Reminder: Winter Weather Advisory Today — “A Winter Weather Advisory has been issued from 9 PM Thursday to 5 AM Friday. Expected snow in the county at this time is between 2-4 inches. Plan on slippery road conditions and continue to monitor the forecast.” [Ready Fairfax/Twitter]
Vienna Police Warn of “McAfee Antivirus” Scam — “The scam usually begins with an email that purports to be from McAfee informing citizens that they are being charged $300 for ‘McAfee Total Protection anti-virus software’ unless they cancel the order by calling a phone number provided in the email. If you call the number provided, you will be greeted by a scammer posing as a McAfee employee who will ask for personal information, including a bank account number supposedly to verify the account.” [Vienna Police Department/Twitter]
New Tysons Gym Opens Today — PureGym has a grand opening today (Thursday) for its new Tysons Square gym, the British company’s first in the U.S. PureGym says Tysons stood out for “its mix of office and residential, as well as its accessibility by car, bus and rail via Metro’s Greensboro station.” [Washington Business Journal]
Park Authority Board Reverts to Virtual Meetings — “The Fairfax County Park Authority Board’s regular meetings and committee sessions will return to a virtual format until further notice. Meetings will be accessible via livestream beginning Wednesday, Jan. 12, 2022. This change is reflective of current social distancing recommendations and safety concerns related to the current surge in COVID-19 cases.” [FCPA]
Tysons Nail Salon Relocates to Reston — “Beauty Nail Bar, currently operating out of Tysons, should open at its new location (1675 Reston Parkway) by the end of February, according to owner Nam Huynh of Wolf Trap. He said he decided to move his operation for more space, but it will otherwise be exactly the same.” [Reston Now]
Tysons Mass Vaccine Site Reopens — After two days of canceled appointments due to snow, the Tysons Community Vaccination Center at Tysons Corner Center will resume regular operating hours from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Walk-ins are welcome, but appointments are strongly encouraged. [VDH]
County Waste Collection Resumes Today — “Due to Solid Waste staff being re-assigned to snow clearing duty, we will collect Monday’s trash and recycling routes on Wednesday and will continue on a sliding schedule throughout Saturday.” [Fairfax County Public Works/Twitter]
Founders Row Lands Family-Friendly Restaurant — The team behind Rooster & Owl, an upscale American restaurant in D.C., will open a new, more casual spot called Ellie Bird in Falls Church City’s Founders Row development in late 2022. Planned dishes like seafood paella and grilled corn ravioli were inspired by the takeout offerings that Rooster & Owl created during the pandemic. [Washingtonian]
Palchik Makes History with NVTC — Providence District Supervisor Dalia Palchik will be the first Latina person to serve as vice chair for the Northern Virginia Transportation Commission, which advocates and coordinates funding for public transit across the region. Palchik and the rest of the commission’s appointed 2022 slate will be approved at a meeting tomorrow (Thursday). [NVTC]
Tysons IT Contractor Acquired — “Fairfax-based management consulting firm ICF International Inc. announced Monday that it had completed its acquisition of McLean-based IT federal contractor Creative Systems and Consulting. Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.” [Virginia Business]
Preliminary Snowfall Totals Reported — The amount of snow seen yesterday (Monday) varied widely across Fairfax County, with totals ranging in the Tysons area from 6.4 inches in Langley, as of 1:30 p.m., to 8.3 inches in Dunn Loring. All three major airports in the D.C. region recorded new records for Jan. 3. [NWS]
Tysons Mass Vaccine Site Closed Again — All of the Virginia Department of Health’s Community Vaccination Centers (CVCs), including the one at Tysons Corner Center, will be closed today (Tuesday). This will be the second consecutive day without the mass vaccination site due to the snowstorm, with freezing overnight temperatures expected to make travel challenging this morning. [VDH]
