| A
'Mixed-Use' Column |
| From
the department of "9-11 fraud:" |
| On Monday this week an 80-year-old Herndon woman answered
her telephone to hear a man who identified himself as a federal
agent of some sort from a New York post office. He told her
she had won a million dollars. |
| She, I'm sure, was delighted. |
| The would-be agent told her that all mail is being inspected
since the Sept. 11 terrorist incidents in New York and he
found a letter in the post office addressed to her. The letter,
he said, indicated that she had won a million dollars in a
sweepstakes contest. |
| She had two options, according to the caller: She could
fly to New York to pick up her check, or she could wire $5,000
through Western Union to an address in Canada to get her prize.
The man provided the Herndon woman with a local Western Union
address. |
| The woman didn't fall for the fraud and called the Herndon
Police. According to Herndon Police Senior Sergeant Donald
Amos, people should never respond to these types of calls.
He said you should never be required to send money to get
a prize and you should always report these type of calls to
the police. |
| This Herndon woman was fortunate that she saw through the
fraud. |
| The events of 9-11 have brought out the best in most people,
and the worst in others. |
| |
| From
the department of "Oh My Gosh! :" |
| We received what I thought to be a real shocker of a press
release this week. It announces that the Capital Expo and
Conference CenterÅthe buildings at Rt. 28 and Willard Road
where antique shows, car and boat shows and many other expositions
are heldÅis losing its lease and will be closing after its
April 6-7 Super Pet Expo. |
| It seems that Kmart Corp. owned the lease on the property,
but after filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in February was
able to rid itself of some of its leases, including the land
on which the Capital Expo stands. The center opened in 1995
taking over two abandoned retail stores and making a huge
success of the project. |
| Expo President Joseph J. Corcoran says that discussions
with Pence-Friedel, the property owner of the site, have broken
down with no new lease or extensions in sight. |
| "It's regrettable that the property owner is unwilling to
allow CapExpo to continue to operate," he said in the release. |
| The center has been a popular destination for residents
of Herndon, Reston and Eastern Loudoun County. The antique
shows and the "Big Flea" show were always packed. |
| The company which operates the Capital Expo Center has narrowed
the location of a new site to two locations: One off the Beltway
and the other is in Northern Virginia, closer to Washington,
D.C. |
| Personally, I will really miss having to drive only a few
minutes for an afternoon of great fun, seeing friends from
Herndon and Reston and spending a few dollars on antiques
and other fun items. |
| It's a real economic and leisure disaster for this area. |
| |
| From
the department of "I Want You to Hold My Hand:" |
| A woman speaking during Monday night's public hearing of
the Herndon Planning Commission complained that she didn't
know anything about the proposed townhouse development planned
for Center Street across from the library. |
| "I shouldn't have to read it in the Connection to find out
about it," she said. First mistake. It was in The Observer.
The Connection never had the story. There also are at least
three signs posted around the site detailing the project and
the upcoming hearings. I went and counted them. |
| Along with the front-page story, The Observer also published
legal notices twice in the newspaper about the proposed development
and the public hearing weeks before the actual hearing. Only
The Observer publishes legal advertising and public notices
in Herndon. |
| The legal advertisement, which appeared Feb. 15 and Feb.
22, read, in part: |
| "ZONING MAP AMENDMENT, ZMA #01-103 - FORTNIGHTLY ASSEMBLAGE.
An application to change the zoning classification of property
identified as Fairfax County Tax Map Reference (it then lists
the several reference numbers). Persons listed below are Property
Owners and Applicants, as well as Carr Homes, Inc., Contract
Purchaser." |
| The legal advertisement went on to describe much more about
the project. |
| The town shouldn't have to hold the hands of those who want
to speak at public hearings. It's up to them to read, look,
study and be informed before they step up to the lectern to
speak. |
| |
| From
the department of the "Revisionaries:" |
| The Observer received a fax from the Gay Men's Chorus of
Washington, D.C., this week requesting that newspapers revise
the headline of the release for the group's upcoming performance
of "The Wizard of Oz." |
| The original title: "Lions and Drag Queens and Bears! Oh
my!" |
| The new suggested title: "Lions and Munchkins and Monkeys!
Oh my!" |
| They thought the earlier headline "gives the wrong impression
about the nature and content of this performance." |
| Good move, guys. |
| And that's Our Town this week. |
