Vernon Miles | FFXnow

Bus rapid transit route through Falls Church heads to review tonight

Published September 7, 2023 at 2:45PM

The Route 7 bus rapid transit service from Tysons to Alexandria (via NVTC/Twitter)

A new bus rapid transit (BRT) route could connect Alexandria and Tysons, and the golden spike in that project could be Falls Church.

The Northern Virginia Transportation Commission (NVTC) is reviewing a study of Envision Route 7’s impact on Falls Church. The study doesn’t make recommendations but provides analysis on how BRT might impact bus and car traffic in Falls Church.

News

Cirque du Soleil launches new nature-themed show at Tysons tonight

By Vernon Miles

Published September 6, 2023 at 11:30AM

Acrobatic performance in ECHOS (image via Cirque du Soleil)

The area around Tysons Galleria (8025 Galleria Drive) might be a little livelier than usual as Cirque du Soleil brings a new nature-themed show to Tysons tonight (Wednesday).

The new show, ECHO, launches tonight at 7:30 p.m. and will run every Wednesday-Sunday until Sunday, Oct. 22.

News

UPDATED: Weather cancels Fairfax Fiesta celebration of Hispanic heritage in Tysons

By Vernon Miles

Published September 5, 2023 at 2:00PM | Updated September 21, 2023 at 4:41PM

Updated at 4:40 p.m. on 9/21/2023 — Fairfax Fiesta has been canceled due to expected inclement weather, organizer Celebrate Fairfax announced today. Digital resources, including a passport to explore different cultures, are being planned instead.

Earlier: A new festival this month celebrates Hispanic culture in Fairfax County.

News

Alexandria karate studio battles Fairfax zoning to open dojo near Springfield

By Vernon Miles

Published September 1, 2023 at 11:30AM | Updated September 6, 2023 at 8:48AM

Richard Romero, founder of Seichou Karate (staff photo by Vernon Miles)

Things were looking up for Richard Romero, founder of Seichou Karate in Alexandria. The Old Town dojo is facing imminent closure thanks to redevelopment, but Romero finally found a new home just northeast of Springfield.

But, like a crane kick at the end of a karate championship, Romero said some surprising zoning issues have cropped up that could spell trouble for plans to open Seichou Karate at 5710 General Washington Drive.

News

One of Vienna’s most dangerous intersections could be getting a fix this year

By Vernon Miles

Published August 31, 2023 at 2:15PM

Nutley Street and Maple Avenue (image via Google Maps)

At a Vienna Town Council meeting this week it was revealed that, with any luck, work could start on overhauling one of the town’s most dangerous intersections before the year’s end.

The Vienna Town Council voted unanimously on Monday, Aug. 28, to approve construction services and management for improvements to the intersection of Maple Avenue and Nutley Street.

News

Robert Hanssen, double agent who used Vienna park as dead drop site, dies in prison

By Vernon Miles

Published June 6, 2023 at 10:15AM | Updated June 22, 2023 at 1:11PM

Robert Hanssen, former Vienna resident and convicted spy (image via FBI)

Spy Robert Hanssen, a former Vienna resident who passed along secrets to the Soviet Union and Russia via a nearby park, died yesterday (Monday) in a Colorado federal prison.

Hanssen, 79, was an FBI counterintelligence agent who was sentenced to life in prison in 2002 for passing classified information to Soviet (later Russian) intelligence.

Countywide

With evictions fueling homelessness, Fairfax County explores options to stop them

By Vernon Miles

Published May 31, 2023 at 3:30PM

Writs of eviction issued in Fairfax County (image courtesy Department of Housing and Community Development)

After a recent study showed an uptick in homelessness, Fairfax County staff say that data connects pretty cleanly to a matching rise in evictions over the last year.

The county saw a 10% increase — 119 people — in people experiencing homelessness for an estimated total of 1,310 people.

Countywide

Fairfax County is pushing to make parking lots and streetscapes greener

By Vernon Miles

Published May 25, 2023 at 3:30PM

Trees shade a local street in Tysons (staff photo by Angela Woolsey)

Fairfax County’s parking lots and streetscapes could look a little greener.

At a land use policy committee meeting on May 16, planning staff proposed a new update to the county’s landscaping and screening ordinance — the first major change in 40 years — that would make developers add more green landscaping to more parking lots and street frontages.

Countywide

Fairfax County leaders aim to crack down on housing discrimination

By Vernon Miles

Published May 19, 2023 at 11:45AM

A rally to extend the moratorium on rent evictions in front of the Alexandria Courthouse on Wednesday, July 1, 2020. (Staff photo by James Cullum)

For years, Fairfax County leaders have been using carrots to encourage property owners to adhere to the county’s Human Rights Ordinance. Now, some of them want to start using the stick.

During a meeting on Tuesday (May 16) discussing the Metropolitan Washington Regional Fair Housing Plan, staff laid out how Fairfax County fits into a regional push for more affordable housing and better protections for residents.

Countywide

Fairfax County grapples with staying appealing to developers and funding transportation projects

By Vernon Miles

Published May 16, 2023 at 3:30PM

Reston Row is under construction (staff photo by Angela Woolsey)

Fairfax County government staff said a proposal (action item 3) that aims to right-size how much developers pay for their transportation impacts could negatively affect funding for local projects.

Currently, developers have to pay to offset their transportation impact of added density if the development exceeds the limits established in the comprehensive plan for areas like Tysons, Reston or Centreville.