Dining: 3 Cheers for the Red, White & Bleu!

We attended a concert on the lawn at Wolf Trap last fall and took pity on the poorly prepared diners/listeners next to us.  First we gave them thinly sliced circles of salami.  “Mmmm,” they said.

Then we fed them small chunks of a bitey yet mellow tanged cheese.  “Ooh,” they said.

And then a lovely chardonnay, treasured in small glasses.

“Where did you get this great food and wine,” asked the grateful picnickers.

“Red, White and Bleu in Falls Church,” we answered.

You, too, can appear a gourmet and enjoy the gourmet’s tasty fare simply by patronizing this new wine and cheese (and beer and salamis and artisan breads and crackers) shop at 127 Washington Street, just off Broad Street.

I never thought I’d see my husband, the beer snob with a preference for European beers and select breweries, drink beer from a can.  But RW&B has a fabulous beer in a can.

“I never thought I’d offer a beer in a can, “ noted James Roth, a co-owner.  “But once I tried it, I had to admit it was a very special beer. It’s a Colorado beer and the can allows backpackers to follow the rule to bring out what you take it.  Plus, a can be crushed and is lighter weight than glass.”  Also safer, we might add.

During the weekend afternoons, you will see a blackboard on the sidewalk outside RW&B, announcing wine tastings.  These are true tastings, with a complete run down on the winery, a short disquisition on the wine’s pedigree, and a discussion that runs as long as you like on taste, taste-related wines, etc. It is a joy to have a quiet room, three wines, and a knowledgeable host conducting the tasting.

There are two knowledgeable hosts and store founders to chat up and learn from, James Roth and Harry Silverstein.  A third owner,  Adam Roth is busily running a Falls Church favorite restaurant, Argia’s, just down the street from Red, White, and Bleu.

Co-Founder/General Manager  James Roth was formally introduced to the New York City wine scene through a group of wine enthusiasts, FUNWITHWINE, during an evening of wine and cheese pairing.  This initial wine experience would become the catalyst that would change James’ life forever.
Before long, James departed Bear Stearns and Wall Street to work in the wine industry for one of the premier family wine retailers in Manhattan, Morrell & Company.  Also, James began to make his mark as a wine auction specialist, where he would start the arduous task of learning the intricacies to further develop his appreciation and palate.

In the fall of 2006, James accepted the position of assistant to Kevin Zraly’s Windows on the World wine school. Through these experiences tJames mastered the skills of approaching wine with an unpretentious attitude, and captivating and enlightening the audience without intimidation
Co-Founder Harry Silverstein brings an extensive knowledge of business and marketing practices to Red, White & Bleu. His love of wine and food has a long history and dates to a class he attended at Syracuse University in 1996.  He has spent much of his free time in the ensuing years educating himself on the intricacies of this business, and served as the co-chair of the Wine Club at the University of Chicago GSB.  In that capacity, he tripled the membership of the club to 450, doubled the number of events (to more than 20), and increased the organization’s capital by a factor of four.
He is looking forward to marrying his long history of success in the business world with his entrepreneurial spirit and love of fine wine and food.

Co-founder Adam Roth, owner of Argia’s Restaurant, also in Falls Church, is a successful business owner and restaurateur.  Argia’s has been serving Italian specialties in the City of Falls Church for eight years.  In that time, Argia’s has built an extensive following among both local and greater metropolitan Washington residents, and was chosen for the cover of the Washingtonian Magazine’s Top 100 Restaurant Issue in January, 2005. Adam, through his daily interaction with clientele at Argia’s, has a close ear to what many of the Falls Church residents are looking for in regards to a wine and gourmet food store. Adam is knowledgeable of many Italian wne varietals and is responsible for the selections of wines that compose the wine list at Argia’s.

Our advice? Don’t wait for the blackboard to appear on the sidewalk. Drop by Red, White, and Bleu for a bottle of wine for dinner this week.

City Council to Vote on Falls Church Housing Corporation’s City Center South Proposal August 11th

The Falls Church City Council will vote on a proposal for affordable housing to be built by a partnership of the Falls Church Housing Corporation (FCHC) and developer Atlantic Realty Monday night August 11 at 7:30pm in Council Chambers at City Hall.

 The hearing can be viewed live on television on the following channels on cable: RCN Cable Channel (2), Cox Cable Channel (12), and Verizon Cable Channel (35).

This is the wording of the request that will be voted on by the Council Monday, August 11:
“The applicant is requesting a Comprehensive Plan Amendment and two Special Exceptions to allow the redevelopment of the two existing office buildings at 350 and 370 South Washington Street as a new mixed-use project consisting of a 174 unit, seven-story affordable residential apartment building with ground floor non-profit – office/service/program/amenity/common space.”

Specifically, the applicant has filed applications requesting:

• Comprehensive Plan Future Land Use Map Amendment from “Business” to “Mixed Use”
• Special Exception for Mixed Use (Residential use in a Business District)
• Special Exception for Height (80 feet rather than 75 feet max. allowed in B-2)”

In addition, the Council will consider an accompanying zoning code change:
Zoning Code Text Amendment (Exemption allowed from special Exception Primary criteria related to net new commercial square footage and revenue.) The City staff estimates a 25-space parking deficit for the project. According to the City memorandum, the applicant proposes to remediate the parking deficit by an off-site parking agreement. Specifically, the affordable housing project’s Wednesday evening peak deficit would be ameliorated by a shared parking agreement with the new office building on 360 S. Washington Street, which would have available parking on evenings and weekends.

