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 board cautious on conversion of industrial land to housing

By Scott McCaffrey
A warehouse with trucks in the Westfields area of Chantilly (staff photo by Angela Woolsey)

Land currently zoned for industrial use across Fairfax County could be converted to residential zoning in an effort to bring more housing stock to the county.

As part of a larger “Plan Forward” initiative started in 2022, Department of Planning and Development (DPD) staff have proposed amending the county’s comprehensive plan to allow more flexibility for industrial land to turn into residential development, while also retaining some designated industrial areas.

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Countywide

More clarity on funding options for Metro and other transit expected this month

By Scott McCaffrey
Metrobus (staff photo by James Jarvis)

By the end of this month, local residents should have a better idea of options on the table, as regional leaders attempt to find dedicated funding streams for transit service in the D.C. area.

“We do expect information to be shared” at the next meeting of the DMV Moves task force, Northern Virginia Transportation Commission (NVTC) Executive Director Kate Mattice told the commission’s board at a meeting last Thursday (March 6).

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Countywide

Fairfax County leaders get initial, hazy look at scope of federal government cuts

By Scott McCaffrey
Fairfax County Economic Development Authority president and CEO Victor Hoskins (screenshot via Fairfax County)

Recent actions by the Trump administration are heightening the urgency of the Fairfax County and the D.C. area’s longtime goal of reducing their reliance on federal government employment and spending.

With mass worker layoffs, contract cancellations and potential real estate sales promising significant economic upheaval, local and regional leaders may have no choice but to “think and act differently,” according to Northern Virginia Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Julie Coons.

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Countywide

Fairfax County meals tax would require new staff, funding to administer

By Scott McCaffrey
A meal at Silver Diner in Tysons (staff photo by Angela Woolsey)

Fairfax County will need to hire more than 20 new staff and spend about $2.8 million a year to administer a countywide meals tax, if one is authorized in the coming months.

Even with the additional expenses, overall revenue would far exceed the costs of administering the program, which would tax food and drinks served by restaurants and other food service establishments, staff told the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors at a budget policy committee meeting yesterday (Tuesday).

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Countywide

Cherry blossoms may boost Metro to a post-pandemic ridership high

By Scott McCaffrey
Visitors crowd the Tidal Basin for cherry blossom season in 2024 (staff photo by Angela Woolsey)

The D.C. region’s upcoming cherry-blossom season is expected to give Metro another boost as it continues a post-Covid rebound.

“If all goes to plan, we’re hoping for our first combined one-million-trip day since the onset of the pandemic,” Paul Smedberg, first vice president of the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA), said on Thursday (March 6).

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Countywide

Metro mulls banning people engaging in criminal behavior on its property

By Scott McCaffrey
An Orange Line train pulls into the Vienna Metro station (staff photo by Angela Woolsey)

Metro leaders are taking steps that could permit the transit agency to ban people from its property if they commit crimes or otherwise demonstrate what is deemed improper behavior.

The measure was first discussed publicly at a Jan. 30 meeting of the Metro Board of Directors’ safety and operations committee. An agency spokesman told FFXnow on Monday (March 3) that the discussion “remains ongoing.”

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News

Fairfax County board fast-tracks Tysons fire station planning process

By Scott McCaffrey
Rendering of planned Fire Station 29 in Tysons (via Fairfax County)

The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors agreed on Tuesday (March 4) to expedite the planning and zoning process for construction of a new Fire Station #29 at 8300 Jones Branch Drive in Tysons.

Acting unanimously, supervisors directed county staff to concurrently process a site plan and building plans for the facility while a proffer condition amendment is also being processed.

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Countywide

County accepts development pitches for review, though Dunn Loring church hits pause

By Scott McCaffrey
Vine Church in Dunn Loring (via Google Maps)

The trustees of a Dunn Loring church have pulled back a proposal that some day might see their 4.2-acre site redeveloped for multi-family housing with a child-care center and new worship space.

Trustees of the Vine Church, a United Methodist-affiliated congregation located at 2501 Gallows Road, had nominated the site to be considered for Fairfax County’s site-specific plan amendment (SSPA) process, which allows members of the public to propose land use changes.

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News

Fairfax City proposes real estate and meals tax increases to balance budget

By Scott McCaffrey
Fairfax City Hall with construction (staff photo by Angela Woolsey)

Homeowners in Fairfax City could face an average 16.9% increase in real estate taxes under the proposed fiscal year 2026 budget released Feb. 25 by City Manager Bryan Foster.

In order to meet increasing costs — especially for schools — Foster proposes increasing the city’s real-estate tax rate from $1.03 per $100 of assessed value to $1.125.

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Countywide

Democrats on Fairfax County board press Youngkin to oppose federal agency relocations

By Scott McCaffrey
Gov. Glenn Youngkin speaking at the Capital One headquarters in Tysons on Feb. 24, 2025 (staff photo by James Jarvis)

The Democratic majority on the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday (March 4) called on Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin to use his influence to lobby against potential moves of federal government agencies to areas outside the local region.

The Trump administration sent out a memo last week giving all federal department and agency heads until April 14 to submit proposals for relocating facilities outside the D.C. region to “less-costly parts of the country,” the Washington Post reported.

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