Woodbridge, Va. – Dan Black went 5-for-6 with 3 RBIs as the Winston-Salem Dash scored a season-high 15 runs and clobbered the Potomac Nationals by the final score of 15-6. With their ninth win in a row, The Dash have matched their longest win streak in club history.

Black had four singles and a double and has nine hits in the first two games of the series. The Dash put up 17 hits for the second consecutive game and have scored double-digit runs in three of the last four games.

After scoring ten runs last night, the Dash bats stayed hot as they scored three runs in the top of the first. Marcus Simien and Carlos Sanchez reached base to begin the game and Trayce Thompson brought both home with a two-run double. Brady Shoemaker plated Thompson with an RBI groundout later in the inning to increase the Dash lead to 3-0.

Rick Hague drove in his first RBI of the season in the third inning with a sacrifice fly that scored Wade Moore and cut the Nationals deficit to 3-1.

Read the entire story at potomacnationals.com.

By URIAH KISER

DUMFRIES, Va. — Gerald Foreman has been chosen Mayor of Dumfries during a town election that saw heavy voter turnout.

Foreman won with 57 percent of the vote and faced Interim Mayor Nancy West who has served as interim mayor since November following the death of Mayor Fred Yohey. West also served on the Town Council since 2008 and has lived in the town since 1963.

Foreman, who currently serves as a Town Council member, ran on a platform of lower taxes, abolishing the Business and Professional Licensing Tax, or BPOL – a tax on business gross receipts – as well as placing the town’s needs in the forefront, and in some cases, on the same level as the needs of the county it sits in, Prince William. He could not immediately be reached for comment Tuesday night.

More to the Story: See election results from the Town from the Virginia State Board of Elections.

Three Town Council seats were also up for grabs on Tuesday. The only incumbent council member that will return to the governing body is Vice Mayor Willie J. Toney.

“This is a diverse community, and each one of these diverse neighborhoods all need certain things, like sidewalks and a sound wall, and you have to listen to them. Because if you’re talking too much they won’t know you’re listening to them,” said Toney.

A former Dumfries Town Council member, Charles C. Brewer, and newcomer Helen Reynolds will fill seats that will be vacated by current council members Dorothea Barr, and Gwen P. Washington who did not seek reelection.

During the last hour of voting on Tuesday, crowds gathered outside town hall which served as a polling place. As police officers directed in and out of the tiny establishment, election officials inside reported 400 people had come to cast their ballots by 6 p.m. – which is an unusually large amount of ballots cast during town elections normally held in May.

Many of the late voters said they cast their ballots for Nancy West, a retired school system employee who they hoped would be able to do more for children in the town.

“We need more activities for children,” said Dumfries resident David Miles. “We don’t vote straight Republican or Democrat, we look at the person and then make a decision.”

Other residents said they cast their vote in hopes elected leaders would conduct themselves more professionally during meetings.

“I think it would be wonder to have a Town Council that could just work together on the issues facing Dumfries, without all of the infighting and squabbling,” said Dumfries resident Michelle Wheeler.

The newly elected mayor and council members will be seated July 1.

PRINCE WILLIAM COUNTY, Va. — A community meeting is scheduled for 7 p.m. on Monday, May 14 at Graham Park Middle School to gain public input on proposed boundary changes to balance enrollment at Potomac and Forest Park high schools for the 2013-14 school year. The changes are expected to affect about 100 students for the first school year that the boundary change takes effect.

A public hearing on the proposed high school boundaries is slated for the June 13 School Board meeting at 7 p.m. in the School Board Meeting Room, Kelly Leadership Center.

The completion of the 30-room addition to Potomac High School in 2013 will add 630 seats to the existing capacity of the school. Current enrollment projections and boundaries would mean that Potomac High School would be under-utilized and Forest Park High School would be over capacity, thus the need for realignment. A portion of the Forest Park High School attendance area will be re-assigned to the Potomac High School attendance area.

The Thomasson Crossing, Moncure Woods, Spanish Garden, Barnette Forest, Quantico Terrace, Belleau Wood, Cramers Ridge,Crborough Heights, Stonewall Manor, Graham Park Shores, Graham Park, and Melrose Gardens communities are likely to be affected.

Prior to the May 14 community meeting, staff from the Offices of Facilities Services will meet with the Advisory Council at both high schools.

Information and maps for the proposed high school boundary changes are located on the Facilities Services Web site. Parents with questions or comments should contact Lionel White in the Office of Facilities Services at 703-791-7312.

