Mount Vernon-Lee Chamber to Host Welcome Reception for Fort Belvoir Commander

The Chamber of Commerce will welcome Fort Belvoir Garrison Commander Col. Gregory Gadson.

The Mount Vernon-Lee Chamber of Commerce will host a welcome reception for new Fort Belvoir Garrison Commander Col. Gregory Gadson on Tuesday.  Gadson was the Director of the U.S. Army Wounded Warrior Program before accepting command of Fort Belvoir in June. Gadson has served in the U.S. Army for more than two decades as a field artillery officer. He has served in major conflicts including Operation Desert Shield/Desert Storm in Kuwait; Operation Joint Forge in Bosnia-Herzegovina; Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan; and Operation Iraqi Freedom. The reception is free and open to the public. The reception will take place on Tuesday from 6 to 8 p.m. at The Fairfax Retirement Community located at 0140 Belvoir Woods Pkwy., Fort Belvoir. …

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Fort Belvoir Hospital Locked Down Following Reports of Possible Gunman

No danger to patients or staff; 'the system worked' with police response.

Fort Belvoir Community Hospital was placed on lockdown Tuesday morning following reports of a possible gunman. Fort Belvoir Police responded to a call placed shortly before 9:30 a.m. after security officials monitoring security cameras saw a man in the hospital carrying an object that appeared that it could have been a weapon, said Fort Belvoir spokesman Don Carr. The hospital was placed on lockdown and the installation's gates were closed after police were called. The individual was quickly apprehended by police. Fort Belvoir Police determined the object was a training device and the individual was not armed. The investigation is ongoing. "The message is: The system did work the way it should work," Carr said of the fast response by …

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U.S. Army Privatizing Hotels at Fort Belvoir

The Army will privatize all of its on-base hotels within the next decade.

The Army will be privatizing hotels at Fort Belvoir in order to improve quality, consistency, and cost. Under the Privatized Army Lodging (PAL) program, three hotels at Fort Belvoir will be renovated and a new hotel will be constructed across the street from the new Fort Belvoir Community Hospital. The renovation and privatization of hotels at Fort Belvoir should be completed by next spring, said Rhonda Hayes, Director of Capital Ventures for the Asst. Secretary of Army Installations, Energy and Environment. The privatization of Army hotels stems from a lease deal with Rest Easy, a subsidiary of developer Lend Lease’s public partnerships unit, The Washington Post reported on Monday. The Army decided to privatize its hotels on base because …

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Fort Belvoir Welcomes New Commander

Col. Gregory D. Gadson assumed command of Fort Belvoir.

Col. Gregory Gadson relieved outgoing Fort Belvoir commander Col. John J. Strycula at a change of command ceremony at the installation on Monday. Col. Gadson comes to Fort Belvoir after serving as the director of the Army's Wounded Warrior program. Gadson, who was wounded in Iraq in 2007, is the first bi-lateral amputee to command an Army installation. Gadson also starred in the film Battleship, which was released late this spring. Ceremony host Lt. Gen. Michael Ferriter of the Installation Management Command, said of Gadson, “he was a leader on the football field and on the battle field.” Gadson played football as a cadet at West Point and served in Afghanistan and Iraq as well as other conflicts and contingencies since his graduation in …

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Exiting Belvoir Commanders Honored by County Board

Col. Mark Moffatt and Col. John Strycula will both leave their duties at Fort Belvoir in June.

The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors last week honored two U.S. Army Colonels who are leaving Fort Belvoir this month. Col. Mark Moffatt, deputy garrison commander for transformation and BRAC (Base Realignment and Closure), retired on June 1 after 28 years of service. Col. John Strycula will leave his post as garrison commander at Belvoir on June 25 for an assignment in Afghanistan. Both Moffatt and Strycula worked closely in partnership with the county to oversee the costly and well-documented BRAC process, which brought thousands of federal employees to the base. Moffatt arrived at Belvoir in 2007 and during his five years at the base, he helped oversee the construction of three multi-billion dollar facilities, including the post’s …

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Residents Voice Opposition to Route 1 Widening Plans

Community members stated their concerns about current Route 1 widening plans at a public hearing.

