GOCA Fall 2022 Update - Sept 9, 2022

Dear Friends and Neighbors,

The leaves have just begun to fall, but the pace of activity in Oakton, including that of the Greater Oakton Community Association, has already begun its seasonal quickening. Please read on…

GOCA News

Sign up now for a special historical tour of Oakton! GOCA is pleased to announce that we have arranged with local historian Jim Lewis to conduct a tour of historical landmarks of Oakton and along Hunter Mill Road geared especially for Oakton residents on November 5th from 9am to 12:30pm. Cost per person is $35, which covers the cost of the private bus transport and incidentals. Click here for more information. We can accommodate the first 20 individuals who sign up here.

2nd Annual Oakton Day in the Park showcases our community. Small-town spirit abounded as some 400 residents gathered in Oakton Community Park on a beautiful August afternoon to celebrate Oakton. Many thanks to the close to 50 volunteers who helped the day run so smoothly, as well as to the local businesses who participated in and/or helped sponsor it. Special thanks in particular to the following local businesses for their support: The Backyard Birdfeeder; Flint Hill School; GarageExperts; Hunter Mill Animal Hospital; Hunter Mill Montessori; Image Flooring; Mountain Kim; ServiceSource; and Settle Down Easy Brewing Company. Also thank you to Oakton United Methodist Church, which provided the popular face painting activity and to Unity Church of Fairfax and Oakton Library, which permitted attendees to park in their lots.

Community Directory now available. If you weren’t able to pick up a copy of the first-ever Oakton Community Directory at Oakton Day, feel free to get your own complimentary copy from the bookshelf directly behind the Oakton Library information desk. The directory includes contact information for a wide range of businesses which operate in Oakton, as well as handy numbers for government officials, public institutions, nonprofits, and emergency resources.

Oakton Community Park update and request for historical items. GOCA met with Park Authority officials to strategize on GOCA’s priorities for the park, including adding accessibility and safety features to the schoolhouse, restroom and kitchen facilities, and landscaping. GOCA also continues to make small improvements to the park–a bike rack will be installed shortly–and to arrange to have the schoolhouse opened for community events on a periodic basis. To enhance the educational value of visits to the schoolhouse, we received permission to store historic items in the building, and are seeking donations of historic desks, books, flags, and other items. Please let us know if you have any items you would be willing to either donate or lend to GOCA for this purpose.

Making progress on the Hunter Mill roundabout. GOCA has resumed discussions with the Virginia Department of Transportation, as well as the nearby neighborhood, about landscaping and maintenance of the Hunter Mill Road roundabout. VDOT does not see itself as having responsibility for planting or maintenance, but its permission is required for any work because the roundabout falls under its jurisdiction. Presuming GOCA or another local organization assumes responsibility for maintenance and liability issues are addressed, we are cautiously hopeful that landscaping can be installed in the coming year. We will provide more details as this develops.

GOCA-nominated Willow Martin wins prestigious Elly Doyle Park Service Award. If you have attended any of the invasive plant removal sessions, you’ve met Willow, who plays the leading role and has done so much to make the park a center of the community. She is passionate about removing the invasive plants in the park and committed to giving the woodlands every chance to thrive. She will receive formal recognition at a virtual session in November. Congratulations Willow!

Jackie Davey joins GOCA’s Board. Jackie Davey of the Miller Heights area is the newest member of the GOCA Board. With Jackie–an Oakton resident since 1994--on the Board, GOCA now has members from Miller Heights, Hunter Mill, Waples Mill, and Vale Road areas of Oakton. We continue to seek members representing the Blake Lane area and welcome expressions of interest.

GOCA Annual Meeting. Please mark your calendars for our annual community meeting, which we hope to hold in the OCP schoolhouse, on November 3rd at 7 pm. We will send out a reminder as we get closer to the event.

Community Updates

Blake Lane Traffic Calming Developments. GOCA wishes to express its appreciation to and admiration for the activism of the residents of Blake Lane who are bringing about needed improvements to protect pedestrians along that byway. After several accidents along that road, including a particularly terrible one earlier this year, a group of Oakton citizens swung into action to figure out ways to enhance safety. Working with Supervisor Palchik and the already existing Fairfax Families for Safe Streets, these citizens are arranging with VDOT, FCDOT, the police, and the schools to implement changes that will have significant benefit to the public. Changes made this summer include new speed limit and pedestrian crossing signs, the movement of school bus stops, repainting lane markings, and the creation of a County Blake Lane Safety Advisory group that is studying further measures. VDOT will run a Road Safety Audit in the near future to examine the Blake Lane/Jermantown Road corridor, which the citizens' group hopes could lead to further, significant road improvements such as road thinning, flashing pedestrian crossings, and new traffic signals. For more information, please see Blake Lane Community Group or email Andrea Falkenhagen.

Upcoming Events

Invasive Plant Removal and Native Plant Installation in Oakton Community Park. September 10th; October 8th; November 12th, December 3rd. Registration required; if you would like to receive mailings for these opportunities, please email Mark Deaton. If you would like to help with one of the sessions tomorrow, Saturday, September 10th, please register here.

Fairfax’s Families for Safe Streets Meeting. September 12th, from 6:30 to 8 pm via Zoom. Blake Lane is on the agenda. If you are interested in joining this or a future meeting, or in receiving announcements, please sign up here.

9/11 Heroes 5K Walk/Run. Sunday, September 11th. Opening ceremony at 7:30am, racers begin at 8 am. It is not too late to register and walk-ups are welcome. Click here for more info and to register. Location is Oakton Elementary.

Remove Invasive Plants from Difficult Run Stream Valley Park at Volunteer Fairfax's VolunteerFest. September 17th from 9 to 11am. Location near 3000 Miller Heights Rd, Oakton. Register here.

Oakton Library’s 15th Birthday Celebration. Saturday, September 24th, 10am – 3pm. Activities and programs for children and adults. No registration required. Click here for more information.

Help Remove Invasive Plants from Tattersall Park. September 24th from 9 to 11am. Support a Boy Scout to restore habitat in Oakton and help him earn a Distinguished Conservation Service Award by removing invasive plant wineberry from Tattersall Park. Location near 3301 Miller Heights Rd, Oakton. Register here.

Oakton United Methodist Church Fall Bazaar/Farmer’s Market. October 1st from 9am - 1pm. The vendors at the Farmer’s Market are joined by local artisans selling their crafts.

82nd Annual Vale Schoolhouse Family Fair. Sunday, October 22nd, 11am - 3pm. For more details, click here.

Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Fairfax Fall Festival. Sunday, October 23rd, 12pm. The Fall Festival returns this year with live outdoor music, a Halloween costume contest, crafts, inflatables and lawn games. Location is 2709 Hunter Mill Road.

GOCA’s Annual Community Meeting. Thursday, November 3rd, 7pm at the Oakton Schoolhouse in Oakton Community Park. Details forthcoming.

See more information about the above events and other local activities on GOCA’s website. If you have an event you would like listed on the website or in the next newsletter, or know of someone who would like to be added to the GOCA mailing list, let us know.

Warmly,

The GOCA Board

Lauren Crum and Shelley Deutch, Co-Chairs

Jody Bennett, Linda Byrne, Jackie Davey, Mark Deaton, Michelle Fisher, Kris Olsen, Janet Kerr Tener (founding Co-Chair), Robin Thurman, and Gary Wong

Please consider making a tax-deductible gift at www.greateroakton.com or you can mail a check to GOCA, c/o Lauren Crum, 10665 Oakton Ridge Ct, Oakton, VA 22124. One hundred percent of your donation will go to our community-enhancing projects.