Supervisor John Cook was gracious enough to invite me to visit his Braddock office this past week to discuss transportation and land use in Fairfax County and Tysons. For those of you needing some background about Supervisor Cook, he has been on the Board of Supervisors for four years, he has been active in finding budget solutions especially with the 2014 budget when he invited residents to join in for the prioritization of county needs with an interactive budget calculator. I was very impressed with Supervisor Cook’s well rounded perspective on transportation needs for the county. I was very happy to hear he and I agree about a need to upgrade Braddock Road for additional traffic capacity as well as to incorporate a bus rapid transit (BRT) system that would tie into the existing HOT Lanes bus routes.
I also took the opportunity to interview Supervisor Cook for the Know Your Supervisor Series:
Question 1: What is Fairfax County’s most marketable or best asset?
John Cook: Jobs. That’s an answer that is so obvious that we almost take it for granted. What people usually say is schools, nice neighborhoods, good facilities; all of which are true. People come here because there are jobs and not just jobs but good jobs. There is a lot of job satisfaction in Fairfax. We have an educated and motivated population, committed to their professions.
Question 2: What will Tysons look like in 2025?
John Cook: It will probably look like a big construction area but in a positive way. It will be very exciting. There are 4 or 5 projects already approved and another 11 to be approved. By 2025 you will see a number of projects underway, and start to see the vision a computer screen become a reality.
Question 3: Will the economy of Fairfax be detrimentally or beneficially changed by the Tysons Comprehensive Plan over the next 10 years?
John Cook: Oh it’s going to get better because it [Tysons] is a huge economic asset, and can be even more. I supported the original Tysons’ task force plan. The approved plan was a smaller and shorter term version of that plan. We are going to be coming back and revisiting that to maximize opportunities.
Question 4: Do you believe rail mass transit over the past 30 years has added or taken from Fairfax County’s finances?
John Cook: Both. Because it depends on how you term finances. Transit like roads is always an expenditure, so it always costs you to run a transit system. If you define it broadly it’s a benefit because it allows you to build development that brings in jobs. It is significant; and overall it is part of an economic development philosophy.
Question 5: What is the most pressing issue at hand in your district?
John Cook: I’d say transportation, a lot of work on that. We have good stable neighborhoods, the area is pretty much developed except for a handful of infill applications. I’m not anticipating significant changes in what the district looks like, but it’s getting clogged up for people going to work.
Question 6: Name one new innovative investment the County could make, that would account for less than 0.1% (3.5 million annually) of the budget, that you believe would pay back over time?
John Cook: A number of different things. Education and job training for people who have developmental disabilities which can help add to the quality of their lives and give them an opportunity to contribute back. That population wants to work and it [job training] can be a positive.