RELAC, Still Do It: Referendum Ensures Frankie, Lake-Cooled AC Doesn't Go To Hollywood, Stays In Reston

 

Lake Anne residents will be able to enjoy the tepid chills of lake-cooled air conditioning at least a bit longer. The Reston Association says that fewer than half of the eligible households -- far below the needed 2/3 supermajority -- voted in a fancy fun referendum to revoke the covenants prohibiting homes in RELAC's service area from installing individual air conditioning systems for their homes, at least not without a medical (cough cough) provision like the ones your Restonian's roommates may have used way back in college (School of Hard Knocks, '64). 

But we digress! Give us some typo-riddled blockquote, BFFs at Reston Patch:

If the referendum had past [sic], residents in the affected clusters would've been able [sic] install individual cooling systems for their homes.

With RELAC's future in doubt after the company managing the jet-aged system announced it was ending service late last year, the RA had actually encouraged residents to vote to change the covenant to allow the sweet sweet sound of freedom AC units grinding away behind each home. With the covenants unchanged, the only way to install your own AC is to visit your "doctor" about your "allergies" -- a tactic which the former operators blamed for the shutdown in the first place.

Fortunately, a co-op is planning to continue RELAC's operations, so hopefully it'll be a mild spring until all this gets sorted out, the end.

Reston-Style Holiday Cheer From the RA And CVS. Wait, What?

 

Along with the usual exquisitely timed holiday cheer invariably sent by our BFFs at the Reston Association just days before Christmas (why?), some of us might be lucky enough to get another seasonally appropriate Reston document delivered to our mailboxes by uniformed federal agents. Check it, as the kids probably never said, except on TV shows depicting too-cool-for-school teens portrayed by actors in their early 30s:

According to the eagle-eyed Twitter user Xer who posted it, these festive cards are available at CVS, and they sure seem like a perfect way to send a little passive-aggressive cheer to your neighbor who hasn't fixed the peeling paint on their party wall since Gerald Ford was stumbling around the White House, the end.

Fall in Full Bloom on Reston's Lakes

 Some troubling news this morning from our BFFs at the Reston Royal Navy RA:

Inspections this morning on Reston’s lakes indicate that Lake Anne is also now affected by an algae bloom in addition to the continuing blooms on Lake Thoreau and Lake Audubon. pic.twitter.com/iKS6F3KsQF

— Reston Association (@RestonOnline) November 16, 2023

That's right... the green ooze is spreading from whence it started in South Reston. It's only a matter of time before Lake Newport is also covered with green, possibly glowing and sentient, goo.

...our experts believe that leaving the bloom to run its course is more likely to result in a balanced outcome.
We appreciate all of the residents who’ve contacted us about this bloom and will continue to monitor the situation. pic.twitter.com/8Jdz5gEcoE

— Reston Association (@RestonOnline) November 15, 2023

Now of course, the RA and the lamestream media would like you to believe these "algae blooms," like "swamp gas," are a naturally occuring phenomena, exacerbated by the unseasonably warm weather. That they will "run their course," and alls we need to do is keep ourselves and our pets out of the water. But we've seen what could happen!

Don't say we didn't warn you, the end.

The Hateful Eight: Ranking Reston's Most Wanted Invasive Plants

We Restonians are a pretty amiable bunch. We don't hate anyone or anything, except maybe for paid parking. And invasive plants. Way back in ought-eight, the Reston Association declared war on eight species of invasive plants, saying they are just as destructive to our community's moral fiber as white landscaping stone. More recently, some kindhearted out-of-towners were so concerned about the invasive plants encircling Reston National Golf Course that they offered—out of the goodness of their own hearts!—to put up a bunch of massive condos just to eradicate them. Just like in some 1980s police drama, some English Ivy creeped up and strangled their long-time partner on his last day before retiring, and they vowed to avenge his memory.

But we digress. We're here to ask the tough questions: Are those eight invasive plants really so bad? And why can't we get the app to validate our parking? Oh, wait—wrong tough question. Let's offer our verdicts, one by one:

1. Barberry. Isn't this a store in Reston Town Center that sells overpriced raincoats? Actually, it's worse: it's an OUTLET in Loudoun County. 

Verdict: The factory seconds bin for them.

