A program to match the money Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program recipients spend at the Dale City Farmers Market has proven to be a success.
Since the program’s initiation five year ago, people have been taking advantage of the opportunity to get fresh fruits and vegetables and other eligible food.
According to Elizabeth Borst, executive director of Virginia Community Food Connections, which runs the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program and Virginia Fresh Match Program, “In these five years, we have developed the program at the Dale City Farmers Market into the largest SNAP and match program in Virginia. It is more successful than we dreamed. Last year, we did a total of $78,876 in SNAP and Virginia Fresh Match incentives in Dale City, in 1,482 transactions.”
Without this program, some low-income families may not get all the fruits and vegetables they need for a healthy diet.
“The premise is that when people can afford to buy healthy fruits and vegetables, they will do so. This program provides that bridge between the foods people want and the food they are able to afford,” says Borst.
The Dale City Farmers Market is a community market that makes fresh, locally grown food available for Prince William residents.
The Virginia Fresh Match program attracts new shoppers to the market and makes affordable fresh food accessible to everyone in the community.
“On any given Sunday, we’re running thousands of dollars in SNAP and incentives through that market, and it’s beneficial to those families in a direct way. It’s also beneficial to the farmers. It is a thriving community marketplace,” states Borst.
Due to the coronavirus pandemic, the Dale City Farmers Market has temporarily moved to the parking lot of Pfitzner Stadium at 7 County Complex Court in Woodbridge, which offers more space for social distancing.
According to Borst, “If people are concerned, it’s in an outdoor space, and people are wearing masks.”
The money for the matching program comes from a grant from the United States Department of Agriculture, enabling participating farmers markets to match up to $30 that each SNAP recipient spends.
Other local partners, like Potomac Health Foundation, support the program, providing families with limited food budgets more purchasing power for fruits and vegetables.
More information on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program is available online.
To find other markets that accept and match Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, please visit VirginiaFreshMatch.
Occoquan Police Officer Brent Barker has been honored by the Mothers Against Drunk Driving in receiving the 2020 Mothers Against Drunk Driving Virginia Law Enforcement Award.
Barker is one of over 200 law enforcement officials throughout Virginia recognized for their outstanding efforts in enforcement against driving while intoxicated during Mothers Against Drunk Driving’s Virtual Statewide Day of Recognition on Wednesday, September 30.
During 2019, Barker made 25 impaired driving arrests which was the most driving under the influence arrests in Occoquan jurisdiction by any law enforcement department in the past five years.
As part of a preventive safe ride home initiative, Barker assisted in arranging for several intoxicated, or otherwise impaired, people to get home safely without driving.
Barker has done an excellent job trying to keep the community safe and free from impaired drivers, the organization states.
Each year, Mothers Against Drunk Driving recognizes the brave men and women of Virginia for their commitment to end drunk driving, help fight drugged driving, support the victims of these violent crimes, and prevent underage drinking.
Law enforcement plays a critical role in the fight to eliminate this preventable crime, MADD states.
Together with Statewide Event Sponsor, State Farm, the Virginia office of Mothers Against Drunk Driving recognized heroes from around Virginia who champion its mission.
Throughout October, Mothers Against Drunk Driving in Virginia will continue to highlight the great work of each award recipient on their Facebook page.
“Every day at State Farm we see the devastating toll automobile crashes have on families. We are committed to helping drivers understand the importance of sobriety behind the wheel,” said State Farm spokesperson Kate Beadle. “We want to thank the officers who are being recognized for helping educate others and keep our roadways safe.”
Manassas Long Range Planning Division has received two prestigious awards honoring its planning and public engagement.
The American Planning Association Virginia Commonwealth Plan of the Year Award honors the Virginian planning document that demonstrates outstanding planning processes, vision, implementation strategies, and innovative approaches.
This award was given to Manassas for the city’s 2040 Comprehensive Plan.
Award judges stated that the 2040 Manassas Comprehensive Plan looks ahead to the year 2040, and sketches out both big-picture issues and neighborhood-specific plans that guide future land use, development, recreation, preservation, and transportation policy decisions.
The second award, the Old Dominion Innovative Approaches Award, honors the Community Conversations engagement initiative that was essential in guiding the 2040 Plan, and recognizes pioneering planning efforts including innovative planning processes, plans, programs, initiatives, or site developments that will have real results.
“We had a great team leading this process,” said City Manager W. Patrick Pate. “I am not surprised that they were honored with these awards, but am honored that the Virginia APA has recognized their efforts in this manner. The Comprehensive Plan will benefit the City of Manassas well into the future as we continue to promote the historic and modern attributes of our community.”
In the first phase of Community Conversations in 2017, more than 400 citizens responded to questions at various pop-up sites, often posting colorful post-it notes to respond to questions on posters.
In phase two in 2018, more than 250 people attended small group discussions at venues across Manassas, while 200 answered questions at pop-up events, and 500 visited an interactive website.
