News

President's Newsletter

May 1, 2026

Happy May Day! We're having a beautiful spring, and summer is just around the corner. With it are many exciting events and initiatives coming your way from the HFNA. Last month the new Board had our first meeting, and we decided our goal for this year is to focus not just on events that bring us together, but highlighting the best parts of our community: the people, pets, and businesses within it. We're delighted to announce a HFNA logo contest, a business directory for neighborhood business owners, and a featured pet spotlight in each newsletter! At each meeting, we'll be brainstorming new and creative ways to not only support our community, but how to showcase it. This newsletter will be a key driver in these initiatives, so please read on to learn more!

I’m pleased to announce our new officers and committee chairs for this term have been elected. Nick Leach will serve as Treasurer, Jill Zabel as Secretary, and Cat Rogosa will be the Vice President. Rich Fabsitz is our new Adopt-a-Spot chair, Jamie Markogiannakis will chair our Summer Potluck and Holiday Party, and Kim Tong will take over managing the signs. Rodrigo Cruz will continue to help us with recruitment, and Julie Knight will provide guidance as our former president. I will also continue to chair the Halloween Party since I’ve yet to find anyone else as pumpkin-crazy as myself.

Presently there are no development updates or plans in the works that impact our neighborhood. The Chain Bridge sidewalk project looks as if work won’t commence until next year. You can always find more information on proposed and ongoing projects on the City development page

Neighborhood Updates

We had a very successful Spring Cleanup Day on April 18th! Rich Fabsitz organized the event, and along with coffee and donuts (and a nice gossip about invasive plants along the creek bed), 25 neighbors grabbed their bags and got to work.

A concerted effort was made at the culvert between Chilcott and BLVD IV at the mouth of the creek to clean up the plethora of broken glass. The Cleanup Committee plans to continue to monitor that area in an attempt to keep the debris from flowing downstream (if you’d like to help, please let us know!).

A big thanks to everyone who spent their Saturday morning helping keep our park and neighborhood clean!

New Trees Planted at Pat Rodio Park

At the Arbor Day events last week, the City planted a mass of trees in the former playground area, and along the path in front of the BLVD IV townhomes. There is a plan for additional trees to be placed where the old jungle gym was located and along the path. The new playground will also receive landscape planting. Unfortunately, due to the location of the new trees, the park picnic tables and trash can have been removed, and we’re unsure if new ones will be put in a different location.

Summer Events to Put on the Calendar

• Summer Potluck: June 7th at 4 PM at Dave and Linda Remke's backyard (3904 Keith Ave.)  RSVP at the Signup Genius 

• Movies Under the Moon at Pat Rodio Park: June 12th at 8 PM showing ‘Zootopia’

• National Night Out: August 4th 

HFNA Business Directory

We are excited to start collecting businesses and services for our new directory: https://www.thehfna.org/business-directory.  The hope is for it to be a resource for both business owners to advertise and offer discounts for neighbors, and act as a trusted source for those looking for services.

Logo Contest

The HFNA needs you to help us create a fantastic logo! Gather your favorite art supplies and color the HFNA letters in a way that represents our neighborhood. This is an all ages contest that will commence at the Summer Potluck. In the next few weeks we’ll be sending out the logo for you to color if you want to work on it in advance, and at the Potluck, we’ll have a coloring station for kids and adults to give it their best! The Board will then review all submissions and announce the winner(s) in early summer. Start planning your design, and stay tuned!

Pet Spotlight

You can’t walk through the neighborhood without seeing how much our community loves our pets. That’s why we’re starting a pet spotlight for our favorite four-legged neighborhood friends. If you’d like to have your pet featured, send a picture and answers to the questionnaire below to thehfna@gmail.com.

