Good Tuesday evening! Today we published 7 articles that were read a total of 9085 times on FFXnow alone, so far.
📈 Top stories
The following are the most-read articles for today (Sep 26, 2023)…
- Lidl launching new Tysons grocery store next week
- Bailey’s Crossroads man arrested for online threats of violence against church
- Report: Comstock wants a casino in Reston, but state legislation still needed
📅 Upcoming events
Here is what’s going on Wednesday in Fairfax County, from our event calendar.
- No events today. Have one to promote? Submit it to the calendar.
🌦️ Wednesday’s forecast
There will be patchy drizzle and isolated showers before 8am, followed by mostly cloudy conditions throughout the day, reaching a high temperature near 65. A northeast wind of 8 mph can be expected. During Wednesday night, it will remain mostly cloudy with a low temperature around 53 and an east wind of 7 mph. See more from Weather.gov.
🌅 Tonight’s sunset
Thanks for reading! Feel free to discuss the day’s happenings in the comments.
German-owned grocery chain Lidl is almost ready to unveil its brand-new location in the heart of Tysons.
Next week, the chain is opening a new store in Pike 7 Plaza (8387 Leesburg Pike) with a pair of events.
An “open house” is scheduled for Tuesday, Oct. 3, from 5-7 p.m. The event will be open to all ages, with face painting for children and a chance for community members to tour the store and sample wares.
Lidl officially opens on Wednesday, Oct. 4. The store will launch with a ribbon-cutting ceremony at 7:45 a.m., followed by special offers on a first-come, first-served basis.
“The first 100 customers in line before the store opens at 8:00 a.m. will receive a special gift card ranging from $5 to $100 each,” Lidl said in a release. “Shoppers can also sample Lidl’s award-winning assortment and take advantage of special giveaways.”
The store will be open from 8 a.m.-9 p.m. every day.
Lidl is also pushing its “myLidl” membership program. The release said $1 will be donated to the nonprofit Capital Area Food Bank for every new member who signs up and sets the new store as their home page.
Lidl has been expanding its presence in Fairfax County recently, adding locations in Chantilly, McLean and Lorton over the past two years. The grocery store can also be found in Merrifield, Fairfax, Burke, Springfield and Lincolnia.
Elsewhere in Pike 7 Plaza, construction has begun on a new, standalone building for Shake Shack in the southeastern corner of its parking lot. The restaurant will feature a “drive-up” window and support curbside pickups.
Good Monday evening! Today we published 7 articles that were read a total of 9063 times on FFXnow alone, so far.
📈 Top stories
The following are the most-read articles for today (Sep 25, 2023)…
- Woman convicted again of killing mother and sister in McLean in 2017
- Fairfax Station man dies after two-vehicle crash on Ox Road
- Police: Pedestrian killed on Capital Beltway ramp to Route 50
📅 Upcoming events
Here is what’s going on Tuesday in Fairfax County, from our event calendar.
- No events today. Have one to promote? Submit it to the calendar.
🌧️ Tuesday’s forecast
Rain is possible before 9am followed by intermittent drizzle and fog until noon, with a cloudy day ahead and a high near 62°F. Winds will be from the northeast at 7-10 mph, and there’s a 30% chance of precipitation. Tuesday night, expect patchy drizzle with a chance of rain until 9pm, drizzle until 3am, and fog until 2am. The night will be mostly cloudy with a low of 54°F, a northeast wind at 7-9 mph, and a 30% chance of precipitation. See more from Weather.gov.
🌅 Tonight’s sunset
Thanks for reading! Feel free to discuss the day’s happenings in the comments.
Tysons Galleria’s commitment to serving up high-end retail continues with the recent arrival of three new clothing stores.
A boutique from Italian fashion house Dolce & Gabbana is now open on the second floor near Balenciaga, the mall announced earlier this week on Instagram.
Measuring 4,004 square feet in size, per Fairfax County permits, the store sells handbags, shoes and other accessories. It also offers tailoring and styling services, along with complimentary soft drinks, according to the store website.
This is Dolce & Gabbana’s second Tysons location, joining a boutique inside Nordstorm at Tysons Corner Center.
Tysons Galleria has also added Alo Yoga, which made its Virginia debut with an opening on Sept. 15. Located on the first floor near Sweetgreen, the store sells clothes, sneakers and other yoga-related accessories, such as mats and towels.
Founded in Los Angeles in 2007, the company says it aims to create comfortable yet stylish clothes that are equally suited for working out or walking down the street. Its website includes photos of celebrities like model Gigi Hadid and singer Taylor Swift sporting its outfits.
