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 leaders request exemption for Potomac River if Va. declares drought emergency

By Scott McCaffrey
Difficult Run opens to the Potomac River in Great Falls Park (staff photo by Angela Woolsey)

Fairfax County leaders are asking Gov. Abigail Spanberger to take into account the local area’s unique circumstances if a drought emergency needs to be declared in Virginia.

The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday (June 23) authorized Chairman Jeff McKay to send a letter to Spanberger, laying out concerns of local leaders and Fairfax Water officials.

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News

Construction begins to restore wetlands at Gateway Regional Park

By Scott McCaffrey
The Gateway Regional Park picnic area (staff photo by Angela Woolsey)

Construction work is underway on a summertime effort to reinvigorate Gateway Regional Park in the City of Fairfax.

Avon Corp., which received the contract for the project, has started work that’s expected to run through September. The park will remain closed through November for the construction and subsequent fall plantings, according to NOVA Parks, which manages the site.

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Countywide

Fairfax County government may round change up or down as pennies become scarce

By Scott McCaffrey
Artwork of a penny (via Sebastian Enriquez/Unsplash)

Fairfax County leaders are about to take steps to address the likelihood of an increasing penny shortage in the nation’s future.

At its meeting today, the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors authorized a public hearing on Tuesday, July 14 to consider revisions to how change is provided to those paying by cash for local government services.

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News

Feedback sought on future of Pinn, Huntington community centers

By Scott McCaffrey
Huntington Community Center (via Fairfax County)

Community engagement sessions are on the horizon to gather public input on the future of the David R. Pinn and Huntington community centers.

Both centers are slated to close as county-run facilities after the summer. Fairfax County officials say a combination of a challenging budget environment and declining attendance trends led to the decisions.

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Countywide

NVTA: Local buy-in needed to turn vision of N. Va. bus rapid transit network into reality

By Scott McCaffrey
Alexandria City Council member Canek Aguirre discusses proposed Route 7 bus rapid transit at June 2026 open house (staff photo by Scott McCaffrey)

A network of about two dozen bus rapid transit (BRT) systems could be running through the local region in coming decades.

But the effort won’t succeed without buy-in from local governments, a top transit leader told the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors on June 16.

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News

New trail along I-495 in McLean to open this week with community fun run

By Scott McCaffrey
New shared-use path along I-495 in McLean (courtesy VDOT)

A community celebration is set for this coming Saturday, June 27 to mark the opening of a new shared-use bicycle and pedestrian trail adjacent to the Capital Beltway (I-495) in McLean.

A joint effort of the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) and Transurban, the trail is one of the final multimodal features of the 495 Express Lanes Northern Extension (495 NEXT) project, which extended the interstate’s toll lanes past the GW Parkway in McLean and updated seven bridges.

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Countywide

Real estate leaders seek creativity from Fairfax County to reduce excess office building stock

By Scott McCaffrey
A vacant office building formerly occupied by Inova Health System at 2990 Telestar Court in Merrifield is being converted to affordable housing (staff photo by Angela Woolsey)

Further reductions in Fairfax County’s office building inventory are needed, but the commercial office sector is not a dinosaur destined for extinction, industry officials say.

“We’re seeing our existing tenants … beginning to need more space,” Barry Bass, a cofounder of the real estate investment firm Silverline Equities, told the Board of Supervisors’ Council for Economic Opportunity on Tuesday (June 16).

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News

As Inova continues expanding, CEO urges Fairfax to streamline development process

By Scott McCaffrey
Construction work on Franconia-Springfield campus (via Inova Health System and Fairfax County)

Inova Health System’s CEO used a recent roundtable discussion with the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors and business leaders to connect his organization’s growth to broader quality of life across the region.

Health care is “the job engine and in many ways economic engine” of Northern Virginia, Dr. J. Stephen Jones said at yesterday’s meeting of the county’s Council for Economic Opportunity.

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News

Great Falls has Virginia’s priciest ‘starter’ homes, new data reveals

By Scott McCaffrey
Houses in Great Falls off Georgetown Pike (staff photo by Angela Woolsey)

A Fairfax County community tops the list as Virginia’s most expensive place to purchase a starter home.

Great Falls is one of 242 communities nationally where the typical entry-level home costs $1 million or more, according to a new analysis from Zillow.

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Countywide

Revised charter aims to give more sports a place on Fairfax County Athletic Council

By Scott McCaffrey
Players engage in a match at the Pickleball Club of Tysons (staff photo by Angela Woolsey)

Changes to membership on the Fairfax County Athletic Council could give a seat at the table to representatives from a wider array of sports.

The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors on June 9 approved the body’s first significant charter change since 2004, slightly adjusting slots on the 23-member council.

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