Save Woodlawn Stables supporters clad in blue T-shirts Tuesday night voiced their opposition of Route 1 widening options that would impact the future of the equestrian facility as well as nearby historic buildings. Hundreds of residents filled the Hayfield Secondary School cafeteria for a public hearing hosted by the Federal Highway Administration. The FHWA has plans to widen Route 1 near Fort Belvoir due to increased traffic caused by the Base Realignment and Closure Act of 2005. Three widening options were discussed at the hearing: a no-build option, a southeast bypass option, and a widen-in-place option. The southeast bypass option could jeopardize the operation of Woodlawn Stables, Woodlawn Baptist Church, and other historic sites. …

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Fairfax Govt: Human Services Hearing, BRAC Commanders Honored

Public hearing on closing shortfalls in Community Services Board budget.

The Fairfax County Human Services Committee will kick off a series of public hearings Monday regarding gaps in the Fairfax-Falls Church Community Services Board budget and the agency’s budget management plan. The Community Services Board (CSB) faces an $8 million hole in its $150 million 2012 budget and an additional $9.4 million shortage in its budget for 2013. The CSB is self-described as "your link to local services for people with mental illness, substance use disorders, intellectual and developmental disabilities," according to the CSB website. During its May 22 meeting, the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors begrudgingly approved measures to mend the budget problems.  The CSB has identified ways to relieve stresses on its budget — …

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Help Is On The Way

Breaking the Cycle of Poverty in Southeast Fairfax County

How do you do that?

(Editor's note: This is the first in a series of weekly columns by Linda Patterson on the needs of local residents experiencing hard times.) The Lorton area is currently 3.5 percent of the population in Fairfax County. Almost 29 percent of Lorton households have a high school diploma or less, versus 22 percent for Fairfax County as a whole. This lack of education in more than a quarter of South County households means less income and struggling to make ends meet. This is where the Lorton Community Action Center steps in - when unexpected expenses stretch an already tight budget.  Since I became the LCAC Executive Director in January, I've met a lot of folks who have asked me to describe what we do. So, as part of a new weekly column with …

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Fort Belvoir Starbucks Employees’ Union to File Complaint Against AAFES

Nine employees fired from two Starbucks locations on base.

The Army and Air Force Exchange Service (AAFES) fired seven employees of the Fort Belvoir 12th Street Starbucks; employees and the union representing them are ready to take action. Mount Vernon Patch previously reported that AAFES, the non-appropriated fund instrumentality of the Department of Defense that operates the Starbucks locations at Fort Belvoir, conducted an investigation of nine employees of the 12th Street Starbucks in January. Starbucks licenses those locations under AAFES.   Now, employees at the Fort Belvoir Hospital Starbucks allege they were secretly videotaped and charged for stealing beverages and pastries. Those two employees are also filing a complaint. The National Labor Relations Board will file a class action …

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Sally Spangler

11:40 am on Sunday, February 26, 2012

So------ What was seen by whom and when? The first question. Why was whomever watching the staff? This thing stinks!!! I would have thought that the Military Police and the Fairfax County police would be hot to find the thief(thieves) and go from there. The watcher(s) were out to make trouble and they have!   more ›

Richmond Highway Development May Spare Woodlawn Stables

Three plans under consideration would enable business to continue.

This is the second in a multi-part series from Patch about the economic and other impacts of the declining equestrian industry in Fairfax County. Part 1: Fairfax County Losing Equestrian-Related Revenue Due to Lack of Planning was published Tuesday, Feb. 21. Part 3: Laurel Hill Equestrian Facility Moves Forward was published Thursday, Feb. 23. Part 4: Fairfax County Equestrian Opportunities was published Friday, Feb. 24. -------------  Woodlawn Stables, a horseback riding institution near Fort Belvoir, may be spared by upcoming road improvements to Richmond Highway after all. The stables, at 8907 Richmond Hwy., have been in continuous operation since 1979, when the area had fewer commercial developments and significantly less traffic. …

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Susan Larson

10:13 am on Tuesday, June 5, 2012

Via email continued: This is an excellent opportunity for the county and state to enter into a Public-Private partnership for the on again/off again equestrian center at Laurel Hill less than 7 miles away which could double the size of the Woodlawn Stables providing for all residents of Fairfax County and not just those in the Woodlawn area. Regards, D. Glen Taylor Burke, Virginia Hampstead, NC   more ›