Alo offers yoga classes at some of its stores, including one in Georgetown. The Tysons Galleria store doesn’t have a studio, but it will host events, according to a press announcement.
“Try on the latest styles and experience luxe, signature fabrications and exceptional fits in-person, or attend our in-store community events to learn more about wellness practices from breathwork to ear seeding with experts,” the company said.
Finally, the knitwear-focused fashion house St. John opened a boutique at Tysons Galleria yesterday (Thursday), a public relations representative for the mall confirmed.
The boutique operates from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday to Saturday and from noon to 5 p.m. on Sunday.
Founded in 1962 and headquartered in California, St. John has just 33 stores worldwide, but its clothes are also sold through other retailers. The company’s products can be found in Tysons Galleria’s Neiman Marcus and at Nordstorm and Bloomingdale’s in Tysons Corner Center.
Located at 2001 International Drive, Tysons Galleria is typically open from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Saturday and from noon to 6 p.m. on Sunday.
Another fast food option will soon be open in Great Falls.
Jersey Mike’s Subs is slated to open in at Seneca Corner (1024 Seneca Road) tomorrow (Sept. 23). The store will be open from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. every day.
The opening will kick off with a day of giving in support of Lowes Island Elementary School. All sales on opening day will be donated, according to the company.
Franchise owner Chris Brown said he wanted to support students and start the school year off on a strong note.
“Jersey Mike’s has maintained community involvement as its core value since the very beginning, and it is in that spirit that we’ve decided to donate all opening day sales, not just profit, to Lowe’s Island Elementary School,” Brown said. “We couldn’t think of a better way to announce to the community that we are here, and we want to help, all the while serving up the best submarine sandwiches.”
Items on the menu include cold and hot subs, with options like ham and provolone and California chicken cheese steak.
Jersey Mike’s has more than 2,500 locations across the country.
The sub shop will join CVS and Domino’s Pizza at Seneca Corner. A Five Guys is also slated to open in the newly constructed shopping center sometime this year.
Good Thursday evening! Today we published 9 articles that were read a total of 7805 times on FFXnow alone, so far.
📈 Top stories
The following are the most-read articles for today (Sep 21, 2023)…
- Police make arrests in Tysons Corner Center shoplifting cases
- Fairfax County Courthouse nears launch of Virginia’s first self-help resource center
- Wiseguy Pizza coming to former Big Buns location in Herndon
📅 Upcoming events
Here is what’s going on Friday in Fairfax County, from our event calendar.
- 12:00 am: Car Free Day 2023
🌥️ Friday’s forecast
Expect a partly sunny day with a high temperature near 74°F and a northeast wind of 6-15 mph, gusting up to 18 mph. On Friday night, rain is likely after 3 am, with cloudy conditions and a low near 57°F. The wind will blow from the northeast at 11-14 mph, gusting up to 20 mph. There is a 70% chance of precipitation, and new rainfall amounts could range between a tenth and a quarter of an inch. See more from Weather.gov.
🌅 Tonight’s sunset
Thanks for reading! Feel free to discuss the day’s happenings in the comments.
Here in Fairfax County, real estate is a spectator sport. Let’s take a look at some of the most and least expensive townhouses sold last month (August 2023).
Most expensive townhouses sold
- 5708 Cricket Place — McLean — $1,800,000 (4 beds | 4.5 baths | 4,014 sq. ft.)
- 7228 Magpie Ln — Idylwood — $1,315,000 (4 beds | 3.5 baths | 2,448 sq. ft.)
- 7003 Eastern Red Cedar Ln — McLean — $1,300,000 (3 beds | 3.5 baths | 3,274 sq. ft.)
Least expensive townhouses sold*
- 8704 Walutes Cir — Mount Vernon — $230,500 (2 beds | 1 baths | 966 sq. ft.)
- 9635 Hagel Cir Unit D — Lorton — $278,000 (3 beds | 2 baths | 1,344 sq. ft.)
- 9725 Hagel Cir Unit 45/D — Lorton — $320,000 (3 beds | 2 baths | 1,344 sq. ft.)
*Minimum home value of $200,000 set to exclude certain land sales, retirement condos, properties with expiring ground leases, etc.
The Reston Multicultural Festival — which was set for this Saturday (Sept. 23) at Reston Town Center — has been canceled due to inclement weather.
The annual festival, which is organized by Reston Community Center, will not be rescheduled. With a tropical storm projected to make landfall in the mid-Atlantic, high winds, cool temperatures and heavy rain are expected from around 11 p.m. Friday through Sunday morning.
