Angela Woolsey | FFXnow

County approves parking cut at West Falls Church Metro development

Published July 12, 2023 at 11:00AM

The proposed redevelopment of the West Falls Church Metro station property (via Fairfax County)

Fairfax County will ease up on its parking requirements for the planned redevelopment of the West Falls Church Metro station.

However, the 29% reduction in spaces that the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors approved yesterday (Tuesday) was lower than the 34% reduction requested by developers EYA, Rushmark Properties, and Hoffman & Associates, known as FGCP-Metro LLC.

News

Child hospitalized by car crash on Richmond Highway in Groveton

By Angela Woolsey

Published July 12, 2023 at 9:30AM | Updated July 12, 2023 at 2:59PM

Fairfax County police investigate a vehicle crash at Richmond Highway and Holly Hill Road in Groveton (via FCPD/Twitter)

(Updated at 3 p.m.) A child was taken to the hospital last night (Tuesday) after a car crash on Richmond Highway in the Groveton area.

Police and Fairfax County Fire and Rescue units were dispatched to the intersection of Richmond Highway (Route 1) and Holly Hill Road around 8:53 p.m., according to scanner traffic on Open MHz.

Around Town

Four restaurants with Fairfax ties honored at 2023 RAMMY awards

By Angela Woolsey

Published July 11, 2023 at 1:30PM

RASA, which opened a Mosaic District location in 2022, won the 2023 RAMMY award for Favorite Fast Bites (staff photo by Angela Woolsey)

Fairfax County residents don’t have to cross the Potomac to taste some of the best cuisine that the D.C. area has to offer, as decreed by the 2023 RAMMY awards.

Announced at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center in D.C. on Sunday (July 9), the annual honors from the Restaurant Association Metropolitan Washington (RAMW) feted four restaurants with ties to the Fairfax area — including three in Merrifield’s Mosaic District.

News

Proposed indoor pickleball facility in Tysons seeks to meet high demand

By Angela Woolsey

Published July 11, 2023 at 10:15AM

An indoor pickleball facility has been proposed for 8520 Tyco Road (via Pickleball Club of Tysons/Fairfax County)

A plan to bring pickleball to a warehouse near the Spring Hill Metro station in Tysons is starting to take more concrete shape.

The Pickleball Club of Tysons is seeking a special permit from Fairfax County to build an indoor pickleball facility with six courts at 8520 Tyco Road, an office and warehouse park just across the street from the Adaire apartments.

Countywide

FCPD reports decline in shoplifting during June crackdown

By Angela Woolsey

Published July 11, 2023 at 9:30AM

Shoplifting incidents in Fairfax County for 2023 (via FCPD)

Thefts at retail businesses in Fairfax County dropped sharply in June after spiking this spring, local police say.

The Fairfax County Police Department reported on Thursday (July 6) that there were 573 shoplifting offenses last month, down from 642 offenses in May and 603 in April. The department attributes the decline to its increased focus on retail thefts as part of a 2023 summer crime prevention initiative.

Countywide

Two FCPS graduates inch closer to MLB dreams as first-round draft picks

By Angela Woolsey

Published July 10, 2023 at 3:00PM | Updated July 11, 2023 at 8:04PM

Seattle Mariners draft pick Jonny Farmelo rounds the bases after hitting a home run with the Westfield Bulldogs (courtesy Westfield High School)

(Updated at 8 p.m. on 7/11/2023) Fairfax County Public Schools went 2-for-2 in Major League Baseball’s 2023 draft last night (Sunday), as a pair of its standout players snagged coveted first-round slots.

Ranked as the 23rd top prospect in the country by MLB, James Madison High School graduate Bryce Eldridge was selected by the San Francisco Giants as the 16th overall pick of the draft, thanks to his formidable skills as both a hitter and a pitcher.

News

Fourth of July house fire in Fair Oaks cost $1 million, fire department says

By Angela Woolsey

Published July 10, 2023 at 1:30PM

Fairfax County firefighters respond to a house fire in the 12300 block of Firestone Court in Fair Oaks (via FCFRD)

Damages from a house fire in the Fair Oaks Chase neighborhood on the Fourth of July topped $1 million, the Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department says.

Two people were displaced by the two-alarm fire in the 12300 block of Firestone Court, one of two house fires put out on a busy Tuesday night for the FCFRD.

Around Town

Arlington chef is bringing an all-American restaurant to McLean

By Angela Woolsey

Published July 10, 2023 at 10:15AM | Updated July 18, 2023 at 2:30PM

McLean's Neutral Ground Bar + Kitchen will serve American cuisine, such as a wood-fired double cut pork chop (photo by Johnny Autry)

(Updated at 2:30 p.m. on 7/18/2023) A restaurant with a name inspired by New Orleans street medians is coming to McLean.

Neutral Ground Bar + Kitchen from Arlington chef David Guas is set to open early next year at 6641 Old Dominion Drive, moving into the former Assaggi Osteria & Pizzeria space.

News

One pedestrian killed, another seriously hurt in weekend crashes

By Angela Woolsey

Published July 10, 2023 at 9:30AM | Updated August 14, 2023 at 10:50AM

A Fairfax County police car (file photo)

Pedestrians were casualties of two separate vehicle crashes this past weekend, Fairfax County police reported.

A 26-year-old pedestrian was killed early Saturday morning (July 8) in Bailey’s Crossroads by an apparently intoxicated driver, and then, early this morning (Monday), a man was taken to the hospital after a crash on Fairfax County Parkway and Stringfellow Road in Chantilly.

News

JUST IN: Man charged with hit and run after crashing into numerous vehicles on Capital Beltway

By Angela Woolsey

Published July 7, 2023 at 2:15PM

The scene of a multi-vehicle crash on I-495 from a traffic camera near Old Dominion Drive (via VDOT)

A Falls Church man has been charged with a hit and run after crashing into multiple vehicles on the Capital Beltway (I-495) in McLean yesterday (Thursday), bringing traffic during the afternoon rush-hour to a halt.

In footage from a Virginia Department of Transportation traffic camera shared by public safety blogger Dave Statter, the driver of a white van was captured plowing into several northbound vehicles and then jumping over the median to the interstate’s southbound lanes around 4 p.m.