Falls Church Council Member Dan Sze Dies

FALLS CHURCH, VA — Falls Church City Council Member Daniel Sze has died, the city government announced on Tuesday. Sze had been fighting esophageal cancer.

The city will honor Sze by lowering its flag at City Hall to half-staff for seven days. A moment of silence will be held at the Aug. 10 City Council meeting.

"The news of Dan’s passing has hit me hard," said Mayor David Tarter in a statement. "He was a friend who cared deeply about the best interests of our city and its residents and tirelessly advocated for its betterment. He will be sorely missed. On behalf of the City Council, we mourn his passing and send his wife, Elisabeth and family our deepest condolences."

Sze first joined the city government as vice chair of the Falls Church Economic Development Authority from 2002 through 2006. He was elected to City Council from 2006 to 2010. After being appointed to the Board of Zoning Appeals in 2013, he was elected again to City Council in 2014.

Known for his wit, humor and support of environmentally-friendly policies, Sze led a city policy for all new and renovated city facilities to achieve LEED standards. He also encouraged sustainability in other aspects of city government, from moving the city fleet to bio fuels, to LED streetlight installation, and renewable electricity purchases. He has also pushed developers to use green roofs, stormwater detention, and higher LEED standards in new buildings within the city.

Sze was most recently the City Council Liaison to the Environmental Sustainability Council and the Urban Forestry Commission, and was chair of the Council's Appointments Committee. He also served as a City Council representative on a number of regional boards and commissions, including as chair of the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments Chesapeake Bay and Water Resources Policy Committee, as a member of the MWCOG Climate, Energy, and Environment Policy Committee, as chair of the Virginia Municipal League’s State Committee on Environmental Quality, and as an alternate for the Northern Virginia Regional Commission.

Sze also worked for the federal government, contributing to policy and regulatory initiatives under six presidents. His last position was deputy director of state energy programs at the U.S. Department of Energy's Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy. After leaving full-time employment, Sze gave lectures on sustainability strategies, worked on clean energy initiatives, worked on international start-ups, and was a consultant to businesses, organizations, and government.

Other city officials responded to Sze's death on Tuesday evening. Council Member Letty Hardi wrote that she was "heartbroken" by her colleague's passing after a short battle with illness.

"I could always count on Dan to inject a smart and insightful (and sometimes left field!) perspective into any discussion," Hardi wrote on Facebook. "I am grateful to have learned from him."

City Manager Wyatt Shields shared the following statement: "His staff and Council colleagues will certainly miss his intelligence, his hearty greetings, and the jovial conversations they shared with Dan. He was a one of a kind public servant, and we know his legacy will live on in the many projects he championed.”