E-Newsletter

Fairfax County E-Bird for October 15, 2019

Part of the equation: Walkable, transit-oriented developments are reshaping the areas around Fairfax County’s Metro stations, but the market also exists for mixed-use destinations in county hubs not adjacent to Metrorail, said panelists at Bisnow’s Future of Fairfax County event last week. Speakers also included FCEDA President and CEO Victor Hoskins and Deputy County Executive Rachel Flynn. Jon Banister of Bisnow writes that county officials believe mixed-use destinations will be critical to attracting the kind of talent that companies will want in order to succeed here.

Corner market: Daniel Sernovitz of the Washington Business Journal reports that owners of the Tysons “corner,” a 7-acre site where Koons car dealerships have stood for five decades, retained real estate firm Cushman & Wakefield to market the site to interested developers. Interestingly, descendants of William Tyson — who ran a general store on the property generations ago — still own the land that is 400 feet from the Greensboro Metro Station.

A complex addition: Valo Park, home to major companies such as Appian and Gannett, plans to add restaurants, a 9/11 memorial and a bocce court as it opens the complex to the public. According to the Tysons Reporter, Valo Park will redesign roughly 19,000 square feet for this expansion.

Like a hawk: Northrop Grumman is set to provide the Air Force with its Global Hawk surveillance drone through 2030 as part of a new $4.8 billion (yes, with a b) contract. The Washington Business Journal reports that the Air Force has deployed the high-altitude surveillance drone since 2001.

Strategic thinking: Attend an Oct. 24 special event at the Community Business Partnership for members of the business community to offer feedback on Fairfax County’s first-ever strategic plan. The county wants to hear from all segments of the business community on strategies that have been developed in nine critical areas of focus, including economic opportunity. Click here to learn more and to register.

Direct communication: Reston-based SyncDog, a mobile security provider, is partnering with encryption messaging company KoolSpan to provide consumers with secure communications on their personal devices. According to the press release published in citybizlist, the partnership enables users to make encrypted telephone calls and send encrypted text messages on their personal devices.

Capital asset: Reston-based satellite services provider Satelles announced that it raised $26 million in additional funding, with participation from Iridium Communications and existing investors. The press release picked up by the Potomac Tech Wire stated that this new investment brings total funding to $39 million since the launch of its platform.

Better together: Cybersecurity company FireEye is partnering with cloud security company iboss to provide a joint tech solution for cloud-based cyber threat protection. Technical.ly DC. shares that this acquisition follows FireEye’s plan to grow its footprint in Virginia.

Thing of beauty: Next time you are at a Tysons Metro stations, stop to check out the public art. Greater Greater Washington profiles art pieces at McLean, Tysons Corner, Greensboro and Spring Hill, and features an interview with Fairfax County Board of Supervisors Chairman Sharon Bulova about the importance of public art.

Room for improvement: Fairfax County acquired the former Container Store in Tysons. According to the Washington Business Journal, the site will be part of the street grid being developed in the Tysons area.

Intellectual capital: Students at Fairfax County Public Schools continue to graduate on time.  According to WTOP, in 2019, 91.3 percent of FCPS students graduated within four years, and more than three out of five students earned Advanced Studies diplomas.

Hail to the chief: Northern Virginia Community College named Anne Kress as its next president. The Washington Business Journal notes that Kress brings 30 years of experience in the community college arena, most recently at Monroe Community College in the Rochester, N.Y., area.

A new identity: Tysons is hard at work crafting the next phase of its identity, beginning with defining what Tysons is. The Washington Business Journal writes that this new branding effort is unique in that it’s designed to prepare the area for the next stage in its evolution.

A good investment: George Mason University got a high bond rating from Moody’s Investors Service. But what really caught our eye in a Mason press release was this nugget: The university is responsible for 64 percent of the net public university enrollment growth in Virginia in the last eight years.

Notable contract wins by firms in Fairfax County:

  • Maxar Technologies received a $14 million contract to develop Red Wing, an automated, cloud-based geospatial-intelligence analysis platform, for the Air Force Research Laboratory. ExecutiveGov
  • Casepoint has been selected by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission for a cloud-based electronic discovery system. The Potomac Tech Wire published a company release.
  • TechnoGems won a new task order from the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services’ Identity, Records and National Security Delivery Division to provide artificial intelligence and machine-learning services. The Potomac Tech Wire posted a company release.
  • Intelligent Waves won a contract worth up to $89.2 million from the Air Force to provide crowd-sourced flight data collection support and data analytics. The Potomac Tech Wire published a company release.
  • Leidos will continue to help the National Institutes of Health’s Office of Extramural Research develop software applications under a potential follow-on contract worth up to $150 million over five years. GovConWire

Featured business events

  • October 17 — GMU’s Annual Business Celebration. Annual networking gala, business showcase, and distinguished alumni awards, which highlights the entrepreneurial spirit, success, and engagement of GMU’s School of Business community. Click here.
  • October 29 — TiE DC Capital GovCon. A forward-looking and informative conference for companies looking to do business with the federal government. Hear from government contracting leaders in our region, connect with TiE DC’s community of government contractors and learn how to achieve your growth goals. E-Bird readers get 10% off tickets. Enter the code “PARTNER10” at check out. Click here.
  • November 5 — Entrepreneurship 101: Starting a Business in Fairfax County. Presented by the FCEDA with its partners the Community Business Partnership, the U.S. Small Business Administration, the Virginia Department of Small Business and Supplier Diversity, and the Fairfax County government. Click here.
  • November 7 — Autonomous Technology Summit. The event will showcase Virginia’s leadership in autonomous systems technology and highlight best practices, new business models and technology transfer. Presented by the Northern Virginia Technology Council in partnership with the Virginia Unmanned Systems Center at the Center for Innovative Technology. Click here.
  • November 14 — BL Small Business Expo. Visit with about 70 different exhibitors presenting a wide range of products and services that could help you enhance your business and/or life. Keynote speaker will be Victor Hoskins, president and CEO of the FCEDA. Click here.
  • November 14 — Opportunity Richmond Highway. Learn about new financial incentives for new development on Richmond Highway such as Opportunity Zones and the Economic Growth Improvement Program. Presented by the Southeast Fairfax Development Corporation and the Mount Vernon-Lee Chamber of Commerce. Speakers include Victor Hoskins, president and CEO of the FCEDA. Click here.