Message From the SCA Board

It has been many moons since the last Sentinel, so we thought we would use this space to remind you about the Stoneybrooke Citizens Association (SCA). The SCA is a group of Stoneybrooke residents that promotes the improvement of our neighborhood, enhances development of the children residing in Stoneybrooke, and works to establish a friendly community. The SCA attempts to achieve these lofty goals through its quarterly meetings, the Stoneybrooke email listserv, the Sentinel, which you are currently reading, the kids’ holiday parties, the family events, and numerous other activities. The SCA Board of Directors oversees the activities of the SCA. There are five positions on the SCA Board: Chair, Vice-Chair, Secretary, Treasurer, and Parliamentarian.

Any resident can join the SCA. Yes, even you! Annual fees are $20. All you need to do to become a member is contact the SCA Treasurer, Bernie Tabarini, at treasurer@stoneybrooke.org. The annual fee helps fund all the wonderful activities sponsored by the SCA.

You may be thinking, “Wow, the SCA’s activities sound absolutely fabulous! How are they organized?” That’s an excellent question. Stoneybrooke residents volunteer their time and talents to put all the activities together. Though, as you may have guessed, the SCA can always use more volunteers. So, think about the activities sponsored by the SCA and volunteer for the one that floats your boat. The amount of time you choose to volunteer is up to you. Any time you can contribute would be greatly appreciated!

The next SCA quarterly meeting is scheduled for Thursday, May 15, 2008 at 7:30pm. The tentative topics for the meeting are:

• Updates
• Sentinel
• o Neighborhood Watch
• Stoneybrooke Email Listserv
• Open Discussion
• SCA Board of Directors Election

If you have never attended an SCA meeting, please join us on May 15th. You can get an update on the latest happenings in Stoneybrooke, you can meet some of your Stoneybrooke neighbors, and you can let us know your thoughts on the SCA and the SCA activities. More importantly, however, you can help shape the future of the SCA by participating in the election of a new SCA Board of Directors; in particular, we are seeking a new Chair, Vice-Chair, and Parliamentarian to fill positions that are currently vacant. We hope to see you there! In the meantime, if you have any questions about the SCA or any SCA activities, please feel free to contact John Finamore, or Bernie Tabarini, .

John Finamore
Secretary, SCA

Bernie Tabarini
Treasurer, SCA

Message from Supervisor McKay

Quality of life—hard to describe when it’s good but you know it when it’s bad. When the property next door or down the block is in disrepair with tall grass defying a lawnmower to get through, you can’t ignore the community impact. Most of us work hard to be good neighbors, and we expect that those around us will share our sense of community. Sometimes, though, whether because of illness, age, geographic distance, or just plain irresponsibility, owners let their properties decline.

That’s where government needs to step in and lend a hand. At the January 7 Board of Supervisors meeting, I introduced a Board Matter asking County staff to evaluate the legal tools that the General Assembly has already given us address both residential and commercial blight. (In Virginia, counties may only pass laws and ordinances if the General Assembly has given them enabling legislation to do so.) Based on my reading of state code, I believe that we can take better advantage of tools that we already have. Using these tools will also enable us to hold negligent property owners responsible for the impact their properties have on the community and will let us charge the owners for the costs associated with their negligence. The Board of Supervisors unanimously approved my request that staff review state enabling legislation and report on how we can use it in Fairfax County. The report is due back to the Board in April, and I will keep you informed.

Along the same lines, we have seen a steep increase in the number of complaints about overgrown grass and with the rising number of foreclosures, we are likely to see these complaints increase. The standard County enforcement process that requires contacting a property owner in person or by certified mail no longer meets our community needs. Spring will be on schedule this year, bringing with it the foreseeable tall grass so at the January 28 Board of Supervisors meeting, Chairman Connolly and I asked the Board to act on code amendments that would streamline the grass enforcement process. On our request, the proposed amendments will come back to the Board of Supervisors for a public hearing no later than our April 29 board meeting.

If you would like copies of these Board Matters, please contact my office at 703-971-6262 or . Keeping our neighborhoods healthy is as important to me as it is to you, so please don’t hesitate to call my office if you have any concerns about overcrowding, zoning violations, or neglect. I look forward to the day when these problems are rare—in the meantime, my staff and I will ensure that the county investigates and acts.

Information on Stoneybrooke Listserv Email

In the fall of 2007, the SCA launched a new Stoneybrooke email list using Yahoo! Groups. The SCA did this in an effort to centralize, streamline, and enhance the Stoneybrooke email communication. The Stoneybrooke email list is a secure and spam-protected system established exclusively for Stoneybrooke residents to view messages, information, images, and ideas.

It is through this email list that you can receive Stoneybrooke email messages on the 15th and 30th each month. In addition, you will be able to review archived emails and information.

If you are not currently one of the 91 families who receive the bi-monthly updates and wish to sign up please send an email to the SCA email coordinator, Dina Staskiewicz, at . We will send you a private invitation to join the Stoneybrooke email list. It is that easy!

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