April 9, 2026

Hello Neighbors,

As you saw in the last HFNA email, Julie Knight who has been our HFNA president since 2023, is stepping down (but will remain on the Board). She has faithfully served our neighborhood and has helped build the HFNA into the organization it is today. I will be stepping into the role for the 2026-2028 Board rotation, and from here on out, you’ll be getting updates from me. In light of that, I wanted to take a moment to introduce myself.

I’m Katie Racine and I live on the corner of Keith and Oliver (yes, the house with the barking dogs and unruly tomato plants). I grew up in this neighborhood and have been shaped firsthand by this incredible community, bolstered by the bonds of friendship, and supported through both the good and the bad times by my neighbors. It’s why I agreed when Julie asked me to move from the secretary role to the presidency. I want to give back to the neighborhood that has given so much to me over the years.
If anyone has questions, ideas, concerns or needs to reach me, you can email me at hfnapresident23@gmail.com, or as many of you know, I generally keep office hours in the front yard any time the sun is out. You’ll find me either on my laptop or better yet, covered in dirt, neck deep in the vegetable garden!

PARK PLANTING

According to Anna Safford, the City’s Urban Forester, trees will be planted along the park walkway at the upcoming Arbor Day festivities. Unfortunately, the existing cherry tree that had been planted there was removed this week, along with the temporary park sign. Over the coming weeks (or months) additional planting will be done around the new playground as you can see in the plans below. The City will also continue to monitor the health of the Locust trees along the creek, but have assured me there are no plans for additional tree removal at Pat Rodio Park at this time. We will continue to monitor the situation with the City to make sure we’re included in any future plans for the park.

BLVD IV COMMUNITY PARKING LOT

The Board has raised the issue with City officials regarding the lack of community parking spots available at the BLVD IV parking lot near the park. The City has reached out to Parks and Rec, BLVD IV, as well as local police to try and enforce park access to that parking lot. We’ve already seen evidence of the police visiting, and hopefully this will ease the parking stress on our neighborhood from visitors and during events.

March 7, 2026

FREE INVASIVE MANAGEMENT TRAINING 

 Fairfax City is hosting a free 2-hour training for invasive plant management on Saturday, March 14 from 10 a.m. to noon at the Sherwood Center. This is a great opportunity to build knowledge and leadership in your neighborhood on the issue of invasive plants, and to encourage community beautification, long-term care of trees, and improved landscaping practices in yards and common areas. Attendees will learn how to: identify common invasive plants; use tools and herbicides to manage invasive plants; and seek assistance from nonprofits and government agencies (grants to support habitat restoration work, technical support and advice, free or low-cost plants). Register here: Invasive Removal 101 Workshop City of Fairfax, VA -- For more information, contact Sophia Chapin (Sophia.Chapin@fairfaxva.gov) OR visit fairfaxva.gov/trees.

OPEN HOUSE ON ZONING ORDINANCE 

Fairfax City is holding an Open House to receive input on the Zoning Ordinance Plan on Thursday, March 26 from 5-8pm at the Sherwood Center. In 2024, the city began a project to review and update the Zoning Ordinance to better align with the guidance provided in the Small Area Plans. In 2025, a community meeting was held to gather feedback on proposed options. Input from community members, Planning Commission, and City Council helped guide the development of draft amendments to the zoning ordinance. Attend the Open House to learn about the draft amendments and provide feedback. Visit the Engage page to learn more about the project, view relevant documents, and subscribe to the email list for updates. 

January 23, 2026

2025 HIGHLIGHTS

In addition to enjoying a fun evening together at the holiday party, we raised over $300 for Food for Others through our holiday wreath raffle. Also during the past year, we "adopted" the Pat Rodio Park, with regular cleanup efforts, including a large neighborhood-wide cleanup event in the spring and again in the fall. The Summer Potluck Social in June, National Night Out in August, and the Fall Halloween Party rounded out the year. Check out our FaceBook page for photos from these events: https://www.facebook.com/HistoricFFXNeighborhoodAssociation. Additionally, we were pleased that Ourisman Kia withdrew their expansion proposal; HFNA submitted comments to the City related to parking and traffic concerns, among others, based on your feedback. 

