As Tysons gets taller, it’s become the scene of a hardcore — and illegal in this case — extreme sport: BASE jumping.

Last year, police investigated a series of incidents where people would trespass into the under-construction, 32-story Lumen building, climb to the top, and jump off with a parachute.

Videos from the jumper’s point of view were sent to FOX 5 in March.

“A total of six jumps are being investigated,” Fairfax County Police Lt. John Lieb told Tysons Reporter. “We believe we have identified one of the suspects, but confirming the date and location of the jump to make sure the elements of trespassing are met. We would encourage anyone else who has information to let us know.”

Lieb said that while the jumpers could be charged with a separate act of trespassing each time they cross over the property line, police believe differences in time of day and weather conditions in videos taken by the jumpers would indicate that the jumps took place on several different occasions.

Catherine Moran and Vernon Miles worked on this story.

A parade and fireworks are planned for a pair of Memorial Day commemorative events in the Tysons area.

On Sunday (May 26), the U.S. Marine Band will play a free concert at the Filene Center (1551 Trap Road) in Wolf Trap National Park. A fireworks display is planned to follow the concert.

Gates open at 6:30 p.m. for lawn and in-house seating, with curtains opening at 8 p.m. the fireworks are planned to start at around 9:45 p.m.

Seating capacity for the event is limited. The Fairfax Connector bus from the West Falls Church Metro station will not be available for the event. Parking is free and attendees can get $5 off two Lyft rides with the code WOLFTRAP19.

On Monday (May 27), the City of Falls Church is hosting its 38th Annual Memorial Day Festival and Parade with an expected 12,000 visitors. The festival is planned to feature food, live entertainment, artists and various vendors.

The Don Beyer Volvo 3K Fun Run is scheduled to start at 9 a.m. The parade is scheduled to begin at 2 p.m.

Free public parking will be available in the Kaiser Permanente garage at the corner of N. Washington Street and Park Avenue and at the George Mason Square garage (103 W. Broad Street).

The parade and festival will also result in several street closures.

• Park Avenue will be closed from 5:30 a.m.-7 p.m. between N. Maple Avenue to N. Virginia Avenue (except for limited vendor traffic)
• Little Falls Streed will be closed from 5:30 a.m.-7 p.m. between Park Avenue to Great Falls Street
• Great Falls Street
• Pennsylvania Avenue
• Fulton Avenue
• N. Oak Street
• Lincoln Avenue
• N. West Street
• Park Avenue

Other Memorial Day events around the area include:

• The Murphy Challenge: Memorial Day Workout and Grill-Out — 8:30 a.m.-1 p.m. at CrossFit Tysons Corner (8452 Tyco Road) — The event is a fundraiser to support educational charities to honor the life of Lt. Michael Murphy. Three workouts will be held followed by a grilling event, with attendees asked to bring a drink or dish to share. Visitors and non-members can sign up online.
• Memorial Day Annual Pool Party — 12-2 p.m. at Sport&Health McLean (1800 Old Meadow Road) — The summer barbecue and pool event is hosted by Sport&Health McLean and will include information about aquatics programs, camps and more.

Photo via Facebook

Two more bidders are now vying for a Tysons property poised for redevelopment and new owners.

McLean-based Tepe & Hisar LLC submitted a bid earlier this month to buy the property for $19.5 million, while Virginia Beach-based Cobalt Real Estate Solutions LLC offered to pay $30.4 million for an adjacent office building, the Washington Business Journal reported.

Shortly after Fairfax County OK’d the redevelopment project near the corner of Leesburg Pike and Gallows Road in the Old Courthouse district two years, the developer filed for bankruptcy.

The approved plans for International Place (8201 Leesburg Pike), which were submitted by a limited liability company as a project of the Stafford-based Garrett Cos., would add one main new building and five secondary mixed-use structures.

The Washington Business Journal previously reported that the LLC arranged a May 7 hearing to seek permission to sell the property to a Middle Eastern real estate developer who chairs the United Arab Emirates-based Nobles Properties.

While neither of the new deals is final, a bankruptcy judge authorized the new purchase agreements on May 10, the article notes.

Now, the stalled development may face a decision on new ownership at an upcoming June 4 hearing.

“Representatives for the debtor filed a motion with the court seeking authorization to reject an earlier purchase agreement stuck with Thallium so the office building at 8133 Leesburg can instead be sold to Cobalt,” the Washington Business Journal reported.

Image via Fairfax County

Bicyclists and drivers can expect new lane markings on Greensboro Drive by The Boro development early next month.

Last week, a self-identified cyclist questioned on Twitter when the road would get new striping.

“The new asphalt is nice, but total chaos,” the May 14 tweet said. “[The] eastbound bike lane, second travel lane, and center turn lane [are] all obliterated. And it’s been a few weeks.”

Jennifer McCord, a spokeswoman for the Virginia Department of Transportation, told Tysons Reporter that the roadwork is being completed by a developer under permit.