The School Board is expected to vote on the proposed high school boundaries on June 13 following the public hearing. If approved, the new boundaries would take effect in September 2013.

Citizens who wish to address the School Board during the public hearing must notify the Board Clerk by noon on June 13 in writing to P.O. Box 389, Manassas, Va. 20108; by phone at 703-791-8709; or by email to [email protected]. Citizens may also sign up in the School Board meeting room prior to 6:55 p.m. on the evening of the public hearing.

-Press release 

By LAURA CIRILLO

Last week, a fellow commuter said something that concerned me. He said he would never Slug again.

We were standing in the Montclair OmniRide bus line at the Pentagon, just making small talk about the unbelievably long line. It was after 6 p.m., too late to Slug since it was after Interstate 95’s High Occupancy Vehicle lanes’ restricted hours, so there in the bus line, we waited.

He was at the end when I approached, so I confirmed the destination with him, just to make sure I was getting in the correct line. I explained that I normally don’t ride that bus, so I wasn’t familiar with where the lines stood. When he asked where I work, and how I normally commute, and I told him that I Slug.

At that, he laughed and shook his head.

“I don’t know how you do it,” he said. “I gave that up a long time ago.”

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Surprised at his reaction, I asked him why. Apparently, a bad experience years ago had completely turned him off to slugging, and he had been taking the commuter bus ever since.

He explained how he was picked up one morning by a young woman heading to Crystal City, who listened to loud music and drove erratically. After almost colliding with another vehicle, he demanded that she let him out on the shoulder of the HOV lanes before the Pentagon exit, and he walked the rest of the way to work.

Some friends had convinced him to carpool several times since then, and they picked up a Slug or two along the way, but he refused to get in the car if a stranger was driving. He opted instead to put his faith in the OmniRide commuter bus drivers, never to Slug again. This gentleman, dressed in Army fatigues and nearing retirement, was too afraid to give the system, with all of its benefits, one more chance.

It made me wonder how many people let one bad apple spoil the bunch. How many commuters have experienced something negative throughout their travels that has stopped them from slugging, like my new friend in the bus line?

I didn’t think it would do any good to remind him of all the benefits of slugging, since he was at the point in his career where he wouldn’t need to commute much longer. But I hope it’s not too late for others who may have ruled it out too soon.

Slugging is a system that is only successful if people support it, either by riding or driving other Slugs. If we stop picking up Slugs because one time, a Slug wore too much perfume, or if we stop riding because a Slug driver drove too fast on HOV, the slugging system would not sustain.

Not that I think the system is in any danger – there are certainly plenty of us who make the choice every day to pick up Slugs, or get into cars with other Slugs. We are the lifeblood of the slugging system; we keep it going every day, ensuring its success since the 1970s.

At the same time, I’m told by many people that they “couldn’t do it,” that they wouldn’t want to risk picking up or getting in cars with strangers. We all have our own personal preferences but the concept seems a lot more intimidating on the outside than it really is. I promise – once you get used to it, slugging is a piece of cake!

The thing is, all of us Slugs have a common goal each day – to get to work quickly, with no cost (well, no cost for riders; drivers pick up the tab for gas and parking).

Keeping that in mind, I hope my commuter friends will at least give slugging a try. It may not be as bad as you think.

By KAYNE KARNBACH
Keep Prince William Beautiful

WOODBRIDGE, Va. — Saturday, April 21 2012, Keep Prince William Beautiful (formerly Prince William Clean Community Council) conducted its third annual “Route 1 Cleanup “ from 9 a.m. to noon. Keep Prince William Beautiful partnered with Woodbridge District Supervisor Frank Principi’s office to recruit local volunteers for litter and debris removal along the nearly 13-mile stretch of U.S. 1 that runs through Woodbridge, Dumfries, and Triangle.

This year’s efforts resulted in 2,300 pounds of litter and debris removed from the U.S. 1 corridor thanks to volunteers from Harvest Life Changers Church, PotomacLocal.com, Woodbridge Potomac Communities Civic Association as well as many other local volunteers.

For information on how you can be involved in next year’s Route 1 Cleanup, and on-going cleanup efforts throughout Prince William County, contact Keep Prince William Beautiful at 571-285-3772 or visit keepprincewilliambeautiful.org.

UPDATE 5 p.m.
The all clear has been given at Rodney Thompson Middle School in Stafford County following a bomb scare today.

