Palladium Groundbreaking
The groundbreaking ceremony for Waterford’s Palladium condominium development near the former location of Mrs. Beale’s outdoor market will be held at 11:30 a.m. on Thursday, June 26, at the site on Lowell Avenue between Laughlin and Emerson avenues. A ceremonial gold bucket will pour cement from high above the ground to celebrate the opening of luxury condominiums expected to sell in the $900,000 to $1.3 million price range.
Oakcrest To Add Class
The McLean Citizens Association’s planning and zoning committee will hold its regular meeting on Tuesday, June 24, 7:30 p.m., at the McLean Community Center. The public is invited.
The agenda will include an application by the Oakcrest School to add a sixth-grade class, an application by McLean Bible Church to expand its facility on Route 7 by constructing a respite center for special-needs children, and an update on the attempt to find replacement parking for the West Falls Church garage construction project.
The agenda is subject to change. Call committee Chairman Adrienne Whyte at 703-241-1095 for more information, or visit the MCA’s Web site at www.mcleancitizens.org.
MCC Board Meets June 25
The 2003-04 governing board of the McLean Community Center (MCC) will meet on Wednesday, June 25, 7:30 p.m., at the center. Caroline Pickens, the newly elected chairperson, will officiate. Other newly elected officers are Dale A. Evans, vice chairperson; Leslie Christopher, secretary; and Margaret Van Winkle, treasurer.
All MCC board meetings are open. To be placed on the agenda for "Citizen Comment," call 703-790-0123.
Music Under the Stars
"Chopin & Brahms Under the Stars," a concert, dinner and silent auction on the green at Great Falls Village Centre, is scheduled from 6-10 p.m., Wednesday, June 18, to benefit the Analemma Society’s Observatory Park at The Turner Farm.
Pianists Byron Petty and Shuko Watanabe will perform, and a four-course meal will be catered by Marcello Ristorante, also on the green. The silent auction includes antiques and other special items. Individual tickets are $100, with $55 per person tax deductible.
A roll-top observatory that will house four technologically advanced telescopes is planned at The Turner Farm, and the Analemma Society is raising money to pay for it. For information, call 703-759-3106.
Bias Crime Reported in Tysons
Fairfax County Police are investigating an incident on Chain Bridge Road near International Drive in Tysons Corner on Tuesday, June 10, at about 8:15 p.m.
A 33-year-old Annandale-area man and a 16-year-old Burke-area woman, along with two other people, were in a car traveling on Route 123 near Great Falls Street when a gold Mazda MPV minivan with Virginia registration pulled beside it and one of the occupants began to yell racial obscenities.
The suspect also threw an object into the victim’s car, striking him in the upper body. The victim tried to get away, but the driver of the minivan chased the victim.
The two men threw two more objects at the victim’s car before the victim was able to get away.
The Mazda was last seen on Route 123 near International Drive.
Anyone with information about the incident is asked to call Fairfax County Police at 703-691-2131 or Crime Solvers at 703-691-8888.
Book Collections Planned
The McLean Branch of the American Association of University Women will collect used books, records, CDs, tapes, videos and software from 10 a.m.-4 p.m. on these Saturdays: June 21, July 12 and 26, and Aug. 9, at SunTrust Bank, 515 Maple Ave. East in Vienna.
The items will be offered for resale at a used-book sale in September, which funds scholarships for women. Call 703-356-6293.
Summer Reading Program
Preschoolers through sixth-graders are encouraged to read 15 books with adult help, and teen-agers in grades seven through 12 read eight books in the Fairfax County Public Library’s summer reading program.
Those who finish the required number of books by Aug. 30 win prizes. The program also features artists, animal wranglers, cartoons, crafts, musicians, magicians, puppets, poets, scientists and storytellers. Call 703-324-8380 or (TTY) 703-324-8365 two weeks ahead of time to sign up for an event. Registration is free.