The proposal regarding 360 S. Washington Street has not yet been officially reviewed by the Planning Commission or City Council. A memorandum of understanding, between the City, FCHC, and the owner of the 360 S. Washington property, Educational Options is also being voted on. The proposal entails tearing down the existing building and constructing a 4-story above-ground parking garage and a 3-story office building that would house the offices of Educational Options.

Issues raised by the Planning Commission and some members of City Council concerning the City Center South proposal include the following:

• lack of consultation with independent affordable housing experts
• concentration of a stand alone affordable housing development in an already affordable area of the City
• removal of senior citizens from easily accessed homes to a high rise amidst dense traffic and business mix
• possible conversion of the Winter Hill Apartments to first-time affordable homebuyers condominiums
• lack of adequate parking for the number of residents and office workers
• special exceptions to the Zoning code for mixed use, height, and a text amendment

A City memorandum notes that the development cost for the project has increased from $37 million to $46 million since November 2007. The City is being asked to use the $2 million CIP fund that is to be used for affordable housing in the City and is also requesting that the optional $4.2 million proffer set in place by Atlantic Realty in the City Center project be used to fund the FCHC’s City Center South project, as opposed to including 36 units in the approved City Center project.

The City’s cost for the project including direct (i.e. debt service on the bond and uncollected real estate tax revenue) and indirect costs (i.e. schools and services costs) will be $1 million plus per year during the loan period, which has yet to be determined. Financial projections for the loan period have been based on a 15 year schedule. The figure will escalate every year. Additionally, the indirect costs to the City may continue throughout the life of the building, not just during the life of the loan.

The memo goes on to note, “It is anticipated that the development and operating budget will further change once binding construction bids are received. FCHC has formally committed, in April 2008, to bear the costs of future changes if beyond the request to the City for the $2M CIP [capital improvement] funding and the real estate tax abatement.”

-Sally Brett

How to Get Agendas for City Council, Planning Commission Meetings

Want the agendas for important City meetings? Here’s how to get them:

City Council Meeting packages and work session notices/agendas: Email your request to the City Clerk, Kathy Buschow kbuschow@fallschurchva.gov

• Planning Commission notices and agendas: Email your request to Debra Gee in the Planning Department dgee@fallschurchva.gov dgee@fallschurchva.gov

-Sally Brett

There’s the Letter of the Law, and There’s the Spirit of the Law

At the recent meeting of the City Council, erstwhile vice-mayor Lindy Hockenberry was appointed to the Planning Commission. The point was raised that Hockenberry, who lost her recent bid to return to her Council seat, is not eligible for a City appointment as city regulations forbid any such service within one year after active service.

Hockenberry declined payment for serving on the Commission, which the City Attorney has interpreted as relieving Hockenberry of the obligation to follow the restriction.

Here is the regulation from the City Code:

Sec. 4.01. Composition.
The council shall consist of seven (7) members, who shall be qualified voters of the city actually residing within the corporate limits, and they shall be elected as provided in Chapter 3. They shall each receive in full compensation for their services such salary as the city council may fix in accordance with state law. No member of the council shall during the term for which he was elected and one year thereafter be appointed to any office of profit under the government of the city.

By Sally Brett

Adding On But Not Expanding

A last-minute proposal for the Falls Church Housing Corporation’s (FCHC) City Center South Apartments (CCSA) project, designed to address parking problems with proposed multi-family housing building on Maple Street and offices on South Washington, was added to the City Council Work Session this week.

As currently proposed, the underground parking and limited surface parking for the 7-story building on Maple St. does not meet City code. Should the parking garage be built at the site of the 360 S. Washington Street building, as proposed in the new scheme, the number of parking spaces will not increase because the underground parking garage will not be built.

The City plans to purchase the 360 S. Washington Street Building from its current owner, Educational Options, for $2 million dollars and then transfer ownership to Falls Church Housing Corporation. There was some confusion as to who would own the building, FCHC, the City, or Educational Options. The financial agreements and details are still being negotiated.

Final reading and public hearing on the FCHC City Center South Apartments proposal is scheduled for Monday, August 11th. The original scope of the project included two buildings located at 350 and 370 S. Washington Street and the Winter Hill Apartments.

The apartments, currently occupied by mostly elderly Section 8 residents, is to be used as collateral for FCHC to build the 7-story building on Maple. FCHC has proposed converting the apartments to first time, affordable homebuyer condos. Whether these would continue being affordable housing is at question. There is no guarantee and no agreements in place in the current proposal.

The buildings at 350 and 370 South Washington Street, and now a third building at 360 South Washington Street, are to be torn down. The new proposal is to build a 4-story above ground parking structure with a 3-story office building on the 360 S. Washington site.

Two of the four stories of parking would be claimed by Educational Options, which would also occupy the 3-story office building. The remaining two stories would be shared with the residents of the proposed 174 units of multi-family affordable housing on Maple St. Current residents of the Winter Hill apartments are being given the first right of refusal to relocate to this proposed seven-story building; as planned, the housing has two elevators.Residents of the Winter Hill/Cherry Hill community, which consists of townhomes and condos, have met twice with the FCHC to review the proposed City Center South Apartments plans. They are opposed to the lack of information regarding the conversion of the existing units. Elderly residents have expressed concerns at being moved from individual street-level units to units in a seven-story multi-family complex with two elevators.

Sally Brett