After giving travelers shelter for more than three decades, the now-shuttered Sheraton Tysons Hotel (8661 Leesburg Pike) could soon become home to hundreds of permanent residents.
Property owner JBG Smith wants to turn the 22-story building and its parking garage into a 544-unit multifamily residential tower with up to 5,000 square feet of ground-floor retail, according to a rezoning application submitted to Fairfax County on Feb. 14.
Reminder: Old Metro Cards Stop Working Today — “SmarTrip cards purchased before 2012 are no longer compatible with new, faster, modern faregates already installed in many stations. In an announcement more than 10 months ago, Metro advised customers that the old cards would need to be replaced as stations are equipped with new faregates.” [WMATA]
County Circuit Court Ends Mask Requirement — Fairfax County Circuit Court Chief Judge Penny Azcarate announced yesterday (Monday) that masks will be optional to enter the Courthouse effective immediately in accordance with the county’s new policy. Rules in courtrooms “are at the discretion of the presiding judge.” [Circuit Court]
Masks Now Optional on School Buses — Fairfax County Public Schools confirmed that its shift to a mask-optional policy starting today (Tuesday) includes school buses and vans. FCPS will also stop contact tracing for individual COVID-19 cases, but a livestreaming option is still available to students who have to isolate. [FCPS]
No Injuries Reported in Wolf Trap House Fire — Firefighters responded to a house fire in the 1500 block of Snughill Court around 8:45 p.m. on Saturday (Feb. 26). Investigators determined that the fire was started by improperly discarded ashes from a fire pit. It displaced five people and caused approximately $187,500 in damages. [FCFRD]
Fear of Reston Golf Course Development Persists — “A recent proposal to establish a pilot program to remove invasive plant species around Reston National Golf Course is seen by some as a first step to garner support for redeveloping the land.” [Patch]
Historic McLean Estate to Be Conserved — “An 8-acre Civil War-era McLean property known as Elmwood recently became the 129th conservation easement for the Northern Virginia Conservation Trust (NVCT)…Elmwood most recently was the home of the late television journalist Roger Mudd, whose family lived in the house for nearly half a century.” [Sun Gazette]
Reston Blogger Digs into History of Maryland Pizza Hut — Addison Del Mastro, who writes a Substack newsletter about urbanism and land use, noticed some unusual architectural features on a Pizza Hut in Landover. His investigation found that it started life in the 1970s as a franchise in a now-defunct chain called English’s Chick’n Steak House. [The Washington Post]
It’s Tuesday — Today will be mostly cloudy, then gradually become sunny, with a high near 58 and a low around 40. Sunrise will be at 6:39 a.m. and sunset at 6:01 p.m. [weather.gov]
For the first time since early August, face masks are no longer required for staff or visitors inside most Fairfax County facilities.
County Executive Bryan Hill shared the news in an email to all local government workers yesterday (Sunday) after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention introduced new metrics for measuring community COVID-19 transmission levels on Friday (Feb. 25).
Gov. Glenn Youngkin made his first official appearance in Fairfax County as Virginia’s chief executive today (Monday).
The property security provider Alarm.com will expand its technology research and development division in Tysons with a $2.6 million investment, creating 180 new jobs, Youngkin announced at the company’s headquarters (8218 Greensboro Drive).
Laura Schwartz is a licensed Realtor in VA, D.C. and MD with McEnearney Associates in Vienna. You can follow Laura on Instagram at @LauraSchwartzRealtor or her Facebook page. Laura can be reached at 703-283-6120 or [email protected].
A kind Vienna resident, Shelly Ebert, has organized an awesome opportunity for those who celebrate Easter, and those who want to help others celebrate the holiday.
You can sign up to have pre-filled eggs with toys, candy or stickers delivered and scattered around your yard on April 16 or 17. You can also sign up for an Easter basket instead if you don’t have a yard for the eggs.
Here’s another option — donate the eggs or the basket to a family in need.
The details:
They’re focused on Town of Vienna residents, but you can add your name if you’re close to the town limit and they’ll see if they can accommodate it.
The cost of this is a fundraiser for the One Neighborhood Foundation:
- 2 Dozen: $25
- 4 Dozen: $45
- 6 Dozen: $65
- Easter Basket: $25
Payment will be collected after the forms are collected. Sign up here for delivery! Orders are open throughout the month of March, but supplies are limited.
Want to sign up to volunteer? You can do that here.
Don’t forget about these other town events:
- Family Flashlight Egg Hunt: This event is sold out, but take note for next year! Tickets go on sale in early February every year for the April event.
