified approach with regards to the plans for the County’s future development intent.
6. Lake Anne Fellowship House – Connie discussed the RCA’s history with the Lake Anne Fellowship House and the proposed new plans for Lake Anne Fellowship House. The new plan provides new housing for the current residents so that no residents are displaced during the redevelopment of the site. It looks very positive for the current residents and Fellowship Square Foundation.
7. County Septage Facility - Dennis briefed the group on the Fairfax County presentation regarding the  proposed new septage facility at Lake Fairfax Park that he and Sridhar attended. RCA needs to be vocal in the opposition of the facility and helping residents who are concerned.
8. Stormwater Drain Management - Connie discussed RA agreeing to fund a study on how to fix stormwater study for runoff into Lake Audubon and requesting money from Fairfax County in the 2017 budget to help  resolve the issue.  Initial response is positive.
9. Athletic Field Crumb Rubber - Connie discussed the County’s intent to install 17 additional crumb rubber fields despite increasing evidence that the recycled tire material contains multiple carcinogens. There is also a potential issue with stormwater runoff from the athletic fields into streams and the watershed. Fairfax County uses cryogenic” rubber which simply describes the manufacturing process - Connie’s sources find no evidence this makes it safer (safer than what?).The RA Environmental Advisory Committee will hear a presentation on the subject by Jon Damm, an environmental attorney and Restonian who has taken the lead on this issue in the County.  Yavuz and Connie will draft an information statement for RCA to submit to the Fairfax County Federation of Citizens' Associations.

10. County and FCPS Budget - Sridhar discussed the community summit and the additional real estate tax needed to provide funding for the schools. There will be a 68 million dollar gap between the school budget needs. Sharon Bulova and Supervisor Hudgins expressed support for the schools. A minimum of .04 cents per $100 dollar of assessed value is proposed. Connie brought up the tobacco tax and the discrepancy between Fairfax County and other localities as a potential source of income. Annmarie advised the Federation Education Committee is in the process of working on tobacco tax strategy and legislation.

Connie Harke left the meeting at 9:05pm

11. Citizen of the Year - John brought up the committee for selecting the citizen of the year. It was  suggested that if Rescue Reston is eligible the rules have to be changed to allow an entity to be eligible and the fact there are board members on Rescue Reston. The board did not object to the award being given to an entity as opposed to a person.

Yavuz made a motion that the board consents for the RCA subcommittee on citizen of the year to allow an individual, individuals, or organization whose work is centered on Reston to nominated the award based on further guidelines by the subcommittee. Dennis seconded the motion and the motion was approved by Sridhar, John, George, Joe, Annmarie, Nick, Geoffrey, and Hank.  

Connie Harke returned at 9:15pm

12. Other Business -
1. Dennis discussed the library and the relocation of archives from the facilities to the FC IT Center. There is also ongoing concern with the budget and what it means for the library’s future.
2. George discussed the incorporation of Reston into a town or city. George requested the Board’s feeling on approaching Tom Rust regarding the course of action RCA could take to move the idea forward. John brought up the concern of the financial needs of establishing a new city and the challenges to RCA in pursuing the idea.
3. Yavuz mentioned the Reston Network (transportation) meeting and will continue to pursue the organization.
4. Yavuz brought up the 501 3 c issue and setting April 15th as the deadline to file the application. The application will be circulated prior to the next meeting.
5. Connie discussed the Hunters Woods Neighborhood Coalition moving forward with its Facebook presence. RCA will assist the Coalition with hosting their PDF files.
13. Location and Time of Next Meeting - The next meeting will be March 28th, 2016 at 7:30 at the Hartke Building. Dennis made a motion to adjourn the meeting and Hank seconded it. The motion was unanimously approved by all those in attendance.