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.

News

Transformation of Merrifield office park to mixed-use housing approved

By Scott McCaffrey
Brick sign reading “PROSPERITY at merrifield” with a white circular geometric logo, set against green trees.
A sign for the Prosperity Business Campus in Merrifield (staff photo by Angela Woolsey)

The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors has approved plans for redeveloping the 40-acre Prosperity Business Campus, located between the Mosaic District and Dunn Loring Metro station, in Merrifield.

Developer EYA has proposed two options for replacing the existing office park: one with about 1,700 residential units or another with about 1,900 units. Both would include a small amount of retail space and more than 5 acres of publicly accessible parks.

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News

Development plan for Reston Town Center North wins final approval

By Scott McCaffrey
Aerial rendering of a mixed-use development with labeled blocks, streets, and a central green park area.
Illustration of the Reston Town Center North concept plan (via LandDesign/Fairfax County)

The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday (Sept. 15) approved the framework for a major future redevelopment of the 46.6-acre Reston Town Center (RTC) North, allowing the county and Inova Health to move forward with long-sought plans for mixed-use and public facilities.

The action paves the way for the eventual construction of about 1,000 units of new housing, retail and office space. The redevelopment will also deliver a central park, a new recreation center, and replacements for Reston’s regional library and Embry Rucker Community Shelter, which would be accompanied by supportive housing.

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News

Groveton Elementary, Mount Vernon Hospital reach milestone anniversaries

By Scott McCaffrey
Front view of Groveton Elementary School—brick building with the school name on the facade, a clear blue sky, and a parking lot with handicap signs and cones in front.
Groveton Elementary School (staff photo by Angela Woolsey)

Fairfax County supervisors celebrated milestone anniversaries yesterday (Tuesday) of an elementary school and a community hospital, with proclamation presentations slated for later in the year.

County supervisors honored the 150th anniversary of Groveton Elementary School (6900 Harrison Lane).

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News

Fairfax chairman advises neighbor locality to think carefully about governance changes

By Scott McCaffrey
Board Chair Jeff McKay (screenshot via Fairfax County)

Jeff McKay has some neighborly advice for a next-door locality considering changing its governance structure.

“There is no perfect model. There are nuances to every one of these structures,” the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors chair said at a Sept. 9 forum.

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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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Countywide

Sluggish August home sales in Fairfax may portend a softer fall market

By Scott McCaffrey
A for sale sign for a house in Vienna coming soon to the market (staff photo by Angela Woolsey)

Fairfax County saw a slight decline in home prices and a more substantial drop in overall sales in August, as buyers pulled back in the wake of increased interest rates.

According to one key regional analyst, that could be the precursor to a sluggish remainder of the year.

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News

Candidates for Virginia’s 8th District offer mixed views on tackling AI, data centers

By Scott McCaffrey
Two men in suits sit at a panel table, with a microphone between them; left man has gray hair and blue tie, right man is bald with glasses and a red tie.
8th District U.S. House of Representatives candidates Don Beyer and Tony Sabio (staff photo by Scott McCaffrey)

Rep. Don Beyer (D-8) and his three challengers expressed wariness of data centers and artificial intelligence in a recent debate that kicked off the eight-week sprint to Election Day.

But several of the contenders also warned against rushed efforts to corral the emerging technology at the expense of the good it could provide.

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Countywide

Data centers hurting efforts to curtail greenhouse gas emissions, D.C. region leaders told

By Scott McCaffrey
CoreSite's Reston data center campus (staff photo by James Jarvis)

The Washington region will likely fall well short of its goals to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and the rise of data centers is the prime culprit.

With just four years to go, the region is less than halfway toward meeting agreed-upon emissions reduction targets by 2030, according to new data presented by the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments (COG) on Wednesday (Sept. 9).

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News

Environmental group honors Del. Sullivan for work on clean energy, data centers

By Scott McCaffrey
Man in a gray blazer speaks into a handheld microphone at a public event, with a banner in the background.
Del. Rip Sullivan, D-6 (staff photo by Scott McCaffrey)

A Fairfax County legislator on Sept. 1 was honored by the Virginia League of Conservation Voters for his work on clean energy legislation and addressing the impacts of data centers.

Del. Rip Sullivan (D-6) was one of six General Assembly members awarded by the group for their legislative leadership during the 2026 session.

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Countywide

Fairfax Connector, CUE see drops in ridership despite broader N. Va. transit growth

By Scott McCaffrey
Yellow and red Fairfax Connector bus stopped at an intersection with a police car beside it; destination sign reads '427 Farm Credit' on the front. A Capital One Center bus stop sign is in the foreground.
A Fairfax Connector bus on Scotts Crossing Road in Tysons (staff photo by Angela Woolsey)

Local bus networks serving both Fairfax County and Fairfax City posted year-over-year passenger declines in fiscal year 2026, even as transit usage increased more broadly across Northern Virginia.

Fairfax Connector saw a drop of 1.1% and Fairfax City’s CUE service was down 4.5%, according to data from the Virginia Department of Rail and Public Transportation as analyzed by FFXnow.

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