Morning Notes

Fire Destroys Multiple Annandale Businesses — “Fairfax County and Fire Rescue crews responded to the scene of a building fire in the 7200 block of Columbia Pike. Four Annandale businesses, two restaurants, a shipping company, and a hair salon, sustained what fire officials called catastrophic damage.” [DC News Now]

FCPS Denies Attorney General’s Racism Allegations — “Jason Miyares is alleging that a Fairfax County middle school discriminated against students based on race, color, and national origin in an email sent to families regarding a college preparatory program offered by the county…A statement from Fairfax County Public Schools called Miyares’ assertions ‘false and damaging.'” [DCist]

Former D.C. Official Sentenced for Fatal I-495 Crash — “A former elected leader in D.C. was sentenced Friday to four years in prison one year after a deadly DUI wreck in Fairfax County. Former Advisory Neighborhood Commissioner Devon Lesesne pleaded guilty to involuntary manslaughter on Nov. 30, 2022, for driving under the influence when he struck and killed 20-year-old Katherine Reyes on March 6, 2022.” [WUSA9]

Density Dooms Annandale Development Pitch — “The Fairfax County Planning Commission rejected a site-specific plan amendment nomination for a mixed-use development on Little River Turnpike, but agreed to proceed with four others…The proposed plan amendment…called for 105 multifamily units in a four-story building with ground-floor retail between Columbia Road and Randolph Drive” [Annandale Today]

Mason District Residents Sound Off on Rising Taxes — “Real estate assessments for [fiscal year] 2024 are up an average 6.34 percent in Mason District, slightly below the countywide average of 6.79 percent. To help compensate for the rising assessments, Gross said she would support reducing the tax rate by at least 3 cents.” [Annandale Today]

Maryland Beltway Widening Project Faces New Setback — “The lead team involved with Maryland’s plan to build high-occupancy toll lanes on the Capital Beltway and Interstate 270, along with building a new American Legion Bridge, has pulled out of the project.” [NBC4, Maryland Matters]

FCPS Hosts Meeting Today on Opioid Crisis — “Opioid and fentanyl overdoses are rising nationwide, and more and more students nationwide and here locally are being impacted. Join @fcpsnews on Monday, Mar. 13, from 6:30 to 8:00 p.m. at @fcpsfairfaxhs for a conversation about the epidemic.” [Fairfax County Government/Twitter]

A Look at the History of Two Lorton Roads — “Furnace Road and Cinder Bed Road assumed their official designations on April 1, 1965. The previous June, Fairfax’s Board of Supervisors had approved a resolution naming or renaming hundreds of the county’s streets and secondary roads. This was necessary because — as in the song by U2 — some streets had no names.” [The Washington Post]

It’s Monday — Light rain in the morning and afternoon. High of 47 and low of 39. Sunrise at 7:24 am and sunset at 7:14 pm. [Weather.gov]