Morning Notes

Overnight Traffic Stops Coming to I-495 — The southbound I-495 collector-distributor road near Georgetown Pike (exit 44) in McLean will be closed in 30-minute increments between midnight to 5 a.m. today (Wednesday) through Friday (July 14). “Following each stoppage, one lane will reopen to clear traffic before the next stoppage is implemented…These traffic stoppages are necessary for crews to remove overhead roadway signs.” [VDOT]

Youngkin Pushes Early Voting for Republicans — “Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R) on Tuesday rolled out a web portal aimed at encouraging Republicans to register for absentee ballots and vote early in this fall’s legislative elections, embracing many of the voter-access policies enacted by Democrats in the past few years.” [The Washington Post]

Fare Discount Ends for Reston-to-Pentagon Bus — “Beginning Aug. 1, Route 599 will return to the regular fare of $7.50 per trip. Connector was able to offer Route 599 passengers a discounted rate of $4.25 per trip thanks to a grant from @NoVaTransit. We will exhaust all grant funding for the reduced fare on 8/1.” [Fairfax Connector/Twitter]

Annandale Is Getting Sub and Wings Eateries — “Jersey Mike’s Subs is expected to open in Annandale in early September. It’s located between the future Wingstop and Moby Dick House of Kabob in the new retail center at John Marr Drive and Little River Turnpike. Wingstop has set an opening date of July 30.” [Annandale Today]

Beverage Truck Launches in Mount Vernon — “For just over a month, entrepreneur Eric Danish has been serving up hot and cold beverages from his ‘Caffeine Machine VA’ food truck at The Garden Plot.” Danish previously drove the “full-service coffee and beverage trailer to events in various locations in the Manassas area” until he got Garden Plot’s offer of a permanent site. [On the MoVe]

County Adds Drop-Off Site for Latex Paint — “Due to the volume of LATEX PAINT we receive and current staffing shortages, a temporary disposal location for LATEX PAINT is open at the I-95 Landfill Complex. Please review the location and hours for dropping off at our facilities.” [Department of Public Works and Environmental Services/Twitter]

Library Short Story Contest Underway — “Fairfax County Public Library and the Fairfax Library Foundation invite adults (18+) to participate in our first annual ‘The World We Write’ short story writing contest. Use one of the prompts to write a 250-word story.” The contest will run through July 31, with winners getting notified by August 21. [FCPL]

Local Opera Company Brings Shakespeare to McLean — Shakespeare Opera Theatre founder Dr. Lori Lind’s vision of combining opera and Shakespeare initially confounded participants, but now, “her double dream has become a thriving reality at churches in Northern Virginia.” The company will perform “Much Ado About Nothing” at St. Thomas Episcopal Church in McLean this weekend. [WTOP]

It’s Wednesday — Sunny, with a high near 93. Light and variable wind becoming west around 6 mph in the morning. At night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 74. South wind around 7 mph. [Weather.gov]