Angela Woolsey | FFXnow

Man challenges UVA track star to race at McLean HS, loss goes viral

Published January 8, 2024 at 1:30PM

McLean High School sign (file photo)

An impromptu race at McLean High School has gained some serious online traction.

University of Virginia track star Alahna Sabbakhan was visiting the school at 1633 Davidson Road for a straightforward workout, but then, a friend of her boyfriend claimed that he could beat her in a 400-meter race, despite not being a runner.

Countywide

Fairfax County NAACP president Michelle Leete has died

By Angela Woolsey

Published January 8, 2024 at 11:45AM | Updated January 8, 2024 at 2:18PM

Fairfax County NAACP President Michelle Leete has died (courtesy Fairfax County NAACP)

The current president and a long-serving member of the Fairfax County NAACP has died, the civil rights advocacy organization announced today (Monday).

The exact circumstances of Michelle Leete’s death weren’t addressed, but the organization described her passing as “sudden.”

News

Peter McCandless, killed in a crash at 87, helped introduce Reston to the world

By Angela Woolsey

Published January 8, 2024 at 10:30AM

Peter McCandless, 87, helped promote Reston when it was founded in 1964 (courtesy of the McCandless family)

Peter McCandless was living a full life of music, travel and work that he enjoyed when he was killed in a vehicle crash on Reston Parkway late last year.

Police reported that McCandless, 87, died on Dec. 26, 2023 after an SUV driver hit him while he was walking at the Market Street intersection. A preliminary investigation indicated that he was crossing from Reston Town Center to Stratford House, where he lived, according to his son, Kris McCandless.

News

Two arrested in months-long investigation of postal box thefts in Vienna area

By Angela Woolsey

Published January 8, 2024 at 9:30AM

A Vienna police car parked on Cherry Street (staff photo by Angela Woolsey)

Police have identified two teens as suspects in a spree of postal box thefts that began half a year ago with a mail carrier getting robbed and pepper-sprayed in Vienna.

A 19-year-old man and a younger teen were arrested Friday (Jan. 5) in the 3000 block of Borge Street in Oakton, announced the Vienna Police Department, whose detectives coordinated the search with the U.S. Postal Inspection Service and Fairfax County SWAT officers.

Countywide

NEW: Winter Weather Advisory issued for Fairfax County ahead of storm

By Angela Woolsey

Published January 5, 2024 at 2:15PM

Fairfax County could get up to an inch of snow and sleet during a winter storm on Saturday, Jan. 6 (via National Weather Service)

The season’s first winter storm is making its way toward the D.C. region, though the chances for serious snow in Fairfax County are iffy.

Instead, the county is expected to get a slushy mix of rain, snow and sleet, starting tomorrow (Saturday) morning. The precipitation could add up to an inch of snow and sleet accumulations, along with “a light glaze” of ice, according to a Winter Weather Advisory issued today by the National Weather Service.

Around Town

TGI Fridays closes Springfield restaurant for good

By Angela Woolsey

Published January 5, 2024 at 1:30PM

TGI Fridays has permanently closed its location on Frontier Drive in Springfield (staff photo by James Jarvis)

TGI Fridays has shuttered another Fairfax County location.

The chain’s restaurant in Springfield Commons at 6751 Frontier Drive permanently closed on Tuesday, Jan. 2, part of a slew of closures that took effect nationwide that day.

News

Reston Association urges members to fight expected casino bill

By Angela Woolsey

Published January 5, 2024 at 11:00AM

State Sen. Dave Marsden is expected to file legislation authorizing a voter referendum on a casino in Fairfax County for the 2024 General Assembly session (via Michał Parzuchowski on Unsplash)

State Sen. Dave Marsden (D-35) has yet to unveil his planned bill to authorize a casino in Fairfax County, but Reston Association is going all in to prevent it from becoming law.

Following up on a formal statement of opposition approved in October by the board of directors, RA CEO Mac Cummins released a letter to the organization’s members yesterday pledging to take “decisive action” to block the possibility of a casino, which he characterized as a potential threat to “the residential character of our community.”

News

GW Parkway construction to shift traffic to southbound lanes in McLean area

By Angela Woolsey

Published January 5, 2024 at 9:30AM

The new GW Parkway traffic pattern during weekday morning rush hours, starting Jan. 6, 2024 (courtesy NPS)

The GW Parkway’s northern section is on the brink of a new phase in its rehabilitation process.

Starting tomorrow (Saturday), construction on the George Washington Memorial Parkway in McLean will shift from the southbound lanes to the northbound ones between the Capital Beltway (I-495) and Route 123 (Chain Bridge Road).

Countywide

Fairfax Connector workers authorize strike as contract negotiations continue

By Angela Woolsey

Published January 4, 2024 at 3:00PM | Updated January 4, 2024 at 3:59PM

Fairfax Connector bus (file photo)

(Updated at 4 p.m.) Hundreds of Fairfax Connector workers could strike if contract talks between their union and employer break down.

Nearly a month after the end of their existing contract with Transdev, which operates Fairfax County’s public bus system, union drivers, mechanics and other employees voted on Dec. 29 to authorize a strike, the Amalgamated Transit Union (ATU) Local 689 announced yesterday.

News

Woman ordered to stop building ‘secret’ tunnel under her house by Town of Herndon

By Angela Woolsey

Published January 4, 2024 at 11:15AM

TikTok user Kala has been documenting the construction of a "secret tunnel" under her Herndon home since October 2022 (via engineer.everything/TikTok)

The Town of Herndon has shut down a resident’s months-long attempt to construct an elaborate tunnel system under her house.

Nicknamed “tunnel girl” by online followers, Kala shared in a Dec. 28 video that local officials have issued a stop-work order requiring her to suspend the “secret tunnel” project that she has been documenting on TikTok and, occasionally, YouTube since October 2022.