© 2007

LITTLE RUN CITIZEN'S ASSOCIATION
SPRINGBROOK FOREST  ·  WILLOW WOODS  ·  WOODS OF ILDA

Welcome

Neighborhood News

The LRCA’s Annual Meeting will be held on Friday, May 4, 7:15 pm, at Canterbury Woods Elementary School.

The meeting will start with a gathering and greeting period. We’ll serve strawberries, whipped cream and soft drinks. The agenda includes LRCA board business, a guest speaker, and a community question-and-answer session. Here are the details.

7:15 – 7:30 Gathering and Socializing

7:30 – 7:55 LRCA Board Business

• Introduction of the Board
• Information/Upcoming Events
• Treasurer’s Report
• Membership Report
• Neighborhood Watch Report
• Nomination and Election of Board Members

8:00 – 8:20 Guest Speaker – Lily Whitesell, Watershed Specialist

• Ms. Whitesell will cover a range of local conservation issues as well as actions that people can take to benefit our local environment.

8:20 – 9:00 Guest Panel Q & A with invited guests

• Chap Peterson, State Senator, 34th District of Virginia
• John Cook, Fairfax County Braddock District Supervisor - CONFIRMED
• Vivian Watts, Virginia Delegate - CONFIRMED
• Gerald E. Connolly, Congressman US House of Representatives

Come with your questions, concerns, and ideas about neighborhood or state issues for the panel. It should be a lively forum. Come on out. Bring a friend, meet new neighbors, and catch up on neighborhood news.

If you are interested in helping with an LRCA event or running for the board, please send me an e-mail at dchamlee@verizon.net. You probably have a skill or passion that the entire community could benefit from. Whether it is helping with an event or serving on the board, working with the LRCA is a great way to meet new people, stay connected to the community at large, and make our neighborhood a better place to live.

Start thinking about how you want to decorate your wagons and bikes for this years parade and carnival on Wednesday July 4th. Registration begins at 11 AM. The Parade will start at Noon. More details will be available in June via the next newsletter and through the LRCA Yahoo Group.

I am in charge of the signs for the LRCA board. You may have noticed we have some new signs. Made of plastic they are lighter in weight with no sharp edges. We were looking for persons who would be willing to take responsibility for one or two signs each. The job would include putting the message on the sign and placing it out at a designated location. We only put the signs out 5 or 6 times a year at most. If you are interested, please contact me at rwkachur@hotmail.com. Sincerely, Bob Kachur

Are you ready for the summer? I know Ilda Pool is. What better ways to enjoy the hot summer, then taking a dip or glide down our new curly slide at the pool? During the summer we have many activities for you to enjoy. Among them, our famous Friday Night Social!

So mark your calendars! Our Open House is scheduled for May 12th, our Annual Membership Meeting is May 25th and the Opening Day, the LRCA Dip & Dive, is May 26th.

Visit Ilda Pool at www.ildapool.org for more information. Please like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter for the latest updates.

If you have any questions about Ilda Pool membership, please contact Katarina Zuber, (703) 978-1586 or zuberkatarina@gmail.com

Hope to see you at the pool. Ilda Pool, that is!

WHY RAIN BARRELS?
Rain barrels can be attached to your downspouts to capture runoff from the roof. By installing a rain barrel at your home you will:

Provide your plants with water they will love! Unlike treated water, which is "softened" with dissolved minerals, rain water is naturally soft. The water stored in your rain barrel is better than municipal water for washing your car and watering indoor or outdoor plants.

Save money and water! Instead of water from the tap or faucet, you can use the water you've saved to keep your home landscape happy and growing. You'll also reduce your municipal water bill!

Protect the Chesapeake Bay! Water stored in your rain barrel is water that won't rush off into our streams. Instead, as you use the stored rain water around the home and garden, it will absorb slowly into the ground replenishing groundwater supplies. By decreasing the volume of storm runoff, rain barrels also help moderate stream erosion and the resulting pollution that is impairing the Chesapeake Bay.

RAIN BARREL WORKSHOPS
Rain barrels purchased from mail order or retail sources can be prohibitively expensive. As part of a regional initiative, the district offers build-your-own rain barrel workshops and distributes low-cost rain barrels to Fairfax County citizens. At the workshops, you will learn how to install and maintain a rain barrel and take one home!