2. English Ivy. Let this climb the walls of an older Reston townhouse and you soften the Brutalist feel with some Ye Old Timey vibes. But do you think across the pond in Olde Blighty, the folks in Milton Keynes, or whatever they call their New Towns, get worked up over "Reston ivy?" 

Verdict: A full English breakfast.

3. Bamboo. Often used along property lines. Virtually indestructible. 

Verdict: Replace them with bollards.

4. Chinese and Japanese wisteria. Pretty enough, but Wisteria Lane was the name of a street in another plastic fantastic planned community—the one on Desperate Housewives. 

Verdict: Too much drama.

5. Oriental bittersweet. We'll tell you what's bittersweet—driving by the spot where the Macaroni Grill once stood. 

Verdict: No endless breadsticks for you.

6. Flowering pear tree species. Flowers are fine. Pears are fine—tasty, even. But together? 

Verdict: That ain't right.

7. Burning bush. Usually these are portents of unpleasant journeys, like having to wander in the desert for 40 years or drive to Tysons. 

Verdict: A fistful of pennies to pay the tolls.

8. Nonnative Bush honeysuckles. According to something we Googled on Bing dot com, their fruits are considered "junk food" for many animal species. 

Verdict: Let them grow around the McTacoNoLongerAHut and nowhere else, the end.

This post was originally published in the Reston Letter.

Meet the New Boss: RA Hires CEO, Introduces Him Via YouTube

The Reston Association (finally) has a new CEO, one with a legit city planner background and a working knowledge of Bob Simon's vision.  V. v. exciting! Give us some good new hire blockquote, BFFs at Patch:

The Reston Association Board of Directors announced the hiring of Michael A. "Mac" Cummins to oversee the day-to-day operations of the community association as its new chief executive officer. His first day on the job will be Aug. 22... With more than 20 years of municipal government experience, Cummins most recently served for more than five years as the director of the Community Development Department in Bellevue, Washington.  Before coming to Bellevue, Cummins was a planning manager for the City of Westminister, Colorado, as well as the principal planner in Scottsdale, Arizona. 

Having studied city planning in college, Cummins said he was aware of Robert E. Simon's vision for Reston. One of his early jobs was in Irvine, California, which had also been built around a big master plan that could scale up to accommodate 60,000 to 100,000 residents.

"I followed Reston for years, both the residential components and the growth of the commercial area along the toll road," he said. "The things that I followed and then wanted to learn from in my roles as being a planning director related to thinking about how to connect communities. So, thinking about the relationship with the physical facilities, the trails, the park facilities, the ball fields, the pools, the nature center, all those things and how they actually build community and help people interact with each other."

But don't take our word, or some filthy blockquote, for it! You can watch this exciting YouTubes video and learn more about Cummins here, accompanied by a sweeping musical score:

He's actually going to live in Reston, which we appreciate. Coming from a background in municipal government, we hope Cummins recognizes the limitations of HOA control, and the need to keep a fire lit under our actual elected officials. But enough of our yammering! Back to the video:

Here he is, standing dangerously close to one of our pristine natural features. Apparently they don't have copperheads in the Pacific Northwest.

All in all, Cummins seems great, and we wish him well. Lest you wonder if the RA is still the same old RA, though, check out the "next video" that automatically plays at the end of this one:

Meet the new boss, same as the old boss, etc. etc.

DRB After Dark: There's More to Online RA Meetings Than Inscrutable Pictures of Vents

(For once, this is not one of our arrows. You can tell because it's tasteful and proportional.) 

Can't sleep? Hate enjoying yourself for even one moment of our Live, Work, Play existence? Need to perform emergency surgery but don't have a sedative handy? Well, the Reston Association is Here To Help, with its long-running collection of videos from its various meetings, including the DRB's regular confabs, which often clock in at more than three hours -- plenty of time for that emergency appendectomy or to get halfway through a sleepless night.

You might think these video recordings of meetings are mind-numbingly boring unless you're one of the "affected parties" trying to, wedunno, replace a light fixture that hasn't been manufactured since Nixon was president or still needs to be lit by an old-timey itinerant gas-lighter or something. And you'd be right! But a Confidential Restonian Operative clued us into something important -- the real fun is in the Zoom chats. Check out this screen grab from the chat during a meeting sometime last year (names blurred to protect the innocent, and apparently the horny):

"Lowkey."

