Angela Woolsey | FFXnow

Tysons consultant opens military tech engineering facility in Lorton

Published October 11, 2024 at 1:15PM | Updated October 11, 2024 at 3:27PM

Inside Booz Allen Hamilton's Lorton Flagship Engineering Facility (courtesy Booz Allen Hamilton)

Booz Allen Hamilton has expanded its Fairfax County footprint with the opening of an engineering facility in Lorton.

Launched last Tuesday (Oct. 8), the 23,250-square-foot facility near Fort Belvoir is the Tysons-based consultant’s third flagship engineering facility, joining the Pax River Mission Systems Integration Facility in California, Maryland, and a site in Panama City, Florida.

Around Town

Holiday pop-up shop to open at Tysons Corner Center this month

By Angela Woolsey

Published October 11, 2024 at 8:15AM

Creative Collective's holiday pop-up shop is returning to Tysons Corner Center (staff photo by Angela Woolsey)

Halloween is still lurking around the corner, but Tysons Corner Center has a treat in store for anyone who wants to get a head start on their Christmas shopping lists.

Returning to Tysons after a stint at Fair Oaks Mall in 2023, Creative Collective will open a pop-up holiday shop at the mall on Oct. 25, occupying a currently vacant space on the first floor across from Camp through Dec. 24.

News

Bicyclist killed in West Ox Road car crash, county’s first fatality since 2021

By Angela Woolsey

Published October 10, 2024 at 3:30PM

Southbound West Ox Road at Tilton Valley Drive (via Google Maps)

An Oakton man has died after he was hit by a driver while riding an electric bicycle in the Fair Oaks area yesterday (Wednesday), the Fairfax County Police Department said in a news release today.

Officers responded to the intersection of West Ox Road and Tilton Valley Drive at 12:14 p.m. for a crash involving a bicyclist who was struck by a gray Kia sedan, according to police scanner traffic.

News

McLean private school aims to break ground on renovation in 2025

By Angela Woolsey

Published October 10, 2024 at 2:30PM | Updated October 10, 2024 at 6:24PM

The Potomac School is gearing up to renovate the Middle School building on its McLean campus (courtesy The Potomac School)

If everything goes according to plan, the Potomac School will start building a new middle school next summer, its chief financial officer says.

After wrapping up advance utility work this summer, the private school took another step toward implementing the long-planned renovation on its McLean campus (1301 Potomac School Road) last month, filing an application with Fairfax County to allow temporary classrooms while the building undergoes construction.

News

Construction underway to remake ‘iconic’ Mount Vernon high school

By Angela Woolsey

Published October 10, 2024 at 11:15AM | Updated November 29, 2024 at 3:45PM

A sign indicates that construction is in progress on a renovation of the Original Mount Vernon High School (via Fairfax County government/YouTube)

Before breaking ground on an extensive renovation last weekend, Fairfax County officials and community members took a moment to reflect on the history contained within the walls of Mount Vernon’s original high school.

Located on a 22-acre property that was once part of George Washington’s estate, the main school building was constructed in 1939 under a Public Works Administration program intended to update public school facilities and boost the economy, according to its Virginia Historic Landmarks Register listing.

Around Town

Two Fairfax County restaurants rank among 40 best in D.C. area, WaPo critic says

By Angela Woolsey

Published October 10, 2024 at 8:15AM

The Burger at Neutral Ground Bar and Kitchen (courtesy Neutral Ground/Chonkey Cat Media)

The Washington Post has a new round-up of dining recommendations for the D.C. region, and two Fairfax County establishments made the cut.

Newington’s Afghan Bistro and Neutral Ground Bar and Kitchen in McLean are among the “40 Best Restaurants In and Around D.C.,” says the newspaper’s longtime food critic Tom Sietsema, whose annual fall dining guide published yesterday (Wednesday).

News

Route 29 lanes close for Fairfax County Parkway widening project

By Angela Woolsey

Published October 9, 2024 at 9:00AM

Fairfax County Parkway is being widened in the Braddock Road area (courtesy VDOT)

Route 29 is getting a couple of lanes narrower in the Legato area to support the ongoing expansion of Fairfax County Parkway.

From 9:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. today (Wednesday), construction workers will implement single-lane closures to reduce Route 29 from three to two lanes in each direction at the parkway interchange.

News

Machete-wielding man arrested after barricade in Merrifield, police say

By Angela Woolsey

Published October 9, 2024 at 8:15AM | Updated October 9, 2024 at 11:51AM

Fairfax County police say they found a machete in the vehicle of a man who had reportedly brandished it around a Merrifield neighborhood (courtesy FCPD)

A man reportedly spotted brandishing a machete in Merrifield was arrested yesterday (Tuesday) after five hours of negotiations with police.

According to the Fairfax County Police Department, officers were dispatched to the 2700 block of Livingstone Lane in the Merrifield at Dunn Loring Station apartments at 6:13 p.m. on Monday (Oct. 7) after a man called 911 to report someone with a machete.

Countywide

W&OD Railroad history collection donated to library for trail’s 50th anniversary

By Angela Woolsey

Published October 8, 2024 at 2:30PM | Updated October 8, 2024 at 4:18PM

Providence District Dalia Palchik, former NOVA Parks board member Barbara Hildreth and Hunter Mill District Supervisor Walter Alcorn look at historical photos of the Washington & Old Dominion Railroad (staff photo by Angela Woolsey)

The Washington & Old Dominion Trail’s history as a rail line was on full display yesterday (Monday) during the latest 50th anniversary celebration organized by the Northern Virginia Regional Park Authority (NOVA Parks).

After listening to local elected leaders, park officials and advocates reflect on the trail’s importance to the region, ceremony attendees could pore over old photographs of train stations and touch a rusted railroad spike, just steps from where the W&OD tracks once ran through the heart of the Town of Vienna.

Countywide

Fairfax County 911 dispatchers join Hurricane Helene relief efforts

By Angela Woolsey

Published October 7, 2024 at 1:45PM

911 dispatchers from Northern Virginia prepare to deploy to North Carolina for Hurricane Helene response (courtesy Fairfax County Department of Public Safety Communications)

Fairfax County’s 9-1-1 team is lending a hand to the ongoing emergency response to Hurricane Helene, which devastated the southeastern U.S., including parts of Virginia, in late September.

Four dispatchers with the county’s Department of Public Safety Communications (DPSC) deployed to North Carolina this morning (Monday) after getting a call for aid from their counterparts in that state, who have been working nonstop since the storm blew through the Carolinas on Sept. 27.