The developer gave this update on Greensboro Drive via the VDOT spokeswoman:

VDOT approved a temporary striping plan to allow bicycle traffic to share the southbound lane of Greensboro Drive between Westpark and Solutions until improvements to Greensboro, Westpark and Solutions have been completed. Currently, there are bicycle “sharrows” between Westpark and Silver Hill. Prior to Greensboro being milled and overlaid between Silver Hill and Solutions, a sharrow was installed and a remaining sharrow will be reinstalled.

In addition to the shared lane marking, the signal at the intersection of Westpark and Greensboro drives will be modified and new signals will be installed at Greensboro’s intersection with Spring Hill Road and Solutions Drive, the spokeswoman said.

“The contractor plans to mill and overlay Greensboro and Westpark the weeks of May 28 and June 3; then pavement markings will be placed relative to the bike lane from Westpark to Solutions,” McCord wrote in an email.

Drivers and bicyclists can expect temporary markings until the signal construction is complete. Once the work on the signals finishes, Greensboro Drive will then welcome new permanent markings, McCord said.

Hey @VaDOTNOVA is there a striping plan/timetable for Greensboro Dr in #Tysons? The new asphalt is nice, but its TOTAL CHAOS. Eastbound #bikelane, 2nd travel lane, and center turn lane all obliterated. And it's been a few weeks. Thanks! pic.twitter.com/B0oFCbUOEh

— Chris French (@chrislfrench) May 14, 2019

A Fairfax County grand jury indicted Veronica Youngblood Monday (May 20) with two murder charges after she allegedly shot both of her daughters, according to news reports.

Youngblood was arrested in Loudoun County and charged with murder after police found two girls with gunshot wounds in their Tysons apartment last year, Tysons Reporter previously reported.

The 5-year-old was pronounced dead at the scene, and the 15-year-old died at the hospital.

The incident happened after a custody dispute between Youngblood and her divorced husband, WTOP reported.

The 33-year-old mother was previously charged with the murder of the younger daughter and wounding the older daughter — the indictment was the first time she was charged in the 15-year-old’s death, WTOP reported.

Photo courtesy FCPD

Updated at 1:40 p.m. — Corrects description of MicroStrategy and lease renewal date.

MicroStrategy Inc. scored $1 million to expand in Tysons.

The Fairfax County’s Board of Supervisors approved grant funding from the Commonwealth at its meeting on Tuesday (May 21).

The funds will help the company with its tenant build-out of its facility (1850 Towers Crescent Plaza) in Tysons, which could lead to 300 new jobs at the facility, according to county documents.

Last March, MicroStrategy, which provides a data analytics platform, renewed its lease for its Tysons headquarters for $150 million, keeping the company based in Northern Virginia for another 13 years, the Washington Business Journal reported.

As part of the grant, Fairfax County must provide a local match, which will be in the form of accelerating construction on the Magarity Walkway project, a roadway improvement that is already planned and funded in the county budget. The road improvement was identified by coordinating with the Fairfax County Department of Transportation.

Fairfax County competed with another jurisdiction for the expansion of MicroStrategy’s headquarters, according to county documents.

Candytopia is looking to bring its sugary art installations to Tysons.

Curated by Jackie Sorkin from TLC’s “Candy Queen,” the interactive art pop-up made with candy describes itself as an “outrageously interactive candy wonderland” with flying unicorn pigs and a marshmallow tsunami. The pop-ups usually last about four months.

Candytopia’s chief executive officer told the Washington Business Journal that the pop-up concept, which occupies between 14,000 and 25,000 square feet, is looking to open in the Tysons area in the next year.

Candytopia recently opened in Atlanta and Dallas and is “coming soon” to Houston. Tickets vary by location — regular admission for the Atlanta one costs $28, while the Dallas one is $30.

Previously, Candytopia has rolled into San Francisco, Minneapolis-St. Paul and New York City.

Photo via Facebook

The Weekly Planner is a roundup of interesting events coming up over the next week in the Tysons area.

We’ve scoured the web for events of note in Tysons, Vienna, Merrifield, McLean and Falls Church. Know of any we’ve missed? Tell us!

Monday (May 20)

• Sound Check Bingo — 7 p.m. at Caboose Commons (2918 Eskridge Road) — Caboose Commons at the Mosaic District is premiering a music trivia bingo night. The event mixes bingo and trivia contests where contestants hear 30-45 seconds of a song and must determine the title then find that song on bingo cards. Genres range from 80’s to Motown and country.

Tuesday (May 21)

• Capital One Blood Drive — 10 a.m.-2:30 p.m. at Capital One Westpark (7900 Westpark Drive) — Inova Blood Donor Services will be on hand to receive blood donations. Photo ID is required, and visitors are asked to allow one hour for donation.
• Meet the Brewer: Tucher Brewery — 5-8 p.m. at Tysons Biergarten (8346 Leesburg Pike) — Michael Lassauer, the brewmaster of Tucher Brewery, will be at the Biergarten to talk and have a drink with customers. The event will also include free Tucher T-shirts and bottle openers.