Sadly, it doesn't appear that the RA posts the chat transcripts along with the videos, so for this kind of filth, you have to watch live, presumably with a martini and pipe in hand. But who knew listening to discussions about, wedunno, storm drains and ducts and beams and pipes and shafts could have this effect on people?

If you'll excuse us, we need to take a cold shower, the end.

Holiday Wishes for An Algae-Free New Year From Your Favorite HOA

It's that time of year again, when thoughts of holiday cheer come to our homes via uniformed federal agents providing greetings and salutations from our favorite plastic fantastic planned community in the form of our annual assessment bill. 

By way of added cheer, the enclosed letter points out that "no significant algae blooms occurred on any of Reston's four lakes," so happy holidays to all (except the dreaded Hydrilla, the end.) 

RA's Magic Treehouse: Just One of Three Million-Dollar Projects Whose Timing Couldn't Possibly Be Better

So it's been a while since the Reston Association has suggested major new capital projects, maybe because of their semi-recent track record. But we can say this: when they dream, they dream big!

Last month, the RA proposed building a nifty new barn to hold hoedowns events, a treehouse to teach kids about the tree canopy, and an inclusive playground for children with disabilities -- all of which is great. They wanted the Friends of Reston to help raise money, which they did for earlier projects at the Nature Center. Only each of the projects would cost more than $1 million, which didn't go over quite so great, what with the maintenance backlog and pressure to close pools and the whole global pandemic putting the economy on a highwire thing. Give us some good blockquote, BFFs at Reston Now:

However, the RA and FOR boards both expressed hesitation and even frustration at the appeal, citing a lack of membership feedback, COVID-related sensitivities, and an ongoing budget crunch.“For any kind of capital campaign, we’d have to see that 80% of the community wants this,” FOR President Carol Nahorniak said. “I’m concerned about the cost…Looking at that price tag, we always know it will cost more. There are certain things I’m just not comfortable with.”

RA Director Sarah Selvaraj-D’Souza said she had heard only about the event barn prior to the meeting with FOR, calling it “embarrassing” that the board of directors wasn’t made aware of the other projects sooner.

RA interim CEO Larry Butler downplayed the pitch, saying all of this was simply “brainstorming” based on examples of potential major capital projects from staff.

All three projects would have to be approved by RA members through referenda, which has happened before, and it's not the first time we've seen some blue sky options thrown out to the public by the RA with little warning. But let's see what this most recent round of brainstorming came up with. First, our favorite Correspondent, the Peasant from Less Sought After South Reston, shared this image of what the treehouse might look like, asking "yew want it or not?" 

Ha ha. The funny thing is that the actual proposal doesn't look that different, with the possible exception of the hot tub:

Then there's the barn, which could be used for "weddings, concerts, and community events." To be planted somewhere between Brown's Chapel and the ballparks, the facility would look like a DRB-approved paint color violation something out of an Andrew Wyeth painting -- at roughly the same cost. 

Maybe if we had an old fashioned barn raisin', we could shave a bit off the $1.1 million price tag.

Then there's the inclusive playground, an ADA-compliant space modeled after Clemyjontri Park, which has ramps and other materials that allow children of all abilities to play. The pity is this is the one that probably makes the most sense, as families of children with disabilities 'round these here parts have long trekked to (shudder) McLean to visit the park. But it too would cost more than $1 million, and given its inclusion on this list will probably be unfairly lumped in the same category as these other projects. Even the other two projects could conceivably make sense, especially if they were funded as necessary amenities by developer proffers as Reston continues to fill out, an idea which has resulted in tons of new playing fields, green space, sidewalks, and -- oh, wait, we forgot -- that's exactly what hasn't happened.

Maybe it's time to read the room—even if the room is 20 feet above ground in a treehouse, the end.

RA CEO Harry Lynch Resigns After 2 1/2 Years

The Reston Association announced today that CEO Harry P. Lynch has resigned after around 2 1/2 years leading the RA. Give us some good we-wish-Hank-well-in-his-future-endeavors blockquote, RA:

Reston Association CEO, Harry P. “Hank” Lynch, has resigned. The association’s Board of Directors was informed of the resignation this week. Lynch, who was hired in December 2018, said he has accepted another opportunity. Lynch’s last day with RA will be Sept. 3, 2021. 

