Before entering a new year, FFXnow took a look back on some of the stories that defined the past 12 months in Fairfax County.
A review of our most-read stories for 2025 suggests local impacts of federal government actions — specifically, the Trump administration’s mass layoffs and bid to move the Discovery space shuttle out of Udvar-Hazy Center in Chantilly — were top concerns.
The fate of King Abdullah Academy in the Herndon area also drew plenty of attention. Both the school’s closure and its subsequent acquisition by Fairfax County Public Schools made the top 20, along with a variety of restaurant-related news, quirkier stories about spotted lanternflies and the Fairfax County Park Authority’s resident curator program, and one FFXnow Reader’s Choice poll.
Here were the 20 most-read stories published by FFXnow in 2025:
- Report: Federal contractors in Tysons, Reston to lay off workers (94,036 views)
- New: Smithsonian directed to prepare Space Shuttle Discovery for relocation (71,265 views)
- Fairfax County looking for curators to live rent-free in historic former taverns (55,943 views)
- Three Fairfax County communities ranked among Best Places to Live in U.S. (55,256 views)
- CEO convicted in Fairfax County’s largest wage theft case (54,606 views)
- Four Fairfax County restaurants ranked among 10 best in Northern Virginia (43,551 views)
- As spotted lanternflies multiply, Fairfax urges residents to ‘smash on sight’ (37,896 views)
- Maggiano’s to close this fall at Tysons Galleria after nearly 30 years (36,885 views)
- Japanese grocery store aims for winter opening in Tysons (35,822 views)
- Updated: I-495 reopens after fatal multi-vehicle crash in Springfield (29,970 views)
- FCPS surprises with purchase of discontinuing Herndon private school (29,532 views)
- Saudi private school in Herndon to shut down, surprising families (29,498 views)
- Report: Housing costs force exodus of young families from Northern Virginia (28,441 views)
- Washingtonian ranks these Fairfax County restaurants among the D.C. area’s 100 best (28,065 views)
- Report: Reston-based company may lay off nearly 100 employees (27,667 views)
- Tysons Japanese grocery store set for grand opening this weekend (27,626 views)
- Smithsonian committed to keeping space shuttle in Chantilly despite relocation proposal (27,295 views)
- Poll: The best steakhouse in Fairfax County (27,011 views)
- Wonder food hall to open first Fairfax County locations this month (26,990 views)
- Piazza at Tysons development embraced as potential Route 7 game-changer (26,223 views)
This year also brought the introduction of FFXnow Press Club, our subscription option that allows readers to directly support our reporting and provides the site with a steady revenue source to supplement what we receive through advertising.
For a fee of $10 a month or $100 for a full year, members get a sneak preview of each day’s morning notes and planned stories as well as a version of the daily afternoon newsletter with larger photos, article summaries and no banner ads.
If you appreciated the stories above or any others we published this year, as the site editor, I’d encourage you to consider joining Press Club in 2026.
Whether you’re already a Press Club member, following our free daily newsletter or keeping up through some other means, the team at FFXnow is grateful for everyone who read our work, and we hope to continue earning your trust and support as a local news source in the coming year.
