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. 

Countywide

Fairfax County board suspends Flock camera installations, as criticism grows in N. Va.

By Mary Stachyra Lopez
An automated license plate reader (staff photo by Angela Woolsey)

Amid a growing national backlash to automated license plate readers (ALPRs), Fairfax County leaders want to take a closer look at their partnership with Flock Safety, the country’s leading provider of the controversial cameras.

In response to “hundreds of emails” sent by residents to their offices in recent weeks, county supervisors, led by Board Chair Jeff McKay, voted unanimously yesterday (Tuesday) to pause the installation of new Flock cameras by the Fairfax County Police Department.

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News

FCDOT seeks input on bus route changes in Springfield area, including new Tysons service

By Mary Stachyra Lopez
A Fairfax Connector bus passes Springfield Plaza (staff photo by Angela Woolsey)

The Fairfax County Department of Transportation (FCDOT) is considering a number of service changes for its Fairfax Connector bus system next spring, including cutting four routes due to low ridership and adding new limited-stop service between the Tysons and Franconia-Springfield Metro stations.

In advance of the service changes, which are concentrated in the Franconia and Springfield area, FCDOT will host two virtual community information meetings: one on Sept. 23 at noon, and another on the same day at 7 p.m. Residents can also leave feedback via an online survey that will be open through Sept. 30.

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Countywide

UPDATED: Fairfax supervisors restore crossing guard funding after residents rally for action

By Scott McCaffrey, Mary Stachyra Lopez and Angela Woolsey
Group of people protesting outside a modern office building, some holding signs and chatting in daylight.
Hunter Mill District School Board Representative Melanie Meren speaks at a rally to call for crossing guard funding on Sept. 15, 2026 outside the Fairfax County Government Center in support of restoring crossing guards (staff photo by Mary Stachyra Lopez)

The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors voted today (Sept. 15) to restore funding for crossing guard services at a number of public high schools.

The board unanimously approved a fiscal year 2026 budget carryover review package that included $707,908 in funding and 11 full-time police positions to restore coverage of 11 crossings at 10 high schools for the remainder of fiscal year 2027, which began on July 1 and will end on June 30, 2027.

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News

Centreville’s 41-acre Trinity Centre office park could be replaced with housing

By Mary Stachyra Lopez
Rendering of a modern dark-gray mixed-use building with glass storefronts on the ground level and residential floors above.
A multifamily residential building in Stanley Martin Homes and JLB Partners' proposed Trinity Centre redevelopment (via KTGY/Fairfax County)

Two developers are hoping to build a significant amount of new housing on a 41-acre area in Centreville that is currently home to four office buildings.

On the heels of Fairfax County approving an updated long-term vision for a large part of the Centreville area, affiliates of developers Stanley Martin Homes and JLB Partners filed a rezoning application in early September offering two options for redeveloping the Trinity Centre office park.

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News

Fairfax City Council can now discipline members under newly adopted code of ethics

By Mary Stachyra Lopez
The sign in front of Fairfax City Hall (staff photo by Mary Stachyra Lopez)

The Fairfax City Council voted last week to adopt a formal code of ethics that would allow members to impose sanctions such as a formal censure or loss of seniority for violations.

The new 18-point code of ethics lays out standards for personal and professional behavior applicable to council members, the mayor, and appointed members of boards, committees, and commissions. Broadly speaking, it covers aspects of members’ relationships with one another, conduct in private and in public, and emphasizes their responsibility to act as stewards of the public interest, independent of personal gain.

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Countywide

FCPS officials warn funding cuts likely needed with difficult budgetary year ahead

By Mary Stachyra Lopez
Fairfax County School Board logo (staff photo by Vernon Miles)

Like the county government, Fairfax County Public Schools is preparing for a challenging financial year ahead — one that could require further reductions to staffing and other cuts.

With spending commitments for fiscal year 2028 outweighing anticipated revenue, the school board and superintendent will need to identify cost savings and potential reductions, according to FCPS Chief Financial Officer Leigh Burden.

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News

Fairfax City Council gets preview of three mixed-use development proposals

By Mary Stachyra Lopez
Front view of a HomeStore building in a parking lot, with several cars and white vans in the foreground and a blue Fairfax Circle Center banner on a pole to the left.
The Home Store Furniture building in the Fairfax Circle Shopping Center (staff photo by Angela Woolsey)

Some of the latest development proposals underway in the City of Fairfax include an 11-story building that would be among the tallest in the city, and an office building that may include “live-work” units.

During a work session on Sept. 1, council members got a preview of three new developments that would bolster the city’s housing supply. The pre-application hearings gave the property owners and developers an opportunity to hear feedback from the council and make adjustments before officially submitting their initial plans.

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Around Town

Fairfax-area Anytime Fitness finds new home after closing earlier this year

By Mary Stachyra Lopez
Man in black athletic wear poses outside a storefront with Anytime Fitness banners reading 'Coming Soon' and gym services listed in the window.
Owner Brian Samuel outside the University Mall Anytime Fitness (Courtesy Brian Samuel)

Since the Fairfax-area branch of Anytime Fitness closed its doors this spring, its owner has been sprinting to set up a new location for members this year.

The finish line is now in sight — just down the road from the gym’s old address in the Twinbrooke Shopping Center.

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News

UPDATED: Man shot wife, then himself at their Centreville home, police say

By Mary Stachyra Lopez
Two police officers with grey uniform shirts stand in front of a red tape line in a parking lot.
Fairfax County Police Department officer Ingrid Palencia, a public affairs officer, leads a press conference in a Centreville neighborhood after a shooting on Sept. 9, 2026 (via FCPD/Facebook)

The shooting deaths of a Centreville husband and wife are believed to be a murder-suicide, the Fairfax County Police Department confirmed today (Sep. 10).

Officers were dispatched to the 6300 block of Sharps Drive after a family member living in the same residence called 911 to report the shooting around 5:30 p.m. yesterday.

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News

Fairfax City plans voter information meetings on sales tax referendum

By Mary Stachyra Lopez
Election sign on a yellow stand along a sidewalk reads 'VOTE HERE' and 'PRECINCT 1' with a left arrow, directing voters to a polling location.
A precinct sign on election day in Fairfax City (Staff photo by Mary Stachyra Lopez)

When Fairfax City voters go to the polls in November, they’ll be asked to grant approval for a general retail sales tax increase of up to 1% for construction and renovation of school and/or public transportation purposes.

To give voters the details they need to decide, City of Fairfax Public Schools will host a series of informational meetings about the referendum, starting this week.

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