HFNA 2026 DUES

It is time to pay dues for the new calendar year. Dues are $20 per household, and may be paid by cash, check or Venmo in advance of the Annual Meeting, or you may pay at the Annual Meeting. Please see the attached membership form for instructions on how to submit your dues or find more information at the HFNA website (https://www.thehfna.org/) under the Join the HFNA tab. (Please note: Only dues-paying members are allowed to vote at the Annual Meeting.)

SAVE THE DATE! – March 19 HFNA Annual Meeting & Annual Board Elections

Please mark your calendars for the HFNA Annual Meeting on Thursday, March 19 at 7 pm at the Sherwood Center. At this meeting, we’ll have the opportunity to connect with neighbors, learn about planned activities for 2026, discuss issues of concern, and to elect the Board of Directors. ½ of our current board will be rotating off, so we will have around 4 spaces to fill with new members. Please consider if you might be interested in serving on the board – or also if you would be willing to be on a small nominating committee to help identify candidates for the board. We also welcome your involvement in helping with one of the many events! (Please reach out to me or indicate your interest in serving on the survey form. We also welcome suggestions of neighbors you know and think would be great potential Board members.) Our guest speaker for the evening will be Brooke Hardin, City of Fairfax Director of Community Development and Planning, who will present an overview of downtown development projects under consideration and/or already moving forward, followed by Q&A time.

WINTER WEATHER

Below, please find information from the City about snow/ice removal, parking, power outages, water service and pipes, shoveling snow/ice and fire hydrants, and more. The city will post current information about city government services and programs as the snow event continues. Residents are encouraged to check the city website (fairfaxva.gov), with updates to be posted on the banner there and fairfaxva.gov/news. You also can stay connected via Fairfax City Alerts delivered via email and text (fairfaxva.gov/fairfaxcityalert) and social media (Facebook, X: @cityoffairfaxva). As mentioned in the information, please look out for neighbors who may need help, too!

In closing, the strength of our neighborhood association is our people! We have a great neighborhood and would love to reach out to more. While we have an email address list representing a little over half of the 205 homes in our neighborhood boundary (see the "about us" page on the website for more info), we would love to include all as this is the most effective channel of communication. Please tell your neighbor about us, and if they aren't already on the email list ask if you can share their email with us.  

October 17th, 2025

CITY ANNOUNCEMENTS

• Free Tree GiveAway - through Nov 30 or until trees run out -- Fairfax City's urban forestry program is once again offering free native trees from the Arbor Day Foundation to all city residents. This season we are offering the following native species: Eastern redbud (Cercis canadensis); Black tupelo (Nyssa sylvatica); River birch (Betula nigra); Swamp white oak (Quercus bicolor); Sweetbay magnolia (Magnolia virginiana); and Witch hazel (Hamamelis virginiana). Residents can input their address and order a free 1-gal tree, shipped direct to their home, at arborday.org/cityoffairfax. I've attached a flyer you can post or email out to your neighborhood. More information about this program can be found on our website: Free Trees for Residents City of Fairfax, VA

• City FY27 Budget Open House - Tues Oct 21, 4-7 pm at Sherwood Center -- More info here: https://www.fairfaxva.gov/Meetings-Directory/Budget-Events/FY-2027-Budget-Open-House

• City Community Engagement & Impact Expo - Wed Oct 22, 6-9 pm at the Sherwood Center -- More info here: https://www.fairfaxva.gov/Meetings-Directory/Special-Programming/Community-Engagement-and-Impact-Expo

I'll also be sharing an update next week from the City Parks & Rec Director regarding the playground at Pat Rodio Park so be on the watch for that.

