Any leftover money from Falls Church’s budget will likely be used for a new park

Members of the Falls Church City Council appear ready to make plans for the city’s newest park.

As they determine what to do with the city government’s $5.3 million budget surplus for 2024, Council members appear eager to allocate $1.5 million to complete the design and move forward with the construction of what they Fellows site.

The city acquired the 1.9-acre property, located at 604 S. Oak Street near Oak Street Elementary School, in 2019. The lot was previously the home of city resident Lydia “Betty” Fellows.

A master planning effort was conducted to determine the appropriate use of the park. A 2020 residents survey found that 51% of respondents wanted passive recreational use on the site, 31% wanted it retained as open space and 18% wanted it used for active recreation.

On a Monday (October 28) Council meeting Where budget surplus issues were discussed, Councilwoman Marybeth Connelly said she was pleased that the park project, as well as funds to build more bike lanes in the city, had been added to a list to receive some of the surplus funds.

“There is a community movement behind these two,” she said. “We decided to continue and not hold back.”

Council members have scheduled a public hearing on the surplus funds plan for Tuesday, Nov. 12, before taking a final vote on how they will be allocated.

Falls Church is currently home to 14 city parks.

Tree inventory may have to wait: Despite a request from the Urban Forestry Commission, Falls Church leaders appear reluctant to spend surplus funds on hiring a consultant to survey the condition of trees on public lands.

The committee asked City Council members to use $95,000 of the available $5.3 million surplus to hire a certified arborist to look at the status of about 12,000 trees.

Councilmember Erin Flynn, who wants continued attention to the the tree landscape of the cityappeared to acknowledge that the funding would not be made available as part of the budget closure.

But she asked city staff to explore the possibility as the city heads into its next budget cycle early next year.

Falls Church is a member of the Metropolitan Washington Council of Government, which was formed in April set a goal to achieve a canopy of at least 50% throughout the region.

An estimated 49.6% of the region’s 2.2 million hectares of land was covered by tree canopies in 2023, according to data from the Chesapeake Bay Program. But that was down from an estimated 51.3% in 2014.

COG officials estimate that nearly 10,000 acres of tree canopy are lost annually in the region due to development and other factors.

Dinner with other elected officials proves success: Members of the Falls Church City Council recently hosted a dinner for elected officials from Arlington and Alexandria.

And the city’s top leaders said it was worth it.

“It was extremely helpful to get to know people better and also discuss our similarities, the way we each tackle different issues,” Vice Mayor Debora Schantz-Hiscott said during the province’s meeting on Monday (Oct. 28).

“Same,” added Mayor Letty Hardi.