“We all wish Hank well in his new endeavors,” said RA President, Caren Anton. “His leadership has been invaluable during his entire stay in Reston and especially during the trying times caused by the pandemic. Hank has provided a steady hand and brought new and innovative ideas to the table. He will be missed."

During Lynch’s tenure, the association significantly upgraded its IT security systems, remained fiscally sound and improved its customer service across the board. New measures were put in place to improve lake management and Covenants operations.

Lynch's hiring in late 2018 followed a nine-month vacancy following the resignation of former RA CEO Cate Fulkerson, who had served in the role since 2013. The RA Board will meet next week to plan for hiring his successor.

Two Weeks Left in Glorious 2021 RA Board Elections, Most of Which are Actually Contested (Updated)

We're halfway through this year's RA Board of Directors election season (or "eln szn," as the kids have almost certainly never said), and we've got ourselves a barnburner! Well, that may be debatable, but at least two of the three open seats are contested this year -- a good thing, particularly given the fact that the RA hasn't exactly had the best track record of late of doing things like, we dunno, running websites and maybe keeping their email passwords secure? So some non-Soviet oversight is likely in order.

But we digress. Four candidates are running for two open at-large seats -- John Farrell, Sarah Selvaraj-D’Souza, Timothy J. Dowling, and Vincent Dory. For the open South Lakes seat, Jennifer Jushchuk is running unopposed. 

Candidate statements are here. If all those words give you a headache, please to be enjoying this YouTube video of the candidates reading their statements:

 

And here's the candidate forum, renvisioned this year as a virtual event which will remind you of every work-related Zoom call you've had over the past year:

   

Our BFFs at Reston Now also have run profiles of some of the candidates.

The Coalition for a Planned Reston (CPR) endorsed two of the at-large candidates, Farrell and Selvaraj-Dsouza, and Jushchuk for the South Lakes seat. Rescue Reston published position statements from all four at-large candidates about preserving Reston's golf courses.

We love to kid on this filthy "web log," but we're grateful that people are actually willing to run for what is truly a thankless job. There's certainly a lot on Reston's plate in the years to come, so good on them.

As for the rest of us, the good news is that as of yesterday, the election hit its required 10 percent quorum and they don't have to start the whole process over again. As of March 18, turnout was at 11 percent for the contested at-large seats and 12.3 percent for the South Lakes one. But that's still a tiny percentage of eligible voters. If we're living in a socialist-style collective, let's vote like one!

Voting closes April 2, so vote early and often.

Update: Sarah Selvaraj-D’Souza and Timothy J. Dowling wound up winning the at-large seats, while Jennifer Jushchuk won the uncontested South Lakes seat.

Metallic Object Falls Into Lake Audubon, Presumably From Outer Space

It's not at all alarming when your favorite homeowners association interrupts your morning Twitter browsing with news that a mysterious metallic object has fallen into one of our plastic fantastic planned community's manmade lakes... and that it's resistant to being moved.

Given the headlines of the past week about mysterious flying objects, there's really only one credible explanation...

We, for one, welcome our new alien overlords, and hope they reduce our annual assessment, the end.

Reston's Plague Year: Week # Somewhere Between Phase 2 (Not Enough Masks) And Phase 3 (Won't Be Enough Masks)

A legitimate surprise: the Silver Line is now reopening ahead of schedule -- August 16 instead of after Labor Day. No word on whether this campaign from our doppelgänger in Scotland played any role in the fast-track schedule (click to enlarge):

In the meantime, we wouldn't worry about long lines for the replacement bus service:

One other passenger along with me and the bus driver on Silver Line Shuttle to Tysons/Reston.... pic.twitter.com/xPXytOz20A

— Gene Wu (@TheWuWu) June 16, 2020

Predictably, there's been backlash to the peaceful Black Lives Matter protests in Reston a few weeks back. From Lake Newport, a retort scrawled on a piece of art:

And the Reston Unitarian Universalist Church on Wiehle Avenue had its own Black Lives Matter banner stolen over the weekend. (Fun fact for the old-timers: When they first started putting up rainbow pride banners more than a decade ago, someone tried to set them on fire. More than once, too.)

