BSCL met virtually on January 7 for its monthly meeting.
Minutes
Call to order, 7:35 pm. There were 28 participants in this Zoom meeting.
Deborah Wood, President
Minutes from November 5, 2020 meeting were approved
Chris Siple, Recording Secretary
Membership Secretary announcement about BSCL Membership Dues
Linda Gaines, Membership Secretary
There are currently 61 family and 10 individual memberships, and they’re still coming in. The automated payment system is working well.
New Business
Results of Barcroft Elementary School Holiday Toy Drive:
Four hundred toys were distributed by the PTA.
Request to Arlington County to change the condition of the Dominion Energy Substation Lot:
The County response merely referenced the Dominion tree plantings, nearly all of which are already dead. The County says that anything Dominion does is purely voluntary. They will keep talking to them, though.
Resolution for County Board Regarding Proposed Changes to the Residential Parking Program (RPP):
Paul Olkhovsky contributed a proposed draft resolution conveying to the County our reservations about the proposed changes to the RPP. Barcroft’s concerns are many, including the cost of permits, limits on residential permits, the ability of the County to enforce any limit on paid parking, the availability of parking for service vehicles, and more. A motion to send the proposed resolution to the Arlington County Board was passed unanimously (with one abstention), subject to minor clarification edits by the BSCL leadership. The proposed text that was voted on:
“Resolved, the Barcroft and School Civic League respectfully requests that the Arlington County Board not include paid parking by app in upcoming changes to RPP and at the least delay decisions on household allocation of parking permits to allow affected residents at least two years to reassess their transportation situations, particularly in a time of significant disruption due to the COVID-19 emergency.
“Additionally, the proposed RPP changes would conflict and dilute the important value of the 1977 Supreme Court decision ARLINGTON COUNTY BOARD v. RICHARDS*, allowing residents to control commuter parking for environmental and quality of life for a residential community.”
There are supposed to be opportunities to present comments at Planning Commission, Transportation Commission, and County Board meetings, when they’re scheduled with an agenda. We can also make our comments directly to Board members.
Program: White Tailed Deer and Forest Health in Northern Virginia
Bill Browning, Master Naturalist
Introduction by Daniel Weir, Vice President
The presentation in its entirety can be viewed using the following link:
https://armn.org/2020/05/09/white-tailed-deer-and-forest-health-in-northern-virginia/
The major message was the destruction to the natural environment caused by white-tailed deer overpopulation, and the need to reduce that population to preserve the health of our forests land. Only systematic culling has been found to work. There are programs in Montgomery, Fairfax, and DC. Several questions were asked after the presentation:
Q: How can deer be discouraged?
A: Get a dog! Fences work too, if high enough. There are sprays that are effective, but they need to be reapplied often.
Q: How are culled deer tested for chronic wasting disease before donating venison?
A: No cases of CWD have been found locally, although it is getting closer. Dissection and testing of lymph nodes is the only test. Deer feces do spread other diseases, though, and it’s a potential problem in yards where kids play.
Q: What’s the status on a deer census in Arlington?
A: There’s some movement. However, Bill feels a census is a waste of time. We know there are far too many deer now. Culling should begin as soon as possible.
Q: What happens in the parks when culling is in process?
A: When sharpshooting, as in Rock Creek Park, parks are usually closed. Archers generally hunt from elevated platforms and the parks are not closed. There have been no accidents in any area deer culling programs since their inception 20 years ago.