Angela Woolsey | FFXnow

Morning Notes

Published March 2, 2022 at 7:30AM

A Shell gas station and car wash on Franconia Road in Rose Hill is going to be replaced with a 7-Eleven, per permit applications (staff photo by Brandi Bottalico)

Expanded DMV Service Starts Today — “The Virginia DMV will offer both appointments and walk-in service Monday through Friday at all 75 locations starting Wednesday, March 2, Secretary of Transportation Shep Miller said in a news release. Walk-in service will still be an option at some offices on Saturdays.” [WTOP]

Local Students Learn About Russia-Ukraine Conflict — A political science and current affairs class at Langley High School has turned Russia’s invasion of Ukraine into a central topic of discussion. Teacher David Kuhn says his students, some of whom have lived in Russia, have shared “perspectives…beyond what their [years] would indicate.” [WUSA9]

Countywide

Cirque du Soleil will return to Tysons this summer

By Angela Woolsey

Published March 1, 2022 at 2:15PM

Cirque du Soleil is bringing its show "Kurios" to Tysons this summer (courtesy Cirque du Soleil)

The circus is coming back to Tysons.

Cirque du Soleil announced yesterday (Monday) that it will erect its Big Top tents in Lerner Town Square (8025 Galleria Drive) near Tysons Galleria on July 29, marking its first appearance in the D.C. area in three years.

Countywide

Court ruling on Thomas Jefferson High School admissions changes draws mixed reactions

By Angela Woolsey

Published March 1, 2022 at 1:30PM

Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology (via Google Maps)

A federal judge’s ruling that recent changes to the admissions process for Fairfax County Public Schools’ prestigious magnet school were discriminatory has inspired both praise and condemnation.

As first reported by The Washington Post, U.S. District Judge Claude M. Hilton issued an opinion on Friday (Feb. 25) finding that the elimination of a standardized test and other alterations to how students are admitted into Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology (TJ) were made “to the detriment of Asian-Americans.”

Countywide

Fairfax County should rename Lee and Sully districts, committee says

By Angela Woolsey

Published March 1, 2022 at 11:15AM

The Sully District Governmental Center (via Google Maps)

A committee appointed to guide Fairfax County’s redistricting process last year will recommend that two of the county’s magisterial districts get new names.

In a draft report released on Feb. 22, the Redistricting Advisory Committee (RAC) says that the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors should consider renaming Lee and Sully districts as part of its ongoing effort to move away from place and landmark names with historical ties to the Confederacy or slavery.

News

Tysons West developer plans to turn former Sheraton hotel into housing

By Angela Woolsey

Published March 1, 2022 at 9:45AM

A conceptual rendering of developer JBG Smith's proposed repurposing of Sheraton Tysons Hotel as housing (via JBG Smith/Fairfax County)

After giving travelers shelter for more than three decades, the now-shuttered Sheraton Tysons Hotel (8661 Leesburg Pike) could soon become home to hundreds of permanent residents.

Property owner JBG Smith wants to turn the 22-story building and its parking garage into a 544-unit multifamily residential tower with up to 5,000 square feet of ground-floor retail, according to a rezoning application submitted to Fairfax County on Feb. 14.

Countywide

Morning Notes

By Angela Woolsey

Published March 1, 2022 at 7:30AM

A Metro rider uses an updated fare gate at the Vienna Metro station (staff photo by Angela Woolsey)

Reminder: Old Metro Cards Stop Working Today — “SmarTrip cards purchased before 2012 are no longer compatible with new, faster, modern faregates already installed in many stations. In an announcement more than 10 months ago, Metro advised customers that the old cards would need to be replaced as stations are equipped with new faregates.” [WMATA]

County Circuit Court Ends Mask Requirement — Fairfax County Circuit Court Chief Judge Penny Azcarate announced yesterday (Monday) that masks will be optional to enter the Courthouse effective immediately in accordance with the county’s new policy. Rules in courtrooms “are at the discretion of the presiding judge.” [Circuit Court]

Countywide

With Covid transmission now ‘low,’ Fairfax County drops mask mandate

By Angela Woolsey

Published February 28, 2022 at 3:00PM

A sign indicating that a face mask should be worn (via Waldemar Brandt/Unsplash)

For the first time since early August, face masks are no longer required for staff or visitors inside most Fairfax County facilities.

County Executive Bryan Hill shared the news in an email to all local government workers yesterday (Sunday) after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention introduced new metrics for measuring community COVID-19 transmission levels on Friday (Feb. 25).

Countywide

Youngkin: Security company to add 180 jobs in $2.6M Tysons expansion

By Angela Woolsey

Published February 28, 2022 at 1:30PM

Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin announces Alarm.com expansion in Tysons in February 2022 (staff photo by Jay Westcott)

Gov. Glenn Youngkin made his first official appearance in Fairfax County as Virginia’s chief executive today (Monday).

The property security provider Alarm.com will expand its technology research and development division in Tysons with a $2.6 million investment, creating 180 new jobs, Youngkin announced at the company’s headquarters (8218 Greensboro Drive).

News

Vienna Police seek to introduce body cameras with federal relief funds

By Angela Woolsey

Published February 28, 2022 at 9:00AM | Updated February 28, 2022 at 1:29PM

The police department is working with a company to automatically review body-worn camera footage

(Updated at 1:30 p.m.) The Vienna Police Department plans to institute a body-worn camera program, a practice that has gone from rare to commonplace in the D.C. region just within the past half-decade.

Police will request the Vienna Town Council’s approval tonight (Monday) to use $223,732 in federal relief funds for a five-year program that would equip all 41 of its sworn officers with cameras, according to the agenda for the council’s meeting.

Countywide

Morning Notes

By Angela Woolsey

Published February 28, 2022 at 7:30AM

Angelika Film Center and Cafe in the Mosaic District (staff photo by Angela Woolsey)

FCPS Will Start COVID-19 Rollback Plan Tomorrow — Masks will be optional for both students and adults, including staff and parents, in Fairfax County Public Schools after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention changed its health metrics so that the county is now considered to have low transmission. FCPS said on Friday (Feb. 25) that masks would be optional for students, as ordered by a state law, but still mandatory for adults. [FCPS]

Judge Calls TJ Admissions Discriminatory — The Coalition for TJ on Friday (Feb. 25) won its lawsuit against the Fairfax County School Board over changes to admissions process for Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology. The judge found that the shift from a standardized test to “experience” factors was done in a way discriminatory to Asian applicants. The school system intends to appeal. [The Washington Post]