Meanwhile, antifa supersoldiers Reston Strong have found a monument to topple -- the Confederate monument at the old Fairfax Courthouse:

Never forget that Reston's only historical statue of note once found itself vandalized and thrown in the lake.

And then there's the final word:

We're all in.

This drone shot of an empty (and for once, "contamination" free) Water Mine at Lake Fairfax, posted first to Nextdoor, is wild:

The Reston Community Center is reopening in limited fashion early next month, including its indoor pools. And four of Reston's pools will open next week, albeit for lap swimming/water walking only, with reservations required and no one under 8 allowed. And because We Can't Have Nice Things, stand-up paddleboarding is canceled for 2020:

In the interest of safety for our customers and staff due to COVID-19, SurfReston - Stand Up Paddleboarding SUP and Reston Association have made the decision to pause Stand-Up Paddleboard (SUP) programming on the Reston lakes for summer 2020. pic.twitter.com/uKlaaXKLyU

— Reston Association (@RestonOnline) June 18, 2020

No helicopter, but this week's police news is tragic and (as of now) unexplained.

Roer's Zoofari (formerly the Reston Zoo) has reopened as a self-serve driving/walking tour. Smart way to adapt to a potentially business-destroying threat. And emerging from the pandemic, Kalypso's Sports Tavern is preparing to celebrate 10 years of business -- practically an Ice Age as far as Lake Anne businesses go.

Finally, we'll leave you with An Art, a hidden surprise found in the woods of Reston:

Reston's Plague Year: Week 9 (Updated 5/19)

Openings and closings: RA announced that its summer camp programs are officially canceled for the summer. On other amenities:

The association will determine how many pools will open depending on the number of staff that can complete a water rescue test, which cannot be completed online. RA hopes to have enough qualified and certified staff by July 1 to ensure that a minimum of four pools are fully staffed and operational. It’s also unclear when tennis courts will be open. Depending on when social distancing requirements are relaxed in Northern Virginia, some tennis courts would be open in June.

But then there’s this!

BIG NEWS! Park Authority parks and parking lots will begin opening Wednesday (May 20) and will be open in time for the holiday weekend; certain amenities and restrooms will remain closed. All social distancing recommendations must be followed. More info: https://t.co/67xQp0iaee pic.twitter.com/SDNhywJ0jX

— Fairfax County Parks (@fairfaxparks) May 19, 2020

One of the saddest stories of our coronatime — the disappearance of 75 year old Michael Delaney from Reston Hospital last Sunday — continues. While the active search was called off late last week, today the Virginia State Police issued a senior alert.

Over the weekend, dozens of people participated in a community search.

You can follow the ongoing search on this Facebook group. Here’s one lead that’s been shared (click to maybe make readable):

One person’s efforts to show what six feet looks like on Reston trails.

Some Good News, as some less famous rando “video web logger” put it, maybe on the Tik Toks or something:

Our Reston District Station received an incredible donation of PPE from the Reston Home Depot 4641 on Friday in honor of Police Week. The donation included N95 masks, gloves, hand sanitizer, and a kind letter of appreciation. Thank you for this thoughtful donation! #FCPD pic.twitter.com/vZNUAvnG3q

— Fairfax County Police (@FairfaxCountyPD) May 19, 2020

Dear Residents of Howland Drive in Reston: Thank you for your extreme kindness towards our paving crews today. The water was thoughtful, generous, and much appreciated. Love you! ❤️ pic.twitter.com/RjHPJ3QcyE

— VDOT Northern VA (@VaDOTNOVA) May 13, 2020

More of that Some Good News: Reston grocery stores are more or less well-stocked these days.

Shout out to the wonderful employees at the @GiantFood at North Point Village in #reston Virginia. The store is fully stocked, even w/ TP. The employees were busy cleaning baskets, machines, etc. they have guidelines for customers on floor. Also they were kind and helpful.

— gingers for grandmas- keep the boomers ok (@ZoePerdue) May 16, 2020

The bad news? Sexist bread has, like nature, returned during these less crowded times. Courtesy of Confidential Restonian Operative “Erin”:

“While Safeway can't stock frozen foods, we do have plenty of sexist croissants!” CRO “Erin” observes.

