Happy New Year!

I’m excited to be sharing this message with you on my first day as Chairman of the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors.

As someone who’s spent his whole life in the County, born along the historic Route One Corridor and now a resident of the Hayfield community, I’m proud to begin this new chapter as the first Chairman from South County in recent memory.

Today also marks the first day of a new Board of Supervisors, School Board, Soil and Water Conservation District Board and Commonwealth’s Attorney. My colleagues and I are excited to hit the accelerator on our shared priorities, while also living up to our proud reputation as a well-managed, reliable, and forward-thinking Board.

You know that Fairfax is the best managed County in Virginia with the best school system and some of the best services and programs in the world. As I govern from the Chairman’s office, I will continue to live by my high school motto, “Advance Always”. This means that even though we are one of the best, we need to ensure this County is the best for everyone who lives here . Everyone in every corner of this County deserves an equal opportunity to succeed. That’s One Fairfax.

With that, I wanted to take a moment to introduce to you to some of my priorities for the next term and my new staff.

 

One Fairfax : Ensure all decisions are led by equal access regardless of who you are, where you live, and where you come from. As Chairman, I will continue to foster inclusion, fairness and diversity in Fairfax.

Housing: Increase funding to grow the number of affordable housing units and senior housing units, exceeding past goals.

Combat climate change: Lead by example by removing barriers to solar power, ramping up efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and increasing Fairfax’s tree canopy. In Fairfax County, we trust the research of scientists and acknowledge the crisis climate change presents.

Transportation: Promote multimodal transportation, improve experiences for walkers, bikers and transit-riders and replicate our free student bus pass program to expand access for our students. We can't pave our way out of gridlock.

Education: Continue to collaborate with the School Board and ensure our school system remains the best in the country. As a parent of two FCPS students, I know firsthand the importance of good public schools. Education has always been and will always be our Board’s number one priority.

 

Lindsey Martin, Staff Aide: Lindsey has served on Chairman Bulova’s staff for the last 3 years. She’ll be responsible for land use, parks, and code compliance.

Amir Abu-El-Hawa, Scheduler: Amir is a lifelong Fairfax County resident who has spent the last 2 years working at the Reston-based nonprofit Cornerstones, a human services provider for our most vulnerable. He’ll be our scheduler and office manager.

Marcus Wadsworth, Staff Aide: Marcus has worked in the Lee District Supervisor’s Office for the last 12 years. He’ll be handling transportation and public works in the Chairman’s Office.

Natalie Nguyen-Woodruff, Director of Partnership and Community Engagement: Natalie worked in the County’s Departments of Neighborhood and Community Services and Family Services before joining the Lee District team last September. She’ll primarily be responsible for our office’s outreach, as well as health, housing and human services.

Taylor Holland, Chief of Staff: Taylor comes to the Chairman’s Office after serving as my Chief of Staff in Lee District for the past 6-plus years. Prior that, he worked as a journalist in Virginia and Alabama.

Hannah Menchhoff, Communications Specialist: Hannah grew up in Fairfax County and has done communications for campaigns and small businesses for the last three years. She’ll be primarily responsible for our office’s communications, such as our e-newsletter and social media accounts.

 

I’m honored to serve as your Chairman and thank you for putting your trust in me and my colleagues. I hope you join me at the annual Chairman’s New Year Reception on January 30 from 5-7 p.m. in the forum of the Fairfax County Government Center.

Let’s go forward into this new year knowing the good we have accomplished, but also that our best days are ahead of us. Thank you again for your friendship, guidance, and support.