Power Outages Could Take Days to Resolve — Dominion Energy said that restoring power in the wake of yesterday’s snowstorm could be a “multi-day effort” after wet, heavy snow weighing down branches “wreaked havoc on power lines.” As of 12:15 a.m., more than 21,000 of the utility’s customers in Fairfax County were without power. [Inside NoVA]
Vienna Delays Town Government Openings — “Due to inclement weather and hazardous driving conditions, Vienna Town Hall and the Vienna Community Center will open at 10 a.m. tomorrow. All classes and programs at the Community Center and the Bowman House are cancelled until noon. For updates, visit http://viennava.gov.” [Town of Vienna/Twitter]
COVID-19 Boosters Approved for Young Teens — “The FDA has authorized vaccine boosters for children ages 12-15. However, we must wait for clinical guidelines from CDC and VDH, as we do with all vaccine authorizations, prior to booking appointments. Thank you for your patience.” [Fairfax County Health Department]
Inova Launches COVID-19 Testing Site — “Experiencing COVID-19 symptoms? An Inova COVID-19 Vehicle-Side Testing Clinic will open Dec 30. Open M-F, 8am-5pm. PCR testing only, no rapid antigen testing. Appointments are required, please contact call ctr: 571-472-6843. Open M-F, 8am-6pm.” [Inova Health/Twitter]
Fairfax County Public Schools Commits to In-Person Classes on Return — “We recognize that a lot has changed over the past two weeks, with the omicron variant causing an increase in COVID-19 cases nationwide. As we continue to live through this ever-changing pandemic, we are committed to keeping our schools safe and open for in-person instruction.” [FCPS]
Men Arrested for Local 7-Eleven Robberies — Fairfax County police have arrested two men who are allegedly connected to robberies of a 7-Eleven at 9511 Blake Lane in Fairfax on Dec. 6 and a 7-Eleven at 8110 Old Dominion Drive in McLean on Dec. 11. Police believe the suspects were also involved in other robberies in neighboring jurisdictions. [FCPD]
Fire Department Further Adjust Staffing Due to COVID-19 Cases — The Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department detailed additional staffing changes yesterday (Wednesday) on top of ones reported earlier that day by Tysons Reporter’s sister site FFXnow. The department now has 66 employees infected by COVID-19, with another 12 staff members required to quarantine. [FCFRD]
Langley Student Gets Perfect ACT Score — “Kaavya Radhakrishnan, a junior at Langley High School in McLean, scored a perfect 36 on her ACT exam this year…Only about a third of 1% of students who take the ACT earn the top score – or just 5,579 out of 1.67 million students who took the ACT in the United States in 2020, according to the nonprofit that administers the test.” [Inside NoVA]
Highline Office Buildings Refinanced — “Westbrook Partners and American Real Estate Partners (AREP) have landed a $148 million refinance from CIM Group for Highline at Greensboro District, a 460,851-square-foot, Class A office campus in Tysons Corner…Westbrook and AREP purchased the two-building Highline complex — at 8401 and 8405 Greensboro Drive in McLean, Va. — in 2017 for $132 million, and have invested a further $31 million to renovate and reposition it since.” [Commercial Observer]
County Reduces COVID-19 Isolation Time — Following new CDC recommendations, the Fairfax County Health Department has cut the required isolation period for people infected with COVID-19 from 10 to five days, if the individual has no symptoms. People exposed to someone who tests positive no longer have to quarantine if they’re vaccinated. [FCHD]
Former FCPD Officer Convicted for Sexual Misconduct — “A former Fairfax County police officer has been convicted of sexual misconduct with a 16-year-old police cadet. John Grimes faced three charges of indecent liberties with a minor. He was found guilty of all counts on Monday.” [NBC4]
Vienna’s Tom Yum Thai Closes — “The restaurant informed customers in a Facebook post that it had closed on Sunday, Dec. 26. It had been open for seven years at 226 Maple Avenue W in Vienna. The management did not share a reason for the closure in the post.” [Patch]
