Author: Mary Stachyra Lopez

Mary Stachyra Lopez is a staff reporter covering business, public safety, education, and other community issues. She covered Northern Virginia news for years at several media outlets, and spent half a decade as an editor on The Atlantic's audience team before joining Local News Now. 

Around Town

German Doner Kebab to open first Va. outpost in Idylwood this week

By Mary Stachyra Lopez
Storefront of a German Doner Kebab restaurant with a large red GDK sign above the entrance and glass doors showing posters in the windows.
German Doner Kebab is opening soon at 7121 Leesburg Pike, Unit B, in Idylwood (staff photo by Angela Woolsey)

A doner kebab chain with more than 170 locations across the globe is opening its first Virginia restaurant in Fairfax County this weekend.

German Doner Kebab (GDK) will host its grand opening celebration at 11 a.m. Oct. 3 in Idylwood just outside Falls Church City (7121b Leesburg Pike Ste R2), the restaurant recently announced via a social media post.

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News

School board bans Flock-style license plate readers on FCPS property

By Mary Stachyra Lopez
Sign for Fairfax County Public Schools with logo and the text ‘Gatehouse Administration Center, 8115 Gatehouse Road’.
The sign in front of Fairfax County Public Schools’ Gatehouse Administration Center (file photo)

The Fairfax County School Board voted unanimously Thursday (Sept. 24) to ban the use of Flock cameras and other automated license plate readers (ALPRs) on school property.

The motion, introduced by at-large member Kyle McDaniel and seconded by Springfield District representative Sandy Anderson, prohibits the “installation, procurement, or leasing” of ALPRs on property owned by the school board. It has no impact on the school system’s internal video cameras, speed cameras or school bus stop-arm cameras.

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News

Man sentenced to 18 years in attempted child exploitation case

By Mary Stachyra Lopez
The Albert V. Bryan U.S. Courthouse in Alexandria (staff photo by Angela Woolsey)

A man who repeatedly tried to exploit a purported 14-year-old — who was actually an undercover Fairfax County police officer — for lewd images and sex last year was sentenced to 18 years in prison earlier this week.

According to court records, Mario Alexander Bonilla Canales, 50, was found guilty of attempted coercion and enticement of a minor and attempted sexual exploitation of a child during a two-day bench trial held in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia in June.

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News

Pandemic-inspired ‘Circles of Memory’ memorial unveiled in Fairfax

By Mary Stachyra Lopez
Public park with a glossy glass office building in the background and blue perforated cylinder sculptures in the foreground.
The new “Circles of Memory” memorial near the Herrity Building. (staff photo by Mary Stachyra Lopez)

Fairfax County marked the installation of its newest public artwork, conceived several years ago as a way to honor local residents lost to COVID-19, with a ceremony attended by a small crowd of people yesterday (Sept. 23).

“Circles of Memory,” located near the county’s Herrity Building and Public Safety Headquarters in Fairfax, was envisioned as a way to memorialize local people lost in the pandemic; in 2024, according to county zoning records, its purpose was expanded to also provide an area of “respite, reflection and remembrance in support of the mental health well-being” of the public and first responders.

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News

Fairfax animal shelter, operating on reduced space, asks residents to help pets find homes

By Mary Stachyra Lopez
Tabby cat with yellow eyes lying on a paw-print blanket inside a small enclosure in a kennel/basket area.
Pouncestep, a male tabby cat, is among the pets available for adoption at the Fairfax County Animal Shelter. (Courtesy Fairfax County Animal Shelter)

With the Fairfax County Animal Shelter’s Michael Frey campus closed for renovations for the next several months, conditions are getting a little cramped at its Lorton location.

To help more than 60 pets find their forever homes a little more quickly, Fairfax County Animal Services is partnering with the BISSELL Pet Foundation to waive all adoption fees during an “Empty the Shelters” event this weekend, from Friday (Sept. 25) through Sunday (Sept. 27).

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News

Driver to be sentenced for manslaughter in 2025 Herndon shooting death

By Mary Stachyra Lopez
Red brick Fairfax County Courthouse facade with three arched windows and the sign Fairfax County Courthouse atop, framed by leafy branches in the foreground.
Fairfax County Circuit Court (Staff photo by Mary Stachyra Lopez)

A McLean man will be sentenced in Fairfax County Circuit Court this week after pleading guilty to voluntary manslaughter in the 2025 shooting death of a man in Herndon.

Kianmehr Shirinipaziziba, now 20 years old, was initially charged with second-degree murder in the death of 39-year-old Jason Hann.

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Countywide

Former DOJ prosecutor seeks to unseat Commonwealth’s Attorney Steve Descano

By Mary Stachyra Lopez
Professional woman in a black blazer, smiling, with bookshelves in the background.
Brittany Dunn-Pirio (courtesy Friends of Brittany Dunn-Pirio)

Former state and federal prosecutor Brittany Dunn-Pirio announced today that she will challenge Commonwealth’s Attorney Steve Descano for the Democratic nomination in the June 2027 primary election.

Dunn-Pirio, a resident of the Vienna area, says she’s a “lifelong Democrat” who wants to reform the office. According to her website, her platform “centers on standing up for seniors and survivors, expanding access to treatment, protecting the right to a fair trial, and above all, restoring competence Fairfax can trust.”

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News

Fairfax County World War II veterans celebrate triple-digit birthdays

By Mary Stachyra Lopez
Two elderly men in separate vertical photos hold plaques with the word "Resolution" in large red font. The gentleman on the left is wearing a "World War II veteran" baseball cap and a polo shirt; the gentleman on the right is wearing a sweater.
World War II veterans Dan Palenski and Ed Kesler (Staff photos by Mary Stachyra Lopez)

Ed Kesler and Dan Palenski may have been born a thousand miles apart, but they have a few things in common: Both are celebrating birthdays this fall, and both were recently honored by Fairfax County for their service in World War II.

Kesler, a Rose Hill resident, is turning 101 on Nov. 26, while Palenski, a resident of the Greenspring Senior Living Community in West Springfield, is turning 100 on Oct. 17.

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Around Town

Month-long celebration of the arts returns to Fairfax in October

By Mary Stachyra Lopez
Four musicians perform on an outdoor stage in front of a bright yellow mural with flowers and a hummingbird, playing banjo, mandolin, guitar, and upright bass.
A band performs at the inaugural Mason Arts Festival. (Courtesy ArtsFairfax)

For the second year in a row, Fairfax County’s designated nonprofit arts agency is hosting a month-long celebration of the arts — and this time, there will be twice as many opportunities to join in the festivities.

Organized by ArtsFairfax, the “artoberVA” initiative will offer residents a variety of ways to enjoy the visual, performing, literary and culinary arts. More than 60 discounts and events from over 40 artists and organizations in Fairfax city and county are planned throughout October.

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Around Town

‘Dog Krazy’ pet shop to open in Chantilly’s Sully Plaza

By Mary Stachyra Lopez
Retail storefront with brick columns and a colorful flower bed in front; signs read 'Retail space for lease' and '2,400 SF'.
The site of the new Dog Krazy franchise in Sully Plaza. (Staff photo by Mary Stachyra Lopez)

A Fredericksburg-based specialty pet supply store plans to open its tenth location in Chantilly — its first in Fairfax County — this fall.

Dog Krazy, a franchise founded in 2006 by Nancy Guinn, will open at 13932 Route 50 in Sully Plaza. In addition to food and supplies for both dogs and cats, the 2,400-square foot store will offer self-service dog washes and grooming.

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