Wednesday (May 22)

• Dine for a Cause — 11 a.m.-10 p.m. at Moby Dick House of Kabob (2676 Avenir Place) — Several local charity organizations are partnering together to host a fundraiser for refugees in Northern Virginia at Moby Dick. If the diner mentions the fundraiser, 20 percent of the meal proceeds will be donated to Lutheran Social Services of the National Capital Area to support refugees.
• First Mothers Out Front Fairfax Meeting — 7-8:30 p.m. at Green Hedges School (415 Windover Avenue NW) — Mothers Out Front, an organization fighting climate change, is hosting its first meeting to talk about a campaign to convert Fairfax County to an electrical school bus system.

Thursday (May 23)

• Soft Opening at City Works Eatery and Pour House — 6-9 p.m. at City Works Eatery and Pour House (1640 Capital One Drive North) — City Works at the Capital One headquarters is hosting a soft opening this week with a fundraiser for the Capital Area Food Bank. Seating is limited with reservations at $50 per seat.
• Creativity Showcase — 6:30-8:30 p.m. at Fusion Academy Tysons (1934 Old Gallows Road) — Fusion Academy is hosting an exhibition of student creativity with a gallery-style showing of creations and projects with complimentary hors d’oeuvres.

Friday (May 24)

• Fairfax County Board of Supervisors Chair Debate — 7:30-10 a.m. at Valo Park (7950 Jones Branch Drive) — The Democratic Business Council of Northern Virginia is hosting a debate between Democratic Board of Supervisors Chair candidates and Commonwealth’s Attorney candidates. The event is hosted by NBC4’s Julie Carey and is $15 per person.

Saturday (May 25)

• ViVa! Vienna! — 10 a.m.-10 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday and 10 a.m.-6 p.m. on Monday on Church Street — Amusement rides, live music, vendors, carnival food and more will be available all weekend at the family-friendly Vienna festival.
• To the Moon and Back — 4-5 p.m. at Total Wine (1451 Chain Bridge Road) — To commemorate the 50th anniversary of the moon landing, Schlafly Beer is debuting a new beer: Luna Lager. Tickets to the event are $15.

Sunday (May 26)

• Memorial Day Weekend Concert — 4-6 p.m. at Saint Luke Catholic Church (7001 Georgetown Pike) — The Fairfax Choral Society Symphonic Chorus will be performing a series of songs to honor veterans, including several patriotic American classics. Tickets for the event are $25 — or $5 for students or $40 for reserved seating. Kids 13 and under are free.

Photo via Facebook

Freddie Mac Expanding Tysons Footprint — “The Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corp. has signed a full-building lease at 1550 Westbranch Drive, a six-story building Rubenstein Partners and Griffith Properties bought for $27.75 million in 2015, according to sources familiar with the deal.” [Washington Business Journal]

Hunter Mill Democrats Focus on Vienna — “Five candidates seeking the Democratic nomination for Hunter Mill District supervisor tried to differentiate themselves May 15 at a debate in Vienna… Several candidates said public officials should listen to residents’ concerns, a topic fresh on the minds of Vienna voters who on May 7 ousted a Town Council incumbent and voted in two development critics.” [Inside NoVa]

Vienna Crafter Makes Wigs for Cancer-Fighting Kids — Janet O’Grady, a crafter from Our Lady of Good Counsel Church in Vienna, helps knit Disney-inspired wigs for The Magic Yarn Project, which is based in Alaska. Kids fighting cancer receive the wigs for free. [The Arlington Catholic Herald]

Firefighters Mow Man’s Lawn in Vienna — Firefighters and medics responded to a report of a man feeling ill while mowing the lawn. After the medics took him to a nearby hospital, the firefighters “saw mowing not done so they finished up so he would not have to worry about it upon return home.” [Fairfax Fire and Rescue/Twitter]

Langley Student’s STEM Project Lauded — “Hana Abouelenein, a sophomore at Langley High School, has been selected as the 2019 recipient of the AAUW McLean area branch’s STEM Excellence Award, presented to a female student or team from a high school in the McLean area with an outstanding project in the field of Engineering presented at the Fairfax County Regional Science Fair.” [Inside NoVa]

Pool Party Season Almost Here — With Memorial Day weekend coming up, Patch has a list of when pools in the McLean area are open during the day. [McLean Patch]

Hot off the launch of a new Vienna location, Fairfax-based Virginia Tire and Auto recently announced a new location in Tysons.

The car repair shop is set to open in the former Merchant’s Tire and Auto Centers at 2055 Chain Bridge Road, across the street from Tysons’ Toilet Bowl building.

Noelle Malley, a spokesperson for the chain, said the Tysons location is expected to open in fall 2019 and will provide 20 new jobs.

The franchise first opened in 1976 and expanded outside of Northern Virginia for the first time with a new Richmond location.

Virginia Tire and Auto also announced that a new location in Herndon will open this fall.

Photo via Google Maps