UPCOMING RAIN BARREL PROGRAMS, FEES -REGISTRATION
REQUIRED 2012
Rain Barrel Workshops have arrived! See below for the schedule of workshops and registration information.

Registration is required for all programs. For each program unless otherwise noted, registration closes a week prior to the event. The fee per barrel is $55 for build-your-own workshops, $65 per barrel for distribution events. Limit: 2 rain barrels per person.

BUILD-YOUR-OWN WORKSHOPS

Saturday, May 12, 10 a.m. – 12 p.m.
Nannie J. Lee Memorial Recreation Cente
1108 Jefferson Street, Alexandria, VA 22314

Saturday, May 19, 10:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.
Walker Nature Center 11450 Glade Drive, Reston, VA 20191

For complete list of events, please see http://www.arlingtonenvironment.org/barrel.php.

DISTRIBUTION EVENT

Saturday, June 16, 1-4 p.m.
Falls Church Property Yard 7100 Gordon Rd., Falls Church, VA

Online registration is handled by our rain barrel partner organization, Arlingtonians for a Clean Environment.

Questions? Contact by email rainbarrel@fairfaxcounty.gov
or call 703-324-1428, TTY 711.

Once again, Spring is right around the corner and many homeowners are heading to lawn and garden stores for their annual supply of mulch. Mulch mimics the benefits created by the forest floor. The generally recommended mulching depth is two to four inches. Unfortunately, many landscapes are falling victim to a plague of overmulching. A new term, “mulch volcanoes,” has emerged to describe mulch that has been piled up around the base of trees. Deep mulch can be effective in suppressing weeds and reducing maintenance, but it often can cause problems for trees according to Jim McGlone of the Virginia Department of Forestry. McGlone warns that over mulching:

• Promotes tree disease – bark is not a good barrier against soil fungi;
• Prevents water from reaching roots – mulch can help hold and infiltrate water into the soil beneath it when spread in a two to four inch layer, deep mulch may not allow water to penetrate and may promote the growth of fungal mats that help shed water;
• Provides homes for rodents – deep piles of mulch are good homes for rodents, particularly if they can burrow in under fungal mats and stay dry; rodents living in mulch piles can gnaw on bark an damage the cambium layer beneath the bark, which can quickly kill young trees;
• Promotes girdling roots – the warm, moist environment of a mulch volcano can induce a tree to start growing roots from the trunk which are poorly formed and can circle or strangle the tree;
• Creates a stink – aerobic decomposition of mulch is the smell of good soil, but deep mulch piles can prevent the penetration of oxygen, leading to anaerobic decomposition which smells like swamp gas. A good reference for how to mulch trees can be found at this site: www.treesaregood.org/treecare/resources/ProperMulching.pdf.

Hi, Neighbors,
The LCRA is launching the annual Membership Drive, which will run March 1 -31. Please note that we will also update the directory this year. To be included in and receive a new 2012 Directory you must be an LRCA Member by March 31. Renewing or signing up for the first time also entitles you to be part of the LRCA Yahoo Group and receive significant discounts on trash and recycling pick up.

Our goal, through the volunteer efforts of our members, is to maintain our neighborhood as a safe and friendly place to live. Throughout the year, the LRCA hosts many events and supports several initiatives, giving everyone many opportunities to help with community activities.

JOIN THE LRCA and...

• Receive a new neighborhood directory published in June,
• Gain access to the LRCA Yahoo Group,
• Receive significant discounts on trash pick up,
• And enjoy the Winter Hay Ride.

Help support your community and join the LRCA today. Please return your application and check for $20.00 to your block captain no later than March 31.

Thank you.
Derrick Chamlee
LRCA President

A special thank you goes to Peggy Warweg who has led the effort to improve lighting in our neighborhood. Working with the LRCA and Fairfax County, she has acquired all of the required signatures so the upgrading of 13 dim street light bulbs in our community can begin. In addition the LRCA is funding the installation of new streetlights on Burbank and Stark Roads right off Guinea Road. These two roads are major routes in and out of our neighborhood, and the areas near the intersections are especially dark as no streetlights are currently in place. The areas we selected for bulb upgrades are those where the streetlights were few and far between, where the intersections are dimly lit, and where the county has designated school bus stops but the sites lack sidewalks. Soon the schoolchildren will no longer have to stand in poorly lit streets to wait for a bus.