County Waste Facilities to Change Hours — “The new year will usher in extended operating hours for residents to drop off their trash, recyclables, and various specialty wastes (e.g., used oil, old batteries, scrap metal) at the I-66 Transfer Station and the I-95 Landfill Complex. The new hours taking effect on January 1, 2022, are Monday through Friday, 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. Weekend hours, 7 a.m. to 4 p.m., will remain unchanged at both facilities.” [DPWES]
How to Dispose of Your Christmas Tree — The Town of Vienna will provide curbside collections of Christmas trees to all customers through Jan. 31. Fairfax County collections will be from Jan. 3-14. All lights, decorations, and stands should be removed prior to pickup. [Patch]
Virginia Time Capsule Possibly Found — “Workers removing chunks of granite that had once supported this city’s Robert E. Lee monument finally found what appears to be an elusive 1887 time capsule shortly before noon on Monday…This is the second time a capsule was discovered under the monument; a small lead box opened last week contained mementos of several men who designed the memorial.” [The Washington Post]
Churchill Student Makes Food Network Debut — The Food Network kicked off the 10th season of its reality show Kids Baking Champion yesterday (Monday). Among the 13 young contestants competing to win $25,000 is Churchill Road Elementary School fourth-grade student Finley Sheers, who started making cupcakes as a hobby during the pandemic. [Inside NoVA]
Vienna Rotary Club Hosts Unhoused Youth for Holidays — “Our youth had a fun-filled event hosted by Vienna Rotary Club to celebrate the holidays. They created pillows, decorated wooden arts and crafts, made jewelry, decorated cookies, took pictures at the photo booth and with Santa, and ate a lot of pizza and snacks!” [Second Story/Twitter]
McLean House Fire Results in $1M in Damages — The fire that burned down former Virginia governor Chuck Robb’s house in McLean last week produced about $1.6 million in damages, the Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department estimates. Robb and his wife Lynda Johnson Robb were alerted to the fire by working smoke alarms, but a cause is still under investigation. [FCFRD/Twitter]
Metro Halts Return of Railcars — “Metro abruptly halted its phased return of 7000-series railcars to service Thursday afternoon, after deciding the trains needed a more stringent inspection schedule than initially planned. Metro’s 748 railcars in the 7000 series have been off the tracks since October, following a derailment caused by faulty wheel assemblies.” [DCist]
Freedom Bank of Virginia Considers Tysons for New NoVA Branch — “The bank has looked at Tysons, Loudoun County, Arlington, Alexandria and Manassas as options. ‘We’re not in Tysons Corner and we view that as kind of the business hub of Northern Virginia, so that’s been a goal of ours,’ [president and CEO Joseph] Thomas said, though he declined to identify where the branch will be located.” [Washington Business Journal]
Tysons Company Involved in International Space Station Flight — “Tysons-based Space Adventures, a space tourism company, brokered the spacecraft flight that returned to Earth on Dec. 19 carrying a Russian cosmonaut Alexander Misurkin along with two Japanese private astronauts Yusaku “MZ” Maezawa and Yozo Hirano. The three launched to the station on Dec. 8, SpaceNews reported.” [Fairfax County EDA]
The Alden to Host Talks on Virginia’s Native American Tribes — “The Alden Theatre of the McLean Community Center will host a five-part discussion-group series online starting in early January to reinforce information about Virginia Native American tribes. The series will use the Pocahantas Project as a guide, and will be co-facilitated by a member of the Rappahannock tribe and members of the Alden’s staff.” [Sun Gazette/Inside NoVA]
Health Department Adapts to Omicron Surge — With COVID-19 cases continuing to rise, the Fairfax County Health Department is changing its contact-tracing process to focus staff and resources on “higher-risk scenarios,” such as congregate settings, schools and childcare facilities, and outbreaks. Other individuals who test positive for COVID-19 will be notified by text message. [FCHD]
Robb Family Comments on McLean House Fire — Children of former Virginia governor Chuck Robb and his wife, Lynda Johnson Robb, confirmed that their parents had no life-threatening injuries after a fire destroyed the McLean mansion where they have lived for nearly 50 years. The Robb family thanked the firefighters and medical professionals who responded to the incident. [Office of the Governor]