October 6th, 2025

CITY SURVEYS

Move Fairfax City is a plan to improve transportation safety and walkability throughout the city and in Old Town Fairfax. We want your input! Click the links below to:

(External link)Take a brief survey:(External link) This survey asks about your experiences walking, biking, driving, or taking the bus throughout the city and in Old Town, as well as your priorities for Old Town Fairfax.

(External link)Leave comments on a map:(External link) This interactive map allows you to pin specific locations on the map where it feels difficult or unsafe to walk, bike, drive, or wait for the bus.

July 8th, 2025

NATIONAL NIGHT OUT

We're looking forward to our next neighborhood-wide event, National Night Out, on Tuesday, August 5th. This is a wonderful event for all ages, but especially children as the various public safety units rotate through our neighborhood, including fire trucks, police vehicles, McGruff the Crime Dog, K-9 unit, and more. Once again, we are collaborating with our neighbors of The Flats and The Towns of Boulevard VI, and this year, we will hold the event by Pat Rodio Park on the blacktop in the community parking lot to the south of the condo building/near the playground area. More details to come, but mark your calendars now if you haven't already! 

DON'T FORGET TO PAY YOUR DUES

With it being the midpoint of the year, I'd like to remind anyone who hasn't had a chance to pay your 2025 dues yet to please take a minute to do so now. There are several options for paying dues as outlined on the attached flyer, but the easiest is via Venmo: $20 to our HFNA Treasurer, Lisa Skoglund. Venmo Lisa at @Lisa-Skoglund (last four digits of cell “0115”) -- for HFNA Dues, along with your name, address, email, and phone number.

NEIGHBORHOOD FACEBOOK GROUP

Finally, don't forget to visit our website for information at https://www.thehfna.org/ and to join the HFNA private FaceBook group (only open to residents in HFNA bounds as verified by street address). This group provides a mechanism for sharing between neighbors about concerns and needs such as asking for recommendations for home repair, sharing about plants you may have to give away, swapping household items, seeking a teenager to hire to help with a job, etc. To request to join, go to the HFNA Facebook page and then find "More" at the top of the page (on computer) OR find "About" if looking on your phone; click on the dropdown list and then click on "groups" - You may submit your request for approval and will be admitted once the address is confirmed. 

January 27, 2025

2024 Highlights 

In addition to enjoying a fun evening together at the holiday party, we raised $500 through our holiday wreath raffle to support the Fairfax City Giving Tree AND we collected over 30 winter coats and many winter accessories, all to help make the holidays a little more special for families in need. Many thanks to the wonderful party committee (Jamie Markogiannakis, Morrow Armstrong, Linda Remkes, Jen Meredith, Kate Fogarty, Gina Borsh, Katie Racine and Maureen McCarthy) for hosting this fabulous event! Check out our FaceBook page for photos of the party and other events from the past year, including Community Cleanup Days, Summer Social, National Night Out and the Fall Halloween Party: https://www.facebook.com/HistoricFFXNeighborhoodAssociation.

SAVE THE DATE! – March 27 HFNA Annual Meeting

Please mark your calendars for the HFNA Annual Meeting on Thursday, March 27 at 7 p.m. At this meeting, we’ll have the opportunity to connect with neighbors, learn about planned activities for 2025, discuss issues of concern, and to elect the Board of Directors. ½ of our current board will be rotating off, so we will have 3-4 spaces to fill with new members. Please consider if you might be interested in serving on the board – or also if you would be willing to be on a small nominating committee to help identify candidates for the board. We would also welcome your involvement if you would be interested in helping with one of the many events! (Please reach out to me or indicate your interest in serving on the survey form.)

TELL YOUR NEIGHBORS ABOUT US!

The strength of our neighborhood association is our people! We have a great neighborhood and would love to reach out to more. While we have an email address list representing a little over half of the 205 homes in our neighborhood boundary (see the "about us" page on the website for more info), we would love to include all as this is the most effective channel of communication. Please tell your neighbor about us, and if they aren't already on the email list ask if you can share their email with us.  