Thanks again to Peggy for taking charge of this project and working with the LRCA and Fairfax County to improve pedestrian and vehicular safety in our neighborhood.

The LRCA sponsors the Community Care Network, a group of volunteers who provide support to others throughout the neighborhood in times of need, such as the birth of a baby, death in the family, accident or illness, military deployment, or fire or storm damage to a home. In the past, the group has helped with meals, transportation, errands, odd jobs, and foreign language translation. This invaluable service helps make the LRCA a more cohesive and close-knit community. Our biggest challenge has been finding which neighbors are in need. Rarely will someone ask for help. If you would like to volunteer as part of the Community Care Network, or if you know of someone in need, please e-mail CommunityCareGroup@lrcaonline.org.

The LRCA has a vacant position on the board, Events Coordinator. During the year we hold several events -- Fourth of July Parade, Dip & Dive, Winter Hayride, etc. -- and we need someone to coordinate the events. You do not have to do all the work; neighbors and board members provide plenty of support. Detailed notes exist for every event making stepping into the positoin much easier. If you are interested, please contact Derrick Chamlee at dchamlee@verizon.net.

It's a great way to stay connected to and make a difference in our community.

Every second Wednesday, join Wednesdays at the Movies, a group of film aficionados who meet at Cinema Arts Theatre in Fairfax to view a movie and then meet for a discussion. Call 703-323-4788 to sign up for future announcements and to request transportation to and from the theater if you no longer drive.

In these tough times it takes a tough guy to get lower rates for LRCA residents. That tough guy is Todd Skipper. According to Todd in early June he entered into high-stakes, tough negotiating sessions held in smoky bars and outlaw motorcycle gang club houses hidden in secret locations in plain sight. Now, these negotiations were so tough that life was cheaper than the whiskey we drank; these were negotiations where we told stories so scary that babies will be born in fear for decades to come; negotiations so tough that men cried, governments fell, teeth ached, gauntlets were run, fists were clenched, and the cow jumped over the moon… Well you get the idea.

By mid-July he had an agreement.

The agreement is with American Disposal Services. You can reach American by calling 703-368-0500. When calling American, state you are a member of LRCA. Here’s the deal.

• $22.98/month --- no increase in rate
• Senior rate of $20.98/month (60+ yrs; tell them you are a senior)
• 64 gallon recycling bins on wheels are free (call American for delivery)
• If any LRCA member is currently paying $1/month for wheeled recycling containers, call American and they will remove the charge from your bill
• Should American not be the endorsed trash service next year, there will be no charge to remove garbage cans (pretty good evidence of a commitment to serve our community in the future)

Rates are guaranteed for one year In addition, ILDA pool will receive:

• $50 credit for both July & August bills ($100 total)
• A review of American ‘sponsorship’ at the pool for next year.

So call American now and start saving and when you see Todd say, “Thanks, tough guy.”

The LRCA is happy to announce that at our last meeting Bob Kachur was elected to the LRCA Board as a Member at Large. At the Annual Meeting in May Claire Brown was elected to the board and is now the Vice President. Recently Valerie Schnibbe Smith agreed to coordinate the Community Care Network and Aija Evans agreed to be the LRCA Postmaster in charge of coordinating the LINK delivery. Speaking of the LINK Matt Nolan has been laying out the LINK for more than a year now. A special thank you to all of the above, to the area and block captains, neighborhood watch patrols and any one else who supports our community.

By Ivan Dietrich
Invasive plants grow everywhere in our Little Run Citizens’ Association neighborhood. Bamboo and English Ivy are most noticeable and prolific. Each spreads rapidly to choke establishment and growth of other plants—trees and native ground plants. They should be rooted out and destroyed. Zoysia grass (transplanted from Florida) is another plant that creeps from intended boundaries to invade neighbor lawns. Except for one or more applications of Round Up, it is difficult to control. Twining Morning Glory climbs shrubbery. It must be pulled plant by plant to prevent twining upward through shrubbery.