- Historic Egg Roll: Friday, April 1 at 5:30 p.m. at the Historic Freeman Store and Museum
- Family Fishing Rodeo: March 26 (varied times, tickets on sale now) at Wildwood Park
The preceding sponsored post was also published on FFXnow.com
The annual vehicle tax that owners pay Fairfax County based on market prices could lighten many drivers’ wallets this year.
Market values from J.D. Power — the price guide used by the county to determine drivers’ bills — indicate vehicle prices are rising an average of over 33%, Young Tarry, director of the county’s Personal Property & Business License Division, told FFXnow.
The Vienna Police Department plans to institute a body-worn camera program, a practice that has gone from rare to commonplace in the D.C. region just within the past half-decade.
Police will request the Vienna Town Council’s approval tonight (Monday) to use $223,732 in federal relief funds for a five-year program that would equip all 41 of its sworn officers with cameras, according to the agenda for the council’s meeting.
FCPS Will Start COVID-19 Rollback Plan Tomorrow — Masks will be optional for both students and adults, including staff and parents, in Fairfax County Public Schools after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention changed its health metrics so that the county is now considered to have low transmission. FCPS said on Friday (Feb. 25) that masks would be optional for students, as ordered by a state law, but still mandatory for adults. [FCPS]
Judge Calls TJ Admissions Discriminatory — The Coalition for TJ on Friday (Feb. 25) won its lawsuit against the Fairfax County School Board over changes to admissions process for Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology. The judge found that the shift from a standardized test to “experience” factors was done in a way discriminatory to Asian applicants. The school system intends to appeal. [The Washington Post]
Daycare Operator Arrested for Child Abuse — “A 67-year-old woman was arrested Thursday evening and charged with abuse and neglect of a child. Detectives from our Child Abuse Squad were notified on Jan. 20 after an 8-month-old infant was treated at a local hospital with significant bruising to the upper body. Detectives discovered the infant attended an in-home daycare on Jan. 19 at 10858 Santa Clara Dr. in Fairfax.” [FCPD]
Multiple Shootings Reported in County — Fairfax County police responded to three different shootings between Feb. 18 and 24. People suffered non-life-threatening injuries in incidents at the 6000 block of Bellview Drive in Bailey’s Crossroads on Feb. 22 and at the Paper Moon (6315 Amherst Avenue) in Springfield on Feb. 23, while one in the 8500 block of Leesburg Pike in Tysons did not result in any injuries. [FCPD]
Person Dies in Lorton House Fire — “Units are on scene of a 2-alarm townhouse fire in the 9100 block of Aspenpark Ct in Lorton. 2 occupants were transferred to a local hospital- 1 w/ minor injuries. The other occupant was in life-threatening condition & succumbed at the hospital. Fire investigators remain on scene.” [FCFRD/Twitter]
Cat Dies in Reston Apartment Fire — “Apartment fire in the 1400 block of Northgate Square in Reston. Fire is out. Crews rescued unconscious cat and attempted to revive. Sadly, despite best effort, cat did succumb. No other reported injuries at this time.” [FCFRD/Twitter]
New Historic Placard on W&OD Trail Dedicated — “NOVA Parks unveiled the new sign in front of the historic site in Herndon, which is visited by more than two million people every year. The new marker remembers Virginia’s segregation laws that discriminated against thousands of Blacks traveling on the railroad.” [WTOP]
Foust Gives “State of McLean” Address — “Supervisor John Foust (D-Dranesville) in his annual “State of McLean” speech Feb. 24 praised the county’s handling of the pandemic, but said supervisors likely will need to make budgetary adjustments this spring to lessen impacts on taxpayers.” [Sun Gazette/Inside NoVA]
The inspiration for the Tysons Regional Chamber of Commerce’s new monthly backpack drive came to Andrew Clark on the Saturday before Christmas.
“I’m at home and realized — really, an epiphany of how good my life is,” the chamber’s board of directors chairman recalled last Friday (Feb. 18).
Clark has been volunteering for the Merrifield-based nonprofit Food for Others since before COVID-19, but while assisting the food bank with distribution, he saw how much the pandemic exacerbated food insecurity in the area, especially among children, he told FFXnow.
Fairfax County Public Schools will comply with the new Virginia law prohibiting local school boards from enforcing universal mask requirements.
Face masks will be optional on school property for students starting Tuesday (March 1), Superintendent Scott Brabrand confirmed today (Friday) in a message to families.
“There will be no formal process required for those who elect for their child not to wear a mask on school property, including during School Age Child Care (SACC),” Brabrand said. “Please talk with your child before March 1 so they will be aware of your family’s preference for mask wearing at school.”
