Profile: Penelope Gross, Mason District Supervisor

At a Glance

• Born: Eugene, Ore.
• Education: University of Oregon
• Family:  Married, two daughters and one stepson.
• Public Office: Mason District Supervisor

Penelope Gross has served as Mason District Supervisor of the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors for the last 16 years. Come Nov. 8, she’s hoping her constituents re-elect to her to a fifth term.

“I love my job. People always ask me where I get my energy. I get it from the people I serve, being out in the community all the time, getting to know them as friends and having them consider me as a friend,” said Gross.

Born and raised in Eugene, Ore, Gross was first elected to Board of Supervisors in 1995. She was re-elected in 1993, 2003 and 2007. In addition to her long tenure as Supervisor, Gross is the recording secretary to the United States Senate Federal Credit Union, a position she’s held for the last 26 years. She also serves as Vice Chair of the Board of Supervisors, and chairs the Personnel Policy and Reorganization Committee and the Environment Committees.

Before taking the position of Mason District Supervisor, Gross got her start working in the U.S. Senate shortly after graduating from the University of Oregon in 1965. ”I like to tell people I started at the top and worked my way down,” Gross said of her time in the Senate. The experience taught her a lot of the lessons she brings to her role as Supervisor. “I learned my politics at the feet of masters and constituent service is the same whether you’re in the U.S. Senate or whether you’re at the local level,” said Gross. "The issues you’re handling are different, but they’re the concerns of people.”

“I don't think there is a Supervisor more knowledgeable about Fairfax County, the operation of its government, or the needs of its families and businesses,” said Dan McKinnon, chair of the Annandale Central Business District Planning Committee. “[Penny] has the respect of county staff and knows how to get things done. She smothers problems with empathy and clear thinking achieving results balanced and fair. She is totally dedicated to making Annandale, and indeed her whole district, a better place to live, work and play.”

During her free time, Gross enjoys completing crossword puzzles and dining at Foxfire Grill in Pinecrest Plaza in Alexandria with her husband of 41 years and their children. Mostly, Gross said she spends the majority of her time working. “I’m never home. I hang out in Mason District. I’m always out. That’s the part of this job people probably don’t understand. It’s 15-hour days. There’s no downtime because you’re always out there meeting and seeing constituents, even if you’re at the grocery store,” said Gross.

If re-elected, Gross hopes to continue improving pedestrian connections for residents in Mason District. Both the plans for the Annandale Commercial Revitalization District and Bailey’s Crossroads Revitalization District include concepts of transforming the areas into mixed used, urban centers that will feature pedestrian-friendly retail, residential, and civic uses. However, Gross said securing funds to implement the plans has stalled since Lehman Brothers filed for bankruptcy in 2008. “The plans are there. The opportunity is right around the corner. As soon as the global markets improve with financing, I know we’ll see some real improvements,” said Gross. In the meantime, she said they’ve worked on streetscape and façade improvements and she remains optimistic both plans will move forward.

Gross also brushes off criticism about a lack of leadership in Mason District. “I’m a workhorse, I’m not a showhorse. I’m going to do the heavy lifting. That’s what’s required [to do this job],” said Gross.

Transportation remains a priority issue for Gross, especially with the arrival of over 6,000 employees next month for the U.S. Department of Defense’s Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC). To help ease resident concerns about BRAC, Gross created the Mason District BRAC 133 Task Force. The committee works to try and identify and solve resident concerns about BRAC with special focus on BRAC-133, or the Mark Center, in Alexandria.

“The problem is our rules and regulations require a problem to surface before we can address it, so we’re trying to do it the other way around. We’re trying to identify what the patterns are now including the parking and traffic in neighborhoods,” said Gross.

Other priorities include creating affordable housing (“Mason District is the most dynamic, diverse and densely populated district in Fairfax County,” Gross said), improving the environment (“Our environmental protections are more stringent now than they were when I started,” said Gross), and continuing her work with , the monthly dialogue on diversity she created in 1998 to help start conversations between residents in Mason District and “reduce friction between and among people.”

Overall, Gross said her goal as Supervisor, then and now, has not changed and she remains passionate about her work in Mason District.

“I’m here to help make things better, answer questions and make sure that we’re moving Mason District forward. It’s been a great place to raise kids and do business, and I’d like that to continue,” said Gross.