The input gathered helped define a community-driven vision for the city’s strategic priorities and for the 2040 Comprehensive Plan.
The City’s Planning Commission created a Comprehensive Plan Update subcommittee chaired by Elaine Trautwein to help staff craft the 2040 Plan, which is required to be reviewed every 5 years.
The Commission also hosted a series of Community Conversation discussions with citizens.
RHI, a landscape architecture, planning, and urban design firm, also helped to facilitate Community Conversation small group discussions.
The 2040 Comprehensive Plan was adopted by the Manassas City Council in February and may be viewed online.
Prince William County has increased its recycling rate to 38 percent in 2019, the highest it’s been since 2016.
This is almost a five percent increase from the rate in 2018.  The Virginia Department of Environment Quality confirmed this rate in September.
Statutory recycling goals in Virginia are somewhat complicated.
While the state is comprised of approximately 71 solid waste planning districts, only 17 of those districts, with populations above 100,000, are required to annually report recycling information.
Based upon the criteria established by Virginia, Prince William County exceeded its mandated 25 percent recycling rate again in 2019.
The county has achieved this every year since mandatory recycling rates took effect in the early 1990s.
Further Information About the Recycling Rate
The recycling rate is a measure of the materials diverted for reuse, recycling, or composting from the waste stream compared to materials that go into the trash.
Regular trash is buried in the county’s sanitary landfill located on Dumfries Road or combusted at the Fairfax County I-95 Energy and Resource Recovery Facility in Lorton.
Items diverted for recycling and composting are sorted, processed, and converted into materials which can be returned to commercial enterprise to produce new products.
The waste import restrictions imposed by China and other countries in early 2018 had a significant impact on the processing of recyclables worldwide.
In an effort to reduce the burden on local haulers and processors, Prince William County implemented new recycling guidelines to help reduce contamination and limit collected material to items that are marketable.
In March 2019, Prince William County asked residents to only recycle #1 and #2 plastic bottles, jugs, and jars, and to no longer put glass in the regular recycling bin.
Residents can now bring glass containers to the Prince William County Landfill or Balls Ford Road Compost Facility’s purple bins, which are designated for glass recycling. They can also put glass in the regular household trash along with any plastics numbered #3-#7.
Prince William County Recycling Manager Scott MacDonald noted, “While the recycling rate saw a significant increase, this increase had more to do with declines in the amount of trash received versus increases in actual recycling activity in the County. Recycling has essentially been flat for the past decade.”
One reason, says MacDonald, “Prince William County, unlike other counties in Northern Virginia, does not require source-separation of yard waste.”
Yard waste makes up about 15 percent of the material going into the landfill, according to a 2014 waste audit.
“We need to get that yard waste out of our landfill and divert it to the compost facility at Balls Ford Road, where it can be used to make compost and other soil-amendment products,” MacDonald added.
Previously, the compost facility located on Balls Ford Road did not have sufficient capacity to handle yard waste.
Now, the county has the capacity to compost its yard waste and hopes to initiate a seasonal yard waste collection program later this year that would take effect next fall.
In addition to increasing the recycling rate, diverting yard waste to the compost facility will also save landfill space and decrease methane gas, which is a major contributor of greenhouse gases.
Fredericksburg has been awarded five Local Champion Awards for its efforts to protect the health and safety of the city during the coronavirus pandemic.
These awards were given to Fredericksburg City by the Virginia Municipal League.
The Virginia Municipal League is a statewide, nonprofit, nonpartisan association of city, town, and county governments.
The membership includes 37 cities, 160 towns and eight counties.
The Local Champion Awards recognized local governments for their efforts to provide communication, community health, continuity of operations, economic and business stability, public safety, risk management and education, and youth initiatives during the unprecedented coronavirus public health crisis.
Fredericksburg was recognized for outstanding efforts in five major areas.
Fire Department
In public safety, the men and women of the Fredericksburg Fire Department quickly strategized how to deliver services safely for citizens and staff.
Emergency measures such as shift changes, safety procedures and decontamination processes were implemented in March. The reaction across the disciplines of the department’s fire suppression, medical, and emergency management were broad and required sacrifice but have kept department’s staff virus-free.
Most importantly, Fredericksburg maintained operations for citizens unaffected by the pandemic.
Department of Economic Development and Tourism
Fredericksburg’s Department of Economic Development and Tourism was recognized as a Local Champion for providing economic and business stability.
The department staff were highly responsive to the needs of the local business community amid the pandemic. Their efforts included running two separate small business grant programs that provided $500,000 for Fredericksburg businesses.
Additionally, they launched new information campaigns, revamped online and in person resources, designed and launched a line of face coverings, reimagined events such as Fredericksburg Restaurant Week, and worked with businesses to expand sidewalk seating during Governor Northam’s Phase 2.
Information Technology Department, City Attorney, & Clerk of Council
In response to health restrictions on gatherings, Fredericksburg’s Information Technology Department, City Attorney, and Clerk of Council developed and implemented several solutions to ensure the City Council and various boards could conduct meetings electronically beginning as early as March 20.