The ‘Nature is Healing’ meme is getting a bit crazy. First, the neighborhood foxes are taking what is rightfully theirs:

Bears have been spotted around Reston, because why not.

If that wasn't unnerving enough, the unimpeachable source of animalia, Nextdoor, has been rife with a heated discussion about whether feline creatures seen around Reston are bobcats or cougars.

For comedic purposes, most people have gone with the latter:

Hey, if a former president can make a Tiger King reference, so can folks on Nextdoor.

But not all nature is out to get us (or our doggie toys):

This gorgeous fawn and her sibling were spotted Saturday morning on Polo Fields Trail. Have you taken any pictures of wildlife on our trails recently? Share with us in the comments!

Thank you to Lynn Brown for sharing this photo with us.#Reston #EnjoyReston #RATrails pic.twitter.com/Z3JGRIrich

— Reston Association (@RestonOnline) May 19, 2020

All together (but socially distant) now: Awwwwwww.

Reston's Plague Year: Week 7 (Updated 5/4)

A little on the nose, Reston litterbugs, but okay.

As of Monday afternoon, there are 756 confirmed cases in the combined 201 zip codes encompassing Reston, Herndon, and much of western Fairfax County -- still the lowest per-capita rate in the county. Apparently more refined data is coming from the state in the coming days, but according to this poll tests are still few and far between:

Confidential Restonian Operative "Quinn" sends us this photo of An Art at Reston Town Center practicing good social distancing:

"Thought you’d like to see the plaques that have been placed around Buoyant Force, showing is just how far to sculpturally distance ourselves, with monitoring to enforce good citizenship!" CRO "Quinn" reports.

Mixed plans from Reston's summer camps. RA Camps are still on (for now), while RCC is canceling:

Please read the following for an update on the status of Reston Camps amid COVID-19. For more information, stay tuned to @RestonCamps on all platforms, or email Camp@reston.org. pic.twitter.com/WAxZB60UuZ

— Reston Camps (@CampsReston) May 4, 2020

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, RCC is canceling its Summer Camp schedule and issuing full refunds. If commonwealth and county guidelines allow, we hope to offer a small slate of new camps beginning in July. Watch for new registration information in June. https://t.co/65PksPSrRj pic.twitter.com/WffMLo85Rc

— Reston Community Center (@RestonRCC) May 4, 2020

They're not just for unsightly home renovations anymore:

Reston-based CORE Foundation has placed pods in several places around town to collect donations. See other ways to help.

An update from the Reston Gateway project rising near the future RTC Metro station. Mauvescrapers wait for no man — and no pandemic. Sweet music though, and the “waste and vent rough-in” action is ready for its closeup!

Our Reston Gateway field teams have done a great job dealing with the impacts of the pandemic. They have been working safely, following protocol and continue to stay on the front lines to get the job done on time! Thank you for your continued professionalism and courage!#gojcm pic.twitter.com/l6vVFygrpJ

— JCM Associates, Inc (@gojcm_official) April 30, 2020

The Reston Association held its Zoomathon last week, announcing winners of the recent RA Board elections: Robert T. Petrine and Sarah Selvaraj-Dsouza (at-large), Caren Anton (Hunters Woods/Dogwood), and Mike Collins (apartment owners).

More people doing good:

Thank you Reston! We had a very successful Food Donation Day with almost a 1000 items donated.
We not only received donations, but we also provided some groceries to a family that stopped by.

Many thanks our volunteers & to you for your generosity. pic.twitter.com/BFiiH61PEF

— St. Anne's, Reston (@StAnnesReston) May 2, 2020

On Nextdoor, people are still focusing on What Matters Most:

And the final word, at least for now:

The word on the @WODTrail is: Resilience. Seen on the trail in Reston today. #NTStrong #RestonStrong #VirginiaStrong pic.twitter.com/o5WtN3fTMM

— Michael A. Shea (@SheaMichaelA) April 30, 2020

Not-So-Super Tuesday: RA Board Elections Kick Off, Predictably, With A Software Glitch, But At Least Most Races Are Contested

If you were an Eager Election Beaver and tried to vote for your favorite candidates in this year's Reston Association Board of Directors election when the (electronic) polls opened on Monday, you'll have to try again. A wacky, sitcom-like error voided all votes cast electronically on March 2. Give us some face-saving blockquote, BFFs at the RA:

Due to a technical error by Intelliscan, all previously submitted votes that were cast on Monday, March 2 have been cleared. Intelliscan wants to ensure that the integrity of the Reston Association’s election process is kept in place and that RA members receive the correct ballot for their property location.

