I am Green with Envy

My husband and I spent the day with a good friend in Manassas last week end. We visited the 36th annual Edgar Rohr Memorial Antique Car Meet, at the Manassas Museum. This event was spread out over a huge area and had a great crowd of people. Visitors were looking at the beautiful cars and chatting with the owners. Everyone was relaxed, strolling across the green, enjoying the cooler weather and the car show.

We next visited the Brews, Bands and BBQ. Tickets for this event were a little pricey ($25 at the gate), but the food was wonderful, with restaurants and caterers competing for the title of “best” BBQ. This event covered over a block of Battle Street. We stayed to enjoy the band, “Shake It Up,” who played classic rock and featured a fine lead singer, Sue Masters. We stayed too long to visit the Old World Festival, but will get there in time next year to enjoy that festival, too.

Parking was plentiful and free. We parked in a four-story parking garage. The streets were charming with big hanging baskets of flowers. The streets were crowded with people of every age enjoying all the things a small town could offer.

As I’m typing this, I’m watching the Board of County Supervisors meeting. I just watched a presentation by the transportation department identifying street standards. The designs are compatible with walkable communities; places where people can stroll comfortably, bike if they choose and shop all in the same place. This program showed wider streets, wider sidewalks, and more landscaping. No one mentioned parking, but I imagine more multi-story parking garages, parking contained within the shops, or underground parking.

The next agenda item was a presentation by Richard Lake from Stonebridge at Potomac Town Center.

Lake described the progress of Potomac Town Center, from the opening of Wegmans to the impending arrival of Toby Keith’s I Love This Bar and Travinia Italian Kitchen. Lake mentioned the several Cinco de Mayo celebrations that have already been held at Stonebridge and remarked there will be more festivals and events to engage the public. Beautiful shops, wonderful restaurants, family events…I want some of that!

All around us there are festivals, carnivals, fairs, crafts, and celebrations. Last week I attended the Holy Family Festival. It was a great crowd with African, Phillippine and Latino food. Coming right up is the Craft Show in Occoquan, followed soon by the Fall Fest in Dumfries.

We have a great Independence Day Parade, with thousands of visitors, but that’s one event a year. How about an Oktoberfest? What about a luau? How about celebrations to engage more of our 65,000 residents? Where are our Arbor Day activities? How about a Spring Fete? My favorite event would be a Haunt like the one at High Hill Farm.

I’d really like the readers of Dale City Patch to start thinking about events to strengthen our future as a community. Talk to your neighbors, your friends and your family. Let’s get some ideas going to build our sense of community. Neighbors working together on projects will bring fun and excitement to Dale City and help us meet each other.

Let’s welcome visitors to spend in our shops and stores and who will want to live in a neighborhood that’s part of a fun, vibrant community where no one is green.