Stafford fire and rescue spokesman Mark Doyle said bomb-sniffing dogs entered the school at 75 Wapole Street and were alerted to one student’s locker. Authorities emptied the contents of the locker but no explosives were found.

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DUMFRIES, Va. –– Virginia’s first town will celebrate multiculturalism this weekend for the third year in a row.

Dumfries’ Annual Multicultural Festival will take place at Garrison Park behind Town Hall on Saturday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Along with live entertainment, crafters, and other vendors, the event for the first time will feature the “Dumfries Bar-B-Que Battle” where festival goers will be able to sample some of the area’s best barbeque for only $1.

“Having been a citizen of Dumfries for 10 years, I can’t really say that I learned anything new about Dumfries and the surrounding community; however, I can say that the planning of this event has served as a confirmation of how people in our community can come together and celebrate one another,” said Dumfries Director of Community Services Cydny Neville.

It didn’t take long for businesses and community organizations to register to participate in the event, said Neville, who worked with members of the Town Council, police department, and the town public works department to plan the event.

Those who plan to attend should bring blankets or chairs to sit on the lawn and enjoy the afternoon of food and live entertainment.

The upcoming festival is one of several events held by the town, including an annual fall festival which also attracts crowds.

WOODBRIDGE, Va. — A Prince William County elementary school principal is being investigated by police.

The county’s school system announced Monday Kilby Elementary School Principal Jenny Bermant is placed in administrative leave following an internal investigation by security personnel. The results of the investigation were turned over to the police department for further examination, according to a statement from the schools.

The school system did not release details about the matter citing an ongoing investigation.

Bermant has worked for the Prince William County school system since Feb. 3, 2003.

Retired school Principal Amy Jordan will return and will lead the school, according to a statement from the school division.

Kilby Elementary opened in 1959 and now houses 318 students with 23 teachers. 

By URIAH KISER

OCCOQUAN, Va. — Millions of drivers each year cross the Occoquan River on Interstate 95’s Purple Heart Bridge in Woodbridge.

If you’re one of them, maybe next time you should look down at the river below. OK, maybe you should keep your eyes on the road. But unbeknownst to many, the waters below that link to Potomac River and Chesapeake Bay are bustling with activity.

Capt. Mark Perry pilots Miss Rivershore, a pontoon charter boat that ferries passengers on an hour-long roundtrip boat ride from the Occoquan Regional Park in Lorton and from the river walk in the Town of Occoquan. He’s been the captain of this boat for the past eight years, and working as a concessionaire with the town for the last three years, offering an affordable opportunity to see the river.

“It amazing how the people of Prince William County have no idea that we control about 20 miles of beautiful waterfront property,” said Perry.

Property is something he knows about – Perry is a real estate broker by day and on his tour likes to rattle off the values of properties nestled along the river. Many homes here cost $1 million or more, as living near navigable waters helps increase a property’s value, said Perry.

Perry’s father brought him and his family to live in Triangle in 1961, and Perry’s never left the area. With years of local knowledge under his belt, when Miss Rivershore glides underneath bridges high above the river that carry U.S. 1 and rail traffic up and down the east coast, Perry reminds riders of 1972’s Hurricane Agnes. The storm impacted the entire region, but on the Occoquan it knocked loose a sand barge that drifted downstream and collided with the bridge, causing the structure to collapse. Remarkably, no one was injured, he said.

Perry runs charters for all kinds of reasons, from fishing, swim parties, to taxiing revelers to the nearby Tim’s Rivershore restaurant in Dumfries. He leaves from Occoquan every Saturday from noon to 5 p.m. and Sundays noon until dark, charging $10 for adults, $5 for children, and gives free rides to those under four-years-old.

“My business is going to grow because it’s an affordable way to enjoy the river, seeing all these people on the river in their bikinis and their bathing suits doesn’t hurt, but I really enjoy my job immensely,” said Perry.

WOODBRIDGE, Va. — A taxicab driver was carjacked in Woodbridge early Monday.

Police were called to Prince William Parkway and York Drive at 2:45 a.m., where the driver told officers he was stopped at a traffic light when his fare began to assault him and then ordered him out of the cab. The driver got out, the fare hopped into the front seat and then drove away, according to police documents.

Officers were able to use the GPS device inside the cab to track the wayward taxi. Now in Fairfax County, police stopped the car in the area of Va. 123 and Palmer Road in Lorton and arrested the driver.

Margario Avalar Escobar, 29, of 14737 Pan Am Avenue in Chantilly, is charged with carjacking. His court date was not released and he was held without bond.

See more Prince William police reports.