Rare Owl Spotted in Oakton — “Animal Protection Police officers in Fairfax County, Virginia, helped a rare owl get out of a tough spot last month. The Fairfax County Police Department posted about the rescue on its Facebook page Tuesday. APP officers were called to the Oakton area Nov. 17 for a report of an owl that had flown into a home under construction.” [WTOP]
Tysons Corner and Galleria Close Early Tomorrow — “Between Christmas Eve for late shoppers and post-Christmas shopping, the two malls in Tysons have adjusted hours on upcoming days. Santa photos will continue at malls through Christmas Eve. Malls and surrounding stores are generally closed on Christmas Day, Dec. 25.” [Patch]
McLean Holiday Lights Contest Voting Underway — McLean residents can now vote online for their favorite neighborhood holiday decorations as part of the Light Up McLean contest. The McLean Community Center will announce winners in three categories — best overall, most creative, and best holiday theme — on Jan. 3. [Old Firehouse Center/Twitter]
COVID-19 Infections Contribute to Metrobus Driver Shortage — “More than 50 Metro bus routes are experiencing delays and increased wait times due to a driver shortage across the city. WMATA cites the spread of new COVID variants, such as delta and omicron, as one of the causes of the shortage, as employees take sick leave to recover.” [WUSA9]
County Urges Awareness of Unhoused People — As the winter solstice, last night (Tuesday) was the longest one of the year, prompting Fairfax County to acknowledge its 1,000-plus residents who experience homelessness every winter. The county advises community members to call its Department of Public Safety Communications at 703-691-2131 if they see someone in need of shelter, and the annual Hypothermia Prevention Program is now underway. [Fairfax County Government]
Nearby: Mary Riley Styles Library Goes Virtual — “Due to concerns about the recent increase in COVID-19 transmissions in the area, all in-person library programs and use of library conference rooms are suspended until mid-January 2022. Group study rooms may still be reserved, but are limited to groups of three or less.” [City of Falls Church]
Transit and Amenities Drive Fairfax County Office Demand — “New office buildings in transit-oriented mixed-use developments in Tysons and Reston have generated leasing and investor interest as office tenants court young workers. But as these projects soak up the pandemic-weakened demand for new leases, the older suburban-style office buildings have suffered.” [Bisnow]
Student Mental Health Support Staffing a Concern in FCPS — “Many Fairfax County Public Schools students were experiencing high levels of anxiety and depression even before the pandemic struck nearly two years ago and county officials are struggling to maintain adequate mental-health staffing to address those concerns.” [Sun Gazette/Inside NoVA]
FCPS Seeks to Let Students “Test to Stay” in Class — Fairfax County Public Schools has requested to participate in a not-yet-announced pilot program that would let students identified as close contacts of someone infected with COVID-19 stay in class if they test negative. The Virginia Department of Health plans to implement the program in January after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention endorsed the approach. [WTOP]
School Security Officer Arrested for Alleged Assault of Student — A 26-year-old security officer at Stone Middle School in Centreville has been arrested after he allegedly assaulted and restrained a student. The incident occurred around 12:30 p.m. on Dec. 13 and was reported to police by another school employee. No injuries were reported to the school resource officer that responded. [FCPD]
Metro to Buy Electric Buses — In the hopes of achieving zero carbon emissions from its bus fleet by 2045, Metro has issued a request for proposals to purchase 10 electric buses “from multiple manufacturers to test different bus and charging technologies and assess their performance. Metro will also separately buy chargers for the buses and install infrastructure to support the chargers.” [WMATA]
