Fairfax County is losing Taste of NoVA to Prince William County, a consequence of the federal government shutdown stretching into a second week.
The food festival was set to unfold this weekend (Oct. 11-12) at the National Museum of the U.S. Army in Fort Belvoir, which has been closed since Oct. 1 with all events canceled as long as the shutdown continues.
As a result, Northern Virginia Magazine announced yesterday (Tuesday) that Taste of NoVA is relocating to the NOVA Live campus in Manassas. The two-day event will now take place on the field next to MurLarkey Distilled Spirits and Proof Kitchen + Bar on Discovery Blvd.
“We wanted to guarantee our event could happen on the scheduled dates despite the government shutdown,” said Sang Yang, CEO of Northern Virginia Magazine, which organizes Taste of NoVA. “We’re grateful to Villagio Hospitality Group and Prince William County for their extraordinary support in helping us make this happen so quickly.”
Now in its third year, Taste of NoVA was held at the Army Museum in 2024 and, before that, at Segra Field in Leesburg. The festival has been expanded to two days for the first time and will feature dozens of restaurants, wineries and breweries from across the region, offering unlimited tastings, cooking demonstrations, drink pairings and more.
Aware that the Army Museum might become unavailable in the event of a federal government closure, Yang began talking to Villagio Hospitality Group, which developed and operates the NOVA Live campus, about a potential relocation on Sept. 30, the Washington Business Journal reported.
According to the WBJ, Yang and Villagio President and CEO Marcus Silva had already been in touch to discuss the possibility of bringing a Taste of NoVA extension to NOVA Live next year. The necessary permits and approvals needed from Prince William were finalized yesterday.
“NOVA LIVE is the perfect stage for this festival because we capture the energy, diversity, and creativity that define Northern Virginia,” Silva said.
Army Ten-Miler’s fate up in the air
Update — Organizers announced on Thursday (Oct. 9) that the Army Ten-Miler will proceed with an in-person race, albeit with “modifications” to comply with shutdown-related guidance. The Expo will take place as scheduled on Oct. 10 and 11 at The St. James in Springfield, with shuttle service available from the Franconia Metro station between 7:30 a.m. and 9 p.m.
Earlier: Taste of NoVA might not be the only event that Fairfax County loses as a result of the shutdown.
Organizers behind the popular Army Ten-Miler are considering canceling the in-person race due to unspecified “unforeseen circumstances,” race director Matt Zimmerman said in a message sent to registered runners on Monday (Oct. 6). The “circumstances” are believed to be the government shutdown, which has closed off portions of the route managed by the National Park Service.
While the race is concentrated in Arlington and D.C., the Ten-Miler Expo — when runners can pick up their packets — is scheduled to take place at The St. James in Springfield on Friday through Saturday (Oct. 10-11). If the race is canceled, then the expo will be too, a public relations representative for the Army Ten-Miler confirmed to FFXnow.
Zimmerman said a final decision will be announced sometime today (Wednesday), though as of 5:25 p.m., the only update runners received was a confirmation that no decision had been made yet.
“If the In-Person Army Ten-Miler Race is cancelled, ATM will refund In-Person Army Ten-Miler runner registration fees, and Hooah Tent fees,” Zimmerman wrote. “Please note that most credit card processing fees are collected by Active Network and may not be refunded.”
If the race is called off, it would be only the second cancellation in the event’s 40-year history, the only other occasion coming after the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks, per the WBJ.
The federal shutdown in 2013 also jeopardized the Ten-Miler, but Congress ultimately passed a funding agreement that reopened government agencies in time for the race to proceed as originally planned.