There are many other invasive plants such as kudzu vine (visible from portions of Route 95, and Route 17 going south from 95). Those listed above, however, are of immediate concern for our neighborhood.

By Paula Weiss
The vast majority of the time, LRCA residents are good neighbors who take care of our property and of each other. We don’t need a homeowners’ association to force people to do what good neighbors do naturally. But we can all use reminders, especially as the seasons change. As we head into fall, there are several “best practices” that if we all follow them, will result in a tidier and safer neighborhood.

Check to make sure that your hedges, bushes, trees and other shrubbery do not extend into the sidewalk area. Can a pedestrian walk or jog down the sidewalk without having to sidestep onto the grass median or even into the street? If not, it’s time to trim.

Those pesky leaves! Many of us are lucky to have beautiful old growth treed lots, but they sure produce a lot of leaves each fall. Please remember to rake and bag or mulch with a lawn mower your leaves as soon as practical. Your neighbors will thank you. If you wait too long and it rains leaves can become matted and difficult to rake. If left on the lawn into the spring they could create bare spots.

Please do not park cars in such a way that the sidewalk is blocked. Adding that third or fourth car to your driveway may not seem like a big hindrance, but we have heard complaints from elderly neighbors who are forced to step into the street or off the safer sidewalk onto the grass to navigate such driveways. It’s even annoying if you’re not elderly. A slight convenience for you or a guest may mean a major inconvenience to someone who depends on a clear sidewalk. By the way, police can and will issue citations for blocked sidewalks if they encounter them.

We all know that we are required by law and common sense to stop when a school bus stops to pick up or discharge children. But as the mornings get darker, and the evenings come sooner, please be especially careful to watch out for pedestrians of all ages. Some LRCA intersections lack sidewalks and adequate lighting for children waiting for a bus in the morning, so we need to keep our eyes wide open and our speed lower.

And if you’re picking up a schoolmate or a carpooler early in the morning, please be considerate of shift workers, retirees and others who may not wake up as early as you do…don’t honk! Knock on the door or use your cell phone to remind them you’re waiting.

Thanks to all of you who by being good neighbors day in and day out keep LRCA a great place to live. Have a safe and happy fall!

Visit www.facebook.com and search for Little Run Citizens Association. Connect with neighbors, explore issues, add to discussions, and share information.

Or visit twitter.com and search for LRCA_Community

It’s another way to stay connected.

The LRCA Yahoo Group is an online forum only open to those who belong to the LRCA. The goal of the group is to facilitate information sharing and communication among LRCA residents in the Woods of Ilda, Willow Woods, and Springbrook Forest neighborhoods.

If you have a question, post it to the group, and you’ll get answers. To join, send an e-mail with a request to join the group along with your name, address, and phone number to LRCA-subscribe@yahoogroups.com. You’ll receive an e-mail invite. Follow the instructions in the e-mail, and you’ll gain access to the group.

Kindle users can now download free eBooks available through the library's catalog. Fairfax County Public Library has been able to expand its eBook collection recently due to additional funding from the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors, the Fairfax Library Foundation and the Friends of the Reston Regional Library. The influx of donations has reduced the waiting times for the most popular books and has also allowed the library to add more titles in eBook format.

All of the library's electronic resources are available through the library's catalog accessible through the website at www.fairfaxcounty.gov/library. To see the electronic collection only, click on Download from the left column of the home page.

ReadyNova.com was designed to assist residents and businesses in the Northern Virginia region in developing a Family Preparedness Planner or a Business Preparedness Planner, both of which follow basic and accepted emergency management practices.

Both the Family Preparedness Planner and the Business Preparedness Planner are user-friendly applications that meet ADA requirements for accessibility.

This website and the preparedness planners were developed with an Urban Area Security Initiative award of the Northern Virginia Emergency Response System with project oversight provided by Fairfax County Office of Emergency Management on behalf of Northern Virginia emergency management organizations and partners.

Visit www.ReadyNova.com and start planning now.