Their efforts have won them the Local Champion award for Continuity of Operations.
Moving to online operations required the team to act quickly to ensure that the new online process comply with the Freedom of Information Act, the Records Retention Act, and provide public comment protocols, just to name a few.
Additionally, technical requirements required upgrading internet bandwidth and implementing a streaming solution for the online meeting platforms.
Parks, Recreation, & Events’ Superintendent
Fredericksburg Parks, Recreation & Events’ Superintendent, Jenny Casarotti, was awarded Local Champion for her “Camp at Home” summer program.
This Education and Youth Initiative was a safe solution for engaging children creatively during a time when families were under a stay at home order.
Casarotti designed a new take home camp with boxes containing a week full of activities, ranging from art to physical education.
By being resourceful, using recyclables, inexpensive, and supplies on-hand, she was able to set the price at a very affordable $15.
The following week Casarotti live-streamed herself demonstrating the activities, an hour a day for five days. Children who tuned in could ask questions, and actively participate in the camp. Parents would say that she is a local champion with the Camp at Home initiative.
Executive Leadership Team, Safety & Risk Management, & Public Facilities
Finally, the Fredericksburg’s Executive Leadership Team, Safety and Risk Management and Public Facilities staff were awarded Local Champions for their risk management efforts.
The safety of city employees remains a top priority.
Fredericksburg tasked a team to identify and implement efforts to mitigate city employees’ risks associated with the pandemic.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and Virginia guidelines were shared and followed for all employees, which included risk assessments, implementing physical barriers and a new face covering policy. Staff were assigned to staggered shifts and were trained on best practices while at work.
“The focus and flexibility that our City employees provided during this time of crisis has been very significant and worthy of recognition,” stated City Manager Tim Baroody. “I am grateful to our Fredericksburg team as they continue to demonstrate extraordinary commitment, living our core Values, during these unprecedented times.”
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has provided recommendations to help people stay safe during Halloween this year.
First off, if you have the coronavirus or have been exposed to someone with the virus, please do not participate in in-person Halloween activities or hand out candy.
It is recommended that non-infected people focus on activities that are lower risk like decorating your house, doing a Halloween scavenger hunt with your family, or carving pumpkins with neighbors or friends at a safe distance.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention categorizes Halloween activities as lower risk, moderate risk, and higher risk.
Lower risk involves the suggestions above – mostly home-based activities like virtual Halloween costume contests and having a Halloween movie night with the family.
Moderate risk includes grab-and-go goodies for trick-or-treaters placed at the end of driveways or having a socially distanced outdoor costume parade. Other ideas include attending outdoor costume parties with cloth masks, not Halloween masks, and visiting pumpkin patches or orchards.
Higher risk activities range from traditional trick-or-treating to trunk-or-treats to hayrides and indoor haunted houses and parties.
Again, these are recommendations with the goal of keeping everyone as safe as possible.
For more information on the guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, visit their website online.
William Sprow was born on July, 28, 1924 and passed away on October, 9, 2020. William was a resident of Bristow, Virginia
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Avis was born on February 19, 1959 and passed away on October, 9, 2020. Avis was a resident of Manassas, Virginia
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The Prince William County Police will be increasing seat belt education and enforcement efforts during the upcoming holiday weekend, from October 9 through October 12.
This comes as part of a joint operation with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration called Operation Crash Reduction.
Drivers are reminded of the importance of seat belt use and other safe driving practices. Not only is seat belt use and passenger restraint the law in Virginia and every participating state but buckling up provides the best defense against injury or death in a crash.
October: the month with the most fatal crashes
From 2014 to 2018, seven states and the District of Columbia had some of the nation’s highest numbers of traffic crash-induced fatalities, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
The District of Columbia, Delaware, Kentucky, Maryland, North Carolina, Virginia, and West Virginia experience a total of 882 fatal crashes between October 1 and October 15 each year.
This is the highest number of fatal crashes for the first 15 days of any month during this same period.
In fact, from 2014 to 2018, October was the most likely month for fatal crashes to occur in these states, with 1,772 total fatal crashes.
In these fatal crashes, more than 45% of occupant fatalities in passenger vehicles, trucks, and buses were unrestrained.
During that same period in these states, more fatal crashes occurred on the October holiday weekend than during the holiday periods of Thanksgiving or Memorial Day.
This holiday period was the most dangerous of 2018 for these states, with 52 fatal crashes.
“For several years now, we have had this troubling trend in this East Coast region,” said Stephanie Hancock, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Regional Administrator. “We know that speed, distraction, and impairment are the root causes of most of the crashes in these states. However, seat belt and child safety-seat use are your primary sources of protection in crashes caused by a speeding, impaired, or distracted driver.”
Police will check for seat belt use, and child safety-seat use, during Operation Crash Reduction. Seat belts save lives, and everyone — front seat and back, child and adult — should remember to buckle up.
