Author: Scott McCaffrey

A Northern Virginia native, Scott McCaffrey has four decades of reporting, editing and newsroom experience in the local area plus Florida, South Carolina and the eastern panhandle of West Virginia. He spent 26 years as editor of the Sun Gazette newspaper chain. For Local News Now, he covers government and civic issues in Arlington, Fairfax County and Falls Church.

Countywide

Fairfax County looks to improve ambulance fee collections after contractor data breach

By Scott McCaffrey
Fairfax County Fire and Rescue ambulance (file photo)

A new audit report suggests ways Fairfax County leaders can improve collection rates and recoup more of the costs of providing ambulance services.

Even as that discussion starts, the county is working to collect payments for ambulance services provided last year after encountering problems with a contractor that left many bills in limbo.

Go to Fairfax County looks to improve ambulance fee collections after contractor data breach Read more
Countywide

Local leaders seek united front as D.C. region responds to economic upheaval under Trump

By Scott McCaffrey
D.C. Councilmember Charles Allen, Franconia District Supervisor Rodney Lusk and Charles County Board of County Commissioners President Reuben Collins at the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments' April 9, 2025 board meeting (via COG/YouTube)

Regional leaders seem to agree that they must cooperate and coordinate in an effort to blunt impacts of Trump administration’s gutting of the federal workforce.

But that may not be so simple in a region where jurisdictions across the D.C. metropolitan area typically have competed, rather than collaborated, to achieve economic development goals.

Go to Local leaders seek united front as D.C. region responds to economic upheaval under Trump Read more
Countywide

D.C.-area leaders pledge ongoing support as WorldPride festival hits hurdles

By Scott McCaffrey
Singer Alessia performs in front of the U.S. Capitol Building at the 2018 D.C. Pride Festival (courtesy Capital Pride Alliance)

Organizers of the WorldPride 2025 celebration coming to the D.C. region on May 31 through June 8 are reevaluating their attendance expectations, especially among international participants.

Event organizers have anticipated upwards of 2 million visitors for the LGBTQ community celebration, but with foreign travel to the U.S. plunging amid reports of visitors being detained and the Trump administration barring changes to the gender marker on passports, they may not meet that figure — another potential setback for an economy already facing multiple headwinds.

Go to D.C.-area leaders pledge ongoing support as WorldPride festival hits hurdles Read more
News

Planned ‘commuter path’ from Newington Road to Springfield Metro met with ongoing concern

By Scott McCaffrey
Cinder Bed Road Bikeway's proposed route (via Fairfax County)

After staying largely dormant since 2021, plans for a 2-mile bicycle/pedestrian path from the Franconia-Springfield Metro station south to Newington Road are back — as is opposition from some neighbors and advocacy groups.

Fairfax County officials in recent months have ramped up efforts to obtain easements from property owners along the planned route of the Cinder Bed Road Bikeway.

Go to Planned ‘commuter path’ from Newington Road to Springfield Metro met with ongoing concern Read more
Countywide

In stormy meeting, Fairfax leaders rip VDOT again on January snow cleanup

By Scott McCaffrey
Enterprise Avenue at Dewberry Court in McLean remains snowy and icy on Jan. 8, 2025 (courtesy Jennifer Myers)

Fairfax County supervisors piled on the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) yesterday, criticizing the agency’s response to the Jan. 6-7 snowstorm — and what local leaders saw as a seeming indifference to concerns raised about it.

“You failed miserably, [and] it doesn’t seem to me you have a plan to go forward. All you have are excuses, and I don’t want to hear excuses,” Mason District Supervisor Andres Jimenez said during a Tuesday (April 8) meeting of the Board of Supervisors’ Transportation Committee.

Go to In stormy meeting, Fairfax leaders rip VDOT again on January snow cleanup Read more
Countywide

DMV Moves task force might not deliver specific recommendations for future transit funding

By Scott McCaffrey
Metro logo (file photo)

A task force empaneled to look at strategies for making transit service in the D.C. region sustainable long-term might not, in the end, deliver specific recommendations on a funding mechanism.

“It is, at this time, I think, still up in the air,” Nick Donohue, a staff facilitator for the DMV Moves task force, told the Northern Virginia Transportation Commission (NVTC) Board of Directors last Thursday (April 3).

Go to DMV Moves task force might not deliver specific recommendations for future transit funding Read more
Countywide

Fairfax County apartment rents still rising, with Tysons leading region in cost

By Scott McCaffrey
Heming apartments in Tysons' Scotts Run neighborhood (staff photo by Angela Woolsey)

Year-over-year apartment rents continue to trend upward in Northern Virginia, even as fears of economic upheaval loom.

The growth also comes despite a national year-over-year decline in median apartment rental prices.

Go to Fairfax County apartment rents still rising, with Tysons leading region in cost Read more
Countywide

School board debates consistency versus individuality in FCPS graduation ceremonies

By Scott McCaffrey
Students at Langley High School's 2023 graduation ceremony (photo by Brian Trompeter/GazetteLeader)

Members of a Fairfax County School Board committee appear divided on whether high schools should adopt blanket rules and regulations for their graduation ceremonies, or whether each school should retain a degree of autonomy.

The matter arose as members of the board’s governance committee met Tuesday (April 1) to evaluate proposed updates to a host of Fairfax County Public Schools policies.

Go to School board debates consistency versus individuality in FCPS graduation ceremonies Read more
Countywide

Fairfax County police make jobs pitch to recruit displaced federal workers

By Scott McCaffrey
A Fairfax County police officer at the Mosaic District in Merrifield (staff photo by Angela Woolsey)

The Fairfax County Police Department has a message for those affected by the Trump administration’s downsizing of the federal government: Come check us out.

The department launched a dedicated recruitment initiative on Tuesday (April 1) “aimed at hiring experienced professionals seeking stable and rewarding career opportunities in public safety.”

Go to Fairfax County police make jobs pitch to recruit displaced federal workers Read more
News

Oakton nonprofit lands nearly $1M in grants to expand mental health support services

By Scott McCaffrey
HopeLink's Transition to Independent Process team meets about helping youth (photo courtesy HopeLink Behavioral Health)

An Oakton-based nonprofit has received two contracts totaling nearly $1 million to expand its support services for Northern Virginia residents with serious mental illness and substance-use disorders.

Announced yesterday (Tuesday), the contracts were awarded to HopeLink Behavioral Health by the state and Fairfax County governments.

Go to Oakton nonprofit lands nearly $1M in grants to expand mental health support services Read more
View More Stories