People give the RA a hard time about being technically inept, but we'd like to point out that this is a big improvement over last year, when a bunch of paper ballots got screwed up, forcing an equally embarrassing kerfuffle. So, progress!

Of course, we learned of this latest problem the same day we found out that another, unrelated technical glitch has forced the RA to extend its deadline for paying our annual assessments through the end of this month. If only we had known this before handing our dog-earred check to a uniformed federal agent last week, we could have shorted the stocks of RA's technology providers with that $700 over the next month and made a killing!

But we digress. The good news is that after last year's uncontested slate, two of the three seats up for grabs and accessible to us Common Restonians this year are actually contested. (Even the fourth race, open only to slumlords apartment owners, has two candidates). That's good, as there's been a bit of activity round these here parts of late, making the fact that people are willing to run for what is a thankless job all the more important.

The candidates are:

At- Large Seat (3-year term)
Kerri Bouie
Robert T. Petrine

At-Large Seat (1-year term)
Paul Berry
Sarah Selvaraj-Dsouza

Hunters Woods/Dogwood District Seat (3-year term)
Caren Anton (unopposed)

Apartment Owners' Seat (3-year term)
Jennifer Sunshine Jushchuk
Mike Collins

To learn more about the candidates that us mere mortals can vote for, click on the video above. You can also read the official statements of all the candidates here or watch the full video of the candidates forum held last week.

The geriatric day-glo rave community groups focused on Reston development are paying close attention. In endorsing Petrine and Selvaraj-Dsouza for their respective contested seats, the Coalition for a Planned Reston says:

The Reston Association Board of Directors election will bring new voices to the Board—voices that will have a significant say in the upcoming review of the Reston Master Plan that was recently announced by Fairfax County Supervisor Walter Alcorn. The future growth of Reston will be forever impacted by the review, particularly in the PRC, the established residential neighborhoods outside of the Transit Station Areas.

Rescue Reston has posted position statements from all candidates about protecting both of Reston's golf courses on its own website.

The RA elections run through April 3. We're always terrified that these elections won't meet the required quorum, increasing the odds of having to redo the election at increased expense (three guesses who winds up footing the bill for that), so do you duty to your plastic fantastic planned community and vote, the end.

R.I.P.: Reston: The Magazine

Pour one out, as the kids reliably haven't said in at least a decade, for everyone's favorite glossy magazine covering our plastic fantastic planned community: Reston: The Magazine is no more.

People complained about Reston: The Magazine constantly, arguing that a, whazzitcalled, homeowners association shouldn't be publishing a fancypants magazine like it was Conde Nast (or, in the RA's case, Conde Nasty Color Palettes). The magazine was supposedly self-sustaining because of that sweet sweet advertising cash, but judging by the dramatic decline in our own ad revenues for the WHOS YOUR BABY'S DADDY banner ads on this filthy "web log" that prompted us to cancel our planned trophy office building lease, we should have guessed that advertising alone would no longer carry the freight.

Now uniformed federal agents will instead be delivering an "RA Activities Guide" to our homes four times a year. That was the excuse for having a magazine in the first place, but let's look back and see how Reston: The Magazine was So. Much. More.

Launched at the beginning of what was then a shiny new decade, Reston: The Magazine covered a lot of ground. They told us to pan for gold in the creek out back! They announced the biggest news since Bob Simon pulled out a map of Fairfax County! There was the time it profiled a mauvescraper that Reston officially opposed! It went the prog rock route with its photos (a move we applaud). And it offered this priceless, stock photo-festooned listicle of What To Do When Your Neighbor Paints The Party Wall Purple:

And, as we all have had to in recent years, Reston: The Magazine got with the program. But above all, we'll miss the part of Reston: The Magazine that truly got what it was like to live in a planned suburban community in an era of aggressive late-stage capitalism: the word finds.

Farewell, Reston: The Magazine. We can only hope that this other new publication, available just a bit further down the Toll road, has room for word finds among its centerfolds profiles of "the Burn's" X-rated parks and whatnot, the end.