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.”
Taste of Vienna is back.
After two consecutive cancellations due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the annual festival showcasing the town’s food scene will return for 2022 on April 30, the Vienna Volunteer Fire Department confirmed on Tuesday (Feb. 22).
This will be the ninth iteration of the festival, which launched in April 2012 as a fundraiser for the 115-year-old volunteer fire department.
Tysons Mass Vaccine Site Tweaks Hours — “Beginning Tuesday, March 1, the Tysons Community Vaccination Center (CVC) located at 7950 Tysons Corner Center, McLean, will be open five days a week, Tuesday-Saturday, from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.” [Fairfax County Health Department]
Alleged Serial Killer Still Not Charged in Fairfax County — Local police and prosecutors have yet to find enough evidence to charge a man that police dubbed the “Shopping Cart Killer” in the death of California resident Stephanie Harrison, one of two women whose remains were found in Huntington in December. [WTOP]
Office Tax Base Continues Decline — While residential property tax assessments soar, Fairfax County is projecting only a 2.8% increase in revenue from commercial properties in fiscal year 2023, which starts July 1. County Executive Bryan Hill attributed the decline in the county’s commercial and industrial tax base, expected to make up just 17% of property tax revenues, partly to the pandemic-era shift to teleworking. [Washington Business Journal]
Metro Still Testing Theories for Derailment — “Metro is testing out its theories and looking for solutions to resolve a defect found in wheels and axles of several of the rail cars, Metro General Manager Paul J. Wiedefeld told board members. He did not elaborate on the suspected factors causing the malfunction or provide an estimate for when the rail cars might return to service.” [The Washington Post]
Newington House Fire Displaces Residents — A house fire in the 7800 block of Water Valley Court on Feb. 18 displaced five residents and caused approximately $162,500 in damages. Investigators determined the blaze was started accidentally by “improperly discarded smoking materials.” [FCFRD]
Reston Company Mum on Microsoft Sale Rumors — Reston cybersecurity company Mandiant Inc. declined to comment on a Bloomberg report that Microsoft has expressed interest in acquiring it. With most employees working remotely, the company is in the process of consolidating staff at its two-story office in Reston Town Center. [Washington Business Journal]
Inova to Hold Blood Drive in Springfield — “Please join @GSVFD and @InovaBlood for Blood Drive event on February 28 between 1:00pm and 6:00pm. Slots still available. Blood donations are critically low and only you can help give the #GiftOfLife. Please signup today” [FCFRD/Twitter]
Utility Work Planned on W&OD Trail — “Over the next month, Dominion Energy contractors will be pulling new underground cables between Sandburg St and Adahi Rd near Vienna; please be alert while travelling this section of trail.” [W&OD Trail/Twitter]
Transit groups worry funding could end for the region’s Safe Routes to School programming, which helps students walk and bike to and from schools safely.
Federal money passes through the Virginia Department of Transportation to school districts such as Fairfax County Public Schools that apply for the funding. But the district didn’t apply for funding for the upcoming school year, as it has for nearly a decade, according to the district.
A popular D.C. area pizzeria plans to open a new location in Tysons this fall.
Stellina Pizzeria will take over a 4,100-square-foot space on the ground floor of Capital One’s headquarters at 1610 Capital One Drive, the business announced today (Thursday).
According to a press release, this will be the pizzeria’s fourth location since its original 2019 opening in D.C.’s Union Market. It expanded to Arlington in February 2021 and will add another D.C. venue, this time in Mount Vernon Triangle, this spring.
One Springfield resident so fed up with people dumping trash along streets has taken her concerns to not only public officials but TikTok.
Nicole Miller said she reached out to Fairfax County for problem areas after seeing bags of trash in one area and another spot with a TV and chair there. While the Virginia Department of Transportation has cleaned up areas, Miller suggests it’s a recurring issue.
Photos shared on social media by Miller and other residents show the matter goes beyond plastic bags and litter often seen along highways. One person posted photos of a mattress and box springs tossed out in Herndon’s Chandon Park where there’s a “no dumping” sign.
Fairfax County is looking to crack down on running bamboo spreading to properties across the region.
Residents expressed both support for and concern about proposed fines for property owners who allow bamboo to spread during a public hearing before the Board of Supervisors on Tuesday (Feb. 22).
The board deferred a decision on adopting an ordinance to March 22, suggesting ways to address the concerns raised about the new rules.
The field of contenders for the 11th District Congressional race is widening.
Republican Matthew Chappell has thrown his hat into the ring, giving the GOP its first primary with multiple candidates since Democratic incumbent Rep. Gerry Connolly took office in 2009.
Father of three children with wife Jacqueline, Chappell is a U.S. Army veteran who worked in counterintelligence and served in Iraq and Afghanistan. He has also worked as a police officer and a national security advisor with the Department of Defense.
