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This year most positions for the Board of Directors have two candidates. Come and vote for the candidates of your choice. Here is a list of the candidates.
Elections will be held Thursday May 15. Vote will be by Secret Ballot. No proxies are permitted.
Kings Park will have the annual yard sale May 3, 2008, 9 am to 1 pm. Rain date is May 10. See the calendar for details. The yard sale will be advertised in several papers.
On May 17th, Fairfax County will send large trucks to the parking lot of Kings Park park at Kings Park Drive and Trafalgar Court. They will be accepting large household items between the hours of 8:00 a.m. and 11:30 a.m. (only). The Kings Park Civic Association has rented three U-Haul trucks so that you may bring large items such as old sheds, couches, large appliances, and other things that do not get picked up by your trash company. If you are not sure whether your trash company will pick up an item leave it with your trash a week before May 17th. Generally if an item fits into a trash can it will be removed by your trash company. Things which will not be accepted on May 17th include old firewood; large quantities of debris left from renovation of your home (which you have already paid your contractor to remove anyway); glass such as mirrors or storm doors (bad because of the risk of broken glass on the parking lot); drywall (because it breaks up and leaves plaster powder all over the driveway); garbage; and other items not accepted by the county. We want an old appliances or sofa or chairs particularly if in your basement. If your lifting days are history ask a neighbor to help but know that those who have volunteered have been wonderful in helping. During the 27 years I have lived in Kings Park I have witnessed the awesome teamwork of neighbor helping neighbor. Young adults have given of their strength and energy. Last Nov. the group who cleaned up the corner of K.P. Drive and Braddock Rd. was awesome. The spirit of clean up day is that people with things they can’t get rid of by themselves help others with the same problem. I still need two drivers for 14ft U-Hauls, automatic transmissions. It is necessary to back into the parking lot at the basketball court. Let me apologize up front, I may miss you. It’s just because there may be so many calls and some people wait to the last minute. If you can get something to the park yourself please do so. It ends at 11:30 a.m. Anything left after the county leaves is in violation of littering laws. Please phone me, Roy Warner, at 703-250-5328, or E-mail: roy.c.warner@verizon.net.
KPCA membership works on a calendar year basis. So, please, pay your $20 dues and be a member again. You can apply online or print out a membership form and send it in. The January/February Gazette also has a membership form on page 5.
There is an additional reason to join this year – the right to vote. This spring, KPCA will take three important votes. First, in March, we will vote on our “Neighborhood Expectations” statement. Second, in April, we expect to endorse our own proposal for the redesign of the Park. Third, in May we have our Board elections. Only members may vote during these important events. We want you all to vote. Sign up today!!
The 2008 Membership form has been posted. You can sign up for 2008 now! As always, the membership form is available on the Gazette Page.
The KPCA wiki has a page for the candidates for the Board of Directors. Hopefully this will just be a jumping off point for candidates to inform you why they deserve your vote. Let the candidates be heard!
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The “Neighborhood Expectations” statement featured in this issue is an important component of our revitalization program. Why is that? Isn’t it just a piece of paper? Well, yes it is. But it is a whole lot more. It is our statement of identity. It is who we are, and more importantly, who we wish to be. In short, it is our vision statement.
Why is that important? Because the statement is our commitment to develop stronger personal connections with each other. That is important for so many reasons. For example, we are committed to getting rid of boarding houses and reducing other zoning and property maintenance violations. But, if we just go around calling the County on our neighbors, we won’t be a very happy community. People will view each other with suspicion and maybe try to “get back” at those who file reports. We don’t want that. What we want is for people to work together, realizing that these zoning regulations have important purposes – protecting our health and safety, and making sure that our infrastructure – streets, sidewalks, water and sewer – can handle the population. If we develop person bonds with our neighbors, it will be clear that our zoning enforcement is not a personal attack or fed by personal animosity, but is an effort to work together to maintain a safe and viable community.
Similarly, many people are interested in persuading their neighbors to “spruce up” their yards and houses, to beautify the neighborhood. Not too many people are going to be motivated to make their houses more appealing after getting a letter from some sort of “beautification police” telling them their house looks bad. “Who are they to judge me?” will be the response. But, if your neighbors are your friends, you may be more likely to realize that your chipped paint is an eyesore for your friend next store, and that tall grass doesn’t make your friend very happy. And, a gentle nudge from a friendly neighbor is more likely to lead to positive action than criticism from “that busy-body next store” whose name you can’t even remember.
Furthermore, we have to make a special effort to establish relationships with people who are different from us, whether those differences are racial, ethnic, generational, or otherwise. The tensions from the negative examples above would only be worse if they were between strangers from different racial or ethnic groups. Moreover, cultural differences can breed suspicion and dislike among strangers, but are opportunities for learning among friends. Most fundamentally, we cannot be a true community if we are divided by racial or ethnic lines. We cannot have a strong “white” community where the one-third of us who are minorities do not feel welcome. We are building something special here – a multi-ethnic, multi-cultural community where people learn something quite profound – that we really aren’t all that different after all.
While communities around us may be experiencing signs of strain and decline, Kings Park will show the way with a Renaissance of community spirit. We have made great progress so far, and the best is yet to come. Please make every effort to come to our April 17 meeting to support this statement.
John Cook
Last updated: April 30, 2008