“With artists, vendors, community organizations, and event staff and volunteers coming from various areas affected by this tropical storm, organizers do not want to put people at risk of injury in trying to reach or attend the festival,” RCC said in a statement. “People are urged to stay off the roads on Saturday. This annual event is cherished by the community, and event planners appreciate everyone’s understanding that people’s safety is their highest priority.”
RCC said it was thankful to Reston Town Center Association and host BXP for their help in coordinating the event. Reston Association also provided support.
This year would have been the organization’s largest festival to date, with additional performance stages and strategic partnerships with national organizations.
“The partnership among these civic, nonprofit and business organizations allowed for the most ambitious Reston Multicultural Festival plan ever. All partners are looking forward to 2024 and doing it again under sunnier skies,” the organization wrote.
A Darden and Friends concert will still take place as scheduled at 5:30 p.m. tomorrow (Friday) in the Pavilion at Reston Town Center, according to RCC.
(Updated at 4:35 p.m.) Merrifield’s Mosaic District is bringing its “Films in the Park” screening series back for the fall — this time, with three times more Lin-Manuel Miranda.
While the live recording of “Hamilton” on Broadway remains walled off on Disney Plus, the prolific Tony, Grammy and Pulitzer Prize winner wrote songs for three out of the four featured movies, including tonight’s opener, “Encanto.”
In contrast, this summer’s edition of the outdoor movie series had just one film — “Moana” — with contributions from Miranda. The three-month lineup also highlighted recent blockbusters like “Top Gun: Maverick” and “Puss in Boots: The Last Wish.”
The Mosaic District describes this as a “special fall edition” of the series to celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month, which lasts from Sept. 15 to Oct. 15.
The full schedule is below, with each screening starting at 6 p.m. in Strawberry Park:
September
- Sept. 21 — Encanto (2021, 1h 42m, PG)
- Sept. 28 — Vivo (2021, 1h 35m, PG-13)
October
- Oct. 5 — In The Heights (2021, 2h 23m, PG-13)
- Oct. 12 — Coco (2017, 1h 45m, PG-13)
The U.S. has observed National Hispanic Heritage Month since 1988. Intended to recognize the cultures, histories and contributions of the country’s Spanish, Caribbean, and Central and South American residents, the occasion began as Hispanic Heritage Week in 1968 before expanding to a full 30 days.
Fairfax County was planning its first-ever festival to celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month this Saturday (Sept. 23) at the PARC at Tysons (8508 Leesburg Pike). However, the Fairfax Fiesta has been canceled due to expected inclement weather, including “heavy rain, high winds and uncomfortably cool temperatures.”
“We received a tremendous outpouring of interest from the community to participate and attend this event,” Celebrate Fairfax, which organized the event, said. “…Safety is our highest priority for the artists, vendors, community organizations, elected officials, event staff and volunteers scheduled to set up, break down, and participate in the event.”
The similarly named Fiesta Fairfax in Fairfax City, however, will go on. Originally set to take place this Saturday in Old Town Square, the event has been relocated indoors to Old Town Hall (3999 University Drive).
Expect more music and food, along with other kinds of live entertainment and “educational exhibits,” according to the city’s website.
About 17.3% of Fairfax County’s population identifies as Hispanic, as of the 2020 Census, which found that the county’s growing Asian and Latino communities had turned it into the second most racially diverse county in Virginia.
Wiseguy Pizza is slated to replace Herndon’s Big Buns Damn Good Burgers.
Big Buns closed its location at 1142 Elden Street on Sept. 4 — less than a year after opening in late 2022.
Both restaurants are brands of Thompson Hospitality.
Thompson Hospitality Chief Operating Officer Alex Berentzen says the company chose to pivot to Wiseguy Pizza because of the location’s proximity to another Big Buns five miles away at Reston Station. There is also a Big Buns close to Chantilly in the Franklin Farm Village Center.
“This strategic move aligns with our commitment to expanding our dynamic portfolio throughout the DMV region,” Berentzen wrote in a statement. “Additionally, this particular location is ideally suited for Wiseguy Pizza, as their performance excels in venues with limited seating and grab-and-go capabilities.”
Wiseguy is expected to open in the fall. The restaurant serves cheese, pepperoni and specialty pizzas, including vegetarian, vegan and gluten-free options.
This will be Wiseguy Pizza’s first location in the Fairfax County area. Started in 2012 by a Turkish immigrant who sought to bring a New York City-style pizzeria to D.C., the business can currently be found in the District and Arlington. It will arrive in Maryland this month with a stall in the Wheaton Mall food court.