November 1, 2024

Tree Give-Away

Fairfax City's urban forestry program is offering free native trees from the Arbor Day Foundation to residents in select neighborhoods this fall. (Our neighborhood is included.) Residents can input their address and order a free 1-gal tree, shipped direct to their home, at arborday.org/cityoffairfax. For more information, see the attached flyer or online at: Community Tree Distributions | City of Fairfax, VA

What Goes Where? – Recycling in the City of Fairfax

Did you know that the City of Fairfax has an 11.4% contaminate rate in the recycling stream? We can do better than that! It takes each of us to do our part to recycle right! The City has recently created the What Goes Where? search engine and game. This easy to use tool allows residents to search how to dispose of an item and any special instructions to properly discard it. The search engine also has a waste sorting game and an additional Need Nelp tap. The sorting game educates in a fun way on the waste hierarchy and how to properly dispose of items, customized to the City's programs and residential needs. (I took a few minutes to check out the Know Before You Throw Wizard and Game. I found them both to be useful tools, and I'm not gonna tell on myself, but also discovered something I hadn't been recycling properly myself all these years, so glad to know and correct it now!) Use the attached QR code or find the link to the search engine and more helpful information about recycling in the City of Fairfax here: www.fairfaxva.gov/recycling. 

Pumpkin Disposal

And while it's this time of year, please remember that pumpkins and jack-o-lanterns should not be disposed of in the woods or parks, but please consider backyard composting or disposing of them at the City of Fairfax Composting Center located behind City Hall by placing them in the composting bins located next to the community garden. If you are unable to compost, then place them in your normal refuse bin at the curb.

Development Updates

Ourisman-Kia Developments

for more information, please email hfnapresident23@gmail.com 

Summer  2025

We were notified by City Staff recently that Ourisman Kia has withdrawn their proposal to build a new showroom and expand their dealership on the edge of our neighborhood,  The HFNA Board has worked hard to represent the concerns of our neighborhood related to this project and we are pleased with this outcome! Thank you to all who participated in the process by sharing your concerns, attending meetings and providing other feedback when requested. 

Fall 2024

The HFNA Board is continuing to monitor the Ourisman Kia proposal and has learned that it is tentatively slated to come before the new City Council on January 28. Ourisman Kia made changes based on City Staff Comments to their submission number 4 and just sent submission number 5 to the City last week. City staff have indicated the latest proposal submission will be posted this week to the development webpage found here. Our HFNA board will review and would welcome new comments from HFNA members, if any, on the revised submission. We will keep you posted as new information is available about upcoming hearings or other meetings.

Summer 2024

Thanks again for attending the meeting in June with the Ourisman Kia team. Following the meeting, I sent an email to Giff Hampshire (their counsel) requesting they provide further clarification on parking questions we had as that was a major concern at our meeting, in addition to concerns for provisions to prohibit traffic in our neighborhood from the dealership. Additionally, our neighborhood's concern for employees parking on Warwick/residential streets near the dealership was also presented.

It is up to everyone who is concerned with the issue to review the plans closely and provide feedback as to if the revised plan is something we should support or not. The HFNA Board will be meeting later in September and one of our items on our agenda will be discussing next steps in the participation/response process. Please forward your comments and feedback to me at your earliest convenience. 

City Development Updates 

The Fairfax City Office of Community Development and Planning (CDP) is launching a new quarterly newsletter to "keep the community informed about the status of major development projects, as well as upcoming planning initiatives, and community meetings." I am forwarding the first newsletter that was sent out earlier this month (scroll down to see!), and I'd encourage all who are interested to subscribe to receive the quarterly newsletter directly into your own inbox. You may subscribe at the link at the bottom of the newsletter, or by going to this webpage: https://www.fairfaxva.gov/residents/news-and-information  scroll down on this page to "Stay Connected!" and select the "Planning and Development News" option. (Note: You may also subscribe to other City updates at this site.)